Dear Santa,

Dear Santa, My deepest wishes are as follows: A baby for Nessa, Good health for myself and my loved ones, A cure for cancer, An end to the Tea Party which has plagued this country with it's poison, A couple of snows that are measured in feet not inches, A season pass to Whitefish Mountain Ski resort, Another few steps forward in my understanding of what ALL of this is all about :)

Well, Crud

This past year has been a humdinger. July 2012 brought the relapse of my Renal Cell Carcinoma :( After a 6 year period of No Evidence of Disease, I fractured my femur while riding a roller coaster. The break occurred as a result of a tumor de-mineralizng the bone and weakening it. I had a titanium rod placed, conventional radiation, cyberknife and surgery to debulk the tumor. The recovery has been a real challenge. In addition I had a rip roaring gallbladder flare up which required surgical removal. While ultra sounding the stinky gallbladder it was discovered that the RCC had spread to the tail of my pancreas. #@#$#%@!!!!! It was not the best of news, but I have refused to give in to this horrible disease. At this point, I am walking fairly normally. That has been the result of several months P.T. with daily (and I do mean daily) yoga. Without the yoga my leg becomes so stiff and painful that I am unable to function. Yay yoga! It has been my saving grace. I have been doing targeted chemo twice daily for the past year. Side effects...well, I won't go there in this blog. The small tumor in my pancreas shows shrinkage and I now feel fabulous! All told I had 4 surgeries last year and various therapies, none of which were pleasant. The good news is that I am very much alive and enjoying life.