Early in the week, my pee suddenly became a bright orange-pink. Bet you haven’t read something like that as an opener on another writer’s blog, right? Anyways, I sent a urine sample via my dd to my general practitioner, and they put me on antibiotics for another UTI. So far, so good. I’m peeing yellow again. For someone who hadn’t had a UTI in years, having two in as many months is a PITA. I’ve read that’s not uncommon after a radical hysterectomy, though, so I’m not overly concerned.

School ended for the kids this past Wednesday! Woot. We celebrated with takeout and a movie. We watched A Minecraft Movie, and I guess we were in the mood for a silly one, because we all laughed ourselves silly. The 16-year-old provided a critique of how well the movie matched the actual game (she’s a gamer, and Minecraft is one she loves). If you like a childish, zany adventure movie, this one’s for you. It’s a one-timer for me, but we bought it because the 11-year-old will be watching it over and over this summer, no doubt. She already knows the songs Jack Black sang.

I’ve been busy trying to get back my stamina to complete the work I have in front of me. Editing has been going well. My personal space needs some work—straightening, cleaning. While my family pitches in, I like things to be kept in a certain order, so I’ve been trying to give myself little tasks every day to set things right.

In early April, I had my Christmas cacti placed outside on my back porch. It gets morning sunshine only, so not too much for indoor plants. Both plants surprised me with another blooming. Not as many as in late fall, but lovely just the same. The red plant buds are very sparse, but the white is giving more blooms. The picture I’m using for today’s puzzle is one of the white cactus. Have fun!

Solve the puzzle, then tell me some random things that are happening to you in your neck of the woods for a chance to win a $5 Amazon gift card!

Report Card

Last week…

1. I completed one author’s edits. I began another author’s edits.
2. I had covers made—one for my Ultra Strokes, Vol. 1, and another for my next Ultra Strokes book.
3. I received my new glasses with the new prescription, so I’m not squinting at a blurry screen anymore!
4. I’ve continued painting and trying to catch up with #the100dayproject challenge. This was my favorite piece for the week.

This next week…

1. I will complete one author’s edits and begin another author’s edits!
2. I’ll begin assembling my next Ultra compilation for publication.
3. I’ll restart work on Ignition—writing new words. I’m ready to get back on that treadmill.
4. I’ll continue trying to catch up with #the100dayproject schedule.

Open Contests

Be sure to check out these posts and enter to win the prizes that are still up for grabs:

1. 1. Word Search: My Summer Binge List (Contest) — This is the last day to enter! Win an Amazon gift card!
   2. Gabbi Powell: Finding Acceptance in Different Places (Contest) — This one ends soon! Win FREE books!
   3. Story Cubes — Tell me a story (Contest) — This one ends soon! Win an Amazon gift card!
   4. Saturday Puzzle-Contest: Chickens — This one ends soon! Win an Amazon gift card!
   5. Gabbi Grey: Challenge Accepted (Contest) — Win an Amazon gift card!
   6. Flashback: Big Sky SEAL (Contest–2 Winners!) — Win a FREE book!
   7. Memory Game: Wildlife Where I Live (Contest) — Win an Amazon gift card!
   8. Saturday Puzzle-Contest: Mad about goats! — Win an Amazon gift card!

I’m putting together a basket of goodies on my messy art table to bring to my local art guild meeting tonight. (BTW—I made that basket!) We’re doing decoupage together! So, I have ceramic dishes ready to glue napkins to and small round wooden boxes to do the same. I spent time applying Gesso to all the surfaces to prepare them.

I woke up feeling dizzy AF this morning. It could have something to do with the fact I only had three hours of sleep. Insomnia hit hard. Anyway, I have some work to do before the meeting, and I hope to get a nap, so I’m just popping my head in the door to say hello!

Have any of you decoupaged before? Do you have any good advice for me?

Report Card

Last week…

1. 1. I completed one author’s edits and began work on another author’s edits.
   2. I met with my oncologist who recommended we continue with immunotherapy, and in fact, had me in the chair with an IV in my arm right after telling me everything was looking good.
   3. I’m still pacing myself between resuming work and resting when I need it. I feel stronger every day.
   4. I’ve been painting like crazy, trying to catch up with the herd for #the100dayproject. This was my favorite piece for the week. It’s terribly imperfect, but I enjoyed smudging it all up with graphite and pencil after I water colored the shell.

