Over the weekend, I had the opportunity to attend the official John Riley Roast. It was such an amazing night filled with so many old friends, memories and laughs. Yes, I flew up to Virginia by myself (glorious!!) while Steve graciously stayed in Atlanta with the kids for the weekend. It would have been great to have us all there, but at the current cost of airfare, we decided that I would fly solo for this event.
For all those not up to date on current events of our family, my dad will be retiring at the end of 2014. He's been the Frederick County (VIRGINIA) administrator for 32 years. That's a long damn time in this day and age, especially in government. Some wonderful friends (in cahoots with many, many others) hosted the roast for my dad. Now, like many of you, I've really only seen the roasts done on Comedy Central, so I wasn't quite sure how "wild" things were going to get. Honestly, I'm not sure who was more nervous - my mom or my dad. My brother and I had a great time making them sweat before the event ;).
More than 200 people attended the roast, which was such a testimony to my dad's impact on not only the county, but state of Virginia. For me, it was like walking through the years of my childhood in the best possible way. We had people in attendance from my very early years (I'm sort of ancient at this point) up until present. How cool is that?!?! I sort of compared it to being at a wedding, but not having any of the responsibility of planning. Seeing old friends and reminiscing about the good days gone by is and always will be the best medicine, hands down.
My dad claims he was skewered, but let's be real, the roasters were very fair and didn't dig up too much dirt ;). There was lots of material to choose from! But, oh gosh, did we laugh until we cried. If you know my dad at all, then you know of the gazillion nicknames floating about, most stemming from John Riley himself. It was so funny to hear them mentioned after all of these years. Lest, we not forget the infamous Chicken Song, which shall now live on in infamy, much to my father's horror. If anyone got a video of that...
On a more serious note, I could not be any more proud of my dad than I was that night. He has done so much for the community, both in leadership and example. His strong values and emphasis on helping others has helped shaped me into the person I am today, and for that, I will never be able to thank him enough. So, here's to you dad, for a remarkable run and a well earned place at the top - Cheers! Also, that was only water in my tequila shot glass Saturday evening ;)
The Gang's All Here!
Thursday, November 20, 2014
Thursday, November 13, 2014
Q & A
I do realize that I sort of left you hanging with that bombshell I dropped in my last post. I thought I'd try to answer some general questions, I know there are lots! So, here's my Q & A session with Oprah. Just kidding... but gosh, that would be something, wouldn't it???
Q: How did it happen?
A: Well, ahem, clearly we know how it happened, although between being told on multiple occasions that my fertility would most likely be compromised after the type of chemo I had AND using birth control, getting pregnant was not anywhere on my radar. In fact, when I missed my period, I assumed that I had gone into early menopause - I was told that early menopause was "likely" after my treatments.
Q: How will your history of cancer impact this pregnancy and baby?
A: I wish that I had an easy answer, but the truth is that we just don't know. I do have several factors playing into my favor at this point. Most importantly, my cancer was NOT hormone receptor positive, which is great news. My cancer was Her 2 + which is not hormone fed. The other positive aspect, is that I have been cancer free for over two years. I am actually more at risk for "normal" pregnancy issues this pregnancy as opposed to cancer. Of course, this is a high risk pregnancy for me - my gestational age alone throws me into this category. I'm ancient in maternal years, awesome, right? Also, given that I had pre eclampsia with both Stella and Simon, I have an over 80% chance of having it again this time around. Yay! But, I'm being monitored closely and so is the baby.
Q: How do Stella and Simon feel about the new addition?
A: Currently, they enjoy talking to the baby, aka my stomach. It's entertaining and pretty cute. Stella has a list of names, in case you were wondering. She's decided that if the baby is a boy, we will be calling him "Cinnamon" (what the hell???) and if it's a girl, we will call her Grayson Hinman. Not really sure where that came from or why only the girl option has the last name Hinman? Simon doesn't really have an opinion, but his vote as to whether it's a boy or girl changes with the wind. Not that I blame him, I really have no intuition one way or the other this time.
Q: Will you be trading in your SUV for a minivan?
A: H-E-L-L no.
Q: How are you feeling these days?
