Exciting news @ The Pink Ribbon Shop!

Today is our "official" announcement about The Pink Ribbon Shop Fund for Breast Cancer Research at MD Anderson!  If you didn't get our promotional email, here's what was said:

EXCITING NEWS from The Pink Ribbon Shop!

I’ve mentioned our “partnership” with MD Anderson Cancer Center for several months now on my blog, but I’ve disclosed no details.  We’ve added our new $1.00 Funding the Cure with THE PINK RIBBON ROUNDUP silicone bracelet to our website with no special fanfare.  And we’ve created The Pink Ribbon Roundup donation page on our site as well.  Now it’s time to officially announce how all these pieces fit together!

Established in 2011, The Pink Ribbon Shop Fund for Breast Cancer Research at MD Anderson Cancer Center was founded by The Pink Ribbon Shop to demonstrate our commitment to funding breast cancer research efforts. While we regularly donated to various organizations throughout any given year, we felt that we could make an even bigger impact by focusing on a single recipient. We are proud to support the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, the nation's leading cancer center, with a commitment to donate a minimum of $20,000 in any four year period to their breast cancer research department. We are excited to report that in our Fund’s first 6 months, we have exceeded our own expectations by donating $10,000!

Your purchase of our exclusive pink ribbon "Funding the Cure with THE PINK RIBBON ROUNDUP" silicone wristbands allows us to donate the FULL PURCHASE PRICE of $1.00 each to The Pink Ribbon Shop Fund for Breast Cancer Research at MD Anderson Cancer Center!  Monetary donations made on our Pink Ribbon Roundup page or our MD Anderson myGiving page are immediately directed to our Fund.  All monies in the Fund have been specifically designated for MD Anderson’s breast cancer research department.  Nowhere else!  There are no administrative costs or other fees deducted from your donation.  One hundred percent of the bracelet’s proceeds and 100% of monetary donations received goes toward breast cancer research activities at MD Anderson!

We’ve dubbed this whole bundle of good stuff The Pink Ribbon Roundup.  We are rounding up funds, Texas style, so a cure can be found!  With YOUR support of The Pink Ribbon Roundup program, The Pink Ribbon Shop is FUNDING THE CURE, one pink ribbon at a time, and helping MD Anderson Cancer Center make cancer history®!

WHAT DOES THIS MEAN TO YOU, OUR CUSTOMERS?

          The Pink Ribbon Shop has always been up front about how much and to whom we donate.  We believe that we have a responsibility to our customers to be good stewards with what we take in as a business.  After years of hodge-podge, irregular giving to whomever we felt called to (all worthy causes, of course,) we were motivated to identify our true philanthropic mission.  That mission is FUNDING THE CURE by supporting breast cancer research efforts.  The establishment of The Pink Ribbon Shop Fund for Breast Cancer Research at MD Anderson Cancer Center is simply a new approach to our charitable giving.  We also like to think of it as a way to multiply our company’s donations.  By allowing our customers to actively participate in our Pink Ribbon Roundup program, we can contribute even more toward finding a cure for breast cancer!  And you will have the peace of mind of knowing exactly how your donation or purchase will be utilized. 

So please keep us in mind for your breast cancer fundraiser events!

·       At $1.00 each, our Funding the Cure silicone bracelet bands are quite a bargain AND your entire dollar is a donation!
·       Donate to The Pink Ribbon Shop Fund for Breast Cancer Research.  Whether purchasing a bracelet or donating through The Pink Ribbon Roundup page or our myGiving MD Anderson page, your donation ONLY goes to breast cancer research!

What does this mean to ME?!  So much!!  I am hoping that having our Fund in place opens up a new world of possibilities for fundraising at The Pink Ribbon Shop.  I see local benefit events in our future.  I see manufacturers and suppliers creating pink ribbon products that benefit the Fund.  I see big corporations and organizations turning to The Pink Ribbon Shop Fund for Breast Cancer Research as a great place to donate.  I see individuals and businesses who are fed up with the current "big girls" in the breast cancer fundraising arena wanting to redirect their contributions to a more efficiently run establishment ... where their money goes right to breast cancer research activities and not some other questionable, potentially non-cancer-related activities.

