Next Surgery

I've got my schedule for the next (and final!) surgery. It's going to be on November 28. Another Wednesday. The Monday before I'll have a chest xray, lab, pulmonary function test, ultrasound of my leg, and a ct scan. It'll be one busy day. The following day is when I meet with my surgeon and the anesthesiologist. I will find out that Tuesday afternoon what time my surgery will be. So that's it. I'll be able to have a great Thanksgiving and should be recovered in time to really enjoy Christmas. Surgery is only 4 weeks away. Can't wait to do all this over again. Yeah, right. Anyway, that's all the info I have for right now. I'll keep you posted when I get anymore news.

Happy Halloween!

Happy Halloween everyone! Tonight, Jeff is working the night shift again, so if anyone has access to NASA tv, he can sometimes be spotted on it. You have to look for the space station control room and his desk is at the left, front. He's wearing a green shirt tonight. Erin and I are going over to a friends house a block over from us. We're going to hand out candy to all the trick or treaters in the neighborhood. Should be fun. I can't wait to see what the costumes will be. I think Bromley is already excited. He's been barking randomly all afternoon. Anyway, hope everyone has fun tonight and be careful!

More beautiful days...

Yesterday was another beautiful day in League City. Jeff's parent's were still in town, so we went to a few stores in the afternoon. Jeff has been working the night shift since there is a mission going on, so after he woke up, we ate lunch and then took the dogs to Challenger 7 park. It was a nice day and the dogs really enjoyed getting out in the fresh air. There is a nice boardwalk that leads to a marshy area so we sat and enjoyed the view for awhile. After that, we had a nice steak dinner and Jeff was off to work again.

Jeff's parents left this morning, so I'm on my own again. I'm feeling really good these days. Still having some pain, but nothing I can't handle. I'm still not able to drive or lift anything heavy, though. Those are my only limitations. Tomorrow is Halloween and I'm pretty excited about that. I love this holiday! Jeff won't be here to help my hand out candy, so I'm still working out a plan of attack! I can't handle the dogs and handing out candy by myself. I'll let you know what I decide to do.

Anyway, that's all for now. I hope everyone is having this great weather too. It's lovely!

A beautiful day in League City

Today was so pretty here. We went to League City park where they were having their Harvest Festival. There were some craft booths, none that were all that great. But this afternoon, they had a dog costume contest. So of course, I had to enter Bromley. Jeff's mother and I fixed his Halloween costume from last year to fit him. It was very big on him, but we sewed it so it was smaller on his head. He was Frankenstein, and I was sure he would win. But it was not meant to be. He was beaten by Sir Barks a Lot, a chihuahua dressed like a knight and a tiny poodle dressed as a punk rocker, dyed hair and all. We couldn't compete with that. Next year we'll have something very cool so he can win. Maybe we'll even enter Maggie. If she had her astronaut costume on she would have won. Hopefully between now and next year, I can find her another one. There is another costume competition coming up in a few weeks that I want to go to. It's called Woofstock 2007 and sponsored by the Bay Area SPCA. Sounds like fun so we're going to look into it. The website is www.BayAreaSPCA.org if anyone else is interested.

Healing nicely

Everyday I'm feeling better and better. Yesterday, my mom and I went shopping all day long. We left the house at 10:15 and didn't get home until 5:00! I can't believe I lasted that long. I was pretty tired though when we got home. It was nice to get out. I definately got my exercise. My mom left this morning and Jeff's parent's arrived around 3:00 this afternoon. They're here to babysit me for the rest of the week. I'm getting around ok, but I can't drive or lift anything heavier than 5-10 pounds. Thankfully, I don't have to go back to the doctor anytime soon, either. I don't have to see my surgeon again until right before my next surgery. We're thinking that it's probably going to be the week after Thanksgiving. That way I'll be healed nicely for Thanksgiving and Christmas. That's what I'm hoping for anyway.

Well, I'm pretty sleepy, so I'm headed off to bed now. More later...

Breakthrough!

Good news! My eyebrows and eyelashes are starting to grow back! I have half my eyebrows over my left eye and one eyebrow over my right eye. But now they are growing back. I can feel very tiny fuzzies coming in and I also have a blueish hue where my eyebrow line is. I have one eyelash left on my right eye, none on the left eye, but now you can see very tiny lashes starting to grow in, all at once on both eyes. I'm so excited! Anyway, just wanted to pass on the good news.

