tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14173553652996353362024-02-18T23:10:46.461-08:00It's Not An Adventure Until Something Goes WrongMcKenzie Perryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08767055351440352282noreply@blogger.comBlogger57125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1417355365299635336.post-5516599778422086262017-01-08T15:39:00.000-08:002017-01-08T16:08:35.107-08:00I Have Cancer, Now What? Unfortunately, people get diagnosed with cancer every day. And worse yet, sometimes they are people you know. Sometimes they are family, sometimes they are people who have already lived a long a very fulfilled life, and sometimes they are another young person like you or I. It's never 'nice' though. I know quite a few people who have had scares with cancer lately, some being big and some being small and most being... Cancer.<br />
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Those first weeks after diagnosis are a whirlwind full of new vocabulary, new people, scary appointments, and a whole lot of anxiety. I can't help you with the vocabulary, you might need to use flashcards for that. The people and the appointments can be scary, and annoying but often times they're quite pleasant. People who choose to spend their career in oncology are some of the most caring and empathetic people I've ever met. Even though I can't help you with many things, I do hope that I can give some advice that might help with the anxiety though, especially the anxiety of the unknown. The other thing that will help is time.<br />
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Disclaimer: The chemotherapy protocol I am on is one of the most intense protocols a person can survive, so I hope that I don't scare you. I also have had some pretty intense radiation and many more procedures than the average person, but I hope that everything I have been through can benefit you, the new patient, somehow.<br />
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Here is my advice, In no particular order. </h4>
<b>When something doesn't seem right</b> (dosing, not getting a drug when you usually do, cleanliness things like nurses not using gloves or not wiping your PICC or Port for the correct amount of time, etc...) never hesitate to speak up- it could literally save your life. When it comes to staying alive, you are your most important job.<br />
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<b>Do your research</b>. Especially when it comes to drugs, always research their side effects and other important things about them. There are many many times when I needed to diagnose myself essentially when it comes to side effects, and it's likely you'll be on so many different medications at once that it can often be hard to tell which drugs are causing which side effects- that is why you need to be so diligent in your research.<br />
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<b>Some days you will have plenty of energy, but other days you will not</b>. It's okay. Remember that while you have cancer, and probably afterward too, you're working with a new normal. Things will never be the same. You'll likely gain insight, and some empathy, but your body might also not work quite like it used to, and your energy will take time to come back even after it's all said and done, and especially during treatment. Be kind with yourself, and let things happen as they will. If you're not familiar with <a href="https://butyoudontlooksick.com/the-spoon-theory/" target="_blank">The Spoon Theory</a>, now is the time to read it and to share it with those close to you.<br />
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<b>Occasionally you may need help </b>doing if the most menial of tasks. Have someone on hand, just in case. If you're neutropenic it is best for you to avoid crowded places, so you may occasionally need a friend to make a trip to the grocery store for you, or to cook you a meal if your symptoms are too much to deal with.<br />
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<b>Symptom management is a full time job</b>- chemotherapy, antibiotics, and symptom relief drugs all have their own symptoms. Many of them mess with your GI tract, so have some medicine on hand if things swing one way or the other, don't just "deal with it" or you'll end up in the hospital for something else. Just believe me on this one.<br />
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<b>Be clear with your loved ones about how they can be helpful to you.</b> 95% of people who contact you after you announce your diagnosis will say if you need anything, just ask. It's also not likely you will ask much of those people, because it's human nature to just try and do it ourselves. However, prep those people you really would ask for help from. You might suggest these things to them, so that they can offer specific help rather than "can I do anything?" The things I found most helpful were:<br />
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Rides to and from appointments, especially if they're so far that you might get tired driving yourself, or if you'll be given a drug at those appointments that you can't drive after taking such as Ativan or Benadryl.</blockquote>
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If someone can deep clean your house once a month or so, it will reduce your risk of getting sick while your immune system is in the dumps and it's also likely that when you do have the energy to deep clean, there are probably other more pressing issues to deal with. </blockquote>
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One thing my family did was anytime they were at the grocery store, they texted me to see if there was anything they could pick up for me. </blockquote>
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<b>Cancer is expensive</b>. You may be able to avoid huge amounts of debt, but it will take work and time. If your cancer center has a business office available to you, talk to them about applying for grants through the society or foundation linked to your diagnosis. Foundations will often pay your medical bills to a certain extent, covering co-pays or pre-deductible costs, and often will even backpay you, if you've already paid these things this year. Do some research, it will likely pay off.<br />
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<b>Keep a list handy</b>, I keep mine on my phone. Whenever I think of an issue or question that I need to ask my doctor about, I write it down immediately. I know you do it- you have all those questions, and when you sit down for your 5 minutes of your doctors undivided attention, you forget everything you've been wanting to ask about- I did it too. But keeping a list is so incredibly helpful, and it can really help keep things on track, and keep any of your symptoms from getting out of hand.<br />
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<b>Lose all sense of modesty</b>. Depending on your diagnosis, this might apply more or less to you. You'll likely need to broach the subject of fertility regardless of your diagnosis though, and odds are you will have some symptoms that you might be a little uncomfortable talking about. You've got to do it though, and trust the fact that what you tell them (or bend over and show them) is likely not going to shock your them. If it does, pat yourself on the back.<br />
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<b>Last but definitely not least: Advocate for yourself. </b>There have been times where I have talked my way out of drugs I didn't technically need, and that I have convinced them that I do in fact need certain drugs that haven't been ordered for me (like anti-nausea meds). I have had nurses that had never had a neutropenic patient, and have had to talk them through the procedures they needed to use with me. I have also called out staff that have done things improperly, because my safety is on the line and while it is their job to keep me safe, it is my responsibility to stay alive. Whenever possible, be alert, ask questions, and stay with the program as best as you can.<br />
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Find someone who is in, or has been, in a situation similar to yours. Don't be afraid to reach out to those people and ask them question and ask for their support as you go through probably one of the hardest points in your life. It's rough, but when you've got a good network of people to lean on and a mostly positive outlook, it's a lot easier.<br />
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If there are any other topics you want me to cover, or questions you have, please ask! I'm an open book!McKenzie Perryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08767055351440352282noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1417355365299635336.post-31636879958092417212016-08-05T09:55:00.001-07:002016-08-05T09:55:47.672-07:00Should I Laugh, or Cry?<span style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; text-decoration: -webkit-letterpress;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Sorry it's been so long since we've talked, I probably had you assuming everything was fine and dandy! But let's be real, we've already learned that the easy stuff isn't actually easy. Don't get me wrong though, there has been a lot of amazing, wonderful adventures packed into the last couple months. </div></span><div><span style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; text-decoration: -webkit-letterpress;"><br></span></div><div><span style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; text-decoration: -webkit-letterpress;">We went on a vacation to the Bay Area, then just a few days later went on another one to eastern Oregon, and then about a week later went on another one to the Olympic peninsula. </span></div><div><span style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; text-decoration: -webkit-letterpress;">In between all of that we've had tons of fun adventures and a lot of sunshine around home, in the garden, at the lake, and up and down the coast. </span></div><div><span style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; text-decoration: -webkit-letterpress;"><br></span></div><div><span style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; text-decoration: -webkit-letterpress;">But then, in between all of that, there was misplaced lab work, some puking, some signs of wayyyy too high liver enzymes, some new lab work which caused my doctor to freak out (rightfully so) and call me after hours to schedule an emergency bone marrow biopsy because he thought I had relapsed. Results were supposed to be back in 48 hours, and over a week later I finally got the results telling me what I already knew, which was that my chemo doses were simply too high. </span></div><div><span style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; text-decoration: -webkit-letterpress;"><br></span></div><div><span style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; text-decoration: -webkit-letterpress;">Now I've been off of them for over 2 weeks, but my labs are still absolutely terrible. Unfortunately, after 11 months of this, I couldn't be more sick of staying inside, eating a neutropenic diet, staying out of schools, etcetera. So I haven't been on my best behavior, but fingers and toes crossed that I will not be severely neutropenic ever again, and I can keep myself out of the hospital for a few more weeks at least.*</span><div style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; text-decoration: -webkit-letterpress;"><br></div><div style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; text-decoration: -webkit-letterpress;">*I kid you not, I don't know whether to laugh or cry, but not even 15 minutes after I finished writing that I spiked a 101 degree fever. For neutropenic me, that means go to the closest ER immediately. We showed up at 10 pm, I felt pretty darn good. The ER Doctor told me I looked better than last time he saw me, and we joked that we hoped he could find a neutrophil in my blood this time. Last time they couldn't find any (ANC:0). This time the good news is they found one (ANC:100) but that still means I'm severely neutropenic and can't fight whatever is causing my fever, likely an infection of some sort, so antibiotics it is. </div><div style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; text-decoration: -webkit-letterpress;"><br></div><div style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; text-decoration: -webkit-letterpress;">I thought for sure my oncologist would move me over to Riverbend, but he's letting me stay here in Florence. I'll be here until we know what the cause of infection is, and I'm back on the mend. Could be a day or could be a week, fingers crossed that it's the prior! </div></div><div style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; text-decoration: -webkit-letterpress;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpF6exmAIvMnpn6Aq9PR_LflyQlCZnMd0IvrycZfzpsrtFOC4w4MGCyjyEUqFKFOlAhzWtnMthTG_1QzR_DEuDoE6qejbOGGUAw1hJUH5oUMd-QFu6BolZBhd2XtsRZtoOcxUnEhxWE1hr/s640/blogger-image-375991658.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpF6exmAIvMnpn6Aq9PR_LflyQlCZnMd0IvrycZfzpsrtFOC4w4MGCyjyEUqFKFOlAhzWtnMthTG_1QzR_DEuDoE6qejbOGGUAw1hJUH5oUMd-QFu6BolZBhd2XtsRZtoOcxUnEhxWE1hr/s640/blogger-image-375991658.jpg"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Once again, with these darn wristbands. Lessons on properly attaching them should be day 1 of any medical training. </div><br></div><div style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; text-decoration: -webkit-letterpress;"><br></div>McKenzie Perryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08767055351440352282noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1417355365299635336.post-76271310119899319662016-06-06T16:30:00.000-07:002016-06-06T16:42:30.640-07:00New NormalI officially finished my intensive chemo. That was the "hard stuff", and now I'm on to maintenance chemo, which is supposed to be the easy stuff. I've heard all along that even though there are so many less appointments, and so many less drugs, it's still not easy. In fact, I heard it's still very hard. I didn't want to believe those words because I was ready to get started on my "new normal", but now I'm here, and I'll tell you first hand, it's hard.<br />
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I got my PICC line out over a month ago, got some time off to remember what it feels like to be human, had a successful bone marrow biopsy, and had some time to let my counts recover from the zeros many of them had been lingering at for a while now. My counts are now great, and I'm back at it, to see where they lead me next. In the last 2 weeks I met my radiation oncologist, had my last meeting with my regular oncologist for the next 2 months, had a lumbar puncture, my first IV chemo injection without a PICC line, started daily chemo pills, started my first 5 day stretch of monthly steroid tablets, and have had 3 radiation appointments with only 9 more to go in the next 11 days. Out of all of those things, I will tell you that the worst has been the steroids. That sounds so anticlimactic, right? Steroids are officially the second worst, cancer taking the top spot, in my mind.<br />
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Right now I am on my last day of the month that I have to take Dexamethazone, which is the steroid I'm prescribed. "Steroid" often brings to mind thoughts of big and strong people with 'roid rage, but I'll tell you that I am only having the 'roid rage, but not big and strong. It's actually very weird. Most drugs give you a side effect, it's pretty straight-forward, you can deal with it, and it's relatively predictable. Dex makes me feel like a crazy person. I get aggravated, but only in my mind (so far), I feel depressed and emotional (not my usual MO), sometimes I want to eat everything, and sometimes I can't stomach anything, my mouth tastes terrible all of the time and my throat hurts like I'm on the verge of getting sick, and sometimes I have uncontrollable amounts of energy and am unable to sleep, and at other points I have no energy and feel just plain "blah" for hours or days.<br />
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I'm ready for my new normal, but hopefully it's more than this. This is very frustrating. My hair is growing back (although it will likely fall out one more time from radiation), summer is here, we've got plans to fulfill and places to be, but I'd rather not do those things while feeling like this. I know that I've got plenty more recovering to do and that it's a long process. I've always known that. But right now I'm feeling a little impatient, and quite frankly, over it.<br />
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I imagine tomorrow will be better, it is Monday today, after all.<br />
