Today has been nice and relaxing. Last year we stayed home for Christmas because I was just a few weeks out of surgery. This year we decided to repeat the experience (without the surgery) and spend the day at home with our children. We did all make it to church midday for a nice service, but that was it. Carla fixed us an awesome turkey dinner.
The best news of the day came this morning. We were visiting with my daughter from my first marriage and her husband using Skype. It was fun seeing each other on our computers over the internet. They watched us open a Christmas card they had mailed to us. Inside was an ultrasound picture of their baby announcing that Brittany is pregnant. That makes me a grandfather in six months. Cool!
This month makes one year cancer free for me. I am also now six months out from chemo and my last surgery. All of my followup appointments have been mostly good news. There was a bit of a scare when my CEA count started climbing, but a PET scan showed that it was only inflammation. No sign of cancer. I had a colonoscopy this month as well. They removed a small polyp and said that everything else inside looked healthy.
My goal for 2012 is to get the weight off that I've put back on since treatment. Even before cancer I was getting heavy. It is time for Running Man to start running again. I currently weigh 225 pounds. My goal weight is 175 pounds. That is a 50 pound weight loss.
For Christmas today I gave Carla a ten gallon fish tank full of 50 pounds of sugar. Each week I will weigh in and remove that much weight in sugar from the fish tank. When the fish tank is empty I will have lost 50 pounds. I will finish by my 50th birthday which is June 3, 2012. Carla's Christmas present is a healthier husband. She was definitely excited.
So there you go. I am still around and I am very much missing my cancer friends. Thank you all for being such wonderful people.
Love, hugs, and best wishes,
Steve
