Moments from Heaven!!!!

PROUD DADDY HOLDING HAILEY LEE DOUGLAS

BORN DECEMBER 8, 2011

6 POUNDS 14 OUNCES

20 INCHES LONG

ERIN AND HER BEAUTIFUL BABY DAUGHTER


NANA AKA NONNIE

HAILEY

AND OF COURSE A VERY PROUD NANA

SORRY CAN'T FIGURE HOW TO TURN PICTURE

I AM SO BLESSED TO HAVE TWO BEAUTIFUL GRAND CHILDREN. THANK YOU GOD FOR THE BEAUTIF UL GIFTS AND MOMENTS!!!

LOVE,

DEBBIE

THIS IS WHAT LIFE IS ALL ABOUT!

Lots going on right now. I'm on grand baby watch. Hailey is due on the 15th and Erin is already showing signs of delivering early. I can't wait. A little boy and now how blessed am I to have a little girl too!

This past weekend I spent time making my gingerbread houses for Little Markie, Hailey, Ashanti, Angelina and me. Last night Little Markie stayed and decorated his little house. It is so cute. I worked on Hailey's house today and mine. I made Hailey's house in pink, cause pink is for girls. Spending this time with Little Markie decorating his house was a moment that took my breath away. I was so excited when he would say "right here" was where he wanted to put something. So cute! He was very patient and sat there with me and Mommy decorating his little house. What a moment!!!

This Sunday, Evelyn, Ben and the girls are coming to decorate their gingerbread houses. I went to the Disney store and bought the girls the "princess figures". They are going to be so excited. Another moment that will take my breath away!

As for my health, this past month the Lambda light chains went down to 102. Four months ago I was at 179 and Stanford was getting nervous and put me on chemo every week. I have no breaks which means I'm sick (nausea) Tuesday and Wednesday and then on Thursday the soreness and fatigue starts. By Friday I'm so sore and fatigue. The doctors are saying its because the chemo treatments are building up and the effects are getting stronger. I don't see Dr. Schrier (Stanford) until January and hopefully he will give me at least a one week break. That would be so great!

On December 29th, in Pasadena California, Evelyn and I will put a rose in honor of Jazmin on the Rose Parade Donate for Life Float. It will be a special moment for Evelyn and I and will be a moment that takes my breath away! Evelyn and I will be staying at my favorite hotel the Montage in Beverly Hills. I'm excited to show her the places I have been to and of course we will do alot of girl things like shopping, people watching, more shopping and lots more people watching. I told her we can just sit in the library (aka living room) and watch the people go by. She is really looking forward to this trip and so am I. I will be able to see Kathy and Denise at Youngs Market too! Its been almost 2 years since I last saw them. I miss them so much!

On October 8th I became a Donate for Life Ambassador for the California Transplant Donor Network. I plan to make presentations at the High Schools encouraging young adults to donate. One question? Do you have a pink dot? The pink dot is on your driver's license. Please, please donate! There are 9 million donors in the state of California. As impressive as having nearly 9 million people registered sounds, about 70% of adults still have not yet made a decision themselves as donors in this state. I believe there are about 12,000 people still waiting for an organ. Why! 9 million is not enough. Bear in mind, to be a donor you have to be considered "brain dead" and "in a hospital enviroment" and that is where the problem lies. How many donors who die are "brain dead". Not many, so the more donors there are the chances are higher for someone waiting for an organ. I was blessed and thank God for Jazmin's mom, Evelyn in making the decision to donate. Jazmin save a lot of lives including mine. Jazmin was not a donor but Evelyn made the decision for her daughter. What a miracle and what a special person she is. I will do everything possible to honor Jazmin. She was too young to die but she saved so many lives. She is an angel in heaven!

Well the next news with pictures coming soon will be my new baby grand daughter "Hailey"!

Remember: Every moment is a gift!

Love,

Debbie

PS: To an old friend who commented on my blog. Thank you for your prayers and thinking of me. Enjoy every moment! Make moments that take your breath away! I try each day to do just that!

Sorry for Being Gone For So Long!!!!

