I am a long time lurker, and I do recognize your name! Welcome back and sending many positive thoughts to you and your family.

Lascatx we moved the front door more for the spatial arrangement inside. When the house was built in 1905 that was all actually an open front porch. We have an old pic of the house from the early 1900s with a horse and buggy out front. The pic is from far away and it's hard to tell, but the entrance was originally in the center. In the 50s someone completely renovated and ruined the house (that's a whole thread on it's own) but they made the porch into indoor living space. It was not insulated and the floor was pitched forward on an incline with a 4 inch difference. It drove me nuts! So about 2 years ago, DH ripped it all out to insulate. We found the joists holding everything up completely rotted and a dirt floor underneath with evidence of rodents (YUCK!). So we poured concrete on the dirt floor, replaced all the floor joists and made them level and where the original entrance was, inside we made an office/4th bedroom off our dining room. It was just wasted space before being an entryway with 2 closets. In doing so my DH exposed all the original porch posts and put ceiling to floor windows in the corners. It was a HUGE undertaking for DH and we paid a friend to help to expedite the project. So we sort of restored it to what it was originally meant to look like.

Btw, I'm excited to be back here to share all the before and after photos!

What a beautiful home. You've been so busy with your home and your kids - time for yourself. My thoughts are with you and I wish you many more happy and healthy years in your home.

Best wishes, polly. I too have been around for a very long time, mostly as a reader.

Anybody remember gingerbeachy? Later I think she changed her name to Ginger St. Thomas. I believe she moved to St. Thomas and I thought her Caribbean life sounded soooo exotic and romantic. As I think about it, she may have done most of her posting on The Kitchen Table and/or Cooking.

Polly, your house is gorgeous! We are big DiYers with a slightly younger kids and house who had a cancer diagnosis mid small addition over a year ago. The addition turned out differently than orginally planned but beautiful none the less and best of all my DH is NED now!

I hope for equally great outcomes for you. Keep strong and positive. I have become a believer that positive thoughts, with great medical advances, have the power to generate positive outcomes. I will hold positive thoughts for you and your family's continued good health.

Sending positive vibes your way. Beautiful house. Welcome back.

It’s good to hear from you again, Polly! Keeping you in prayer and hoping you’ll be back posting here regularly again.

I’m a relative newcomer, but stopped by to say that I love your house and to wish you well as you journey through cancer treatment and beyond.

Polly! So nice to see your name. My prayers are with you as you fight your battle. I'm really looking forward to seeing what you have done with your home.

Your name sounds familiar. I was addicted to Kitchens around 2006-2007 so I’m sure I met you there. I finally found a new home over here but mostly on the conversation side as I’m pretty content with my ad hoc simplistic decor. I was cured of cancer when my chances of survival were less than 20%. It took one recurrence after ten years but it’s now 35 years since then and all is well. Best of luck to you.

Thanks everyone! And 3katzforme, thank you for sharing that. I'm praying once I'm done with treatments and radiation it never comes back but no matter what I won't give up. Glad to hear you beat the odds. I work in medicine and once I heard my staging I asked them not to give me statistics because it doesn't matter what they tell me, I'll still beat it.

And Roarah, glad to hear your DH is NED! Thank you for sharing.

It's so good to "see" all of you again! Since I suddenly find myself with more time on my hands it's good to find a place to come and be amongst old virtual friends!

I was just thinking you were a PA or NP or something like that. My memory isn’t what it used to be but I have these vague recollections.

One thing about stats, they are often ten years old and also lower if older people have your type of cancer because sometimes they are not able to tolerate the best treatments. DH's oncologist pointed this out to us and said that although the publish survival rates for my husband's stage and type of cancer were less than 50% his personal patients in my husbands age group had over 75% survival. He even has stage four CRC patients who have been NED for ten years, which is considered cure.

There is so much hope for us now compared to just a few years ago. You will beat this and be feeling strong again in a blink of an eye but until than take it easy and let others pamper you now and then.

CRC? Colorectal? That's what I have.

My oncologist began to give the statistics and I asked her not to. They didn't matter to me because I'm determined to survive no matter what the odds are.

And yes 3katzforme, I'm a PA, good memory!

The statistics don’t matter because you have no way of knowing if you’re on the plus side of the fence or the negative side. You just have to believe you’re on the plus side. My FIL was cured of CRC. He lived probably 20 years post diagnosis until he died of something else at age 84. You go girl!!

FYI - I think my old name was gibby2000 or something like that.

