Happy 2007!

New Year’s Resolution – Post to the blog more often.

New Year’s Resolution – Quit making New Year’s Resolutions that I won’t live up to.

So far 2007 is progressing very well for the Rottinghaus clan. Eric’s practice(s) are continually busy, my teaching is going reasonably well, Kile is usually charming, and Cavanaugh is, well, Cavanaugh. Medically (the entire reason for this blog) my chemo treatments are continuing to go well, and although the neuropathy has moved into my right foot as well, it’s really just the three littlest toes on each foot so I’m not having any problems. They seem to simply be tingly as opposed to numb, so that’s also a good thing! After my second to most recent dose I felt really out of it, even fell asleep on the way home, so they reduced my Benadryl and that made a huge difference. Last week I ate lunch, talked to Eric on the way home, and would have probably gone into work for my 1:30 meeting if he hadn’t accidentally dashed off to work with both sets of car keys in his pocket. Now if only I could find a way to avoid the thermostat changes, though vitamin E seems to be helping. Gosh, can’t wait to go through this again in 25 years!

Anyway, really not much else going on with us. We spent New Year’s Eve at a comedian (who used to be a counselor… there’s a “hmmm” for you!) who had a totally brilliant thought – so much so that I dug in my purse to write it down, though it turns out it’s practically engraved in my brain and writing it was pointless. People keep asking me how I can be so upbeat through this whole thing, and other than the whole optimism thing which I think is necessary, this guy filled in the rest of my answer: “You can’t worry when you’re laughing. It’s like crying and eating ice cream at the same time.”

Enjoy some ice cream, who cares if it’s January?

Carpe diem. - Trela

The Hallway is Green

My first week of work went well overall. I feel caught up on most things in my classroom (only a few papers to grade tonight!), and I'm pretty sure I've gotten all of the first names of my students down cold. I hope I don't meet them outside of my room anytime soon, but in the room, in their seats, I'm good.

After the Jesup tree-lighting on Friday evening (if you didn't hear Kile tell Santa over the loudspeaker that he wants Lighting McQueen for Christmas, you're one of very few who did not) my energy level took a little dip when I put Cavanaugh to bed. She kept squeaking in her typical diva-like "how dare you leave me alone" way, so I put my jams on with her and lay down on our bed...next thing I knew it was 3 am and I'd already had nearly seven hours of sleep. Clearly the energy came back, however, since Saturday was a flurry of Christmas shopping, cleaning, laundry (in fairness, Mom did the laundry and I watched), organizing, and yes, I painted the hallway green, something Eric noticed when he came home from Des Moines at about 2am. Fortunately he didn't touch it because he would have found it still a bit tacky since I finished at a bit before 1.

I'm feeling good again today, enjoying reading on my new porch (which starts my brain on another tangent... that's below), catching up with my parents, and only experiencing minor tingling in my toes (a side effect of my chemo). Hopefully next week will go as well and the tingling won't progress much more!

Ok, tangent -- I can't keep calling my new porch "the new porch." It's totally enclosed, has heat, lots of windows and is approximately 4 feet wide by 25 feet long. I'm taking suggestions for new names. I've already rejected sunroom because, face it, it's a glorified hallway, glorious though it is (it was 85 in there this afternoon with the sun!). Currently it is also housing our Christmas tree and my book which I'm now going to get back to...

Carpe diem. - Trela

Hi ho, hi ho!

WOW! I'm sitting at MY desk at WORK!!! My first day went overwhelmingly fantastic, and amazingly enough I'm not even that tired yet. Ok, a couple of snags on the way... left my lunch at home in my cute little Superman lunch bag... I can practically taste my red beans and rice that I will now have to throw away. Then there was the uncomfortable moment before I had class to explain to the kids why they can't hug me... imagine 15 rather exhuberant 8th graders running to you with arms outstretched, and then little sad faces as I told them to get the heck away from me with their snotty noses (ok, I was slightly nicer)... I'm overusing my elipses here, sorry.... Then there was my fabulous 5th period (formerly known as the class in which I count down the minutes until the purgatory ends) who actually applauded me when I walked into the room. Veteran teacher that I am, I wasn't swayed (though momentarily touched), and my suspicions were confirmed when one of my darlings wished I was back in the hospital when I told him he needed to be in his assigned seat (you know, the seat he begged me not to move him from when I change seats on Thursday, that seat). I LOVE MIDDLE SCHOOL!

