Prime Purchases June and July

Oops— I just realized I’m a week early on this link up! Haha oh well!

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Good morning friends! I hope you all had a wonderful weekend. On Saturday we had multiple birthday parties and then chores to do around the house. It was busy but felt so good to be productive and check things off our list. On Sunday we went to church in person for the first time since my diagnosis. It was wonderful to be able to be back there in person!!! We probably should've waited a few more weeks for my immune system to get stronger, but I am so eager to return to "normal" that I just couldn't wait. We sat in the back corner and tried to keep our distance from people just in case of germs. Little by little I am taking my life back, and it feels SO good!

What's Up Wednesday

Hello there friends! I hope you are all doing well. I am doing FANTASTIC. Last week I finished my chemotherapy, RANG THAT BELL, and I am thrilled that from here on out I will be getting stronger every single day. I have a long way to go, but it will only go up from here. Life is SO wonderful!

Let's have a look at what we've been up to:

Done with Chemo

 Good morning friends. I have been so looking forward to being able to write this post. As of this coming Wednesday, July 19th, I will be DONE WITH CHEMOTHERAPY. 

I have been praying for July 19th to hurry up and get here for months, and we are finally (almost) there.

Fair warning, this post will not be all sunshine and rainbows. I am going to be honest about how brutal this has been on my body and if you are a survivor and this may be triggering to you to read, you may want to stop now. My reason for wanting to be so honest is twofold: 

- I would hate for someone else going through chemo to come across this post and think "oh she handled it so well, what's wrong with me?" I want to be honest and give a realistic look at how hard this has been.

-  I plan to write posts in the future on how my recovery is going, and in order to truly show how I'm recovering, I need to be honest about where I'm starting. 

5 Random Things

 Hello there friends! I hope you had a nice week and are enjoying your summer!

Today I am going to share a little bit of randomness with you. A little bit of what I've been reading, eating/drinking, and what we've been up to. Almost like a mini "What's Up Wednesday" since I missed the last one.  😊

1. Back into reading! I took a break from reading and am FINALLY getting back into it. My book list is embarrassingly long, but if you have any good historical fiction recommendations, I am always down for a new one to add to my list! I just finished While Paris Slept and really enjoyed it. 

2. Yummy Hummus and Non-Alcoholic Beer-- I think I've written about this hummus before, but if you like a little bit of spicy, this Boar's Head sweet chili garlic is delish! We grabbed it at Kroger, but Harris Teeter and Publix carry it too.

I am not able to drink alcohol right now due to some of my medications but have been craving an ice-cold beer on a hot summer day. Well, to my surprise it turns out there are a lot of non-alcoholic beers that actually taste really good! The picture above is a Heineken Double Zero, which is Heineken's non-alcoholic beer. It tasted like a regular Heineken to me, and I don't have to worry about the alcohol. Yay! I also love Athletic Brewing Company's beers and Sam Adams Just the Haze. I'm happy we live in 2023 and there are good alternatives!

3. Reading to Dogs-- Our local library has been letting kids come and read to service animals this summer and it has been a BIG hit with Lily Grace! I think it's such a sweet idea that the little kiddos can snuggle up with a pup to practice their summer reading. 

4. Our Countdown Chain-- At the end of the school year, Lily Grace's teacher recommended that we do a countdown chain to my last day of chemo. We started on June 19th, with my last chemo being July 19th, and I LOVE seeing how small that chain is getting!! I am so dang close to ringing the bell and being able to move on with my life!!

5. Being Bald-- Since it has been so hot and humid here in the Carolinas, I've been rocking my bald head with a hat more often than the wig. It has been so heartwarming how many random strangers have come up to me at the pool/beach/grocery store to say "hang in there, I'm a survivor too. You've got this." Especially if I'm with the kids (which I usually am). Random little old ladies come up, hug me, and say. "If I can beat it, you can beat it too." People go out of their way to tell me, a stranger, how strong I am. It's a wonderful way to see how good people are, and a nice reminder that a kind word to a stranger really does make a difference.

Thanks for reading along today! I hope you have a wonderful weekend with the people you love. 💗

Today I am linking up with Andrea and Erika for Friday Favorites. 

Not Just a Mom July: Top 5 Favorite Family Activities

 Hello friends! I hope you've been doing well. It has been awhile since I've shown up here in blogland, but not much has changed. We went to the beach, it was FABULOUS, and now we are home and DAYS away from my last chemo treatment (wooohoooo!!!!!).