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<span style="color: #0b5394;">P.S.. Have I shared <b><a href="http://www.butyoudontlooksick.com/articles/written-by-christine/the-spoon-theory/" target="_blank">"The Spoon Theory"</a> </b>with you all? It's a bit of a read, but it's helped me a ton while first understanding the lives other people who have illnesses that you can't see just by looking at them, and then understanding myself through all of this, and now in conveying important information like how I'm feeling, and my energy levels to people who need or want to know. It's tangible and easy to grasp, unlike many things in the medical world. Check it out when you've got a minute. </span>McKenzie Perryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08767055351440352282noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1417355365299635336.post-85777347681228917592016-04-26T21:51:00.002-07:002016-04-26T22:05:22.600-07:00False SummitRemember that post that I titled "Climbing that Mountain" where I said that I was almost to the summit? That was a false summit. I figured with just a few days until my last intensive chemo that I was in the clear. That all of those scheduled things would happen when they were supposed to. But as I have learned time and time again through all of this, not everything goes as expected. I thought that since I had been fever free for almost 8 months, that I could make it another week. Turns out I couldn't. What would this experience be without at least one trip to the ER with a fever? It would have been just too darn easy.<br />
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It's rather anticlimactic, really. I am supposed to go to the nearest ER if my temperature gets above 100.4 and on Thursday I was feeling chilled while I was actually hot, just not that hot. I watched my temperature climb over about an hour, as I mentally prepared myself to head back to the hospital for the 3rd time in two days. When it got there, I walked into the ER with all of my necessary paperwork and was greeted with an "Uh Oh, why are you back here again?!" We were ushered into a fancy new positive pressure room with extra clean air, and every person who came to greet me donned a fancy yellow mask so that I didn't have to wear one. Test after test, poke after poke, they tried to find the source of infection. Meanwhile the doctor tried to calculate my ANC with a mere 0.0 neutrophil number to work with. After a few phone calls, my usual jokes to lighten the mood, and a few stressed out nurses that hadn't had much experience with a neutropenic patient, they finally did what I never expected they would agree to. They let me stay.<br />
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I figured I'd be shipped away to the oncology floor at Riverbend or OHSU immediately, but they were all full. I guess I had been bossy enough with everyone that they figured if they made any mistakes or had any questions about my care, I'd let them know. And I did, for a few days, while my oncologist was away (of course the one time I really hoped he'd be around, he happened to be out of town... doesn't that always happen with OB GYNs also?) Once Dr. Sharman got back Monday morning and learned that I had an infection in my blood, he insisted he felt more comfortable with me at Riverbend even though I had been asymptomatic for three days, and raising hell to get someone to let me go home for nearly four. My logic was sound, a hospital full of people with the flu is not a good place for a neutropenic patient. Looking back, I probably should have just chilled out and let the doctors be the boss, but being the control freak that I am, that's not what I did. I'm also still not home.<br />
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I'm currently at Riverbend, getting antibiotics 3 times daily, and getting Neupogen shots to hopefully raise my ANC to anything higher than 0. Once my lab work shows that my counts are in fact improving and that I have SOME sort of an immune system, they'll let me go home. But until then, I'm cooped up here twiddling my thumbs, reading, blogging, and talking too much every time a nurse comes in my room. I feel great, I'm ready to conquer everything that has been delayed (one last intensive chemo and a lumbar puncture) as soon as I get out of here.<br />
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I am thankful for qualified medical staff. For kind, compassionate and knowledgable CNAs, RNs, pharmacists, and doctors. Hospital cafeteria staff, you could use some work. Science, you saved my life again.<br />
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<br />McKenzie Perryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08767055351440352282noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1417355365299635336.post-53799536978460307312016-04-26T20:08:00.001-07:002016-04-26T22:04:37.632-07:00I'll Pay it ForwardThe shock, immediate feeling of gratitude and feeling of an absolute need to pay it forward still hasn't passed, it never will. But today I made yet another nurse cry with this particular story, so I felt the need to share it with a bigger audience. I didn't want to in the beginning, because I know there are people in need all over the world. I know there are people who don't have even half of the support network that I do. I'm not a religious person, but the word blessed comes to mind; as does fortunate, lucky, and just plain privileged. And I am, I know that. But I mostly am because of the amazing people that I have in my life, and that's why I wanted to share this. Sometimes I feel a bit guilty for all the love and support I've gotten not just through this season of life, but through them all. I want other people to know that every small thing they do for good can end up being a part of something so huge in a person's life. Your acts of generosity can make a person feel the way that Max and I felt in early September.<br />
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I'll start with a recap of the situation. I was diagnosed with Leukemia after teaching my first day of 6th grade science, a brand new job to me, but a job in the school district I had grown up in. I was replacing a retiring teacher whom I had looked up to for years, and had just become a colleague to almost every teacher I had ever had. After finishing my first day of the school year, I had been told that I wasn't going to be able to teach this year. That broke my heart, but little did I know I would have the opportunity to continue teaching. Right now I want to teach you to keep your faith in humanity. People are innately good. Friends reading this, our 'old' teachers are good people. Parents, your children's teachers are good people. Students, your teachers are good people. Teachers, you are good people.<br />
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I had 11 sick days that I would get paid for while away at OHSU, and then I would be on leave without pay. We would lose our main source of income this year, because Max was student teaching. We would lose our insurance because I was the one getting paid to work full time. The only thing that could change that was how good the people we get to call colleagues are.<br />
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And boy are they good. A teacher's contract is something around 200 days. And my wonderful colleagues donated that many sick days to my account so that Max and I could still have a paycheck and insurance through this whole ordeal, and through the entire school year. If they hadn't done that we would have lost a huge (especially in our minds) amount of money, and we would already be hundreds of thousands of dollars in debt because of medical bills. To give you perspective, my last bag of chemo is priced at ten thousand dollars. If not for the wonderful people working in our schools, we would be bankrupt and 100 times more stressed that we are now. So teachers, thank you for our house, food, medical care, and our relative peace of mind. Some donated many sick days, others donated just one. But they all added up to make a huge difference in the lives of two people just trying to pay the bills. We owe you a lot.<br />
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You don't get this kind of treatment anywhere else in the world. People say that the place to be when you're sick is the big city so that you can get the best treatment, and I've done that when needed. But the more important kind of treatment is the way that people treat each other. I'm from a community that rallies behind its people through the highs and lows. I wouldn't rather live anywhere else in the world. I can't wait to get back to work next school year, so that I can start paying it forward. I owe this place everything I have, and everything that I am. I will pay it forward.<br />
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<br />McKenzie Perryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08767055351440352282noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1417355365299635336.post-25027329124677013892016-04-17T16:05:00.002-07:002016-04-17T16:05:19.657-07:00Climbing that MountainI'm almost finished with my very last phase of intense chemo. I didn't anticipate that this all would actually fly by, but it definitely has. Between blocking out my memories of the bad days, forgetting about the uneventful days on the couch, and enjoying my good days to the absolute fullest, I've almost done it. I still have 2 years of chemo to go, but I could equate my feeling now with being just a few feet from the summit of a very large and treacherous mountain. To get to where I am, I took all the steepest paths and there were no shortcuts. I felt a great deal of pain, and pushed through- always with the end in sight. But now? I can actually see it. My last intensive chemo appointments are scheduled. There's no turning back. I don't feel so sick. I'll feel like I've really hit the mountain top on the day I get my PICC line removed. I've been staring longingly at every body of water I pass, whether it's the clear cold lake, or my bathtub down the hall. My left elbow longs to be submerged. My maintenance chemo for the next 2 years will (hopefully) be a breeze, especially compared to what I've done in the last 8 months. Once we get everything figured out, I'll only see the doctor once a month and will get my chemo then, by IV. While I'm so happy to have my PICC line out, I'm not looking forward to the 24 lab draws by needle, or the 24 chemo infusions by an even bigger needle. But it's a downhill slide none-the-less. Before we know it I'll be at the bottom of the mountain and ready to carry on with my life. I know there will be other mountains, and I know I can do what I need to do because I've done this. And this has been the hardest thing I've ever done.<br />
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Now let me give you a quick rundown on the last month or so...<br />
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I had a headache for about 3 weeks which was pretty terrible, and they still come and go but less frequently now. In the beginning it was full blown migraine symptoms, with my hearing fading in and out and being super sensitive, tunnel vision and sensitivity to light, and them often lingering for days and keeping me awake at night. I finally gave in to doctor's orders and got an MRI. The crazy part (other than the fact that the MRI machine looks like a spaceship) is that they could actually see the area in the left side of my brain that had been impacted by the migraines. The MRI machine sounded like a jackhammer, which of course gave me another migraine, and I can't get my nose ring back in. But all is well in my brain.<br />
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In the last 2 weeks I spent 8 days getting chemo in Eugene. I can say I'm getting a little sick of the drive, although it has been absolutely beautiful out and at least it's not trips to Portland! It is curvy though, and last week they didn't give me any nausea meds, and I didn't notice until the trip home. Then I noticed, and I puked a lot, and now I really appreciate the nausea meds because they work (when you get them)! When I started chemo I absolutely pictured it just how it is in the movies: bald, pale and puking a ton. For me only 2 of those things have been true the majority of this time, and fortunately I've missed out on the worst one for the most part.<br />
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Last week I had a terrible terrible (worse than all the others) lumbar puncture. You know it's going badly when the doctor has tape across the bridge of his nose from the last patient, and he says to you (after the 3rd try at getting spinal fluid) "I'm going to go get the other doctor, he's really good at these" My thoughts, you ask? Wow, we should have started with the really good doctor, shouldn't we have? This of course came after our 5 hour wait to even get the procedure started, and afterward I still had to lay flat for 2 hours. Needless to say, it was a long day, and lumbar puncture #13 was NOT a lucky one. I was supposed to have another one this last Thursday, but I asked that it be delayed because I was still sore and bruised from the last one. The delay is almost up, and lumbar puncture #14 is happening on Tuesday. Fingers crossed it goes a little better!<br />
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For those of you who remember me mentioning that I could potentially be done by April 18th, obviously that's not the case. At the beginning of the month my ANC had to be over 750 to move on to the second half of the phase, and it was 500. That meant that I had to delay by a week. But it's okay, because I ended up being able to take a trip to Washington with the family for my cousin's baby shower! That means I'll be an aunt soon, right? right? Yeah, something like that.<br />
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And this is the part of my blog post where I would normally update you on my chickens and my garden, but Max told me that he's pretty sure everyone knows everything about my chickens. So if you don't, go look at my Instagram. It's become my Chicken-gram. And my garden? It's doing great so far! I picked a spinach leaf out of the raised bed yesterday and right as I was about to eat it my dad reminded me that it could have bird crap on it, and it had just grown straight out of compost. I reminded him that my ANC was over 1,000 and ate it anyway. It was delicious.<br />
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It's far too beautiful of a day for me to spend more time writing, and I'm sure that'll be a pattern here for the next couple seasons. I'll try and keep you posted, but don't count on it. If I'm feeling good, I'll be outside with my big floppy hat, my sunscreen, my garden, my chickens, my dog and my husband. McKenzie Perryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08767055351440352282noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1417355365299635336.post-74801515398195800862016-03-16T17:41:00.001-07:002016-03-16T17:49:06.815-07:00HibernationIt's been almost a month since my last blog post, I apologize for not keeping you in the loop! Unfortunately the reason for most of my lack of blogging has been because I haven't been feeling too great, but I have had some great moments mixed in there and I am very appreciative for that.<br />
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When I last blogged I was beginning to feel a bit of "Biop-xiety" because I had a bone marrow biopsy coming up, and it went really well and it also went really terribly. I officially have no evidence of disease in my bone marrow (which is where leukemia originates) so obviously that's amazing. However with many types of cancers, when you get the good news of no evidence of disease, your doctor cheers and tells you that you can be done with chemo and that they will see you about every 6 months just to make sure you're still in the clear. ALL is a bit different, because people with this form of cancer are so prone to relapse. I am very fortunate that I have been able to achieve this sort of remission so quickly and effectively using solely chemotherapy (many people are required to either have a bone marrow or stem cell transplant in order to stay in remission) and hopefully that will continue to be the case, although I am finishing my intense chemo soon, possibly as early as April 18th. From there I will still have 2 weeks of radiation, and 2 years of lower doses of chemotherapy (bi-monthly lumbar punctures, monthly Vincristine injections, monthly steroids for 4 days in the pill form, and almost daily chemotherapy pills called Mercaptopurine)<br />
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That's all the good news about the bone marrow biopsy, but as for the actual procedure itself, things went terribly. [If you're squeamish, skip this paragraph] This was my 3rd biopsy, and by far the most painful procedure I've ever had (including multiple broken bones, 11 lumbar puctures, and many other crashes and accidents). The doctor who did it lucked out and picked a spot in my hip that was full of scar tissue because as luck would have it, he chose the exact spot that my last biopsy was at. He used a good amount of lidocaine, but 5 lidocaine shots don't feel great either and they sure don't help the pain of a needle going through your hip bone or into your bone marrow. I've learned my lesson when it comes to asking to see needles and test tubes of whatever comes out of me, but the needle felt exactly like he had gotten a good sized chain squeezed into my hip bone, and then he pulled it back out through a much too small hole. And this didn't just happen once, because he was unable to get what he needed the first two times. Once all was said and done, I was incredibly sore for about a week, and was still sensitive at the site for another week. My next one happens at the beginning of maintenance, so it's sort of already on my radar. I told Dr. Sharman how terribly this last one went though, and he plans to do my next one. He said he's only bent one needle during a bone marrow biopsy and it was on a retired lineman for the 49er's.<br />
