A neighbor gave me an easy-reading fiction book called A Tiny Bit Marvellous by Dawn French. We could all use a bit of “marvellous-ness” in our lives, right? Its a British comedy about any normal family that has an impossible teenage daughter and a gay teenage son. I am sure we can all relate in one way or another. It has made me grin because the mother in the family goes on multiple tirades regarding normal family catastrophes and worries – such as birthday parties when her kids were little. (Yes, it starts even before Kindergarten and it gets competitive.) Which mom can throw the best birthday party? Who has the best entertainment? Who found the PERFECT party favors? (You know there’s always that one mom that hits the nail on the head year after year.) That’s when all of us regular moms throw in the towel.
The funny thing is that 6 months ago, planning a birthday party for Ava was a huge daunting task for me – and I tried to make it as simple as possible for myself. (The kids all went swimming at LifeTime and a dear friend Malene did the gift bags for me. All I did was show up.) The doctors can’t say how long I had leukemia before I was diagnosed, but I probably had it back in May (which is when Ava’s birthday is.) That’s where all my energy was going. The good part? I feel like I could plan a birthday party right now. I have a lot more energy and stamina. Maybe Grady’s party can reap the benefits of how good I feel these days! Oh wait, his birthday is 2 days before Christmas. He almost always gets screwed out of a birthday party because its so close to the holidays. #MomFail – I shouldn’t have had him so close to Christmas.
My mom left Monday morning back to her regular life in Florida. (Back to The Villages – a huge master-planned retirement community, a Disneyland for adults. Just ask her and she will tell you ALL about it.) So, for two days now, I’ve been back on kid-duty. You don’t know how good it feels to know you can operate in your normal life after you’ve been in the hospital for 2 months. You get very insulated (and possible bed sores) when you are laying in a bed all day for that long. But, we’ve made it to school 2 mornings in a row and they weren’t left at school yesterday afternoon. (This afternoon is still up for grabs.) In all seriousness, it may not seem like a big accomplishment, but in my life right now, it is.
I head to the doctor later this week for blood work and to schedule my next round of chemo – which will put me back in the hospital. As of now, doctors plan on giving me 4 rounds of maintenance chemo. The maintenance chemo lasts for 5 days and I should be able to come home inbetween treatments as long as there are no complications or fevers.
Well, I am off to clean bathrooms and do laundry – more parts of everyday life. It may seem boring, but to me, its MARVELLOUS that I can do these things! Oh and if you have ideas for a 4-year-old birthday party, let me know. I just realized it is about a month away…poor kid! I’ll get it right one of these years!
Mandy's Mission - AML Can Kiss My A$$ 