Merry Christmas to All

This season has been great for me in many ways. First my neighborhood decided that instead of exchanging neighbor gifts that we would get together and donate to the local food bank instead. Can I say that I have the best neighbors to think of this? So not only did we not have to waste time and money to get all of the neighbors things, we also did not have to be tempted with all sorts of treats this year. Second, the leader of our local church encouraged those who attend to focus on service this year and set a congregation goal of 8,000 acts of service. Each member was asked to do 40 acts individually. So not only did I not have to buy gifts for people (I admit I did not even to cards this year but took all of that money and donated it) but it was a service-centric season as well.

This really is what this season is about. Christmas is the celebration of the birth of Christ. Hanukkah is the celebration of a miracle of light. Kwanzaa is the celebration of family, community and culture. I am noticing that none of these is a celebration of food and presents. While these are important cultural elements of these holidays, the real meanings can sometimes get lost in the shopping and baking. This year our family did not put up a Christmas Tree, but rather put up all of the nativity sets we have (this was a health decision because of Mom's treatments not to a hum bug) and it has been nice to be able to focus the story and meaning of Christmas. Christmas has long been a family favorite holiday and it is nice to remember why.

And so though its been said many times, many ways, Merry Christmas to you!

A blog post with 3 possible titles

This blog post had three possible titles, so I chose none of them. However they were going be to: "Hey guys, Chad fell down" OR "My boggart would be ice" OR "Hello, I'm Stephanie and I am a faller (Hi Stephanie)"

Alright I really am not super clumsy, however I seem to fall in the winter. Two years ago my visiting teaching companion and I were walking to visit teach one of our ladies and I hit a patch of black ice and went down. I hit my knee and cracked my knee cap which was fixed by surgery. A few weeks of physical therapy and I was as good as new.

Last night I was walking out of my office and had my hands full of things I was taking home when I hit a slick spot on our sidewalk and went down on the same knee ... might I mention my boss saw it happen? Mike came out and collected me, brought me back in and helped me get cleaned up, then walked me out to my car as if I were a grandmother so I would not fall again. I really am fine but I woke up this morning feeling like someone beat me up. I am so paranoid of falling now, more so than I was before. So I went home and my sweet mom took care of me: brought me dinner, brought me water, brought me pain meds, watched Freaky Friday with me (the old one with Jodie Foster, ah good times!) and laughed at all of the right times.

So Hi, my name is Stephanie, and I am a faller.

Deep Thoughts ... by Starbuck

If you want to know why your hair does interesting things shave it off and watch it grow back.

Too Organized?!?!

I never thought I would say this (and my planner is weeping in the corner) but this morning I decided I am too organized sometimes. I am not talking about my room, mind you (my mother chuckles) but my life over all. So here is the deal. I love to be organized, to be in charge, and to be informed of what is going on at all times; I do not like surprises. This week I received news that some early information I was given about school and my graduation dates were wrong. Sad sad me. When things like this happen I get into hyper organization mode and my desk and office usually thank me for it. So this week I have had to come up with a new game plan to finish 21 elective credits in school to complete in time to graduate in June as planned. Well this morning I was in the shower ... wait before I go on, do not me alarmed, I shall not be too graphic, I laugh now at how amusing I feel this is ... and I typically soap my body and rinse, then wash my hair, then wash my face and rinse again. Well as I was rinsing off my hair I actually had this thought: "If you wash your hair first, then wash your body, and lastly wash your face you will only have to rinse off one time thus alleviating the cross contamination washing your hair might have on your already clean body and you can probably save time in the shower." Shame on me!! I love a good hot shower and I was actually trying to organize how I can be more effective in the shower and cut time. That being said, events of this day have required me to shower 3 times (don't ask) and the last time I just stood under the hot water and wasted as much time as I could!

Dear shower I will never try to organize you again!

Two videos of ONE

Two videos from the party. Also I rediscovered that my phone will talk things that I type into a note. So since I had laryngitis I typed the happy birthday song to Ains and she loved it! She is so advanced...

One One One

My niece Ains turned ONE last Friday. The party was awesome!! Here is the birthday girl all pretty in Aunt Stephanie's favorite color: pink. It was a pink princess party!!I did not get the memo of the pink, so I wore black, which is the new pink now that green is so last season! (sorry Jules)

Ains with Mom and Dad.

The princess party decorations. Kate took a cup for each person and wrote our name on it so we had Princess Stephanie, Princess Brad, Princess Colleen, Princess Mom, Princess Pat (LOL) etc... Also Barry decorated the cake, we are so proud!

How cute is this kid?

Ains has started to tickle people. Here she is getting Mom's head.

Also she started walking a few weeks ago, and now she just runs everywhere she goes.

Getting ready for cake. Colleen brought a portable booster chair and they just put Ains up on the counter...
Gave her a slice of cake, a little ice cream, and then the fun happened.
Seriously, this is the face of a princess!
Right right, I know proud auntie. I cannot wait for Lottie's first birthday. It is right around the time when Kate and Pat are expecting little William Kyle (Liam for short) but I will call him Bud. Kate is due May 14, and L's bday is May 5.

Watch for the vidoes tomorrow of her eating cake!!

A Taste of Chicago ... in Utah

A post from a sister missionary I met in Chicago made me realize I had not posted publicly two places I have found in Utah that I love!!!

First for a GREAT Chicago Dog visit Johnny Beefs in the Fort Union shopping center by Wal-Mart. The Chicago Dog is kosher beef with all the fixins. I have had a good one at the Bee's ball park too. This is the only thing I like mustard on.

Second is Chicago Pizza. Sweet Home Chicago Pizzeria is in Draper. They have the best stuffed pizza I have had in a long time. Stuffed pizza done right is layered with the cheese on the bottom, the toppings, and then the sauce on top. Yum! Thin crust pizza is done there too and cut like in Chicago... in squares. The salads are great, even the Chicago Dog is good. The pizzas are BIG and so yummy!

The next place I am going to try is Big Apple Pizza in Midvale in hopes that it mimics the pizza in New York!