Anyway, there were a few comments that I wasn't blogging enough, so there you go folks, an update!

Hope you're all well!
: )
Carpe diem - Trela

Look at Me! I'm Typing!

It's 5:41. I finished chemo at 3:30 this afternoon, and yes, Ladies and Gentlemen, I am sitting totally erect at the computer, typing at a reasonable speed, and even using (mostly) proper grammar and syntax. The new drug I'm on is, thus far, much easier to tolerate. They give me Benadryl prior to administering the chemo so I was slightly fuzzy for a few hours (personally I think it's just another ploy by the nursing staff so I don't try to drive myself anywhere). I have zero medications to take before my next treatment next week, so that's a minor relief. Setting my alarm for every 4, 8, 12, 16 hours after chemo was getting a bit old.

Other than that, things are continuing to be calm and peaceful around here. Oh, wait, that's because the kids are at the in-laws. Smirk. If all continues to go well I'll be heading to work on Monday to resume the helm. And apparently I'll be starting nautical school... chemo brain is sometimes a riot! (I mistakenly referred to the hospital as the hotel today while driving by... that was before treatment started.)

Hope Thanksgiving was a happy time to be with family and friends, ours definitely was.

Carpe diem. - Trela

44% Completed

Or something like that... the good news is I'm reportedly done with the 2 nastiest drugs I'll have to take. The week after Thanksgiving I'm scheduled to begin on the last drug of my chemo regimen, and that will take me until the first week of March. Unlike the once every three week schedule I've been on I'll transition to going once a week for three weeks, then a week off for just over three months. The "good" news is that my doctor thinks I'll be able to work again after I get adjusted to the new drug, so I'm really hoping to go back to work a couple of weeks before Christmas. While I've completely enjoyed the rest time and extra time with my kids, Cabin Fever is totally beginning to set in. The frequent visits from my parents have helped, but I'm really missing seeing my friends at work more regularly. This new drug is supposed to be gentler on my bone marrow, so I don't have to be quite so much the girl in the plastic bubble.

My most recent treatment went well, we ended up reducing my drugs by another 25% (math majors, you can figure that out) but they assured me there were actually still some meds in the IV. I caught Eric's cold overnight between treatments, but they allowed me some Tylenol and I think we've beaten that already. Hopefully it hit while I still had some white cells. I had my booster shot yesterday so I'm all muscle achy today, but it's not bad... interesting that this is the third time I've had the shot, yet this is the first time the accompanying paperwork told me to avoid large crowds after it. Hmmmm. Good thing I already had a brain in my head!

On the non medical front everything is going well for us. Eric's practices are keeping him busy (he's been going to bed before 11 which is unheard of!) and the kids are doing great. Cavanaugh is living up to her diva reputation and absolutely refuses to bend at the hip in order to sit on the floor. We know she CAN sit but if she catches on that's what you want her to do it's all over. Kile is finally starting to feel better after his encounter with hand foot and mouth and seems not to want to come home at all (the kids stay at Grammie and Papa's place during my treatments and the day after). At least we know he's comfortable in his surroundings.

I've now filled almost an entire drawer with cards from all of you. Amazingly enough they keep on coming! Just looking at it when I'm feeling lonely really helps, so thanks!

Carpe diem - Trela

Holiday Fun

Yikes, a little behind in our blog! Here's the kiddos on Halloween night pre-trick or treating. Kile went as Max from Where the Wild Things Are, Cavanauh was our own little jack o'lantern, and our friend Kennady was a little monster. The kids were able to dress up twice, once for our annual Pumpkin Carving Party Saturday night, and then again on the 31st.

