Oncologist today!

Pizza bread with cream cheese, cinnamon, and honey for breakfast!

I had an appointment with the Oncologist today for blood work, port flush, and to talk about what the Dr. from Vanderbilt said. Of course as always, my blood work was great except for the liver enzymes. I explained to him about BCBS changing their tune on coverage and I needed to go to someone around here. I suggested one I looked up and he knew him and so he was going to call and speak to him. After leaving his nurse called and asked if I could go the the hospital in the morning, that the Doctor could do it then. Okay! She said they would call back about the times and all. Yea, okay, like that happened. So three hours later I call to see what was going on, the nurse said that it was sent to the checkout desk for scheduling. So five minutes before they close, my wife calls again! Scheduling said the other Dr.'s office was having phone problems and they would call her back....nothing! Now the Oncologist told me he spoke to the other Doctor and that he would do it in the morning. So where does that leave me? Hum, good question, only everyone is gone and there is no one to check with. So I call the hospital to see if they had anything scheduled, well, by then the scheduling department was closed and the recording said to call during regular business hours, goodbye, and that was that. So here I am living in limbo, OMG!

Non of the CT's from before ever mentioned the second tumor of size, so that was new to the Oncologist too! I told him the Doctor at Vandy more less said there wasn't really anything I could do that would be of any benefit because of the number of tumors and on both sides of the liver. He called back later again to tell me my cancer markers went from 29.4 or 24.9, I don't remember, to 42.6. Normal is 0-3! they haven't been that high since I had the original tumor in Louisiana! And again was told the Doctor was going to do the EUS in the morning, and that the checkout desk was working on it. That was around four, and we know how that went already!

Then I get home and I have a bill from the GI I saw before going to Vanderbilt. Now they charged me the co-pay before anything. The bill showed the co-pay, and said I owed a balance of 115.00. So once again my wife calls BCBS to see if it was or wasn't filed with them. Well it was, but they sent it back because it had the wrong code. Guess they jumped the gun instead of resubmitting the bill and billed me. Well, kudos to BCBS for this one, they said they will straighten it out tomorrow. Am I being tested or what. I guess I need to be because I was letting it get to me. I should know better, but when you are tired and sick, it is easy to forget to leave it in God's Hands and walk away! Guess I should be thankful for the test since I needed it as a reminder!

I mustered all my energy to make more pizza dough since I used the last one for pizza bread. Got it done and everything cleaned though. Here are some pics from the last couple of days...I just couldn't bring myself to blog. I am forcing it now, but surviving, lol!

Homemade Ketchup, and mustard!

Hot dogs and mozzarella added.

One good looking and tasting Hot Dog Pizza!

Oh,yum!

Homemade Pizza Bread. And some great only 4 ingredient cream cheese I got on sale at Publix for $0.30!

Smeared some on the bread, sprinkled cinnamon and drizzled honey...heaven! 

Baked Brown Rice Ziti with mozzarella, ricotta, Parmesan and sliced up Hot Dog. And yes, it was delicious!

Todays Pizza Dough!

Another pizza bread for dinner, it was so good the other day at breakfast!

Don't the bread look good! 

Made a cream cheese honey and cinnamon spread this time.
Was a great dinner!

Well thanks for stopping by and reading my blah, blah, blog! Love you all, many Blessings, Mike P.

On the Roll today, Hot Dog Roll, that is!

Tired and sore today, such a little wimp, I am! Of course with all my health things going on, I finally caught the cold two days ago everyone else in the house has had. I know, I have to much wine and not enough cheese to go around. My wife said she is going to hire someone to play the violin, then maybe I won't wine so much!

Made another delicious Tomato and Basil Pizza for lunch. 

For dinner I made myself a Hot Dog Roll, well, to eat that is, I didn't actually turn myself into a Hot Dog Roll! I used some Cheddar and Mozzarella cheeses, two sliced up Applegate Hot Dogs, Spicy brown mustard, Some homemade ketchup, and just a little dill relish. Wrapped it all in a pizza dough and baked at 475 for 12 minutes! Pretty tasty!

I suppose people are getting tired of my posts, they do seem to be pretty much the same. I had asked in an earlier post if anyone had any requests for any of my recipes or such, help me out a little, lol! Not to many views anymore. Oh well, it gives me something to do anyhow!

For those who do read...thank you for following me, taking suggestions, lol! God Bless and good night to you all, Mike P.

