OUR LIFE IN 3D

08 Oct 2013

DYLANism: Who is buying all this Stuff?

Sunday I was on the phone with Dylan’s Grandma when that Stuffies commercial came on (How much stuff can you stuff in a stuffy…). We see this commercial a lot on the all kids TV channels we watch.

Dylan saw the commercial and grabbed her little Curious George drawing book and asked me how to spell the word ‘Stuffies’. I should have heard her wheels turning.

I politely told her I was on the phone with her Grandma and couldn’t talk right now.

So Dylan went to find Mom.

When I got off the phone Dylan told me I could order her a Stuffy for her birthday.

I told her to tell her Aunt Sue or Grandmother as Christmas is a lot closer.

She says, “No Dad, you don’t understand. You can order me one for my birthday right now“and she leads me by the hand back to my office.

I get in my office at home and there on my computer screen is the Stuffies’ web site.

Dylan evidently took the spelling for Stuffies and did a search for the toy, found the web site on the search, pulled the Stuffies web site up and found the one for her.

I thought this amazing for two reasons.

First, what does a kindergartener know about doing a Search on the computer to find something, let alone reading what comes up under the search and choosing the right link? I didn’t teach her.

Second, this girl saw something she wanted and made a plan to go get it. She just didn’t ask and bat her eyes like a Princess. She made a logical plan on how to make it easy for Mom and Dad fill her wish.

First grade computer class my butt!

Please, please, please can I have one? What is your 3 digit authorization code?

Please, please, please can I have one? And what is the 3 digit authorization code on your Master Card?

I better hide the credit cards!

Now I am a new Dad, is this unusual in this day and age or do you know of some equally amazing feats?

Posted in DYLANism's

06 Oct 2013

18 Comments

Ol’ buddy, ol’ Chum, ol’ pal….

I wanted to send a quick update on our dog situation.

The last time I brought him up, Chum or Chummy, was a well-mannered, friendly dog but with a growing urge to growl or even bite when he felt his space or freedom was being threatened.

Well the good news is he has stopped all that. (it looks like) We haven’t heard a story of him growling in 3 weeks. I think he is feeling more and more like a part of the family. And Dylan is a big reason why.

While we considered returning Chum to the greyhound adoption group, mom knew that would be hard on Dylan. She had already become attached to him.

I guess we all have our first favorite pet, one that we could call ours.

And so its been with Dylan and Chummy. When she gets up, she doesn’t get us up any more. She wants to feed and play with Chum. She is the first to let him out of his crate when we return from a trip. She hangs on him and loves on him, sometime too hard I feel. But Chummy hasn’t resisted.

So this past Friday, Dylan had one of those adorable outfits on from one of her special Grandmothers. Mom and I each thought it super cute that we reached for our cameras about the same time before D. was to hop in my car and jet off to school.

Well, Dylan felt too shy for all the fuss that early in the morning and hid.

Knowing she really does enjoy the hoopla of looking cute (like most girls I imagine) I suggested, “why don’t we take a picture of Chum and, Dylan, if you want to, you can stand beside him.”

You know what? It worked.

She really doesn’t mind the attention from looking cute…

She came out and stood beside ‘her dog’

And I say that as that is what mom suggested the other day. She remarked about how much D. loves that dog and how it is really HER dog (not mine).

Come on, strike a pose…

…she doesn’t mind one bit and will actually ‘ham it up’ for the camera sometimes.

Its funny, Dylan will lie down on the living room rug in hopes that Chum will lay down beside her so she can pet and cuddle with him.

Instead, when Dylan lays on her back Chum will go and stand over top of her, front feet on one side and back feet on the other, making a bridge over her.

And that’s what dogs do, right?

If a dog is feeling threatened of surrendering to a big dog they lay on their back and flash their belly. Its a sign, ‘I give up’.