A: I'm still feeling pretty lousy, but I'm hanging in there. The all day nausea is frustrating, but manageable. I have drugs for it, but try to only take them when things are really bad. While the anti-nausea drugs are great, they have their own lovely side effects. Mostly, I'm just exhausted. I'm struggling to keep up with the house, kids, dogs, life, etc. Although, let's be honest, that's a struggle even when not pregnant... My doctor was kind enough to inform me that I will most likely feel this way until the baby arrives. I could barely contain my joy at that statement.
The next few weeks are insane for us (as for all of you, I'm sure). We will be travelling quite a bit to see family for the holiday. I will update when I can. The next peek at Baby Hinman will be on December 2, yay!!
Q: How did it happen?
A: Well, ahem, clearly we know how it happened, although between being told on multiple occasions that my fertility would most likely be compromised after the type of chemo I had AND using birth control, getting pregnant was not anywhere on my radar. In fact, when I missed my period, I assumed that I had gone into early menopause - I was told that early menopause was "likely" after my treatments.
Q: How will your history of cancer impact this pregnancy and baby?
A: I wish that I had an easy answer, but the truth is that we just don't know. I do have several factors playing into my favor at this point. Most importantly, my cancer was NOT hormone receptor positive, which is great news. My cancer was Her 2 + which is not hormone fed. The other positive aspect, is that I have been cancer free for over two years. I am actually more at risk for "normal" pregnancy issues this pregnancy as opposed to cancer. Of course, this is a high risk pregnancy for me - my gestational age alone throws me into this category. I'm ancient in maternal years, awesome, right? Also, given that I had pre eclampsia with both Stella and Simon, I have an over 80% chance of having it again this time around. Yay! But, I'm being monitored closely and so is the baby.
Q: How do Stella and Simon feel about the new addition?
A: Currently, they enjoy talking to the baby, aka my stomach. It's entertaining and pretty cute. Stella has a list of names, in case you were wondering. She's decided that if the baby is a boy, we will be calling him "Cinnamon" (what the hell???) and if it's a girl, we will call her Grayson Hinman. Not really sure where that came from or why only the girl option has the last name Hinman? Simon doesn't really have an opinion, but his vote as to whether it's a boy or girl changes with the wind. Not that I blame him, I really have no intuition one way or the other this time.
Q: Will you be trading in your SUV for a minivan?
A: H-E-L-L no.
Q: How are you feeling these days?
A: I'm still feeling pretty lousy, but I'm hanging in there. The all day nausea is frustrating, but manageable. I have drugs for it, but try to only take them when things are really bad. While the anti-nausea drugs are great, they have their own lovely side effects. Mostly, I'm just exhausted. I'm struggling to keep up with the house, kids, dogs, life, etc. Although, let's be honest, that's a struggle even when not pregnant... My doctor was kind enough to inform me that I will most likely feel this way until the baby arrives. I could barely contain my joy at that statement.
The next few weeks are insane for us (as for all of you, I'm sure). We will be travelling quite a bit to see family for the holiday. I will update when I can. The next peek at Baby Hinman will be on December 2, yay!!
Tuesday, October 28, 2014
The Game Changer
First off, the bike race went so well! YSC had a great turnout, and other than it being in the '40's that morning, we had a blast. I am so thankful for our wonderful family and friends! Thanks again to all of you for your love and support!
With that said, go on and grab yourself a bottle of wine and maybe some cheese to go with it. You're going to need it for the this little gem of a blog post.
So... in case you hadn't heard through the very active grapevine, I'm pregnant. Whew, there I said it, finally. Yup, you read that correctly, P-R-E-G-N-A-N-T. At this moment I realize you are either chugging wine, laughing hysterically or saying repeatedly, "what the hell!?!?". Or, more likely, you're doing all three. How pregnant am I? Um, all the way pregnant I guess? Someone asked me that the other day and I was like, well, I don't think there's a half pregnant option? I am 20 weeks along, so half baked!