All I am saying is

For a person who loves to talk laryngitis is a nightmare; speaking of nightmares I had one last night that someone broke into my house; speaking of my house there will be a first birthday party here tonight and I cannot sing to my niece; speaking of my niece Happy Birthday; speaking of birthdays my nephew is due May 14.

Cute Cute Cute

Alright so I have been saying it for a year now (since tomorrow is A's 1st Birthday) I have the cutest nieces!! The other day they were both over playing at our house. When Co was taking L home, A leaned over to give L a kiss goodbye. So cute!! Well Aunt Kate being the great photographer she is grabbed her camera and snapped this shot. It is rediculous how cute it is!! It makes me smile like this...

Happy Birthday Mom!!

Happy Birthday Mom!!

I love you!!

Remember when you had hair? Good times.

Looking forward to another year but with less cancer!!

T-day pics

My sister was the only one smart enough to bring the camera to Thanksgiving Dinner and she has posted some pictures... some are great, some are just nasty even now... oh the thought. Check it out if you want. The first picture was a reenactment of a previous face I made... but still rather effective of how I felt with my hand inside a turkey.

#22 - Thanksgiving Dinner

#22 on my list of 101 things to do was to cook a Thanksgiving Dinner. It has happened and ended with SWAT storming the front yard... is your interest peaked?

My sister Colleen and I made Thanksgiving Dinner this year because we were not going to be with the big extended family this year as usual. We started Wednesday night with rolls and pie (homemade, thanks to Colleen’s desire to teach me to be a domestic goddess.) Then came the brining of the turkey. I am not a fan of touching dead things. Let me put that right out there. I also am not the world’s best cook… until now! The rolls ended up dry and I killed the pecan pie, but the pumpkin pie was awesome!!

Then Thursday Colleen arrived nice and early and we started cooking. The turkey went in, the stuffing was mixed, the potatoes were mashed, etc. If I do say so myself, it was a really good dinner. Oh the gravy, so because we brined the turkey there were not many drippings, but there were some!! So we made a red wine gravy with some red wine that my brother had bought that had the alcohol removed (I wonder why they did not just call it grape juice, but I digress.) I thought it was the best part because it was a little sweet, which I like with turkey, so I was very happy!

After dinner Colleen and I were really tired, so we laid down for a nap while the boys did the dishes... well most of the dishes. I had Colleen’s daughter on my shoulder sleeping with me and woke up when Pat said that there was a police officer with an assault rifle using his car for a shield. (What?!?!) I could not get up, so this is all second hand information. Someone had broken into the house across the street from us and the neighbor next to us saw it and called the cops. The police later told us that they have been seeing this MO: The house is occupied by a recent widow who had just left. (Special place in hell for the person who is breaking into the nice old widow’s homes.) So this guy went to the back yard and kicked in the back door. The neighbor who saw it said she was watching for the guy to come back out and when he did not they walked over to see what had happened, and called the police right away. The guy somehow got spooked inside before the police got there and had left. But not knowing this the police brought out the assault rifles just in case. They took a dog unit in and went room to room but could not find anyone. The police on the outside were really using my brother’s car as a shield, not really sure why they did not pull their cars around and use their cars, but again I digress. The whole thing was scary for a little while but ended well. We always have the most exciting family gatherings!

Hope everyone had a nice Thanksgiving too!

Day 31

Yesterday was transplant day 31, over a month ago Mom had her bone marrow transplant. Crazy to think she has been home for over 2 weeks now. I admit they have been a busy couple of weeks in our home.

But yesterday was a big day. Mom went back to LDS Hospital to have her central line removed and was officially released back to her normal oncologist. Dr P at LDS told mom she could be a little less restrictive with her daily activities. She still needs to wear her pig mask around when she is in crowds, but can go outside for a walk without it. She can go out to eat at a restaurant but cannot have salads and would have to ask her server to please bring her food out right after it is cooked. This lessens the likelihood of contamination from various microbial elements. She goes back at 100 days to see if she is in remission. Some lists of do nots include: clean the house, be around sick people, very large crowds, and do not do not do not underestimate the cleanliness of ones hands; also she still has to live upstairs because it gets too cold downstairs.

Dr P told her that they think everything went according to plan and they expect her to be in remission for at least 3 years. Sometimes they are able to see a longer remission, though.

Over the past 2 weeks mom has been able to do many things and she says her strength is back about 65% which is good. She has done the dishes a few times and done some laundry. She takes walks outside, but now that it is really turning cold I am not sure how well she will do. We went shopping for the first time in months (for her) to Target to get some Christmas and Birthday presents for the little ones; I was a mess because they did not have cart wipes; Note to stores: INVEST IN CART WIPES. Then Sister took her to the fabric store where they did not have carts at all. She has discoverd the germ free convenience of shopping online. Mom also has had her first cold, sort of. She feels under the weather still, but the doctors told her she could take something for it now. Also her blood pressure which has been an issue since the chemo is down to normal ranges again. I have had to change her central line dressing daily, and I will not miss that at all. I was always afraid of taking it out or hurting her. I did hurt her more than once and telling her to just "suck it up" was really mean. Last week she was craving pizza but could not have take out yet. So the Brothers told her that they would make pizza for her on Sunday. They each took a different assignment and it was wonderful. They even got pork-free sausage and pepperoni so I could eat everything.

Mom started losing her hair the day before she was released from the hospital (Day 13) and now it is almost all gone. She still has her eyebrows and eyelashes. Must be nice to not have to shave for months!! (This is me looking on the bright side of chemo.) The rest of us, sans my oldest brother who is shaving still by choice, have a bit of hair again. Dad is even growing back that mustache that he loves so much.

Well that is all I can think of writing. Things could not be going better for Mom! Thanks again for all who have been keeping her in prayers, donating blood or plasma, sending cards or silly gifts, calling her, calling me, and the kind thoughts. We needed them and it is nice to have support. Love!!!

