Tag: breast cancer

Happy New Year 2020: A Look Back To 2019

Happy New Year’s from my house to yours!

2019 was in “interesting” year at my house.

The Good

It had lots of excitement, like being picked as one of Burpee Home Gardens 2019 Gardeners of the Year!

I tried a bunch of new plants in the garden.

We took some wonderful vacations.

But, most exciting was proudly watching my twin boys graduate from college–Go Hokies and Go Blue!!

I’ll be playing catch up writing about all these experiences this winter as the garden goes into hibernation for a few months!

The Bad

But all things don’t always go smoothly and aren’t all great. I kept up with the blog as best as I could this year, but as I mentioned earlier, I was diagnosed with stage 1 breast cancer in March. That took much longer to deal with than I expected, but I am looking forward to putting this behind me. I feel really lucky that it was caught early, but I still had to endure a lumpectomy, radiation, physical therapy and now hormone therapy (but no chemo, phew). I also feel really lucky to have had my family and so many friends, near and far, around me. All your help, positive messages and meals were invaluable!

I did panic a bit over how I was going to be the July BHG 2019 Gardener of the Month and undergo cancer treatment. But in reality, that push to keep me in the garden proved to be so helpful. Keeping active despite everything else going on really helped keep me distracted and maintain a positive outlook. That peacefulness and excitement I feel working outside in the garden, gave my mind and body some time to heal from the demands of treatment. Maybe things weren’t ideal this year (or less ideal than usual), but with help from my husband and my very trusted landscaper who listened carefully to all my instructions, I was able to keep up with the gardens and enjoy bloom and harvest time.

There’s a lot of evidence that working in a garden, or just enjoying nature, works wonders for the healing process. I have to agree.

We also sadly said goodbye to our Daisy in October at the very old age of 16. She’s been with us since the boys were in 1st grade, so her absence is greatly felt. Miss you, pretty girl ❤️❤️

So after all that, here’s hoping that 2020 will be a wonderful, healthy and happy one for all of us ❤️❤️

Looking forward to getting back to writing!

One more thing–Here’s my PSA–get your yearly mammograms, they save lives! Also, check out the National Air Quality Assessment map to see if unbeknownst to you, you’re sitting under a toxic cloud from nearby industry. My community fought back and we got the ethylene oxide spewing Sterigenics closed! Visit Stop Sterigenics for more information.

Many Hands in the Garden

It’s finally starting to look like spring! The daffodils and tulips are blooming.

The Star Magnolia, focus of My Magnolia Saga, is showing signs of life and trying to bloom…

…although around town they are in full bloom.

And the hostas, daylillies, astilbe and peonies are all bursting out from the ground.

In the house, the seeds are sprouted and the next set are ready to be planted.

Why so many hands in the garden this year? It’s hard write this down, but I am currently not able to garden or do anything strenuous for about a month following recent surgery for breast cancer <<sigh>>. I went for my screening yearly mammogram back in February, and after lots of testing was ultimately diagnosed with a Stage 1 invasive breast cancer. Boy, was I not prepared for this and there’s definitely no good time to get a bad diagnosis. I’m still waiting to find out exactly what the next steps are after surgery (there’s a lot of waiting) and a little stressed out over what family events I may or may not have to miss. But every day, I am so thankful that this was caught early and my prognosis is excellent after treatment. I’m also thankful for my husband and kids, and all my family and friends who have reached out with support and to help in any way they can.

So while my hands may be out of the garden for a bit, I’ve also realized a garden can be a very healing place when going through a stressful life event. I can still plan and enjoy the beauty and smells of the spring blooms. I am also blessed by many who have offered to help make sure I get things growing and cared for in a timely fashion, and keep my life as normal as possible. This will be a village garden this year.

It may not be a great year for my garden, but that’s what this blog is all about. Real life experiences of a casual suburban gardener. And gardeners get sick sometimes.