Genetic Testing

So Monday is the big day. We are going to Tulsa to meet with the geneticist and start the process. They will counsel us, draw blood, get all the family history and send everything to the lab. I am feeling totally at peace and am ready to find out. I have found out that the testing will be made easier since a cousin has had the test I am able to use those results and they will be able to get the testing done a little quicker ( and hopefully cheaper) so we know what to do now. It should take a couple of weeks and then I should find out if I carry the BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene. We will then move on and figure out what to do. I am okay with either outcome and am just ready to be able to take some action. I would appreciate the thoughts and prayers going up. I am just praying that whatever should happen will happen. I know that after this there will be many choices and decisions to make. I will keep everyone updated and will tell ya'll what is going on!

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Dove hunting opens up September 1st so I will be thinkin of ya while I am out shooting dove... I plan my vacation around hunting and we are gonna be setting up some tree stands while I am off and we have a couple of days together. Happy hunting to all of you who get to start your seasons!!!

Writers Workshop - Hi, My name is...

Hi, my name is Alisha and I am an empowered woman… I know most of you are saying “I know that you are a woman” but keep reading and you will understand. Outdoor Summit issued a challenge and I was more than willing to take them up on it. I found out about the challenge from a good friend Rick who tells a wonderful story about his friend. I had been reading about The Fat Cyclist and his wife's fight and then Mama Kat listed her prompts and everything just fell together! This is about breast cancer and bringing it to the forefront and making us all think about it once again...

Breast cancer has been a part of my life since I was a year old. Actually it was a part before I was born but we will start there. My mother found a lump when I was a year old and everything, for me at least, started there. My mother had a single mastectomy, among numerous other surgeries at the same time, and chemo. She was "cancer free" for a year before her hip started hurting. This whole time my mom continued as a nurse and was raising a small child. After doing some tests they found that it had metastasized into her bones. She refused the chemo at that time but once it was moving into other organ she did the chemo again. I have a friend of my mother's who told me the other day that *I* was the reason that she fought so hard. After 4 1/2 years my mother lost her battle but not without putting up a huge fight and impacting me in the process.

My grandmother (mothers mom) was diagnosed about4 years later and fought for two years. She lost her battle a year after my grandfather died of a massive heart attack.

My Aunt Teanne (mothers sister) was diagnosed and fought. She wanted to be able to last for me get married and she succeeded. She fought for a couple of years as well and passed a month after Matt and I got married. Although she didn't get to come to the wedding, her sons were there and I sent back many thoughts and prayers to her. She didn't tell us how bad she was and then I got a phone call all of a sudden that she was gone.

After looking at all these women in my family I took everything into consideration and started the procedures that I needed for early detection. I have mammograms every year, even though my insurance won't pay for it. We have kept me double covered with insurance so that if something does come up we can take care off it. I don't say that these things have been done easily, it has taken some commitment on our part and sacrifices. There are times that I am frustrated and worrying about money since we have had to spend it on insurance or paying the medical co-pays, but I always bring myself back to the big picture of prevention. I had an MRI done in April and was thankful that we had both insurances because we ended up after the fact with no out of pocket ( I got a check back from them).

In April, about the same time, I have a friend who was diagnosed with lung cancer. She beat breast cancer almost five years ago and now is faced with another battle. This spurred me to take further action and start looking up testing and prophylactic mastectomy options. I also was able to get my mother's medical records, after a short battle, and found out that My great grandmother on my mom's side had also had breast cancer. This makes it my great grandmother, my grandmother, my mother and an aunt. These are all on my Mother's side of the family.

I began talking with my Doctor I made a decision that some have questioned. I am having genetic testing done on August 31st. It could take up to two months to get results but I am excited about it. I am a planner so I have two plans of action in my mind of what we will do. Matt and I have sat down and talked about the different options and what we both feel comfortable with. We are going to look toward the future, with no fear, and plan for our life that we will build together. This is only made possible though through both of our strength and agreeing on the options. Early detection is the best key for taking care of the problem and I want to live to see my babies grow up. I want to see all the things that my mom didn't get to see. Opposition to my decision has said that I am playing God but why would we have this amazing technology if it wasn't for God????? I would appreciate any prayers that could go up in this time in our lives.