Dumb Dumb Dumb

Below is the conversation I should have had with the nice hard of hearing man at Ikea that I believe to be single. I shall play the part of smart single Stephanie, or in other words, the woman I was not tonight:

Nice Man: Hi
Stephanie: Hello
NM: I should have looked to see how much these weigh before I chose them.
SJ: Need some help lifting it into your trolley?
NM: That would be great. Thanks.
SJ: No problem.
(Pause to lift the bookcase into the trolley, it is fair to note that this is the larger version of the bookcase that I have been saving up to buy.)
NM: Hmmmm. I wonder how I am going to get these into my house with no help. (This is the point where SJ decides this man is single.)

The above actually all happened; below is what I now should have said and the conversation now continues only in my mind until a certain point... you will know it because it will cease to be in italics and will again be black.

SJ: Do you live alone then?
NM: Yes I am single but I am looking for a nice woman like you to fill the cavernous gap in my life.
SJ: Well it just so happens I am single too. I also noticed you are wearing hearing aids, I know sign language!
NM: Really? You are too good to be true. Would you like to maybe have dinner with me sometime?
SJ: Absolutely. Thank you for asking me. I am free Friday night.
NM: Here is my email address, will you send me an email so we do not have to use the relay service? Also do you like Chicago Dogs? I know a place in Midvale that serves Chicago Dogs. They are so good.
SJ: Yes I love Chicago Dogs!! I just had Chicago stuffed pizza with a friend. By the way, my name is Stephanie.
NM: Nice to meet you my name is (Insert the perfect name here)
SJ: (giggle) Okay I will talk to you soon.

NM: Thanks again for your help.
SJ: You are very welcome.
NM: Have a Happy Thanksgiving
SJ: You too (insert charming smile here)

(Stephanie then walks away to look at another isle for some wall shelving units. Then down another isle for a table top. Both of which are out of stock in the color desired.When she turns around the nice charming man who should one day be the father of her children standing at the end of the isle. He gives Stephanie a cute smile.)

NM: Oh hi again, would you mind helping me lift something else?
SJ: Not a problem at all.
NM: I really should have looked at the weights.
SJ: I don't actually think they are listed on the display units.
NM: Hmmmm, maybe they should list them. (chuckle)

Both lift the table into the trolley.

SJ: I am really looking forward to seeing you again on Friday (calling him by his super perfect name.)
NM: Me too. Thanks for your help. My mom told me I would meet a nice girl one day who was strong, liked Ikea, and knows sign language.
SJ: (little giggle) Well that is me, Ikea is my Mecha.
NM: I really like your very short hair, it is almost like you shaved it to be suportive of someone close to you who has cancer. You look great.
SJ: (blushes) Thanks, I usually keep my hair short, just not this short!

SJ: Do you need any help with anything else? I am about ready to leave.
NM: No thank you for all of your help today.
Nice man gives Stephanie a High-Five.

Nice man gives Stephanie a not-at-all-creapy-I-just-met-you hug.

Thus ends the narative of what should have happened tonight if Stephanie did not talk herself out of properly intrucing herself to the nice man at Ikea.

Another post to come

I know I know... far too long since I posted anything. I will update on Mom when I have time to do a proper post but she is doing so well!!

$1.96?!?!

So I was driving home way too late last night after a rediculously fun night with Besty, and saw gas at the Sam's Club for $1.98, I was excited and figured I would gas up in the morning. As I drove past today and it was $1.96 I decided to hold off and see if it goes down more tomorrow since I am at half a tank. Happy Gas Day everyone.

Some late pics

Okay these pictures are some of my favorites that really depict how last week went.

First I "tried" to donate blood last Monday because I had some time after a funeral. They have a new process for people with O+ blood to donate what they call Double Red. So they take 2 units of only red cells from you and put the rest of your blood back. Fine, I thought it was a great idea since Mom had needed 6 units of red blood. Well they take out and put back from the same arm and some how the needle had gone through my vein. They took out just fine, but the put back was not so great. But it made for an awesome bruise!! (By the way the tech helping me told me I was only the second person that this had happened to that he knew of, so it really is a great process that gets the blood to the patient in only 2 days, so I will try it again but on the left arm not the right.)This is the night after. My arm is as straight as it would go, the lump there was painful and turned into this:Alright so my sister and I have some morbid fascination with bruises, probably because she and I have had some pretty good ones over the years. None like the ones Mom currently has, but for her sake I am not posting those (you are welcome!)

This next pic is of Mom waiting to be released from the hospital... and waiting ... and waiting. It took a really long time, but she was able to get a hug from cute nurse Ben... I did not get a hug from cute nurse Ben. But cute nurse Ben did give me 2 Tylenol and a Dr. Pepper (yuk) to help me fend off an oncoming migraine until I could get home to take my pill. Ben... he's cute and was a blog worthy nurse. But enough about Ben let's get back on topic. This is right after they unhooked her from the machines, she put on mostly real clothes after wearing pajamas for 3 weeks straight, and threw away her slippers to don some cumfy Crocks.
And then the meds... oh the meds one has to take when one has cancer. Granted some of these bottles are vitamins but the rest are for various conditions caused by cancer or other preexisting conditions. All I can say is it is so great to have Mom home. Yes I miss the nurses taking care of her full time (Ben... oh Ben... just kidding) but it sure is nice to have her home with us. She is tired and sleeps a lot but that means I can do my homework or watch a good flick on tv.

We did have a long running joke in the hospital (I can say long running since she was in there for almost 3 weeks right? Oh and plus it is my blog so I can say what I want to!) asking if the nurses were blog worthy, only the good ones get a mention on my blog. The PA Amity is by far the most blog worthy, she seemed to always be at the hospital and was very good to Mom. Natalia and Tammy are the two nurses who stick out in my mind because she had them more than once. There are a few nurses who were blog worthy but for the negative and since I just read Emily's blog I shall say only positive things because I can!! John was also very good, kind of sarcastic, but really cared. The CNA's (there are too many to remember names) were usually on top of things and very helpful especially on lasix days. (You got a beeper Gloria?) Not nurses but super helpful were Rachel (LOVE HER!), Patrick, and Brenda. Rachel was her transplant coordinator who told made it all happen, Patrick is the social worker who was there in case she needed to talk and also made sure everyone on the floor voted, and Brenda was the clinical pharmasist who made sure that all of the meds Mom needed were available at HAFB so mom would not have to pay (pays to be married to retired miltary). Then the doctors: Peterson and Asch. There were two others but they were not her primary doctors. Dr Peterson is from Denmark so Mom had fun talking to him and Dr Asch is from Jersey so I had fun talking to her.