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At the beginning of March I started my final 2 month round of intensive chemo, and visited my doctor up at OHSU for the first time since October. It went really well, they didn't really have much to tell me, and just answered any of my questions. They also discovered that my body likes my PICC line so much that over the course of the last few months it had sucked my PICC line like 3 centimeters further into my body than it needed to be, so it was tickling my heart. It was nice to get that taken care of, and that whole trip was very uneventful which is fantastic. During the first week I started a brand new chemo drug, and I also was taking a full week of a quite high steroid dose. It all started out fine and dandy through my trip to Portland, but by the weekend I had been on the steroid for almost the full week, and I was about to get another dose of the new chemo drug. Long story short, I hit a wall.<br />
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I don't think it was either of the drugs in particular, but rather the fact that my body has been pumped full of chemo drugs for just over 6 months at this point. I went into hibernation for almost 2 weeks. I had headaches and body aches of all different sorts, major fatigue, and a bit less than my usual positive attitude. I cried a few more tears than normal, and the pain from the headaches just absolutely wore me out. I knew that it was coming, and I was prepared to handle it, but it was rough. I finally crawled out of my hibernation in the middle of last week, but I'm still dealing with some headaches and fatigue that comes with the chemo drug. I also started another week of steroids on Monday, but this time I was prepared to deal with it: I deep cleaned the house, reorganized, got myself lined up with some healthy food choices, did some art, and started some pretty nifty crafts. So far, I'm handling it much better and haven't shown any real signs of "roid rage" yet and when I start getting restless I have about 10 unfinished projects to work on right now! <br />
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Now on to updates about the fun stuff!<br />
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I got my chickens on our way home from OHSU, they're growing like weeds, and yesterday one of them tried to fly the coop already, even though our coop isn't even built yet, so that's the plan for later this week. I thought I would have more time! They are so cute, and they absolutely love their daily worm search time (I bring them a bucket of good dirt and hide worms and potato bugs in it) and today they even got an extra adventure and got to spend some real life outdoor time in a laundry basket. I also have a bunch of raised beds ready to go, and already have turnips, carrots, radishes, peas, kale, swiss chard, cabbage, beets and spinach in the ground! It's starting to feel a lot like spring, especially since the sunshine finally came out! It makes it pretty easy to find joy everyday with all of these cool things going on in my backyard.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A huge shoutout to the awesome little art workshop that Kim Pickell put on, <br />
it totally pulled me out of my funk and got me back to creating things! </td></tr>
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McKenzie Perryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08767055351440352282noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1417355365299635336.post-24881672838623112822016-02-18T13:03:00.002-08:002016-02-18T14:01:18.213-08:00A List of ThingsI tried writing a comprehensive paragraph, with lots of information and what-not. But it was absolutely terrible. I think I will have more success with a list today. So here is a list of things, in no particular order.<br />
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1. Most importantly, we're going to get chickens soon. I'm super stoked, because lately I've been sort of obsessed with getting back to the homesteading/off the grid sort of lifestyle that I grew up with. They will be great for recycling food that I have to throw out if it gets too old (old food+neutropenia=infections) and I just love how entertaining they are. Doctors orders, I just can't clean their coop when I'm neutropenic.<br />
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2. On that note, we also are going to build some more raised beds for the garden, because I bought this awesome survivalist package with 11,000 seeds in it. I'm pretty excited to grow some food this summer, and to feed the stuff that we don't like to our lovely future chickens. I'll have to wear gloves when I'm digging in the dirt, and I'll do my best to wear sunscreen even though I hate it. But I'm just so excited, and I am loving the fact that winter is almost over! <br />
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3. I haven't even finished my intensive chemo yet, and I'm already worrying about next school year. I'm worried because for the entire 2 years I am on maintenance chemo they will be trying to keep my ANC at around 750. At it's lowest, it was 6 (which is super terrible) and right now my ANC is almost 2,000 which is on the low side of normal. But 750 is still considered slightly neutropenic, and I will still be prone to infections and viruses.<br />
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4. A couple weeks ago one of the nurses at the clinic told me "I've never seen anyone with such terrible lab results look and behave like an actual human." She was thinking this when both my ANC and platelet counts were lingering below 10, but didn't tell me until my ANC was back up over 1,000. This made me pretty proud. What has my life come to?<br />
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5. On Monday I finished my last chemo of this phase (Phase 3, Interim Maintenance) and the whole phase treated me pretty well. I had an escalating dose of Methotrexate every 10 days, and got 5 more doses of Vincristine (which is more than most people get during their entire chemo protocol). My fingers are more numb that they've ever been, and I have had some foot cramping and random shooting pains in my feet and hands from the neuropathy. Fingers crossed it will go away someday- and I CAN still cross my fingers, but shredding cheese is questionable.<br />
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6. Since I will be moving on to my last intense phase, that means it's time for another bone marrow biopsy. #anxiety. My last bone marrow biopsy showed that after just 22 days of chemo I was already in remission, but had 0.001% remaining disease. My hope is that this bone marrow biopsy will show no evidence of disease, or NED. Keep me in your thoughts next Wednesday, it's a pretty painful procedure and I will know results within about 48 hours.<br />
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7. When I left OHSU in October they told me to be very aware of how I'm feeling and to be constantly checking my temperature because of my likelihood of getting a neutropenic fever. That was the only thing that could have delayed my treatment. I assumed I would have at least a couple, which could push my chemo schedule back a month or more. At that point, I figured I would probably finish my intense chemo in late May or June, just in time for summer. At this point (fingers crossed) I have not gotten a single fever or had any set-backs. That means that if all continues to go according to plan, I will be finished with the crazy stuff by the end of April!<br />
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8. Chemo brain is legit. Max asked me to wash the sheets on Tuesday, and I just remembered I haven't done it yet. So I've got to go do that. Right now. Before I forget for another couple of days.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One last phase of intense chemo to go! </td></tr>
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McKenzie Perryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08767055351440352282noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1417355365299635336.post-72632003804634987922016-01-20T14:30:00.002-08:002016-01-20T14:41:24.335-08:00Be PositiveMy cancer is a fluke. There is nothing that I did that made me more prone to getting Leukemia than any of you. I don't mean to scare you, but it could be anyone. I was a vegetarian for 5 years, and all my life I have generally eaten a very healthy diet of organic things, wild game, and home cooked meals. I would not consider myself overweight, in fact, I always classified myself as an athlete even if I hadn't competed in a sport for months. I have never smoked a cigarette in my life, and months before my diagnosis I had stopped drinking alcohol all together. I always took my vitamins. I didn't even have a primary care physician, because I hadn't needed once since I had a pediatrician. When I went to the hospital on the day I got diagnosed, I was secretly afraid that I had diabetes, or anemia. Cancer never crossed my mind, because I thought cancer had a root cause, something that a person did that caused them to get cancer.<br />
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On a side note; now that I have (or had, however you look at it) cancer, when I see people doing things that are known to cause cancer, I'm not going to lie. It makes me mad. We all have our vices, but remember: Cancer sucks, it's expensive, it can make you infertile, and in order to stop it they have to pump your body full of wonderful drugs that also happen to be carcinogens. So if you're going to do things that cause cancer, I hope it's worth it for you!<br />
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I know that many people struggle to have a positive outlook on life when things don't go their way. I know that many people struggle to have a positive outlook, even when things ARE going their way. So when you see what I'm going through it might be surprising that I am able to stay generally positive. I am not always all smiles, you don't see me when I feel like crud, or on the days when I spend the whole day on the couch (today). But generally, I am happy and positive and looking on the bright side.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is punny, because B+ is my blood type. So you could say... Being positive is in my blood :)</td></tr>
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What do I physically do to help myself stay positive, even when it's very easy to not be?<br />
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<span style="color: #0b5394;">I talk to my dog like he's a human, because if I didn't there would be many days where I wouldn't have a conversation with anyone until after 5:00. </span><br />
<span style="color: #0b5394;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #0b5394;">If it's not pouring down rain I go outside at least once. If the sun is out, I sit in the sun even though I'm not supposed to because of the chemo drugs and antibiotics. </span><br />
<span style="color: #0b5394;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #0b5394;">I remain thankful for my support system, and if someone offers to hang out with me, I take them up on it. It helps that all of these people happen to be experts on being positive. </span><br />
<span style="color: #0b5394;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #0b5394;">I try to manage my symptoms, and when I'm successful in that, I count it as just that: A success. </span><br />
<span style="color: #0b5394;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #0b5394;">I allow myself a small amount of trashy TV each week, and other than that I try and avoid it. No Kardashians for me. </span><br />
<span style="color: #0b5394;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #0b5394;">I have never stopped thinking of the future: In the next 3 years (thats 2 years of maintenance chemo and 1 year of being DONE) we will build a house and try and fill it with kids that may or may not be biologically mine. </span><br />
<span style="color: #0b5394;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #0b5394;">I get enough sleep, but not too much. </span><br />
<span style="color: #0b5394;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #0b5394;">I try not to be too hard on myself. I've always tried to eat healthy, but for the 4 days after I get Vincristine I crave fried and fast foods. Sometimes I give in to the cravings.</span><br />
<span style="color: #0b5394;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #0b5394;">If I am moping around, or haven't done what I need to do to take care of myself, my wonderful husband always seems to know exactly what to do. Sometimes I need to get out of the house, sometimes I need an inflatable mattress in the living room, and sometimes I need good food, or to get hydrated. He can read my mind though, so he always know what I need before I know what I need. </span><br />
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I still find joy in my daily life, and how could I not stay positive when my life has so much joy in it. Also, If I'm able to find joy in my daily life now of all times, I can only imagine how great my life is going to be when this is behind me. I can't wait for that, and that helps me stay positive.<br />
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But as you can imagine, there are times when I can't stay positive ... Why me? ... I try not to ask that question.<br />
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<b>A quick update:</b> I started phase 3 on January 4th, and got a lumbar puncture that day. The procedure went really well, the doctor used more lidocaine than they usually do, so I didn't feel a thing. I thought I was in the clear. I was wrong. I spent 2 weeks with a headache this time, as well as a feeling in my back and neck that is hard to explain, sort of similar to spasms. It was pretty terrible. Last Thursday I went into my doctor appointment skeptical, because I didn't know how the new chemo had affected my blood counts, so I was wearing a dreadful procedure mask. I met with the doctor, and he looked at my labs and let out a "Woohoo!" -- My ANC was over 1,000 (which is almost as high as before my diagnosis). That means that my body is actually capable of fighting off some bugs on its own right now! On Friday we celebrated by going out to dinner, one of my first times out in public since September, and it was great. Right now my appointments in Eugene are only every 10 days, so while I still feel absolutely terrible for a few days after chemo, I do have enough time to recover a bit and enjoy myself.<br />
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I asked Facebook what I should blog about, and this post came about because of a comment about my positivity. I've already got another post in the works, talking about the other things that were mentioned. If you want to ask something, or want me to write about something specific, let me know!<br />
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Also, what do you do to stay positive?McKenzie Perryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08767055351440352282noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1417355365299635336.post-75309999059986502602015-12-31T13:11:00.003-08:002015-12-31T14:24:45.360-08:002015, You're Cut Off. I'd like to inform you that I only blog when I'm feeling medium, usually. I don't blog when I'm feeling really bad because I can't focus and I'd probably just complain anyway. And I don't blog when I'm feeling really good because I'm taking advantage of feeling good and actually doing things or catching up on my life by doing things like cleaning, organizing, and paying bills. I haven't blogged in a while because for about a week I was feeling pretty bad and then I spent a week pretty fatigued but feeling decent, and this last week I've been feeling really good! The feeling good was perfectly timed, I've been busy as a bee! Although, thats all relative. In my normal life, I wouldn't have considered the last few weeks very busy, but for the new me it was busy. We had company from family, celebrated Christmas twice, had a few doctor appointments (although not as many as usual) and then this last week my best friend Jenna visited us from Atlanta!<br />
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Right now I am in between chemo phases and it isn't often that my body gets time to recover, but now is one of those times. When I finished the last phase around the 15th of December my ANC (Remember, that's the count of cells that fight off bad guys, my immune system essentially) was 60. It has to be 750 for me to start the next phase and right now I am at 480. My platelets (cells that help my blood clot) at that time were a very scary 6, which is worse than what they were when I got diagnosed. They have to be 75 for me to move on, but they're already back up to over 100- that means I'm allowed to shave my legs, but I'm probably still not allowed to do contact sports (That's funny, because I haven't even jogged in 4 months.) The plan, if my ANC cooperates, is to start phase 3: Interim Maintenance on Monday. We'll start off with a bang, with a new chemo drug called <a href="http://www.drugs.com/methotrexate.html" target="_blank">Methotrexate</a> and my old friend <a href="http://www.drugs.com/mtm/vincristine.html" target="_blank">Vincristine</a> (the one that makes my finger tips numb) as well as a lumbar puncture over at the hospital. The following day I will get <a href="http://www.drugs.com/mtm/pegaspargase.html" target="_blank">Pegasparagase</a> which I'm getting used to but it makes us all a little anxious because it is relatively common that people have an allergic reaction to it. This overload of drugs within just a couple days is common during this phase of chemo, but thankfully I'll only be going in every 10 days other than to the Florence hospital for lab work and probably blood transfusions as needed.<br />