I'm happy to tell you that baby is doing great and is measuring right on target at 20 weeks. All genetic testing has come back perfect, so fingers crossed things keep going smoothly. To answer your burning question, N-O, this baby was not planned and very much a surprise. We were told on several different occasions that the chances of me having another baby were slim and very risky, were I to actually get pregnant. We would likely have had to go through fertility treatments etc. Chemo wreaks havoc on the reproductive system as I'm sure you can imagine.We were perfectly happy with our family of four. So, you can imagine my COMPLETE shock when I found out I was pregnant. I want to emphasize that we were very much NOT trying to get pregnant, as I knew pregnancy would be a risk to both myself and a baby. And yet, here we are. It has become increasingly evident to me that sometimes, life is just out of our hands. We've decided to run with the surprise theme and will not be finding out the sex until March, when baby arrives.
How am I doing? Cancer-wise, I am fine. I was still on the Herceptin when I got pregnant, but we stopped it immediately and it has had no impact on the baby. My blood work has been perfect and will continue to be monitored throughout my pregnancy. My oncologist was shocked at the news, but then remembered that nothing with me is ever "normal" ;) Physically, I feel like CRAP. By now I'm sure you've noticed my lagging in keeping up with blog posts. That's mainly because for many, many weeks, it was all I could do to get through the day making sure both Stella and Simon were alive. The all day nausea, exhaustion and headaches have really kicked my ass. Of course, this is much more exaggerated for me, because I didn't feel bad at all with either of my pregnancies. So, karma, it really does exist. My deepest, sincerest sympathies to anyone having to endure morning (all day) sickness. For me, I have felt far worse this pregnancy than I ever did on chemo. But, it could always be worse, and as long as baby is doing well, I will endure.
I've really had to do some soul searching these past few months. Emotionally, I've been struggling coming to terms with stopping treatment and bringing another baby into our family. My number one concern is the health and well-being for this baby. And yes, of course my health is a huge factor in all of this. But, despite the complexity of everything we're facing, y'all, I'm pregnant! This baby is truly a miracle and one of the greatest symbols of hope I can imagine. I feel like I've been given a chance to start fresh, a new life to love and cherish. Who could ever ask for more than that?
With that said, go on and grab yourself a bottle of wine and maybe some cheese to go with it. You're going to need it for the this little gem of a blog post.
So... in case you hadn't heard through the very active grapevine, I'm pregnant. Whew, there I said it, finally. Yup, you read that correctly, P-R-E-G-N-A-N-T. At this moment I realize you are either chugging wine, laughing hysterically or saying repeatedly, "what the hell!?!?". Or, more likely, you're doing all three. How pregnant am I? Um, all the way pregnant I guess? Someone asked me that the other day and I was like, well, I don't think there's a half pregnant option? I am 20 weeks along, so half baked!
I'm happy to tell you that baby is doing great and is measuring right on target at 20 weeks. All genetic testing has come back perfect, so fingers crossed things keep going smoothly. To answer your burning question, N-O, this baby was not planned and very much a surprise. We were told on several different occasions that the chances of me having another baby were slim and very risky, were I to actually get pregnant. We would likely have had to go through fertility treatments etc. Chemo wreaks havoc on the reproductive system as I'm sure you can imagine.We were perfectly happy with our family of four. So, you can imagine my COMPLETE shock when I found out I was pregnant. I want to emphasize that we were very much NOT trying to get pregnant, as I knew pregnancy would be a risk to both myself and a baby. And yet, here we are. It has become increasingly evident to me that sometimes, life is just out of our hands. We've decided to run with the surprise theme and will not be finding out the sex until March, when baby arrives.
How am I doing? Cancer-wise, I am fine. I was still on the Herceptin when I got pregnant, but we stopped it immediately and it has had no impact on the baby. My blood work has been perfect and will continue to be monitored throughout my pregnancy. My oncologist was shocked at the news, but then remembered that nothing with me is ever "normal" ;) Physically, I feel like CRAP. By now I'm sure you've noticed my lagging in keeping up with blog posts. That's mainly because for many, many weeks, it was all I could do to get through the day making sure both Stella and Simon were alive. The all day nausea, exhaustion and headaches have really kicked my ass. Of course, this is much more exaggerated for me, because I didn't feel bad at all with either of my pregnancies. So, karma, it really does exist. My deepest, sincerest sympathies to anyone having to endure morning (all day) sickness. For me, I have felt far worse this pregnancy than I ever did on chemo. But, it could always be worse, and as long as baby is doing well, I will endure.
