monday was presidents day, and also ultrasound day. back to the bing center, back to the white spa robe, back to the goopy ultrasound gel. this time condoleeza (right breast) was getting the examination, out of precaution. i thought nothing of it for 99.9% of the time, from referral through results. only one moment, during the exam, did i think, whoa, if this is another cancer, this is a huge problem. approximately four times during the ultrasound, the tech stated, "you have REALLY dense breasts." which i already knew, and still never know how to respond to the observation. yep? thanks? i KNOW, right? it's always a little weird. anyway, the radiologist confirmed that the area dr. h noticed was a cyst, and that i just have fibrocystic breast tissue. which i suspect means more ultrasounds in the future than most people? good times.

the rest of the day was some shopping, some laundry, and some packing. packing for what, you might ask? well, i had decided that since i was going to be mostly cooped up post-surgery, and had been pretty tethered to columbus for the past 12 weeks of chemo, it would be good to get out of town and into some sunshine. some slightly last minute plans were arranged a couple of weeks ago to visit my old friends heather and bj, out near las vegas. when you're living through february in the midwest, the desert seems like a good option.

so tuesday we both went to work, left a little early, had a quick dinner, and packed up for nonstop flight. drove through little to no traffic, shuttled in from the long term parking lot, checked our bag, got through security. all was well until about an hour before boarding, when our flight was delayed from 7:40p to 8:59p. booooo. but the plane at least showed up, and after a very quick boarding process, we were on our way in seats 2D and 2F. we landed at the las vegas airport and were surprised at the amount of people in Terminal A. at 8:00p in columbus, most everything was already shut down in Terminal B on a tuesday night. not so in vegas... people everywhere and slot machines ahoy at 11:00p. we took in all the neon, got our bag, and ordered our first uber. after dumping our stuff in the guest bedroom, we chatted briefly with heather, then tumbled into bed just after midnight.

so Week 26 was mostly spent in the las vegas area, with sunny 60 degree weather and good friends. there were visits to a cactus garden, grocery shopping (andy's favorite), red rock canyon, hoover dam, and the las vegas strip. it was good to be outside, walking and hiking in the sun. much of the time was spent catching up, learning each other's new rhythms of life, enjoying dance parties with the kids, and just sort of chilling out. it was a nice respite from the cold and from appointments and a welcome visit to new lands and old friends.

today was recovering from a red-eye flight, unpacking, and figuring out what time it is. tomorrow, it's back to doctors and appointments and my last full week pre-surgery. it doesn't quite feel real yet, but i'm sure that will come. let's do this.