staying organized

Last year, my other half had to assume a big chunk of the responsibilities in our home. He stepped up to the challenge without hesitation. After my infusions, I couldn’t be around anyone for two days, so that meant responsibilities were delegated. After a few schedule mishaps, he was adamant that my beloved Lilly Pulitzer calendar wasn't working. We had this horrible antiquated system, where I had a paper calendar that I carried around with me, a dry erase calendar for the home for everyone to stay on track, and lastly, my google calendar that received an update on occasion, when I remembered...


My other half rigged up an old monitor, a raspberry pi and a monitor and we purchased a subscription to DAKboard. The wonderful thing that DAKboard has afforded us is on the go availability and flexibility.  I can quickly see my google calendar when I am out and about, my kids are also able to see our family calendar from our command center, or on their devices. It has quickly eliminated the
"what's going on this evening" or the "am I free?" questions we often had. I can add multiple google calender's (such as our county school system, children's sports, etc) use different colors to distinguish between the calendars and family members, and we all stay organized! I can easily share our calendar or events with people that might need access to it quickly such as family, friends and sitters.

I had an easy time transitioning, even though I was hesitant since it was so easy to add calendars (you can use different platforms, not just google) and you don't have to add events through DAKboard's website, you continue to use your calendar as you regularly would, it's a one time set up. We currently have our board set to google calendar and weather. The calendar updates within 15 minutes from changes that are made, and we haven't changed the photo backgrounds, as we enjoy most of the backgrounds that come with the subscription, and I can't think of another background I'd like more, although that may change.

DAKboard in our home

I also think it's important to note that we've been avid users of DAKboard for over a year, and I couldn't be more pleased.  If you aren't super tech-y either, they have a kit you can purchase for $300, that comes with everything you'd need to get started.

Long story short, if you're looking for a non-technical, non-sponsored review of DAKboard, you've found it.

A random note: my middle daughter (s, 4.5) was musing in the car about noses, and how sad it would be if didn't have noses, because you couldn't smell. We talked a bit about smells, and when I asked her what her favorite smell was, she quickly answered with "HOT DOGS!!!"

Chemotherapy

On Thursday, which happened to be my other half’s birthday (poor guy) I had a portacath, also known as a port, installed. For me, I believe I mentioned this earlier, it was a non-negotiable. I've had instances in the past with blood draws that made me think I might not be a good candidate for iv infusions. I had a late procedure, which is the worst time to have surgery for a few reasons. For starters, you're starving all day and secondly, you have lots of time to think about the surgery. When you have extra time to yourself, all types of thoughts enter your mind. Thoughts that make you want to change your mind. This was supposed to be a simple 90 minute procedure, but in my scenario it took 3 hours. By the end, I was exhausted and thankful to go home and rest.

I was able to use the port on Friday for my first chemotherapy treatment/session.

A second opinion

The day before my second opinion was difficult. You're hopeful for best case scenario but preparing yourself for the worst. In fact my minnd was racing all day, and that evening wasn't much better. An 8 am appointment meant I was up at 6, and out of the door by 6:50.

My follow up appointment was slightly uneventful, but still very emotional. Giving your story, your account of everything you're able to put pieces together and a pattern became very evident, even though it wasn't at the time. My case was quickly reviewed and a diagnosis was made with a plan of action. I was going to undergo chemotherapy treatment. After a series of questions about side effects and the likelihood of symptoms I would experience, we decided that time was important and treatments would start by weeks end.

The first doctor I happened to see thought that having a port installed would be beneficial for the treatments. However the second opinion doctor didn't feel the urgency to have a port installed but with my history of having blood drawn I decided that there was no other option. I needed a port if I wanted to make this experience as good as possible.

So just like that, appointments were made and my chemotherapy journey begins. I ultimately decided to go with my second opinion doctor. With a rare form of cancer, I felt that I needed to see a team who is familiar with my particular type and has seen it often enough. I'm scared, and I'm hoping I'm making the right choice by using a nationally and regionally ranked hospital.

The Biopsy

Classic Hodgkin's Lymphoma is generally detected early due to the symptoms it manifests into.  The way this particular cancer spreads, it's considered one of the most treatable cancers. The most noteable side effect is swelling of the lymph nodes in the neck or under arms. This was the symptom that led me to advance radiology for an ultrasound. At the time this was my primary symptom, but as time progressed my symptoms became much worse. Shortly after an abnormal ultrasound reading, I was sent to a surgeon who specializes in breast cancer. She suggested a biopsy, stating it would be the best method for ruling out cancer and would allow us to hopefully get answers quick.

