Boo!

Tonight was our 2nd Annual "Avoid Halloween" dinner at Twin Trees Pizza. We're all empty-nesters and have no more trick or treaters at home, so we decided last year that we would all go to dinner to avoid the candy-passing out thing. The money we all saved on candy for kids we don't know, went towards our dinner! We had so much fun, we've decided to make it a tradition. This was our 2nd year. We all even sat in the same seats that we sat in last year. 

We have to stay for 2 hours (from 6-8) so that we avoid the whole trick-or-treat thing. We have a nice leisurely dinner and dessert. And lots of laughs.

This was our dessert - a brownie sundae. Don't worry, we shared it! 

But sadly, we're now back to reality. Eric has a 8:30am check-in time tomorrow morning at the Oncology place... Boo.

Fondue and Chocolate Donuts

We had a "date day" yesterday. We had a late lunch/early dinner at The Melting Pot, which is a fun Fondue restaurant. Neither of us had ever been to a Fondue restaurant, so it was a new experience.

We started with some wine. Eric has taken to red wine lately, since it's served at room temp.

I had some nice White Zinfandel.

Our first course was a cheese fondue. They served a lot of things to dip into the cheese, such as various breads, veggies and apples. We also had a side of 'artisan meats', which included prosciutto ham and various 'cured' meats. The cheese was fantastic. I could have eaten it with a spoon.

We also had the chocolate dessert fondue. That was amazing. We would go back just to have the chocolate fondue. It was served with lots of bite-sized goodies, such as strawberries, pineapple, rice krispy treats, brownies, marshmallows and some other tasty treats. It was awesome. 

After our relaxing lunch, we walked around the mall for an hour or so. The big mall. It was crowded, but we got a few miles worth of steps in. And did a little bit of shopping too.

This morning we made some more baked donuts. This time we made chocolate. These were great, especially the chocolate glaze. I dipped some of them in fall colored sprinkles for a little festive touch. Next week, we're going to try vanilla donuts. They're so quick and easy to make and are a nice treat for breakfast. I highly recommend them!

Eric is gearing up mentally for round #4 on Tuesday. He's been feeling pretty good this weekend, but not looking forward to what's ahead. He'll be 1/3 of the way done on Tuesday though!

Standoffs and Snow

Eric is having a pretty good week. He's feeling ok (other than the usual blahs.) He's eating well and has no mouth sores this week (yeah!) One thing he has noticed more this week however, is the thinning of his hair. They (the doctors) said his hair most likely wouldn't fall out, but it could become thin. And it is.

Last night there was some excitement in the neighborhood. We got a reverse 911 call telling us there was an "intoxicated, armed man wandering the neighborhood and we should not leave our house..." That was a little bit unsettling, as was looking out the front window seeing a bunch of cop cars lined up down our street. It was a couple of hours before we found out what was really going on. It was a domestic dispute and the man had eventually barricaded himself in his home (he was alone). Things ended peacefully and quietly and the police took him into custody. We weren't really sure which house it was exactly, but the next morning it was all over the news. 

And we found out it was the house right behind us.Which would explain why there were so many cops near our house!

Oh and we also saw a little bit of snow this morning. You can see it in the photo above. Seems like winter is on its way even though there are still a lot of leaves that have yet to fall.

A Visit from a Friend

Eric's high school friend Chris came to visit last night. We went out to dinner than back to the house for Sheila's Coconut Cream pie.

Taking a selfie with the pie. 

It's nice Eric has such good friends that care about him and come to visit. I know it means a lot to him to get to spend time with old friends. He's been feeling pretty crappy this past week, So it's nice to have a good distraction.

Jenny blends into the scenery.

Treats, no Tricks

Eric's appetite hasn't been that great the last couple of weeks. He's been nauseous and just doesn't feel like eating most of the time. He has been forcing himself to eat though, knowing he has to. And sometimes once he starts eating, he realizes he's really hungry. Which is nice. He also likes treats, so here are a few we had this weekend.

Eric's mom made him a very tasty coconut cream pie yesterday. We went for a little road trip to go pick it up. We enjoyed it after dinner. It was delicious!

This morning I made "baked donuts" for breakfast, which are much healthier than regular, fried donuts. Eric saw a recipe on Facebook a couple of weeks ago and mentioned them. So I found some special donuts pans (TJ Maxx special!) and this morning I made some baked donuts. They're mini-donuts, not big ones, so they're even healthier, right?

They came out really well. We both liked them a lot. I'll definitely be making them again. This time they were regular cinnamon sugar donuts, but I found a bunch of other recipes too. Chocolate donuts, apple cider donuts, pumpkin donuts, vanilla cake donuts... the possibilities are endless.

The Day After

Eric survived the night and the day after treatment #3. He had lots of wacky side-effects today (the hiccups returned) but he's getting through it.

And speaking of side effects, this is a combination of drug store items I never thought I'd be buying at the same time! Those Chemo drugs really do a number on the digestive system, so it's best to be prepared for whatever may or may not be working correctly! 

And we can't forget about little Jenny. She got her first Bark Box today. You can see she loves her new toys. She can't decide which one she likes the best, the octopus or the pretzel. She got some nice treats along with these too. 

Round 3

Eric was not thrilled about having chemo today. But he went and he did well. He drank all the water he was supposed to drink today. He even gained 2 lbs since last week. So that was all good. 