First night at home

Just wanted to let you know how my first night at home went. We got home yesterday afternoon around 3pm. We ate a late lunch at home. It was just Taco Bell, but it tasted wonderful compared to the hospital food! I took a long nap on the couch. So nice to be able to sleep and not be interrupted. When I woke up, I wasn't feeling very well, very nauseous. But I didn't exactly know why. I could have been hungry (I'm kinda weird like that, if I'm very hungry, I get nauseous), it could have been the medicine I'm taking or something else. But I choked down some chicken noodle soup and felt a somewhat better. But that feeling didn't last very long. I threw up about 45 minutes later. I felt ALOT better after that and then ate some apple pie! We went to bed shortly after that. I slept good during the 4 hour intervals I had between taking my medicine. Jeff was very sweet to me and woke me up every 4 hours and handed me the pills a glass of water. I slept until 8:45 this morning! It was wonderful sleeping in my own bed. We made breakfast tacos for breakfast and they were great. I then rested on the couch and dosed off and on. Jeff went to work, so my mom is staying with me. My pain has been under control for the most part. I'm getting used to it. It mainly is just really sore. I can still do the exercises I'm supposed to so that's all the matters.

Did anyone see the awesome LSU game this Saturday night? Unfortunately, we had to watch it in the hospital room on a very tiny tv and had to be pretty quiet since it was late at night and I had neighbors in both rooms next to me. But boy was it great. Thank goodness, cause it could have easily been very, very bad if that last pass was dropped. But the Gods were watching down on Tiger Stadium that night. Anyway, enough about that. More to come later...

Home Sweet Home

Just a quick post to let everyone know we have been discharged from the Hospital and are now resting at home! Lauri had all of her tubes, catheters, epidurals, and IVs disconnected yesterday, and was under observation as the pain team tried to manage her pain with oral medications. They were successful today, using both Norco (combo of Hydrocodone & Acetaminophen) and Oxycodone. We were sent home with presciptions for these two drugs, along with Ibuprofren.

Lauri is feeling good (who wouldn't, with the pain meds she's got, right??). Seriously, she has been doing great, and she is now resting comfortably. Perhaps now she can catch up on the rest she needs!

Recovery, Day 3

Well, so far Saturday has been a big day. I slept pretty good last night. I was itching due to the pain medicine I was getting, so I got some benedryl to help relieve that. As most of you know, the side effect of Benedryl is drowsiness, so I got a few hours of good sleep. I had to sleep with the nasal cannula on and apparently I didn't like it very much because at 2:30 am I was woken up by two nurses rushing into my room asking if I was OK. My nasal cannula somehow ended up underneath me and my oxygen saturations were falling below 90. (Normal is 90-100). I don't remember taking if off, but I did it a few times last night. Anyway, I don't need it anymore. They even took off the pulse oximeter, the thing they put on your finger to tell you how much oxygen your blood is getting. Yeah for that!

I also got my chest tube and catheter removed!!! I didn't realize how painful the chest tube was. It's awesome not having it in. Plus it's one less thing I have to tie me down. I have to leave the chest tube dressing on for 48 hours, then I can take it off. After that I can take a shower!!! (I'm taking sponge baths now) I should also get my iv out this afternoon. I get one more dose of iv pain meds, then I will be done with my iv. All things I'm looking forward too. I still have the epidural in place, but it's not hooked up to anything. I'm getting shots of heparin, so they wanted to wait four hours after that before they take out any lines which cause bleeding. Then I will be able to put on a real nightgown. These hospital gowns are terrible! If anyone wants to be something sexy for Halloween, you should wear one of these. Everything you want covered always pops out somehow and somewhere it shouldn't! Plus, it's backless. I guess it's legal to flash in the hospital. Anyway, that's my two cents. Let me know if anyone wants to wear it for a costume. I can sneak one home in my bag. No one will notice.

I guess that's all for now. I'm waiting for my wonderful lunch of grilled cheese. I've never had it before, so I hope it's good. If anything else happens, I'll post again. Until then...

Day 2 of recovery

Hi All! It's Lauri. I figured I would post since Jeff was gone all night and all day. My mom spent the night with me and all day. I had a much better night. Still up pretty often, but I got some good chunks of uninterrupted sleep. They finally got my pain under control. Besides the epidural with the pca pump (I can press the button and give myself a little extra medicine), I'm getting another medicine every 6 hours, round the clock, plus a pain patch on my shoulder. I had to have a little oxygen last night (2 liter nasal cannula) because my oxygen saturation would fall every time I fell asleep. It's off right now, we'll see if I need it tonight when I go to sleep. Hopefully I won't need it. I still have the chest tube. I'll probably get that taken out tomorrow. Once that's out, the epidural and catheter come out as well. Then home the day after that! So we're looking at probably Sunday when I get to come home.

