I appreciate friends inviting me to lunch when they knew I was dealing with a difficult situation. I'm going to count my new car as a gift, and I'm very grateful to have it! Older dd provided me with a list of suggested Christmas gifts for younger dd. I needed the help!

I am grateful for the beautiful weather. Grateful to be married to my best friend. That has really come in handy lately. I'm grateful that dd15 has positive activities to keep her mind and body active. I was worried about what her life would be like after dd18 left for college. She's doing great!

Our pediatrician is great with teens so we stayed with her. Oldest dd recently turned 18 and is away at college. She will start seeing a family doctor. Younger dd will turn 18 in the fall of her senior year. I'm sure she'll see her pediatrician at least until she graduates from high school. She also sees a pediatric doctor who is a specific specialist within a broader specialty. I'm pretty sure dd will see him throughout her college years (unless dd insists on changing doctors). I'd rather she stayed with someone who knows her whole history.

Thanks for this! I'm looking forward to participating, but I might not publicly post everything.

Our pediatrician always tells me to call if fever persists me than five days. She wants to hear their lungs and make sure another infection hasn't started.

Oh yuck! I'm so sorry! I actually was just thinking about you and came to this forum to check on you. If I recall, today is the not-so-fun day 14. I'm sending you hugs and hoping you have some comfy, pretty head coverings. I'll be thinking about you and wishing you the best on your infusion tomorrow.

I'm so glad it was better than expected! I hope you can get lots of rest. Are you doing four treatments?

@Granny_WeatherwaxSo many hugs! I desperately want things to change for your husband and family. I had hoped these negotiations would bring improvements and I'm so sorry that they didn't.

@Murphy101 Oh, gotcha! I misunderstood what you said earlier. I thought that you meant that the stakes are higher for the crew itself. Like they were going to face consequences. I see that you meant that the stakes are higher in general.

@Murphy101 Although some of your conclusions are incorrect, you do bring up some interesting points worth considering. Longer trains do not necessarily double the amount of work the crew will do. Even if it does cause an increase in work, there are limits to how much work each crew can do. Typically, these longer trains are going straight from one point to another. They are not the trains that are stopping to deliver or pick up cars from customers. Also, crews were not slimmed down, but fewer crews are needed when fewer trains run. I'm unclear on why you say crews have higher stake in any failures or if they are not "on time." I am not aware of this.

The US Bureau of Labor Statistics has an excellent article about the reduction of employees in railroads over the past few years.

Whenever I hear of someone facing a beast cancer diagnosis, I refer them to breastcancer.org. I tell them that they will find wise, knowledgeable women who can answer their questions, encourage them, and correct their misunderstandings. Margaret was one of the wise and knowledgeable women. She will be greatly missed.

Hugs! I'm sorry to hear this. Your story is very similar to mine. Please feel free to pm me if you want.

I'm glad you're starting radiation. I hope you find peace and healing.

I'm so glad that your surgery is here. At this time tomorrow you'll be able to say, "I don't have cancer!" Wishing you all the best and hoping for a smooth surgery and speedy recovery. Be sure to keep us posted if you have complications or need any further treatments. Between the several bc survivors on this board, I'm sure at least one of us has experienced anything that may arise. Sending my best wishes!

Once I was returning my cart to Aldi and a woman walked up and cheerfully said, "Oh, I'll take that." I have to admit that even though I smiled and gave her the cart, I was thinking, "But that's my quarter!"

I'm sorry you find yourself in this situation. Your recovery time will depend on what kind of reconstruction you choose (if you choose reconstruction.) I second the advice that Arcadia and Quarter Note have given. Here is a link to the mastectomy articles on breastcancer.org. And here's a link to the surgery section of their community pages. Both of those sites have lots of good information to help you prepare.

@Spy CarWhat did you do with the garbanzo bean flour? I'm intrigued!

I wouldn't think twice about eating it.

Pawz has excellent suggestions. I second the lemon candy. Lemonheads work well. Mineral oil can sooth an irritated scalp. Maybe a pretty scarf from https://www.headcovers.com/scarves/ or https://chemofashionscarf.com/ Personally, I would love the pillow.

When my kids were little, we loved to listen to audio books in the car. There are more good books than you'll have the time to listen to.

I am so sorry. Prayers for your family.

Thank you! I'm glad to see that nothing dishonest was going on.

I store food and other supplies with the plan to share with my neighbors when an emergency hits.

I really appreciate your story @Jenny in Florida. I remember reading through your post when you were diagnosed and making your decisions. I gained a lot of info that helped me when I was diagnosed a few months later. I'll share a little of my experience and hope that it helps someone else. I was diagnosed with bilateral breast cancer and at first I didn't understand what was going on. I thought that the cancer had spread, and I was certain that I wanted a bilateral mastectomy. When I met my breast surgeon, she explained that these were two completely different tumors, not a spread. She explained my options and said that she felt that lumpectomies should be all that I needed, but she needed to check a couple of things first. 1) She sent me for genetic testing because of my age and bilateral cancer. 2) She sent me for an mri because the lump felt much larger than the measurement from the mammogram. It turned out that I had a brca mutation, so bilateral mastectomy was clearly the best option. We also discovered during surgery that the tumor was bigger and was hiding a third tumor- thanks brca! At first I didn't think I wanted reconstruction. I didn't want any more surgery, and I was concerned about having fake parts in me. After visiting with the surgeon, I decided to go with a DIEP flap reconstruction at the same time as my mastectomy. It was a longer surgery with a longer recovery, but I am so glad that I did it. I feel and look very natural. I don't know what kind of voodoo my surgeons did, but I definitely still have feeling when I hug someone or hold a baby. But not everything feels the same because they remove parts (blush). Even so, I'm very happy with the results So, you can see that three different women on this board have taken three different paths. When it comes down to it, the kind of surgery you get is really a personal decision based on what your doctors say and what makes you most comfortable. Your surgeon has looked at your situation and has decided that a you will be fine with a lumpectomy. Now it's a matter of you deciding what choice you are most comfortable with- what will give you the most peace of mind. That really can be a difficult, exhausting choice. Many women find it helpful to go on anti anxiety medication during this process. I'm sending you many hugs and well wishes!!