Update & OT

Hey Gang!  Long time no see, I know.  Sorry about that.  A FRIEND sent me a lovely email, reminding me that I've been missed & thought of.  I'm sorry I've been gone for so long.

Cyndi is having surgery this morning to remove her ovaries.  Even though the cancer is in her hip, it turns out that it is hormone-driven.  Thus the surgery.  She will start chemo next week & they expect good results since there won't be anything there to continue to feed it.  Now that action is finally being taken, she's in much better spirits.

As for the OT...I have taken on a new project.  I have adopted 150 new sons!!  Some of you may have heard about them on NBC news Monday & Tuesday night.  They are the Army soldiers stationed in the Korengal Valley of Afghanistan.  I currently have 25 boxes of "stuff" to be sent to them.  They are in need of EVERYTHING!!  There are 3 outposts & they are fired upon by the Talliban daily.  We just lost another one...Sgt. John Penich...on the 16th.  Very sad.  So, I've had my hands full obtaining the things they need/wish for.  I must admit, this venture is turning out to be rather expensive.  Each box will cost $10.95 to send.  Guess where Nino's rent check is going...lol.

I'm not bashful, as you all well know, so I am reaching out to ya'll.  If any of you would like to help support the cause, please send me an email or PM & let me know.  We can use all the help we can get.  I managed to talk my hairdresser into donating shampoo & boy did she come through.  And with the promise that there will be more when she hits up her supplier!  LOL  My eye doctor's office is donating special wet wipes for cleaning eye glasses.  Walmart donated a pack of good TP & paper towels.  I even got a 10% discount from the Dollar Store!

Melinda, I am soooooo doggone proud of you!  You look so beautiful in your cap & gown.  You must be beaming with pride & so you should!! 

Kat, thanks for the email.  I needed that!

Melissa...wow girl...look at you!! 

To all the rest, you certainly have been missed.  I will try to pop in  way more often.  Lord knows I can't forget my OH ohana!!  I love you all!!

Welcome back, Ann.  I have been thinking of you and your sister.  Glad she is getting treatment and will continue the prayers for her.  Good spirits are a positive sign! 

I have "adopted" my own extended family for years.  I come from a military family,  I have one cousin currently in Iraq and one guarding The Tomb of the Unknown in DC as we speak.  I have another cousin that was discharged from the USMC with three purple hearts after serving four tours in Iraq with the Special Ops, Black Forces as well.  I send items over monthly to the squads of my family members.  Even though some are home and others will never go over there,t hey still have "family" over there and they all need our help.  I wish I could help you but I do what I do on my own and the expense is quite a bit.  I can not add more to what I already do right now.  I need to save money for baby things. 

Good luck with all that you do and keep driving for those donations!  Every little thing helps!

Hey, Ann: 

I have been thinking of you so much lately.  I'm going to PM you shortly, but wanted to say:  KUDOS TO YOU.  I think what you are doing is wonderful, and being married to someone who made a career of the military, I know how much these things are appreciated by those on the receiving end. 

God Bless You, Ann!  :)

Good am Ann,

I hope Cyndi's surgery went well. Hope she continues to be in great spirits. I hope to see you posting more often. You've updated about others in your life but what about you? How are you doing? Don't forgo your care for yourself so that you can keep taking care of others. :) You've got mail.

Hugs.........

Ditto to what Kata said...what about you????  Also, what items are you collecting other than what you had donated?  I may not be able to help out financially but I can try and send some items for you to add.  Let me know!  I miss you being around here and am anxious on an update from you about YOU, Mike, the new job and all!

MWAH!

Hmmm...what about me, you ask.  Well, my weight loss sucks!  I've gained back a few pounds.  I know, I know...today's a new day.  I've started the day right with a proper breakfast.  I haven't been able to see Dr. Mo in waaaaay too long & still can't until Mike gets the insurance issue ironed out with his new employer.  But I have given in to temptation & been eating all the wrong things.  I've been off my feet for a long while cuz I hurt my back.  Frankly I think I'm becoming a bit overwhelmed with life in general.  Concerned about Cyndi, nursing this hurting back, other health issues, trying to run a household from bed, Christmas coming up (gifts, gifts, gifts! handmade, of course), other family concerns, problems in our civil war hobby, & now my 150 new sons.  And on top of all that, I broke a nail last night!!! LOL  There just doesn't seem to be enough time in a day to do everything.  I've had insomnia for a couple of months now.  So, in some ways, I'm not so good.  But in so many other ways, I'm great.  I've managed to complete 3 Xmas gifts so far, & Mike & I came up with a very simple gift idea that will appeal to many with minimal time required to complete them.

So that's what's up with me, for the most part.  Not a completely pretty picture, but certainly not doom & gloom.

Mike's job...well, he's completed a week so far.  He's still kind of in flux...doesn't have a desk of his own yet, nor access to a computer.  He's certainly getting his exercise in since he has to park so bloody far away from the Pentagon.  Not so bad now, but I'm concerned for when it snows.  Since he doesn't have a phone of his own yet, he calls me a couple times a day just to check in.  I suppose if an emergency were to come up I could probably call M elissa...she'd know who to call to get a message to him.

So that's about it so far.

As for my boys in Afghanistan, the support I'm looking for help with now is finding people willing to sponsor a box or two.  While I did get SOME things donated, the majority came from me & Mike.  And now I have  30 boxes that need to be sent.  They cost $11 each.  I've already spent about $500 on stuff...I can't afford another $300 to mail them.  So far, I have 5 boxes sponsored.   If any of you wish to help out by sponsoring a box, I would be most appreciative.  I will  put a note in each box, telling the soldiers who made it possible & if they'd like to send thank yous, I'll tell them to send them to me & I will pass it on to ya'll.  That way nobody's addresses are being given out when they don't want them to be.  Just PM me if you want to help.  I don't want to become annoying about this, so that's all I'm going to say. 

So, I'm off to repack some boxes, fill out the claim forms & get them to the post office.

Thank you so much for thinking about me, for worrying about me, for being my friend.  It means much more than words could ever say.  I love you all!