Our land is in Flathead Valley which includes Bigfork, Kalispell, Columbia Falls, Polson, and Whitefish. We stayed in Whitefish (where the ski resort is). They are all relatively close to each other…maybe 10-15 minutes’ drive between each. We ate at local restaurants and all in all, just had a great time running around getting to know the area better. It is not a bustling metropolis, but that is what we wanted: Peace. However, we were told that Californians are moving there in droves….20,000 people had moved to the Flathead Valley in 2020 alone. In fact, our closest neighbors on our property are from California. They are from the Lake Tahoe area and have 4 kids, 3 Nigerian goats and two horses. They are really nice people and I look forward to being their neighbor. We went to our property first thing when we arrived….just as the sun was setting. The winds were crazy (kinda like Nebraska) and a cold front was blowing in. In the morning there was snow on the ground and it snowed off and on all day. We took the morning to travel to Glacier and go hiking. Most of the park is closed during the winter because there is something like 80 feet of snow on many of the inside roads. (not exaggerating…) So only 11 miles were open, but you can hike any of the trails on foot or snowshoe. No one was there but us, so it was so peaceful being able to walk through the forest in the snow. I even found a tree with a girl’s face on it! Lake MacDonald had the beautiful clear water with the colorful Montana river rocks, but the snow made us not able to see the mountains on this day, which was a bummer, because we knew they were huge and right there….just behind the snow and clouds.

Two years ago we went on a tour of Glacier National Park. We fell in love with the area and ended up buying 10 acres of land about 25 minutes from the west entrance to Glacier National Park in rural Columbia Falls, MT. We bought the land site unseen because it was a great deal we just couldn’t pass up. The land is surrounded by mountains and all the houses in the area are also 10 acre parcels that cannot be split up. This assures us we’ll have lots of space. Almost all the “ranchettes” as they call them, have houses on them. We are one of two that are sold but not built on yet. You never really know how big 10 acres is until you walk it. We made the right choice, as it is just phenomenal. We went out there everyday…sometimes more than once a day to look at the views from different parts of the land…trying to figure out where the house should sit and the driveway should go. We also have a few trees on the edge of our property and we took some of the young saplings and replanted them in the middle of our acreage so we might have a few trees once we start building in two years or so. The whole area used to be a potato farm. On the edge of our property was a root cellar and a tiny shack/house used to be there. Rich wanted to tear it down and fill it in, but once we talked to some neighbors who had lived there many decades, we decided we want to restore it. We’ll make it sound then use reclaimed barn wood to side the small building that we can keep stuff we may need close to the road. One of the days we were there, a plane was circling around above us and we realized it was a KC-135 stratotanker….the plane Rich flew more than any other aircraft when on active duty. We took that as a good sign that we were meant to be there. Tallinn loved everything about it. There are so many wild animals around. Herds of deer (you never just saw 5…it was more like 30 at a time) and turkey…they travelled in large groups as well. Tallinn loved roaming around smelling the smells and fetching sticks Lily was throwing for him. Many of our neighbors have horses, cows, goats, etc. Being here makes me truly want to fight hard for time…because I really want to make to sit on my front porch and look out over those beautiful mountains.

Oh my goodness, we had fun here! It was super windy but warmish (low 60’s maybe – it’s all relative) yet there were some piles of snow still in shady areas. We had been in the car forever at this point (this was day 3 so we were all itching to get out and play – us and the dog). Tallinn was a great traveler. He needed to be out and running though for a bit. He has never been swimming. He loves to cool his toes in but has never really been in the water. Tallinn is a bit neurotic…he gets very fixated on things like balls, toys, sticks, and rocks. Rich skipped a rock across the still very cold and quickly running Missouri River and Tallinn went after that rock with gusto. Right into the strong current. He got about 30 feet out, realized he could no longer see the rock and he was in over his head….literally. He turned around and we all saw the whites of his eyes as he panicked a bit trying to swim to shore. That was his indoctrination to swimming. Ever since we have had to try and keep him out of the water! Oh, and the bigger the stick the better for Tallinn! He enjoys thwacking Rich on the back of the knees with his “stick” so he will turn around. Tallinn then drops it at his feet and waits impatiently for him to throw it for him. He is a strange little fellow but he sure did give us a lot of laughs on the trip!