Beyond all of that activity, it's been a busy couple of weeks highlighted by a visit from my brother, Ian, my sister, Cara, her boyfriend, Andrew and my parents. Can we say "family pictures?" Unfortunately other than for Ian, all of them had their week capped off with the same stomach bug that got me re-incarcerated on the 7th floor of Mercy Hospital for three days before their visit. Stupid white cells AGAIN!!! It's just wrong when nurses and techs walk into your hospital room and say, "don't I know you?" Sigh.

Only one more two day session of the "nasty" drugs this upcoming Tuesday and Wednesday. I'm not sure how long of a break I'll have before starting on the next (and hopefully last) drug which will take me into late February. It's supposed to be slightly kinder and gentler, though I'll be treated more frequently, basically once a week with a week off once a month. I'm sure somewhere in there we'll do a CT scan which I'm totally dreading, but I'm not sure when. We'll also likely consult with Mayo about the radiation issue one more time -- at this point we're probably not going to pursue it since there's no evidence it will help at all and we're concerned about the integrity of my skin and the tissue expander. My oncologist as well as the oncologist at Mayo are in support of that decision which is primarily based on the fact that Sloan Kettering said they wouldn't do radiation in my case. Since they're the expert I think we'll likely go with them!

Anyway, enough medical talk. I'm feeling well most of the time, but I do get a bit tired by about 9pm. Basically I feel like I've been teaching all day but I haven't been! I have one or two higher energy days a week, but most of the time it feels like after school on a Friday afternoon after a full week. One of the chemo side effects seems to be a complete inability to nap so I've just been sitting down a lot catching up on movies or reading. It's terrible, really. Smirk.

Carpe diem - Trela

Sad News

We learned this morning that our nephew, Garrett, passed away sometime last night. He would have been six months old next week, just a day younger than our Cavanaugh.

When you're going through something like cancer treatment it's pretty easy to become very focused only on yourself instead of on the outside world. What a tragic reminder that the rest of the world moves on no matter what personal struggles one is dealing with.

Our hearts go out to my brother-in-law Dean and his wife Meg as they cope with every parent's worst nightmare.

Carpe diem - Trela

3 down, 1 to go!

Well, it's the day after treatment and I've been up since 8:30, have already eaten breakfast, returned a phone call, and checked my email. I feel every so slightly out of it, but this is MILES ahead of the last two treatments afterwhich I spent the first day totally unconscious. Only one more set of this nasty bugger and then we move on to the reportedly kinder, gentler drugs.

After my adventure in the hospital the doctors decided to cut my dose by a full 30%, and I'm definitely feeling the difference. As long as it still does its job, I think we're good to go. I'm focusing on a day of relaxation, movie watching, and lying on various surfaces around the house. So much better than the last time! I can actually pick up the remote! All will be well until approximately 7:30 central time when the Cardinals take to the field... if they don't win I may be using this blog to either 1. sell Eric to the highest bidder or 2. find a new place to live.

- Carpe Diem, Trela

Round 3

Well, a 30% reduction in chemo dose seems to be a lot easier on the cute blonde. She is still feeling pretty tired and groggy, but overall she's feeling much better than after the previous two sessions.

The nurses at Oncology Associates told her that her priviledges had been revoked after she drove to Chris and Leisa's house. Trela, now the "bad girl" at the clinic is not allowed to be in possession of car keys while undergoing chemo. Like the bar drunk at closing time her protests that "I'm fine to drive... really." will not be accepted. Luckily there is no shortage of designated drivers for her.

About a week from now will be the low point for her blood counts, so we'll hope that she can avoid IV antibiotics and/or a hospital stay this time. We'll keep you posted.

Meg Riney stopped by for the afternoon yesterday and kept Trela company. From what Meg told me today, Loopy isn't just a classic childrens story book.

Other than that things here are going well, Kile and Cavanaugh are having a good time at Grammie's and things at work for me are getting accomplished.

Until next time...

The Girl in the Plastic Bubble

Oh, for Pete's sake people, I'm FINE!!! A fact I kept trying to convince the hospital staff of until at 4:05 today my doctor walked in and quite simply asked if I was ready to go home. I'm sure it wasn't a hallucination when at that precise moment the hospital loudspeaker suddenly broke into the Hallelujah chorus... ok, so it didn't, but if my life were a movie it would have been highly appropriate.