My husband has rectal cancer. They are even considering people with limited matastasis in liver and lungs as candidates for curative surgery now. It is a very treatable if not curable disease today. And the scary stats are because it is usually an older person's disease.

Some cancer centers have better cutting edge treatments for advanced stages, Dana Farber and Sloan for instance if you feel you need second opinions for treatment options. They can review your case and give your doctors the protacol to use. Also if a later stage and not responding to treatment clinical trials are extending lives and offering cure every day.

You can beat this!

edited to add, a good surgeon is crucial if you have rectal cancer and pre surgery radiation is also showing better prognostic values against reoccurances.

Mine was specifically rectal as well. I'm in NJ and sent my scans and reports to Sloan. I'm 42, and all of my initial testing staged me at Stage 1 actually. My case was discussed before a tumor board and best course of action was agreed to be surgery with ileostomy. The surgeon at Sloan agreed, but I never met with him because there was no open appointments for weeks. I adored my surgeon here in NJ and she did the entire surgery robotically, very few colorectal surgeons are qualified to do it this way. The surgery was a success, however Pathology report came back with the shock of lymph node involvement despite normal sized nodes and nothing showing involvement on the 3 scans I had prior to surgery. So my staging jumped from 1 to 3. I was crushed. I wasn't scared of chemo or anything just the fact that what we thought was caught early, very small tumor had already had the chance to spread. All I could think about was my kids.

My surgeon is phenomenal. When I was terrified and crying she hugged and reassured me I will beat this and she will do everything she can to be sure if it. My medical oncologist said the same. And again the radiation oncologist. They have been wonderful with me. They are all also focused on maintaining a good quality of life after all of this.

By the way, I had almost NO symptoms. But I ran to a GI doc for a colonoscopy after noticing the smallest amount of blood in my stool on 2 different occasions. I was diagnosed on my wedding anniversary in October. Can anyone think of a worse way to spend their anniversary? Plan on spending the next one on an island with my wonderful supportive DH celebrating life!

Now that you mention rectal my boss’ wife also had this in her 40’s. Not sure what stage but she had chemo and is doing well. It’s probably been 8-10 years.

The lymph involvement is scary and is a longer course to wellness than stage1 but not the most important prognostic indicator of aggressiveness or later spread. Venous invasion along with initial tumor size and grade is more concerning it seems in rectal cancers. Stage three has equal if not slightly better odds than stage two ironically. Most likely because stage 2 was treated as an early cancer and often only had curative surgery without radiation and thus saw more recurrences. Your odds are very good you will celebrate the next fifty anniversaries making up for this terrible one. This fog will lift before you know it.

my husbands reversal surgery went off without a hitch.

Also his onc. Recommends iodine drops in his water or coffee daily. He believes we might be seeing more incidents of CRC because we all watch our salt intake now and thus have less iodine. Who knows.

your kids will need colonoscopies at 32. And any one who is told it is just hemoroids should insist on at least a swipe if not a full colonoscopy. You did everything right! Colonoscopies save lives!

DH has multiple family members with CRC including both parents, aunt and grandmother. Fortunately he has a cousin who’s a gastroenterologist and she made sure all cousins got in for colonoscopies no matter how young they were. DH has had adenomatous polyps so has had the procedure every three years since his 40’s.

Ironically my Gyn doctor missed it a few months before I was diagnosed. I told him something was off down there but he didn't do a rectal as part of the gyn exam. I couldn't put my finger on what I felt was off until I was diagnosed and looked at it in hind sight.

I actually did have hemorrhoids that flared up when I saw the GI doc, but he agreed to scheduling me for a colonoscopy. I told him I had a really bad feeling this was going to be cancer. He later told me when patients say that calmly and don't act overly anxious they are often right.

Thank you for all of your encouragement roarah. I'm so glad your DH is doing well. I'm looking forward to joining him in the survivor's circle!

My very best wishes to you. The house is beautiful. Of course, raising children is a priority that just cannot wait so the renovation takes a back seat. And then fighting cancer becomes a priority so we get things done when we can. I look forward to seeing your accomplishments but most of all, wish you the best health ever. Yes, this gardenweb is a good place.

He’s right, it’s charming. What a welcoming place to go home to.

I remember you and your renovation project, Polly. I am glad that you stopped back to update us. All the best wishes for your continued recovery!

What a charming home, and I love that you are bringing it back to charming.

I'm glad you have returned and hope you will stick around and gather all the support -- and diversion, you need.

