Hectic Holidays

After my really down last post and not updating for a while I just want to let every one know that I am fine. I was just having a bad day. I get like that sometimes.

I have just completed my 17th of 35 radiation treatments and am having some side effects but nothing I can’t handle. The worst part of the whole thing is the drive over to treatment. With the weather it usually takes at least  an hour each way. I go late in the day after work so by the time I finally get home I am just wore out and my house really shows it.

It would be worse but Sissy and Coder are spending most nights with my son and daughter in law, at least when school is in  session. With Loml working 2nd shift it is a big help for me to be able to sleep when ever I need to and not to have to worry about what Sissy is doing.

The holidays have been great. My sister is here. We celebrated my father’s 80th birthday yesterday. The big eight-o! How can that be?

I m just starting to plan my little Epiphany thing. It dawned on me the other day that it is my chance to do a celebration just the way I want and not have accommodate someone else’s idea  of how it should be done. I have a vision of what Christmas would be like, but can never pull it off, because Loml’s birthday is Christmas Eve and he thinks we should be celebrating that instead. Christmas Day throws my parents and his mother into the mix, as well as allowing for the schedules of the older kids running to their-in-laws or whatever. Epiphany is all mine and this year falls on a Saturday, even the school can not stop me. I have a special casual dinner planned for the night before, we will read some great Christmas stories, hot coco and then off to bed, for Sissy and Coder, to wait the arrival of La Bufana and her goodies. The next day we will have a brunch, maybe a breakfast casserole, followed by a more formal dinner with Panetone for dessert and  Christmas Crackers to pull. The stuff is on clearance now, in a way my Epiphany is like Christmas Lite. Almost Christmas, but cheaper. 

Cloudy, Icy, Yucky Day

Did not on the treatment today because of the yuck weather.

I  have been thinking about my mother’s mom all day. I do not think of her as my grandmother, because she died so young. She was only 35 and my mother was 7. Mom was raised mostly by her aunt. She never really had a mother/daughter relationship. For nearly 70 years my mom has morned the loss of a mother she barely remembers.

I have always thought of this loss strictly from the view point of a child but now I am seeing it from the mothers point of view. A mother who probably felt that she had a lot of things she wanted to do, like see her children grow up, and did not get the opportunity to complete her life.
I am older then she was, but I still have plenty of things that I need and want to do in this life. I have two children still at home. I need to be here long enough that they can feel good thinking about me and not feel that they were left alone with out a mother.

Sometimes I am scared. I want to be okay. I want to believe that I am going to be the one who beat this. One of the blessed, one of the lucky ones.

But I am afraid, I look at the numbers and my heart drops, how can I be one of the lucky ones?

Maybe tomorrow the sun will be shining and I will feel more up beat again. Today is just not my day.

Today this is a Cancer Free Zone

I am sick of talking about cancer aren’t you? With that in mind I have declared this blog to be a 24 hour cancer free zone.

Instead we are going to talk about Arancini (pronounced Aranchini,) also known as Rice Balls. YUM YUM!

The people we lived with in Italy used to make them when I was a girl and I make these decatant fattening little treats every year during the holidays.

Wandering Rose’s Italian Rice Balls (Arancini)

8 cups of cooked white rice

1 stick of margarine (I use Imperial, I tried butter one year but it seemed to make them too greasy)

1 8oz container of grated Parmesan cheese

2 eggs

1/2 cup of chopped parsley

Bread crumbs

8 oz mozzarella cheese cut into cubes (I cheat and use a package of shredded)

Mix the butter, eggs, cheese and parsley into the cooked rice. (If the rice is cold soften the butter first.)

Form the rice into balls about 2″ across (water will keep the rice from sticking to your hands) They should hold their shape, if they are too dry add another egg, too wet add a little more cheese.

Press a cube of mozzarella into the center of each rice ball.

Roll the balls in bread crumbs and deep fry till golden brown.

Mangia!

Arancini means little oranges, which the rice balls resemble when they are done.

Winter Driving

I am good. Just finished my first week of radiation. If there are going to be any side effects they should not start before the third week so I have at least another two good weeks. Hopefully more.

Thursday I drove through the snow for treament. The last 20 miles we were going just 35 mph on the interstate, little cars like mine were sliding in to the ditch all over the place. I did my treatment and it took me 45 minutes to get off campus, I could have walked faster. there is no way I wanted to drive all the way home (60 miles) like that. I called a friend from church who lives near there and she put me up for the night. How nice. I was able to go for treatment early the next day and head for home.

Now I am free until Monday.

One week down, six to go.

YEA!

Radiation

Finally had the first of my 35 radiation treatments. The worst of it is the 45 min. drive up there, once we get to the clinic we are in and out in about 20 mins.

The Dr. believes I will experience some side effects, but not for a of couple weeks yet. I am going to keep working until something happens (hopefully it never does) that makes working too difficult.

Thanks go out to my son and daughter in law for watching the kids during this time. It is a BIG help to me and really cuts down on the stress. Maybe I can could get them to watch my parents also?

Mom and Dad drove me to treatment yesterday and my mom threw a screaming fit at my dad in the parking garage. It was embarrassing and nearly made us late. Mom was fussing at me as we were walking to the clinic, that we should have just gone straight to the door. I kept telling her we had plenty of time when we parked. Plenty of time until you wasted it all screaming at Dad for 10 minutes because he neglected to open your door for you! (but I did NOT say that.)