Hello everyone - it has been about 9 months since I last posted, so I thought I would provide you all with one last update.  Kirk keeps saying: "You have to write another post on CaringBridge"! 

So far, so good... I'm still cancer-free according to the last mammogram, although it is hard to get my psyche to believe that.  But I feel great.  I'm enjoying life with Kirk and my job with Shannon & Wilson/WSDOT.  My blood counts show that pretty much all my numbers have recovered except my white blood cells, which are still below the low end of the recommended range.  I think that means I'm less resistant to disease now than I was before.  I guess I am no longer healthy as a horse, but healthy as a... fish?  That being said, I had COVID earlier this year and it only affected me for a couple of days. 

I do have plenty of energy again though to have adventures with Kirk and do yard projects.  If you want to see a fun time-lapse of a recent project that we did in our backyard, check out this video:  https://vimeo.com/751048349   We also did a long road trip earlier this year to see some beautiful scenery and get some much needed sun.  Our trip video music montage is here: https://vimeo.com/696797426/7b99f53504

My hair is back, and one of the few positives of chemo is getting curly hair for the first time in my life.  I've loved that!  The pictures I attached to this post show before and after my first haircut (done on 9-22-22) since being bald, at about the 2-year mark after my last chemo infusion.  So that's what 2 years of hair growth looks like!  You can see that I requested just barely a trim, so that I could keep the curls for a little longer. It looks like the curls are eventually going to grow out... 😕  I think my hair is also a little darker, but time will tell.  At least it didn't all grow out gray!

What happens now on the medical front?   I will continue to have an MRI once a year and a mammogram once a year at 6-month intervals (MRI - Mammo - MRI - Mammo - MRI, etc.) for the rest of my life, however long that is.  This is because I have some unlucky genetics that make my risk of getting cancer again higher than the average person.  My prayer is that I never have to go through this cancer journey again, but only God knows what my future holds, and I know He will be with me no matter what.  In the meantime, cancer in others affects me much more deeply now.  I am thankful that I can provide my insights and my prayers in a much more informed way given my experiences.  If you are led to pray, I ask for prayers for Kirsten, Laurie, Dave, and Ha, who are in the midst of the madness right now.

Thank you again (from me and Kirk) for all of your support and prayers and reaching out through all of this.  I am signing off for hopefully the last time!  So long, farewell... Love to all of you and may God bless you richly.   Feel free to reach out at kirkandmonique@yahoo.com if you want to check in and stay in touch.

Monique