So last night the auction ended that Team Ashley put together….to help pay what seems to be never-ending medical expenses. My family and I are still overwhelmed and without words tonight at the outpouring of support. It. Is. Incredible. Thank you from the very deepest bottom of our hearts. Words just don’t seem enough…..but thank you to everyone who donated and everyone who participated. I want to say a special thanks to Team Ashley who put it together…..they put in so much work it makes me anxious to think about it. I can’t believe how much goes into such an auction….they are still sorting through orders, trying to straighten things out, answering email and email…..even talking to accountants about tax ramifications. Just their time alone spent on the auction has brought me to tears. We are truly humbled by your generosity and support. We continue to CHOOSE JOY every day and hope you will too. Pray for a BIG FAT ZERO in my tumor markers this week so there will be an end in sight to chemo. I should know something tomorrow. I’ve got some CT scans scheduled for Monday too so we can see what’s going on inside. Also, please pray or anyone else going through something similar in their lives. Please check into the Lil Blue Boo Facebook page on Monday because I’m paying it forward to another family….with 100% of proceeds from any pattern sales Monday going to help them out. I’ll need your help!
Note: Team Ashley wanted me to mention that the FEAR WILL NOT RULE TEES will begin shipping next week!
******
So what did I do today? Well…..I’m back home from a full day of chemo. 8:45am to 5:30pm. I weighed myself this morning 139……I weighed myself when I got home: 143 I gained almost 4 pounds today just in fluid! No wonder I feel a little achy and bloated…..I’m swimming…..and that doesn’t include the gazillion times I went to the bathroom! Mr. LBB says I’m DEFINITELY yellow….from the neon yellow Methotrexate.
First of all…..I was feeling so good this morning first thing that I put on a wee bit of eye makeup this morning. It’s a little bit of a botched job….I think it might be time to install lighting over my sink. Notice I still have my eyebrows! They’ve just thinned a bit and now they just look all scraggly. I’m not plucking ONE hair….even if I just eventually have 4 eyebrow hairs left. I haven’t had to shave my legs, bikini area, underarms in weeks though! That’s awesome.
Ugh…I was stuck a gazillion times though. My veins did not want to give any blood today. They ended up going through a small vein in my hand…..it grossed me out a little…..I usually watch while the needles go in….but I couldn’t watch that.
Notice I am the last one there today. All the other patients were long gone. That’s Nurse L doing a victory leap that the day is over haha.
Mr. LBB and Boo came to pick me up and they wouldn’t let me leave yet. So Boo played games on the computer and talked REALLY loud to disrupt a nurse’s meeting:
We picked up some bread sticks on the way home for dinner. That’s what my body said it wanted:
I’ve crawled in bed and I’m going to watch a movie to fall asleep.
Hi Ashley,
My name is Holly and I live in New Zealand. I found your blog via a link somewhere on Twitter, and had to comment because the photos you took of yourself having chemo are really similar to stuff I’ve been blogging about lately, too.
I don’t have cancer, but I do have renal failure and an autoimmune disease which is being treated with chemo, so the whole “I am suddenly magically so much fatter/heavier after an infusion” is super familiar to me. Ack!
Well this was kind of a random and long comment, so I’m going to stop rambling now! I just didn’t want to read and not post.
I hope you have a good weekend.
Holly 🙂
🙂
Awesome!!!!
Nice shirt Boo! 😉
Thanks for being so open about your “Poo Problem”! I have been having liver pain and some constipation for awhile now. Already had my gall bladder removed 8yrs. ago. So I decided that before I go see a Doc, and they run a gazillion tests I’ll try the natural way. Annnddd??? Holy Crap!!! 😉
Yay for the auction! You so deserve it!! Medical expenses are so utterly ridiculous…I still get so frustrated after 27 years of dealing with them! Ha. I think that tests that don’t solve anything should be free, don’t you think? I had an MRI last month because of severe migraines and it didn’t show anything abnormal. I kind of want to tell them I shouldn’t have to pay for it then. 😉
I am AMAZED you don’t have a PICC line girl! I’ve had two (when I was 15 and 17) and really, after they get them in, they are so much nicer than being stuck all the time. You are superwoman to be able to watch the needles, I just can’t watch when it is me. I pass out.
Praying for 0 for you tomorrow!!!
Lots of love and light.
xo.
I’m so impressed that you have made so many friends through this process. I only hope I could handle it half as gracefully as you do. Cheers!