Well this post started out small but I can not seem to shut up. Needless to say: Welcome home Mom! And thanks to the LDS 8th floor BMT staff for keeping her here a little longer.

Be It Ever So Humble...

Mom has been home now to 2 days. Her doctors told her on Friday morning they were considering sending her home. Mom told them she would like to go home because she felt she would eat, sleep and feel better at home. They finally told her around noon that they were sending her home, BUT they wanted to give her one more dose of potasium first. This they do slowly so it took until 4 for it to be done. They needed to check her blood an hour later and then wait for the results. Mom was a little anxious about 5 to leave. The PA Amity (cool name, huh?) came in at 6 to tell her that her potasium was still not up, but that they would still let her go home provided she could come back the next day for some follow up blood work. Done and done and off we went.

We had a nice little surprise when we came home to a small flood in the laundry room because the washer had over flowed. Small crisis taken care of by my wonderful siblings. Mom settled in for the night to some wonderful clam chowder Aunt Colleen had made and super yummy chocolate cake Aunt Della had made. Mom settled into bed about 9:30.

Saturday she had to go back up to the hospital for blood work but her numbers looked good, even the potasium, and she came home to Patrick playing the Wii (I was a work) and an overall quiet day. Saturday night she was tired but managed to organize her medications (wait for the pictures that are still on my camera, it is incredible the amount of meds...) while the rest of us cleaned the house again. I had the upstairs scrubbed before she came home and when I got home from work today it was a disaster. Mom cannot live in dirt right now. In fact Sister went to get her a HEPA filter for the room she is living in; we have a sign on our doors outside that says "While we appreciate visitors if you are now or have been sick or have been around anyone who is sick we respectfully ask you visit another time." This is because since she has little immune system she can not fight infections that could come into the home or are lingering here which is why I need to be even more of a germ nazi that I usually am. I digress; she and I both were ready to crash at 8, but managed to stay up until about 10 or so.

Today being Sunday we woke up really late... late enough that I slept through church. She was not going to go, but I was. Oops. I guess my body just could not wake up. Today we hope to be able to go to a viewing of a neighbor (early so to avoid big crowds) and enjoy a quiet evening at home. I just put a roast in the slow cooker (my first time, thank you very much) and it smells good even now! I think I might take a crack at gravy too. Growing as a person. But all is well!

A Political Tirade... for good I hope

Alright so readers here will know that I am a Democrat. Not a surprise. I do have to say something though in defense of President Bush. Shocked? How about we as a country return to a time when we showed the Office of the President the respect it deserves. President Bush was elected twice by the people of the United States of America and as such deserves respect. Is he my favorite President? Not even a little bit. I do think he sounds like an uneducated man sometimes when he talks and more than once I have uttered the phrase “Idiot” when listening to his policy. HOWEVER until the day I die I will respect this man for his service to our country and his love for this nation. President Bush is a patriot who did the best he could in some very difficult situations the past 8 years. President Bush is the President of the United States and deserves way more respect than he is getting now. For example: When did we stop referring to him as President Bush and start referring to him as Mr. Bush? (Actually I think this practice started with Former President Clinton) Even in one article that I read from another friend’s blog in defense of President Bush he is called Mr. Bush. I did not vote for President Bush either time and do not care for the man, but he will always be associated with the Office of the President and as such deserves all of the respect that the title offers. This goes for President Elect Obama. There are those who do not like his policy as well (much like I do not like many policy stances from President Bush) but he does deserve the respect of the American people because he is our duly elected official. Thus ends this week's last political tirade.

Yippee

MOM IS COMING HOME TODAY!!

My 101

Inspired as always by my Wretchel here are my 101 things in 1001 days:

The Mission: Complete 101 preset tasks in a period of 1001 days.
The Criteria: Tasks must be specific (ie. no ambiguity in the wording) with a result that is either measurable or clearly defined. Tasks must also be realistic and stretching (ie. represent some amount of work on my part).
Why 1001 Days? Many people have created lists in the past - frequently simple goals such as New Year's resolutions. The key to beating procrastination is to set a deadline that is realistic. 1001 Days (about 2.75 years) is a better period of time than a year, because it allows you several seasons to complete the tasks, which is better for organizing and timing some tasks such as overseas trips or outdoor activities.

Some common goal setting tips:
1. Be decisive. Know exactly what you want, why you want it, and how you plan to achieve it.
2. Stay Focused. Any goal requires sustained focus from beginning to end. Constantly evaluate your progress.
3. Welcome Failure. Frequently, very little is learned from a venture that did not experience failure in some form. Failure presents the opportunity to learn and makes the success more worthy.
4. Write down your goals. It clarifies your thinking and reinforces your commitment.
5. Keep your goals in sight. Review them frequently, and ensure that they are always at the forefront of your thinking.

Starting Date: Saturday, November 1, 2008
Ending Date: Saturday, July 30, 2011

Short Term (within the month of November)
1. Make the List
2. Get a pedicure
3. Get a facial
4. Deep clean the house for Mom’s return
5. Vote
6. Clean and organize bedroom

Long Term (Before the end of 2009)
7. Graduate from College
8. Write 7 PLA essay
9. Take a class to improve computer skills
10. Design plans for improvements to new home
11. Blog daily for a month one thing I am grateful for and why

Long Term (Before the end of 2010)
12. Direct another play
13. Take a continuing education class
14. Take a dance class
15. Visit teach monthly 100%
16. Participate in one civic event as a volunteer

Family
17. Tell one member of my family a week that I love them
18. Start a date night with the nieces once a month
19. Eat all currently frozen Power Cooking meals
20. Make new Power Cooling meals
21. Plan and execute a Family Reunion
22. Cook a Thanksgiving Dinner
23. Host a Hanukkah party yearly with a new food to try

Friends
24. Participate in a Girl’s Night Out quarterly
25. Have an afternoon tea with the girls at The Grand
26. Learn a new skill from a friend
27. Organize a friend’s service project
28. Plan a surprise J&JDOF
29. Have a ba/grl party where I have to invite a man
30. Host a cheese night

