And the beat goes on....

Most of you know that all my scans and bloodwork came back perfect from MDAnderson. Stan and I went for four days the week after Thanksgiving. Bottom line is this: no cancer is evident anywhere in my body at this time and I have been taken off all cancer fighting medication. It has been almost a month now and I can tell that my swelling is going away and my overall color is getting better. I am so tired of writing about cancer. So, I'm just gonna say that I am cancer free and like my oncologist told me "now we just hope and pray!" So, please keep my health in your prayers! It may never come back! That is my hope and prayer... I want to write now about mine and Stan's time in Houston. This time of year downtown Houston where the medical center is, is a pretty place. Lots of Christmas decor and there is just a special feeling in the air and everyone seems to be extra happy. The hustle and bustle of the holiday season is very evident. There is still a muggy feeling in the air down there, but there is also a crispness. When Stan and I go there we hate being away from our kids, but we try and enjoy our time together as much as we can. There is a lot of waiting around and down time between appointments. I usually roam around the hospital and Stan hangs out in the room watching Fox News. Where we stay is a beautiful fancy hotel, so I am distracted and entertained by the nice bellhop and have gotten to know a lot of the staff on a first name basis. They are so very kind. I enjoy listening to the live piano player in the lobby and have even gotten some laughs at some "older" people singing karaoke ! I'm telling you , cancer patients live life to the fullest! This trip, however, Stan and I did some Christmas shopping. There is a big Toys r Us close to the medical center and I always go there and buy Cole a "prize." Makes me sad to go there because it makes me miss him something awful! I also have recently discovered Rice village. We love walking around there and shopping too. This trip, we were so anxious waiting for my appointment to get test results! We are always anxious, but with all the Christmastime stuff around me it seemed to be worse. I told Stan I had to get out and walk around. Outside! So, we went to Herman Park across the street from the hotel and walked around. It's such a beautiful park. Trees so tall they cover your view of the sky! For a brief few minutes I forgot why we were there. Just walking and watching the squirrels running around. Amazed at how oblivious they are to where they are. They are just looking for a nut. We also discovered a new restraunt this time. It was the coolest restraunt I've ever been too. And I've been to ALOT!!! Ha It was an old restored two story house right down the street from the hospital. It looks like an old house just sitting in the middle of all these tall skyscrapers. We walked through the doors and it was like walking back in time. The owners are Italian and were just beautiful people. I think they lived upstairs. It was so warm and cozy in there. Fancy, but yet homey. All the pasta was homemade and everything was just perfect. We were even seranaded by the Italian grandpa of the house playing the guitar and signing to us in his little three piece suit. For a moment, I was able to forget that three blocks down was where my life was about to change in a building that has 40,000 employees. It was just me and my Stan...... The whole world we left outside... We even went back there the next night to celebrate my good news:) I want to ask that you all pray for my sweet Stan. He has been my oxygen through all this. I know it's gotta be so hard to watch your wife go through all this mess... I can't even imagine. He has never once complained about any of it. It's cost us so much financially but he has always provided and I've never had to do without any treatment or doctor that I wanted. I am just really grateful for my Stan. We had an unbelievable Christmas and now, as I start 2013 without any meds I honestly can say I'm a little anxious about it. This is the first time in almost four years I've been medicine free. So, I'm trusting..... I'm gonna just live and try really hard to not think about tomorrow... I'm just living in the day.... I am so grateful for you all. I love my family so much and I have the most amazing friends. So, here's to a cancer free year!!! Thank you God for my health, my husband, my kids, my parents , my sister, my Sammy, and my nephew and nieces and all of my extended family. And bless my doctors and nurses. I love all of you who read this Still a survivor- Kristi