If you think about it, just what is the pink ribbon campaign all about?  It's about awareness, sure.  In this day and age, you'd have to live in a box to not be "aware" of breast cancer!  It's also about education.  Everyone knows that breast cancer exists, but do they know about the importance of regular breast self exams and mammograms?  And lastly, and I think most importantly, it's about funding research so a cure can be found.  Let's face it, people!  A cure for breast cancer would mean the end of the pink ribbon campaign, and that couldn't make me happier!

So happy that my Pink Ribbon Shop is FUNDING THE CURE ...
One pink ribbon at a time!  Woohoo!

Slow growing cancer ... Yay?!?

A couple of weeks ago, I visited MD Anderson for my 3 month check.  Good news and bad news.  CT scans showed minimal growth of tumors.  However, the radiologist also looked back to 6 months ago and 9 months ago and even a year ago, and discovered that over the course of a year's time, the cancer in my lung, bones and liver is slowly but steadily progressing and growing.  That's the bad news!  The good news, which I have become pretty good at identifying and placing my hope in, no matter how small, is that I'm being taken off of Xeloda!   If you've followed my blog, you know that I've been taking Xeloda for the past year and a half and I've absolutely HATED it!!  I've been wishing to get off ... well part of me has been wishing that.  Obviously the reason is not a good thing!  I am fully aware that for Dr. Green to discontinue it, it's only because it's no longer working on my cancer.  Still, Xeloda has really limited me in many ways.  Such mixed feelings!  Should I BE this happy??  How twisted is this?

So what's next??  Dr. Green has said in the past that after Xeloda, the next move would be to a harsher chemo drug, Abraxane (think hair loss, nausea, etc.)  However, she is now recommending I move back to (anti)hormone therapy instead.  The way she described it, since chemo usually works best on fast-growing cells, perhaps that's not the best treatment for my cancer at this time, since it appears to be growing very slowly.  I had good results from anti-hormone tx in the past, and for long periods of time (6 years on Tamoxifen, 3 years on Femara.)  She mentioned previously that revisiting those kinds of drugs may be an option at some point.  Now is the time!  She is putting me back on Tamoxifen and Zolodex.  Yayyyy, no more Xeloda!  No more sore/tender hands and feet!  No more kids toothpaste and bland-tasting food!  No more needing assistance/tools to open cans and jars!  Perhaps I can start exercising again!  Hoping for quick and complete end to Xeloda's side effects!  And there's more ... not sure if I mentioned the nasty, heavy, & long-lasting periods I've been having since my cycles returned after stopping Zolodex 1 1/2 years ago.  Now I'm back on Zolodex, so hello menopause (again!)

Seriously, I am one messed up girl!!!  Who gets excited about menopause??

Also hoping that menopause doesn't bring with it the issues with "intimacy" that plagued me and Danny's relationship for over a year ... sighhhhh..........

Here's some actual good news on my cancer front:  my genetic testing (BRCA-1 & 2) came back NEGATIVE!  Good news for my sister, mom, & 3 girls!

So much going on here ... the ups and downs ... the rollercoaster that is being a stage IV breast cancer fighter!  Please people, support research efforts and find a cure for breast cancer!  Soon!!!

Walk Like a Diva

Saturday, my family and I participated in the Walk Like a Diva 5K Family Fun Walk in my little part of the world, Kingwood, Texas. It was a GORGEOUS day! The route traversed some of the most beautiful greenbelt trails Kingwood has to offer: through the woods and along the lakeshore. The ladies who organized this inaugural walk did a great job, as there were refreshments and vendor booths and even a bounce house for the kids afterwards. And all for a great cause: The Avon Foundation for Women (more info, below.) The Pink Ribbon Shop is planning to partner with the KingwooDDivas for next year's walk -- hoping for an even bigger turnout = even more $$$ for Avon's Walk for Breast Cancer.

As I mentioned in a previous post, the organizers asked me to speak before the walk. It may not seem like much for some of you out there who are accustomed to speaking in public as a crusader for the breast cancer awareness cause, but it was huge to me! I think it went well, except for the fact that I was up late and had a house full of teenagers, AND I was sick with allergy/sinus issues and had NEARLY LOST MY VOICE the night before the walk! I mean really, what are the odds? I am hardly ever sick like this! Anyway, they say God works in mysterious ways, right? So the morning of the walk my voice was a little better, but definitely still very hoarse -- I didn't sound like me at all! Also, the Diva-mobile of sort that I was supposed to stand on/in to speak, wouldn't start that morning, so I would be speaking at ground level in front of the walk participants. OK, no big deal, it was a really small crowd anyway, since it was the "1st annual" walk of its kind. And with the organizers trying to keep costs down as much possible, there was no microphone, only a megaphone with a handheld talkie-into-thingy. Not what I expected, but hey, it'll work.