I'm pretty tired (since I've done all of that sitting around over the last five days) and my arm where the IV lived for nearly all five of those days is a bit sore, but honestly, I'm feeling pretty darn good. In fact, I really never felt that badly. I think this one we caught at the perfect time, though clearly to avoid it completely would have been better. The biggest annoyance today was having to wait almost two hours for my discharge papers and the nurse INSISTING I ride in a wheelchair to leave (even though I had seen other patients leaving on their own two feet, and even though I tried to convince her I wasn't lying when I said I'd walked a mile yesterday and half a mile today). Could be a lot worse, but isn't, a fact I remind myself of frequently.

So I'm all set to enjoy my vacation, I mean sick leave, encourage my little platelets to keep multiplying and bide time until Kile can come home. Thanks for all of the positive thoughts, messages, and prayers. They continue to get me through.

Carpe diem - Trela

Incubating a virus

Well, it looks like Trela's go round with the bacteria is over, (squashed the bugs) but Kile has been having a rough go of it with hand foot and mouth disease. Since this is (of course) a very contagious disease, and we're not sure if Trela has had it, Kile is going to live with grammy for the next few days if Trela gets to come home.

Sounds like she may be able to come home in the next day or two, as long has her blood counts hold and her vitals stay normal. She's feeling much better and even walked a mile (literally) in laps around the ward yesterday. She was very happy to see the Cardinals beat the Padres, (ok, maybe I was a little more pleased than she) and had a pretty good day yesterday.

Other than that, things continue to be very busy around here and I'm sure they will slow down sometime by 2008.

ERic

UPDATE: As I was signing my name Trela called and she made bail. Sounds like she'll be coming home today after all.

ERic

Human Petrie Dish

The last few days have been interesting to say the least. After her scheduled bloodwork came back on Wednesday and her white count(WBC) was at 0.2 (we were shooting for a minimum of 2 but 4-10ish is normal) one of the nurses called, asked how Trela was doing, and as if on cue, her temperature began to rise. Just like last time (when the lowest WBC reading was .6) we headed to CR for some IV antibiotics. This time, however, they decided to keep her overnight for observation, as her heart rate, and BP weren't quite right either.

One thing leads to another, and next thing you know, she's in the hospital until at least monday and the cultures they took of her blood started to look like that loaf of bread which has been sitting on the counter for a few months too long. While the don't know exactly which bug it is just yet, and the first round of drugs MAY have taken care of it, they are keeping her till Monday.

Meanwhile, she's gotten a blood transfusion, bunches of meds, and the promise that the next round of chemo will have a reduced dosage so that we don't get to do this all over agian in 3 weeks. On the bright side, we are about halfway through this first course, and the Taxol that comes next is supposed to be less severe.

So, Mom has been taking care of Kile and Cavanaugh, and I've been getting adjusted regularly from sleeping on the "cot" in Trela's Room.

Carpe Diem

Recovery From Round Two

In this instance lack of posts simply indicates lack of brain power, not any actual new illness (although I have learned to navigate my house quite well despite raging black circles that plague any sudden movements for the first few days after treatment). I'm planning on getting back to work on Thursday, quite a long break this time, but Eric took one look at me when he got home this evening and called the substitute teacher line. It annoyed me, but he's right... if I can't hold my head erect there's probably no real chance I'd be able to maintain classroom management. Hopefully Thursday.

I don't think chemo itself was rougher this time (though they did add a couple of shots at the end of the sessions to boost random cells in my body) I've decided that coming into a treatment after my previous week's malady probably caused my ultimate demise. And, of course, Trela tried to be tough girl and wean herself off of any and all but the required medication a full three days before I did the same last time. Dumb Trela. Regardless, a temporary setback, and I hope to be back to full power before too long. (At least, I hope that's what my labs indicate!)

