Round 2 Begins

Hello from Cape Cod,
The Captain and I will be heading to Boston to stay with Mark for the week at the Ritz Carlton (courtesy of Mark & Lisa) this afternoon for Round 2 of the chemo treatment.

We have had a wonderful rest with the Captain having minor side effects thankfully. The Captain's hair remained intact until this Saturday when the "shedding" began!! Andy Racicot and the Captain will now be matching sets; he came for a visit just to remind him of the "look." We spent fun times with Drew, Kelly and PJ; Kate, Chad and Baby Keith arrived back on Cape Cod and we put Chad to work on projects to be done around house and yard; Rossetti's came for a visit and treated us to a great lunch at Clancys; morning delivery of newspapers and visits from Grampa Govoni; Brother Joe and his family had dinner for us with Brother Tom's family with visiting Beth & Andy and of course adorable Andrew; many calls from the "Harriet and the General" that is Gram and Grampa Thomas; also calls from our caring families and good friends. Then the highlight for the Captain was a fishing charter by Brother Tom and nephew Brian on the beautiful shores of the Big Cliff Pond in Nickerson State Park! Only problem if you decide to "charter" this team, Bring your own fresh and alive bait!!!

Thanks to all for your continued prayers and thoughts. We sincerely appreciate your support for all of us. We will be in touch. God Bless.

School Vacation Time with Drew

Well, April school vacation was great for us. Kelly and Drew came down to stay with us for a few days. It was rainy and damp most days, but still had a lot of fun playing inside and out in the garage. Drew is becoming quite a character and he seems to be calling Don a different name, instead of Pa. He has now started to call Don "Papi". We are not too sure where this came from, but it is cute coming from Drew.

Captain Wins Employee of the Year 2008 for Allen Harbor

The Captain was asked to head down to Allen Harbor for a visit with the boys. To his surprise, he was awarded the Employee of the Year for 2008. The "boys" and the owners all agreed that he was the best for this award. He was rendered speechless, which is hard to believe!!!

Good morning,
The Captain and I cannot believe it has been only one week today that we began the chemo treatments. As always The Captain tackled this hurdle with courage and determination all week. We had a wonderful weekend and Easter! The Easter Bunny brought gifts of family, laughter, no major side effects and of course candy! A couple of minor side effects have developed which the Captain's Wife will not complain about is his sensitivity to cooking odors, smells and noise. So she has decided that she shall not cook any meals, clean our home or make any noises that will upset The Captain!
We are enjoying Cape Cod; reading "The Herald" at the beach whenever possible, watching the boats being launched at Allen Harbor, and seeing the osprey make their new nests (one of The Captain's favorite past times).

Thank you all for "blogging." The Captain has enjoyed reading and re-reading every one. We appreciate your continued prayers and support.

As you may know, the Pan Mass Challenge will be held on August 1 and 2 this year.
A bicycling team has been entered in honor of The Captain called the "The Captain's Crew." All donations from this event will be given to Dana Farber. Please log on to http://www.pmc.org/TT0120
for further details and fund raising events.

Almost the End of the 1st cycle

Good morning,Well we are coming down to the finish line of our first cycle! The Captain is remarkable, thank god, no allergic reactions to any drugs, but is feeling some of the effects of the chemo regiment. He still has his his unyielding positive attitude; and of course, his never ending sense of humor, but no hand massage today as yet!!. Annie our nurse has been spectacular, but you know our Captain he had to tell Annie that he preferred her hair "down" instead of "up."!!! Being her sweet self, she said she would remember that in the future. We have a private room today, a beautiful view, but he's longing for the ocean view. Hopefully we will be heading down "over the bridge" to renew his strength and spirit and breathe in that salt air. We wish you all a very Happy Easter. We thank you for your prayers and thoughts. Love Barb and Don

Day One

Well today was the day! The Captain was officially hooked up to the "C Drugs"! His spirits are high, ready to do battle and conquer! Our nurse is Annie, awesome, professional, will remain with us for the three days and very kind to the Captain. We have a nice bed in a semi private room overlooking the "big city." Mark has bought every newspaper available so that will keep our patient and Mark busy for a while. To the pass the time we watched Opening Day and the Red Sox beat the Rays. We had a great view of the "planes flying over Fenway." We head back in tomorrow for round 2. Thank you for all the messages. Keep them coming!

Thank you and Update

I can't thank all of my family and friends enough for their love and support. I have created this blog to give everyone continued updates on what is happening. Today we are heading into Boston in preparation for tomorrow's first chemotherapy treatment (7:45am). My first treatment and Red Sox Opening Day! The treatment approximately lasts 8-9 hours. We will follow up tomorrow's treatment with another 5 hour treatment on Wednesday and Thursday, followed by a shot on Friday. My hope is that you will continue to log on and read my blog and send messages when you have the chance. I love you all and I look forward to your posts.