I had been thinking of "the talk" for a couple weeks, so I had an idea of what kinds of things I wanted to touch on and focus on, but I didn't put pen to paper (or rather, fingers to keyboard) until Thursday night. I'm a last minute kinda gal! I don't recommend being that way, by the way. I really didn't have any trouble, though, because as I said I had been working on it in my head for some time. Danny proofed and tweaked a couple things with me. Then Friday night he asked if I had memorized it! I was like, "NO!" It never even occurred to me to memorize the whole thing. I thought I could handle not "reading" the speech -- alternating looking up at the people with glancing at my notes. He said he would have memorized it ... which got me thinking that I would probably look stupid holding my printed notes in front of me. Great, I was going to look dumb! Way to go, Kim. Oh well it was too late to cram speech memorization before the next morning. It was going to be what it was going to be!

Some background information about the walk ... The KingwooDDivas, a team made up of a group of local women, will be walking in the Avon Walk for Breast Cancer (Houston) April 21-22. The Walk Like a Diva walk was a fundraiser for the KingwooDDivas team, so proceeds from from the Diva walk ultimately benefits the Avon Foundation for Women, who then distributes funds via their grant process to local organizations for awareness and education, screening and diagnosis, access to treatment, support services and scientific research. If you're interested, you can read more about the Avon walks here: http://www.avonwalk.org/.

I had Danny video the talk, mostly for my own use, but afterwards I felt really good about it and received some positive feedback and thought I might post the video to this blog, or maybe even link to it from our site and/or Facebook page. But after seeing it ... well ... I wasn't happy with the way I looked or sounded! I was hoarse and still sick (and fairly well-medicated, I might add, with anti-histamine, anti-inflammatory and sinus med) and I sounded like a MAN. I guess it's common that people who don't often speak in public aren't used to the way they sound, sick or not sick, right? Anyhoo ... I was pleased with the substance/content of the talk, just not the communication of it by me. Also, it was a little breezy and there was kid noise, and let's face it, the megaphone didn't make for great-sounding audio. Plus my (new) friend and team leader / walk organizer Amanda held the mouthpiece for me (because remember, I had to hold my notes because I hadn't memorized my talk,) close to my face so it would work its best, so even the visual of me talking is obstructed. Sighhhhhh.

Then I had the ambitious idea that I would make a slide show of all the walk pictures and make a new audio of my talk to play during said slide show. But the way I am still suffering with allergy/sinus junk, and the way my voice still sounds, it looks as though I am not going to be "sounding like myself again" for weeks, maybe! Plus the project itself would take time. I don't have a staff of folks who can put something like that together for me! I definitely didn't want to wait that long to get this out for those who missed it -- which is a LOT of people, being that the event was new and small-ish.

So here it is ... the "transcript" of the pre-walk talk I gave at Saturday's Walk Like a Diva 5K Family Fun Walk. Enjoy!

Good morning! I’d like to tell you a little about myself:
I’m a cat lover, I love to travel, I love taking pictures, I love nature, and I
love to hike and see places you just can’t see from a car window. I’m a
fan of any team or group my kids are in, and I’m a Saints fan. I like
windchimes, sunsets and waterfalls. I like to run and hug and bike and eat
out. I read a lot.

I’ve sold shoes, bagged groceries, managed a medical office, worked as a
labor delivery nurse and run my own business.

I am a mom of 4, grandmother of 3, a wife, daughter, sister, aunt,
daughter-in-law, mother-in-law and friend. I’m a dance mom, sports mom,
and band mom. I’m a taxi driver for my own children.

And I am also a breast cancer survivor.

At age 32, with a 12 year-old, 2 year-old and 6-month old, I had never even
thought about breast cancer. It was something that other, older women got. I was healthy and young and busy. I worked full time. I had 3 kids! Sure, I knew about breast self exams, but I didn’t do them regularly. But like too many, like way too many, young women these days, I had breast cancer.