I think Chum sees Dylan laying on the ground and stands over her to protect her. He doesn’t look down at her when he does this, he looks at us. Its really touching to see.

I think she gets great enjoyment out of it. And who wouldn’t?

And that my friends is the happy face that hops in my car and goes off to school for another challenging day of Kindergarten. And then she will run in the door and give her dog a hug when she returns.

Forgive the bravado blog readers but friends and family would like to know she has gotten a ‘green smiley face’ every day of school so far; and indication of their behavior in class. Five green smiley faces in a row allows them to pick from a treasure chest at the end of the week.

She has been placed in the first grade computer class and has passed two reading tests so far that qualify her for the second level of three levels in first grade reading.

Its only the beginning as there is really very few things she can’t read. ~We have to be careful what we leave laying around the house now a she will pick up on it. She read through the church bulletin this morning with our friends that sit beside us.

And I am working with her on math. I imagine she above level there as well.

On a separate note, I am still doing good, feeling great. The side effects of my procedure are about the same. Its all a matter of managing ‘life’ right now. Although all the literature I read said side effects (mostly urinary) really don’t kick in until after 2 weeks of the procedure, which was this past week. If the incontinence was supposed to start at all, it would be now. But I have had none of that

I have to admit, for someone that has had their fair share of beers in the past, having a sudden urge to go is nothing new. I now have had to eliminate my Mountain Dews in the mornings as a way to cope in hope of preventing any soggy bottoms in the afternoons. Ah,actually, later that same morning. Cause I am a man of constant, ah………..sorrows…

Have a great week everyone!

Whatcha wearing for Trick or Treat?

Posted in Archives and tagged Chum, Dylan, gotta pee!, incontinence, mountan dew, soggy bottoms

01 Oct 2013

29 Comments

Post Prostate Procedure Update

I wanted to give a brief update on my treatment and recovery in dealing with my prostate cancer. Possibly, if anyone finds they have prostate cancer and has the Brachytherapy (Radiation Seed Implant) as an option this can serve as a example to my experience in treating the cancer and hopefully may answer a few questions.

If anyone reading this knows of someone with prostate cancer, and most certainly you will sometime, let this be a guide. But the only way to have my treatment method, Brachytherapy and radiation seed implants, is to get the cancer detected early. To have this option the cancer must still be relatively small and localized; no spreading. Otherwise more invasive treatments must be used, up to and including removal.

My first week has been pretty easy. The short story here is I went back to work the Friday after my procedure; back to work in 3-4 days. Anyone reading this that has this option, I highly recommend you take it. Now 2 weeks since the procedure I feel normal. I feel great; just like how I felt when I walked in the hospital. Infact, I felt that way a week ago.

The day of my procedure was a breeze. They gave me an IV early. I danced in my surgical gown after a bathroom adventure. Two hours later they wheeled me to the operating room. I switched beds by own accord. A nurse with pretty white teeth said, ‘I am now going to drop something in your IV that will make me sleep’ and the next thing I know I am waking up in the recovery room, mentally searching my body to see what hurts. Nothing hurt. It was that easy. I entered the hospital at 5.30am and was discharged by 2.00pm. … for a cancer treatment.

I went back to my Oncologist the next morning at 8.30am and his nurse took out the catheter. This went waaaayyyyy easier than I thought it would be; out in a second. It felt like I was peeing really hard; that’s what the catheter felt like being removed.

Sure there are some anxious moments, mainly stemming from things I didn’t understand; mainly that morning in the hospital, living with a catheter in and especially the catheter removal. I didn’t get much sleep the night with the catheter in. And Pee’ing has been the biggest concern. It really took me half the morning the day of my procedure to pee at all on my own and then I could not get a stream until about 3pm that day.

My butt was sore initially but not where I thought it would be. While I thought the area of injections would be in the land down under, where my legs come together, the actual busy area was BEHIND that area, not so much in the middle, but literally in the REAR.

