8 Things We Learned in Week 5 of 2011 (charity, soccer, art, Wordpress, books)

Comments

We received a total of 281 comments on our three blogs in January! That was way more than I expected but will stay true to my word and donate $281 to The Last Hope Cat Kingdom. Our charity for February is The National Children's Cancer Society but are revising the amount to 50 cents per comment.

Soccer

I found out soccer is harder than I thought when I spent 15 minutes to learn a few basics at our Childrens Workers Breakfast at church. This video shows me demonstrating how to pass in soccer with the assistance of my cats--enjoy!

Personal News Network (PNN)

Somehow, the owners of PNN found a way to keep it going after all. It's mostly a community for women to discuss topics. It's very easy to use and does have a nice way of featuring new posts. You may want to take a look into it at www.pnn.com.

Pet Portraits

Connie Bowen paints custom pet portraits. I discovered her website this week through in interview at The Conscious Cat. I think this would be SO much fun!

Sad News and Good News

The sad news is that I just learned this week that Sheri, one of my friends, has breast cancer (stage 2) that has spread to her lymph nodes. She will have chemo for four months, then surgery and then radiation. I was very sad to hear about this but trust God will bring her through it. I was so fortunate that I didn't need chemo and really had no pain. You are in my prayers--it's a long journey but doable. Hang in there!

The good news is that the groundhog did not see his shadow yesterday so we should have an early spring--hurray!

From Blogger to Wordpress

I am not planning to switch, but thought others may be interested to know that there is a way to switch from Blogger to Wordpress Without Losing Valuable SEO and Links outlined at Tentblogger. Who knows, maybe some day I will want to do this.

Book Giveaways

Today at Freekibble they are giving away 3 signed copies of Garth Stein's best-selling fiction book, The Art Of Racing In The Rain about a dog, Enzo, and his owner, a race car driver. Both Gerard and I read this one and liked it very much!

If you would like to get a free copy of "My Funny Dad, Harry" (the book I wrote), stop by at Red Pine Mountain and leave a comment on my guest post to enter her Feb. 5 giveaway!

 

Breaking Night

I never heard this term before I read Breaking Night: A Memoir Of Forgiveness, Survival, and My Journey From Homeless To Harvard by Liz Murray. It means staying up all night. I also learned that the safest place for a homeless person to sleep is on a top landing in a stairwell if they don't have friends they can stay with. This is an amazing true story that I just read. I saw the movie years ago. Click on the link to see our reviews of it.

Find more Friday Fragments.

8 Things I Learned This Week #94 (Blog Frog, impact, winner, publishing, book, Swift, dogs)

Blog Frog

I finally learned the best (and easiest) way to make use of Blog Frog. First, I finally put the widget to my "neighborhood" on all three of my blogspot blogs and discovered that if I sign in to Blog Frog before I go visiting other blogs, then whenever I see questions on others widgets that I want to answer, all I have to do is click on the question and it takes me right there! Much easier than trying to find my way around on Blog Frog.  How about joining my neighborhood and either starting a discussion or answering some questions?  I'd love to get this going but need your help!

Make An Impact

I was very surprised when I went through my Facebook messages last Saturday to discover Ryan M. considers me to be one of six people other than his family who "significantly impacted the course" of his life. WOW! What a great feeling to hear this! Read more about it at One Simple Act Made A Big Impact that I posted here on Monday night.

Two-Faced Pumpkin

I saw my first ever two-faced Halloween pumpkin this week over at Show Me Mama. I like the boy one better.

Spooktacular Giveaway

Christine Senter, a wife, mom and writer, has to be the biggest book lover in the blogosphere! She entered my giveaway and posted about it at Christine Senter's Blog so I went to see. It turns out she actually posted about all the giveaways she entered and she entered 87 out of 88! She is one of our winners chose by Spunky Doodle. I posted a video of our pets announcing our Stephen King Spooktacular winners. (They want me to let you know!)

