May we now have a round of applause.........

Because is it time for RADIATION!

You may be thinking, "Hmmm, isn't Radiation a bad thing?"

Not for me. After 4 weeks on an extremely icky diet, my iodine levels are low enough to begin Radiation treatments. My doctor wanted them down to 100, and I got them to 53, Uh huh, That's Right!

So here is the 411 on my Radiation:

Sunday: Take my kids to Utah and leave them, this will probably be the worst part.

Monday: Go to the hospital to receive a shot to kill all the thyroid hormone in my body.

Tuesday: Got to the hospital to receive the second dose of the shot.

Wednesday: Go the the Nuclear Medication department of the Hospital (Yes, there actually is one) to receive my Radiation Pill.

Wednesday-Saturday October 10th: This will be when I go crazy. Locked in my room, no human contact for 10 days.

Lot of people have been asking what you can do for me during this time, I do know of one thing....

UPDATE YOUR BLOGS!

I will have a computer to communicate with the outside world, and would love to read about the fun that is going on outside my bedroom. So please, update frequently! Other than that, if you have any good movies (I haven't seen a movie in about a year, so anything new would be awesome), or some good sewing patterns (I am going to do A LOT of sewing) you are willing to lend out, that would be great!

Like I said before, you can expect lots of updates from me next week, as I will have NOTHING else to do!

Oh yeah, and I cut my hair off! Hey, Nice Scar.

Lack of Tact

Some people. If you don't have something nice to say......

#1

Walmart Checker: "Oh my Gosh! How did you get that awful cut on your neck?"

Me: So many things ran through my head, but all that came out was "just surgery."

Possible Answers:

What Cut?

I was jousting with my 3 year old.

I'm a cage fighter, you should see the other girl!

What cut?

Late Night. Knife Darts.

I mouthed off to my husband again.

This is my tattoo. Cool Huh?

Got my head rolled up in a car window.

Plastic surgery to make my neck not look so fat! (This answer is partly true)

#2

Random Lady: "Can I ask you a question?"

Me: "Sure."

Lady: "Do you have Thyroid Cancer?"

Me: (Thinking, wow, somebody who doesn't think I slit my own throat) "Yes, I do."

Lady: "My Mom died of Thyroid Cancer, and my brother!"

Me: Seriously speechless.

Lady: Goes on to tell me how it killed them.

Me: Now ready to go home and slit my own throat.

COME ON PEOPLE!

#3

background: Remember me telling you about a nurse who nearly killed me with blood draws? I had my blood drawn every 5 hours for 6 days, I was totally get used to it, except for one nurse who I SWEAR stuck the needle right into the bone! It never hurt when anybody else did it. I cried (and screamed) every time she did it! I called her Barbie, she was 7 feet tall, blond, and couldn't have been more than 17 yrs old.

She comes in for the 4th time:

Barbie: "Little Poke."

Me: Cringing and waiting to be tortured.

Me: Surprised! It didn't hurt as bad.

Barbie: "Well, you are getting better at this."

Me: Ready to pull her hair out, "No, you are!"

She never came back.

#4

People: "Hey, it doesn't even look like you had surgery."

Okay, I know they are trying to be nice, but come on, now you are just lying to me.

#5

People: "At least you got the easy cancer, it's not as hard as the others."

Again, I know they are trying to be nice, but this has been HARD. I walk away feeling like a wimp.

#6 (phone call)

Nurse: "Well Mrs. Byram, it looks like insurance won't be covering your shot." (This shot is needed the day before Radiation starts)

Me: "So what do I need to do?"

Nurse: "Well, you can pay out of pocket for the shot?"

Me: "But it's $2400!"

Nurse: "Oh, it is? Let me look here. Oh, I guess it is."

Me: Am I talking to a stick?

Nurse: "Well, if you can't pay for it up front, I guess you can opt out and just not get it."

Me: "Don't I need that for Radiation?"

Nurse: "What Radiation?"

Me: not happy to be talking to a stick, "The Radiation to kill the Cancer!"

Nurse: "OH!!! YOU'RE ONE OF OUR CANCER PATIENTS!?! I will have to call you back."

Click.

COME ON LADY! Read the chart! I suppose I am happy she didn't call to tell me "Congrats! You're Pregnant!" I am starting to have some serious doubts about putting my life in the hands of some people.

