Quick update:

We're in the "let the body heal" stage of the first chemo cycle, which basically means 1 down, 5 to go. Mom is coping much better than we'd hoped with the chemo, and is tooling around pretty good, although tomorrow is the day to shave off what is left of the hair. I'm hopeful that she'll come through this very well. Usually the second chemo cycle is the worst, so we've still got that to face.

The major issue right now is the fact that her senses are all "chemo senses" which means everything tastes and smells bizarre because chemo kills tastebuds and smell receptors. Just so you have an idea, flowers and any flower-smelling products... not allowed. Fruits and vegetables... banned.

Smoked salmon and stinky cheese? Oh hell yeah. And curry. lots and lots of curry, the spicier the better. And homemade tortillas as a carrier for it all.

This house smells like an El Salvadoran Indonesian Jewish restaurant. Bad. Tasty, but very very bad.

I'm in DC, and managed to bring 2 days worth of decent weather with me, but it is raining and chilly today so I think the rest got stuck somewhere south of here. I'm getting settled a bit, and finding a routine, so I'm feeling a bit less stressed.

For those that have expressed concern, I wanted to give an update: Mom has successfully completed her radiation treatment, and while we won't know for another week or so if the treatment has wiped out all the cancer in her spine, she has experienced a huge reduction in the amount of pain she was in. Chronic, long-term pain is debilitating, so she's celebrating feeling so much better. She begins chemo tomorrow, and that is going to be the tougher of the two treatments. I'll try to update occasionally, but I don't expect I'll be in the mood to do much blogging.

Thanks again to all of you for the prayers and concern you've expressed. It really does mean a lot and it does help.