Overall, I was less drowsy today. Again, they finally figured out the right dose of pain medicine. I had a much better day today. I was up more today, walking around the nurses station and sitting in the chair in my room. I've been doing my respiratory exercises like I'm supposed to, so I can prevent pneumonia. I've seen so many doctors today! Starting at 7:30 this morning until 4:30 this afternoon. My clinical oncologist showed up this morning to check on me, 2 surgeons, numerous pain doctors and nurses. It's been crazy! Anyway, that's about all. Thanks for the phone calls and prayers. They are working. That's all for now...

Recovery Day 1

Lauri was out of the bed and walking today. She has been walking laps around the nurses station about three times a day, beginning today. She is very tired, barely able to keep her eyes open. She actually falls asleep in the middle of doing things (she is already lying down of course), which gives me and her mother a good laugh... You may find that cruel, until you witness it yourself... Just imagine you are about to do somethi...zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

Anyway, the Anesthesiologists are continuing to try to find the right dose of pain medication for Lauri. They do not want to give her too much like they had before, but we also don't want to have too little. They are converging on a solution with the epidural, and have been using IV pain medications when the pain gets to be a little too much. On the whole, Lauri has been in little pain. She usually feels uncomfortable when she has to do her breathing excercises and walks. Can't imagine why that is...

We saw the Surgeon again this morning. He says Lauri's lung is healing nicely. He hopes to be able to remove her chest tube (used to drain fluid from the surgical area) as soon as tomorrow evening, but more likely on Saturday.

Lauri got some good rest today and will hopefully get some more tonight. Last night the alarms and beeps from her medication pumps kept us both up nearly all night. Hopefully things work out better this evening.

Surgery 1 Success!

It was a long day, but Lauri has come through her first surgery so far with flying colors! Our Surgeon was able to remove the tumor while minimizing the amount of lung tissue he had to take. He also found no other tumors in the left lung...a REALLY good sign!

Lauri went into the operating room for surgery around 11:00am, and she was finished by 12:30pm. She had an extended stay in the recovery room, waiting as she woke up from the anesthesia. Lauri has a Thoracic Epidural for pain, which numbs the nerves in chest area of the body. This is different from a lower lumbar epidural which is commonly given to pregnant women at childbirth. Lower Lumbar epidurals are generally more potent since they must cover both the lower back as well as the woman's...uh...lower front. Anyway - you get the picture...

Lauri's epidural was actually a little too good. After surgery in the recovery room, Lauri noticed that the numbness extended from her chest into her fingers. The anesthesiologist backed off the epidural dosage and used other pain medications via IV as they recalibrated the epidural dosage. No big deal, all is fixed now. The extended stay in the recovery room was due primarily to the epidural issues. Lauri has plenty of pain medications and she is feeling good with little to no pain.

The Surgeon used a "Wedge Resection" to remove the tumor. Basically, think of this as a pie slice of the lung, with the tumor in the middle of the pie slice. This approach leaves behind as much healthy lung tissue as possible. The Surgeon did NOT have to take the entire lower lobe of the lung, which is really good news. Further, the Surgeon could not find any other tumors in the left lung. This is great news because it raises our chances of being completely cancer free for life once the surgeries are complete.

Lauri is on a clear liquid diet until tomorrow, at which point she can begin having "other liquids." Eventually, perhaps by the second day, she will be able to eat regular food again.

I know those reading this blog and many others had been praying for Lauri's health and a successful surgery. I want to tell you thank you so much for your prayers, there is no doubt that they led to the great success and blessings God has given us today. I also ask that you keep up the good work, we have one more round to go. And for that matter, we still have difficult days ahead as Lauri recovers from major lung surgery.

Lauri and I were supported today by her Mom, Dad, Stepmom, Sister and her family. They were all a great help in keeping us all in good spirits throughout the day.

As I was writing this note, Lauri actually got out of bed (with the nurse's help) and is sitting up for the first time since surgery! It's amazing how quickly they have her getting up and around. We may actually go walking later tonight. We'll see!

Finally, for those who would like to send flowers, I wanted to let you know that it is generally MD Anderson's policy to not allow flowers or plants to be delivered to the patient's room. This is due to possible fungal spores that may come with the plant or the soil that could cause infection in the patient. I would recommend holding off on sending any flowers or anything like that until after we have left the hospital and are at home.

That's about it for now. I will provide updates as they come along...

Surgery Time

Quick update. I have to check in for surgery at 9:45 am tomorrow morning. I'm guessing I'm second on the surgery schedule since I don't have to be there at the crack of dawn (thank goodness!). It'll take about 45 minutes to an hour for them to prep me for surgery (intubated, epidural, etc.). So surgery will probably start around 11ish. I should be in surgery for about 2.5 hours, then 2-3 hours in recovery. Then into a regular room after that. I'll be in the hospital for 3-7 days, on average 5. Jeff will write an update tomorrow night letting everyone know how it went. So that's it. Now I'm going to eat a nice meal and then go shopping! Later...