It can happen to anyone. It can happen no matter how old or young you are. It can happen no matter how physically fit or active you are. Rich or poor. Man or woman. Skinny or not-so-skinny. It can happen whether or not cancer runs in your family.

It can happen to YOU!

I have to live with the “what if” questions such as “What if I would have examined myself regularly before my cancer started causing me pain? What if I had caught it before it had spread to my lymph nodes? But dwelling on the “what ifs” served no useful purpose for my immediate situation. I had to move on! I focused on doing everything I could to get the cancer out of my body as quickly and efficiently as medically possible. I underwent aggressive surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation treatments. I wanted to – I needed to -- put it behind me and get on with my life.

That was 12 years ago! I’m still here! And I’m here to say that there. is. hope. Sure, I’ve had some tough times. My cancer hasn’t been “in remission” all these years. In fact, in 2006, it returned as stage IV, metastatic breast cancer, having spread to my bones and lungs. Whether you’re newly diagnosed, or a long term survivor, or even if you have a friend or family member with breast cancer, know that there is hope.

Here’s some of what I’ve accomplished since being diagnosed: I’ve had another child – finally got my boy! -- yes, it’s possible. I’ve hiked to waterfalls and witnessed sunsets from mountain tops and ocean shores. I’ve run 2 half-marathons (which I like to think of as one whole marathon!) I’ve started my own business. I’ve tirelessly photographed my children’s events – okay maybe not tirelessly – they wear me out! But I want you to know that there is hope to keep going, to keep living, and to living longer, even with breast cancer.

Today I am one of approximately 200,000 women in the U.S. living with stage IV breast cancer. Six years ago when I was told that my cancer had spread, we thought that surely my time was up. But it wasn’t! Today, my treatment includes drugs that didn’t exist 12 years ago, or even 6 years ago. I wouldn’t be here today if it weren’t for the major progress cancer research has made in the last decade. Today, women with stage IV breast cancer, like me, are leading fuller lives and living longer than ever
before. It’s like we’re living with a chronic disease as opposed to being issued an immediate death sentence.

There is hope -- because of events like these. And because of people like you, helping fund the fight, to find a cure. It’s making a difference! I am living proof that it is making a difference! So I thank you, all of you! My family thanks you! Because you are here, I am still here, and so are many others.

Busy week!!!

Very busy week this week! A whopping 60+ new products are being introduced @ The Pink Ribbon Shop, which is quite a labor intensive task. Several weeks ago, Cookie the cat showed up in our back yard, clearly expecting, and stole our hearts. On March 2nd, we welcomed 3 new additions to our family: kittens Tigger, Finn & Tex. Adorable. Needy. I volunteered to provide a crock pot of soup for our church's Lenten service Wednesday night, so need to grocery shop and of course cook the soup. On Thursday, I'm having a cleaning lady (first time in about 4 months) come clean my house, which means I've had to nag/yell/scream at my kids to help straighten up in the house (their messes, that is) so that Maria can clean it. My 2nd daughter, Christa, turned 15 last week and is having a party at our house Friday night (pray for us!) It will be an accomplishment if we can keep the house guest-worthy through Friday evening, after which it will probably be a mess again after having 15-20 teenagers over. Plus all the party food/snacks need to be prepared (The birthday girl has special requests, after all!) AND, Saturday morning our family is participating in a 5K Family Fun Walk to support a local Avon Walk for Breast Cancer team, the KingwooDDivas. For the first time ever, I will be speaking (in public) about my breast cancer journey (pray for me!) It's pretty lame that I am nervous about this event, considering it need only be 3-5 minutes long, but public speaking is just something that I have no experience in. I have some ideas on what I will say, but nothing definite yet ... clearly I will have to work on that before Saturday! It will be a small crowd, so perhaps a good way to get my feet wet. I've never thought of myself and my story as "inspirational" as some people say. I'm just a busy mom who happens to have breast cancer. Doing everything in my power to stick around for as long as possible, although it's really out of my hands. To me, it's only by the grace of God that I am still alive to tell my story. It's really nothing I've done. I've been blessed with a great family, a great doctor and treatment facility (MD Anderson,) and a Maker who is evidently not finished with me yet!

