Growing Up 80s

On August 18, 2013, while sitting at a waterpark in Yorkville, IL, I received the news that my mom was on a chemo break. Immediately upon hearing this news, I planned and confirmed our trip to Puerto Rico.

During the years she lived with cancer, I started a CaringBridge site on her behalf to update all of the many people in her life. My reasoning was selfish – the CaringBridge updates allowed me to move through my days without discussing cancer. Here is one of my most favorite:

Time. We use the word often. Usually we say “I didn’t have enough time to get that done” or “I had a great time!”

As my children get older and their “time” with me in my home is more about memories than the future, time has become more important to me. As my husband gets older (the joy of marrying an older man — it was fun when the difference was 32-23, but 55-46 isn’t so cute) and we get closer to our 20th wedding anniversary, I can’t help but wonder “where has the time gone?”

Then my Mom is diagnosed with 4th stage breast cancer. It is so odd — everything else in life (kids, work, marriage, life) keeps plugging along at the same frantic pace but it is all different now. I now stop and enjoy just being. Everyday.

I am so grateful for each day that things stay the same.

Chemo sucks. There’s no way to say it nicely, sorry. However, when it works, it buys you some time. The beauty of this crazy disease is you don’t know how much time. So you do your best to enjoy and get the most out of each day.

Why does it take cancer to teach many of us this worthwhile lesson?

So, my Mom is “on a break” (isn’t that what Ross thought he and Rachel were on?) from chemo after 6 cycles/18weeks. In 9 weeks she will go back for scans and the doctor will decide (really the cancer decides) if her break continues or treatment begins again.

Once Julie and I heard about the 9 week break, we decided it was time for a Mother/Daughters trip — where Julie and I are the daughters! We chose a place where a passport is not needed and a beach is a definite and a casino is an option ( little Nick likes to gamble) — San Juan, Puerto Rico.

She has 8 weeks to gather her strength and try not to do anything silly before we leave. I, on the other hand, need to close my mouth and start moving my legs — all the weight my Mom lost I found. Yikes! I think it is all this time spent enjoying each moment — always food and drink involved.

If all goes well, you should not hear from me on this blog until the end of October. Until then, enjoy your time! I know I will.