This next week…

1. I will complete one author’s edits and begin work on another project!
2. I’ll select short stories and begin assembling my next Ultra compilation for publication.
3. I have an appointment with the optometrist—which I need badly. My vision is very blurry at the moment.
4. I’ll continue trying to catch up to #thedayproject schedule.

Open Contests

Be sure to check out these posts and enter to win the prizes that are still up for grabs:

1. 1. Memory Game: My Paintings (Contest) — Last day to enter! Win an Amazon gift card!
   2. Flashback: Her Next Breath (Contest — Two Winners!) — This one ends soon! Win a FREE book, 2 winners!
   3. Saturday Puzzle-Contest: Wildflowers — This one ends soon! Win an Amazon gift card!
   4. Flashback: Her Next Breath (Contest — Two Winners!) — This one ends soon! Win a FREE book!
   5. Saturday Puzzle-Contest: Wildflowers — This one ends soon! Win an Amazon gift card!
   6. Mondays? Love ’em or Hate ’em? (Contest) — Win an Amazon gift card!
   7. Health Update & a Word Search (Contest) — Win an Amazon gift card!
   8. April Into May (Contest) — Win an Amazon gift card!
   9. Gabbi Grey: Found Family (Contest) — Win a FREE book!
   10. Anna Taylor Sweringen/Michal Scott: Laura Wheeler Waring – A Missionary of Culture — Win an Amazon gift card!
   11. Saturday Puzzle-Contest: Happy Astronomy Day! — Win an Amazon gift card!

UPDATE: The winner is…Beverly Blank!
*~*~*

April

Work-related:

1. I completed 2 editing projects for other authors in April!
2. I pushed the deadline for submissions for the anthology entitled Burn until mid-June.
3. And yes, this is such meager progress, but the fact I did anything at all is a miracle! 🙂

Health-related:

1. The big accomplishment this month was that I underwent surgery on April 1st to get my girlie parts removed. I’ve been recovering all month since, and there’s still a ways to go.
2. I had another immunotherapy appointment, so I’m good to go for another six weeks with my cancer treatment.

Happiness-related: 

1. I resumed my participation in #the100dayproject around mid-month. Here are a few small pieces I completed:

May

For work-related, I plan:

1. To complete 3 editing projects in May.
2. To assemble a group of short stories to publish together in a second Ultra Strokes volume.
3. To continue writing Ignition. It’s time to get back to the real work!

For health-related, I plan:

1. To focus on recovery! Rest and light exercise.
2. To start swimming as soon as the pool is ready. I figure I’ll be healed enough by mid-May! Woot!
3. To see an optometrist to address the issue of the deterioration of my vision due to chemo. I need a new prescription, but I also want to know what I’ve lost and if it will get worse.

For happiness-related, I plan: 

1. To spend time with the family while I recover from surgery and get ready for the summer break. I can’t wait to have the kids home.
2. To continue the #100dayproject and create more art.

Contest

Comment on anything you’ve read in this post. Tell me what you’re doing to make yourself happier and healthier, or tell me what you plan to read in May…

Like I said, comment on anything for a chance to win a $5 Amazon gift card!

UPDATE: The winner is…Debra!
*~*~*

So, yesterday, I met with my oncologist. My daughter came with me because I’m still muzzy-headed and forget things. I’ve been extremely fatigued since my surgery, and I nap a lot. I was worried about the surgeon’s recommendation that I do another three rounds of chemo and how that would affect my summer and recovery. I’ll admit to being a little depressed at the idea.

My oncologist made a face when I mentioned what the other doctor said and shook his head. He said, you did amazingly well with the chemo, and the surgeon got all the diseased organs he could find. Yes, there was still microscopic evidence of disease in the parts he removed, but immunotherapy should help keep anything lingering in my body in check. He wants instead to give my body a chance to fully recover from the chemo and surgery. He’ll order scans in a month or two to make sure the cancer doesn’t come back, but we can do immunotherapy for a while, continue to scan, and if necessary, at a later date, reconsider more chemo. In the meantime, my job is to get healthy and feel well. I was enormously relieved. I will do whatever he tells me I should because we’ve already accomplished so much. I trust him.