Cancer-wise, I'm doing pretty good. At least I think I am. I find that as long as I live a sedentary, inactive lifestyle, I feel good ... which sucks in SO many ways, but I'm not in the mood to complain today, so I won't! Next scans are on April 11th and doc visit is the following week for results. Hoping and praying for good results (regression/disappearance of tumors, or at the very least, no growth) so I won't need to move on to harsher chemo. Liking my hair these days! Would like to keep it awhile longer! More prayers, please!

Thanks for reading -- would love to hear from some of you!

Kim

Pink Ribbons in the News

Many of you may have heard that Komen has made the news with some not-so-great happenings. I'm certainly no expert on the latest events, and I don't, in the least bit, claim to have all of the information, but here goes ... I'm going to give my opinion on it anyway!

It is my understanding that the Komen foundation stopped providing funding to Planned Parenthood, pending the outcome of a congressional investigation into Planned Parenthood's alleged misuse of federal & state funding, among other issues such as statutory rape cover ups, sex trafficking, and more. I don't know the details of said investigation, other than what I read here: http://www.lifenews.com/2011/09/27/congress-to-investigate-planned-parenthood-abortion-business/, but if Congress has determined that there has been wrongdoing worthy of launching an investigation, clearly they have some evidence of such.

It is my opinion that Komen has the RESPONSIBILITY to its DONORS to make sure that the money they are giving to Planned Parenthood is absolutely going to breast cancer-related services, and NOT ANYTHING ELSE. People don't donate to Komen hoping to help out Planned Parenthood's agenda -- they donate to Komen because they want to support breast cancer research and breast cancer patient services. As Komen is in the business of soliciting and receiving donations, then donating to worthy organizations via their grant process, they need to be held accountable that the organizations to which they grant monies are indeed using the funds for breast cancer services and/or research. I believe they did the prudent thing by halting funding to Planned Parenthood pending the investigation's outcome. And then they reversed their decision...

According to Komen's statement on 2/3/12 (//ww5.komen.org/KomenNewsArticle.aspx?id=19327354148) politics "has no place" in their grant process. The fact that they reversed their decision to halt funding to Planned Parenthood tells me that clearly, politics has taken a huge role in their decision-making process. It was Komen who, after receiving negative press about the Planned Parenthood de-funding decision, decided that, congressional investigation or not, they would continue to fund PP: In my opinion, a politically-driven shirking of their responsibility to their donors -- in the name of politics.

That is all I have today! Back soon with a cancer update.

Great-ish news!

The six weeks between my November scans and last week's scans have been laden with anxiety -- probably the most I've had about my cancer in a long while. I usually try not to think too far ahead to my next scans, and I go about life as if everything was just peachy. But this time, with the possibility of harsher chemo and forever losing my hair looming, it was hard NOT to think about them and their implications for our (my and my family's) future.

Thankfully, there was no further growth in the liver lesion mentioned in my November scans. Yay! My small left pleural effusion (fluid around the lung) was unchanged, as was all the previously seen bone mets. The chest lymph nodes remain normal in size, and the growths I had on my side/back remain gone. My tumor marker level is still within the normal range (but I have yet to see the exact number.) However, there are a few "potentially" new lesions in my liver, which are very small in size. But, the radiologists' reports say I have "stable" metastatic disease for now. Dr. Green is keeping me on Xeloda, which I've been taking since October 2009. Yay for hair ... at least for the next 3 months when my next scans are scheduled. This is great news, and I am so thankful.

But my pessimistic side got to thinking ... just how low my "great news" bar has been set. Woohoo, I get a whole 3 months before I may have to start a new chemo! And now I'm down to "Well at least it's not in my brain!" Having stage IV cancer has really taught me to appreciate every little thing. Every glimmer of hope. Three months. Slow-growing tumors. Very small new tumors. Tumors that aren't yet affecting organ function. Hair.

The reality is that I do have growth, albeit very slow. Not yet bad enough to warrant changing treatment to a more toxic chemo. It's hard to grasp, and it's hard not knowing what the next step will mean for us. Will I be sick, or will the worse thing be losing my hair? Will I be able to continue working? Will I be able to remain active in the kids' lives? Will I still be the team photographer? Will I chaperone field trips? Games, recitals, concerts? Will we still be able to travel? Hike? Run? So many questions! that only God know the answers to. For now I am thankful for all that I still CAN do. But that doesn't mean we shouldn't plan for the day that I CAN'T do those things.