Okay, maybe I pushed a little to much today! No pain, no gain?

My little flower girl!

Harper Picked a flower to wear in her hair while on a short walk in front of the house! She just loves the outdoors!

Look how nice my Grandson looked today. He had to do an oral presentation on George Gershwin.

He redid it for us at home, and I must say he did very good!

Had to make pizza dough again today. Of course my little helper had to help, lol. I hand her all the ingredients and she puts them on the table. I measure them out and she puts them in the bowl. Then she dumps everything in the mixer for me! Makes twice as much work, but she enjoys helping her Pop!

The Old Buzzard and the Little Princess Cooking Show! Hum, call Food Network, lol! Gotta make those memories while you can.

My lunch today, Tomato and Basil with Feta and Mushrooms!

Now for the pushing to hard and overdoing it part! Yes against my better judgement I went ahead and mowed my yard, my daughters yard, and our elderly neighbors yard for the first time this year. It wasn't an easy task to say the least! Completely ruined me for the day, but I still managed to cook dinner for my Grandson, daughter and me. I don't know how I am even doing the blog tonight. I didn't do one last night because I was feeling so bad, and now I feel worse , but here I am. Talk about being Italian and backwards, lol!

Got to edge the driveway!

And edge along the road. I built that little corner post, lol!

My neighbors yard!

Well, I going to go to bed now, I am very, very fatigued and hurting a little! At least the yards look nice!

Thank you to those of you who have returned to follow up on me! I appreciate you all! May God bestow many Blessings upon you all! Thanks again, Mike P.

Well, looks like I have been had again!

My lunch....Tomato and Basil!

I still hadn't heard from Vanderbilt about seeing the other Dr. there for the EUS. so my wife calls BCBS to see what is happening with it. They say they have no request to see that Dr. as of yet. Okay, I am sitting at home suffering this whole time, wondering how long I will last like this! Well, maybe I am a little dramatic about it, but here is the kicker. They say we just show that you are approved to see the Liver Specialist through the end of the year....ready for the kicker now...approved for OUT OF NETWORK VISITS. Uhm, hello. The whole reason was to get approval for in network because we cannot afford the mounting medical bills already. 

She says the approval department says in network, but the letter they got back says out of network, and we have to go by the letter. So my question is....IS EVERYTHING A SCAM! Question answered I guess! Thanks alot....back to square one!

Anyhow, on a lighter note, I am getting ready to eat something to take my pills with! I made a Pizza with Pineapple, Cinnamon, Honey and Ricotta! I am sure that will make everything go away,  wait, wait, not my readers too, lol!

 

Love you all, thanks for letting me clear my chest! Wishing everyone a Blessed night! Mike P.

Me and Harper picking up where we left off yesterday morning. LOL!

Some things never change, lol! Always tired anymore! Can't say we don't have our bonding time!

Mixed some tart cherries and honey with some delicious ricotta my daughter brought me for my breakfast this morning....so I could take my pills.

For lunch I made the below scrumptious Pineapple, Ricotta, Honey drizzle and Cinnamon Pizza! My wife wanted pineapple chunks but grabbed the wrong can. Naturally, me being as kind as I am, said I would use it. So happy she made the mistake. See, something good always comes out of a bad situation, and believe me, it was good. 

Did I eat the whole thing you ask, (snicker,snicker) well sure I did. It reminded me of a song...Lovin every minute of it! Oh my, I am just full of humor today! Well, and Pizza!

Since I had the oven on, I went ahead and cooked another pizza dough bread. With half I made a Smoked Mozzarella, Roasted Red pepper and spicy brown mustard sandwich. I saved the other half to toast and put honey on for my meal tonight so I could take my Meds. Didn't get any sandwich pics, you know when you get old the mind is the first thing to go! Apparently, mine packed up and moved out. The upside is, nothing is there to rattle any more! 

Posting these pics just made me hungry all over again.

I wish BCBS would hurry up and approve or turn down another trip to Vandy so I can get something resolved. Everyday I feel weaker and weaker, but at least I still got my sense of humor, even if it is a bad one!

Well, wishing everyone a good and restful night, many Blessings your way, Mike P.

Drooling, and not over food pics, lol!

What started out as this, turned into.....

this. And that was about an hour or two after getting up!