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As for 2015 as a whole, I've had better years. I think 2014 is my favorite so far (We started the year living in Alaska, moved home, got married, and I taught 5th grade at Mapleton, all while taking our health for granted.) 2015? It started off great, but then I got cut from my job at Mapleton. I got another job right away which turned out to be an amazing fit for me, but then, as we all know, I only got to teach for 2 days. Then everything changed.<br />
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I am ending 2015 with a new appreciation for life. I have gained perspective, empathy, and the ability to reach out for help and allow others to help me. I am finally taking that year off like I had always I would, it just looks a little different than I had hoped. I've spent more time on a couch this year than I ever have in my life. I've travelled to Eugene probably about as many times just this year than I had in all the previous years of my life. I haven't made the drive alone even once though, and because of that I have spent some amazing quality time with people who clearly love me because I know that it's not fun to spend your day in a chemotherapy treatment room. I've also had more people reach out to me and encourage me than I could have ever imagined. I've had old friends bring up amazing memories and new friends support me through the most difficult time of my life thus far. My family has never ceased to be there for me, and my grandparents have an open door policy halfway between Florence and Eugene for food and bathroom breaks. I've been gifted so many amazing things, and received so many delicious meals, from people who would do it any day of the week to people whom I never would have expected it from. I am so thankful for the people who have just spent time with me, because I can't imagine spending too much time alone with my thoughts on some days. All of these things have helped me to stay positive. A lot of people have commended my positivity, but honestly, my support system makes it easy. I know cancer is scary, and things could go south for me at any moment, but it's very rare that I even have time to think about that. My thoughts are filled with gratitude and I am always moving forward.<br />
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On to 2016. I doubt it will be my best year either, I think 2014 will be the winner for a while. 2016 will be a year where I spend the entire calendar year on chemotherapy drugs of all sorts. Things should slow down around May or June when I enter the maintenance phase (which will last for 2 years).<br />
<span style="color: #0b5394;"><b><br /></b></span>
<span style="color: #0b5394;"><b>I only have one New Years resolution, and that is to do my best.</b></span><br />
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That's all I can do, and I know that things will get tough. Chemo wears a person down, and right now I am less than halfway through the tough stuff so I know there will be times where things will be very difficult: Staying positive, being nice, paying bills, being independent, the list goes on and on. But I promise to do my best. And I don't want to wish away the first half of 2016, because as hard as this all is, I know there are many things I'm gaining from it all, but in all honesty, I do wish that it was June already. I want my body back, my hair, my strength, my normal appetite, and my healthy life. Through it all though, I'll do my best.<br />
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Cheers to 2016 right now, because I know I'll be asleep before midnight.McKenzie Perryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08767055351440352282noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1417355365299635336.post-68549950622358768652015-12-05T12:11:00.001-08:002015-12-05T12:22:27.731-08:00Side EffectsSorry I've been a bit MIA lately... It's been a bit crazy around here! I've had chemo in Eugene 4 days a week for the last two weeks, so I feel like I've spent most of my time on the road, going back and forth everyday! (We've put 3,500 miles on my car in the last 2 months)<br />
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It's actually been almost a month since I've written a blog post, so let me give you a quick rundown: I've had both good and bad days, unfortunately, the bad days seems to stand out in my mind a little better. As you know, I'm in remission, so nothing that has gone wrong actually has anything to do with the cancer, it's all side effects of the chemo and the antibiotics/antibacterials/antifungals that I'm on to protect my body because of my lack of an immune system from the chemo. And boy have I experienced what side effects are all about. The antibiotic that I was on reacted with the tendons in my feet, so I spent over a week unable to walk or put any weight at all on my feet. Max carried me or I crawled literally everywhere during that time.<br />
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I was so inactive during that time, that when I finally could walk again I was in such bad shape that my pulse would hang around 140 after just walking across the doctors office which was a bit concerning. I had an echo to make sure my heart was working like it's supposed to, and everything looks good, but my pulse was still way too high a week later so now I have yet another pill in the stash (the stash has 8 pills in the morning, 6 at night) to slow my heart down because the doctor said "my heart shouldn't think that it's on mile 20 of a marathon unless that's what I'm actually doing." And I'm not doing that any time soon. However, that new wonderful drug has lowered my blood pressure and now I get light headed if I get up too fast.<br />
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There have also been issues with headaches from lumbar punctures (I had 3 of them since I last wrote, and 2 of them went really well) and nausea because I guess you can't exactly expect to feel great after 9 chemo infusions in 11 days. The nausea medication is quite effective, however, it has side effects as well (I don't wanna talk about it). And then there was the night after I got a chemo drug that is a derivative of mustard gas that gave me some pretty serious other side effects that I also don't want to talk about, but long story short I spent about 36 hours awake and I am very thankful that it was the first day I could walk on my own.<br />
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That accounts for about 20 mediocre to bad days, but if I've done the math correctly, that leaves about a week of good days! I was able to go to the lighthouse one day, and to the beach another day. There have also been some days where I have been able to get outside and enjoy the good weather, and other days where I have allowed myself to lay on the couch all day (who knew that could be so nice?!) I also have an awesome bird feeder right outside my window, so I have been honing my bird identification skills. I know that many of you are not surprised by that even a little bit- birds are far more entertaining than anything on TV during daylight hours, midweek. "A Guide to Field Identification: Birds of North America" has a permanent home on my coffee table.<br />
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<span style="color: #0b5394; font-size: x-small;">Sorry that this post is 3/4 negative so far. I'm trying to be real with y'all. </span><br />
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This Thursday was my last day of having chemo 4 days a week until the spring, which is very exciting. For the remainder of this phase I just have chemo once a week, and I will be finished with it the week before Christmas. Then we have to wait for my platelet and neutrophil counts to raise back up to a some-what normal level, which will hopefully take a little longer than a week so that I can have Christmas off (my own selfish wishes, because fortunately my body has been recovering very quickly, which is great, but that just means I get more chemo closer together). After Christmas I will start the 3rd (of 5) phase. It will be a different combination of chemo drugs, some of which I have already had and some that I haven't. I will also have (only) 2 lumbar punctures during that phase, and another bone marrow biopsy at the very end to reassess my remission. Each phase is 8 weeks, so that will probably happen in late February if all goes according to plan.<br />
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I'll be better about keeping the blog updated, I promise!<br />
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<br />McKenzie Perryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08767055351440352282noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1417355365299635336.post-40754793366188760332015-11-07T11:10:00.001-08:002015-11-07T12:49:37.517-08:00Chaos, part 2I wasn't planning on writing ANOTHER post about chaos, but alas I must, because yesterday happened.<br />
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Yesterday Max and I drove to Eugene at 7:30, for my 9:30 check in time, and 10:30 lumbar puncture appointment. When I got there, I assumed they would need to do blood work, because all of my counts are very low from the chemotherapy. I got a platelet transfusion the day before yesterday, so that they would be high enough for the lumbar puncture to happen. I got my blood drawn, and was told that the people performing the procedure were ready for me as soon as my blood work came back. When we got my blood work back (1 hour after procedure time) I was told that my platelets were too low, they were 39 and needed to be 50 to do the procedure, so I would need to have another platelet transfusion before they could do it. My doctor doesn't work on Fridays, but they had to get the "OK" to do it, so they contacted another oncologist at my clinic. He said I was fine to have the procedure, because they couldn't give more platelets unless I was below 20. However, the doctor doing the procedure still wasn't cool with that. So apparently I'm in limbo if my platelet count is between 20 and 50, and nothing can be done (or it was just a disagreement between doctors, we'll never know...) Unfortunately, it took us 5 hours to come to any sort of conclusion, before we gave up so that I could get my chemotherapy infusion over at the clinic before they closed.<br />
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Getting chemotherapy is usually very straight forward, however, on Tuesday when I went in to receive my lovely Vinchristine (the one that makes my fingers numb) and PEG-Asparaginase (A high likelihood of allergic reaction) I was only able to get the Vinchristine because a delivery had been delayed and PEG is an uncommon chemo drug so they weren't able to get it from anyone else in town, so it was rescheduled for yesterday. There weren't any nausea drugs prescribed to go with this chemo drug, and they also didn't have any orders to give Benadryl with it in case of an allergic reaction, so I was thankful to have done my research beforehand so that I could speak up and get all of that done. This did slow the process though, and with those extra orders to the pharmacy, plus a 1 hour infusion, and then 1 hour of observation afterward to be sure that I wasn't going to react, we were able to leave the clinic by 6:15, over an hour after they had closed.<br />
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So, long story short, we spent 12 hours yesterday and I only ended up getting 1 chemo drug. I now have to reschedule my Lumbar Puncture, the problem is that they are supposed to be 7 days apart, and my next 2 are scheduled for the next 2 Fridays, and I'm already a week behind schedule because we delayed because I still had the headache last Friday.<br />
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I've got 3 potential appointments next week, but I don't know times or any details until I hear from the doctor on Monday morning. The waiting game continues.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0527/2397/products/277-c-what-doesnt-kill-you-card-1_large.jpg?v=1446163466" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="What Doesn't Kill You Empathy Cardâ„¢" border="0" src="http://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0527/2397/products/277-c-what-doesnt-kill-you-card-1_large.jpg?v=1446163466" height="320" width="290" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I just love these <a href="http://emilymcdowell.com/collections/empathy-cards" target="_blank">Emily McDowell Empathy Cards</a>... </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
The good news:<br />
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<ul>
<li>I feel pretty darn good. My headache from the last lumbar puncture finally went away. </li>
<li>The doctor told me on Tuesday that he wouldn't be surprised if I spiked <a href="http://www.cancer.net/navigating-cancer-care/side-effects/neutropenia" target="_blank">a neutropenic fever this week because my ANC (absolute neutrophil count) is only 20 (normal range is anywhere from 1,600-8,300), and the longer a person is neutropenic the greater risk of infection (I have been for almost my entire treatment)</a> and I DIDN'T!</li>
<li>I have been given permission to get blood work and transfusions done here at the hospital in Florence, so that means much less driving! </li>
<li>I'm almost out of hair to shed all over everything, but that means that I might cave here soon and completely shave my remaining hairs. </li>
</ul>
In other good news, I have my moments of being scared out of my mind, and thinking "THIS ISN'T FAIR", and avoiding thinking about the future beyond all of this chaos (I see a blog post about all of that in the near future)... but mostly, my head is in a good place, and I am so appreciative of all the people that are supporting me on a daily basis. In the beginning I was swamped with people reaching out, and that was awesome, but now I am even more thankful for the people who continue to reach out. "Is there anything I can do?" is a great question, but it's not something I can always answer. "I'm coming over with snacks to watch a movie, pick the day." is something that is much easier to respond to, I can't make many decisions very easily right now, but choosing a day that I have free is something I can do. Either way, I am so thankful for all of the positive people in my life. They make this a lot easier. McKenzie Perryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08767055351440352282noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1417355365299635336.post-63255994604465605032015-10-29T11:25:00.000-07:002015-11-07T09:47:42.756-08:00Chaos, part 1Everywhere I seem to go, I cause utter chaos. The only place I go though, is hospitals. So I mostly just cause chaos there.<br />
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On Tuesday I had my first appointment with my doctor in Eugene. It seems like ages ago. We met him, he casually said he thought we could start treatment the next Monday, and I replied that I was actually supposed to start LAST Monday. Long story short, he runs out of the room, builds a program that makes it so other people can see what drugs I need, when, and then proceeds to order as many of my chemo drugs as he possibly can, does some improvisation, gets my blood tested, and had almost every nurse on the entire floor doing something in order to start my treatment that very day. Wednesday and Thursday I went back for regular chemo treatments, without too much chaos other than driving a total of 3 hours each day for an hour long chemo infusion.<br />
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Friday I had a lumbar puncture, which was supposed to happen at a different hospital, and after about 10 phone calls and much confusion I was told to just come to RiverBend in the main hospital. When they came to get me for the procedure I had heard nothing of any anti-anxiety meds, so I asked for them. Apparently some tough people don't need them? We spent the next 30 minutes with about 4 different people trying to get me in their system, in order to write me a prescription for the drug, to get the drug, and give it to me before I was rolled down 6 floors for my procedure. The procedure was much different than the other 3 times I've had lumbar punctures. Usually they are very quick, and I am either laying on my side or sitting, in my normal clothes. This time I had to lay flat on my stomach, and they used an x-ray machine to be sure that their needles were in the right places, and I had to wear the stupid "your butt is showing" hospital gown. Unfortunately that means the procedure took much longer than usual. Afterward I laid flat for an hour again in my fancy room, and then went over to the clinic to get my chemotherapy infusion for the day.<br />