Strip District In Pittsburgh

Famous Prumanti Bros. Sandwich Restaurant

You're in Steeler Country


Steeler Country

Great Seats - 5 rows up from the field

The Ketshup Bottles Open and Pour Out when the Steetlers Score

The fans go all out for their Steelers

T
The Steeler Hall of Fame Wall

Erin's Baby Shower 10-23-11
It's all about PINK!!!!

Baby Cash and Auntie Mary

Hailey's First Toto

Erin and Tory

Thank you so much Tory for the beautiful baby shower

My Pride and Joy

Little Markie



It's November 1st and I can't believe its been 5 months since my last post. So much to say and so much to show.

Well all the good news first! I am going to be a grandma again. A beautiful grand daughter, named Hailey Lee Douglas is expected into the world sometime between December 5th and December 15th. Everyone knows how much this means to me. To be a grandma again is the best moment of my life. Little Markie is now 19 months and is such a joy. I watch him every Monday and the moments I spend with him are so precious. I can only imagine how it will be with two. I dream about her almost every night. I hope she looks like Erin, although in my dreams she does. Erin's girl friends gave her a baby shower and I got to go out shopping for the first time for girl clothes. Yes I went crazy. I told Erin when she brings Hailey over to stay at Nana's house be sure to bring at least 5 changes of clothes so I can play dress up. Little Markie is now saying words like "please" "baby" "bubbles" and many more. I think he says "Nana" but it comes out kind of funny. I know he loves me by the way he looks at me. His little eyes stare at me and when he sees me he runs to me and gives me hugs and kisses. I'm the happiest Nana on this earth!!!!

I haven't done much traveling since the big motorhome trip. Just short trips to the lake and in October Mark and I went to Pittsburgh to see the Steelers and Penguins play. I had sooooo much fun! The people are sooooo nice. Mark was so excited to show me all the places he visited in his last trips. It was just what we needed. I hope to go every year!

I'm excited the fall and winter months are coming because this is my favorite time of the year to be at the lake. There is no one there and I can walk all around with my puppy. I drop Mark off at his favorite place ie: casino and I have the day to myself. It works for both of us. I spend my time watching Burlesque, Under the Tuscan Sun, Sex in the City and more for at least the 20th time. I swear I see different parts each time I see them over. I read my "food network" magazines, which I really enjoy. I have even been doing so many different recipes. Max and Mark are really loving it. I made a Cocoa Pork on Sunday with Cole slaw and BBQ sauce. Mark loved it. It gives me peace to cook for my family. I enjoy it so much!

As for my health. I'm stable at this point. I was really having a hard time with my lambha light chain number. It was going up (172) and Dr. Schrier was getting concerned. He decided I would have to go on chemo every week, take the steroid every week and have it injected into my stomach called sub-que instead of infusion into my arm. He said they were having much success with sub-que. So two months ago I started the new treatment plan. My numbers have dropped from 172 to 128. I have had some side effects that are good like my numbness isn't as bad and the nausea isn't as bad too. I still have the side effects at the end of the week like I have the flu but by Saturday its all gone.

I had my 3 year annual heart biopsy in September. I had a NER (no evidence of rejection) and no amyloid in my new shared heart. They also check my arties for any blockage and there was none. So my biopsy was very positive except I ended up in the ICU for three days. The doctor had a problem during the biopsy where the sack around my heart was punctured and I started bleeding inside. They rushed me to ICU and thank god they knew what to do it didn't cause any damage to my new shared heart. I have had terrible pain since then on my left side near my heart. They have done CT scans, Echo Scans and blood tests. All have come back negative and the heart is functioning great. The pain they think is from the doctor inserting the cath for the drainage of blood after the biopsy. Maybe he did something to a muscle but I can tell you this that at the beginning of the week on Tuesday the pain was gone and by Thursday it was back. The pain was so bad I couldn't breathe and was so worry about the heart. We discovered that when I went on Dexadron that the steroid helped with inflammation and by the time Thursday came the drug was gone and the pain was back. So now I'm on 40 mg of Dexadron on Tuesday and starting Thursday on 30 mg of Predisone with taper. The pain is gone but for how long I don't know. I was so depressed after the biopsy because I was feeling great a month ago. I have to be strong and continue with my treatments. I am having surgery next Thursday on my finger which I have a piece of glass in it, what fun! I have been seeing annual doctors for exams like eyes, skin and on November 15th I will have a bone density test. I keep falling and they want to be sure my bones are not weakening. Every waking moment is devoted to taking care of this body. My sweetheart husband has been such a positive force in my life. All he asks is "are you happy". He goes out of his way to do little things to be sure I'm happy. It's working!!!!

