Guat's up?

Hi everyone!!
Guat's up? Clever Guatemalan merchandise slogan probably geared towards us Americans. My favorite though... Guatever! Of course, said with attitude.

So much paperwork :o)

Well... I returned from Guatemala last Sunday night. It was amazing! We worked out of an established medical clinic, and our team did a total of 70 surgeries during the week. Awe-sooomme! All of the children were beautiful, and the families were so grateful and appreciative. Even if the surgery was only for a hernia, they would thank us as if we were saving their lives. Many of the Mayan families have limited access to medical care... not to mention the financial restraints. Makes one realize how fortunate we are in the States. And not to mention how lucky we are as nurses. It was all old school paperwork... none of the high tech computer stuff that I'm spoiled with.

The food was good... and I'm a picky eater. Sometimes... the presentation wasn't the best though... check out the beans that came with my breakfast one day.

Fan dance

The weather: perfect. Warm during the day, but not unbearable. Unless you were working in a small space without ventilation. Here's Christine celebrating our fan's arrival after 2 long work days.  The mornings and nights, on the other hand, were just a little chilly.

Antigua, Guatemala

After a long work week, we headed to Antigua which is an old colonial city and absolutely beautiful. Being surrounded by the mountains and with the clouds so low, you feel like you are closer to Heaven. Perhaps that's why my prayers have been answered, and my scans this past week show that my cancer is stable and/or shrinking. Yay! Although I would love for it to be 100% clear, I'll take it! I'm taking my cues from my doctors, so if they are excited, so am I. So... I didn't need any chemo this week. Our current plan is wait and rescan late September. Fingers will remain crossed, and please keep the prayers coming :o).

I met a lot of great people both at the clinic and within the CHOP team. They are a fun, welcoming group of people whose energy never ceased to amaze me. If i looked better in the blue hats and if i didn't already have a home in oncology, I would definitely want to work with them in the surgery area.

Querido Junior

Lots of love to all of them and to all of Guatemala.
Don't cry. I'll miss you too.
little lisa lollipop

Antigua

Go Green Team!