Health/Beauty
31. Reach insurance goal weight by October 2009
32. Reach goal weight by the end of this list time
33. Get my dream 90 minute massage from Hutch
34. Get a hot rock massage from Lisa Jo
35. Plan a menu for a month and adhere to it
36. Read 4 health books (4/4)
37. Invest in 4 new exercise videos (0/4)
38. Get a bra fitting
39. Replace clothing as it becomes unflatteringly too large
40. Plan a weekly exercise schedule until October 2009 and stick to it
41. Train for and participate in a sprint tri by 2011
42. Exercise with someone new to learn a new workout
43. Clean out shoe closet and get old shoes repaired or thrown out
44. Get a new pair of great running shoes
45. Yearly tune up for bike
46. Take a tai chi class
47. Learn yoga

Home
48. Clean and organize every drawer in kitchen
49. Buy all of “my dishes” by the end of 2009
50. Donate unused items to DI
51. Organize DVDs and get shelving for them
52. Buy 2 new book shelves and organize books
53. Keep bedroom/office organized and clean for an entire month
54. Have laptop fixed
55. Make a meal for home once a month

Travel
56. Go on a rafting trip with Tonya
57. Plan a trip to Boulder Colorado for 2009
58. Visit one national park I have never been to
59. Plan my next cruise for 2011
60. See Mount Rushmore
61. Go to Vegas with Candice and eat one of “her” steaks
62. See one of Brady’s plays
63. See one of Dylan’s games (or visit D at school in case of injury)
64. Go fishing
65. Road trip to St. George

Personal Growth
66. Study the Book of Mormon each year with a different learning theme in mind
67. Say morning prayers daily for a month
68. Say evening prayers daily for a month
69. Read one good book a month after college graduation
70. Have Mom teach me how to make the baby blankets/rags
71. Have Colleen teach me to knit
72. Volunteer for a political campaign locally
73. Join a book club
74. Start a mini enrichment class at church
75. Do all of the required reading for one class in school
76. Read the weekly lessons for a month at church

Finances
77. Plan a budget for 2009
78. Add $150 from each paycheck to savings
79. Invest in a stock
80. Ask for a raise
81. Take a class on economics
82. Pay off credit card debt by end of 2010
83. Consolidate student loans
84. Pay off car

Random
85. Go to the Zoo
86. Go to the Aquarium
87. Visit a new museum once a year
88. Write a policy and procedure manual for work
89. Submit payroll policy manual for work
90. See a school production, a community production, a regional production, and a professional production (4/4)
91. Paint a picture with the help of Liz
92. Take a skiing lesson

Personal Enjoyment
93. See all of the Oscar Winning Best Picture Films as available from Blockbuster cue
94. See all of the Best Picture Nominee Films for 2009
95. Go to the Sundance Film Festival; see at least one Sundance film
96. Audition for 4 plays or musicals (2/4)
97. Try 2 new places to eat next Done O’Round
98. Stay overnight at one of the really nice hotels downtown
99. See a movie in the theater once a month
100. Hold “Award Show” parties for the big 4 in 2009
101. Have a spa day

A Book I am Promoting

Most of you know I was a nanny in Chicago for years and years (okay like 4) Well my little boys are now young men. D is a college basketball (soon to be) star and B is an actor in high school ... he gets it from my side (LOL) The mom, Laurie, just wrote a book about some tips she found helpful while going through the college reqruiting experience. I have not read it yet (my copy is on order), but did talk to Laurie while she was writing it and many of her ideas and thoughts were great; Laurie has a PhD in phychology and I admit I am a fan of anything she does, she has become a good friend over the years. So if you know anyone who has a kid who is high school sports star and might want some help with tips for prospective college recruiting this is the book for you:

Put Me In, Coach: A Parents Guide to Winning the Game of College Recruiting

It can be purchased through the publishers website: http://www.rightfitpress.com/. I added the pictures below mainly because I played for hours with the boy in the back doing a nice slam dunk.

The book is being released in 2 weeks but if you preorder by November 14 Laurie is autographing copies to send out.

It would make a great Christmas present!!

Possible good news

Hey all

My mom's doctors told her yesterday that she can come home as soon as: 1) her platelet counts stay up where they need to be 2) she can eat a proper amount of calories and 3) she feels good i.e. no fevers. The rest of her numbers are where they want them to be so this is great news!! My only other concern is that her lung capacity is down a bit from where she was and she is back on oxygen to help her breathe. Lung capacity will increase as she gets up and is more active which is hard since she does not feel good. But over all this is great news and she could be home by this weekend.

Happy Obama Day

My non-political brother sent me a text with the phrase: Happy Obama Day. I was actually giddy with delight to receive it mostly because Barry really is so non-political. But I also want to say Happy Huntsman and Matheson Day!! I am excited to see how Prop 8 in Cali turns out. I am excited to see that 34% of the population of Utah voted for President Elect Obama. I saw a snapshot of results last night that had Obama ahead in the Utah polls... that was kind of cool for about an hour or so to see him in the lead. Bless the early voting!!

Oh and pardon this diatribe: With 99.73% of the precincts reporting who are the 22,905 people who voted for Dell Shanze for Governor? No I understand that everyone has their own right to vote as they will and for the person they feel will do the best job. But seriously anyone who is listed on the ballot as "SUPERDELL" is not someone who is taking the office seriously and does not deserve a single vote... alright maybe one vote: HIS. Come on. The election process is not a joke. Diatribe over... and scene.

Oh What a Night!

I am sitting alone in my living room watching the news and eating a celebratory carmel apple. President Elect Obama is expected to speak soon. Oh what a night!! I do have to say I loved Senator McCain's talk. It really is time to put this campaign in the past and move forward to change what needs to be changed. Oh what a night!!


a post script... what was Michelle Obama wearing tonight? Not a fan of her wardrobe this evening.