I've really had to do some soul searching these past few months. Emotionally, I've been struggling coming to terms with stopping treatment and bringing another baby into our family. My number one concern is the health and well-being for this baby. And yes, of course my health is a huge factor in all of this. But, despite the complexity of everything we're facing, y'all, I'm pregnant! This baby is truly a miracle and one of the greatest symbols of hope I can imagine. I feel like I've been given a chance to start fresh, a new life to love and cherish. Who could ever ask for more than that?
Friday, October 17, 2014
Tour de Pink
It's hard to believe, but the Atlanta Tour de Pink event is next weekend, October 25!! Our team, When Irish Chicks Are Fighting will be biking to help raise money in the fight against breast cancer via the Young Survival Coalition. This is an amazing organization dedicated to helping women under the age of 40 with breast cancer. While tremendous strides have been made in treating women with breast cancer, we still have a long way to go in terms of fighting back and winning this war. Please consider making a donation to help in the effort to expand breast cancer research, treatment and education for all of those battling breast cancer.
Thank you so much for all of your support, kindness and encouragement throughout my own personal journey battling breast cancer. I feel so incredibly humbled and grateful to be able to share my story with all of you, to be able to say "I BEAT CANCER!!". How's that for some serious kickass motivation?!?!
Here are some links to the Atlanta Tour de Pink event and our team page.
**ATL Tour de Pink: link to the event page. You can find out more about the YSC and fundraising efforts here
**When Irish Chicks are Fighting: This is our team page!
Thank you!!
Thank you so much for all of your support, kindness and encouragement throughout my own personal journey battling breast cancer. I feel so incredibly humbled and grateful to be able to share my story with all of you, to be able to say "I BEAT CANCER!!". How's that for some serious kickass motivation?!?!
Here are some links to the Atlanta Tour de Pink event and our team page.
**ATL Tour de Pink: link to the event page. You can find out more about the YSC and fundraising efforts here
**When Irish Chicks are Fighting: This is our team page!
Thank you!!
Wednesday, October 8, 2014
Exasperation: I Admit it!
I'm still here, promise. I just honestly haven't had much time to myself, let alone time to type, uninterrupted, in weeks. All, is mostly well, I'm just having trouble keeping up with my life these days.
We seem to be lacking in the sleep department lately. If it isn't one kid up at three a.m., it's the other, needing necessary things like water, a story (I mean, really?) or a tissue. Because, you know, it's not a problem for either child to come busting out of their room every five seconds during "nap" time, but during the night? No siree, it's much more effective to start screaming in the middle of night, waking up mom or dad from a dead sleep. Oh, and if, god forbid, BOTH children sleep through the night, the damn dogs are up at three a.m. barfing or needing to go outside. Never mind the fact that we took them out right before we went to bed...
So yeah, I'm a little grumpy and exasperated these days. Simon is testing me on virtually every level possible. Everything is a battle or negotiation. I'm living with a three foot tall dictator. Just now, he's sitting here on the floor of the office screaming his head off because I asked/ told/ begged him not to touch the computer. And, he turned the computer off, rendering everything I had just typed lost in space. Awesome. A battle of wills would be an understatement. It's everything from I poured the cereal wrong (in case your were not aware that there is a correct way to pour cereal...), to the dog licking his shoe (this is a HORRIBLE offense), or asking him to brush his teeth (god help us all). I am drained.
Stella, on the other hand, would be perfectly satisfied if she never had to deal with me again. Everyday I receive a diatribe on the ways that I'm ruining her life. For example, brushing her hair is akin to an attack on national security (a big, freaking deal). Asking her to put on her shoes? An exercise in negotiations for world peace. We won't even discuss what asking her to pick up her toys entails because I get hives just thinking about it. Oh, and right after I had cleaned the kitchen today? She found a bag of cornmeal and proceeded to dump the entire bag all over my freshly cleaned kitchen. Murphy was helping when I walked in from using the restroom...
I know this isn't a super, upbeat post, but honestly? I'm beat. Can someone please tell me that it gets better???? Obviously, I love my children and a lot of the time I spend with them, but wow, days like this (or weeks, in this case) are tough to swallow. Thanks for letting me vent!
And, Murphy just dragged a dead animal into my house. GAH! Tootles...