So Montana is gorgeous. The skies are just how they claim them to be….big. Even in the overcast and somewhat cloudy weather we had off and on during our drive across the state, it was still breathtaking. We stopped in the geographical center of the nation (this including Hawai’i and Alaska) and ended up in Belle Fourche, SD….pretty far west.

Okay, I am really playing catch up. I know I haven’t been blogging for nearly a month, but a lot has been going on and I just really wanted to take it all in first….enjoy the moment…then come back and blog it. So for those whom have reached out worried that I am ill, I am not – just been busy. I will try and post quite a bit tonight to catch up and you will see what I mean. First set of photos are from a rest stop. Yes, a rest stop, in Chamberlain, SD. My friend Michelle Krueger had been there recently and posted photos and I had read about the statue before online, so felt we had to incorporate it into our trip somehow. We ended up picking up Lily from school on a Friday and taking off from there, so we spent the night in Chamberlain. I was hoping to get sunrise photos (because they would have been SOOO cool) but the weather did not cooperate one bit that day. There is something to be said about overcast skies as well though. This statue is very big. I have included some photos with people in it so you can see the height of it.

I know it has been awhile since I have posted. I have been doing really well so far on the aromatase inhibitors. No nasty side effects other than joint and muscle pain, and that is manageable. Yay! Now let us pray that it is actually working! My hands and feet are still a mess, but I am hoping as time goes by, they will continue to heal and feel better as I no longer have chemotherapy agents being added to my system.

I have spent the week doing photography stuff and also doing a lot of work as we are leaving on a road trip later today. South Dakota, Montana, and Wyoming, here we come! Just a lot to do in advance at work, especially during tax season!

I got a huge surprise a couple of days ago. I got a phone call from Julia (Palma) Law! We lived in Norway at the same time and her son played basketball with Joe. She has been overseas this whole time and we have stayed in touch via Facebook, but it was so wonderful to hear that southern twang on the other end of the phone. Julia and I went to high school at the same time in rival high schools in Louisiana. Small world! Anyhow, we were able to chat for about an hour and get caught up with each others’ lives. Hopefully we can actually meet up as she is now stateside and also in the Midwest. I am also continuing to get cards from Lois and Jim Doyle…neighbors from my Northern Virginia high school days. I can’t express how much their support has meant to me. MeiLing sends me these awesome postcards made from photos she takes from walks near her home in San Diego. They are so beautiful and almost make me feel if I am there on a walk with her! Speaking of which, I need to do that…go for a walk before we get in the car later today. I am sure Tallinn will appreciate it as well! I hope to be able to post along the way…but if not, I will have photos for when I return!

Why, do you ask? Well let me count the ways! First off, it is the Feast of St. Joseph…on a Friday…and not only are we celebrating this great saint today, but Pope Francis has us celebrating him all year long! We Catholics have the option of eating meat today because of the celebration. Just an added bonus.

I started my advanced photography class this week and today I was able to go to Platte River State Park to take waterfall photos. I went at 0800, so it was chilly (24 degrees F) which was good because the mud from all the rain this week was frozen. There was plenty of water in the waterfall…and I was all by myself. I also sat by a Lake (really a pond in my opinion) that was as still as glass. I sat down on the concrete boat launch by the lake and just enjoyed the view and took several photos. A couple of geese swam by and then came right near me and exited the water and preened their feathers near me for awhile. They were about 15 feet from me. One of them was not happy when I stood up to get up and leave. Envision an angry goose hissing with an extended neck and getting ready to flap his wings at me. At least it wasn’t a swan. They are super mean and aggressive…and really big. Anyhow, that was somewhat entertaining when it stopped being terrifying. So I got some good photos and part of my assignment for lesson one done.