Thanks for the cookies, dinners, gift cards and greeting cards that continue to rush in. They are most appreciated!
Carpe diem - Trela

Waiting to catch breath

Well all, the last few weeks have been a whirlwind. Between trips to Cedar Rapids for chemo, and trying to get work things accomplished, our cups have been full. Luckily, we have a lot of good people around helping us get things accomplished.

I don't have much time yet, but I thought I should give some much needed thanks to some people who helped with the new clinic over the last few days. Over the weekend, we primed, painted, and valanced (surely that's not a word, but work with me) the waiting room and hallways at the new office. I'll post a picture later, but Trela (inspired by Adam's logo and artwork) painted a mural on the waiting room wall. We would have been painting until sometime next March had we not had such good help.

Many thanks to all who helped and special thanks to

Fritz, who painted Friday night till late, Saturday most of the day, and came in Sunday night to help clean things up,

Mom, who embroidered the logos onto a really cool valance that ties the office together, watched the Kile and Cavanaugh, and did other things too numerous to mention,

Dad, who's been helping with tons of things including helping finance, and building things in the office,

Adam, who in the last few weeks has been working on a tight time frame to create the logos, business cards, and magnets for the open house last Monday,

Rick and Joan Kresser, who were early arrivals on Saturday, and painted until late in the day. (thanks for helping with the corn too!)

Kelly who drove all the way out and trimmed the ceiling,

Trela's parents who have been making more trips to Iowa than a presidential candidate before a primary, and have been landscaping and cleaning and doing laundry,

Mary, who has been keeping us in cookies, and fattening us up.

To all of you and anyone my fried egg of a brain failed to mention THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU!


ps. THANK YOU!

Eric

See What Happens When You Get a Little Cocky...

So, yep, home sick today. That is, home sick following my drive to Cedar Rapids to check my temperature with my doctor, get my basement-like white count checked, and receive an IV of antibiotics. Stupid fall cold. I also was injected with a medicine they thought they may have to use anyway which is supposed to get my white cell count up again. Fabulous, because I think my white cells have taken a little vacation... I'm going back tomorrow for IV #2 and my doctor thought all of that plus my oral antibiotic would nip it in the bud and keep me on track for my treatments next Tuesday and Wednesday. He seemed pretty matter of fact about everything, like he expected this anyway. That'll teach me to get cocky...

Carpe diem - Trela

Checking in, Part 3

One more full week until my next treatment, and other than the suspicious strands of hair in my brush I'm suffering no ill effects. Part of me almost wishes it would just all fall out already so I don't have to keep playing the, "is this normal, or is it chemo?" game. We have Open House at school on Tuesday and I'm really tempted to just see my fabulous hairstylist before that so I don't have to worry if this last run through with the brush will be the end of it. Trying wigs on this Saturday was a humbling experience, not because I'm nervous about the baldness, but because even on my BEST day, my hair never looked as good as any of the wigs. I'm convinced that's how people are going to be able to tell it's not real! It just looks too good! Ah, to have such problems.

Other than that, I'm a little more tired than normal, although since I'm also adjusting to the back to school routine, it's tough to tell if that's really abnormal or not. My students have been relatively good thus far, though the stack of grading waiting me Monday is a bit intimidating. I'm sure it will be fine...

Mom and Dad are here this weekend to fix whatever else in my house seems broken, rearrange the kids' clothes, dig up my front garden and help Eric with continued front porch renovations. If only my house could always be this clean...

Carpe diem - Trela

Home again, home again

At 4 am the prospect of going to work seemed like a pretty good idea. Of course, Eric and my dad had already let me know the night before that it wasn't in fact such a brilliant theory, so I'd already called in for the day. By 6 am their superior intellect became obvious and I crawled back onto the couch for extensive 9/11 coverage. After getting the kids ready to head to Grammie's for the day I've alternated between recordings of "Mystery" and snoozing. There was one brief moment in which, while driving to my mailbox (hey, it was raining), I contemplated the word "tacos" and mathematically determined I could in fact make it to Chipotle and home before Eric got home. The nearest Chipotle is in Rochester.