We seem to be lacking in the sleep department lately. If it isn't one kid up at three a.m., it's the other, needing necessary things like water, a story (I mean, really?) or a tissue. Because, you know, it's not a problem for either child to come busting out of their room every five seconds during "nap" time, but during the night? No siree, it's much more effective to start screaming in the middle of night, waking up mom or dad from a dead sleep. Oh, and if, god forbid, BOTH children sleep through the night, the damn dogs are up at three a.m. barfing or needing to go outside. Never mind the fact that we took them out right before we went to bed...
So yeah, I'm a little grumpy and exasperated these days. Simon is testing me on virtually every level possible. Everything is a battle or negotiation. I'm living with a three foot tall dictator. Just now, he's sitting here on the floor of the office screaming his head off because I asked/ told/ begged him not to touch the computer. And, he turned the computer off, rendering everything I had just typed lost in space. Awesome. A battle of wills would be an understatement. It's everything from I poured the cereal wrong (in case your were not aware that there is a correct way to pour cereal...), to the dog licking his shoe (this is a HORRIBLE offense), or asking him to brush his teeth (god help us all). I am drained.
Stella, on the other hand, would be perfectly satisfied if she never had to deal with me again. Everyday I receive a diatribe on the ways that I'm ruining her life. For example, brushing her hair is akin to an attack on national security (a big, freaking deal). Asking her to put on her shoes? An exercise in negotiations for world peace. We won't even discuss what asking her to pick up her toys entails because I get hives just thinking about it. Oh, and right after I had cleaned the kitchen today? She found a bag of cornmeal and proceeded to dump the entire bag all over my freshly cleaned kitchen. Murphy was helping when I walked in from using the restroom...
I know this isn't a super, upbeat post, but honestly? I'm beat. Can someone please tell me that it gets better???? Obviously, I love my children and a lot of the time I spend with them, but wow, days like this (or weeks, in this case) are tough to swallow. Thanks for letting me vent!
And, Murphy just dragged a dead animal into my house. GAH! Tootles...
Friday, September 19, 2014
Summer Break, Part 2
Let me just preface this post by sharing that my children have been on fall break (or, more realistically, summer break part 2) for the ENTIRE week. I am warning you in advance, should you notice a slightly manic, definitely exhausted air...
So, yes, the dear children are on a week long hiatus after a grand total of three weeks in school. In defense (I guess... not really), the county schools started August 4th, so they've been at it for a few extra weeks. But still, people, it's hot, we've been to the pool, the mosquitos are still attacking in rapid numbers and I got sun burned last weekend. I'm just referring to this little sojourn as Summer Won't Die, so let's party like it's June. It's hasn't beenterrible that bad having the kids home, but gosh darn it, we had JUST gotten into the weekday/ school/ back-to-reality routine. The kids were at school learning, I was running a million errands and getting so.much.done. That has come to a screeching halt this week, because anyone who has a child will understand the stamina and will power required to run errands with small children. It's a marathon, (a very dirty, knock down marathon), not a sprint. A quick run to pick up a *few* things at the grocery turns into an hour ordeal because I didn't pick the right frozen pancakes and suddenly there are maddening opinions on the right kind of goldfish. You get the point. And let's not even discuss the Mothership that is Target. Might as well strap on a trailer to our cart, because it ain't going to be pretty. I received a 20 minute diatribe from Stella on the merits of Halloween décor yesterday while at Target...
In other news, I'm pretty sure Murphy is trying to confirm my reservation at the funny farm. That dog is going to be what sends me directly to the quick side of Crazytown. The other day, before 9am, she managed to poop in the office (where Steve was working, right next to his desk!!!) immediately after I had taken her outside, destroy a piece of the kids artwork, pee by the back door, steal a loaf of bread off on the counter (and consume it, bag and all) while I walked into the laundry room to grab backpacks and lunch boxes. During the 20 minutes I was upstairs showering, dressing and getting the kids ready for school, she pooped in the office again (carb overload?!?) and chew up a kids toy. After I ran the kids to school (15 minutes, tops), Murphy had gotten into my brand new box of Dunkin Donuts Pumpkin Coffee. K Cups were scattered all over the kitchen in varying degrees of destruction. She greeted me with the shredded box in her mouth. I will say, to her credit, she knew I was pissed. She hung her head and walked straight to the back door to go outside. I was able to salvage about half of the K cups, but seriously?!?! Those are not cheap, and HELLO - they were pumpkin!! She capped off that wonderful day by pooping one final time in the office...