Danny and I have decided (well, it was actually Danny's idea) that I will cut down on my work hours to get a better grip on our home life. We have made some changes to the office and he is learning most of what I do there. So if something does happen (God forbid,) he will not be clueless as to my tasks/job at The Pink Ribbon Shop. I will still work in some capacity, but the plan is for him to take over much of it so that I can stay home 2-3 days per week. I like the idea of it, but since I've always worked, it's taking some getting used to. Hoping to get a lot done at home! Unfinished projects, messes, piles, filing, paperwork processing, kids appointments, etc. Working full time at our own business, plus managing our busy, active family of 5 ... well, lots of "stuff" has been left undone or partially-done. I'm not the mom/wife I want to be. Need to organize and clean in order to provide a nicer home for our family.

And yet ... I've had acquaintances & friends with cancer who have, at some point, taken a sudden turn for the worse, and died shortly thereafter ... even after being "clear" for some time. That is my biggest fear right now. That my life as I know it will suddenly cease to exist. I may still be alive, but life will change dramatically for me and my family. I will be too sick to do anything and will need to be cared for. Perhaps brain mets or more advanced liver or lung mets. I feel like I want to have everything "in order" before that day comes. Of course, this kind of sudden life change can happen to anyone, at any time. I know that. Well at least having stage IV cancer gives me time and reason to think about it and prepare.

Uggh, I'm such a downer!!! Hate that I'm sounding so ungrateful for my life! Who knows, I could be the next poster girl for longevity in stage IV cancer patients! Right now I can do everything that's truly important to me. No restrictions. Thank you for that, God!

Quick Update from Kim

Just a quick update. Thanksgiving week I had my usual scans and lab work done @ MDA. For some reason I kinda had a bad feeling about them prior to having them. The results were as follows ... I've got a small pleural effusion on the left side (fluid around the left lung.) This has been much worse in the past, but more recently it had completely subsided. So not the greatest news. I also have a new area bone metastasis on my right iliac crest. Other previously noted metastatic bone lesions appear stable. Tumor markers are higher than previously, but still within normal limits. A small lesion on my liver appears to be growing larger, up to 1.5cm in diameter. Concerning, and interesting that my right side is being affected now, whereas before all my troubling areas seemed to be on the left. I used to joke that if I could just get a new whole left side, I would be fine!

Anyway, here's what my options are according to Dr. Green: I could stay on my current treatment (Xeloda, by mouth, 3 in am, 4 in pm, one week on, one week off) and be re-scanned in 6 weeks to see if there's been progression of the above findings. OR, I could move on to the next treatment option and "catch it early." Normally I would absolutely be for the more aggressive treatment option. I'm a fighter, and I believe in being aggressive when fighting cancer. However, this time I chose to go with the "wait and see" option. We are really only talking about 6 weeks here. Let me have my holidays!

The reason I chose to wait is that what Dr. Green told me about the "next step" disturbs me, and for reasons I never thought would. She's recommending Abraxane, a Taxol-like chemotherapy that is given IV. I would have to travel to MD Anderson for the infusion once a week; three weeks on, one week off. She said that it's generally well-tolerated (not much in the way of nausea or fatigue,) but I would lose my hair. In the past, I admit, that I've looked down on women who say "The worst part of having cancer was losing my hair." I disagree! That's not the worst part. I always said "Bring it on" to chemo. The last time I lost my hair from chemo, it was traumatic, yes, but I knew it was temporary. My hair would grow back after the treatments ended. But this time it's very different.

When I asked how long I would be on Abraxane, she said "Until it stops working." Being the quick-minded intelligent gal I am (ha,) it didn't take me long to say "So, I'll be bald indefinitely??" To me, this seems like the beginning of the "end" for me. Nothing screams "I have cancer!" more than a woman with a big bald head! And forever? And ever? And when it stops working, will I actually go on to a less toxic drug and grow my hair back? Probably not. I am facing the very real possibility of being hairless until I die! Which is when? Who knows!

A friend of mine, when I met her shortly after moving to Texas in 2005, was undergoing chemotherapy for breast cancer and had lost her hair. I never knew her with hair. And I never saw her with hair for the remaining 5 years of her life. Surely that wasn't the worst part of a 40-something year old (wonderful) woman losing her life to breast cancer. But I can't help but think of Eveline now that I'm faced with this. Will I be like her?