Note: Urinary tract through one’s prostate and the shortest distance to insert radioactive needles is via the rectum

I came home with a maxi pad type cushion in my catheter underwear for my butt and there were a few blood dots on it from the needles. The inner portions of my cheeks were swollen for about a week. It seems most of the needles entered my prostate via my lower rectum. That area is still a bit sore. And why wouldn’t it be sore? I figure 30+ needles went in through there.

I have what looks like a months’ worth of infection medicine. Thankfully, I do not have any infections though. I do have some meds for pain, percocets.

Now I had not taken the pain meds because I didn’t feel like I needed them after the catheter was removed. I felt fine! However I read online a few days following my release that the pain meds were for the swelling. I didn’t know! It’s a good thing I looked up ‘recovery’ on a web search.

My stomach felt ‘full‘ the first few days although I could eat. And I think that had to do with overall swelling inside my stomach. They said my prostate should have really swollen up. I thought to get 95 seeds in my tiny, poor ol’ prostate it would have had to be enlarged!

And I don’t feel the seeds or radiation one bit. None! I would never know they were there. Although I swear I can smell the radiation. My wife says that’s not likely. I have had that same ‘hospital smell’ around me for almost 10 days.

I have many of the usual ‘side effects’ that pertains to this procedure and my urine. My urine stream has been impaired. Impaired? My 3 year old has more fluid volume than I do.

The gentle flow usually means smaller urination, creating more frequency, given a normal diet.

I get the urges to go real bad but when I make it to the bathroom I barely get a stream. This is normal I hear. Guess the prostate is still rather enlarged. Size does matter! I worry what’s wrong while I wait to finish but when I am done it feels good. It’s hard to explain.

The day following the procedure it was real important that I go to make sure my urinary tract was not injured during the procedure. Well, I went, eventually, just 15 minutes before my deadline, but only enough to fill a shot glass.

I was told to take a warm bath for the swelling that may have occurred from my catheter placement but that “if I couldn’t get a stream going by 3:00pm to come back in.

Uh-oh!

So I drank some more and waited and waited.

I finally found the old, ‘hands up against the wall’ pose as the most comfortable as I waited for some action down there.

But, now, I go to the bathroom more often than I used to. My streams are weak or smallish. And I frequently have the sensation of wondering whether I am actually finished or still more to come, forcing me to adopt a new pee’ing position

An extreme example of this came last Sunday as I counted 6 times that I got up to go to the bathroom between 10:30pm and 12:30am. That’s one every 20 minutes. I ended up getting up over 10 times that very sleepless night.

But all these issues are listed side effects. I see it as all fixing itself in time.

And while one side effect maybe blood in the urine, I have none of that. However, the 2nd or third day, while I was in the shower, I was cleaning up and noticed my penis was mostly purple, along with a great portion of my scrotum. Yes black and blue.

Ahhhh!

Yea, kinda like that….

Frankly, you really hate to see black and blue or ‘injury’ in your sensitive areas and this was no exception. Thoughts of ‘withering and falling off’ run through your mind.

It was Plum scarey!

This was really unsettling at the time but I figured it was from all the trauma it must have went through with the catheter initially. And the discoloration is starting to fade now. Thankfully, nothing has fallen off!

In fact, here now at 14 days since my procedure, my doctor told me I am supposed to exercise that wiener!

He told me that intercourse would be good ‘therapy’ for the healing and rejuvenation of my prostate. The catch is that I need to wear a condom in case one of my glowing seeds passes through my prostate.

Now how many surgeries can you think of that tell you to go have sex as a way to heal? So, in a way, we actually will be playing doctor this week!

Another side effect might be my energy being sapped. I fag-out around 3pm-4pm the majority of the days since the procedure. At first I thought it was from the pain killers. But then I stopped taking them during the day. But I still feel nappy.

