|
Thu. - Sun. - 2/26/04-
2/29/04
Not too much to report. Marge had a few days when
she didn't feel well and just took it easy. She also took a step
backwards on the oxygen and is back to being able to go without it for
only 4-5 hours.
|
|
Sun. - Wed. - 2/22/04-
2/25/04
Several good things to report. Marge is
regaining the muscle tone in her legs and is able to stand for longer
periods. And although still not able to drive, picked up a few
things at the grocery store while I cruised the parking lot. Also, for the first time she was also able to go without
oxygen for about 8 hours.
More good news from her visit with her chemo doctor.
He's really pleased with her progress and although some items in her
latest blood test were low, he was not concerned or felt they were low
enough to require a transfusion. He also increased her meds that
help her swallow. He also will be scheduling another virtual CT scan the
first week in April.
Food wise she's still eating small meals every couple of
hours. One good sign to me is that she now can snack on pretzels and
cream cheese like she used to. No new favorites.
|
|
Fri. - Sat. - 2/20/04-
2/21/04
Not much to report but some good news. Marge is
regaining the muscle tone in her legs and is able to stand for longer
periods. Also, for the first time she was also able to go without
oxygen for 4 hours.
|
|
Wed. - Thu. - 2/18/04-
2/19/04
Not much to report. Marge was feeling better so is
back to trying to sew and quilt a couple hours each day. Took her to
the lab for her weekly CBC. She was also feeling well enough that
one day we went out for brunch and then she and her friend Kathy went
looking for fabrics for quilts.
|
|
Sun. - Tue. - 2/15/04-
2/17/04
Not too much to report. Marge continued to
experience muscle an joint stiffness that slowed her down a little and had
a couple days when she experienced shortness of breath. She did do a
little happy dancing because she finally finished the quilt that's been on
the machine since late November.
Nothing much on the food front. Marge is now really
into tomatoes and anything the goes with Philadelphia cream cheese.
|
|
Fri. - Sat. 2/13/04-
2/14/04
Not too much to report. Like previous days after
chemo treatment, Marge experienced some stiffness and relaxed except for
our Saturday morning Farmers Market and grocery store outing. We try
and go early in the morning between 8 & 9 to avoid a lot of people and
exposing Marge to possible bugs.
The grocery run was also the first time Marge had been out
in the early morning since she had all her hair cut off. And while
40 degrees is not cold to the folks that live in the snow country, it's
cool to those that live in So. California and Marge was very thankful for
the warm hats that had been sent to go with her new hair style (see Marge's
hats).
We received a package from Carol McAdow that really
made us laugh. Because of my frequent comments about watermelons, Carol
sent Marge some fabric with watermelons on it.
On the food front, Marge is going into withdrawal because
it appears the watermelons are finally going out of season. There
are very few to be found at the store and the last two were not very
good. Good thing her appetite was leaning toward tomatoes because
the local Farmers Market usually has some that have good flavor.
|
|
Tue. - Thu. 2/10/04-
2/12/04
A few things to report. Marge continues to slowly regain
her strength. She's just about to finish quilting a quilt that's been on
the machine since late November. Normally this one would have only
taken her a day or two to finish.
Lana (Cranberry Quiltworks) and Pam Clarke visited and the
gals went to lunch and what else, visited a quilt shop looking for fabric.
On Wednesday we went to the lab to leave blood for her
weekly CBC and on Thursday Marge had her second chemo treatment. She
also received her weekly Procrit injection and they seem to be working
because nothing was said about additional transfusions. The chemo
treatment only lasted about three hours because they didn't have to worry
about allergic reactions like the first time. But they gave her some
good stuff and she slept through most of the treatment and on the way
home.
Nothing new to report on the food front. She still has trouble swallowing some
foods so we're still eating several smaller meals per day (about every 2-3
hours) of the foods she can eat without difficulty.
|
|
Sun. - Mon. 2/08/04-
2/09/04
Not much to report. Marge continues to slowly regain
her strength. She still has trouble with some simple tasks with her hands
that are often taken for granted -- like being able to close Ziploc
freezer bags or threading a needle. She is also trying to get back
to the rhythm of the quilting machine and tries to spend a couple of hours
on it each day. Standing for any length of time is still a problem
but the stool at the quilting machine is helping.
On the food front, she still has trouble swallowing some
foods. She commented that she would just love a steak but knows she
would have trouble with eating one right now.
|
|
Fri. - Sat. 2/06/04-
2/07/04
Not much to report. On Friday we visited her best
friend for about 6 hours and it might have been a little long because
Saturday she rested most of the day. She's now starting to loose her
hair and will soon be using the many hats and caps that friends and
relatives have sent.
We've might have had a switch in favorite foods.
Although watermelon still is high on the list, tomatoes are taking over as
the late night and early morning favorites.
|
|
Tue. thru Thu.
2/03/04- 2/05/04
Several things to report. Earlier in the week Marge
complained of feeling cold and short of breath. the next day we
received a call with the results of the latest CBC. They said she'd
have to start receiving weekly shots to increase her hemocrit -- increase
iron to carry oxygen, stimulate creation of red blood cells. So we
went to the clinic and learned how/where to give the shots at home.
The weeks she receives chemo treatments they will give her the shot in the
clinic. If the shots don't do as they're supposed to, then she will
also have to have additional transfusions of packed red blood cells.
Because of my mother's weakening condition we also
discussed with doctor the possibility of a short trip to New Mexico.
First of all, the above ruled out the possibility of any trips. But
if not for this, flying was also out because it would subject Marge to
crowds and the confined aircraft here she could easily pick up a bug with
her weakened immune system. Driving there was also discussed and the
oxygen situation then became the problem. Of course the primary
concern would be for a good medical facility should she have any problems.
She continues to strengthen her hand and arm muscles
working on sewing and crochet projects. She's also trying to
strengthen her leg muscles by standing and using the quilting machine about
an hour each day.
The appetite enhancer seems to be working and she's put
back on some of the weight she lost in the last few months. Her
favorite description of the added weight is that "now her skin fits
again".
|
|
Sun. 2/01/04 &
Mon. 2/02/04
Nothing much to report. Marge continues to regain
her strength a little each day can go without oxygen for a couple of
hours. To strengthen her hand and arm muscles she continues to work
on sewing projects and started to crochet again. She was able to
stand and use the quilting machine for about 40 minutes before her legs
gave out. We're going to try using a chair to see if that helps.
She's continuing to regain her taste buds but still has
to eat every couple of hours because she still can't eat large portions.
|