At least my wife was kind enough to wipe the DROOL off of our faces before snapping the pic! Thanks Dear! Since I have been having the bile duct issues, I am like this all the time! Sometimes going to bed two or three times a day! Harper has a cold so she zonked out with her Pop. She was out for a couple of hours, man my shoulder was sore, and her head was on my port the whole time!

This is becoming a familiar scene also! When I am up doing things, I sometimes have to sit for a while in between. Here I was too tired to wait to take a pizza out of the oven, so the chair was a welcomed fixture! And of course Harpie had to be there with me...I created a monster!

I finished the delicious cheesecake pizza for breakfast this morning with several cups of coffee! I have to take some meds with food in the morning and then at night, which works out great for me...another excuse to eat, oh yea! I had a Roasted Red Pepper Pizza for lunch and cooked a pizza dough bread for my dinner while I was at it!

                                   

I actually prefer the pizza bread better than the sub rolls. I like the crispy crust and chewiness of it better. Plus I can use the same dough for everything. I even made sugar free cinnamon rolls with it last week. I used honey and cinnamon, and after baking, I drizzled it with more honey! Next time I may drizzle chocolate ganache over them! I never took pics of them, someone ate them before I could! It might have been me, but I will never tell!

I thank you for coming back, many blessings your way, God Bless, Mike P.  Hope to see you again soon!

Look at the talent my helper has!

Pot Cheese from Cottage Cheese. Cheesecake Pizza from the Pot Cheese. Pink Sauce from the drainage!

Pot cheese is basically a dry version of Cottage Cheese. You put your cottage cheese in a sieve, put a bowl or something like it that has room to push the cheese down to keep weight on it while it drains. I put a 28 can of tomatoes in the bowl for my weight. I then covered everything with a large plastic food bag. You could use plastic wrap also. Let it sit 2-4 hours in frig. if you need it the same day. I let mine sit overnight. Make sure you have room between the sieve and the drain bowl so the sieve doesn't sit in the liquid. I put the sieve over an empty bowl, then used the back of a tablespoon to push the cheese curds through the sieve, making a fine smoother cheese. This cheese is great for Lasagna and Ravioli filling as well because it is drier and won't be as runny!

I drizzled a little honey over the top before baking! I baked it about 15-18 minutes on 400.

Oh, it was so good just plain. Naked Cheesecake Pizza, without toppings that is. I did stir in some cocoa nibs for a little flavor to the filling also!

 I saved the liquid to use for Pink Sauce. I made Spaghetti with Roasted Red Peppers and Mushroom, the Pink Sauce and Smoked Mozzarella. Just take the liquid and add three or four tablespoons of pizza sauce, some extra spices and grated cheese. Put it in the pot with some drained spaghetti and whatever additions you want to add, I topped mine with the Smoked Mozzarella and let it heat through...and Walla, delisioso Spaghetti!

 I reserved some for a Pink Sauce for Pizza too! My waistline says they were both awesome!

I just love a Crispy crust and so does my Granddaughter! The sauce really gave this cheese pizza it's own taste, a good one at that. So the moral of the story is, don't waste the liquid from draining Cottage or Ricotta cheeses!

I guess this blog is a little backwards! I am putting my breakfast last...hahaha! I took a Pizza dough out of the fridge and stretched it into an oblong shape, covered it with plastic wrap and let it sit out for about an hour. I cooked it at 500 for the first 5 minutes on middle rack then lowered the temp to 375 and cooked another ten minutes or so! Sliced it in half while still warm, then drizzled honey on it! They say...Man cannot live by bread alone, so I put the honey, lol! it was soooo good. The inside was soft and sweet from the honey and the outside was crispy and crunchy...the best of both worlds!

I got all cleaned up and decided to reminisce a little, so I put on my Peach Festival Tee shirt I got when I went back to Ruston, La. to help out as a volunteer for the festival. My wife and I both volunteered. That is where it was found that I had cancer, and actually had the tumor removed at Northern Louisiana Hospital. Gotta say Thanks to Judi and Randal Null for their great hospitality, and the one responsible for the check-up that helped find the cancer. And a big thanks to Judy Copeland and Ivana Flowers from the Chamber of Commerce for all they had done for me while I was on my cross country walk!

If you are ever in or around Ruston during the time of the festival, you must go!

Okay, bored yet, lol! I will go and let you all off the hook for now. Many Blessings to you all, 

Mike P.