I left work 30- 60 minutes early each day of my return. Possibly it is the radiation inside me making me tired or my body dealing with some changes

I tried to ride my bike this past weekend but that didn’t seem like a good idea. Yes, my rear is still a bit sore inside.

In looking back, over the whole treatment for my prostate cancer, the hardest part of this whole procedure was done at the testing, the biopsy. And that wasn’t so bad. Again, not too bad for having a cancer.

Of course I am gun-hoe now since it is over but I have to remind myself I still have the cancer and it won’t be for another 2 months or so until I know if this procedure actually got rid of my cancer. So I tell myself it’s not over yet. But so far no complications.

You know if I am running down the aisles of a grocery store, pushing two girls in a grocery cart, I can’t be feeling too bad. In fact…

I feel too good!

I feel pre-procedure, when I didn’t feel sick at all. I feel unleashed, like a new lease on life. I feel like I don’t have a small box of radiated BB’s in my belly.

I wish I would! Then I would remember to not pick up my two girls and carrying on with them. It’s hard to remember about the radiation without a ~~good~~ mild reminder.

So, in summary, the procedure went well. Recovery is fairly easy and pretty quick. And ‘best practices’ for healing and recovery include having sex and sleeping. Maybe I can just drag this recovery out a little bit longer then!

Thanks again to all of you that sent the prayers, well-wishes and healing thoughts. it really meant a lot! Words can’t express my gratitiude but….

YOU rock!

Posted in Prostate Cancer ~ Laughter is the Best Medicine and tagged Are we done yet?, Brachytherapy, Hey thats not fair giving a guy a shot down there!, I gotta pee, lets get this party started, prostate cancer, prostate cancer recovery, prostate cancer treatment, radioactive seeds implant

26 Sep 2013

22 Comments

I humbly accept this award…

There come a time in a person’s life, or at least there should, when everything you have been shown, everything you have been taught, the great instincts you have get validated as ‘the Best’. And that moment came for me tonight.

“I want to thank my family, my wife, friends who have been there for me and of course those two amazing girls…

But first, the commercial for this weekend in a new season of 3D. I was planning on doing an update about my procedure this weekend. Briefly, so far it has been great. I feel great! I feel normal. I feel the same as pre-radiation seeds in my belfry.

Oh yes, there have been some moments. Graphic Ones! And you’ll get all them this weekend.

This procedure has put the thrill back in pee’ing. And when I walk past the refrigerator my belly has followed its urge to stick on the door. And you can get all this and more this weekend as I continue to butter up my doctors and to avoid paying that whole huge bill! ~You would think at 95 seeds I could get a bulk discount?

Back to my moment….

Yes, my validation of greatness came, in of all places, our area grocery store, the Bi Lo. Let me set the stage…

We arrived at the store and the girls immediately spotted a bright blue police car shopping cart in the parking lot. And it was clean!

So one by one I picked each one up and put them in their seats as fast as I could (i.e. radiation and holding the kids).

We were on a mission to obtain essential beverages to make it through to the end of the week; namely milk, orange juice and apple juice.

Well I put the girls in and wheeled the cart around in the parking lot outside. I almost encroached on an on coming car but she saw I had kids in the cart and waved me on.

Being appreciative of the nice driver, and not wanting to take up her time with my neglect, I pushed the police car / shopping cart into gear and ran to the edge of the parking lot, slowing up to make a graceful entrance into the Bi Lo.

The girls love this of course as every time I put them in a shopping cart they say, “Daddy go fast!”

Once inside I reminded the girls of our mission and that we dared not take any breaks to look at ice cream, cereal, party balloons, or stickers.

The cold beverage aisle was at the far end of the store so we walked calmly down to that end, pretending to let the girls actually steer the police car with their steering wheels.

We make it to the top of the refrigerated section and ‘Bam‘ right there was some orange juice. ~shopping is so easy!

We secured some and then looked for the milk section, spotting it at the other end of the aisle.

