Video Diary Number 2 of a Fellow Pregnant With Cancer Survivor Liz

I posted the first video to this quite some time back. If you haven't seen it, go here: http://youtu.be/vgQEjBwO5l4



The second video is here and I will post the third tomorrow.

Working During Cancer Treatments?

I hear about people working and continuing with their lives all the time and it's crazy to me because I was totally bedridden. I couldn't breathe if I moved. I would go into crazy coughing fits and feel like knives were stabbing me in my left shoulder. After several chemos I was feeling a ton better though still very tired and weak. I had a hard time standing for long, much less cleaning the house. I was pregnant as well, so I wonder how much of it was the combination of the two. I did have a specialist tell me without treatment I wouldn't last 3 weeks though. So I was obviously pretty bad. I hate that I never had a specific determination of staging. I could not have a CT or a PET scan. I was pregnant. I had an MRI initially and they saw the tumor but they had to biopsy it to confirm it. The MRI was only of my upper body so I was always left with this nagging curiosity about what stage I was? I read the papers my doc sent with me to the specialist. He referred to it as a large bulky tumor. I know it was up in the lower part of my neck and in my chest. He once referred to it as a volleyball...which if you know me, you know there isn't a lot of room in my chest for a volleyball.

I go to school with a woman who has been battling cancer yet she perseveres and I have so much respect for her. When people see her and think wow, good for her. I think wow, oh my God, isn't she tired? Are her legs burning from standing so long? Is she out of breath? Does she feel faint? How is her pain? I know how I felt and I know I could not have worked. I couldn't stand in front of the stove to cook. I was about 28 weeks pregnant when I went to a wedding and even then I watched in envy while others danced at the reception because I could not do it. I didn't have the energy and it made me hate everyone who did. Luckily that is all behind me now. I just can't imagine having cancer and working or going through school. I know how hard it is. I couldn't have pushed myself. I couldn't breathe. I couldn't stand. I couldn't move....until after several treatments. If others were too sick to work, or if you were able to work leave a comment. I'm curious how many others were in the same position as myself without the ability of getting around like that.

Could Gyro be one of the Most Mispronounced Words?

It seems that this word is so frequently mispronounced that no one ever says it right. Recently my husband ordered one at our local sub express. This has been a new item on the menu and we absolutely love them. Well when he went in and asked for a gyro (pronounced *yeer-oh*), the lady had no clue what he was talking about. She stared at him blankly and then said ooooh you mean a *guy-ro* (how she pronounced it). Of course my husband just said yeah sure. But this is incorrect. If you look it up you'll see it is pronounced properly in this way:

http://www.merriam-webster.com/cgi-bin/audio.pl?gyro0002.wav=gyro

I'm not trying to give a grammar lesson here, but if you're going to sell them, my recommendation is to know how to pronounce it. It's crazy if everyone comes in ordering it differently but I have heard this word said in so many different ways it's not even funny. I'm hoping if someone is coming along and wants to know how to say it, they can simply look here. There you go. I've helped you out today. ;)

Hmmm Cupcake or Chocolate Chip Cookie?

Can't decide? To hell with it. Have both!!!! I love the facebook page Bake it In a Cake. They are aaaaamazing. They also have a website here: http://bakeitinacake.com/. The possibilities are endless. I saw a picture of a chocolate chip cookie in a cupcake so I had to try it. They turned out PERFECT. :) I never found a recipe. I just made it myself based on the idea. It wasn't hard. See for yourself....and drool. :)

Omelet or Omelette?

Apparently it can go either way but Americans prefer the Omelet spelling. I am not like most Americans and apparently neither are other Americans I converse with because we chose the Omelette spelling. My computer is editing me or trying to correct this spelling but it is how I have always spelled it and preferred to spell it. So I think I will leave it. I have been watching an excessive amount of Food Network lately so I started getting some great ideas for meals. I will be making deep fried mac and cheese wrapped in bacon this week for some family coming over. That's gonna be fun. I make a killer lasagna...seriously. It's perfect I have to say.

Today I made a taco omelette. I threw some ingredients together. I didn't find a recipe because this was something I already knew how it should be in my head. If I LIKED eggs I would add to my own onions and some tomato. I might even possibly add a few chives. Since I do not like eggs I just go by what everyone else in my family tells me. I look for the beautiful golden brown color to tell me it's ready. I make sure the insides are covered in cheese and good and melty. I added a nacho cheese and a cheddar cheese. I sprinkled some taco flavoring into the eggs as well as using taco flavored meat. I wanted the taco flavor to extend beyond just the filling. I added some other ingredients as well like taco sauce and a bit of sour cream in the actual eggs. It turned out great. Everyone loved them. I made tacos last night, which is why I thought this up. :)