Friday, October 27, 2017

Weight: 131.2
Macros: Cals - 2,082 , Carbs - 206, Fat - 79, Protein - 119, Fiber - 31
Veggies/Fruits (goal 8): 8
Sleep (goal 8 hours): 6 hours
Exercise: Yoga class

Paula, after reading last night's posts I just saw your latest Caring Bridge post. I'm so sorry about Ben's latest diagnosis. It's hard at times like these to find a silver lining, but it's good that he already had a Mayo appointment scheduled for next week. I'm sending you both big, big hugs.

And now on to much smaller issues ...

Yesterday I was a little freaked out by my continuing weight loss (I recorded my lowest ever yesterday) and intentionally added extra calories just to make sure I can still gain weight. And I did. This weekend should "help," too.

Yesterday's 8 veggies and fruits came from the last of Monday's oven-grilled red/orange/red sweet peppers and mushrooms, avocado, spinach and kale, chiles, tomatoes, and red seedless grapes (enjoying grapes lately, and they don't spoil quickly, which is a plus).

Yesterday, I picked what will likely be the last bouquet of our hydrangeas. There are many more fat blooms left in the garden, but my biggest vase simply couldn't hold any more. If you're on FB, I posted a pic there.

We're excited about our little overnight trip to see our DC friends who are traveling in the heartland. It'll be a great night -- good food, convo with like-minded folks, and wine.

Today, hug your loved ones and yourself. We each need and deserve unconditional love.

Paula...what can I say ? Your Caring bridge post knocked the wind out of me...I can't begin to imagine how the news impacts your family! You have all of our love, faith, and support. I wish we were all geographically closer, so we could do hugs, meals, cleaning. We CAN nourish your heart and soul. You are loved ! Breathe...one step at a time... we're with you !

Weight 138.2. Sadie and I met with the 911 County Coordinator yesterday. It sounds like there may be a spot for us on the Emergency Response Team. We would be called in situations like children being removed from homes by DSS and a gap in securing emergency housing, trauma involving special needs individuals ( i.e. autistic), regular wellness visits with first responders, crisis debriefing, de-escalation support in parent containment area during lock-outs/ incidents. He felt my background as a special educator and school administrator would bring some needed skills. Sadie was her usual loving, calming self. The director brought us through the regional 911 call center where seven operators were working. The team was very receptive to Sadie, and you could see them visibly relax and smile. We only stayed four minutes, and there were no calls during that time. Sadie was exposed to radios toning out and a variety of uniforms, which is the kind of habituation we are looking for, to prepare her for her field test. We'll be getting experience with sirens, moving/beeping large vehicles and the general commotion around drilling for incidents too.

Gratitude for opportunities to grow and give back.

Hey Diane O. the prospect of you and Sadie helping with first responders is a great thing. What an excellent idea. I know you guys will be great and hope to hear more about it. Diane S

170.4 gah

Paula-I don't have the info for Ben's caringbridge, but I'm sending hugs and prayers

I'm feeling a little stressed and uncertain today. Must remember Diane O.'s telling us to appreciate opportunities to grow. DH's company announced restructuring yesterday. The good news is a) he has a job, b) he's keeping his position, c) he didn't have to let anyone go. That's all good news!! But last time he was included in these talks (which of course caused stress) but this time he was kept in the dark. They are also moving him from managing the people he hired on (and feels a great sense of camaraderie and loyalty to) to another group. Change is hard. It's so uncertain. This may turn out to be a really good thing, but it's always hard to see things that way. Especially for me. I'm very conservative and risk averse. But if there's one thing we can count on, it's change!

Must get my mind off that as today is our Annual Halloween Party! DH proposed at our first annual Halloween party 5 years ago. Did I ever mention that? We were going to have a Halloween party and he had wanted to go as something "scary" but totally reversed and wanted to be a couple, a very specific couple: Cinderella and Prince Charming. After I was done setting up, he insisted that he must try on Cinderella's glass slipper. So he knelt down and tried on the slipper and then pulled out a ring and proposed. What a guy, what a night!

I'm trying to take it easier this year with the prep. I bought a lot of storebought stuff. I'm just going to try to focus on fun. And be grateful for today.

Good morning from still dark but soon to be sunny California. Weight? Calories 1418, which isn't bad considering that I was traveling and had to make do (plus had an extra few hours to spread food over). I have no clue what I'm doing for meals today. I think a sandwich at lunch can be used for 2 meals today, but I'm not sure what is available for breakfast. I will meander to the lobby in an hour to see if I can just get an order of scrambled eggs (it is only 6:30 now).

Paula, I know you must all be devastated by the news. You are all in my prayers and I hope that the Mayo folks can help.

Ann, the hydrangeas (my favorite flowers) are gorgeous! Ours are all drying out now. I wondered if the weight loss might be freaking you out, but it sounds like it is normal for your body to like the variety of foods.

BB, yes reorganizations are HARD! I hope DH ends up feeling good about his role. He sounds like a great guy (love the proposal)!

And Ocean, what a wonderful job for you and Sadie!

I slept for over 10 hours last night! It is nice not to be in charge for once and not to have someone poking me or getting up every 2 hours to go to the bathroom (setting off the motion detector light). DD, DS, SIL and DH all had dinner together last night with everyone cooking something. DH made the pork (with a little help, but it was his recipe). Unfortunately he also decided to take his pills himself and as a result took his evening pills twice last night. Sigh...

Maybe this trip will reset my sleep clock a bit, which would be good. Only 2 more weeks of starting work at 7 am but them I'm done.

Thank you for all of your thoughts and prayers. My heart is indeed heavy today. Very little sleep last night which is understandable. Thankfully Ben was able to get some rest!

Weight up .2, not that it really matters today.

We meet with the local Oncologist at 1:00 today. Expecting somber news, though he might just defer to the Mayo docs and not tell us much. A quick on-line search looks like median life expectancy after recurrence is 7 months. Hard to think of all the "lasts" that we will probably be experiencing in the near future.

My faith is strong and God will carry us through this time.

Caring Bridge Info: https://www.caringbridge.org/visit/benarbaugh

Awwwww, so sweet!

Big hugs, lots of love....

Please stay off of Google! Even with your medical background, sometimes a little knowledge can be extremely misleading. Let the doctors, your faith, and your God be your guides. Ignore the median and embrace the outlier!

Good advice Devon, I tend to go to worse case scenario first!