Happy Election Day

Today is my favorite holiday... er... day. As those who follow my blog often will know I LOVE ELECTION DAY! I am a political junkie for sure! Today I get to vote AND turn in my mom's ansentee ballot as well. I broke out my special Kennedy pin and put it next to my Obama Utah pin on my shirt. Yes, I am excited for today. I have never worn the Kennedy pin. It is pin that JFK gave to his staffers in the 1960 election (thank you eBay!) that I have had for years now. I will take the Obama one off to vote (it is a rule, you know!) but wear the Kennedy one all day! Story time? When I was in the 4th grade we had to check out 2 books from the school library every week; one had to be a biography or educational one. One week I checked out a book on JFK and fell in love with the Kennedy family. Each week after that I would check out one of the 4 books in the library about Kennedy and read them again and again. I was obsessed. I think this went on until I left Elementary school. A few years ago I went to Chicago for work schooling and there was an exhibit on clothing that was worn by Jacqueline Kennedy during her White House years and after. It was amazing to see (and also my company paid for me to go!) On Sunday a cute girl in our ward got up to bear her testimony and she was wearing a very Jackie O top and after the meeting I told Lexie I thought she was very Jackie O; she said her mom tells her that often. I think I lost her when I told her that like To Wong Foo she is very statuesque.

As I babble, anyway, Happy Election Day! Vote!

Halloween pics and a semi-weekly update

Friday, being Halloween and all, Mom had lots of visitors so she dressed up for the day... I asked her to smile and this was the best she could do until the babies came up. Her Mission President and his wife came up for a few minutes to visit. I had never met them.Ainsleigh slept through the first part of the non-party. She is dressed as a pink poodle.

Colleen made Lottie's costume, a pumpkin, and seeing her brought out a big smile from Mom.

I was leaving the hospital the other day and it was dusk, this is what I saw when I turned right out of the hospital parking garage.
And then I turned down A Street to get out of the Avenues and this is what I saw. It was really pretty and my cell phone pictures do not do it justice.
So for an update on Mom's progress: Last week was a little harder on Mom than she would have liked. She is really tired all of the time. Her blood counts are in the toilet and she has had to have many blood transfusions to get her back up where they would like them to be. She, so far, has had 5 units of red blood and 7 (I believe) units of platelets. They expected her to need that many red but that is more platelets than we were told she would need. Her white cell count is up to 0.3 (from where she was 0.1 last week); I read one article that said a normal count is between 1500-8000. Mom's neutrophil count is 0. Our neutrophils are our immune system. So right now especially she cannot fight any infection.

Mom has started getting sores in her mouth and especially her throat. She has been asking for pain meds because it hurts to swallow. She has not been getting a large amount of calories because it hurts to eat, so she is trying to drink boost shakes, etc, because they have the calories and vitamins she needs to live. She gets really discouraged because she hates just laying there doing nothing; that was until Dr. Asch told her to cut herself some slack because she feels like crap! I like Dr. Asch, she is from Jersey. We gave Mom her "Gloria's Big Book of Cancer" and she loved it. She cried a little when she turned to the L & M pages because there were pictures of her brother Lee and her Mom who are both dead. I guess even at 63 you miss your Mommy when she is not there.

Someone asked me the other day how the rest of the family is doing and I just said, "Fine." You know I can not speak for everyone else, but over all I think I am alright. I have moments where I can not remember what I did yesterday and honestly I do not know how I am getting my homework done each week but I have an A in the class so far, so I guess I am doing alright. One thing the hospital encourages the care givers to do is to take time away from the hospital to focus on THEM. The first week mom was in I had a sleepover with Candice, last week I went and got a pedi. This week I have a facial scheduled and will be spending Election Night watching the returns with interest. I have not had to teach my class at church for 2 months because I have the best co-teacher(s) ever and the other teacher for Special Needs has just taken over the class. I do have to teach SN next week (not Thursday this week because it is the Talent Show) and I have to teach the Sunday following that in my ward. It has been great not to have that little extra stress in my life. I went to a viewing last night of our neighbor who died last week. His granddaughter was there and did not remember my name. Michelle and I spent every single day of each summer of our teen years together. She also did not remember my sister at all. It was such a silly thing to make me sad this week, but I was really sad about it.

On a non-related side note: I liked Wretchel's post about the many many goals in 1001 days... so I think I am going to do it. But not today.

Candice tagged me 8 times

Eight T.V. Shows I Love to Watch:
1. Lost
2. The Office
3. Ugly Betty
4. House
5. Bones
6. Grey’s Anatomy
7. SNL
8. 30 Rock

Eight Favorite Places to Eat:
1. Mom’s food, I miss her casserole
2. Sushi Express
3. Little Dave’s
4. Morelia
5. Wendy’s
6. The Aunts
7. Sweet Home Chicago Pizza
8. Johnny Franks (for all beef Chicago Dogs!!)

Eight Things that Happened Yesterday:
1. I finished a horrific project at work
2. My coworker promised me an elk steak
3. I visited Mom and gave her the book we were working on
4. I put up Mom’s push board decorations
5. The DOW closed up
6. I bought a life insurance policy
7. I went swimming
8. I did some homework

Eight Things I Look Forward To:
1. Mom’s cancer being in remission
2. Getting kisses from Ainsleigh
3. Getting kisses from Lottie … when she learns how
4. Curling up with a good book
5. My next vacation … where oh where will it be?
6. Spring
7. President Obama's first speach as President (that was for you Matt Baker)
8. Going to Special Needs tonight

Eight Things I Love About the Fall:
1. The leaves falling
2. Raking up the leaves that have fallen
3. Jumping in the leaves
4. Repeat steps 1-3
5. Sweaters
6. All you need is a light jacket
7. New TV season
8. Election time!!

Eight Things on My Wish List:
1. Mom’s cancer goes into remission
2. A healthy baby for Pat & Kate
3. A baby for Candice & Hutch
4. New shoes
5. As good of hair as I used to have
6. Reaching my goal weight
7. Wii Monopoly
8.

