Wasabi Nose

Yeah, that's a thing.

The symbol of Tir to remind me of my strength. A gift from one of my favorite people on the planet.

It's the term one of the staff here uses to describe one of the many side effects of the chemo as it first entered my blood. It's also one of the many times Meg and I have cracked up since we landed and settled in. 

Today wasn't a party, but I'm also not going to go on about the first round of chemo. I came out of it, so far, with minor complaints. It was unremarkable and I hope it stays that way. I would post a picture, but I have that unmistakable chemo blush and I feel hungover (not that I would know what a hangover feels like, Mom). 

Before I go on, let me say that I am overwhelmed and humbled by the calls, texts, messages, FaceTimes, and drop by's I have gotten since I made this public. I am so blessed. I have always known this, but this month has been truly something else. Thank you. Gracias. 

The mountains here take my breath away. Really, it's not the cyclophosphamide doing that to my heart. Monterrey is the bottom of a gorgeous bowl made of 5,970 ft of rock. Cerro de la Silla is also the national monument here in the city. It looks like a saddle, thus called "saddle mountain" and is the backdrop to everything you see in the skyline. Houses line the basin and the infrastructure are a series of tours for the eyes, guiding you around all the features of Nuevo Leon's capitol city. Breath. Taking. 

The apartment is better than advertised. And so are the staff. On the first day, a VERY long day of -ist visits (neurologist, cardiologist, internist, hematologist... you get the gist) we got to know the doctors and staff pretty well. Meg, me, my Stemmie sissy and her husband were together for 12 hours and had a lot of laughs. After an hour, it was obvious to the doctors that I had done my homework on this procedure enough that I could just do it myself. So we really just sat together between the ist appointments and learned about each other. There are staff here who know first hand what I am feeling and doing. This clinic is filled with patients from Mexico and all over the world coming here for treatment for cancer and MS. The doctors share the care of up to 35 patients per day. One of my doctors answered every. single. phone call. EVERY patient who needed him got his full attention. He asked me to call him instead of text him. He must have seen the look on my face because, what's a phone number? When was the last time your doctor said it's better to call me on my phone directly instead of text or leave a message with an answering service? Incredible. 

Tomorrow I am going to introduce you to my new friends and post pics. Tonight, I am wiped out and I need to get some rest. I am going to save my energy for another FaceTime with my girls (who hid love notes in my bag so every time I pull a shirt out of my drawer a note falls out. They are just perfect). Matt has called, texted or FaceTimed me all day checking on me. He's my hero. 

Day 2 chemo tomorrow.