Sunday Sedative

On Sunday afternoons, the kids and grandkids come home to visit. Recently, Evie and Grandpa went upstairs to watch golf. This is how I found them a half hour later. I KNEW watching golf was completely boring. It puts even the passionate players to sleep!

Succulent Wild Women

The day before my birthday, August 13th, a group of my craziest friends gathered to usher my birthday in...in our birthday suits. We figured the occasion of my 50th birthday was ripe for a Succulent Wild Woman moment, so we gathered just before midnight and had a skinny dipping party...or should I say a Chunky Dunking party.

There they are...the accused crazies. It wasn't easy to keep this group quiet enough not to wake the neighbors at midnight, but we did it. Probably the most memorable moment of my birthday! Thanks, you guys for being succulent!

Many Thanks!

A week ago Dave threw me a Big Birthday Bash to celebrate that I was still here on my 5oth birthday. I just wanted to say thanks to all my friends, family, neighbors and loved ones who came to celebrate with me. You were all so kind to remember me and help make it a true celebration. I had a great time. The food was good, the music was excellent (Fret, Fiddle and Fife--hire them if you are doing a party, a wedding, any occasion needing good music...call me, I'll give you their contact information), and the company was superb, to say the least. I'm still getting my self organized enough to write thank you notes for all the fun remembrances and gifts people left for me.

Update in Cancer World: I couldn't have chemo this week because my blood counts had all reached critical lows--meaning my white blood cells, my red blood cells, my platelets, my hematocrit..all that stuff. I have to sit around and let my body build itself back up...which means I get two weeks in a row off. I look at it as a vacation of sorts! I have a CT scan in a couple of weeks and then we'll know what the tumors are doing in there.
I read a book by Rachel Remen called KITCHEN TABLE WISDOM. In it she said "a diagnosis is just an opinion, not a prediction." I like that. I remain open to the mystery of life and the possibility of me winning the battle against cancer. Stay tuned.

Angels Sing Thee to Thy Rest

Leroy Sievers, a man I've never met, yet whom with, for three years now, I've had a daily conversation via his blog (My Cancer), died on Saturday, August 16. I sat and cried as I read his obituary online. He had an uncanny knack for putting into words the feelings of each of us dealing with cancer--The Beast he called it. I will miss his brilliant observations. Even more though, it scares me. He and I were diagnosed within a month of each other. We each received news from our doctors last fall..."six months"...He is gone now. When will it be my turn?

Leroy Sievers 1955 - 2003

Life Long Lovers
We recently had a re-shoot of family photos with my niece, Bianca. She is SUCH an artist with a camera. I can't wait to get all of the pictures, but above is a taste. See all of her work on her site http://photographybybianca.blogspot.com/. I'll let you know when more of our pictures are ready, but for now, thanks, Bianca, for capturing the essence of our relationship--33 years of life and love.

NORMAL!


My doctor called last night to tell me my CA-125 counts have dropped to 32--that's in the normal range. We are very jazzed about this news. It doesn't mean I can stop chemo (yuck and boo hoo), but it does mean the chemo is working to hold The Beast at bay. I'm a happy girl.

And speaking of happy...

next Thursday, August 14th, I will turn FIFTY. The big 5-0. Some might find this a depressing time, but I'm so glad to have made it to 50. Last October they told me six months. I'm on nine months now, and grateful for every day the Lord sends me. So...come and celebrate with us. Dave is throwing me a Birthday Bash. Wear your Red Hats. Join us on August 14th from 6:00 to 9:30 pm (an open house style so you can come and go if need be). I'm inviting everyone in the world who thinks they'd like to be there. If you want, bring some favorite goodie to share, but it's not necessary. Just come and say HI and celebrate! I'm still alive and kicking!