Come Tuesday, it's back to the real world for us. I'm not sure I could be more excited!!!!
So, yes, the dear children are on a week long hiatus after a grand total of three weeks in school. In defense (I guess... not really), the county schools started August 4th, so they've been at it for a few extra weeks. But still, people, it's hot, we've been to the pool, the mosquitos are still attacking in rapid numbers and I got sun burned last weekend. I'm just referring to this little sojourn as Summer Won't Die, so let's party like it's June. It's hasn't been
In other news, I'm pretty sure Murphy is trying to confirm my reservation at the funny farm. That dog is going to be what sends me directly to the quick side of Crazytown. The other day, before 9am, she managed to poop in the office (where Steve was working, right next to his desk!!!) immediately after I had taken her outside, destroy a piece of the kids artwork, pee by the back door, steal a loaf of bread off on the counter (and consume it, bag and all) while I walked into the laundry room to grab backpacks and lunch boxes. During the 20 minutes I was upstairs showering, dressing and getting the kids ready for school, she pooped in the office again (carb overload?!?) and chew up a kids toy. After I ran the kids to school (15 minutes, tops), Murphy had gotten into my brand new box of Dunkin Donuts Pumpkin Coffee. K Cups were scattered all over the kitchen in varying degrees of destruction. She greeted me with the shredded box in her mouth. I will say, to her credit, she knew I was pissed. She hung her head and walked straight to the back door to go outside. I was able to salvage about half of the K cups, but seriously?!?! Those are not cheap, and HELLO - they were pumpkin!! She capped off that wonderful day by pooping one final time in the office...
Come Tuesday, it's back to the real world for us. I'm not sure I could be more excited!!!!
Friday, September 5, 2014
Last Blast of Summer
I'll apologize in advance- I'm updating from the iPad, so it's likely I'll forget to add words and not proofread ;)
Life in the Hinman house has been busy the past couple of weeks. School is going well for the kids and they really seem to be enjoying their teachers/ classes. I continue to be amazed that Simon has come so far socially. He's chatting up a storm in class and is enthusiastic intelling me about his day. I love it!!! Stella is rocking preK- I'm thrilled she's being challenged academically. She actually has homework every night. Of course, she thinks it's awesome, I've been struggling with the added responsibility of making sure it gets done...
We headed to the Hinman Family Compound in South Carolina over Labor Day for some much needed family and beach time. The kids had a blast at the beach and pool. Cousin time is always a special treat :). The weather was fantastic, although hot.
As for me, I've split my time between doctors appointments, volunteering, carpool and soccer practice. While I do miss the long, lazy days of summer (and let me say that it is still very much summer here, temps in the 90's, hot, humid and storms every afternoon...), it's nice to be back on a schedule! Stella has her first soccer game of the season tomorrow morning and we have one final pool party on Sunday.
Bring on the cooler (notice I said cooler, not COLD) weather, pumpkin everything and college football! Happy fall, y'all!!
Life in the Hinman house has been busy the past couple of weeks. School is going well for the kids and they really seem to be enjoying their teachers/ classes. I continue to be amazed that Simon has come so far socially. He's chatting up a storm in class and is enthusiastic intelling me about his day. I love it!!! Stella is rocking preK- I'm thrilled she's being challenged academically. She actually has homework every night. Of course, she thinks it's awesome, I've been struggling with the added responsibility of making sure it gets done...
We headed to the Hinman Family Compound in South Carolina over Labor Day for some much needed family and beach time. The kids had a blast at the beach and pool. Cousin time is always a special treat :). The weather was fantastic, although hot.
As for me, I've split my time between doctors appointments, volunteering, carpool and soccer practice. While I do miss the long, lazy days of summer (and let me say that it is still very much summer here, temps in the 90's, hot, humid and storms every afternoon...), it's nice to be back on a schedule! Stella has her first soccer game of the season tomorrow morning and we have one final pool party on Sunday.
Bring on the cooler (notice I said cooler, not COLD) weather, pumpkin everything and college football! Happy fall, y'all!!
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