BLoGGiNG THe ALPHaBeT: THe LeTTeR B is for...

Working Mother's Guilt is a Beyotch. Particularly if you are like me, and LOVE your job: because then it can start to feel selfish to work. Over the years, because I enjoy what I do so much, I started to equate "work" time with "me" time and as a result, all those things that a woman is supposed to do for general maintenance fell by the wayside. I had myself thoroughly convinced, for example, that I didn't need to see the inside of a hair salon for a year at a time because my few strands of gray were working for me as natural highlights (they glittered in the bathroom lights anyway.) There was Work/Me Time and there was Home/Kids/Husband time and that was enough to fill 26 hours a day. And so I put off shoe shopping for years, never had my pores properly cleaned, and the only excercize I did regularly was stretching the truth or jumping to conclusions.

A series of excuses, a long list of things to do that lay stagnant on my desk, a packed schedule: that is how I let 2.5 years go by without a mammogram.


Boobalicious Scarf by Couturecrotchetbykt


I would not call myself a stupid woman, but ignoring the fact that every October the world turns pink in addition to black and orange is a dumb thing. So this year I finally got off my butt and scheduled the appointment and went to get my girls squished flatter than a pancake in the x-ray machine.


Celebrate the Boobies Necklace by Meganbauerie

The biggest change in the 2.5 years since I had last been was that instead of announcing the "all clear" at the end of the photo shoot, the diagnostic center has you fill in your own self addressed stamped envelope, so that they can mail you your results. I was tempted to give myself a nickname like Tatas McBoobish, but I went with my own name and a smiley face in the corner.

And when a week later, that same envelope arrived at my work, the smiley face fairly winked at me as I tore it open, humming "Thanks for the Mammories" and fully expecting to see an ALL CLEAR.


Boob Jar Set by mongo54


So I was shocked when I read that I required further testing because something had been detected. Forget about jumping from point A to point B--when you get a letter like that you jump right to Point C. And I thought about a lot of things including:

- My young children.
- My husband.
- My short life.
- My Victoria's Secret Uber Bra.
- How very much it would suck to find out you had a small lump that had grown to the size of an orange because you didn't take an hour to go get checked.
- How very much it would suck to find out you had cancer from a self addressed stamped envelope with a smiley face on it.


Sterling Silver Cufflinks By Clevergirl


Anyway Chickens, many women have had this happen and the majority of them find out that nothing is wrong, as I did. A quick sonogram and a final "all clear" and all is well. But important lessons are learned.


Boob Slippers by Kellyznaughtycrotchet

Taking care of our health is something that we do not just for ourselves, but for the people who love and need us. So if you have been like me, and not had your gums cleaned lately, or your pelvic plumbing tested, or had a man gaze into your baby blues looking for signs of glaucoma: MAKE AN APPOINTMENT TODAY.

Oh, and click HERE to give a free mammogram to someone today!