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Saturday my clinic I usually go to is closed, but since we got a bit behind on my first day of chemo I had to make it up on Saturday in order to be on schedule. We met the nurses, got things rolling right away, with only a few hitches: They didn't have my med list, and they didn't have an order for me to receive IV nausea meds before my chemo (At this point I am super nauseas from 4 consecutive days of chemo, and I have an incredible headache from my lumbar puncture the day before, a common side effect). So we move into just getting the chemo, I figure the sooner we get it going to sooner I get to go home and not drive to Eugene again for 2 whole days. We have all sorts of issues, and can't figure out why the chemo isn't working- the pump is beeping constantly (awesome for my headache). After trying to fix the problem for an hour, we realize it's because my PICC line is clogged on the inside, and nothing can flow through it. Over the course of the next 2 hours I have 3 different nurses trying to fix it, giving me an IV, and redoing the chemo through my new poke. We were finally done 3 hours later, I was asleep by 7:00 that night and slept for 14 hours.<br />
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I forgot to mention, during all of this my right foot was reacting to one of my antibiotics and I had a tendonitis sort of situation, where I couldn't put any weight on my foot.<br />
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What. A. Week.<br />
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I started writing this post during that crazy week, and now the next one is already almost over as well! This week has not been quite as chaotic, and I'm 3/4 of the way through my treatments this week! However, that headache from my lumbar puncture on Friday? It's STILL with me. And I'm not talking just an annoying little headache, I'm talking can't function, shut up and turn off the lights headache. The good news is it usually goes away when I'm laying down, so I have been spending almost all of my spare time laying down. Unfortunately, there hasn't been a lot of spare time. Because I can't quite bare to start over again before the headache even goes away, I postponed my lumbar puncture that was supposed to be this Friday, and will continue them starting next Friday (a glorious 3 more, in a row!)<br />
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And I stopped taking the antibiotic that was causing the reaction, and my foot is almost all better!<br />
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So, I guess the chaos continues?<br />
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<br />McKenzie Perryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08767055351440352282noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1417355365299635336.post-59288679486269244002015-10-18T17:34:00.001-07:002015-10-18T17:35:18.191-07:00MindsetI feel like through all of this my mindset has been something I have done a really great job of controlling, harnessing if you will. In the beginning it was very overwhelming (obviously). Something that I consciously did that I think was very helpful, was I made the decision to only allow what I could handle into my frame of mind. There was so much research to be done, and things to be processed, and thoughts to be had. But I sort of turned my brain down a notch, and only allowed a couple things in at once, to be processed, and then put away in my brain. I tried to keep my thoughts organized and well sorted, sort of like moving into a new house. I didn't unpack all the boxes at once. I opened a box, put the stuff away, and when I was ready, I got another box and did the same thing. I feel like I'm about halfway moved into this imaginary house, but I feel good about where my thoughts are going. I know this is a long haul, and I know that it will take a lot of willpower to stay positive and keep my thoughts harnessed and going in the right direction. The good news? I am surrounded by tons of positive people, with so much love and encouragement to give. So when I need it? I'll have that support, I know it. And for now? I'm doing my best to keep it all under control. Because that's just the way I work I guess.<br />
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McKenzie Perryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08767055351440352282noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1417355365299635336.post-55075548827623128562015-10-15T18:31:00.000-07:002015-10-15T20:23:47.291-07:00AdulthoodIf having cancer has done anything, it has assured me that I am officially an adult. Which is sort of ironic because I'm being treated on a pediatric protocol, but that's not the point. I've always loved it when my mom volunteered to take care of things for me, and she still does. But when you're an adult, and your mom is making important phone calls for you, that's sort of weird. So today, no matter how much I hate making phone calls, I did it. All by myself. Like a grownup. And let me assure you, there is nothing in this world I hate more than making phone calls. Okay, maybe cancer, but phone calls are pretty close below that. So let me tell you all about my phone calls today.<br />
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First I had to call the insurance company to figure out if I was supposed to pay my giant bill from OHSU. I don't understand how insurance companies work, so I said a lot of really confusing things, and eventually the lady just decided she needed to explain to me how insurance works, and I thank her for that. You don't ever have to understand insurance until you're sick, then you need to understand it, and no one really takes the time to fully explain it to you. Turns out that giant bill from OHSU was just my co-pay, and if I wasn't insured I would have been paying hundreds of thousands of dollars instead. Once I was done talking to her, she transferred me to another person in the insurance world to fix a problem I thought I had, and I waited for 30 minutes on hold. While I was holding I got another phone call. Am I the only person, who when my phone tells me I've got a call waiting, I always hit the wrong button and hang up on both people? Because that's what I did.<br />
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The other phone call was from the nurse at OHSU responding to an email I had sent this morning about scheduling an appointment somewhere, because I need to have the dressing on my <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peripherally_inserted_central_catheter" target="_blank">PICC line</a> changed and I need to have a shot on or around Saturday, and I am supposed to be seeing a doctor in Eugene now, but getting in touch with them has been no easy task. So, I talked to her and she assured me that I needed to talk with Dr. Sharman or a nurse at his office to get things rolling immediately in Eugene because not only do I have those things that need to be done (PICC line and shot) but because I'm in remission (<b>yes, you read that right, I'm in remission- there is no trace of the disease in my bone marrow</b>) I need to start my next round of chemotherapy, the consolidation phase, yesterday. You read that right too, apparently I was supposed to start yesterday. So obviously, when I get off the phone with her, I'm not done with my phone calls.<br />
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My next phone call is to Dr. Sharman's office. The operator gives me the option of speaking to scheduling or a nurse, and I got really excited because a nurse might understand my situation a little better, so now I'm finally talking to a nurse at Dr. Sharman's office!! Yay! The second she answers the phone I get probably the worse anxiety I've ever had in my life. I'm trying to explain to her who I am, and what I have, and why I'm calling, and how important it is that I get an appointment in the next couple of days, and that my medical records are somewhere and that I'm on a very complicated protocol.... All while barely being able to form sentences, my voice is shaking like a leaf, I'm sweating and shaking, and I'm basically making no sense at all. She was so sweet, and I eventually made enough sense for her to figure out what to do next, except she had to look for my medical records and told me she would call me back later. Whew, phone call done, anxiety slowly dissipating and only one phone call left!<br />
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Last phone call, I'm cool as a cucumber, she finally gets all of my information in their system, she knows that I need to be seen soon, except... the doctors next available appointment is on the 22nd. Well that's not going to work! She moves some things around, and thinks she can get me in sometime on Monday, but is double checking with the doctor and will call me back tomorrow to let me know. And that's where we stand right now. Hopefully on Monday I will get my shot and my PICC line dressing changed, and I might start the consolidation phase of my chemo. That means I will get another lumbar puncture with intrathecal chemotheraphy, as well as the chemotherapy drugs cyclophosphamide and cytarabine IV (through my fancy PICC line). If I am starting the consolidation phase, that also means that I will be going to Eugene 4 days in a row, because I am supposed to get cytarabine 4 days in a row, which is really going to knock me down hard. So I guess I better take advantage of how good I feel right now (it's been a week since I've had any chemotherapy, and 2 weeks since I've had any chemotherapy that makes me feel like crap).<br />
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So, today, after spending far too much time on the phone, I am feeling like an adult. Thanks a lot, cancer.<br />
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McKenzie Perryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08767055351440352282noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1417355365299635336.post-57268638483506344312015-10-13T19:49:00.000-07:002015-10-13T19:49:02.292-07:00Daily RoutinesMy life has always been very planned out, rather Type-A if you will. All my life it's been: go to school, come home, prepare for the next day, do it again. I've had my adventures, but it's always been very planned out and purposeful. I've never been someone who just called in sick for the day, or took a spontaneous vacation. I've always structured my time so that I knew what I needed to do each day, with to-do lists and tasks to be accomplished. THIS? This has really thrown a monkey-wrench in all of that. While I was at OHSU I had no other option, I wasn't allowed to leave or plan my day, I was stuck.<br />
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Now that I am at home, with all of these upcoming, but unscheduled appointments looming in the future? And bone marrow biopsy results that I don't know the outcomes to yet? And a possible remission, but also the possibility that that's not the case? And hearing things like "there will be times when you will be very sick" and "there will be times when you'll have to come in for transfusions based on your blood-work, but we don't know when that will be" and "there will be times when we will have to delay your treatment to allow your body to recover, but we don't know how much time that will take" and "after each phase of treatment there will be another bone marrow biopsy, and hopefully you will still be in remission" and "if you're unable to get into remission with chemotherapy, there is always bone marrow transplant or stem cell transplant options". Wow, that's a lot of freaking uncertainty in my life all of the sudden!<br />
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I expected my year to look like me teaching 6th grade science, waking up every morning and going to school with Max, coming home at the end of the day and talking about what we did and how things went, and preparing for the next day. I was hoping to enjoy our weekends being outside, going to the grocery store, going to concerts or on small vacations here and there. But now, things are a bit different. I stay home when he goes to work in the morning, because I'm not allowed to go in public places. That means that I can't set foot in a school for at least 8 months, because schools are like the germiest places ever. I can't really go to the grocery store, unless I wear a surgical mask and promise not to touch anything, so there's no point. And at this point? I'm in such bad shape from being in the hospital that I can't even walk down the street without being completely exhausted. So for the next 8+ months I'll be being driven to and from appointments in Eugene, and when I'm not doing that I will be either in my house or outside (that's where I'm most safe, because the air is clean, I just can't really touch plants or dirt, or anything). This whole change in daily routine is going to be really hard for me, I can tell. I am trying to stay on a normal sleep schedule, getting up around when Max goes to work and going to bed at a decent hour. I will be taking that Chemistry class through the University of Northern Colorado still, and while it's been really hard to get back into the swing of that, thankfully it is a go at your own pace sort of course, so I will do that when I can. And other than that, I am using this time to hone some housewife skills by keeping our house super clean. And I'm trying to get back in some sort of shape so I can eventually walk up a flight of stairs when I come across them.<br />
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Speaking of flights of stairs, I am currently half way through my biggest fitness endeavor since coming home. I am currently sitting on the dock on Woahink lake at Karen and Ty's house. It's incredible and beautiful and I'm so thankful to be down here enjoying the sunshine. But at some point I'm going to have to go back up those stairs. </div>
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Pretty sure there's a metaphor in there somewhere. </div>
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McKenzie Perryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08767055351440352282noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1417355365299635336.post-26211026911060136972015-10-10T15:07:00.001-07:002015-10-10T15:21:49.110-07:00Relationships<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<br />
I am an only child in a family of very healthy people, who do not go to the doctor and stay active and generally stay healthy by living healthy lives. Cancer isn't a thing in our family. Max had to call both my parents, and his parents, on September 9th and tell them that I had cancer. Seriously, I can't even imagine. For anyone involved. Obviously everyone was in shock, and devastated, and didn't know what to do. My mom sat by me in the ER wondering what to do but ready to do whatever needed to be done. Max's parents went into overdrive taking care of our lives for us. My dad stopped taking care of himself and I thought he was going to be joining me in the hospital, but then got it together and was there at my every beckoning call ready to help in anyway possible (and still is, since he lives right across the street from us). Max kept his cool and dealt with the logistics of everything while asking all the right questions. And everyone came to Portland that night, and sat around teary eyed, not knowing what to do next. With all of this happening around me, I had still not let much at all sink in, but boy did I feel the love and support. These people had my back from day one, and I know they're not going anywhere, and I know that they will all be doing a lot of driving in the near future to get me to all the appointments I will need to be at.<br />
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Then, as things became more clear and we knew we'd be in Portland for a while, along came more support. Friends far and near, new and old, pouring out their support. We had so many visitors right off the bat, that the nurses were seriously overwhelmed by us. I have some amazing friends, and we received so many amazing gifts, and cards, and good conversations. I want to personally thank everyone on here right now, but I actually feel bad because I KNOW I'll forget someone and that makes me sad. But I will mention a couple key players. Charnae Decker showed up right off the bat with an entire wardrobe of stylish and cozy hospital clothes for me to wear, which was absolutely incredible. Then she proceeded to set up a MealTrain for us all the way through December, which has been so incredibly helpful already (And another huge thank you to all the people who signed up to bring us meals, they've been AMAZING so far). Hope Sneddon spent the entire day with me, just talking about hospital life (which she is very familiar with) and gave me so many amazing words of wisdom and support, especially relating to the steroid Prednisone which we are both too familiar with. All of our other visitors were amazing too, and it was so nice that people could just show up and have a normal conversation with us, because after 22 days of only talking to nurses about health stuff, those normal conversations are really the ones you miss the most.<br />
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While Max and I have been together for almost a decade, this whole event went down just days after our first wedding anniversary. That's some heavy stuff! I can't imagine going through this without him, he has been absolutely incredible. My rock. So positive and supportive. Always advocating for me and asking questions that didn't even cross my mind. I couldn't have asked for anything more in a life partner and husband. And I know it hasn't been easy, but he's made this whole thing look like a walk in the park. He slept on a hospital bench for 22 nights, and spent the majority of every one of those days with me in a hospital room looking out at the beautiful Portland views, knowing if he left it was going to be without me by his side. Now that we're home, he is getting back to work and into a normal routine.<br />
