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Christmas – Chemo vacation

ByJudi Zitiello

The metallic taste and the nausea would begin the moment I thought about my upcoming chemo infusion appointment. Don’t get me wrong, Mayo does everything to make the experience relaxing and comfortable with their individual chemo suites complete with a sofa and table for a guest or two and a large smart TV complete with…

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I got a “Save the Date”

ByJudi Zitiello

Yesterday I had a CT scan as a follow up after my last appointment confirming the beast had returned…I now have pancreas cancer mets to my lungs 100% confirmed. My radiology oncologist entered the room with a piece of paper, my scan report from the radiologist. On the paper he had numbered 8 entries. Each…

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“Two Monkey”

ByJudi Zitiello

Not even certain when “two monkey” arrived. I do know he replaced “Silly Monkey’ a blue and brown monkey Jude had snuggled from birth of similar shape and size. Silly Monkey was lost somewhere along the way and fortunately we had the sock monkey ready to stand in. It was a seamless transition at one…

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Purple Stride – 2015

ByJudi Zitiello

In June, 2010 I went to cooking school in the foothills of the Appenines just south of Florence, Italy with a good foodie friend, Kelly who is here today. We prepared our meals in a 300 year-old stone barn that had been renovated into a rustic kitchen. I learned to prepare tasty meals with limited…

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Goodbye baby – hello toddler…

ByJudi Zitiello

Today I washed and put away baby bottles, cleared the counter of the bottle warmer, pacifiers. No more bottles for our little Jude….he is ONE! The pediatrician said he doesn’t need to take a bottle any longer. He weighed 21.5 lbs. and is in the 85 percentile in height. He is thriving and performing all…