Welcome back! I was around when you were here and do remember you, however, I can't for the life of me remember my user name then. It changed before we migrated to Houzz. Anyway, I love your house and prayers are lifted!

Blue - you make me feel better that you can't remember your old name either.

Hi Polly! I adore that snowy photo of your home. You should make a watercolor version with an app and use it on your holiday cards!

One of my dearest friends (also in NJ) beat Stage 3 CRC about 3 yrs ago now. She is doing very well.

I'm so glad to hear that you have so many practitioners you like and trust; they truly are life savers. Hope your course of treatment goes well and you and your family can soon put this all behind you.

Mtnrdredux, if I recall correctly you used to live in Montclair? Wondering if your friend went to St. Barnabas too like me. Although I'm getting my chemo treatments in Summit.

Yes, that is right, I did. Good memory. My friend's Dr.s were at Memorial Sloan Kettering it the city, but many of her treatments were done at Basking Ridge.

I was a patient at Sloan as a teenager. Bone tumor. I didn't want the hassle of having to get there if I could get the same treatment here in NJ. I clicked with my surgeon in Livingston right off the bat and when I found out how long I'd have to wait for the appointment at Sloan I didn't go. In hindsight it was only like 3 weeks but at the time it felt like an eternity. The surgery would've been done the same there as I had with my surgeon in NJ. Since I'm a PA I asked 2 surgeon colleagues who they would go to if it were their wife and they both recommended the surgeon I used so I felt like I would be getting a top surgeon. And when I met with her I realized quickly how amazing she was. I feel the same way about my oncologist and radiation oncologist. I'm going in between health systems for care just for the doctors.

StB is fabulous, as you know. I totally agree about not having to schlep into NYC if not necessary.

I think keeping stress at a low and acting quickly with doctors you feel safe with is key to healing! It sounds like you are in good hands.

My oncologist just told me I'm her favorite patient. I'm sitting in the treatment chair right now. She said I'm always smiling and I do everything I'm supposed to do for the side effects.

After working in NICU for 19 years, I've learned that even on our darkest days staying positive will get you through.

If anyone has ever seen the last lecture, it has always stuck with me. I'm definitely a Tigger. My kids will actually say when they're grumpy, "do you ALWAYS have to be a tigger mom?" Lol!

Polly - bone tumor - I knew there was something else about you that clicked with me back in the day. That's what I had too - mine was Ewing's Sarcoma.

Oh my goodness yes, now I remember you! And yes your name was different and now I remember why I remembered you. Somehow my name has been the same all these years.

Welcome back, I definitely remember you! I have been with Gardenweb 15 - 16 years, although my name was different on the old site and much of the time the time I have primarily been a lurker. Over the years I received tremendous help from many other members when I remodeled my kitchen and a bathroom, as well as updating rooms in my last home. Agree that there are and have been a great group of people on this site, I feel blessed landing here when I was searching for help to remove stubborn wallpaper. So sorry to hear that you are having to deal with with CRC, will keep you in my prayers,

Welcome back, Polly. You have my thoughts and prayers as you battle cancer. Your home is lovely.

Polly I’ve been thinking about your gyno failing to do a rectal exam. A rectal exam is what caught my father’s cancer early. I hope all who follow this will ask for a rectal exam as part of a yearly physical. It is so important. Does your gyno know about your situation?

Welcome back! I do remember you and your house and I'm so sorry for the health woes. You have a great attitude though. My college friend in her late 30's have been battling this too and she was stage 3 as well. She's now in remission, but still recovering from her treatments. I think your attitude is going to help you a lot too in this battle.

I've been here on and off since the late 90's. Depends on how busy life is and also if I need to escape. I'm not a big poster though. I mostly read unless I feel like I have something to add that hasn't already been said or I'm one of the earlier posters.

I think the last of your posts I remember is from your bathroom remodel. I still wonder what you ended up doing there. Maybe you posted it and it was during the time I wasn't around.

I remember that project? Gorgeous.

ETA it is so odd how your name is vaguely familiar, but i totally recall that lovely BA!

Beautiful!! Fits really well with the house too.

Polly! I’m late to this party, but I was so happy to see your post. I want to welcome you back, send a warm (((hug))) your way and to tell you to keep those positive thoughts going. They aren’t for not. It was my mother’s positive thinking that got her through colon cancer in the early 90’s when the odd’s were against her. My husband has been in remission from a cancer that has no cure for 5 years and is going strong and you will be ok too.

Sending positive thoughts and prayers your way. And your house looks so pretty, btw.