Busy Day

Today I had a busy, but very relaxing day. My BFF Michelle came into town on Friday and stayed the weekend with me. My mom came in last night in preparation for my surgery. So this morning us three girls went and got manis and pedis. It was very nice. I haven't gotten a pedicure since May, right before I started chemo. Michelle left this morning after we got back. After lunch, my mom and I got massages at Herbana Spa in Clear lake. I got an hour long relaxation massage and my mom got a 30 minute stress relieving massage. I loved every minute of mine! It felt so good! Thanks to Tena for giving me the gift certificate! I would recommend that spa to anyone. They were super nice. My mom even got her massage free! They were having some sort of "special" on 30 minute massages, so hers was free. You can't beat that.
After our massages, we went shopping at HEB, Wal-Mart and Target. It is so nice to be able to go out and do that sort of thing without being totally drained from just walking around. Anyway, I got some cute pj's to wear in the hospital, as well as a new robe for the hospital. We also found the dog costumes at Target. As most of you know, we have two dogs, Maggie and Bromley, a springer spaniel and a maltese. I bought the cutest costume for Maggie, but it didn't fit. It was an astronaut! How appropriate, right? Too bad it didn't fit. She needs an XL and they didn't have that size. I'll have to return it tomorrow. I almost got the policeman outfit for Bromley. It was so cute!
Tomorrow Jeff has his final to become a HawkI. That is the "backroom" position in mission control. I know he'll do great! While he's at work, my mom and I will be at MD Anderson. I have to do a pulmonary function test, lab work, chest xray and I have doctors appointments with the surgeon, my study doctor (just a followup since I'm no longer in the study) and the anesthesiologist. I should find out tomorrow what time my surgery is.
Anyway, that's the news for now. I'll post tomorrow when I know what time my surgery will be. Thanks to everyone for their thoughts and prayers and cards and support. I appreciate all of it.

Our "mini" vacation

Jeff and I just back from a nice, long weekend in Louisiana. We had a great time. We got in Friday afternoon, visited some friends we hadn't seen in a few months and then headed over to our other friends house who we were spending the weekend with. Saturday morning, we split up and the boys went to the shooting range and the girls went to the mall. I met my best friend and my sister, brother-in-law and niece there. Not a long visit, but a good one. In the afternoon, we headed to New Orleans where we were spending the night. After checking into the hotel, we got dressed for dinner and headed over to Mr. B's, a really nice restaurant where we ate dinner. After a yummy dinner of barbecued shrimp (Jeff had shrimp wrapped in bacon over grits) and dessert of bread pudding, we headed back to the hotel to watch #1 LSU beat #9 Florida in football. Sunday morning we got up, checked out of the hotel and headed over to the Superdome to watch the Saints game. They ended up losing the game, but we still had a lot of fun. Back in Baton Rouge, the newest store is Cabello's. It just opened last week, but on Sunday evening, it was packed! It is a fun store just to look around. They have some cool stuff there. After Cabello's, we went to eat at Superior Grill, then went to Coffee Call to have dessert of beignets and coffee. So yummy! Monday we had a lazy morning, ate some poboys for lunch then did a little LSU shopping. We headed home in the afternoon. All in all, we had a really, really nice time. It got our minds off of things and we just had some good fun for a change. That's all for now...

Jeff's Birthday, CVC removal and the mouse

Today is Jeff's birthday, so I got up early (which for me is 8:00am!) and made cupcakes and brought them to work and surprised him. He left work early and we went to MD and got my cvc removed! Yeah! I'm so happy to have that thing out. I have to keep a bandage on it for one more day, but tomorrow I get to take a shower without having to tape it up with press and seal. Jeff's excited because he doesn't have to change my dressing anymore. After that, we went shopping so Jeff could spend his birthday money. He got some dvd's, cd's and a watch. All in all, not a bad day. Oh and last night as we were watching tv in the living room, I saw a mouse run along the wall and into our "fake" fireplace. We have had one mouse in the house last year and caught it with sticky traps. We've had sticky traps out since we caught that one just in case there were more, but never had signs of anymore, until last night. So we put out 2 fresh traps last night, along side the old trap, and hoped for the best. All morning I could hear the little mouse squeaking from behind the fireplace. I even tried "smoking" him out by turning on the fireplace thinking it would get too hot and he would run out right into our traps. But no such luck. So we left for the afternoon, but lo and behold when we returned tonight, there was the little mouse, stuck in the old trap. Thank goodness! He's now in the garbage where he belongs. Hopefully he was the only one. We shall see. Anyway, that was our day, a good day all around.