The biopsy was an interesting processes. I'd have to say I think the anticipation leading up to the actual test was much worse than the test itself. To prepare for the biopsy, which is a test that collects cell samples from multiple sites within a space for sample, a needle is injected to numb the area. I was told this was the not painful part, however except for a quick prick it was relatively painless. The actually biopsy itself is a click followed by a short buzzing, in my instance, the biopsy machine collected 10 samples from two lymph nodes under my armpit. A small titanium clip was also placed in one of the lymph nodes as a marker. This is a controversial subject, but so far I haven't had any adverse reactions. My understanding of these clips is to make the lymph node that was biopsied distinguishable for future reference. For instance in the future if I had another swollen node it would be easy to tell if the same node was swollen again or if another node now swollen. Biopsies are treated as out-patient surgeries. You dress in a hospital gown, they prep the surgical sight and send you home with recovery instructions. The list was relatively simple; ice for 4-6 hours, no heavy lifting and keep the bandages on for 24 hours.

And then you wait. There was an interesting Article by the New York Times that discusses how women's cortisol levels fluctuate during the great waiting game. Woman who have been diagnosed with cancer and woman who have yet to hear any news regarding their delayed biopsy results on days 3-5 without being told of the hold up, have levels that measure the same as those that were given a cancer diagnosis. My point with this story is to tell you that the waiting game is brutal. I had my biopsy completed on a Friday, Friday the 13th to be exact. I should have known never to have surgery on Friday the 13th. All kidding aside, I received my results back on Wednesday. With the weekend, it ended up being 5 days of waiting. And then the call came, the call you hope results with an "everything is normal" response. However in my instance, the surgeon calls as I'm loading up two kids in the car after an amazingly wonderful lunch with my aunt on a remarkably windy day. I hear the words cancer, lymphoma and I'm being sent to see a specialist, an oncologist, someone who knows more. I just needed to make the call, as I scrambled to write down the correct name and number, as I know had a job to do. The oncologist had already been informed of my case and an appointment time lined up for me the following week. I think it's safe to say this was not quite how I imagined my day would go.

The oncologist visit in my instance was surprisingly uneventful. I would have to say the most eventful part of the visit was scheduling all follow up appointments that would allow us to stage the cancer and prepare for chemo.

One Small, Scary Word.

It's funny to think how one can go from only knowing the name of a disease to knowing everything about that disease (or a virus or an illness) in only a few hours. Learning symptoms, triggers, statistics. It's kind of interesting to think how quickly one can immerse themselves when the information pertains to them, or someone they care about.

For me that disease was Hodgkin's Lymphoma. I was given a diagnosis of Hodgkin's Lymphoma on Friday, January 20. A diagnosis like this leaves you feeling small and vulnerable and having so many questions but very little answers. That's where the google searching begins...

I've learned about a virus that nearly all adults have, Epstein Barr Virus or EBV, a virus that 95% of the American population has, but never has a single symptom. Those that it does effect have a slew of symptoms. There is a strong correlation between EBV and Hodgkin's Lymphoma. I've learned that Hodgkin's Lymphoma is rare. It's slightly hereditary, but because it's so rare (approximately 8,500 Americans will be diagnosed with it this year) it only increases the risk slightly for my children.

What I'm learning about a cancer diagnosis is how quickly things move. In the last week I was able to meet with a wonderful oncologist, and have a slew of testing completed (pet/ct scan, echo-cardiogram and lung test) to verify where the cancer extends to and to ensure my body is healthy enough for chemotherapy. The irony in that statement...What I can say is, I'm eager to begin a regimen, the sooner I begin, the sooner I hope to be cured.

I've had many feelings about my diagnosis over the last few days. The most common thought I've had is how fortunate I feel to have a cancer that is treatable. A curable cancer, one that if you were given a choice of cancers is likely the one you'd pick because it's considered to be so treatable. I've had every imaginable emotion wash over me, but I think the hardest one to swallow is how I truly cannot do this alone. I'm constantly reminded of what a wonderful spouse I have and how amazing my children are. They have taken this diagnosis in great stride and I'm proud of the understanding and maturity that they have shown.

Summer Enrichment: The Good & The Bad

Over the summer, I have tried to keep a routine for the children. I didn't want school to sneak up on us, and come to the realization that we hadn't practiced math, writing or comprehension questions.

With children in elementary school, middle school and my youngest entering pre-school this fall, finding something that worked for everyone was a bit of a challenge. We've tried iXL and ABC Mouse and I wasn't sold. iXL was great for enrichment and following up skills with repetition. However, it didn't move quickly enough, and the process for completing a level was daunting and often times lost the child's interest and resulted in careless mistakes. ABC Mouse on the other hand, I hated it from the beginning. We tried a year long subscription a few years ago, and I felt the website wasn't user friendly. While this may have changed,  I can't imagine they have drastically changed their program enough to make me comfortable with my 2/3 year old using it.

With all that being said, I couldn't find one thing to work for everyone. For my Middle Schooler, we are using Read Theory. I really like this particular website, it's free, and has a very in depth scoring method, and allows you to see how your child is answering comprehension questions, and at what reading level the articles are written for. For reading, I've also found Newsela to be a fantastic way for children to learn about current events at a proper reading level. You can select an article of interest, and decide if you'd like to read that article at a 3, 5, 7 , 9 or a 12th grade reading level. It's also quite interesting to have your child read at varying levels to see the different ways authors write to inform their target audiences. My son began a foreign language in 6th grade, and will continue on with the foreign language this year. To keep him up on his Spanish, we used a website his teacher recommended, duolingo. For Math, this was the one area I struggled with finding the perfect resource. I found Khan Academy to be the best at allowing a child to refresh old skills, but still have the ability to learn new information.