This month is my favorite holiday, Thanksgiving. We will share Thanksgiving with the family at brother and sister, Joey and Rachel's house. It is so much fun and this year we have new additions to the family. Joey's daughter, Shannon gave birth in April to Cashious (Cash). He is so cute and is just now sitting up and cooing at us. Little Markie will be into everything (food I mean) and just 8 months to go for Anthony and Laura's wedding. I'm so blessed to have such a loving and caring family. I'm going to enjoy every moment.

Please enjoy the pictures and I can't promise to update more cause I'm out there "ENJOYING EVERY MOMENT!!!

Love,

Debbie

PICTURES

MIA'S POSITION THE WHOLE TRIP

MIA ENJOYED PLAYING WITH THE SQUIRRELS ON THE BEACH IN CRESCENT CITY

LIGHTHOUSE IN CRESCENT CITY

HOME!!!!

CAMPSITE ON THE BEACH IN CRESCENT CITY

CAMPSITE IN KLAMATH FALLS

CAMPSITE IN BURNS, OREGON

MARK'S ATTEMPT AT BBQ - CAUGHT THE TOWEL ON FIRE. WHERE DID BOB GO, MY BBQ MAN!

WARMING UP THE BUNS!!! OR SHOULD I SAY BURNING THE BUNS!

HAMBURGERS WERE GOOD!

END OF THE ROAD

Wow can't believe how fast 17 days goes by. That should be a lesson to me. Time is short and live life each and everyday.

I have had a blast even with the problems we had this past week. I spent precious time with Bob and Cindy Keyes. It was the best! I enjoyed their company and will never forget the moments we had together.

Today we left Klamath Falls, Oregon for Crescent City. It took about 4 hours to get here. We are staying the night in a RV Park right on the beach. It is beautiful to look out at the ocean and the waves. The park isn't the best but it has all the hookups including WIFI and cable.

Just dropped Mark off at the casino up the street and I will join him about 8PM for dinner. I have a little quiet time and of course he enjoys the time playing at the casino. Mia is so tired because Mark and I walked the beach and she ran after all the little squirrels hiding in the rocks on the beach. The squirrels are very friendly but we stay away because I'm afraid they will bite. The weather is nice with little sun but warm. I guess the rain is coming and that's why it is warm outside. We will leave early around 7 in the morning back to Santa Rosa. We have a 5 hour drive home and we have lots to do. The tow dolly must be returned and the motor home cleaned. It will be nice to be home!

I have lots going on at home this next week. First and more importantly is lab work and chemo. As I said before I left, I met with the doctor from Stanford and my numbers have been going up and they want to be more aggressive with treatment. So starting next week I will take chemo 3 times a month. I'm not looking forward to that because I'm getting sick, sore and tired from the chemo now. That means 3 times a month or 3 weeks out of 4 I will be sick, sore and tired. I hate it! I appreciate the time I have had these past 17 days. I didn't think about my sickness, chemo and doctor appointments. All I thought about was how lucky I am to see the places I saw and spend time with Bob, Cindy and of course Mark. But now back to reality! I know I should be happy I have been doing well. I know life is precious and each moment is a gift!

I look forward to more time seeing new places. I don't know if it will be with a motor home but I will be traveling more. This summer I plan to spend as much time as possible at the lake. I feel so good when I'm there and now having chemo so much I want to relax and enjoy it.

I have all these thoughts of wanting to scream out and say "Enjoy life and live for every moment". I hate hearing someone tell me "oh I always wanted to do a motor home trip". No don't say, "always wanted to" DO IT!

I'm happy I did it!
Love,
Debbie

ON THE ROAD AGAIN!

Well we are on the road again with a new motorhome after the transmission in the last one blew up. This motorhome is newer than the last and so far so good. We left Pocaletto, Idaho this morning about 9:30AM after spending almost an hour moving our stuff from the old motorhome to the new one. What a mess! We lost a day but to be honest it was nice to spend a night in a really nice hotel. The bed and shower was great!

