Jill's Journey

Two kitties overdid it on the turkey yesterday…..happy thanksgiving from our family to yours!!!! Gobble gobble!!!!

Jill Here.  I make fun of my Brother Jack often because he is um…big boned.  But I guess I shouldn’t…he really does love me afterall……..

I’ve been doing a lot of thinking the last week or so about this past year.  Since Thanksgiving is just a few days away, it reminded me so much of how thankful I felt at this time last year and I went back to look at exactly what my thoughts were (ah the beauty of Facebook!).  On Thanksgiving day (November 22, 2012), I posted on Facebook:

“Thankful for so many things this year especially my family and the greatest friends a girl could ever ask for. But this year I am especially thankful for my lil baby being in remission for four months now from osteosarcoma so I still get to wake up everyday like this. Happy thanksgiving everyone!”

Now.  Those of you that know me well know I always like to add a “knock on wood” to statements like those.  And yet, for some reason I did not put it in that post.  I wouldn’t call myself very superstitious, but I do not like to tempt fate.  In the chat room the other day, I was having a conversation with Rene telling her I could kick myself for making this statement.  Because just 4 days later (a year ago today, 11/26/12) I would find a marble size lump in Jill’s thigh that would turn out to be a metastasis.

So I have been thinking……it’s Thanksgiving again.  Here we are again.  Should I be afraid to be thankful again that Jill is now almost one-year cancer free?  Should I be afraid to even type those words?  Truth be told, Yes, I am a little bit.  But if I’m really honest with myself I know that is SO SILLY.  Why not celebrate her victories?  That lump was already there when I made that post – I just hadn’t found it yet.  Maybe I should look at it a different way and be thankful that I was feeling her well enough for lumps in the first place.

This cancer journey is a scary one, all of us dealing with it know that.  It’s unpredictable, topsy-turvy, sad, but at times…..joyful.  We need to take the times we can to celebrate the milestones and victories when the opportunities present themselves.  So this year, yes, I am thankful that Jill made it through a difficult year and is doing well and happy…….

Knock on wood. 🙂

Happy Caturday Everybody!

Just a quick post to share this article that Jill was featured in today.  Catsparella is a blog that is widely popular and followed by more than 95,000 readers and we were honored to have Jill’s story featured.  Enjoy!

http://www.catsparella.com/2013/11/its-caturday_23.html

Jill Here. My puppy friend Belle is visiting. That means LOTS of snuggle time!!

Did you know that 1 in 4 dogs will get cancer in their life and 1 in 5 cats will.  Help spread the message: http://www.curepetcancer.com/

Today is Jill’s 11 Month Ampuversary!  It’s so hard to believe 11 months have gone by.  One year ago right now I was blissfully unaware that this stupid cancer that we thought we had removed in June 2012 was spreading and on November 29th (yes, I remember the date!) I would be petting away and feel a suspicious lump.  Our world would quickly be turned topsy turvy, but Jill has handled it like a trooper and a champion!  Hoppy 11 month ampuversary my little bean, I love love love you and can’t wait to celebrate the big one next month!  You’ve earned it!  Here are some pictures from this past month:

Back in February, I began a mission to collect 1 postcard from each of the 50 states (http://jillsjourney.tripawds.com/2013/02/05/a-get-well-project-for-jill-help-us-reach-our-goal/) by Jill’s 1-year ampuversary (12/12/13).

Well, WE DID IT! and more than one month ahead of schedule!  I cannot even begin to explain how humbled, honored and loved I felt for Jill everytime I went to the mailbox and dozens of postcards would come pouring out.  I never imagined the outpouring of love and support we would receive.  We’ve had a lot of bumps in the road on this journey and this project has certainly kept our spirits high!

Our goal was to receive one card from each of the 50 states, but we received a total of 90 postcards!  82 from the US, 3 from Canada, 1 from Australia, 1 from France, 1 from London, 1 from Dubai and 1 from Belgium!

Yes, this project was done in part to keep our spirits high during this difficult journey, but we also did it for a cause!   If it weren’t for tripawds.com, I can wholeheartedly say I do not know how I would have gotten through this past (almost) year.  The support and love I have felt and passed on to Jill has kept us sane, laughing and positive through the darkest of days.  Because of that, Jill’s Grandmaw and Grandpaw (my parents) and her Aunt Farrah (my sister) generously agreed to make a donation to tripawds.com if we could meet our goal by 12/12/13.  So a GIGANTIC THANK YOU to them!

I do not know how to eloquently say thank you for this to everyone who has supported and contributed to the project.  So we choose to do it to music.

So, humbly, lovingly, joyously, with our arms around all of you………..Thank you:

I was asked to do an interview by Karen Bostwick who runs a website called petspage.com. Her mission is to spread awareness about specialty care in veterinary medicine. In the interview, I discuss Jill’s story and the way her general practioner worked hand-in-hand with her team of oncologists. I hope you’ll take a few minutes to watch and learn more about Karen’s important message about spreading the word about seeking out a specialist when one is needed!

Hoppy Wordless Wednesday from Tripawd Kitty Cat Jill!

Visit Jill on  https://www.facebook.com/JillTheTripawdCancerFightingKitty?ref=hl !