I have done the research and will not be another statistic, I will be me....

Head over to Mama Kat's and see what else is being said!!!

Buckmasters shooting competition

I have spoken about my new bow that I got about 6 months ago. I got it from Tempy's and they guys there are wonderful. They are competing today at the Buckmasters bow competition. I am excited and can't wait to hear how they have done. They are here, third row down, Rob Chubb and Tyler Chubb. We are all wishing them well. I will update you guys on how they are doing!!!

Writers Workshop - My trip to the ER

My first and only time that I remember going to the ER was last September. I had been diagnosed as having pneumonia and bronchitis on Tuesday and had been off work. I decided that I was going to go back to work on Thursday--- wrong choice! I got short of breath needless to say, I went back home. I was driving home and Lisa called me to stop by her house. I stopped by and she had spoken to her doctor and had something for me to try. I did two breathing treatments and was still lethargic sitting on her couch. I went home, took my couch syrup and took a nap. We don't have a door bell so I was awakened by the girls barking and then realized there was banging on the door. I got up and went to the door and Lisa was standing there, saying "okay I am taking you into the ER". I had wore a dark color shirt and Roxy is white so I was trying to brush hair off of me. As we were driving in I found out that Matt, Lisa and Karen were all talking while I was napping deciding what to do about me. I got my bracelet sat waiting to be taken back. I finally got into the back and was laying down and then I heard it--Karen's voice.

Now I need to interject here some family history. Matt is my wonderful husband. Here's where it gets interesting!! Lisa is my mother in law. Karen is my mother in law. I know that you are going to read this a couple of times and start wondering. We are a conservative family so there is nothing too strange going on. My husband father has been married a few times and Karen was the first wife and Matt's mom and Lisa is the third. Alot of people wonder if we are sisters since she is five years older than myself. We have fun with it and that day was no exception.

So back to the story.... I am laying there and they decide to take me to get chest x-rays. The nice nurse who was wheeling me back asked me " Is that your mother and sister?" I kinda giggled and said " Actually they are both my mother in laws." I explained that Karen was Matt's mom and that Lisa was his present wife. I let this sink in while she was taking the x-ray. As she was wheeling me back I dropped the bombshell. "Today is my brother in laws first birthday." I actually got her stopped on that one! I then had to explain that I had a sister in law who was almost 4 and a brother in law who was turning one!!!! So when she got me back they waited for the x-ray and told me I was going to have to change meds and gave me a slew of prescriptions. I got chauffeured to Walgreen's and then home to sleep. But the funniest time of September 25, 2008 was explaining my husband's wonderful blended family!!!!

Go over to Mama Kat's and check everyone else out!!!

Hunting - Quality VS. Quantity

September 1st is the opening day for dove season here in Oklahoma and I am pumped. I plan my vacation around the season so that I can go hunt during that time and we have a blast. We have permission to hunt some fields that are close to the house and they are fields that aren't hunted much so we always seem to get a limit. We have another couple that we go out with and have a blast!

As I was looking over the regulations and just refreshing myself on what they were I got to thinking about our mentality towards wildlife. In Oklahoma you have a limit of 7 deer. I need to double check with Matt but between our archery season, primitive season, gun season and then a bonus holiday season we have a decent limit. The population in Oklahoma is thriving, almost too much, so they have increased some of the limits. But my question to us is although we can shoot that many deer, should we?

The first couple of years that Matt and I were married the only way that we lived was the fact that we had deer meat. We process the deer ourselves so our cost involved is the gas to drive, the ammo, paper to wrap the meat, and basically the time. We then take some and have it ground but we spend no more the whole season on what a person would spend on processing fees for one deer and this is multiple deer! We still cook with deer constantly and love the flavor as well as the fact that it is a lean healthy meat. I make jerky and chili in huge quantities and they never last long.