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But, he also knows that he's my primary "caregiver" and there will be bad days when I need him here at home, and he will be the person that takes me to a lot of my appointments in Eugene or Portland, especially the big ones, and so his life is sort of on hold and at the whim of... me? Plus, he is out in the world getting exposed to germs and when he comes home he can't get me sick. So he uses gallons of hand sanitizer, and has to clean up all the dog poop in the yard now. He also does all of our errands, and grocery shopping. Since I'm no longer out and about, if people wonder how I'm doing, they automatically ask him. Please keep this in mind. Every person he comes across who is wondering about me, asks him. I am so thankful that so many people care, but please be aware that if you ask him how I'm feeling today, he's already probably told at least 5 other people. When I go to the grocery store, I like to get in and get out, avoid most conversations, and get my groceries. I can't imagine being in his shoes. And remember, he likes normal conversations too. So if you see my lovely husband grocery shopping for me, follow these guidelines: If you normally wouldn't have talked to him, don't. If you normally wouldn't have asked him how I was doing, don't. If you would normally talk to him about hunting and fishing and what he's been up to lately, please do! Normalcy is a good thing.<br />
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And now? All my amazing friends and family know that I can't really go out and about, so they come and hang out with me on the couch (when they're sure they're not sick) and we veg and talk about life, and I so appreciate it. So if you're a friend who wants to help, but doesn't know how, please don't hesitate to reach out because I love hanging out with chill people on my couch. Especially on days when I don't have appointments, and I feel good. Which are here and there, and unpredictable, but whatever.<br />
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<span style="color: #0b5394;">Quick Update: Yesterday I had my last appointment at OHSU for a while, assuming that the results from my Lumbar Puncture and Bone Marrow Biopsy come back good. I will hear back mid-next week about whether the last 29 days of chemotherapy have been successful. If they've been successful, then I will be within 5% of remission, or in complete remission. If that's the case, then we move into the next phase of chemo and treatment with my new doctor at Riverbend.</span><br />
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Much Love! </div>
McKenzie Perryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08767055351440352282noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1417355365299635336.post-35635369336810508882015-10-08T19:50:00.000-07:002015-10-13T19:51:28.632-07:00PerspectivesThis whole experience has really put a lot of things into perspective. There are so many moving pieces in life in general, and when you throw the C-word into the mix things get darn complicated!<br />
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We all take a lot for granted everyday, so I'm going to make a list of things that I used to take for granted, but from here on out will have a whole new appreciation for:<br />
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<span style="color: #0b5394;">The feeling in my fingertips. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #0b5394;">My husband being the most amazing person to walk this earth. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #0b5394;">Fit muscles. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #0b5394;">Eating foods with "Live Cultures".</span></div>
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<span style="color: #0b5394;">My mom being willing to drop everything for me, to do whatever I need or want. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #0b5394;">Having friends who care so much about my well-being. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #0b5394;">My immune system. </span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #0b5394;">Having health insurance. </span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #0b5394;">My dad living right across the street from me. </span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #0b5394;">Having a normal shaped face that isn't puffy from Prednisone.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #0b5394;">Starting a family. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #0b5394;">Showering without a PICC line. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #0b5394;">Kind nurses. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #0b5394;">Living in a community that will stop in their tracks to help someone who needs it. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #0b5394;">Sleeping through the night without unexplained pain. </span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #0b5394;">Strangers who reach out. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #0b5394;">Doctors who know what they're doing. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #0b5394;">Marrying into the most supportive and loving family in the world. </span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #0b5394;">Having hair. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #0b5394;">Being able to go to the grocery store or other public places without a mask. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #0b5394;">Getting to be a teacher. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #0b5394;">Having energy. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #0b5394;">Being at home. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #0b5394;">Life. </span></div>
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Yesterday I started writing, and it was really hard. I had let my brain go to mush while I was in the hospital, I guess I had other things to worry about. It took me hours to get something down on paper, and I still couldn't figure out if I was making any sense. But then it got easier and easier as the day went on. And then I couldn't stop writing. It was the craziest thing! Now I have pages of thoughts written down, in all sorts of different stages of completion, that I will eventually post here on my blog. I figured I would outline how this whole experience has affected different parts of my life already in a couple different blog posts about some general topics that have really played big factors in this whole adventure already, and I'm sure as things go on my perspectives will continue to change and grow.<br />
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The crazy part is that once I started writing, my thoughts became more and more clear. And then I couldn't stop thinking! So I got a terrible nights sleep last night, because for the first time since my diagnosis, I was thinking of all the things I needed to do and could do to be productive. I was adding to my to-do list, I was writing down ideas of things to write about, and I was thinking about what papers needed to be filed and bills needed to be paid.<br />
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In a selfish way, I am sort of using this whole blogging thing to turn my brain back on, maybe it will make my grad school work easier or at least keep "chemo brain" at bay. And obviously this will be great for me to look back on once this adventure is in the rear view mirror. And maybe someone will read this who is going through a similar adventure and it will help them in someway. Regardless, I'm doing it.<br />
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Don't let me slack off, people!<br />
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Much love!McKenzie Perryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08767055351440352282noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1417355365299635336.post-80279631535733525022015-10-07T10:58:00.000-07:002015-10-08T10:04:35.249-07:00I have Leukemia and I have finally agreed to blog about it. I have been resisting this whole blogging thing since my diagnosis for a couple reasons:<br />
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<span style="color: #0b5394;">It makes it very real.</span><br />
<span style="color: #0b5394;">My fingers don't work very well from the Vinchristine Chemo, so typing is difficult.<br />I wanted this to stay my "teaching" blog, but I guess a "life" blog works too.<br />I haven't been able to focus on darn near anything because I let my brain get out of shape in the hospital.<br />And I was being defiant.</span><br />
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But now I'm ready to blog. I know it will be easier to keep people updated on everything and it's also a good way for me to share information with everyone at once, which is really a lot easier for me!<br />
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I was diagnosed with T-Cell Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia on September 9th, 2015 (The first day of school). I spent 22 days at OHSU on the Bone Marrow Transplant and Hematology Malignancy floor, getting monitored around the clock. They finally let me go home, but told me that I will be getting chemotherapy, blood transfusions, and blood work done on an almost daily basis for the next 8+ months, and then will be getting maintenance chemotherapy in mostly the pill form for 2 years after that. We have been wondering how we're going to swing this while living in Florence, because word on the street was that the only hospital in the state that could deal with my condition is OHSU.<br />
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So here is todays exciting news:<br />
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A doctor in Eugene has agreed to take over my care!<br />
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This is huge for obvious reasons: That means that (almost) all of my appointments from here on out will be in Eugene and not Portland saving us so much time, money and energy. Except it's a little complex.<br />
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I'm only 1 of 12 patients in the state in my age group currently getting treatment for T-cell ALL. I am on a pediatric protocol, which essentially means that my cancer is being managed like it would in a child. Children have very resilient systems and so they not only have higher survival and cure rates for ALL but they can take a different sort of chemo regimen that older adults can't handle. Rather than knocking my system down with an intense dose of chemotherapy and then giving me time to recover over the course of a month like they do with older adults, I will be getting chemotherapy very regularly without time to recover. This means that my blood counts and immune system will be very repressed through the entire process, only allowing my system to recover slightly every month or two. There will be more toxins in my liver and kidneys than the norm and I am at a higher risk of any infections. This can put your regular oncology doctor way outside his comfort zone.<br />
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With this being said, the doctor I was assigned at OHSU is one of the only doctors in the region who has ever used the pediatric protocol for treating young adults with T-cell ALL.<br />
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The crazy part is that I am able to get treatment in Eugene only because my Portland doctor reached out to someone who he trusted to essentially hand a giant protocol manuscript to, and that doctor agreed to read it and do what the book says, asking any questions (or for help along the way) as they arise. I will still meet with the Portland doctor about once a month, but other than that, my new doctor is Dr. Jeff Sharman at Riverbend Pavillion. He agreed to step outside his comfort zone!<br />
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If you're feeling sciency and want to know more about my specific condition, my treatment protocol, and a ton of other crazy information (feel free to skim) I just found this publication that speaks very clearly about <a href="http://www.bloodjournal.org/content/126/7/833?sso-checked=true" target="_blank">WHAT IS GOING ON. </a> It is not light reading.<br />
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Thanks for reading this, I will keep you all posted on here!<br />
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Much love and gratitude for all of your support and well wishes through all of this, it means the world!McKenzie Perryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08767055351440352282noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1417355365299635336.post-19812388763365927572014-08-22T11:56:00.000-07:002014-08-22T12:16:55.974-07:00My Classroom Decor & Organization<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
I feel like a first year teacher all over again, setting up my new classroom, changing my theme, and actually being able to buy cute things for organization and what-not! I love it, but I'm also really tired of cutting lamination, and straight lines. It's paying off though, and I'm almost done! I worked all week in my classroom and we did some professional development and planning on the side. It's so exciting to be getting this all up, so I figured I better share my excitement with you! </div>
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This is the bulletin behind my desk, it's got my birthday calendar and my class jobs. You can buy my classroom job posters <a href="http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Classroom-Job-Chart-in-Chalkboard-1392656" target="_blank">HERE</a>. I also will display those wonderful little drawings and letters that students give to me on this board. </div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRfwLeZB9qzRy_y5hzLgpGeKx-tjsM2pTjNvxIFKf_bp-7e-KUp8awd_JKSX5mTmluuabfbEfPW3nApRB4OH7bV7zKX79amEUIW1SMJIb6HPeDo3Md-TqDmLexEwBYcM1dqfHUIbyJtsEX/s640/blogger-image--1622436523.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRfwLeZB9qzRy_y5hzLgpGeKx-tjsM2pTjNvxIFKf_bp-7e-KUp8awd_JKSX5mTmluuabfbEfPW3nApRB4OH7bV7zKX79amEUIW1SMJIb6HPeDo3Md-TqDmLexEwBYcM1dqfHUIbyJtsEX/s400/blogger-image--1622436523.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I'm not Mrs. Perry yet, but I will be in just a little over a week! (so crazy!)</td></tr>
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Here are the boards in the back of my room. I've got my word wall, my Wonders focus wall, my AVID weekly planner, and my computer that's supposed to be mine but will be used for students to write and do Wonders online on. Up top you can also see my classroom rules and expectations which you can buy on teacherspayteachers.com <a href="http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Classroom-Rules-and-Expectations-Posters-in-Chalkboard-1392810">HERE.</a> </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaQEhvhtBZMkqmYda9H0M7luUBwLKuQThIeynCwjMz5LfSw2uPtKEcw-08yEMmjIzx8jPx4ZzwcN-xgQUeCxZXIFFzeFceljk9cuLAj40bc1adxmr5VD6ZWdjKnkw-HjTedrYxbSzvuApD/s640/blogger-image-1802957340.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRfwLeZB9qzRy_y5hzLgpGeKx-tjsM2pTjNvxIFKf_bp-7e-KUp8awd_JKSX5mTmluuabfbEfPW3nApRB4OH7bV7zKX79amEUIW1SMJIb6HPeDo3Md-TqDmLexEwBYcM1dqfHUIbyJtsEX/s640/blogger-image--1622436523.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6mvOBCZXFw86u8OuFjxtBin_7TWwRTPQjb5aTQJ7t55UBduUPHZZzG07N9waw_lDfeXbGXeK0rC1qxW5OYqpIxbOtuotcMBfbtAXuYTx_RsQAtwQb3nr1T8P2C8Pca9U64bmfmVVZJAyF/s640/blogger-image--1277582596.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="196" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6mvOBCZXFw86u8OuFjxtBin_7TWwRTPQjb5aTQJ7t55UBduUPHZZzG07N9waw_lDfeXbGXeK0rC1qxW5OYqpIxbOtuotcMBfbtAXuYTx_RsQAtwQb3nr1T8P2C8Pca9U64bmfmVVZJAyF/s400/blogger-image--1277582596.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQV9IKGBgvnNUQd_QUt5Clqoofopcp5JUH6z4FBLzeulwcdn3V-o3zYqge04Crbp4sNXV3Tr9TLBuEVYmmYnUgcVF6CzB-_rNn9Kj-sEQfMM8vPWaYtbGCwXEWrTnaQkQfnkLaIkmy6iNq/s640/blogger-image-1723586521.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="109" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQV9IKGBgvnNUQd_QUt5Clqoofopcp5JUH6z4FBLzeulwcdn3V-o3zYqge04Crbp4sNXV3Tr9TLBuEVYmmYnUgcVF6CzB-_rNn9Kj-sEQfMM8vPWaYtbGCwXEWrTnaQkQfnkLaIkmy6iNq/s400/blogger-image-1723586521.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ3-E4zA3AT9LAuxOrVq74uVWNIlW0_FwTTlmaEkOr5L5Nr0PhqMYDv7QTiZtl7W8DHSZrqIzUB61yUI2Wck9-mRrsZjIyEOxwTtuGETHFWc4OXjFzZCb9FOo00ZS4h6oCJhsBqrugdrA2/s640/blogger-image-1862799182.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="105" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ3-E4zA3AT9LAuxOrVq74uVWNIlW0_FwTTlmaEkOr5L5Nr0PhqMYDv7QTiZtl7W8DHSZrqIzUB61yUI2Wck9-mRrsZjIyEOxwTtuGETHFWc4OXjFzZCb9FOo00ZS4h6oCJhsBqrugdrA2/s400/blogger-image-1862799182.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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This is the front of my room with my brand new SMART board, my class schedule, and my CHAMPS posters which you can buy on teacherspayteachers.com <a href="http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/CHAMPS-Posters-in-Chalkboard-AVID-SLANT-1393492" target="_blank">HERE.</a> </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6mvOBCZXFw86u8OuFjxtBin_7TWwRTPQjb5aTQJ7t55UBduUPHZZzG07N9waw_lDfeXbGXeK0rC1qxW5OYqpIxbOtuotcMBfbtAXuYTx_RsQAtwQb3nr1T8P2C8Pca9U64bmfmVVZJAyF/s640/blogger-image--1277582596.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfeegD0I9wP09UsUQKUee8ZfnmdguNDVHuxmb8wR2S2uUTP6XW5HT3HtrAUINEtV1EMISP92qc6Ja7IDmkx0OmlwIH89q22b83hUuOltI62vJOJcAn2lma70-ewr7-ldoYhtS-lrJyVXzu/s640/blogger-image-1522165596.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfeegD0I9wP09UsUQKUee8ZfnmdguNDVHuxmb8wR2S2uUTP6XW5HT3HtrAUINEtV1EMISP92qc6Ja7IDmkx0OmlwIH89q22b83hUuOltI62vJOJcAn2lma70-ewr7-ldoYhtS-lrJyVXzu/s400/blogger-image-1522165596.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikfot-ZT8zEWdScLTk2-3sm4xppePRtaabCGcyjMsu64Hmsm7unF05dslFLe07XSTSy04xKtex7L44ihGLLSFwUk4mqLSm_o0lZo1BHVoY-FkLCLhfC5VSuFVxV6P1Bjga1c6ZFT0vNuVv/s1600/blogger-image-2004030915.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikfot-ZT8zEWdScLTk2-3sm4xppePRtaabCGcyjMsu64Hmsm7unF05dslFLe07XSTSy04xKtex7L44ihGLLSFwUk4mqLSm_o0lZo1BHVoY-FkLCLhfC5VSuFVxV6P1Bjga1c6ZFT0vNuVv/s400/blogger-image-2004030915.jpg" width="89" /></a></div>