Read more »

7 Things I Learned This Week-#68

Garden Ponds

I found out that in order to keep the water cool and clear of algae, you must have the water's surface covered about 60-70% by plants. I love little garden ponds but I am too lazy to put in the work it takes to maintain them. If you're thinking of putting one in or have one, be sure to check out Lin's post, Yes, the Frogs Really Do Sit On The Lily Pads over at Duck and Wheel with String.

Sisterhood Of The Shrinking Jeans

I just learned about The Sisterhood of the Shrinking Jeans this week from The Daily Tribal--Lent & My First Vlog. She shares how the Sisterhood of the Shrinking Jeans helped her lose weight in her first vlog which is very well done and entertaining. I think you should check it out and if you are trying to lose weight, The Sisterhood of the Shrinking Jeans may be helpful--it's free!

Printing Blank Calendar

I learned how to print a blank monthly calendar this week from Outlook at work. You go to "File" on the tool bar, "new," "new folder," (give it a name--I named my "blank"). When I want to print an empty calendar, I can use that blank calendar.

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Having Breast Cancer Wasn't All Bad (Writer's Workshop 10-14-10)

We never know what will happen each year. At the beginning of 2009, having Breast Cancer was certainly not expected. As it turned out, the second half of 2009 I found myself facing Breast Cancer and fighting it off.

The Lord spared me from pain and Chemo. When I found out I had Breast Cancer last summer, I immediately asked to be anointed for healing at church as instructed in James 5:13-16.

My biggest fear of possibly dying was leaving Gerard alone so I wrote a list of instructions to help him out "just in case." As things turned out, he didn't need it because I had a successful lumpectomy in which the Cancer was removed and I woke up.

For me, dealing with Cancer was a little inconvenient with all the doctor trips and follow-up appointments but that was the only bad thing about it. Fortunately, the Cancer was detected early on thanks to getting my mammograms and had not spread to the lymphnodes. I had no pain at all before surgery or after other than when they prepped me for surgery and mapped where to cut but that was it for pain--a grand total of 20-30 minutes, if that, of actual pain.

I praise the Lord that Chemo was not necessary and the radiation treatments were quick and painless. Also, that my doctor was really on the ball, getting me in contact with a very good surgeon so quickly when he got the results back from my mammogram.

I was able to go braless for several months which was wonderful to me. I don't like those things. The straps are a nuisance because they fall down a lot!

I was able to be off from work with full pay thanks to FMLA and I felt fine. My job was very slow so it really was a good time for me to be off. I felt good and a bit guilty but when I tried returning to work early, I became exhausted so didn't feel guilty staying home after that, just enjoyed my time off. About mid November, I started back to work for just the mornings so still had the afternoons to do errands, blog hop, play with my pets and do the grocery shopping. It was nice! I loved getting home while it was still light.

I revised some of my eating habits and now eat vegetables, much less chocolate, V8 juice, and cut out the Friday donuts which was the hardest thing to do. Thanks to the Breast Cancer, I'm eating healthier.

So, beginning January 1, I started taking another pill, Femara, for five years that is supposed to help keep the Cancer from returning.

I write this to encourage others to get those mammograms each year, don't fret about Cancer but trust the Lord and don't let it control your thoughts. Go on about your life, enjoy living, hope for the best but prepare for the worst. Also, I encourage you to eat those vegetables instead of donuts and other things high in sugar. Sugar is not your friend!  I must remember that!  (Not doing so good at passing up those donuts since I moved to a new floor at work in March of 2010--instead of eating three once a week, I only eat one some weeks.)

Related posts:
How One Phone Call Ruined My Day--Blindsided
My New Pink Hat--What A Nice Surprise!
What We Eat Really Can Make A Difference

I linked this post up to Mama Kat's Writer's Workshop in response to her prompt to write about your fight against breast cancer or someone else's since it is Breast Cancer Awareness month.  (This was one of last week's prompts)

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What We Eat Really Can Make A Difference!

There's a Cancer support group that meets once a month. This month's meeting met last Wednesday and the topic was nutrition. When the Cancer education counselor told me about it, my first thought was that I already knew what they would say. It's not like I don't know I eat unhealthy stuff and know vegetables are good for me. The last minute though, I decided to go after all to check it out, see who all was there, find out what the resource center looked like and where it was.