#7

This has nothing to do with Cancer.

Target Checker: He looks at Brooke (her hair looked like this)

Target Checker: "I remember when my wife was working and I had to get my little girls ready for school......I could never get those darn pony tail things in the center of their heads either."

Please be honest, does it just look like I missed the center? I enjoy a good side pony every now and again, but what do people really think. These days, I just never know.

Perhaps these people were sent my way to give me something to laugh about, so Thanks, I guess.

1 MONTH

I remember getting back into bed 1 MONTH ago,

crying in pain

trying not to pass out

having chest pains

trying to brave another Kidney Stone

holding my neck tube so it wouldn't get ripped out

and saying to Vince who was holding my IV

"I just want it to be 1 MONTH in the future! I want to be done with this! I can't do it anymore!"

Well......

I made it! And I MONTH is everything I thought it would be!

I am almost 3 weeks in on my diet, and going strong. It isn't horrible, just annoying (who wants to be on a crappy diet that makes you gain weight!)

This is my usual lunch....Yummy!

We are hoping just 1 1/2 more weeks on the diet, but we don't know. It could be another month or two before my body is ready for radiation. (please NO)

Just a little note: Prepare yourselves for some major blogging and facebook time by yours truely when it's time for Radiation. I will be locked in my room for 10 days, what else am I going to do?

Right now my challenges are:

Migraines: Oh, they are paralyzing

Thyroid: (What? You don't even have one) That's my problem. I can hardly put one foot in front of the other. I am sooo tired and gaining weight at record speed. Doc says my medications need a little adjusting.

Neck Movement: much better, but still not perfect.

Numbness: I still can't believe I am numb all over. Every now and then I get these hot, charges of electricty through my nerves in my neck and shoulder. Doc says they are just nerves coming back to life.

One more surgery: Just a little one. A little bubble has formed next to my incision and it needs to be removed and stitched up. But really, what's 3 little stitches.

The Diet: The hardest part about this whole "Diet" is remembering to not eat my kid's food. I have realized that I could lose a lot of weight by not popping Cheerios and eating all of Jack's leftovers. Seriously. I do that way more than I thought I did.

There are some days I can barely get out of bed, but I have two great reasons to get up

So until I am ready for Radiation, I will just continue to eat my rabbit food and dry chicken. I just want to again thank all of you for all the love and support and meals you have sent our way. You have all helped to make this bearable for me. Thanks!

What a Weekend!

Yellowstone, Horses,Four-Wheeling, Swimming & Bear World!

My fam traveled up from Utah for some good old Idaho fun!

Bear World was so fun! Jack rode a roller coaster and carnival rides for the first time.

(I think I was more scared than he was.)

My Dad helped him feed a goat in the Petting Zoo, and let him take a stab at driving through the park.

We also went on the truck to feed the bears, it was great!

The first bear is eating a piece of bread from us, and the second bear was my favorite!

And now for two ladies who really didn't want to ride....

But we did it, with large amounts of pressure from George.

All the kids had a great time riding horses at Grandpa George's.

Oh, I can't forget Baby Lilly!

Liz was brave enough to let Brooke hold newborn Lilly, I know, she's crazy!

Luckily all eyes were still functioning properly when Brooke was done.

Thank You

I wanted to do something AMAZING for Vince's 30th Birthday, but since Cancer is slowly eating away our bank account, my options are really limited. So I guess this little tribute will have to suffice.

Thanks for pushing me up Table Rock. Thanks for going shopping with me (I know you love it)

Thanks for Humoring Me. Thanks for always making me laugh.

Thanks for putting up with me! Thanks for putting up with me! Thanks for putting up with me!

Thanks for all the Hard work you do. Thanks for listening to me scream on that scooter!

Thanks for always being a shoulder to lean on. Thanks for being my best friend.

Thanks for being a great role model for Jack. Thanks for helping me through this.

Thanks for being the best Daddy in the World!

Thanks for saying "I do". Thanks for taking care of us.

Thanks for keeping me on my toes. Thanks for killing lots of these.

Thanks for teaching me stuff, like how to live in the country, and the difference between wheels and tires

Thanks for supporting me in everything. Thanks for always being there for me.

Thanks for always being willing to help. Thanks for posing for ridiculous photos.

And most of all.....

Thanks for making me the Luckiest Girl in The World!

Happy Birthday!