I choose to leave #8 vacant…

Day 5

Today is Mom's 5th day after her transplant and she is just still so tired. This is as expected. Her white cell count is 0.1 so we have limited the visitors that can go see her. Everyone who is allowed (family) has to wash really well and wear gloves all the time. Many have to wear masks too. Anyone who will have prolonged contact must wear a gown too, but that is mostly the nurses, etc. Her desire for food is at a minimal, they call this the anorexic phase meaning a general loss of appetite. When I wrote the other day about Day 0 I mentioned that she had hurt her wrist and they did not know what was wrong, well Rob the PA sent her for an x-ray and they found she has broken her wrist and there is a floating piece of bone. This bone will need to stay where it is until she is well enough to do anything about it. The cancer in her bones weakens them so much that she can break so easily, obviously. She still is trying to do things like paint and has been able to do her word puzzles, but it is hard when her right wrist is broken and she is right handed.

As a funny story that is not really related to Mom in any way except that she is anorexic right now (by the way she is not starving, she eats enough to get her calorie count in) I had a friend when I lived in Chicago named Lily Recsik (pronounced rec-sick) who has a sister named Anna. This is for real I met Anna and everything. I admit when I put two and two together and realized her name was Anna Recsik I was mortified for her. Some parents… but to be fair anorexia nervosa was not a widely recognized issue in the 70’s so much as it is now.

American Cheese

Can I talk for a minute about American Cheese? Or as I call it Death in my Mouth...

Seriously is this the best we can come up with? I look at the Swiss and they have a great cheese named after them ... all white with holes in it and tastes great. Oh no no, American cheese is processed and served in a wrapper and tastes like orange wax. I understand that there will be some in the blogger world who love American cheese, so to you I say rant on your blog about how I am a cheese-ist.

I do not know where I got a love for cheese from because we were raised on American cheese slices, and I did not need therapy growing up because of it. But now that I have tasted what real good cheese is like I can not stand the cheep imitation that is American cheese. For a good cheese experience I recommend visiting any Harmon’s in the Salt Lake Valley. They have a gourmet cheese counter now where you may sample any cheese they have there. Plus they have cool tips. The cheese guru at the Midvale Harmon’s is very knowledgeable and even has some fun flavor tips that include fruit and vinegar with cheese. A really good cheese tray is served at the Grand American Hotel in Salt Lake, but it is spendy. My favorite place to actually purchase cheeses that I have found to like is at Pirate-O’s in Draper, they tend to be a little less expensive on import cheese. For a fun night Raclette is my personal favorite. I love the Swiss variety (shock horror for Peggy) over the French, as the French is a little more pungent than I like. That being said I do enjoy French Raclette when it has not been curing for over a month especially since it is much cheaper than the Swiss. Makes me want to have another Raclette party… hm… It is fondue but backwards. (For you Peggy: Hmmm Child, Cheeeeeese, Child clap clap clap!) I love cheese; I would love suggestions for new cheeses that maybe I have not tried… so comment away!

This is the end of this rant about cheese. My next rant…. Mac ‘n Cheese.

Soooooo Tired

I am sitting in my mom's hospital room where she has been asleep for 2-1/2 hours. Her white cell count is down to 0.1 which is the lowest it can do. We have new quarantine procedures in place. Everyone in the room must wear gloves at all time and any one who has direct contact with her must wear a gown and mask. Anyone who is sick MUST stay away for sure now.

Today Mom asked me to get her painting stuff out so she could entertain herself this afternoon. She is working on a project for Barry and Debbie. She painted while I took a nap (LOL) and then the took her down for an x-ray of her wrist. I have never seen her more tired looking than when they brought her back from x-ray. I helped her get into bed and she has been asleep since.

Overall though she is on schedule for what the transplant is supposed to do. Her blood counts are where they expect her to be, but unlike other people who have had a transplant she has not had to have a blood transfusion. The doctor thinks this might change tomorrow. Mom told me they expect to have to give her one then. Mom's biggest complaint that she is expressing is that she is so very tired. Mom is a doer and likes to be able to work. She does not like to have to be in bed and hates feeling tired all of the time. Everyone keeps telling her this is normal but nevertheless she hates is.

Mom just woke up so I am off, more later.

Transplant Video

This is a short clip of the transplant and how easy it really was. I say easy like I had to do it, Mom was nervous and rightly so! Near the end you will hear the oxygen sensor go off because Mom's oxygen was getting low and Gayle called in for some oxygen tubing. Really it is like a blood transfusion but way way cooler and much harder since Mom had so much prep for it before she could get her cells back. She had to get 7 bags like the one they are hanging in this video. The whole process lasted about an hour.

Transplant Day 0

This picture is actually of Day -2Mom's second day of chemo. Thursday Day -1 was Mom's rest day. She had a good day on Thursday with the exception of tweaking her wrist. She was painting and put the items to dry in her window and hurt herself. They actually think it had something to do with the physical therapy exercises they have her do daily; one probably was done wrong and the painting just hurt it a little. Her friend Kathy came to visit; and then Colleen and Brad visited in the evening. They took some cute pictures with Lottie posted on their blog. Pat and Katie came up too...



Day 0 arrived and Mom was admitedly nervous. We soon found there was no reason for this but I understand her fear of the unknown. Raj from the UofU brought her stem cells and a little ice cream in a portable subzero freezer... okay not really the later, but it would have been cool if he did.


This is Raj taking the actual stem cells out of his portable freezer. You will see on Mom a box of Lemonheads and at her side Raj brought her a box of candy. The transplant smells to everyone who is in the room, but Mom could taste it. So they give her something to suck on to combat this.

Mom did really well during the transplant and even managed to smile for the camera. The cells they put back are cold, so she got chilled. That is until they went in faster and that caused her to get flushed until they slowed it down.

On the left is Gayle her nurse hanging another bag of cells and Raj on the right is verifying she is getting the right cells.

The transplant left Mom a little tired and she really had no energy. She did manage to get up for a walk with me later in the afternoon but that was about it. Colleen brought in Lottie long enough for a kiss and Colleen stayed with Mom in the evening while I took Lottie home with me. We were not sure if the chemicals that were mixed with the cells were safe for her.

Today Mom claims to have more energy than yesterday but her breakfast made her a little sick to her stomach. This is normal a few days after chemo. Colleen and Lottie visited this morning; and Barry and Debbie are up there now with Ainsleigh. Today Mom's blood sugar is back to normal so no more insulin, which she loves!