You are absolutely incredible! I appreciate your story & that you choose to share it with the world. CHOOSING JOY is something I will live by. Thank you for making me realize this.
xx jenner
Fascistic day! Praying for zero markers!
i think i’m in love with nurse L….just from that photo. yep. : ) sleep well!!
Yeah!! And Congrats on the auction:)
OK, first off, wow, I can’t believe I’m the first comment ;). Second…you are just so awesome. I’m THRILLED that the auction was such a success. You truly deserve every bit of it. Praying for a BIG FAT ZERO!!! And YAY! for not having to shave your legs. I’m such a wimp about pain, I’ve never waxed my legs, but I hate shaving! So glad you’re at least getting some breaks through chemo 😉 Hugs! I’m still thinking of you several times a day and remembering to CHOOSE JOY!
ETA: That’s how fast people comment, I got bumped down to 14….you’re such a popular girl, your attitude is soooo contatgious 😉
Praying for zero ! And yay for the poop app 🙂
Yay Ashley!
Wowzer, I was totally amazed at the Team Ashely auction. What amazes me the most is that you are friends with so many totally incredibly talented generous people. I got to see some things I had never seen before.. It was kind of like “link love”. I was overjoyed this morning when I read the results. I don’t think I have ever heard of a fund raiser like that. I saw the pictures of the infusion center.. Why do they have to be so bright and bland areas. I work in an ER and I have a book shelf, plants and I still hate our wait room. I wish the lights were dimmer and it was a more relaxed area. So bright and “pissed” looking. Can’t they make these places comfy looking? Guess not. Keep up the good work Ashely, you are amazing!
I am so glad you had a normal poop entry for your app today. Your pooping issues make me a little anxious 😉 Not pooping seriously blows.
As always, thinking of you and holding you in my heart. xo
Oh you make me smile Ashley, praying for a zero my friend. Another YAY for a poo app 🙂 Hugs!
So I loved not having to shave. And although I never shaved my head (I kind of feel I missed out on something there), I had super short thin hair. Around my second to last chemo round, my eyebrows fell out completely. Now, I’m blonde, like really blonde (although not as white as I was when I was little), so I have never really noticed my eyebrows, and they don’t really show up much. But when they fell out, it was nuts! I looked so strange! At first no one knew what was missing, but then once people figured it out, everyone though that it was a strange thing to miss the eyebrows. Fortunately they were the first thing to grow back (last out, first in I guess), and it was a relief to look in the mirror. I felt like I didn’t look strange anymore. So – tangent, but I like to share 🙂
I was so excited to see all the stuff at the auction, and managed to win a couple fun things myself. I can’t wait for them to come in the mail 🙂
Thinking of you. Hopefully we get to chat again soon. For now, get rest, and think healthy thoughts!
Yay! Happy day for you!
Your hubs and daughter are so adorable. I think your eye makeup looks pretty!! I arely eer do eye makeup anymore during the week. Just Sunday’s and dates. Glad you’re doing well in the poo poo department!!!
Sending hugs and good wishes your way for an awesome night’s sleep … love that you’re a carb & movie girl too! xoxo
Oh, this post made my heart sing today. You have the most infectious attitude, I love it. I will be praying that your results tomorrow will be off the chart wonderful. Praying, praying, praying!
I almost cried when the auction ended, too. That was amazing…I love how many vendors that could be considered LBB “competition” gave so generously! I have a load of new bookmarks on my ipad now. I wore my “Team Ashley” donut shirt today and explained it several times. Lucy thought it was personalized to me and asked if she could order a shirt just like it that said,” I donut’ed to Team Lucy”. Haha. Praying for the very best results for you, Ashley. Hang in there, friend.
You are more of an inspiration than you can ever imagine. You are in my thoughts every day.
What a very long chemist day you had. You are blessed with such a beautiful family. Knowing that those smiling eyes are there for you is also a blessing. I have been getting chemist on and off since 2007. My diagnosis is chronic lymphocytic leukemia. I wish you WELL. Today I was able to buy two Choose Joy necklaces and hope that this helps out. I have found that even while fighting we have the ability to accept. not give up by no means. Accept that we are in this and will do whatever it takes to fight.
What a long day, but such a positive attitude! Take care 🙂
Praying for zero and just love your attitude each and every day!! Looking forward to Monday!!