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Here's a view of my book nook, and the back of my book shelf will serve as a bulletin board for my Daily 5 posters once they're made! </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGP-lCBok_R3M8N1pN_HoRHSO6bHMF95TSqSvIxay7P4mem9E5CnJ0O2vFYFQ9lh0AASyIU6JH4UuPOPZQCJm51zzBEtt3tU2vRmtLH8cAgYbfMtj__fzVtyrifp9oQWT-Bnb7OKtOydg3/s640/blogger-image-1532650025.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGP-lCBok_R3M8N1pN_HoRHSO6bHMF95TSqSvIxay7P4mem9E5CnJ0O2vFYFQ9lh0AASyIU6JH4UuPOPZQCJm51zzBEtt3tU2vRmtLH8cAgYbfMtj__fzVtyrifp9oQWT-Bnb7OKtOydg3/s400/blogger-image-1532650025.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Here's my super cute calendar wall behind my desk. </div>
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<img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaQEhvhtBZMkqmYda9H0M7luUBwLKuQThIeynCwjMz5LfSw2uPtKEcw-08yEMmjIzx8jPx4ZzwcN-xgQUeCxZXIFFzeFceljk9cuLAj40bc1adxmr5VD6ZWdjKnkw-HjTedrYxbSzvuApD/s400/blogger-image-1802957340.jpg" width="300" /></div>
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And the crates I bought to hold students books and binders so that they have a place to store them since I won't be using desks. They've got their pencil bucket, and all of their new Wonders curriculum laid out already :)</div>
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<img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8mnJPi7pZWYYT8thAGLLkVWMMYCDIiX_z3Ijtn4jlz3eq73A2P9tJiIGd6gvMyODIVXQerZRqwKecZsOQbdT2mHKNpkNXl7siVZEbMRPmmJYts9wvSNJxNoO-tpbGWPzaIolYLkpPDEVj/s400/blogger-image--496791415.jpg" width="300" /></div>
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Here's a picture of my book nook and the part of my classroom library that is already leveled. The magazine files on top of the book shelf will be student's book boxes, where they can keep 3-4 books or magazines that they are currently reading.</div>
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<img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjo4fdoTk9fXCQjfJDkTK25wU7OSwdNTJ1VxMjStRp_owXvZgen0EkuqdAYcIj7aCgcewiNaMZU0GEhHA_olOy2D4pGywoN6lu7elObv55cO6yclR-jp8Bg8GUyJ8nSLfqiE5TYXHunJSyq/s400/blogger-image--1490814586.jpg" width="400" /></div>
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Here is what it looks like behind my desk. I've got my own cubbies for curriculum, more magazine files to hold student work that I will hold on to until conferences, and my handy to-do list that you can download on teachers pay teacher for FREE <a href="http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/To-Do-List-1348012" target="_blank">here!</a></div>
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<img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTih7LfRV6dntUpobWyGzemwGkzQnbQ2nmnTbfCWxsY4maAWkrZNEpQqkEnZKni8N1LVqSbG1zR-1XVF_b3B6v7-hMxDgfR-yhL5qaUg9wgePPINt7Lm1-FlRASJxNQr7RWX3FOTZ58P8V/s400/blogger-image-1441090466.jpg" width="400" /></div>
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Here's all my fancy new curriculum, and the dollar tree bins that I finally found a use for! They hold my leveled readers perfectly, which was a huge source of excitement in my life this week. Ya feel me? Probably not... I get it, I'm weird.</div>
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<img border="0" height="186" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2IlBTo82WqVOEmxy-pijhyphenhyphenxNcwaXS3MTXGTo-Vg6RaVGEyXDLVkcgPCgNRoQLJmJ2K_lT9ULdzARVvlYs90R3Z8wYUnGP2R6GIOMvB1Nbhm98iX0gbY-4BmxmkRj1gnItZI85v6zD4pbp/s400/blogger-image-1988918648.jpg" width="400" /></div>
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Here's my daily schedule, you'll notice I only have science and no social studies... and that is because the lovely Mrs. Decker and I will be teaming up, and I will teach both of our classes science, and she will teach them both social studies! It's going to work so great, and we're both thrilled about it which is awesome.</div>
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And yes, there's a week until the wedding and I'm still only talking about my classroom. That's just the way it's going to be. The wedding is going to happen, and it won't be as pretty as my classroom is, but it's going to be pretty awesome anyway.</div>
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By the way, teacher friends: Don't get married in August.<br />
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McKenzie Perryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08767055351440352282noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1417355365299635336.post-60232855803771576832014-08-02T12:36:00.000-07:002014-08-02T12:48:59.114-07:00Summer?This is literally the longest summer of our lives. It started May 15th, which is the earliest i've ever finished school for the year, and technically (in my mind) doesn't end until September 2nd when school starts! However, there has been plenty happening in the mean time that sometimes feels like work, and sometimes is actually work, but it's been great. Let me catch ya up on my teaching endeavors:<br />
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I have always had a passion for creating cute things for my classroom, as well as sharing those things with others, so I figured that even though I'm not super talented at it yet, I might as well start a Teachers Pay Teachers store! You're in luck though... since I'm not too fancy, everything I've put on there so far is FREE! You can find a widget leading you to my store here on my blog now on the left hand side bar. But, you can also visit is by clicking on <a href="http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Store/Mckenzie-Perry" target="_blank">THIS</a>. It may not sound like me when you get to the store because I figured I might as well jump the gun, and with less than a month until the wedding I just made it with my NEW last name since that's who I'll be this school year!<br />
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Another endeavor I've been working on is an attempt to get some technology into my classroom before the school year even starts! I have big plans for this school year; to use <a href="http://www.the2sisters.com/theDaily5.html" target="_blank">The Daily 5</a>, to use the online portion of our new language arts curriculum, Wonders, that I actually already used last school year in Alaska, and to have students guide their own learning through research in Science and Social Studies. I am also excited to supplement our math curriculum with some online games and apps this year, to help students work their way into the common core to prepare them for a new curriculum in the school year following this one. In order to do all of this I need some technology! My classroom doesn't have any computers, and our access to the computer lab is very limited, so I've gone out on my own and started a Donors Choose project to provide my classroom with 3 iPad minis for this school year. 3 isn't many, when students will be very ambitious and excited to be using them, but with only 12 students this year I think it will work out well. If it looks like it's going to be a stretch in the future (when I inevitably have more students) I may do another project to beef up the tech. However, right this moment I just found out we're SO close to being fully funded!!! <b><span style="color: #45818e;">(THANK YOU SO MUCH TO EVERYONE WHO HAS DONATED, ESPECIALLY THE LADIES OF DELTA GAMMA ESA OF FLORENCE, YOU'RE INCREDIBLE!)</span></b> If you're interested in donating, you can find my donors choose page <a href="http://www.donorschoose.org/project/my-students-need-your-help/1265121/#materialsList" target="_blank">HERE</a> as well as by clicking my photo at the top of my blog.<br />
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And lastly, tomorrow I will be flying to San Diego for the <a href="http://www.avid.org/" target="_blank">AVID</a> summer institute! I'm so excited to learn about a program our school started using last year, which works to bridge the achievement gap and prepare ALL students for a future including college or job training. I can't wait to use it in my classroom!<br />
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I'm so excited for this school year and to get back to work. I'm feeling revived, and motivated!<br />
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For those of you that would rather hear about the wedding... sorry for my lack of enthusiasm! It's going great, crafts are happening, things are rolling, I'm not too worried and it'll all turn out fine!<br />
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That is all, for now!McKenzie Perryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08767055351440352282noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1417355365299635336.post-44793810124681926912014-07-10T16:10:00.001-07:002014-07-10T16:10:34.468-07:00Classroom UpdateHere's a quick photo update of my classroom. I got everything painted, and a few things put on the walls to lighten the load in August (our first week back is the week before the wedding).<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My desk area, and my chalkboard contact paper I put up on my ugly yellow bulletin board. </td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The contents of my classroom library :)</td></tr>
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and I'm done until August!<br /><br />McKenzie Perryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08767055351440352282noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1417355365299635336.post-51065198250945385952014-06-26T15:11:00.000-07:002014-06-26T15:11:02.638-07:00We're Back, For Good! When I left Florence in the summer of 2009, I never thought I would return here for my "dream job", but it turns out I didn't know everything when I was 18.<br />
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This month has been a whirlwind of returning to Florence, planning our wedding, and getting that dream job I just mentioned.<br />
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I interviewed for a 5th grade position at Mapleton on Friday the 13th, after a full moon, but good thing I'm not too superstitious. It worked out in my favor, you could say... because now I'm a 5th grade teacher at Mapleton. My superintendent and principal was my 6th grade teacher, I will be teaching on a 4 day school week (Fridays off, except the occasional professional development day), they are introducing a brand new curriculum in language arts this year, that I happened to have already taught with last school year, and I have 12 students. No, that is not a typo... 12 students. When I left Pilot I had 15, and I thought it was the greatest thing on earth and that I would never have better numbers than that, but I am just incredibly fortunate I guess.<br />
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I've already got the keys to my classroom, and even though it started off a nasty puke yellow, I'm stoked because when I mentioned doing some painting I was told to ask for forgiveness later, rather than asking for permission. My walls are now grey and white, and all mine! I will be getting a brand new SMART board also (many of you know how happy that makes me)<br />
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Here are some pictures of my classroom before I did anything to it! I will post some pictures of the painting I've done once I get the second coat on.<br />
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I know, I'm super teachery and weirdly obsessed, especially since it's not even August yet... I have no decent excuses, other than the fact that I might be avoiding wedding planning and diverting my energy to my classroom instead. The wedding planning is going fine though, I'm just sick of talking about it and obsessing over it (is it just me, or when someone is planning a wedding, that seems to be all people want to talk about?)</div>
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It's going fine, but wedding planning is sort of dumb. Everything is over priced, and there is far too much glitter and sparkle on anything remotely related to weddings. (p.s. my wedding dress doesn't have a single sparkle on it). </div>
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Max is going to write an essay about how he doesn't want to GET married, he just wants to BE married. I feel the same way, but I think he can express it better than I can, and it's less weird for people to hear it from him because he's a boy. </div>
<br />McKenzie Perryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08767055351440352282noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1417355365299635336.post-81242225569002246612014-05-23T12:23:00.001-07:002014-06-03T15:23:51.558-07:00Road Trip!<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
Our trip is happening! You may think it's funny I'm taking the time to write this now, as we sit in the wilderness in the Copper Valley... But let me give you an update of what we've seen so far, and in the end you'll realize why I'm writing this. </div>
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Our trip out of Pilot Station was glorious, we had an hour delay due to fog which is pretty classic. The flight was beautiful, and on our Bethel to Anchorage we had our first drinks in 5 months. When we got into Anchorage we ate, ate some more, and enjoyed the significantly warmer weather. We got tired of the city fast though, and were itching to get into the mountains so we rented our car and headed south. </div>
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This was our view the entire way down Turnagin Arm toward Girdwood and Portage Glacier. The photos do it no justice... </div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, helvetica, arial, sans-serif;">After we finished that trip and left the city we headed up to Chugiak, where my new teacher mentor, Todd and his wife Jenny live. We climbed a mountain and when we pretty much got to the top, we found their house (which Todd built himself) and their view of the Alaska Range, and Denali. We all went adventuring and Todd took us to some of his favorite places around his house, like Hatchers Pass (an old mining ground way up in the mountains) and Eklutna Lake which is a beautiful lake that is the water supply for anchorage and it's surrounded by mountains. </span></div>
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Todd and Jenny were fantastic hosts, their house felt like home, and we enjoyed great food, drinks, weather, and company the entire time we were there. We never wanted to leave, but adventure was still calling! </div>
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When we left Todd's house we headed north on our trip toward Delta Junction. We stopped at some awesome view points of Denali and the Alaska range, went to the national park entrance (where I accessed internet to fill out a very important job application *fingers crossed*) and then continued on to Healy where Todd recommended we stop and have a beer at 49th state brewery. I don't regret that one bit, it was an awesome spot, and we ended up staying at the campground next door and sleeping in our hammocks.</div>
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The next day we woke up early, drove through Fairbanks, and got to Delta Junction where Max's uncle has a cabin right on the Delta River. We had an awesome view of the Alaska range, and we spent the rest of the day relaxing, napping, and building inuksuks down by the river. </div>
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We left Delta this morning and have been driving along side the pipeline, and through some massive mountains. </div>
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There haven't been many towns along the way, and thus no gas stations. So here we are, parked at milepost 187 on the Richardson Highway, with no gas. AAA is on their way, but they're coming from Glenallen which is nearly 2 hours away. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEit6DpDdu96icjKUeqcYp73kkoBXMTDji3gonLZy_Mv4SCg8j8C0ZVIFIX7fTA0QwhaZRazHV6oJOMadX-Zmty78rrxbs0lFqGWQrTS3NaBfbRedV6yRfebDT6Ow8Au8qVp1-MPcqQDzPT5/s640/blogger-image--978904961.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGAActFNBBunj0uGtqyd1S5N4t2svsnSEk53YKOFx0X_-G4rUT7RBOHk2bxJ3cCujF-tiNJRcm_egpgmxB0OlWVqwVwiiIYYONifXixntCOqxtMa-EetYrvCe4Pf-kQ9t2WNWz00iT0150/s640/blogger-image-395889798.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGAActFNBBunj0uGtqyd1S5N4t2svsnSEk53YKOFx0X_-G4rUT7RBOHk2bxJ3cCujF-tiNJRcm_egpgmxB0OlWVqwVwiiIYYONifXixntCOqxtMa-EetYrvCe4Pf-kQ9t2WNWz00iT0150/s400/blogger-image-395889798.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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So far on our trip we've seen 12 dall sheep, 10 moose, a caribou, a grey fox, a golden eagle and a few bald eagles, and tons of other birds and small animals.... And we just saw a wolf cross the road about 150 yards in front of where we ran out of gas. </div>