Mark and I just threw everything into the motorhome and took off. We had at least a 7 hour drive to Burns, Oregon. We stop in Ontario, Idaho to see Mark's sister, Jennifer at work. We couldn't spend too much with her because she was working. She also had a cold so I couldn't get too close to her. She is so stressed about her husband Paul and it shows. I feel so sorry for her.
I wish there was something we could do but Paul is in God's hands now. They are hoping UC San Francisco will treat him and will know soon. They will have to travel from Idaho to San Francisco or his treatment. My prayers go out to him and Jennifer.

We arrived at Burns, Oregon about 5:30PM. We gained an hour which today I needed it. I'm really tired. After we got set up with the hookups, Mark and I worked on getting the inside of the motorhome in order. Now we are sitting here watching the Stanley Cup game and BBQ our hamburgers for dinner. The weather is wild. Thunder, lighting and heavy rain for about an hour but now it is so beautiful with bright sunshine. It is very cold out but we have a heater that works great. We are going to eat and watch TV. Tomorrow I have to do laundry before we leave for Klamath Falls, Oregon. We have a 4 hour drive to Klamath Falls and want to leave by 10:00AM to get there by 2:00PM to have time to rest and relax. The past few days have been so stressful and hopefully that is over.

I miss my little grandson Markie and can't wait to see him. I hope to see him on Sunday. Mark said he is teething again and is really crabby. I hope he will still remember me. The day before I left I went to visit him and when I was getting ready to leave he stood at the little window next to the door just watching me leave. It was heart breaking to see this little guy standing there watching his Nana leave. Since I have been gone all I think about is seeing him standing there at the window. He is so cute!

I can't believe my trip is almost over. I saw two cars today with cute sayings on them. One said "Are we smiling yet?" and the other one said "Road Trip" and had their route pictured on the back window of their car. That's what life is all about. Start living life and enjoy every moment. I have done alot of thinking while on this trip. I plan to live life and that includes making more moments that count. I want to spend more time at the lake house especially with little Markie this summer. I want to take him fishing and feed the ducks. Every moment is a gift!

Love,
Debbie

DO WE HAVE BAD LUCK OR WHAT?

RV PARK IN JACKSON HOLE, WYOMING

RIRIE LAKE IN IDAHO

TOW TRUCK DRIVER CHRIS TOWING THE MOTORHOME TO THE FORD DEALERSHIP

Well its Tuesday evening about 8:00PM in Pocatello Idaho. Not the destination we intended for today.

We were on our way to Twin Falls, Idaho only 2 hours away when the transmission in the motor home blew. Smoke and fire poured out of the engine underneath the motor home. I quickly stopped the motor home and jump out. We were both afraid the motor home was on fire. So, we were towed to a Ford dealership to have the transmission checked out. The technician agreed the transmission was gone and that it needed a new one. Cruise America arranged for an exchange of a new motor home but unfortunately the new one won't be here until 10 or 11 tonight. Then Mark and I have to empty the old one into the new one. We decided to stay the night in a hotel for the night because Twin Falls is 2 hours away.

The Ford dealership recommended a hotel in Chubbuck, the Ramada Inn. We checked into the hotel and quickly checked out. It was disgusting and looked so unsafe we couldn't stay there. I checked online (thank god for the Internet and that I brought my lap top) and found a beautiful Best Western Pet Friendly. We are here for the night and will leave early in the morning for Burns, OR.

We will stop in Ontario, OR to visit with Mark's sister, Jennifer at her work. We were planning to visit her in Weiser but Jennifer and her husband Paul received terrible news this week. Please pray for them. Paul was diagnosed with pancreas and liver cancer. I just want to see her and give her a big hug.

I have to say I'm ready to go home. We were so relaxed today cruising down the freeway to Twin Falls. Yesterday we spent the entire day in the motor home because it was raining all day. I BBQ in the rain and was it cold. So today we were looking forward to spending time outside in the sun relaxing at the RV park in Twin Falls. Now we have added expenses we just did not count on ie: hotel, gas, food, etc. Cruise America is going to hear from me!

