Mom's had a very full day today. Her days usually begin at 4:00 a.m. with a blood draw. 4:00 a.m! Are you kidding me? I told her she needs one of those little Do Not Disturb signs like they have in hotels. Is her blood any more full of information at 4:00am then say, at 9:30am? Come on people! Let the woman sleep!

She had visits from occupational therapy and physical therapy. They want to work with Mom on her left arm -- the arm compromised by the swelling from the cancer -- and her hip, which she pulled while getting on a massage table.

Something just occurred to me. I completely messed up and called Mom's therapist Brenda when her name is actually Belinda. Man, I suck! Sorry Belinda! I got you mixed up with Mom's pen pal in Hawaii named Brenda.

Back to the report...

My wife if watching Amazing Wedding Cakes on WE. OMG! Are we at that point that we'll make a reality show about anything? And watch it? Holy cow. 60 minutes. About... making a wedding cake.

OK, NOW back to the report...

Mom had some challenges with her breathing this afternoon. She had a lot of coughing but did make it to her radiation therapy without oxygen! They thought they had her hooked up, but the tank wasn't working during the trip. She had to wait until she got to the hospital before she was able to get her oxygen. "I made it about 45 minutes," Mom said with a smile. Maybe, but she looked like she had been through the wringer. The oxygen makes a big difference.

Dad and I were able to play some Pinochle with Mom. She won. We didn't have a good table so Mom became the table. The big blue comforter made it challenging to see dad's cards so I told him to announce them. Tough to trust the man, he's cheated before. (Note: he's a lousy cheater. he always tells us afterwards, laughing loudly about it.)

Grandaughter Emily and Grandson Aaron came to see Mom in the early evening. They sat on the bed and talked about their summer, the swimming pool, lizards, dancing and staying with their 'other' grandparents in Mansfield. It was a good conversation.

Mom was tired when I left. She was waiting on her dinner and coughed a couple times as I walked out.