This is the question that I am looking at, with Matt and I both hunting we could shoot over a dozen deer. That seems a bit much to me. We have gotten to where we set a limit that we would like to reach between the two of us and hope that we reach it. I use the ground meat for anything that I would use ground beef. I cut the steak up and make some wonderful fajitas and have used the roast smoked before. We use every bit of meat that we can and are thankful for the deer. Society today has a mentality of "Gimme gimme gimme" and we always want more than what we really need. This is depleting out assets and is actually hurting the quality of deer.

Matt has set a standard of what he would like to shoot in his next buck. He wants a wall hanger for our house so won't shoot a buck unless it meets his standards. The reason that he is doing this though is to allow the population to grow and become those beautiful bucks that we all want to shoot. We hunt on land that his grandfather owns and they have shot what they needed for food in the past. We now know how much we need and set a limit for ourselves. They put corn in feeders and have been able to watch the population so they know what deer are where. There are a few bucks that are making amazing growth and changes in the last couple of years. I can't wait to see them continue to mature. Since I still haven't gotten to shoot a deer the boys are bit more lenient with me on what I can shoot. They both want me to get that first one down, but having to work the weekends like I do can make it hard and my vacation has to be taken all at once it limits my days. Matt takes days off specifically around hunting season. (It was a pain wonderful trying to figure out what days were okay for us to get married on!!!) This allows him more time in the woods than me but I will get that deer soon!

I am just wanting to bring it forward all our minds that in order for us to have the beautiful quality deer that we want we must watch our quantity that we take. This doesn't just go for deer either, this is for any hunting or fishing that we do. They must be allowed to grow and mature to be those wall hangers that we all want.

Jeff Bates was amazing!!!! & Deer Fajitas

First off, the concert Friday was amazing!!! I got to touch Jeff Bates twice!!! The show was wonderful and the crow was quite big. He sang a couple new songs and I can't wait until I can buy them. I finally got a shirt and a friend took it into the meet & greet and got it signed for me. I had such an amazing time and Matt was a good sport about it. I even got him home early enough for him to get some decent sleep before going fishing early in the morning!

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After getting home we heard about a tragedy that happened in the community and talked about it for a while. The next morning I called Lisa and we talked for a while and then I got a phone call back from her. Matt's great grandma had fallen the night before and had been taken to the nursing home. No one had been notified though. I called his mother and then took off to go the 25 minute drive to get to the hospital. We found out that her son didn't fill out and return all the appropriate paperwork to the assisted living facility, so they had no contact numbers to call anyone on. This is the same son who is pushing everyone to get their stuff out so that they can sell the house. Needless to say, I was upset and Matt was as well. She has two black eyes, a big gash on her head, the left side is swollen and the blood is draining from the fall so it is going all down her face and neck. They are releasing her from the hospital and sending her back to the assisted living facility with some additional help. I know that the thought is hard but it is coming down to quantity vs. quality of life. I know where she is going and just hope for her that she doesn't have to suffer much longer. Some prayers sent up would be nice.

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Last night I made some fajitas and they were so good! The only thing missing was deer. We always make our fajitas with deer but I didn't have any thawed so I picked up some chicken on the way home. Two bell peppers, one large onion (or two medium onions) and the meat of your choice. Throw some oil, water and a season packet and let it marinade. If you don't have a season packet throw in some salt, pepper, season salt and garlic powder. It is suppose to marinade for 15 minutes but I was running late on time so I threw everything in a pan and then sprinkled the seasonings over and threw a little bit of water in there. Cook for about 15ish minutes covered. Then serve up hot!!! I found a block of white cheese dip with jalapenos and that is what got this whole thing started! I had cheese dip, guac, salsa to have with chips and then the fajitas. Wonderful dinner and I can't wait to have the leftovers for lunch!!!!