At the end of our appointment, he asked, “Do you want to do an immunotherapy session today and get that knocked out? I won’t have to see you again for another month.” So, I sat in the chair for an hour with an IV running and did that. Usually, immunotherapy doesn’t affect how I feel all that much, but today, I feel nauseous and tired. I’m run down. I’ll pay attention to how I feel, rest when I need to, make myself putter to get myself moving, but yay—I won’t be losing my hair again. Right now, it’s super short and mostly silver. I look like Judy Dench. My dd has been working on getting the pool ready for me. If she gets it pretty and blue, I should be swimming by mid-May. That will be a huge boost to my happiness.

Anyway, that’s the report. At some point, I might talk about things that were helpful to me during this journey that might be helpful to others. But right now, I have work to do and naps to take. I’m just so happy and relieved that I have more time with my family and time to be me. In May, I hope to return to my art guild meetings. We’re having a decoupage mini-workshop in May, and I want to be well enough to attend and participate. In the meantime, I’ll edit and paint and poke my head in the door here to say hello.

Word Search

Summer is my favorite time of year, and yes, it all revolves around the pool. It gets hot as hell in Arkansas, but we enjoy our summers. We hit the pool, we barbecue, use the smoker and the blackstone beside the pool to cook wonderful meals. We have movie nights, including a few that we watch with an outdoor projector when the mosquitoes aren’t quite so bad. I love being outside to watch the chickens who escape their pen and peck around the yard. The goats and geese are fun to watch as well. We fill bird feeders and watch the variety that come to our property, along with the deer and foxes who come to our pond. Of course, there are trips to the flea markets. I can’t wait to have the kids home. Their noise—the music and laughter—really picks me up.

For a chance to win a $5 Amazon gift card, tell me what you look forward to this summer (or winter, if you’re down under!).

I drew another superhero from my Advent Calendar stash of Marvel superheroes to give me inspiration for the week. This time, it’s the IRON FIST!  He’s an honorable superhero. No gray areas. He derives his power from his chi, spiritual energies. He’s the world’s greatest martial artist and uses that iron fist as a weapon or for healing—and that’s how I’ll tie this cute little guy to my week. I have a meeting with my oncologist tomorrow, so I’ll go in with this guy in my pocket to talk about next steps. 🙂

Report Card

Last week…

1. 1. Did you notice I’m back to blogging every day? Yeah, that probably doesn’t mean much to you, but it means I’m putting my fingers on the keyboard and writing…something. It’s all good progress!
   2. I worked on one author’s edits.
   3. I issued an extension to authors interested in contributing to my next anthology, Burn.
   4. I had a blood draw in preparation for my appointment with my oncologist. My Cancer Antigen test results have improved again. A good sign. Not foolproof, but encouraging.
   5. I spent a lot of the week resting. I move slowly, but the incision from my surgery is healing nicely. I can get in and out of bed without straining anything. I wish I could move around as much as I sleep.
   6. I’ve been painting up a storm—usually in the middle of the night when insomnia hits for a couple of hours. Rather than fight it, I use the time to get paint on paper.

This next week…

1. I will complete one author’s edits and begin work on two more projects! I’m almost back to my previous editing pace.
2. I’ll meet with my oncologist on Monday to review my surgery results and plan what’s next for me. I want to get everything scheduled (chemo/immunotherapy) so I can plan my work accordingly.
3. I’ll continue trying to catch up to #thedayproject schedule. Surgery and recovery put me behind, but I’m really liking the push it gives me to produce.
4. I’m going to putter in the kitchen this week. I do love cooking pasta and making my own tuna salad. Plus, it will keep me on my feet.

Open Contests

Be sure to check out these posts and enter to win the prizes that are still up for grabs:

1. 1. Gabbi Grey: I Wanted Taylor Swift! (Contest) — Last day to enter! Win an Amazon gift card!
   2. Saturday Puzzle-Contest — Last day to enter! Win an Amazon gift card!
   3. Gabbi Grey: Trying Something a Little New… (Contest–Two Prizes!) — Win a FREE book plus an Amazon gift card!
   4. Memory Game: My Paintings (Contest) — Win an Amazon gift card!
   5. Flashback: Her Next Breath (Contest — Two Winners!) — Win a FREE book, 2 winners!
   6. Saturday Puzzle-Contest: Wildflowers — Win an Amazon gift card!