Denise's Happy, Healthy,Healing Journal-Posts welcome

[toystoryduo]

Hi Denise,

I've seen your posts on Amy's and Diane's journals and wanted to stop by and say hello.

That is so exciting that you'll soon meet your first grandchild! I bet you can't wait!!!

I'm glad to hear that your surgery went well.

I look forward to following you on your journey. Hope you have a nice day!

 

[Amy&Dan]

Hi Denise,

I am so glad you surgery went well and that you are recovering. That is good news that the initial test shows no cancer, I am praying that this two weeks go fast and that you have more big news to rejoice over when those final labs come back!

Wow, I cannot believe that you will be a Grandma next week! What a great time for the whole family.

Keep us posted, btw, I never got any information about your hospital page/update thing??

 

[DisDee]

Thanks Amy and toystoryduo! I appreciate you stopping by.

My recovery continues to go well. I had a follow-up visit on Tues. and was told that the incisions are healing nicely. We were even able to stop and have lunch after the appt. I told DH that I want to go to a craft store tonight and pick up a couple of scrapbooking items. I'm redoing Lauren's baby book cause some of the items had come unglued and it needs to be preserved a little better. I'm going to mount the original pages on large scrapbook pages and use plastic page protectors. She always loved to look thru her book as a child so it's been well-loved.

I made some ressies for that long weekend at WDW in Jan. I booked the Holiday Inn at Downtown Disney which has been completely remodeled, and AKL. Now here's the dilemma. HI is $79.00 per night. AKL is $144.00. We would need a car for HI but use ME for AKL. My questions is...what would Disers do? I think I already know the answer to that question. LOL! Let me know!

 

[toystoryduo]

Hi Denise,

I'm glad to hear that your recovery is going well.

If I had to pick, I would choose AKL. That way, you wouldn't have to rent a car and you could always take a bus back to the resort if you wanted to take a mid-day break. Plus, I love the resort! Either way, you can't go wrong....You'll be in WDW!

I hope you have a nice weekend!

~Tracy

 

[DisDee]

Go Phillies!!!!

 

[toystoryduo]

I'm with you, Denise.....Go Phillies!!!!

Did you decide on which hotel to stay at?

I hope you had a nice weekend!

Have a great Monday!

 

[Amy&Dan]

Happy Grandma Day Denise! I am sure that everything is going well, and I am saying a prayer for mom, baby and Grandma! Come and give us the good news and post a picture of the newest family member.


Definitely go Phillies! No idea why, but the Yankees get on my nerves!

I would do AKL for sure!!! That is an awesome rate and once the economy picks up, you won't see that again. I would need to be saving way more than that to stay in that Holiday Inn! And yeah, you knew I'd say that!

 

[DisDee]

I finally made it back here! Its been a crazy week traveling between Pa. and home. We have a new grandson-Scott Harrison Smalley! He was born on Thurs. and weighed 8 lbs, 21 1/2 in. with brown hair and blue eyes for now. Lauren was not admitted on her scheduled date because the hospital was so busy with all the full moon births. Long story short, she was induced on Tues., spent Tues. and Wed. making slow progress, so they performed a c-section on Thurs. morning. She's doing well as it baby. We finally got to see them yesterday when the hospital lifted their visitation restrictions due to H1N1 concerns.I'll check with Lauren to see if its ok to give the link to her SmugMug photo site.

We are so happy to be new grandparents!

 

[toystoryduo]

Congratulations Denise!!!! I bet you and your DH are so excited to be grandparents!!!! I'm so happy to hear that Lauren and baby Scott are doing well.

Have a wonderful day!

 

[Amy&Dan]

Denise Congratulations! I am so happy for you, my mom always said being a grandparent was the best and I know you are going to have so much fun loving and spoiling little Scott (love that name by the way, had dd been a boy she would have been either a Scott or Stephen).

Congratulations again, it seems like only yesterday you found out Lauren was expecting and now here she is a mom! Of course, I bet the last nine months don't feel that speedy for her!

 

[DisDee]

Thanks for being here for me ladies!

I've been spending a lot of time out in Pa. with Lauren, Sean and baby Scott. Its been difficult to do everything that I'd like to to help them out since I'm still recuperating but I do what I can and I know that they appreciate Gary and I being there. Lauren had a bit of a rough time a couple of days after coming home from the hospital, but she's doing much better now. Scott continues to thrive and is a little cutie. You'll be able to see some pictures on smalley.smugmug.com. If that doesn't work you can go to Smugmug and do a search for Smalley and Lauren and Sean's page should come up.

I gave a little more thought to our weekend trip to WDW and we're about 99% sure that we'll stay at AKL. Not sure what else we'll do because of my knee issues, but I guess we have the option of renting a wheelchair if we want to go to a park. We'll probably just relax and do some laid-back things like spending time at the pool, have some nice meals etc.