Awesome! Sending good vibes your way for that big fat zero, and (((BIG HUGS))) to you and yours! Can’t wait for my ‘Fear Will Not Rule’ Tee to arrive 😀 Already have my Choose Joy leather cuff…I love the reminder it gives me many, many times a day <3
not one? that’s what i call rocking and rolling girl. hope you get a good rest. love the Nurse L front hitchkick.
Think of you often and whisper a prayer when I do. Hugs to you!!
Glad all went well today, 4lbs is a lot of fluid…
The man with the note on his shirt from his wife made me giggle and cry at the same time! I just have a mental picture of what he looks like.
Wish I could draw you a picture, but truth be told I am a crappy artist…really crappy!
Love ya bunches, Ashley
Kristina
So glad you had a “good” chemo day – I just keep chanting “Zero! Zero!” for you this week. I had fun at the auction even if I got outbid several times, all for a GREAT cause!
You know, all I could think when you said you wanted a big fat zero was “love”.. In tennis the lowest count is called Love.. It’s the fair playing ground that everyone starts from.. & the word is derived from the French word l’oeuf (pronounced loaf) meaning egg, what the score the zero resembled.. Over time.. L’oeuf gradually was Americanized to ” love” .. So for you Im praying for LOVE!
So happy to read that you had a great day! Praying for a big fat ZERO!
Praying for ZERO!!!
and yay for poop!
Ever since you started losing your hair, I have been wondering if the chemo affects your body hair as well (legs, bikini, eyebrows, etc.). I thought it might have been too personal to ask, but I should have considered everything else that you’re so willing to share! I am such an admirer. Thank you for all that you share with us!
Happy the auction went well for you…I am fortunate in Canada we have a great medical plan….just travelling expenses, so I can only imagine…Yay Team Ashley.
You have such great support and no wonder, you are just terrific!!! No shaving her either and I am not plucking one eyebrow as well…hang on to every one of those babies that I can….lol…good luck with your markers…always thinking of you 🙂
Hi Ashley, thrilled to get my ‘choose joy’ wristbands here in New Zealand and my daughters and I are wearing them with pride. I have a few friends in mind to give them too as well. I have been through surgery, chemo and radiation therapy in treating my breast cancer and managed to keep my eyebrows until my last week of radiation – 7 weeks after my last chemo dose. I was so upset over that. Hair seems to take forever to grow but now 2 months after chemo I have about 1cm of totally straight hair – my hair was wavey before. Keeping you and your family in my prayers, Catherine
Yeah AshLey!
Oh YAY!!! I’m thrilled to hear the auction went so well.
Thank you again for your incredible example of joy. I don’t know how many sentences I have started with, ” So….I read this blog, about this girl, who has cancer, but she is happy all. the. time!!!” in the last few months. (And yes, I do speak in run on sentences. Thanks for asking 😉 )
You’re the BEST!!!
Yay POOP!
You look so much cuter than I did in chemo! I even lost my eyelashes. I looked like an alien! And yay for poop! I totally get the breadsticks (I nourished myself with several milkshakes during chemo/radiation). And I’m so happy the auction went so well! The expenses are shocking — but focus on you right now, the accounting dept. can track you down later. Sleep well, sweet girl. So many people are pulling for you and a big 0 — I hope it arrives very soon! xoxo
Girl, they need to let you paint a mural in there!!! Brighten up that room with some personality!! A lil LBB can go a long way at an infusion center I bet! Think they would let you while you’re strapped in?? 🙂 xoxox
I second this idea! When you are all healed you should paint that infusion room with an amazing mural!!! How awesome would that be? Also, I’m praying for a BIG FAT ZERO for you.
Sleep well tonight and I am praying for ZERO. So happy to see all that came in from the auction…..it shows we are all thinking about you.
Glad you had such a good day Ashley!! And so glad you were able to use your poo tracker…LOL It is amazing the amount of hair one loses when going through chemo. I knew I would lose my hair so I shaved it but I lost every bit of hair on my body, eyebrows, eyelashes and even the strange thing my nose hair. Not that their is much their but I couldn’t figure out why my nose was always feeling like it was running. So I asked the doc and we had a laugh about her looking up my nose. LOL Hope you rest well! HUGS and Prayers for you and yours from California.
Praying for your big zeros tomorrow. Nurse L must be an angel or a really good actress because she still looks truly happy after a busy day.
Big hugs to you!