This afternoon I got a bone dexa scan at Bergan Mercy. They took x-rays of both of my hips and my lower spine for a baseline reading for bone density. That will be repeated every two years if I am staying on the aromatase inhibitors, as it is one of the three most common side effects. The other two are joint & muscle pain and then hot flashes. There is other side effects….a list as long as my arm, but they aren’t as common. Afterward, I was able to get my Lupron shot! Nora (my oncology nurse who usually gives me my chemo infusions) got to give me a shot in my right hip instead. A lot faster! So tonight I will take my first AI pill. I am not going to be on letrozole afterall…but anastrozole. There are three different versions of AI’s and that is one of them. Anyhow, we hope to travel a little bit, so I am hoping that just being on pills will be a little more freeing. I will still have those shots tying me to the hospital once a month, but hopefully it won’t be too bad. I should know in the next few days to weeks how my body will handle this new treatment. I am really looking forward to my hands and feet healing! So it has been a good day all around thus far! The sun is shining and it got up to 54 degrees F today. Tallinn and I laid down down on our back porch in the sun today, which we both basked in. So Happy Feast of St. Joseph! Have a glorious weekend everyone!

So I do have a wee bit o’the Irish in me…besides the fact that I gave birth to a leprechaun! (see photo of second son for proof!) But it is not all four leaf clovers, green beer, and corned beef & cabbage….St. Patrick was a real person and did a lot of good in his life spreading the Word to the people of Ireland. He was kidnapped and worked as a slave there for 6 years during his youth as a shepherd. He made it back home to England, became a priest and then chose to go back to Ireland, where he had been enslaved, to teach the Irish about Christ. He is famed to have used the shamrock as an example of the trinity with its three heart-shaped leaves on one plant.

“Christ beside me, Christ before me, Christ behind me, Christ within me, Christ beneath me, Christ above me.” -St. Patrick

This is the time of year that the boys and I used to travel to Las Vegas for the international 7’s rugby tournament. We went 6 years in a row…with the last two years being cancelled due to COVID. I love rugby. Not only is it a prime sport, but the fans are like no other. You are pretty much expected to not only don your team’s jersey, but also dress up during the events. This is a photo of Tim and I a few years ago, which was appropriate for today!

Also…for those of you wondering about my treatment plan….we are going with my Mayo doctor’s plan (duh)…and I am now waiting for the hospital here to get their act together. I had hoped it would have been started last Friday but may be next week before they can get everything set in place. It has been one mistake after another on their part and I finally had to get Rich to talk to them today as they just seem to ignore me. Evidently I should be getting two phone calls on status updates today. Not holding my breath, but cautiously hopeful.