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Tomorrow we fly from Anchorage to Juneau, we spend Memorial Day weekend exploring Juneau, and on Wednesday morning we board our ferry which will take us to Sitka, Wrangell, Petersburg, Ketchikan, and the Bellingham. From there, we fly back to Eugene and we'll be back in Oregon on May 30th! </div>
<br />McKenzie Perryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08767055351440352282noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1417355365299635336.post-52124360871109173942014-05-10T18:36:00.000-07:002014-05-10T18:36:15.990-07:00Closing Time... <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
I can't believe it, but the school year is almost over up here! Because we didn't have a spring break, and we started in late August, we get out much earlier than most other places, and it's all paying off! </div>
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It's light out until after midnight now, and is getting warm. People are staying out late, and now that the river has broken up, they're going out on the river in boats again. </div>
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My students discovered my blog, and they were so excited to see the pictures that I've posted of them. So... HI CLASS! </div>
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I am happily enjoying my last weekend of the school year up here, we've packed almost all of our boxes (17, so far) and mailed them all today (It costs a fortune) and I'm also starting to pack up my classroom. I've already done my lesson plans and prep for the last week, and we've accomplished almost all of our goals for the weekend, other than shooting about 40 rounds of shotgun shells, so life is good! Anyway, here are some photos from the last few weeks.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihvl-OT4vzD2vV1ju_l3lCR3hiZhRKd5R7tIWK6iJiEDAf2TYcfMjdW5oS7ZffsOZReI8MzI0eUm_9O1cejewqs49JqPTkkHdQfBo1pfYhQBri1FHihhIaRqxe_78KfwohFZIlPC4bvb9S/s1600/IMG_5277.MOV" imageanchor="1" style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihvl-OT4vzD2vV1ju_l3lCR3hiZhRKd5R7tIWK6iJiEDAf2TYcfMjdW5oS7ZffsOZReI8MzI0eUm_9O1cejewqs49JqPTkkHdQfBo1pfYhQBri1FHihhIaRqxe_78KfwohFZIlPC4bvb9S/s1600/IMG_5277.MOV" height="223" width="400" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgM9Rgsk4DnlOCnctmElsLCMT0zERWRJmpZe3patFHKAzPGcahFN-XF6JXmSnnI5_y8hyphenhyphenlz1fiwmYiCyVwrJoWEhCN50zxqiRNEMiRATEKWeFMNAZKix73XpOXsaJxKRFjIVIrycFV19r_K/s1600/IMG_5516.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgM9Rgsk4DnlOCnctmElsLCMT0zERWRJmpZe3patFHKAzPGcahFN-XF6JXmSnnI5_y8hyphenhyphenlz1fiwmYiCyVwrJoWEhCN50zxqiRNEMiRATEKWeFMNAZKix73XpOXsaJxKRFjIVIrycFV19r_K/s1600/IMG_5516.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We've been doing tons of spring inspired art! </td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEge6VUDeWlsx41qXgrYQjA4UtsWV0W31JiTcGBBQ4MESVbJKV3KISTwUUOacYjMAFVK3c0ii4tVIVjJ_aQTSX5OWu9ipEmsymDE6VfRadQ_U086lhExWtEYXVUdetXT74vX1XiS8QWL6bQp/s1600/IMG_5518.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEge6VUDeWlsx41qXgrYQjA4UtsWV0W31JiTcGBBQ4MESVbJKV3KISTwUUOacYjMAFVK3c0ii4tVIVjJ_aQTSX5OWu9ipEmsymDE6VfRadQ_U086lhExWtEYXVUdetXT74vX1XiS8QWL6bQp/s1600/IMG_5518.jpg" height="300" width="400" /></a></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Green-up is in progress</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbX92z528W7nBa-jskfK61s-I0xkhUGaq_Ez092PuwMoijYmuD46q4v4KApuwY6xOKLWXy63YAgMaW7399DfIxaCLnomSsterU1jwzxS-j0q9uQ94QbNdL9lvZXDEFt_xKzRGgkb9QKVq6/s1600/IMG_5534.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbX92z528W7nBa-jskfK61s-I0xkhUGaq_Ez092PuwMoijYmuD46q4v4KApuwY6xOKLWXy63YAgMaW7399DfIxaCLnomSsterU1jwzxS-j0q9uQ94QbNdL9lvZXDEFt_xKzRGgkb9QKVq6/s1600/IMG_5534.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is dried king salmon</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2OJu0eB-CGAn-toQ6AFzsYS58cJG6NIyt1ZayXk-jlpMlvIBTVCeOInkHDuCb0-9rOog6zU0ndrx4GFCvhd-JTsB_2_3ej6epSsfYAmTdnTHn2VLgIVvun3UEu4y3F0_n_2tWcSKY7awl/s1600/IMG_5539.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2OJu0eB-CGAn-toQ6AFzsYS58cJG6NIyt1ZayXk-jlpMlvIBTVCeOInkHDuCb0-9rOog6zU0ndrx4GFCvhd-JTsB_2_3ej6epSsfYAmTdnTHn2VLgIVvun3UEu4y3F0_n_2tWcSKY7awl/s1600/IMG_5539.JPG" height="400" width="400" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFwBpXxhkbEfUFKEVPoCSVrh5fPkQw0Vlm0j7MjlrfT7N471gnCCK14zURxjpAozgPP4Pm3PYqZDlV1n5Z7OphSAyRQvGC2V2Dy89M1Dp_3sbq-KOltLB7yRrY_JoGf23kMetHkl7zLb1N/s1600/IMG_5542.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFwBpXxhkbEfUFKEVPoCSVrh5fPkQw0Vlm0j7MjlrfT7N471gnCCK14zURxjpAozgPP4Pm3PYqZDlV1n5Z7OphSAyRQvGC2V2Dy89M1Dp_3sbq-KOltLB7yRrY_JoGf23kMetHkl7zLb1N/s1600/IMG_5542.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is the day the river broke up, you can see the crack in the middle and in the next picture... </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaR0HtLbr1YyPZ6zIARvVOu2IlBPOIrqinnzqK-dsNA6rco4fJdXIJgNub9ThtLHCg3eIkxw7ByyltNf40FqN7pHS53F7zzp0AwNUCEjW-hFUUZhWRFr4xvTPatIfCslVXP2T2_2sgeaLI/s1600/IMG_5544.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaR0HtLbr1YyPZ6zIARvVOu2IlBPOIrqinnzqK-dsNA6rco4fJdXIJgNub9ThtLHCg3eIkxw7ByyltNf40FqN7pHS53F7zzp0AwNUCEjW-hFUUZhWRFr4xvTPatIfCslVXP2T2_2sgeaLI/s1600/IMG_5544.jpg" height="640" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">You can see how it split and the bottom half just slowly floated down river. It was very anticlimactic, I was expecting more crashing and drama. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfuwSONVclLsw_AxPgByq9AHStT8CV64yFe1gCDNgjEI7d1csisexaa-dumECCVj4sToxN9g7yibfytivbEp2bePsoURdZrvjRI4fwsvHiqGXmLFT8sA2xTnvdhNgoAIY8Y_kMW_wXTWoN/s1600/IMG_5547.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfuwSONVclLsw_AxPgByq9AHStT8CV64yFe1gCDNgjEI7d1csisexaa-dumECCVj4sToxN9g7yibfytivbEp2bePsoURdZrvjRI4fwsvHiqGXmLFT8sA2xTnvdhNgoAIY8Y_kMW_wXTWoN/s1600/IMG_5547.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">An abandoned building by the old pump house. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitjljqeOabkSq54CXQC4rCLOrA5IcqnJdkNWmpKbltsTtEPuv7_qBuCdB7nEnjtViliXorH_FVVN_-4zGGKNzHXopC9u4NKY8GQabpFwZ7CiXHZPUFOaW98WrkCVhQYqsJvob-bdh0MME0/s1600/IMG_5550.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitjljqeOabkSq54CXQC4rCLOrA5IcqnJdkNWmpKbltsTtEPuv7_qBuCdB7nEnjtViliXorH_FVVN_-4zGGKNzHXopC9u4NKY8GQabpFwZ7CiXHZPUFOaW98WrkCVhQYqsJvob-bdh0MME0/s1600/IMG_5550.jpg" height="640" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The old water tank above town. This is where "the kids hang out"</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4_MLk-_Meb_Yq4I9jFw-S3kBAs25yDbSiLcjOhzMY-Z789NO0lZgahOODDXb4zQbkL36oDEStx4-i2wwOU4iCsQs6m5ieF_aJtwVPHLi3b3uQHn4jdrAChP414y9wuP8gH0OEgIHtb8gI/s1600/IMG_5553.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4_MLk-_Meb_Yq4I9jFw-S3kBAs25yDbSiLcjOhzMY-Z789NO0lZgahOODDXb4zQbkL36oDEStx4-i2wwOU4iCsQs6m5ieF_aJtwVPHLi3b3uQHn4jdrAChP414y9wuP8gH0OEgIHtb8gI/s1600/IMG_5553.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Prom happened, but we left before it started. The whole town is invited, and apparently the only people who danced were the adults and the little kids. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFGznw1sUBRDEPaVLUkthE22xeXN3MA07TzWt8QBbBFzuOLHlmeEZBlNcGFVD1gmQIBbybH7jbJV1GiMsko2NYkibWcqeEc8VUbbGMm1gs7tXzxgiNd5LJKmUDvCtI1tXMD476gxBAIboe/s1600/IMG_5562.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFGznw1sUBRDEPaVLUkthE22xeXN3MA07TzWt8QBbBFzuOLHlmeEZBlNcGFVD1gmQIBbybH7jbJV1GiMsko2NYkibWcqeEc8VUbbGMm1gs7tXzxgiNd5LJKmUDvCtI1tXMD476gxBAIboe/s1600/IMG_5562.jpg" height="640" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We were so excited about it, obviously. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9M2ds4Bl5lmfP1CmAlOk0vBdnZt6FlUn_hDeN61jbL6KpdyJJK2Nw4BW14-7zjqZyrnVIC6YEgr2j8e0xoVEFdxLgpRItD7eB1v7wbS6HoO-36eC5mnWT0Tl3SijS_IyhQQJ6Prj7FlfD/s1600/IMG_5565.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9M2ds4Bl5lmfP1CmAlOk0vBdnZt6FlUn_hDeN61jbL6KpdyJJK2Nw4BW14-7zjqZyrnVIC6YEgr2j8e0xoVEFdxLgpRItD7eB1v7wbS6HoO-36eC5mnWT0Tl3SijS_IyhQQJ6Prj7FlfD/s1600/IMG_5565.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Break-up still in progress... </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9kzdCTwuixh2jurzPe4uuqRgQQJI1_orLmd2rc3xvFg5jjIMd7_Z3R6q2Bc5jXBeURc0FCB52obTiTUqtwAaYJUcKBO8A1Ur-O5_UN0oKhmjtRPK2MWXyNRiMMqxXPhnq2GxtvJ5y3ytH/s1600/IMG_5571.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9kzdCTwuixh2jurzPe4uuqRgQQJI1_orLmd2rc3xvFg5jjIMd7_Z3R6q2Bc5jXBeURc0FCB52obTiTUqtwAaYJUcKBO8A1Ur-O5_UN0oKhmjtRPK2MWXyNRiMMqxXPhnq2GxtvJ5y3ytH/s1600/IMG_5571.jpg" height="640" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Your classic lawn ornament.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiy4hnWxRXWTjHnydpsa5BEG8amJr5OyvCPm9HowvC0ehQ_fk5gr3yiNkOKZkj5tYZTsDGDgtptqQChr-cQ6plLO5HVOChyphenhyphenDJPtb8DhGLQsRaXYQULFWxeTkmTj5xlz7HXhD_K6lEmjhoNz/s1600/IMG_5572.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiy4hnWxRXWTjHnydpsa5BEG8amJr5OyvCPm9HowvC0ehQ_fk5gr3yiNkOKZkj5tYZTsDGDgtptqQChr-cQ6plLO5HVOChyphenhyphenDJPtb8DhGLQsRaXYQULFWxeTkmTj5xlz7HXhD_K6lEmjhoNz/s1600/IMG_5572.jpg" height="640" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I'll title this picture "Pilot Station"</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhk8gtFztqQ9_GtNNxw7HwXOmMS3xwGD5bdjRJS6yTflruXBqHTVIsjXS-YL5dggVXTcQOguGSBoXFZyMpkXwcfjoWVyY6SgQXSnfNE_O1RZFsarmvCO-3F0SU9z2N4hhHpSuueb6oIuq7/s1600/IMG_5574.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhk8gtFztqQ9_GtNNxw7HwXOmMS3xwGD5bdjRJS6yTflruXBqHTVIsjXS-YL5dggVXTcQOguGSBoXFZyMpkXwcfjoWVyY6SgQXSnfNE_O1RZFsarmvCO-3F0SU9z2N4hhHpSuueb6oIuq7/s1600/IMG_5574.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-J1XTah-U2zZGOLwS5sDt0rK4KMm04CbyO5-yzNenJNcZAgIZlsYFRTO9lMQiGpQiU3tXJusMPascykcuiIPd91d2C0x1jhgn4hbUzWw_1VxUXK3F6C0Zue2ewaN7xAXMZD0bKMl80Jkg/s1600/IMG_5575.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-J1XTah-U2zZGOLwS5sDt0rK4KMm04CbyO5-yzNenJNcZAgIZlsYFRTO9lMQiGpQiU3tXJusMPascykcuiIPd91d2C0x1jhgn4hbUzWw_1VxUXK3F6C0Zue2ewaN7xAXMZD0bKMl80Jkg/s1600/IMG_5575.JPG" height="125" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Once the river broke up above us, the ice started flowing by. It's still going! </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpvpvgvLKF8NGJ7DadD7GeMN8X4XSah-0oF1_gvQdvtqZDQYGw0KnJqgNkQCe08zYm9qy2eD5HTXzORtAA1irSW4B1DtIBmBPuxleKwjGvfJ_4lDCk-0IvduJNVihCRQ46bbSR2TAp79P8/s1600/IMG_5591.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpvpvgvLKF8NGJ7DadD7GeMN8X4XSah-0oF1_gvQdvtqZDQYGw0KnJqgNkQCe08zYm9qy2eD5HTXzORtAA1irSW4B1DtIBmBPuxleKwjGvfJ_4lDCk-0IvduJNVihCRQ46bbSR2TAp79P8/s1600/IMG_5591.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The lot of city vehicles</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhe9GLrHxU8I-t943STBTsICHLZpOBStbJeVebSLoijDdAIYtEpY0aeTJGkq6Oefog-1kvrKNVKiqZ3CvyYjC81iGh7Hpz57A8FlZIvua7qW-kDHcXxLAVU25g-gS6Ig2YxBOiqcGBg_qRc/s1600/IMG_5594.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhe9GLrHxU8I-t943STBTsICHLZpOBStbJeVebSLoijDdAIYtEpY0aeTJGkq6Oefog-1kvrKNVKiqZ3CvyYjC81iGh7Hpz57A8FlZIvua7qW-kDHcXxLAVU25g-gS6Ig2YxBOiqcGBg_qRc/s1600/IMG_5594.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This building is where Eskimo dance is held. It's all open inside with some bleacher seating. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8hRtU63JM7qFLjJA9WPAB3bXNJcnPXJ64xiqZAlBN9pbdSrCbEe047zJmpy48fpr_AzAGx1ax9EACe_TN_sQ3T05bkhc6eNyoDWBLSFR6q6C2Dwtf3FrQj2IHkCRYYEU-QgiUCFs8C_J0/s1600/IMG_5595.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8hRtU63JM7qFLjJA9WPAB3bXNJcnPXJ64xiqZAlBN9pbdSrCbEe047zJmpy48fpr_AzAGx1ax9EACe_TN_sQ3T05bkhc6eNyoDWBLSFR6q6C2Dwtf3FrQj2IHkCRYYEU-QgiUCFs8C_J0/s1600/IMG_5595.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Here is a picture of the AC store, with it's new sign :)</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlE9QSip4zIpDfzzMZx8CScxsmxE9KLwMJ9WMq_VgBG6xCsj7fC8b4NvWqXoTC9ISnyehVIM2Hmh-nvSth9tUtfClmOi1d3UFanOWB3HzXBq18bXAbglikGp1gWA7wnVTCSTp_Tdzj4IYb/s1600/IMG_5622.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlE9QSip4zIpDfzzMZx8CScxsmxE9KLwMJ9WMq_VgBG6xCsj7fC8b4NvWqXoTC9ISnyehVIM2Hmh-nvSth9tUtfClmOi1d3UFanOWB3HzXBq18bXAbglikGp1gWA7wnVTCSTp_Tdzj4IYb/s1600/IMG_5622.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We're almost finished studying the regions of Alaska, and here are some things that you can see in 3 of the 5 regions. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEindg-iugeir6gFxNnDk83H5IXFdqp7Y6_KKXs9yfrQZ2fenbXqb6N5Fazu2J8NPlNzSMeqjFAz11Lkdicd8tDWXrIfaPiisItpI2JAtPbhT_QeMmXoSu1AkvUDqNGaCx1dYAd0dCyLGmQo/s1600/IMG_5625.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEindg-iugeir6gFxNnDk83H5IXFdqp7Y6_KKXs9yfrQZ2fenbXqb6N5Fazu2J8NPlNzSMeqjFAz11Lkdicd8tDWXrIfaPiisItpI2JAtPbhT_QeMmXoSu1AkvUDqNGaCx1dYAd0dCyLGmQo/s1600/IMG_5625.jpg" height="300" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Here ya go, Mom! I made this in art :) My students made these also, they turned out so cute! </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVGLvLn6IfEYdeXuo9uy0IH66grU8wF_82bTRmidyoqD-RWUMx2kNLCfh93n_kwBxXXqKA2rxHL6LeBz9pKvy3yZU3hFmn5mzn5ZigvVIm_KFSRHOKr1BZJ-Pk045n6SUNa9z3Sev4a0ac/s1600/IMG_5627.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVGLvLn6IfEYdeXuo9uy0IH66grU8wF_82bTRmidyoqD-RWUMx2kNLCfh93n_kwBxXXqKA2rxHL6LeBz9pKvy3yZU3hFmn5mzn5ZigvVIm_KFSRHOKr1BZJ-Pk045n6SUNa9z3Sev4a0ac/s1600/IMG_5627.JPG" height="400" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Can you believe it?? I can't! </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbNPPMxzclHdrzqjRB-rLmp6oi1-bOKkDVAXPvRR4TR3NGII8Us0h7lDxdtXsEUQgF4vykifLhNrIpUEuU-DzZN7lc63Zpc9pveR2XbvshEl_OCtXZ4IHlT4qLvKpnSIR4zCrXCpml7DBw/s1600/IMG_5629.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbNPPMxzclHdrzqjRB-rLmp6oi1-bOKkDVAXPvRR4TR3NGII8Us0h7lDxdtXsEUQgF4vykifLhNrIpUEuU-DzZN7lc63Zpc9pveR2XbvshEl_OCtXZ4IHlT4qLvKpnSIR4zCrXCpml7DBw/s1600/IMG_5629.jpg" height="640" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The ice jammed up at Holy Cross, so the ice wasn't flowing down for about 2 days, but it just started again because the jam broke up. </td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzaV-pNs34wAhP2Q-YLovFbeqwCI0egOm1kfixxNPaIfw9nCIvfn8ozG53EChiY9rWRro9Vvw6Rof_Yo1ygJDavpfGuoghTbk1-4Q32mHmaa9OYgti0AJnX3yq3emhLYkVTM0-oYuz_eMT/s1600/IMG_5633.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzaV-pNs34wAhP2Q-YLovFbeqwCI0egOm1kfixxNPaIfw9nCIvfn8ozG53EChiY9rWRro9Vvw6Rof_Yo1ygJDavpfGuoghTbk1-4Q32mHmaa9OYgti0AJnX3yq3emhLYkVTM0-oYuz_eMT/s1600/IMG_5633.jpg" height="640" width="480" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoRlyqyFo9Mx-Gi1ECqs21Dlpo98sm2o-EQvaVWZxvq8_V067Doehz2U6-TAM7VtkcjYl7P_jOwrEHPyStK1ag7WFqaXE8-cL4NK1Mr6gtFw82v7dN1e6tZa3UVojHessvXNhRnOmPlmh8/s1600/IMG_5638.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoRlyqyFo9Mx-Gi1ECqs21Dlpo98sm2o-EQvaVWZxvq8_V067Doehz2U6-TAM7VtkcjYl7P_jOwrEHPyStK1ag7WFqaXE8-cL4NK1Mr6gtFw82v7dN1e6tZa3UVojHessvXNhRnOmPlmh8/s1600/IMG_5638.JPG" height="182" width="400" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzuEbNwC7g0-CnXxjiF1WzN52DR2XtkE75Evl50XFIu7Yee8rPx2id7_uY1ND4TW1lYdHZtV04mpqeaBkNPEzImjRawy14qyjT_5sO3-Of3eP03FQU4SV7NQvd2TPaoMyQukQd_9avUsVo/s1600/IMG_5641.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzuEbNwC7g0-CnXxjiF1WzN52DR2XtkE75Evl50XFIu7Yee8rPx2id7_uY1ND4TW1lYdHZtV04mpqeaBkNPEzImjRawy14qyjT_5sO3-Of3eP03FQU4SV7NQvd2TPaoMyQukQd_9avUsVo/s1600/IMG_5641.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Here is the ice flowing again, but as you can see it doesn't stop people from going out in their boats! </td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Possibly one of the last times we'll walk on an airstrip without getting arrested. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNi2K0_Fd4AnIFwiJweFXer-zQOOqtvcWSI03bLaQo1AhxSQ-Rt-hnekKfXKImbVBx-O2sPaZGxnpgwChwX39lj3p4jg4Hpm9b1KxwqVg2NRhQzx9pmQDud9ay347UTLNi5sI_k112y6U8/s1600/IMG_5649.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNi2K0_Fd4AnIFwiJweFXer-zQOOqtvcWSI03bLaQo1AhxSQ-Rt-hnekKfXKImbVBx-O2sPaZGxnpgwChwX39lj3p4jg4Hpm9b1KxwqVg2NRhQzx9pmQDud9ay347UTLNi5sI_k112y6U8/s1600/IMG_5649.jpg" height="640" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The first flowers of the summer! Also, bumble bees the size of dinosaurs... </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwUCANOSR-aQ2TJgxKzUq37nYQbfZMixXWBZTuye6AkDU5gGKLGLv1wjVKOxs5pxziOWzfqJfTymv7GQ-evnSc7yIOjRw3yzBPmw1rCDVjUatjeypBosdLoP0kbr2BpnIndclJIeYhOJVU/s1600/IMG_5654.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwUCANOSR-aQ2TJgxKzUq37nYQbfZMixXWBZTuye6AkDU5gGKLGLv1wjVKOxs5pxziOWzfqJfTymv7GQ-evnSc7yIOjRw3yzBPmw1rCDVjUatjeypBosdLoP0kbr2BpnIndclJIeYhOJVU/s1600/IMG_5654.jpg" height="640" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Shrubbery! </td></tr>
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We still can't believe that we came up here and did this, and now it's almost over! It went by so fast, and Max and I were just reminiscing about when we decided to come up here. We told ourselves that a year seemed like a long time, but even if it was terrible it would fly by and be over before we knew it. Well, it hasn't been terrible, it's actually been great, and I think that's what made it all go by even that much quicker! This whole experience is pretty unreal. We fly out of the bush in a week, and this time next Saturday we'll be in Anchorage enjoying sushi! See ya'll soon!<br /><br />McKenzie Perryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08767055351440352282noreply@blogger.com0