A lovely day for a picnic in the park

Yesterday (Sunday) we had a small gathering of family, my 2 best friends, their spouses and children for a picnic in the park to celebrate Abby and my Dad's birthdays. (Happy Birthday today Dad!)

Josh was the grillmaster and cooked up some yummy hot dogs and cheeseburgers. I enjoyed an iodine-inclusive meal....yum! We played bean bags, bocce and just enjoyed hanging out. Abby got some cool new Barbie stuff which she has been playing with nonstop since we got home and a beautiful bracelet made by Rob.

Abby and the Goldstein family....



My hubby, the cook.




Hanging out...







My Mom and sister....





Why do my kids always make such odd faces for photos?





Love this one!





The Greens!




"blowing" out the candles


Time for presents!






Naptime!

*THE END*

Day 1

Today is Day 1 of scan week. I had to get myself and Abby up early to go to the hospital for my first shot of Thyrogen which will make me hypothyroid as my TSH (thyroid stimulating hormone) shoots up high enough to have the scan. I told Abby that I would be getting a shot in my bum this morning. So of course in the quiet waiting room she wanted to talk about my shot in the butt and her fears that I would scream when they gave it to me.

I asked her, "Do you want to stay in the waiting room and play your Nintendo DS or walk back with me when I get the shot?"
Her reply: "I want to stay in the waiting room so I don't have to hear you scream!".
I said: "I'm an adult and adults don't get to scream about shots".

I told my nurse about my conversation with Abby. She thanked me for not planning to scream. Not that it would matter...they'd still give me the shot. Although I'm not fond of big needles in my bum (actually more my hip), I did NOT scream. The screaming comes later...when the hospital bills arrive.

Tomorrow, second dose of Thyrogen via injection in the morning.

Tomorrow is day 1 of my week of the thyroid scan. Tomorrow I get my 1st shot. Tomorrow I start to go hypothyroid which means being tired, foggy, slow and having headaches. I'm sad. I feel like I'm going away somewhere for the next 6-8 weeks. Somewhere where I won't be Megan. I won't feel myself...whatever that is anymore. I think I've long since accepted this version of "normal" even though it isn't. Oh what I would give to feel the way I did pre-diagnosis.

I know that the scan is necessary. I need to know that I am still in remission. I know that the low iodine diet, the shots, the being hypothyroid is all part of that. But I have a hard time not feeling sad and a little angry that it also means that I only get to feel "normal" 10 months out of the year. Beating the cancer wasn't the hard part. Living life without a thyroid...that's the hard part.

At least at the end of the week, the diet is over. :-)

The Great Race

Wednesday, Abby, Josh and my best friend Amy ran in The Viking Sunset 5K (for the adults) and kid's race (for Abby). It was amazing to see our daughter who just 6 months ago could not walk running in a race around the Geneva high school track. Just a couple short months ago, Abby was not even able to run. I am SO proud of how hard she has worked to rehabilitate her leg and how far she has come. Yay Abby!

This was the first time Amy ran a 5K so it was really cool to see her make that accomplishment. It's so neat to have a friend that I have known most of my life and get to witness many of each other's milestones. Although Josh has completed a 5K and a triathlon, this was the first time I actually saw him cross the finish line. I was really proud of my husband! I will not understand the joy that they get from running on purpose, but I am proud of them for taking it on.

On to the photos:

Waiting for the kid's lap to start

With her Daddy

Getting to ready to run



Josh and Amy before the 5K




Coming towards the finish line!

More from Abby's birthday

More pictures from Abby's 7th birthday. These are of her opening of her gifts at home on her big day.

Opening the silly drawing I made her that announced she was getting a room re-do for her birthday. That's really all she wanted.



We let her choose the paint color for her room. Not surprisingly she chose a bright pink. We also let her help paint.



When her room is all organized and put back together (we are about 80% done), I'll post some pictures of it.


Abby and Grandma

Me and Abby


Abby and her Daddy




For her birthday dinner we took her to Pizza Villa which is basically a DeKalb landmark. Their pizza is great, they have cute decor and a small game room.





Sample of their cute unique decor:

Blowing out the candles on her brownie cake:

Abby's 7th birthday

Saturday was Abby's 7th birthday! We celebrated with a party for her and her friends from school at Land of Wonder in DeKalb. I highly recommend having your daughter's party there if you are in the area. The rates were reasonable and the director was so nice and professional. The girls got to dress up in princess dresses, have a little bit of makeup put on and/or nails painted and choose dress up shoes and accessories to wear. Then they had a very cute little tea party, danced and played games. There was a little area for opening gifts and Abby got to sit in a special chair while she opened her presents. She had such a good time and she felt so special. Below are the photos from her party.




the birthday girl!








opening her gifts....






Abby and her Aunt Cassandra....

So far 2.3 pounds lost on the low iodine diet. Hopefully I will continue to lose more until the time that I go hypothyroid to minimize my weight gain during the hypo period.