The Brave, The Bald and the Beautiful

Good Morning Everyone,

As our summer continues with backyard BBQ's, vacations and just plain fun, there is one thing that remains the same for the Chapman household: cancer still sucks. Ok - the good news: Bonnie continues to fight the fight by participating in Bug's Girlscout events, running errands, cooking meals that could put Wolfgang Puck to shame (you don't really believe that one, do you??!!). Although her calendar looks more like a war plan, filled with procedure strategies and doctor appointments, she keeps her strong chin up and her smile is ever present.

This Friday she will have a procedure done with McDreamy, where he will "clean up" the affected area and remove any dead skin that is handing around. Neither one of us knows exactly how he will do this, and I have to say "ignorance is bliss". It sounds gross and scary. While this is being done, the rest of the Chapman's will be off to Big Bear (another trip Bonnie gets to miss out on), now that B is out of summer school. That is one hard working student and they all deserve a little R & R. I will be ready to take on my "Nurse Ratchit" persona again. I'm just disappointed I can't take her to the appointment. I miss McDreamy with his long legs, 2 day beard and olive skin....oh, where was I?

As the effects of chemo keep appearing in various forms, the latest has been the hair issue. Over the weekend, it started to fall out so Tom had to do an emergency hair cutting. You will notice that there are no pictures of her with his haircut:)  You did good Tom! So, Tuesday night we held a "Head Shaving" party in Bonnie's honor. The smile on her face is authentic and she was very relieved to have this done. She looks great and imagine how much time this will cut off her morning routine! I thought I would let the pictures do the talking...

This is Bonnie's "selfie" as a "before"  picture:

 

And this is all from the party:

Yep, Tom did it! He looks really great too. It's interesting to see how different one can look without hair and all that prepping and primping that goes with it. No- I didn't feel tempted. I choose to support my sister in every other way (that's code for "I'm too vain").

This was a positive step for all and one more hurdle the family overcame. It was great to be a part of this night and a BIG Thank You to Lisa for her head shaving skills.

I will update again over the weekend after I get a good idea on Bonnie's progress from her procedure on Friday.

Stay healthy everyone!  Heather Gregory

"If you don’t do what’s best for your body, you're the one who comes up on the short end.” ~ Julius Erving"

 

 

 

Lipstick and chemo

Hi Everyone,

Sorry for the delay in updating all of you.  Our little sister came into town from Ventura with her husband and baby and it's been a whirl wind of fun and little sleep. Makes me so happy that SHE is the one with a baby and I have a 20 year old that loves to sleep in:)

As most of you know, Bonnie had her first chemo treatment on Tuesday, July 9th. Although you know something like this is coming, it stares you in the face every time you look at the calendar, it's still a challenge to wrap your brain around it. The unknown can be very intimidating. This, along with having her "port" put in the day before (of course, had issues with that and didn't get the type of port she was looking for), resulted in minimal sleep the night before the treatment. However, we all know Bonnie - you would never had know she was running on empty, as her spirits were up and she was talking to EVERYONE. Can someone please make it stop?!

Luckily, we planned for a long afternoon. Along with plenty of snacks for me (most importantly), we were armed with magazines, lavender oil (to cover the smell of the stinky chairs) and a beautiful prayer quilt (see picture). During the 4 hours we were there, Bonnie managed to meet a gentleman who had a relative she knows in Scripps Ranch, met another woman there for treatment with her husband, hand out more of my sleep supplements and ensure to everyone there that she would return for her next treatment loaded with home baked goods.

The staff at Ximed are the best! I can't forget to mention them. Pam and Vicki are two hard working ladies! The room was bustling with chemo patients coming and going and all in various stages of treatment. It's an odd place to be with my sister. She looks really good in her red lipstick and new haircut- so why are we here? It's just another reminder of how fragile our health is and how cancer is non-discriminating. There were young and old, male and female patients, straight and gays. Yep - all in one day. A scary sign of the times!

So far, the only side affects of the nastiness that I saw dripping into my sister's body is an upset stomach (hers, not mine). Her energy is a little low, but I suppose that is to be expected with all of the stress resting on her as well. We will continue to monitor her and watch for more side effects, as she continues on this path. Bonnie is to receive treatments every 3 weeks, with her next one TBD. 

Bonnie, Tom and the girls (and myself) continue to be grateful for all of the support and the meals being delivered to the house. It's such a relief for all of them to know that's one less thing to worry about. The meals are delicious and really appreciated.



I promise to update again after Bonnie's next hurdle. In the meantime, I send my love and thanks to you all. Enjoy your summer!

Heather

Lotsa Helping Hands link

Hi Everyone,

Happy almost 4th of July! I hope you are all able to enjoy this day of independence, watch a parade, eat junk food (Bonnie's words - not mine!) and enjoy some good ole fashioned fire works.

 

 

In anticipation of Bonnie's chemo treatments starting Tuesday, July 9th, Gina Mathew was kind enough to take the lead on setting up a social calendar for meal plans. This is something that some of you have asked about and have wanted to help out the family, so we thought this would be the best way to keep the meal deliveries organized. Please know that this is strictly voluntary and very, very appreciated. This meal train comes with deliveries on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays only. This will provide plenty of food for the family. As I will be finishing my 21 day cleanse around the time her chemo starts, I too will be very excited to taste the delicious meals!

 

 

In addition, we thought it best to restrict the meal deliveries to Scripps Ranch folks. This will help avoid any of you "San Diegans" having to fight traffic, etc. For those of you that still want to support the family in some manner, you are welcome to send Gift Cards (Islands, Chilie Peppers, Luna Grill, Sammy's, Daphne's, Rubios). Please remember: the cards, flowers, Edible Arrangements, have been more than enough and Bonnie is really appreciative (as well as the kids). Please don't feel obligated!

 

The link to the Lots Helping Hands is: https://www.lotsahelpinghands.com/c/704777/

 

Once you get to the site, please register so that you can be accepted into the "community". When you receive your confirmation email, you can then log onto the site to pick a day to deliver your meal. Once in the site, go to the bottom of the main page to "Help with a specific activity". Click on Bonnie's name and it will take you to the shared calendar. Click on the day you would like and it will open a page for you to register for that delivery day. You are off and running! 

 

Any questions on how to use the website, please see Gina's contact information on the Welcome Page (gmathew@san.rr.com).

 

 

Thanks again and have a safe 4th of July!

Heather