I am so glad I went because I learned so much! The most important and biggest thing I learned was why certain foods are so bad and why others are so good. We saw a DVD called "Food For The Fight." I always thought "healthy foods" and "unhealthy foods" were all about weight management but boy was I wrong! According to this video, Food is medicine. Keep eating to survive even if doesn't taste good while having chemo. Sugar is cancer cells' best friend because it helps them grow. Good foods help build good cells that fight against the cancer cells.

Foods to Avoid that I eat: high fat foods like donuts, muffins, sweet rolls, ice cream,
Good foods are: cooked vegetables, bananas, chicken, scrambled eggs, a dietary supplement.

At least pizza wasn't on the "avoid" list, thank God! That is my staple food--I eat two slices 4 days a week!
For good nutrition and to maintain a healthy weight, we should:
Eat 5 servings of fruits and vegetables every day
Eat whole grain cereals, pastas, and bread products
Take a multivitamin daily (discuss with your doctor which is best for you)
Limit alcohol to 1 drink a day (I do good on this since I don't drink at all!)
Exercise more, walking is considered exercise so I'm okay on this too. The American Cancer Society recommends that women with breast cancer exercise about 4 hours a week.

The day after the meeting I shopped and bought a salad, cucumber, tomatos, carrots, almonds, prunes, bananas, trail mix and some V8 juice to try.

Homestay Mama sent me the link to this interview of Brenda Cobb at the Living Foods Institute which proves that diet can make a difference: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tVLDPI0TH90
(I did have the video embedded but it was too wide and I didn't know how to fix it.)

Ever hear the phrase "If I knew then what I know now
?" I used to be a "Junk Food Junkie," even had a shirt that said so. I was never fat so I kind of prided myself on being able to eat all kinds of fattening stuff without gaining for the longest time. I lived on Shakes, burgers, fries, fried chicken, pop every day, chocolate, Cheetoes, Doritoes, macaroni & cheese, some ice cream and of course lots of pizza! I made some changse when I started working out with a personal trainer but it basically amounted to cutting out the pop, fries, munchees and adding a protein drink. I still have a long ways to go, but I'm getting there with God's help!

I hope by sharing this information others will reconsider their eating habits and perhaps avoid growing those Cancer cells! I managed to down 4 cups of green tea the first 3 days after attending this meeting. Please continue praying that I will acquire a taste for it--still not good!

7 Things I Learned This Week--Part 33

Sell Your Books

I found this site, cash4books when visiting Red Pine Mountain this week. All you do is enter the book ISBN numbers you want to sell, get a quote of how much they'll pay you (either by check or PayPal), print the postage label and send them away. Books must be in good condition and they usually only buy those that are 2006 or newer.

Photography

I finally learned what a "megapixel" is when visiting Better in Bulk. It's one million pixels or dots that make up a digital picture. Basically, the more the better the picture quality. This post includes a table letting you know how many megapixels you should have for what size prints you want. This blog also has a tab for photo tips with a post on how to make pictures you load to your blog larger.


I found 5 Tips to Improve Your Pet Photography at Dogster's For The Love Of Dog Blog. Make shots more interesting by shooting at pet's eye level and from different angles. Avoid using the flash and try to shoot early morning or evening rather than in bright sun during the day.

Cancer

Monday I got my results back from the biopsy and I have some cancer in my right breast--not the news I was hoping for. Learning the meanings of new words like Lumpectomy (removing the cancer, saving the breast, followed by radiation), Mastectomy (removal of the breast, Lymph Nodes, sentinel node biopsy--removing lymph nodes to screen them for cancer cells. Way more than I wanted to know!

UPDATE: Thanks for all your support and prayers! It's so nice to know many people are pulling for me. I just found out last night that sugar causes the cancer cells to increase. This is very bad news for me because I usually eat 2 donuts a week and love chocolate! Both are very bad and are on the "foods to avoid" list. The other bad news for me is that the "good food list" is vegetables which I eat zero of unless I go to a buffet. And guess what is the best offense against the Cancer cells--green tea and vegetable drinks! YUCK! Please pray God will help me acquire a taste for these things--I know With God, all things are possible! For a laugh, check out my previous posts about green tea and donuts: Green Tea Is Not For Me, No Thanks! and Donut Day, Hurray, Hurray!