But first we had to navigate a family that left a full shopping cart on one side and three heavy people looking at bread on the opposite side, completely ignoring there was another cart coming down the aisle.

I leaned down and whispered to the girls, “hold on, this might be tricky” as we steered slowly towards the shoppers.

I reminded the girls to “steer the cart straight and watch out for the other shoppers” as we slowly navigated the gauntlet.

I smiled at everyone as we drove past, gave a ‘homecoming queen’ wave to the little one stuck in their cart and then shifted up the next gear as we cleared the family.

Now the only things in our way to securing some milk and running home was 30 yards of open aisle and a young couple keeping to them self along the cheese section.

So I made some race car sounds and broke into a jog with the cart. I pretended to ‘fishtail’ the cart like a car on a dirt road down the aisle.

I told the girls, “come on keep it straight, keep it straight don’t hit anything” as we swerved closer to the milk.

The girls were laughing hysterically and I made more varooo- varoom sounds when it happened.

What do you think happened?

The young girl that was holding hands with the other long-haired fella in our aisle said to her mate, “There goes the coolest Dad ever!”

Did you get that?

THE COOLEST DAD EVER!

I gave her a side glance out of the corner of my eye and a quick itty-bitty smile in an attempt to say “Thank you” after we found our milk and started for the registers.

Finally, after all that training, and all the reading, and coaching, and reminding….I had my validation (which I knew all along)….Coolest Dad EVER.

I’ll sleep good tonight…

I don’t know how I would have felt if I would have heard “Coolest Grandpa”..again

Riding in the back of a limo at 3 months...you'll never guess where we are going?

Hopping in the back of a limo at 3 months…you’ll never guess where we are going? I didn’t even know these guys!

Posted in Archives and tagged BMOC, cool dad, no the fat free milk, wardrobe malfunction, watch out for the chip display

18 Sep 2013

30 Comments

Being a regular guy can be embarrassing…

I wanted to reach out real quick and let friends and family know everything went fine with my procedure so far. The radiologist says’ text book’. He said he inserted 95 radiation seeds in my prostate.

I came home yesterday wearing my catheter, didn’t sleep much but still got some rest, and got to see some great smiles on my girls. (good medicine!)

So today, I just got back from Dr. O’s office to have that pesky catheter removed. Like most games we play in our mind, this all was easier than I made it out to be all this time.

And I think many THANKS go out to YOU, and everyone else for your prayers, well wishes, healing powers and positive thoughts. You and the rest my Angels ROCK!

There were a few hiccups along the way though.

Like the first nurse yesterday who was to administer my IV needle. She said she wanted to get the ‘drama’ over early.

Being fit and as healthy as one can be with a few cancer cells in their belly, I have good veins for this. These needles don’t bother me. Yet she still chose to prick a vein on top of my arm (a.k.a. the hairy part) instead of underneath it.

She apologized and laughed, “it will be like getting a wax job when they pull all this tape off with the needle.”

I was still thinking about the deed ahead of me and said, “if they don’t shave me in my land down under it will be like getting a Brazilian job there too !” Yikes!

She left and I had to wait some more for the next step, administering the anesthesia. My wife was with me at this time so we could text each other on our phones….in the room.

Now I am a regular guy. Ever since my healthy quest a few decades back I have always tried to eat healthy. And my bowel movement in the morning you could count on. But Monday I wasn’t allowed to eat anything. Although I did have to shower a few times with anti-bacteria soap.

So as the clock clicked on it became apparent I had to go. Maybe it was nerves, or regularity, or just fate. But I didn’t know if I should, given all the anti bacterial cleaning down there and that area being the place of operation in my procedure. Know what I mean?

BUT I also didn’t know what would happen to my muscle function once they knocked me out and I was afraid of pooping on all these high-priced needles filled with radiated seeds. That would be some radiation poisoning!

So I talked it over with my wife and we called a nurse to get her thoughts. She said go ahead, showed me the bathroom and went to get some wash clothes for clean up.