Debbie B
Big Fat Zero! praying 🙂
Do you have to drink that berry smoothie CT Scan liquid every time you do a CTScan? I had to do that earlier this week and I couldn’t imagine having to do it more then once. Bleck. crossing my.fingers and hoping your numbers are low! God Bless
Hi Ashley, have you any idea just how beautiful you are? Inside and out, but OH your heart, that is something truly beautiful to behold. SHINE ON.
Much love and prayers
South Africaxxx
Was thinking about you yesterday and hoping things went well. Thank you for the update and funny stories as always! Sending you and your family big hugs and prayers! Choose Joy!!
Hugs!!!! Praying for zero;)
Praying for number 0 this week for you! Only you could make me laugh and cry at the same time with your pictures from your chemo treatment. And your pooping stories.
Zee-RO, Zee-RO!! Hope you are feeling ok today! Prayers for you, the family and the Team Ashley Angels!
We’ve discussed poo so much lately, I was a little apprehensive when I saw the “4 Pounds” post title. Phew. Hope you get a big fat ZERO on your test this week.
Haha! Ashley. This one made me smile. I especially love nurse L giving a victory leap. Nice.
Totally going to get the poo tracker app!! 😀
Wow! You are an amazing person, so full of His grace. Thanks for sharing your story, everybody has one and you make the most of yours. Praying for a big fat zero!!
“Poop, poop hooray! (Sorry, I couldn’t resist — I just love puns.) I am praying for ZERO! And your picture — even in your video right after you shaved your hair — you have an Annie Lennox thing going on. I think she is a very attractive woman. And hair or no hair, you’re lovely. You are giving Annie a run for her money. Keep smiling, keep choosing joy…and on those days when you just can’t muster up a smile, know that there are many, many of us out here in blogland that will hold our smile for you, until yours returns.
Meant to email this to you at the beginning of the week. You may want to see if medgift is set up at your hospital and if not maybe look into if it can be. You can find details here:
P.S. – congrats on the normal poo recording! 😉
Ashley; Just checking in….nothing better than a bowel movement during treatments, all too familiar. You continue to amaze and inspire. As I always say to my girls (24 and 21) YOU CAN DO IT!!! ZERO, is the number and YOU CAN DO IT!!!
Heather
Hey Ashley, I was looking at your auction and *I* was overwhelmed. Wow. You are SO loved! I hope you feel okay today, the next day always seems rough. I had to smile at your eyebrow comments. My brows are the same way. About half gone. I went to that program the ACS puts on called “Look Good Feel Better” they teach you how to put on makeup and deal with stuff like that. All I can say is that it’s amazing what a little eyebrow penciling can do. It’s used to fill in the brows a bit and your eyes pop. I never paid much attention to brows before this, but it makes a huge difference in how my face feels “finished” if that makes sense. Congrats on pooping and I’m praying for a big fat ZERO for your tumor markers! xo
Praying for miracles Ashley!
“A sound heart brings life to the body”
– Proverbs 14:30a
You inspire me!
Super about the auction! It’s great to help your fellow man anyway you can!! And I thank God I live in Canada where our health care is free. I can’t imagine what we would do if we had to pay for everything…
Prayers for a good week 🙂
Les choses vont aller de mieux en mieux . Bises de France
As Don would say,”Happy Shittada-shiteh”. Bless you on another positive day towards your “downright healing”! It’s coming and they are goint to miss you around there. They’ll probably offer you a job as PR expert for the patients!! You’re the best!!! Love to all!
hooray!!! a successful day overall.
Thinking of you.
There’s nothing better than a good poop!!!!!!!!! Thanks be to God. If Dr. Oz can talk about poop, so can you!!!! Keepem’ coming girl! Have a wonderful day!
Where can we order the T-shirts?
We are tees manufacturer and designer based in GuangZhou China, mainly in tees shirts. Usually, our dedicated experts designs 150 styles of women’s clothing once three months, and are positioned to handle high volume orders from buyers. Our T shirts are mainly made by cotton, CVC, TC, polyester and styles are polo t shirts, round neck tees, V neck shirts, sleevelss t shirts. You are welcome to talk to us if you are interested in some of our clothing or have your own clothing which needs to be manufactured. Art designs are normally made by embroidery and various prints. Details about us and our designed tees are available at http://www.s-reen.com for your review.
It’s great when an article gives readers the opportunity to consider the many points mentioned. I like this article a lot and it’s very interesting.