I am a Westerner once again for a week, but it seems that the South has followed me here. The pastures are more green than I’ve ever seen them this time of year. The air and my hair are full of moisture. Dad has been frustrated and anxious since before I arrived because the wheat fields are still full of wheat. And they are full! The field in front of my parents’ house was averaging 70 bushels an acre before they had to quit cutting due to mud. Ruts about a foot deep are full of water now, but today’s heat is slowly drying them out. They are cutting today for the first time since Sunday. Dad is happy to be doing something.
Staying with mom has been really good for both of us. She’s been resting a lot, which gives me a chance to rest too. I’ve been able to do dishes, clean the kitchen and the living room, get her refills of ice water, make her food. It has been so nice to be able to serve her. We’ve watched a lot of TV and a few movies. She’s felt much better this week than she has the past several weeks. She hasn’t been sick, just tired.
Wednesday was the real adventure of the trip so far. Mom was going to the hospital for a new treatment which is supposed to shrink tumors. We didn’t know as much about the drug as we thought we did, which added to the adventure. Connie, the oncology nurse and the wife of one of mom’s old teachers, hooked mom up to some saline and began telling her the possible side effects of the drug, one of which was congestive heart failure! She said to tell her as soon as mom felt weird at all, especially pressure or tightness in her chest or in her lower back, as the drug usually attacks the kidneys before the heart. We put in a movie, but I paid more attention to mom’s pulse on the monitor than The Blind Side.
About a half hour into the treatment, mom asked me to get Connie because she felt something weird in her lower back. Within a minute, it went from weird to extremely painful. The doctor ran from across the street and started giving orders to the nurses and I got out of the way as much as possible. I’ve never experienced such a feeling of helplessness in my life. After a few minutes, they had the Herceptin drip turned off, and began giving mom an epi shot, benedryl, and some pain killers. Not long after that, she was relaxing and the pain was dying down. After they said she was okay to leave, we celebrated surviving the craziness by getting ice cream at the Dairy King. The crazy part is that even after all of that, when we got home and she could lay down on the couch, she still seemed more like herself than I’ve seen in months.
She leaves for her next treatment on Sunday, so I’ll probably head southeast that morning. I’m so glad I’ve had the chance to be here for her, especially with all the excitement on Wednesday. It is so good to see her feeling better, having energy, eating real food, and making jokes. Speaking of eating real food, here’s what I made for dinner on Wednesday night:
Easy Alfredo Sauce:
1 8 oz. package of cream cheese
1 pint Heavy Cream
3 C Italian Cheeses (Parmesan, asiago and/or romano especially, but also provelone, maybe mozzerella. I think it is best to stay away from the more stringy cheeses.
3 T olive oil
½ C milk, as needed to thin sauce down.
Heat Cream and cream cheese in sauce pan, add cheese and let melt. Stir until the cheese is totally mixed in and melted. Add olive oil and milk and stir until slightly more thin than you want to serve. Then let simmer for 10-15 minutes, stirring frequently. Salt and Pepper to taste.
That sauce is super easy, and very tasty. We made that as part of the meal at my wedding and everyone loved it. I hope you enjoy it!
Well, I’m in the middle of making bread for mom and dad, and I want to get back to hanging out with mom in the other room. I hope you’re all having a great week!
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