Honestly other than minor flare ups in apparent insanity and nausea I'm doing ok. The only reason I'm not at work today is because (well, other than the fact I might try to comandeer a school bus for a northernly trip) of the dizziness which comes and goes rather abruptly and makes the sudden urgency of finding a chair highly annoying. Tough to teach and grapple for a hand hold. Hopefully tomorrow. I actually miss the kiddos.

Thanks for all the well-wishing. I'm hangin' in there. Carpe diem. - Trela

Sleep is good

Well, 2 days down, 20 to go.

Today was the second and final day of the first batch of treatments. Now we wait 19 days for the next round. 4 rounds total of this schedule and then it's going to be once weekly for three weeks with a week off. That course too will be repeated 4x.

The first day wasn't too bad, but Trela's feeling pretty ill tonight. They gave her some anti-nausea/sleeping meds, and so she's out like a light, which is I think better than being awake and sick.

In other news, many of you have heard by now, big changes are on the way. Dr. Eichelberger in Jesup has been presented with a wonderful opportunity to advance professionally in Des Moines, and has asked me to come in and buy his practice. It is a wonderful opportunity for me, and the best part is I'll still be able to continue my practice in Waterloo.

The only bad thing about the situation is the timing. Dr. Eichelberger is going to be be helping a doc in Des Moines with health problems and they need someone ASAP, so the timetable on this transition is pretty tight. If everything goes as planned, I'll be starting some of the time on the 18th of September, and then it would be full speed ahead on October 2 with the handoff taking place at that time.

So, I have been and will be pretty busy for a while. Don't be too hard on me we don't get too much posted her for a while.

ERic

C Day

Phew! Sorry about the lack of posts recently -- the last few weeks have been a whirlwind!

We're finally all set to begin chemotherapy tomorrow. After several weeks looking at treatment in Waterloo we've actually decided to pursue opportunities in Cedar Rapids, about 50 minutes away. There were several reasons for the change, but it basically came down to bedside manner and the fact that my new doctor actually knows my doctor at Mayo. I feel more comfortable with the time he and his facility have taken to work with our situation, and I'm confident we're making a better decision. This clinic is actually affiliated with Mayo, also, and it is the one my Mayo doctor had originally mentioned having cooperated with before. If only we'd listened earlier...

In preparation for the treatment I had a ventricular scan done locally today in order to make sure my heart was in good enough shape for treatment. Apparently one of the chemo drugs can cause heart damage, so another scan will be done after a few treatments to make sure everything is progressing ok. Heart checked out fine in their preliminary results, so we're all set to start tomorrow morning with an initial session reaching upwards of eight hours. I'll be treated tomorrow and Thursday, then have two clear weeks before starting again on week three.

Eric and I have been staying busy working on electrical for our porch, finishing the flooring, and working full time! School is going very well for me so far and I think I found a good sub today in the event I need to miss more days than we're planning on. My building has been incredibly supportive which is part of the reason I'm so determined to keep working -- it's nice having an extra thirty or forty people out there rooting for me. I was very upfront with the kids and after the initial round of questions they've learned to just roll with it. Haven't we all?

Carpe diem. - Trela

This fog is so thick, you'd think it was red tape.

I love bureaucracy. As happy as we are with the patient care at Mayo, the communication lines are a different story. First, our plan was to get an appointment at Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in NYC, but things got complicated. From what I understand, it is Mayo's policy to send records only after 2 (TWO) requests. Of course we did not know this, so only requested that it be sent a mere one time. Then, by the time we figured that out, getting an appointment at Sloan would have taken us 2 weeks into our scheduled chemo treatments, and of course, Sloan doesn't want to look at her unless she has not yet started treatment.

Yesterday was supposed to be the day we found out the when's, why's and wherefore's about the chemo from the local treatment center, but for some reason after waiting over an hour, they had no records from Mayo either. Nor did the local plastic surgeon with whom Trela has an appointment tomorrow.

At any rate, the confusion has left us weary. Luckily, Trela's mother Fran is in town to take some of the pressure off, and we're able to keep our heads above water.

As long as the next months aren't as confusing as today has been.

Carpe Diem.