New Blog for my classes!

I decided to change my "Food4Life" blog to "Fit4Life" as this will allow me to post all my classes in one place making it easier for people (and me) to see what classes are being offered, times, locations, etc.

I am looking forward to this next session "Fall into Fitness" and hope you will check out the new blog, leave feedback and if you live in the area... come join us for one of the several classes offered!


http://elayne-foodforlife.blogspot.com/

Elayne~

Looking Like Lymphedema

Went to my doctors office today to get a Faslodex shot and a Lupron injection. Lucky me, the Lupron was not in so I get to go back for that one.

I did see the doctor ( not my regular Onc) and asked him to take a look at my arm and hand. I have been having trouble with slight swelling, discomfort/tightness and restricted range of motion in my right arm. This is the side that I had surgery and radiation on.
He gave me some medication to try for 5 days, I think it is a diuretic. If that does not help he said I will need to be fit for a compression sleeve. I would like to talk with my regular doctor first before I take the diuretic. Not sure that is the correct way to go as I have all the "symptoms" of mild lymphedema and would prefer to do the therapy needed before it gets worse or infected.

Definition

By Mayo Clinic staff Lymphedema refers to swelling that generally occurs in one of your arms or legs. Although lymphedema tends to affect just one arm or leg, sometimes both arms or both legs may be swollen.
Lymphedema is caused by a blockage in your lymphatic system, an important part of your immune and circulatory systems. The blockage prevents lymph fluid from draining well, and as the fluid builds up, the swelling continues.
There's no cure for lymphedema, but it can be controlled. Controlling lymphedema involves diligent care of your affected limb.
Compression Sleeve;

A Worthwhile Cause....

Hi Fellow Cancer Survivors (and families of),

I found this survey for cancer survivors on Livestrong, one of the strongest advocates of cancer survivorship.  It takes about 15-20 minutes if you are interested.  I think it is a worthwhile cause, and you might want to send it on to other survivors that you know.

I recieved this from a fellow blogger and survivor. Last night I filled it out and feel the questions they asked and topics they covered were quite relevant. Hopefully all the data that is collected will provide more knowledge and help for those of us and our families that are living with cancer.

Elayne

http://livestrongblog.org/2010/08/17/calling-all-post-treatment-survivors/

12 year Cancerversary!

" This is a really hard life isn't it" ? This was a question my father-in-law Ed asked me the last time I saw him. Ed, sadly lost his fight with brain cancer just 9 months ago.
As I now celebrate my 12 year "cancerversary" I cannot help but reflect on that question he asked me.
The short answer is yes, it is a hard life. But... it could be so much harder.
I am sad for so many family and friends that did not survive and at the same time I know how blessed I am to still be here.
God gives us all work to do while we are here and it is so exciting to see what He brings to me each and every day.
Yes, it is a hard life, but it is the one He has asked me to live.

1 CORINTHIANS;
 ¹⁷Nevertheless, each one should retain the place in life that the Lord assigned to him and to which God has called him.

Psalm 138:8
The Lord will fullfill His purpose for me.

Session 3 of "Little Swimmers"!

Well, summer here in Texas is coming to an end, by the calendar only. As I write this it is 102 degrees outside at 11:30 AM!
With school getting ready to start swimming lessons have come to an end. I finished my 3rd session yesterday with a wonderful group of kids ages 3-10!
My first class was a 3 yr. old class with Josiah, who I taught at the beginning of the summer. He started out in May not wanting to put his face under water. Now... we can't keep that boy above water! What a great little swimmer he has become!

getting the rings and rocket ship

Josiah age 3!

Also in this class was Izzy, who just turned 3! She was very hesitant with this being her first  swim class, but ended up making lots of progress and just has the cutest smile ever! Motor boat was her favorite song to sing:)

Izzy age 3 singing motor boat and practicing her bubbles

Second class was John & Brianna, brother and sister to Izzy. What a sweet family! The thing that stands out the most to me with their lessons was that they did not want to go in the deeper water. As you can see they both had, as Brianna said "conquered their fears"!

The 3rd group were my "girls", Emma, Abigail & August.

They too were lots of fun and getting to work on stroke development with them was for me personally a lot of fun!
They worked on their freestyle...

Backstroke...

Breaststroke...

Flip turns...

And of course diving for rings and sticks while holding their breathe as looong as they could! They were pretty good at this.

All the older kids in group 2 & 3 also learned to tread water, swim to the bottom in the deeper water and practice safety skills such as how to rest when they need to.

It has been a great summer of teaching and I have been blessed to teach and get to know these 21 "Little swimmers"! Sharing the love for water is a joy!
Have a great end  of summer, stay cool, safe and enjoy the water!
Miss Elayne :)

Teaching my "Little Swimmers"~ session 2

It has been a fun and busy summer, not to mention ridiculously hot! These are some pictures from my second session. I had a total of 8 kids this session ages 2-7

TJ ( my nephew :) doing bobs.

Sophie ( my niece) learning how to blow bubbles and kick ....

Ethan learning how to breathe to the side and dive for rings... always a favorite!!

This is Sarah from one of the 3 year old classes. The goal is always safety first. So, here she is jumping in, swimming back to the wall and pulling herself out of the water with no help!

Summer & Josh from another 3 year old class. It is a great idea to have an instructor come to your house to teach your kids so they learn safety and swimming at the pool they will be in the most. That is what I did for these next two classes.

Learning how to float and swim on their backs. This is a hard one to get them to trust you with, especially if they have never met you before :)

Going to the bottom to pick up the "Rocket Ship"!

swimming through the hoop under water and practicing kicks and arms...  which we call ice cream scoops!

My youngest swimmers of the season were Hayden and Liam who swam with mom in a two year old WaterTots class.... Liam was sick on the last day so Hayden got to be the ham for the camera.. so cute!

Hayden learning to blow bubbles..........
Splashing in the waterfall while doing his "monkey walk" was a favorite.

Kicking with mom on his front and back!Picking up rings and jumping in the pool. READY...SET...GO!