It Takes A Village...

Today was Day 8 of chemo and my 6th day of radiation treatment and I am still feeling great! Other than mild fatigue, I really have no other symptoms so far. Every day before my radiation appointment I go for a invigorating 30-minute walk (I was told that having my cells "highly oxygenated" will help the radiation to work better). Today as I was walking, I reflected on how incredibly blessed I am to still be feeling great and I realized that I really owe my "wellness" to the village of people who are caring for me. There is no way in the world that I would feel this great if I did not have the following supporters:

> My fabulous husband who has the ability to keep me feeling optimistic, centered and focused through all the ups-and-downs of this crazy life experience and who makes me laugh like no one else in the world. He is the most amazing person I have ever encountered and I am blessed to have him in my life and to have him helping me fight this battle;
> My extraordinary parents who flew out to be with me on a moment's notice and proceeded to buy a new house within 2 weeks of being here so that they can help with my care and in caring for our kids through this whole journey. They have changed countless diapers, drawn a ridiculous number of superhero pictures, and bathed two filthy, sticky kids many times in the short time that they have been here -- and the fun is only beginning!
> My incredible in-laws who flew out to care for us when my parents needed to leave town and who are willingly going to "pass the baton" with my parents in the months to come so that we have constant help. They also changed many a diaper, washed about 4 weeks worth of laundry, cleaned and fed our kids, and completely spoiled our dog, Shadow, in the days that they were here. Betsy and John have also generously offered to help subsidize our children's daycare so that our kids will continue to be well-cared-for while I spend my days focusing on getting healthy;
> The best nanny EVER! Our nanny is patient, loving, patient, fun, patient, energetic, and did I mention patient? We are blessed to have her in our lives and I cannot imagine anyone else who I would rather have involved in raising my children while I am focused on getting back to health;
> The incredible number of friends and family from so many different stages of my life who have generously sent money to my "fund" to help cover the costs of alternative treatments that I am pursuing (e.g., acupuncture, herbs and supplements, yoga, meditation)
> The astonishing number of people who have provided us with healthy and yummy dinners. I had a hard enough time cooking one dinner a night for my own family and so I am in awe of the number of people who are able to whip together an extra meal for us! And some of the people bringing meals barely know Pete and I -- they are truly doing it out of the goodness of their heart!
> Fantastic medical "advisors" including our neighbors (Michael Korn, Miranda Kramer, Tim Davern, Cindy Fenton and Steve Pantilat), my cousins (Jeremy and Shannon Smith), and friends (Dave Cohen, Greg Portland, Pete Craig) who have all patiently answered a ridiculous number of stupid medical questions from us and have given us faith and hope that I will survive this awful disease;
> The many, many friends who have written me emails, sent me cards, and left me voice messages letting me know how much they love me and are rooting for me;
> The countless number of people who are keeping me and my family in their thoughts and prayers every day!

So as you can see, it really does take a village to cure cancer. There is no way that I could possibly feel as great as I do without all of these amazing supporters and so thank you, thank you, thank you to each and every one of you!!! The best possible way that I can think of to repay each of you for your incredible generosity is to simply "Beat the Bitch!" and so that is what I plan to spend every ounce of energy doing in the coming months.