Yes, I can wait 6 weeks and enjoy the holidays with family before taking the next step in my cancer journey. And maybe the results in January will be good, and I won't have to just yet! So much to think about ... will try to put it out of my mind until after Christmas.

Thanks for listening, and for your prayers.

Kim

Breast cancer awareness ... it's not over!

Now that breast cancer awareness month 2011 is history, I'd like to take the opportunity to remind everyone that breast cancer awareness doesn't have to stop in October! The pink products are leaving the grocery stores' shelves, but the reality is that 1 in 8 women are still being diagnosed with breast cancer every year. Women are still dying ... yet more and more women (like myself) are living longer WITH breast cancer, thanks to the huge advances being made in treatment options. This is a direct result of research funding. The funding comes in from awareness campaigns as small as high school "pink out" sport events and as large as Komen Races for the Cure. From yogurt tops to New Balance apparel, it all matters!

I am living proof that however the money is being raised, it's working! I firmly believe that I would not be alive today had I been diagnosed with stage IV instead of stage III cancer in 2000. There simply wasn't as many options back then. Now it's been over 5 years since my stage IV diagnosis, and my doctor tells me that I have many, many options (new drugs) to still try, when my current treatments fail. And the more time that passes, the more there will be!

The Pink Ribbon Shop has made a decision to allocate all of its donatable funds to the MD Anderson Cancer Center. MDA, the #1 place in the country to receive cancer care, is on the forefront of cancer research. Although there are certainly other worthy organizations that we could choose to donate to, we have chosen MD Anderson, because we want to make a difference in the breast cancer research area. We want to be connected to actually finding a cure, by funding research. We want to be a part of MDA's "Making Cancer History!" More information to come as we work on establishing our partnership with MD Anderson -- so exciting!

October Madness and News

As breast cancer awareness month is winding down, it's time to let out a big sigh of relief and also a huge woohoo of gratitude! The Pink Ribbon Shop has been crazy busy, October being our busiest month of the year, of course. We are blessed to have our little "mom and pop" online business, and we hope to this year make our biggest donation yet to MD Anderson Cancer Center. We are so excited to be a part of "Making Cancer History!" More details to come before this year's end...

It's also been tremendously encouraging to see the pink ribbon showing up in more and more places. Thank you, NFL! The NFL again this year promoted their "Crucial Catch" breast cancer awareness program by having all the players, coaches & refs wear hot pink wristbands, whistles, helmet stickers, cleats, hats, chin straps, mouth guards, etc! They widely promoted their pink ribbon fan gear with NFL game-time and website advertising, and a mail-out catalog. They again plan to auction off some of the pink items worn by the players. Can't wait to hear how much $$$ they raised for the American Cancer Society's breast cancer initiatives!


Our local high school football players wore The Pink Ribbon Shop's hot pink wristbands & armbands and/or shoelaces during their "pink out" breast cancer awareness games last weekend. (Go Kingwood Mustangs and K-Park Panthers!!) We contributed to the events by donating other pink ribbon items such as helmet stickers, wearable pink ribbons, pink ribbon tattoos, pink silicone wristbands and Find the Cure eyeblacks. Student-relative breast cancer survivors were recognized before the game (including me, mom of Christa! [Go KM4B!!]) which was pretty cool and a nice gesture by the high school. Hopefully a bunch was raised in donations! Want to find out how much was donated and where the donations went.

Speaking of football, with Danny being the head coach of my 9-year-old's little league football team, and my 14-year-old now in the high school band, our family has been living and breathing football for the past few months! Friday night high school football, Saturday little league football, and practices and game film review all week long is wearing us out! Lots of fun, but also lots of work and hard on our family time, but all worth it for the kids! Then when you add in Saints football on Sundays, well, just ... whew! We'll be relieved (and maybe a little sad) when the season ends. I'm sure there will be plenty to take football's place.