We are only 12 hours away from home and will be home on Saturday. I missed Yellowstone and Crater Lake but will still be able to visit Crescent City on the ocean and the redwoods.

I have to remember that each moment is a gift and today is a gift.

Love,

Debbie

WHAT A NIGHTMARE!!!

DRIVING IN THE SNOW

LAKE IN THE GRAND TETON NATIONAL PARK

SNAKE RIVER IN THE GRAND TETON NATIONAL PARK

I WOULDN'T SAY WE WERE WELCOMED

CAN'T REMEMBER WHAT THE TOWN NAME BUT THESE WERE SO CUTE

BEAR LAKE

SNOW CLIMBING THE MOUTAIN TO THE GRAND TETON NATIONAL PARK

All I can say is yesterday was a nightmare or as Mark said, A Day From Hell. It actually started out great except for dropping Bob and Cindy off at the Salt Lake City airport to fly home.

We had a wonderful week together. I'm so happy to have spent this special time with them. I have so many memories that I will cherish forever.

After dropping them off at the airport, Mark and I packed up the motorhome and started our journey to Yellowstone National Park. All day we dodge the weather. Some places it rained and some pkaces it was beautiful until we reached Yellowstone.

As you can see from the pictures we went from hot desert weather to cold snowy weather. What a change? I know we live in the most wonderful place on earth. We get bad weather but nothing like what we saw yesterday.

So we continue towards Yellowstone going through the south entrance on our way to the west entrance to our RV Park Grizzley Bear RV Park. We were about 47 miles from the RV park deep in Yellowstone when it started snowing and I mean snowing. I'm driving towing my little bug and it was a mess. All of a sudden we look ahead and a big bus is turning around in the middle of the road and we see the road is closed. The ranger at the station we paid $25 to said nothing about the road being closed and let us go over 50 miles in the snow only to have to turn around and go all the way back to Jackson for the night. We were coming down the hill from about 6,900 feet snow everywhere in the pitch black. Not only did we have to worry about the weather but also the wildlife on the road. We saw hundreds of elk on both sides of the road. I have never been so scared in my life. Finally after 2 hours of this we made it to Jackson, Wyoming again. It was 10:00 PM nothing open except McDonalds and I have not taken my meds yet. I couldn't eat but only bites to get my meds down. The worst was to come.

We had no where to go. The only RV park in Jackson was The Virginian and it was closed. We drove around and decided to sleep in the parking lot of a bank. I never closed my eyes. My stomach was aching from the stress and I was so scared someone would bother us. It was a nightmare!

Both Mark and I couldn't sleep and finally felt better when the sun came up. We went to the gas station and filled up gas and propane. I waited till 8:00AM to call the RV Park to see if we could stay there. George was great. The park checkin was 1:00PM and I told him my nightmare from the night before and he allowed us to checkin early. We immediately went there, I paid and Mark set up the motorhome. By the time I got back to the motorhome everything including the TV was working. It was warm and cozy. I felt much better. I made breakfast and we sat and decided our destinations for the rest of the trip.

Also, on top of all that the dining area window blow out while driving and now we have no window. It's 43 degrees out right now and it will be 29 tonight. We have the heater which, thank God, works. We can't do anything until Tuesday because of the holiday today. Just one more thing. I don't know if someone is trying to spoil my fun but it's not working.

So now I have checked the road and weather conditions and our plans have changed. We will not be going to Yellowstone or Crater Lake. Both places call for snow and I'm done with that. So we are going to Jerome, ID Tuesday; Burns, OR Wednesday; Klamath Falls, OR Thursday and Crescent City, CA on Friday; Home Saturday. We decided to cut our trip short by one day to get home and unpack, clean motorhome and relax in our home.

Trust me it has been wonderful and I will never forget the moments. But there is no place like home. I can't wait to go home! I especially miss my boys, Erin and little markie. I can't wait to see little Markie. I got him so many cute little things from the places I visited. Maybe someday I will take him and my newest grandchild on a trip like this. First comes the lake. I want to take him to the lake house and take him fishing and feed the ducks. I plan to spend almost every weekend at the lake. Sun and fun!

Please enjoy the pictures! Remember every moment is a gift!

Love,

Debbie