Whew! Today I feel like I have finished the first round of the new chemo. I woke up feeling excited about the day, ready to do something, anything.

Generally, even in the midst of feeling bad, I still feel remarkably good. I may feel a little fatigue, a little nausea, a little stomach pain but I can still take a good long walk everyday, run errands, laugh with my family. I still feel incredibly lucky.

The joy of all this is that I can visualize myself surviving with this ‘condition.’ I have some issues I still need to work through, but who doesn’t? I can’t say it enough, I am a lucky person, I am alive.

This weekend we head to St. Louis for a big birthday bash. We are celebrating the June, July, August and September birthdays in my family. There are over 35 birthdays between my parents, siblings, aunts, uncles and cousins. It should be a great gathering of my family, something I always look forward to. There is always much laughter, many hugs and kisses and a great deal of love that goes around.

And my birthday is tomorrow, July 11. I will be 44 years old. I can’t believe it. I am sure it will be a good day. I can feel it in my bones.