The Pink Ribbon Shop had about 10 seconds of celebrity on October 7th that was pretty darn exciting for this lifelong Jeopardy fan. A friend sent me an email (just last week) asking if I was aware that pinkribbonshop.com was part of a Jeopardy clue. I told him to not mess with me like that! Surely that couldn't be true! But he had snapped a picture (I can't thank you enough, David Bloom!!!) of his TV with the clue, right there in bold & bright Jeopardy blue: pinkribbonshop.com promotes awareness of this disease, "One pink ribbon at a time." It was a definitely an "O M G" moment! I mean, how cool is that?! I immediately headed to Google to verify that this actually happened. And sure enough, after finding the Jeopardy archives, there it was, a $200 clue in round 2 of the October 7, 2011 episode. My niece was then kind enough (Thank you, Mandy!) to locate the entire episode on YouTube (which, in my hyper excitement, didn't even cross my mind to do! duh!) And there was visual AND audio proof that it was, in fact, true. Alex Trebek spoke our business name! On TV! Of course all my work for the day ceased, as I had to call all of my immediate family and post all of the proof on our (and my personal) Facebook page. Truly amazing!

In other news ... I am scheduled to have my next round of tests/scans the week of Thanksgiving. I have been feeling pretty good, so I am expecting to receive good results! The new Xeloda dosage schedule that I've been on for about 3 months seems to be agreeing with me more than the previous one. The side effects are a bit more tolerable, although ugly. My hands are pretty disgusting looking, but I suppose a small price to pay to be able to lead such an active life with my active family. Hopefully my feeling good will translate to negative or improved findings :) ..... and hopefully I'm not sadly surprised that my cancer has shown growth or further metastasis. :(

That's about it for now. More news soon, promise! Thanks for reading.

I am woman! (again)

Whew, so much has happened since I last wrote! Summer proved to be even busier with the kids than when school was in session. Ok, so it's mostly my fault. I want them to be involved in activities, and they happily oblige. Volleyball camp ... sure. Church camp ... sure. Youth group trip ... sure. Band camp -- can't miss that. Trip to visit family in Louisiana -- gotta go see family, of course. Football skills camp -- that would help before the season starts. Another football camp -- can't hurt. Another volleyball camp -- should help for tryouts. You get the picture! Having three very involved kids, in a variety of different activities, sure is hard on us parents!

Danny and I did manage to squeeze in a short weekend trip alone to Fredericksburg, Texas, a small town a few hours from where we live. This was during the week that ALL 3 kids were at camp (and all the planets were in perfect alignment for that to happen!.) Had a really nice time. The remainder of our week alone at home was spent doing things that we normally have no time for: small house projects, washing the cars, eating out (more often than usual,) etc. It was nice! It was around this time that big changes were taking place ... stop reading if you feel like you don't want to hear some very personal and private information about me.

If you've read my blog, you may recall that because of the years of being on anti-hormone therapy as part of my cancer treatment, sexual intercourse had become extremely painful and we basically had to stop it altogether. We did "other" things, but it was upsetting to me that that part of our relationship had to end. Interestingly, in early summer, I began feeling a lot more "interested," you might say, and we found that the pain had definitely decreased! It was really exciting, and was something of what we had hoped for when Dr. Green took me off the hormonal therapies to start Xeloda last October. Eventually, I started feeling crampy, as if my period was about to start. Bear in mind, now, that I hadn't had a period for the past 5 years (since I first began treatment for stage IV cancer)! I definitely did not miss this monthly nuisance, but clearly it was a sign that my hormones were alive and functioning again. After the PMS came the cycle, and it was heavy heavy and long lasting ... BUT ... I can only deduce that with the hormones circulating again they were supplying areas that were lacking, and the pain during intercourse, over time, WENT AWAY! So that's my biggest news. I know, too much information for some! Let's just say that our relationship is "flourishing" again! I can't say how happy this makes me, to be able to have normal relations again with my husband. I am woman!

That said, at the same time I was concerned that this surge of hormones might actually put me at risk for further growth of my cancer. Oh, the joy, of being a stage IV cancer patient! I asked Dr. Green at my next appointment, and she said that she was not concerned about it since I was still on Xeloda, and that actually the Xeloda might work better if the cancer started to grow faster. A little confusing, and worrisome, but I understand the concept that chemotherapy works better on fast-growing cells than slow-growing. It's just not very comforting to the cancer patient! I have to have faith that I am at the best place in the world for cancer treatment, and that my doctor is the bomb and knows what's best for me. I have to trust. And I do.

By the way, my last scans and labwork were all "beautiful," showing improvement in many areas and no growth in others. Things are going along just wonderfully! Woohoo!! Yay for me! I am blessed to be alive and healthy!

Kim