FarmTown

At Out of the Mundane I found a tip for those who like playing FarmTown on Facebook: Plant raspberries.

Quicker Ice Cubes

At Modern Mom I learned today that to make ice cubes faster, use boiling water in place of tap water and they will freeze faster and be clearer! Modern mom sure comes up with lots of good tips!

I wonder if this post I do each week could count as Friday Fragments. What do you think? Would I have to change the name to link up to others?

How One Phone Call Ruined My Day--Blindsided! (Writer's Workshop)

While on vacation the day after I had my ultrasound done I was enjoying my day with the pets and blogging when I got a call from my doctor’s office right before I’m ready to eat lunch. I’m thinking this cannot be good—they NEVER call me. The receptionist told me my doctor needs to see me right away. I get there in 20 minutes and am referred to a surgeon because the ultrasound place recommended a biopsy be done on “something suspicious” that showed up. I’m thinking, okay, I’m not going to worry that it’s cancer until I hear it is. I went right away to find the surgeon’s office and make an appointment to see him.

When Gerard got home I went with him when he walked Abby to tell him about my strange afternoon. We both tried to stay positive and hope it was nothing.

Well, It Was Something

Gerard and I were both off work for our annual doctor appointment so he came with me to my follow-up appointment with the surgeon to get my biopsy results. My doctor hadn’t received the results yet! I called the hospital and asked them to fax them over. Why don’t doctors communicate with each other? I feel like I’m a “doctor coordinator” here. They came through and I could tell they weren’t good. If they were, he would have told me. Is it any wonder my blood pressure was up?

When I got to the surgeon, I had to wait an hour before I got to see him. Finally, he told me I had some cancer in my right breast which by this time I already figured out. Still, it wasn’t the results I was hoping for and I kind of went into shock as he quickly explained my alternatives and the risks. The next day, I made an appointment for a lumpectomy on September 1.

I am so appreciative of all the prayer support I’ve received from my blogger friends! I just let a few know through personal emails the day after I found out and Mountain Woman at Red Pine Mountain posted about my need for prayers (with permission). I know I’m in good hands and God will see me through this. Many people have had this experience so now I figure it’s my turn. I am looking at this as just another life experience and know that God knows all about me and my body and I’m His child.

The blogging community has really been wonderful to me! Thanks so much for your prayers and well wishes! I can’t thank you enough!

UPDATED 12/24/09: I had a successful and painless lumpectomy on Sept. 1 followed by time off work with pay and a month of radiation treatments that were quick and painless and am back to work full-time. Will start taking Femara January 1, 2010 for five years. I felt fine through my whole recovery period (except for the bad cold I got at Thanksgiving). I was back teaching Sunday School just one week after my surgery.

I'm using this old post for Mama's Workshop prompt: Who blind-sided you? Write about a time someone caught you totally off guard.

Breast Cancer 3-Day 60-Mile Walk

We are sponsoring Jan, one of my co-workers and a member of Team Kay, who is doing the Breast Cancer 3-Day walk to raise money for breast cancer research, education, screening and treatment through Susan G. Komen for the Cure and the National Philanthropic Trust Breast Cancer Fund. Breast cancer is the second leading cause of cancer death for all women, and the leading cause of death in women between the ages of 40 and 55.


Jan and her daughter, Elissa, did this walk last year too. They have to raise a minimum of $2,200 each in order to participate in this walk which involves camping overnight in a tent with all of the other walkers the weekend of August 22-24, 2008. If you would like to contribute to this, donate online at their website: http://08.the3day.org/goto/Elissa.Paul. (Donations are tax deductible so you will receive a receipt for online donations).


Team Kay was formed in honor of their Aunt Kay who is a breast cancer survivor and in memory of Jan's mom, who did not survive. They are walking for anyone who has had this horrible disease touch their lives. My sister is also a breast cancer survivor.


(After the walk, the tents get donated to Girl Scouts.)