Now keep in mind I have an IV bag attached to me at the time, hindering every process.

Well I went with little difficulty and tried to clean up in the bathroom as best I could, thinking infections and bacteria and other dirty words.

I get back to my waiting room and the nurse did bring back 2 sets of towels and wash cloths.

So, not wanting to take any chances with infection, I grabbed a wash cloth with the plan to wipe one more time and be sure no color appeared on the white linen.

Oh! And I am wearing those nice surgical gowns that only tie in the back.

So, holding my IV bag in my left hand, I reached around to the back and tried to pull that piece of the gown forward so I can hold it with the IV hand. Of course this left a large part of my front exposed.

I was standing right in front of the door and I knew, with my luck, a nurse would walk in as I am standing there, bent over, naked up front, wiping my butt in the back, my face looking out to anybody and everybody in the hallway.

So I did what anybody would do, I did a 180 turn around so they would only see my back side… and not my face.

So, I tried it again, trying to hold one gown flap back with my IV bag hand and check the wipe with the other. However this over sized gown was so big that the other side’s flap was covering my area I intended to check.

So trying to think through the logistics of my problem, I did a quick quarter turn to try to get the momentum of the wind to hold the flap up long enough where I could slide my wash clothed hand underneath it.

All most ~~butt~~ but no good this time. So I tried it again.

I got closer this time but still no good. Knowing I knew the secret on how to do this on my next attempt I thought I would try it one more time.

But I heard this faint laughing.

I look up and see my wife standing there, laughing in hysterics to the point of tears. I said, “whats so funny?”

She said you look like a dog chasing his tail! And she continued to laugh.

Well, I finally got it and the cloth came back clean. But still you wonder about bacteria.

So on the wall of this room was one of those gel alcohol soap dispensers that kill germs. So I thought, why not?

So I got a handful of this gel and tried the same trick as the wash cloth, successful on the first try.

Oh no! Bad idea!

That alcohol wanted to burn that fleshy area. I said “ouch, ouch ouch!” as I tried to wipe it off.

It continued to stay warm down there in Australia. But at least it should have been sanitary for the operation.

Other than that sensation there really has not been too many discomforts, other than the tube up my penis. I haven’t noticed any spidey senses, or increased strength, although I really didn’t get a good look at my jewels last night in the dark.

It appears the only enhanced sense I got was an increased sense of pee’ing, which came with its own accessory….

Stylin’ and Profilin’

Many of you have asked how the girls will handle me not being able to hold them on my lap. We told Dylan the night before my procedure and she started to cry. It was sad.

But then she pulled herself together and looking for a bright spot she asks if I’ll still be able to play with her.

Now by playing she means wrestling. You see every night she likes to stand on the foot stool of the sofa and dive at me like a body slam. I pretend to be knocked back and then we wrestle a little until I get her in a position to tickle her. Being tickled is a form of affection to this girl.

So every night we have done this around dinner time. But I am afraid that too has to wait a few months. She may be too big to do it when the time is up!

So that’s about it! I feel good. I’m up moving around. That’s right I went to Dunkin Donuts in the above attire after I had my catheter removed. Celebratin’ at Dunkin’!

I am still waiting for me to pee, sans the tube and poach. This is important or else the tube has to go back in. So I am drinking a coupla light beers in order to help me go.

Just kidding! Apple juice is the order of the day.

We were leaving the hospital yesterday around 2pm and I got my Hollywood ride in the wheelchair I was looking forward to.

I was helped on the chair and then helped in my car, in the passenger side this time. And as I carefully sat in there I had to find a place for my pee bag and just opted to hold it on my lap. Which added a whole nother dimension to holding your pee in the car.

Have a great week everyone!

Posted in Prostate Cancer ~ Laughter is the Best Medicine and tagged Dunkin donuts, Have to pee!, prostate cancer, radioactive seeds