I do have some other not-so-good news to share with you. I've have a recurrence of the cancer. We've known for almost three weeks but did not want to tell our family until after the baby was born. We finally told our kids and their spouses last Tues. which was the most difficult thing that I've ever had to do. After the initial shock, I told my positive attitude to kick into gear, develop my support system, and do what I have to do!

I had a second opinion at the Fox Chase Cancer Center in Phila. which is probably the best in the area along with the University of Penn. They concurred with my 2 oncologists that its a recurrence of the Uterine cancer which spread to my left ovary and also the omentum which is on the abdomen. Its in an early stage in those locations and thanks to all the imaging that I went through it was caught early because I had no symptoms.I'm looking at 8 rounds of chemotherapy which will be 3 weeks apart. I have a consult on Tues with the surgeon who will install my port-o-cath and will probably start treatment the first week of Dec.

I know I can count on my Wish sisters to be here for me again!

Well, enough about that. Amy, I'll be updating my Carepages site sometime in the near future, so I'll email you at that time. If anyone else would like me to add you to my list, just PM me with your email address.

My DH has been my rock thru all of this, and he surprised me with a weekend trip planned for the Washington DC area next weekend. We're going to stay at the Gaylord National Harbor which is just south of DC. They have "Ice" just like the Gaylord Palms along with other holiday events like choirs, fountain shows and other fun things. I think this will be just what the doctor ordered! Its about a 2 1/2 hour dive for us if the traffic is good. I'm really looking forward to it!

Time to catch up on lots of stuff around here so I'm gonna run and take care of business. Thanks for listening!

 

[toystoryduo]

Oh my goodness, Denise!!! Your grandson is absolutely precious! He is such a beautiful baby!

I am so sorry to hear that the cancer has returned. I am sending a gentle and prayers your way.

What a wonderful DH you have! I hope you have a wonderful weekend away in DC !!

 

[goldcupmom]

Praying for you & all your family, Dee!

Scott is a HANDSOME young man!! I assume the proud grandpa is the one with the beard....he looks quite comfortable with that new little grandson!

Hope you have a wonderful time in DC. You CAN do this, Dee! Life isn't easy, but God is faithful!

Update us when you can.....

 

[Amy&Dan]

Hi Denise, you have a very good looking little grandson! What a cutie he is.

I am so sorry your have had this cancer recurrance. You were very selfless to wait until after the baby was born and it must be a relief to have it out in the open with your family. I know you will pull through this with flying colors, I am so thankful they caught it early. You have an amazing attitude and that helps too.

That is so sweet your hubby surprised you with that trip to D.C. I think you got a keeper! DC is one of my favorite cities to visit.

AKL also sounds about perfect! Some relaxation at WDW will be so good for you guys. When you know where those nice meals will be happening, fill me in. I love to live vicariously through other people's trips!

 

[Amy&Dan]

Hope you had a Happy Thanksgiving Denise. I hope you and your dh had a wonderful time in DC (I am betting you did). And I know that you are most thankful for Baby Scott this year!

Hang in there my friend, I am keeping you in my prayers.

 

[toystoryduo]

Hope you had a nice Thanksgiving, Denise. How was DC?

Sending prayers your way.....Hope you have a great evening!

 

[DisDee]

Thanks for being here my friends, even when I'm not!

Our trip to the Gaylord National was just what the doctor ordered! The hotel is in Maryland, just south of DC in a newly developed area on the Potomac River. We didn't do any sightseeing-just stayed at the resort and enjoyed the holiday happenings and had some nice meals. The "Ice" show was amazing. Thankfully, Gary insisted on borrowing a wheel chair from the resort for me because "Ice" was in a separate area across from the hotel. There was also shopping along the waterfront. He certainly got his workout pushing me around because the area is built into the hillside above the river. It was the perfect escape for us just to relax before the start of the chemo.

My first treatment is done and I'm handling the after effects pretty well! I did not have any nausea which I'm so thankful for! I'm experiencing some gastric issues and I had some bone pain from one of the meds. I'm also experiencing sleep issues from another med, but I'm dealing with that cause I can just take it easy during the day. I have a follow-up appt. on Mon.

Again, thanks for being here!

 

[toystoryduo]

I'm glad that you and your DH had a great time in DC!

Sending lots of prayers your way as you begin treatment again. If there is anything we can do, please let us know.

Hope your Monday is a good one!

 

[Amy&Dan]

Hi Denise, I am so glad you and Gary had fun in DC! You have a keeper of a husband! But you know that of course. I have heard of that hotel and its holiday festivities, I am so glad you enjoyed it!

I am keeping you in my prayers. And so thankful you don't have any nausea. I'll pray you get a good night's sleep (or rather a bunch of them).

 

[toystoryduo]

Merry Christmas to you and your family, Denise! I hope you have a wonderful day filled with love, laughter, and God's peace. Enjoy your first Christmas with your new grandson! We're praying for you, my friend.