This machine is showing information for the last of the infusions for the day. 11 min. and he was free. Well, except for the pump he gets to wear for 46 more hours. But at least that's portable. It's not fun dragging the IV pole with the squeaky wheels to the bathroom every 20 minutes.

He had the same area he had during week 1. No outside view for us today. 

Eric noticed that the side effects started before the infusion was even over today. The other 2 times the side effects started later in the day. They came on much quicker this time. He went right home after the treatment and took a nap. When I got home from work, I made us a dinner (comfort food: grilled cheese and tomato soup!) and he ate it all and even had dessert. He's so far just feeling "blah". Cold water is too cold to touch or drink, and his jaw really hurts when he takes a first bite (but then it's ok after a minute or so.) I'm sure the other side effects will be along shortly.

New Toy

Eric bought himself a new toy this weekend. 

It's some sort of keyboard thing and it looks really neat. And he likes it a lot. It looks like a Fischer Price toy to me, but apparently it's quite a powerful little machine.
(It's an "OP-1" by Teenage Engineering, It's a mini synthesizer made in Sweden.)

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Tomorrow is infusion #3. We're hoping for another uneventful session and after-session. And we're hoping he's not as nauseous this time. Eric ended up having to go to the doctor this week to get his white blood cells checked because he was just not feeling as well as he should have been. But things were ok and he's feeling better now. He's not looking forward to the side effects, but he'll get through it. Each treatment means there's one less to do and he'll be closer to being done!

Speaking of being done, we've been discussing a celebratory trip to Disney in the spring when this is all over. That'll be something really nice to look forward to. 

Boating in the Fall

We got to squeeze in one last boat ride with the Pelo's yesterday. 

What a beautiful day it was! Not a cloud in the sky, temps around 65 degrees.

They like to pull over for a couple of hours to just hang out. It was a great day for that. We ate snacks and had some drinks. 

John was at the helm. Louise, Mark & Phyllis were also there.

The foliage is not quite peak, but it was gorgeous. 

Pretty tree.

Eric and John.

More beautiful views.

Great conversations.

And a wonderful day spent with friends. 

Fall

It's fall. My favorite time of year. We're hoping to go out Saturday morning to get some foliage pictures around the area. This was just taken out the back door. 

Eric has had an "ok" week so far. Mouth sores, fatigue and nausea are the things that are bothering him this week. That seems to really be the constant. He's hoping to figure something out for the nausea, but the fatigue and mouth sores are just something he's going to have to live with. He uses a special mouth wash, gargles with salt water and uses orajel, that all helps a little bit. They seem to go away just in time for the next treatment.

Weekend Fun & Visitors

This weekend was full of visitors.

Alex was home on Saturday for dinner and a quick birthday celebration.

Alex's grandparents and dad came by for dinner and some yummy cake.

Mike and Melissa also came for a visit this weekend. 

We got to have dinner with them on Friday night. Melissa and I did some damage to our bank accounts at some local stores on Saturday.

On Sunday we went to Brunch before they headed back to Ohio.

I got to go for a long walk with my friend Christina on Sunday. It was nice to be out in the fresh air and get some exercise. 

The trees are turning color and the cooler temps are here. And there are also Christmas lights going up at Onondaga Lake Park for the annual Lights on the Lake. I guess it's inevitable that winter is on its way.

Eric's been feeling very queasy the past few days. It's been a nice distraction with all the visitors. He's happy he has tomorrow off so he can get some more rest. 

Round 2, Day 2

We made it through the night incident-free! Eric went to work as normal today, he even started off the day with a commercial shoot. He even got to wear his cute little fanny pack out in public.

The newest side effect this time around are hiccups. Really big hiccups. Apparently it's really a thing. There's a lot about it online and several 'remedies', which he'll have to try if they keep up. 

He's back to having issues with things that are cold. He can't drink cold liquids or hold anything cold. And it hurts his throat to swallow anything colder than room temperature. Also, it hurts his jaw to chew for the first couple of chews, then it's fine. He's also starting to feel tired again. 

Two more days until the weekend!

2 Down, 10 to Go

Eric was ready to go this morning with his 2nd Chemo treatment.

He got the luxury suite today! A room with a view.

Taking selfies.

Are there any "Emergency" fans out there? Remember that show from the 70s? Whenever anyone got to the ER in that show, the doctor or nurse always said "D5W TKO"... well, one of Eric's IV pouches full of chemo was "D5W". I had a flashback when the nurse said it.  It apparently means Dextose 5% Water. (I have no idea what that means, but it has something to do with the IV.) 

Anyway, things are looking good at this point. Will update with any changes, but we're hoping for a quiet evening. 

Some Favorite Places

We started our morning visiting our favorite donut shop in Phoenix, Just Donuts.

I'm pretty sure I've mentioned them a few times. They're small and local and delicious.

Eric had the 2 chocolate frosted donuts and the 2 plain glazed donuts in the middle.
Mine were the 2 cider donuts coated in cinnamon sugar at the top.

For dinner, we went to the Bull & Bear. Our favorite local restaurant.

Eric was really hungry! He had his favorite chicken and biscuits. I had a Baja Fish Burrito. Everything was excellent as usual.

We finished up our day watching a few movies and are currently in the middle of an old Pink Panther movie on Hulu. Those are always fun. Eric had a big bowl of ice cream tonight with no side-effects at all. Maybe those just happen within the first few days of a treatment. He is pleased that his taste buds are still working correctly. He needs to eat to keep up his strength, so it helps that the food still tastes good.