Friday morning I had a zoom meeting with my local oncologist. It was supposed to be a quick meeting of the minds so I could get started on my new treatment. Since my new treatment is not a chemotherapy agent, it literally would take just a writing of a prescription. I figured this would be easy. I should have known better. We started out our first ever zoom meeting with my local doctor with him taking a phone call less than 2 minutes into our conversation. He hadn’t read the message I sent him or the progress notes my Mayo doctor had sent him. In our 10 minute zoom meeting, he took two phone calls and left his office….leaving us to chat with his resident, who really was in no position to be able to help us with what needed to be done. When he finally gave us his attention, he looked up aromatase inhibitors in cancer treatment and found a study about a combination of drugs my specialist and I had not talked about and that was recommended for endometrial cancer (which I have never had). He thought we should try that instead. He told me he would email my doctor at the Mayo clinic and they would discuss it and get back to me. The British term “gobsmacked” is the most appropriate word to describe how I felt. I had a plan with my specialist 16 hours prior and now this man was throwing a monkey wrench in things. The longer I thought about it, the more mad I got. I emailed my specialist and told him what had happened and I didn’t feel comfortable taking any drug cocktail until he and I spoke about it first. I want to mention that my dr at the Mayo Clinic is the head of sarcoma specialists. He is the big wig. He did a zoom meeting with Rich and me for 25 minutes and never once answered his phone to interrupt our appointment. Sigh. When I sent my message to the Mayo doc, I noticed his RN is on vacation until March 23rd…which made my heart plummet. Dr’s have their nurses go through all their email first….so I figured I was never going to get this resolved. However, Friday evening, I received a message from my Mayo doctor saying that our original plan should be carried out and not what my local doctor suggested because it was inappropriate for my situation. I forwarded that to my local doctor and hope to hear from his nurse on Monday saying that I have a script pending. Why does this have to be so hard? I could be mistaken on this, but this is how I FEEL: I feel that my local doctor looks at me and sees a disease…not a person. He doesn’t care about my quality of life or my questions and concerns. Is it because I am a woman? Perhaps. He always asks Rich about his business…yet never asks me how I am feeling. Is it because I ask questions? A lot of them? Is it because I educate myself so I can ask intelligent questions about my treatment options? I am going to once again ask that I don’t have appointments with him any longer but only with his nurse practitioner. My heart goes out to his elderly patients who just sit and accept everything he throws at them without question. Why don’t I change doctors? Well, this guy is in charge of everyone, so everyone has to go through him. I was assigned to him because I have such a rare cancer. I love the rest of the staff and the hospital, which is why I don’t want to change hospital systems at this point. So I am praying. Praying for this doctor that I am so upset with. Praying for his other patients. Praying that I get a call on Monday clarifying what is going on with me so I can move forward without too much wasted time. We want to travel a bit at the end of the month and I want to know what my side effects are going to be like prior to just taking off on a cross country road trip.

Special thanks to my good friend, Fiona, who sent me a delicious chocolate birthday cake! Due to the deep freeze here in Nebraska and there in Texas, it was postponed until this week. So I am still partying and enjoying my cake! Thank you Fiona!

I also want to mention that I was able to zoom with my Nazareth group last night! What’s a Nazareth group? We are a group of 12 people who get together (pre COVID) for a potluck dinner at our host’s home…then we have structured fellowship and do Lectio Divina ( a type of meditation) on the next Sunday’s Gospel reading. It had been A LONG time since I had been able to get together with these people that I consider family. It was so wonderful to see their faces and be able to talk about our families….pray for each other….it was like going home for Christmas after being away for your freshman year of college. I am really looking forward to being able to meet in person again…maybe this summer!

I had my teleconference with my sarcoma specialist from the Mayo Clinic late this afternoon. He said it was remarkable as to how my body was reacting to the chemo and that I was tolerating the treatment better than most people. My lungs looked better and my spine was stable. He felt that my abdominal tumors remained relatively unchanged. He felt it was time for me to have a break….a holiday…from chemo agents. I am now going to be placed on aromatase inhibitors. That is fancy speak for meds that shut off all my estrogen and progesterone in my body. I had my tumors tested and they were highly estrogen and progesterone positive. By taking the AI’s, it should starve my tumors. For many people, this treatment has worked really well for a long time….as in years. Others, it hasn’t worked at all and the tumors have grown. I won’t know until I try it. I will get the double whammy and also have to get a shot each month to make sure that I am definitely in menopause. Blood tests have said that I am, but with one ovary left and unable to be removed, they don’t want to take the chance. But the other medication, the aromatase inhibitor, will be a pill that I will take daily. No meds go without their own side effects though. There are three main side effects (in this order): osteoporosis, joint pain, and hot flashes. Now I take this with a grain of salt as when I started Doxil, this doctor told me that I might get red hands and feet. Wow. That was an understatement. However, I am guessing he figures why go into the details of the bad things that could happen as a result of these drugs if there is a chance I won’t even have them. So we’ll see. I will continue to take calcium and vitamin D daily and also take the IV medication Zometa every 3 months, as I have been. I will talk with my local oncologist tomorrow morning to start things rolling. So I am cautiously optimistic. The next three months are chemo free for the first time since I was diagnosed in Nov of 2019.