On to Week 2

We made it through week 1 of chemo. 2 more weeks then rinse and repeat. Lily got through it with her usual spunk and charm. Yesterday she was going through her apologies- so I know she must have felt a little better. Mommy I'm sorry I kicked you at the sospital and threw up on you. Daddy I'm sorry I threw up in your car and threw up on you. ... We have one amazing little monkey. To celebrate, we went to the mall to see Santa. Jackie and Uncle Stewart decided this was waaay too much fun to miss and came along for the experience. Not the ideal afternoon out for the 20-something sect, but AWESOME birth control.

I had decided for the big day out, Lily needed a itty bitty bit of happy juice(ativan) a kinda sedative anti nausea drug that does help her nausea but doesn't really sedate her. I pack the bag carefully so I know exactly where the little emesis basin is and the wipes and her meds as well as the normal stuff. We get to the mall around 2 and of course Santa is on his break until 3. Fortunately there was a greek dancing troup(as in country- not a group of drunkin sorority girls) that was there for our entertainment. Lily and Bella are thirsty. Phil finds Lily's juice cup, but can't find Bella's so he empties the contents of my neatly organized and relatively clean bag onto the mall floor. UGH. boys. No juice. Belle does this all the time- she sneaks her juice outta the bag and leaves it on the floor, at home. Oh well. Her bad. There she goes making her 2 year old decisions. When it's over the kids convince Phil and Stewart to buy cookies and soda. I can see the new book now...4 little monkeys jumping on the Santa. Next to the cookie shoppe is the jungle toy store/arcade. Yeah there are no germs there. We were told that this weekend would be our best shot to take Lily out and about- next week her counts will drop and we'll be isolated. Yesterday Phil took her and the older 2 to a movie since it was pouring rain. We also kinda wanted to get a Santa picture before she loses her hair. Just a personal preference. So goals for today- See Santa. No puking.

We make our way to Santa- where the line is already building. You have to wait in this little house/tunnel and after about 10 minutes everyone is getting hot and crabby. Bella finally spots Santa through a window and her and Lily take turns running ahead in line trying to get a better view. When Lily is not doing that- she is using Jackie and Stewart as a jungle gym. We finally get to the front of the line. It's good that she's feeling better, but a little decorum please. Bella takes two steps towards Santa and freezes. The other kids are arranged around Santa and I can feel her clamping down on my shirt. I have two options as she starts to scream NOOOOOOOOO- I can duck out of my shirt and throw her to Santa or I can be in the picture and make Phil join in the fun. I am kinda wishing I had gone with option 1. I don't know if I am or not, it definitely looks like it in the photo, it could also be that I was further forward(yep that's gotta be it) but I actually am bigger than the fat man in the red suit. I had heard rumors across the nation that Santa's slimming down, just like years ago when health issues demanded he lose the pipe. But seriously - I know he's magic- but if he can magically make the cookies he eats disappear- than he needs to get his butt outta that chair and get a kiosk- cuz that's where the money is.

We take a turn around the mall and Kiera says can I get my ears pierced? And Phil says "sure". She clearly was not expecting that and immediately starts to panic. Cancer changes things he says- last time I heard him say that she had to be 12. I'm allergic to metal, so it sounded fine to me. She has been begging for it since she started school-preschool . She says "Lily has to go first"- Phil shrugs. No can do kiddo- Lily's on chemo- not the best time to plug metal posts through her ears. "Fine, then Jackie." That we can do. We trudge to the nearest Claire's. Which apparently is on the other side of the universe. We are waiting for our 3rd elevator and it opens and immediately starts to close. Instinct takes over and I thrust the stroller forward. This is not my big mammer jammer stroller that would scare the elevator- this is the little umbrella stroller I got to get Lily in an out of the clinic. And it has Lily in it. I retract it before any harm can come to Lily or the stroller and have 3 adults looking at me like I have lost my mind. Sorry- I forgot Lily was in it. But why didn't you stop the elevator? Phil asks. Aha- and that's why the mommy gets to push the cancer patient around.

We get to claire's and Kiera's in full on panic mode. She and Jackie pinkie-swear they'll do it and Jackie hops into the chair. She even lets Kiera pick out earrings for her (bold move) and Kiera says"but what if I don't do it?" And Jackie hops out of the chair. I'll spare you what transpired in the next 20 minutes but Kiera does not have her ears pierced. We make our way to dinner where Lily is literally banging on the table and screaming at the top of her lungs "I want cheese pizza!!" The out of home food conveyance technician has already been dispatched for cheese pizza. We haven't even ordered and Lily has eaten her pizza(well a slice and then offered the rest to Jackie and Kiera.) She's done. Let's go. Mind you it is now actually dinner time and the rest of us are actually hungry. Jackie ,being the sweetie she is, takes 2 of the 3 female monkies outside to the play area. The 3rd female monkey runs after them...which means so must I because the boys are engrossed in some conversation. Just as Jackie shoos me away to go eat dinner, Bella chucks a ball at Lily's head. Now I must stay and play, says Lily. And by play area, I mean a box of hand me down toys thrown on the sidewalk in front of the restaurant. Also very clean, I think I just threw up a little in my mouth. I did buy a pocket sized lysol to go with my pocket size germ x and I think I am soon going to need bigger pockets. It was such a bargain too- for a full 25 cents less than a ginormous bottle- you get a miniature version. I think putting Lily in a padded space suit may be more practical and cheaper too. On the way home Phil is complaining about how slow service was. I wasn't paying attention as I was eating my dinner which had been boxed up. But it was a success because all objectives were achieved. We saw Santa. There was no public puking. Outstanding.