Sunday, May 13, 2012

Wild, Wild Life

Happy Mother's Day! It's been a while since I've posted because I've been busy enjoying life! I'm not wearing fur pajamas or riding a hot potato, but I do feel like I've been spending all of my money and time.

Olivia made Easter a beautiful memory for me. She was so excited each and every time she found an egg. She played with her cousins and talked to Grandma's bird for what seemed like hours. My mom got her shiny black shoes to complete her outfit too:



I turned 33 on the 3rd. It was a wonderful birthday and weekend. My friends made me dinner and spent Thursday night with me, and then my Mom treated me to a trip to Chicago to visit my brother for the weekend. It was non-stop and was over in the blink of an eye. I loved the shopping and all the healthy eating. My favorite restaurant was Native Foods Cafe. I had the quinoa bowl and finished it off with an amazing rose cardamom cupcake. So much great food, so little time. We shopped at Top Shop and then saw The Avengers in 3D. It was Mom's first 3D movie, so that made it even more fun to watch her flinch! We also ate at the renown Heaven on Seven. My Mom insisted they would have a spectacular Ramos Fizz because they boasted a Louisiana based menu, but the bartender didn't even know how to make one, so that idea "fizzed," out a little. But they did have some crazy hot sauce! I tried to smuggle some onto the plane for my husband, but it was 5 oz and broke the sacred 3-1-1 commandment for carry-ons.

So now, back at home my summer dance card is filling up. I have been to two baby showers in the last two weeks and I have 3 kiddie parties, a wedding and a grad party to attend all within the coming month. I'm excited to be able to enjoy life again and make happy memories to outshine the last year. Over the weekend, someone told me that they, "Didn't believe in mammograms, and just tried to live healthy and deal with the consequences if they come." I tried to sound understanding because it's not my place to judge other people's beliefs, but personally I couldn't help but feel it was selfish to be oblivious to the future of your health. If I hadn't been brave enough to move forward with my mammogram and let my aggressive cancer have it's way with me, where would I be in 10 years? That was a scary thought that I choked down like a lump in my throat while I politely said nothing. This person knew what I had gone through, so my insight would make no impression. It's definitely one way to not care about your own fate, but what about your children and grandchildren? I would never ever want my husband and daughter to watch me suffer and die in the late stages of cancer. So I will endure the awful squishes, x-rays and biopsies as they are needed to protect the future of our happy memories together. If my Mother had chosen not to go through with her mastectomy and treatment for breast cancer, we may never have been able to create this memory:


Today I made one of the shiniest memories I'll hold onto forever. I treated myself to a pedicure and when I came home, Olivia was infatuated with my toenails. I asked if she wanted hers painted and she got so excited. We painted her piggies with orange polish (a quick-dry kind) and she sat perfectly still and helped me blow them dry. 


Now onto the interwebs to find some non-toxic polish remover!