For my rising 2nd grader, I really like the Complete Curriculum series. I enjoyed how the books are broken down into skills; Reading Skills, Spelling Skills, Math Skills, Language Arts and Writing. At the end of the book are a few tests that can be given to evaluate the child's progress, but also allows the parent to glimpse into their child's test taking skills a bit. This book at almost 800 pages long wasn't something I planned for my daughter to finish over the summer, but instead be used as enrichment throughout the year, on weekends, days off or days she doesn't have homework, but her brother does. I have been happy with this book thus far, and would definitely purchase the 3rd grade series for her next summer. However, with my son, I've used Summer Bridge Activities in summers past and was very happy with the series, and will likely revert back to this when my daughter enters 4th or 5th grade. I didn't find these books to be as fun as the Complete Curriculum series, so they are better geared towards older children. I'd also like to mention, for days when we are on the go, I have an app, XtraMath, that I use for Math Facts just to make sure she stays caught up on her skills.

Lastly, for my youngest. At 2 1/2, keeping her quiet and occupied while the older kids complete their activities is quite the challenge. I've found the MyPlayHome and TocaBoca apps to be both enriching and engaging. However, If I am saving screen time for later, I like Paint with Water Activity Books, and Kumon First Step Books. A few of our favorites are Sticker & Paste, Let's Cut Paper and Let's Color. Although the workbooks are targeted at 2 & up, I definitely think they are geared more towards 3 year olds.

I'd like to know, what have websites/apps/books have you found helpful?

New Mom Must Haves

With a new baby on the way in just under 90 days, I've begun going through my baby items and figuring out what items can be replaced, what items can be reused and which items need to be re-stocked.  For my youngest, we had had the britax b-ready stroller and carseat system, it hasn't expired, so I will be reusing it with our newest. I loved the ease of this particular car seat/stroller duo and the safety britax products provide in general.

This time around, I will likely still use my old diaper bag, but have been on the hunt for a diaper backpack to help keep my hands a bit freer. I think this one fits the bill, the size, and style are exactly what I've been searching for. Also, for the crazy first few nights, whether at home or the hospital, I found a comfortable nursing bra to be a must have, as well as these lansinoh breast pads, I've been using them after the birth of each of my children since 2003. I also received this cardigan for Christmas last year in two colors, which would be perfect with a tank and leggings for chilly hospitals, and ease of breast-feeding and skin-to-skin contact with your newborn baby. Of course, the baby boppy pillow has been a staple for me for the last decade as well; I've found it useful for nursing and assisting a baby during their learning to sit stages.

For diapers, I have sworn by honest & co diapers for the last 2 years. For $85 a month, fun printed diapers arrive at my door within 1-2 days of ordering. If for some reason my daughters have outgrown a size, I can simply exchange for the next size up without a penalty. The delivery dates are also extremely flexible. If I find that I have a surplus of diapers, I can easily bump back the date of my next delivery. Fortunately, we haven't had many cases of diaper rash, but when it strikes (especially around teething time) I've been found Dr. Bodreaux's butt paste to be the perfect tool for soothing baby's discomfort.

A few more items that I found extremely helpful were a bedside bassinet; baby eats many times during the first few weeks, and having her close to me helped the feeding/sleeping process go much smoother for the two of us.  I've also found the Aden & Anais swaddle blankets to be a little costly, but very versatile.  They make swaddling a breeze with their large size, but have played double duty multiple times when I've needed a nursing cover-up, a baby blanket or mat. Of course, a baby bath and hooded towel for baths. Again, I've used this tub with all of my children, and love the mesh sling, it has helped with sponge bathing newborns, but easily transitions to a much larger baby, as they grow so fast, it really is great to find a product that adapts to the different stages.

The last few items on my list; this is my absolute favorite story. Just such a sweet tale, my favorite line from the story is "or notice the bears asleep at the zoo. Its because they've been dancing all night for you." Just sweet sentiments about how important each child is. We've never had a rock n play before, but with my youngest, I used a few friends and did see the benefit, but a little too late to purchase my own, so for this baby, it was at the top of my list.  There are a few different models, a manual, and two automatic, one controlled by a switch on the unit and the other can be controlled by your smartphone.  I've opted to go with the standard automatic model. And finally, baby monitors. Our last baby monitor bit the dust, this time around after some research, we will be trying this one which runs about $80 on Amazon. We have an old iPad I plan to use to monitor, but like that I have the capability to still view her from my cellphone. From my initial research, the camera quality appears to be great, and set-up sounds like a breeze.

What are your new baby must haves? I'd love to know.

New Mom Must Have's by laurenscorner featuring cardigans

Disclosure of Material Connection: Some of the links in the post above are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will add value to my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”