I wish I could effectively tell you all what the smell of the transplant is like. It smells like sweet creamed corn that has been left out for a few days. Mom said it tasted like creamed corn too which would be torture to me as I dislike creamed corn greatly. Dad and I got used to the smell and by the time Colleen got up there at 7 it was not so strong.

This week has gone better than we could have imagined and we pray for the best for next week. Next week her white cell counts are going to be low so she will not be able to fight infection were she to be exposed to it. Also the rest of her hair should fall out and she has a possibility of mouth and throat sores. But since this week went so well, again we are praying for the best!

By the way MOM since no one on the floor did it yesterday allow me:

Happy Birthday to you

Happy Birthday to you

Happy Birthday dear Mom

Happy Birthday to you!

This post is brought to you by the letter H

Wretchel had a fun post on her blog a while ago listing 10 things with a letter that was assigned to her. She has since assigned letters to those who want them and looking for a fun distraction I signed up. I got the letter H or aych, if you will.

1 – Happy & Hope: Some words just go together. Hope brings great happiness to me (or happyness if you are a Will Smith movie.)

2 – Hospital: This is where I live every afternoon from 1:30 until someone comes to visit with Mom. Actually the LDS Hospital is staffed with wonderful people who treat my mom as I would want her treated.

3 – Hair & Hats: Had to be together right now. I have 2 beanies that I have been wearing since shaving my head. One is from the Statue of Liberty in New York and the other I got in Alaska. Mom was wearing the Alaska hat the other day and Aunt Della asked her who gave it to her, Sarah? Subtle yet funny Palin joke. These hats keep my head (also with H!) warm... it is cold!

4 – Hell: My favorite of the Biblical swears. I told Mom I would pay her $5 every time someone walked into her room and asked “And how are we today?” if she would answer “Well I have cancer, what the hell is wrong with you?” See Mom is not a swearer, she is a really good example of how I should be, but I do have to say so far I owe Mom $10… granted I kind of bated her on those.

5 – Humor: I love to laugh! I am a fan of making people laugh. Yes sometimes humor is a defense mechanism for me but out of the coping techniques, I like it the best! My favorite comedian right now is Jeff Dunham, or if you are his puppet: Jefafa Dun-HAM dot com.

6 – Homestar Runner: Hello I’m Homestar Runner and this is my website Homestarrunner.net, it’s dot com. Homestar is a great site! I love the Teen Girl Squad. I have heard rumor of a video game for the Wii from Strong Bad. I need to do some checking on this.

7 – Hairspray: Oh oh oh woke up today feeling the way I always do. While not the first show I saw on Broadway, one of my favorites mostly because I saw it for free. It pays to know the producer. I went on a trip to New York a few years ago with Candice, her mom and her sister. We had a blast (also where I got my NY beanie from, see #3). Also seen on Broadway: Miss Saigon, Les Mis, The Rockettes, Swing! and Wicked.

8 – Hawaii: Loves me some Maui and Kauai. I spent my 30th birthday in Hawaii with my family on a cruise. It was so great. We went to 4 of the islands. Everyone should turn 30 in a tropical paradise!

9 – Hanukkah: My favorite of the Jewish holidays. I lived with Jews in Chicago and have taken to practicing this High Holy Day every year. Last year for the Hanukkah party my brother and sister in law were in a pretty nasty car accident and it kind out put a damper on it. They are fine, though, and we are hoping for no snow storms for the Hanukkah party this year.

10 – Hugh Jackman: Yummy, yummy man! He is a quadruple threat: he sings, dances, acts, and just looks good doing it.

Honorable Mentions: Hate; Heart; Hamburger; Hillcrest High School: Go Huskies; Home; Hyperbole (I'm not one to use hyperbole, ladies and gentlemen but I'll tell you this, for the first time in my life I had the caca scared out of me!); Hero; Hot Chocolate; House (the TV show) because of Hugh Laurie.

Next Dancing with the Stars Already Cast

My friend Tristin sent me this and I laughed and laughed.

Another Great Day

All is well again. Day -2 went really well. She has today off of major things and then the transplant is tomorrow. Her neighbor received her cells yesterday and Dr. Peterson was not kidding that there is a distinct smell that comes from the transplant. He says it is the DMSO that they put in to help transplant the stem cells. Imagine stank cream corn... I do not like cream corn.

So Day -2 we played some games. Mom spanked Dad and I on Five Crowns but could not best me in Hooey. Good times. Colleen, Brad and Lottie visited with her last night. I am sure Mom appreciated kissing on a grand baby!

Smile ... you're on chemo-camera

This pic is of Mom's Last Dinner before her big day. From left to right: Aunt Della, Aunt Colleen, Mom, Dad. So Day -3 was alright for mom. She had chemo at about 2. They brought it in to her and hooked her up. She did really well. The chemo lasts for about 20 minutes and so far, knock on wood, no nausia or other adverse reactions.
The chemo is on the left, the antibiotic is on the right. They just give a broad spectrum of antibiotics to prevent infections since Mom will not be able to naturally fight them.
And they are nice enough to label what they are giving her... nice!
So far the only reaction she is having is of the steriod they are giving her. She had some reactions to it when she took it earlier too. Her blood sugar is high and they are giving her insulin; we hear that only one person out of the 8 who is on it right now has normal blood sugar. This is kind of a pain for her since they are checking her every 2 hours and shooting her up. So that brings us to the second thing the steriods are doing for her: insomnia. She did not sleep so much last night and when she called me a few minutes ago she said she was ready for a nap. When she took this steriod before with her other chemo she would get a lot of energy for Saturday - Monday and then crash Tuesday and Wednesday. She did not sleep well then either.

But I am very happy that she is doing so well right now. Her nurses are really great with her. Her room is pretty boring so we are going to decorate it over the next few days. She also did not have a DVD player so I am taking her one of mine today. But her spirits are high and she was up walking the halls a few times yesterday.

Phase 2 - The Transplant Day -3

Today is Day -3 for Mom. She needs to be at the hospital at 9 this morning. They will show her to her room and then she has today and tomorrow of chemo. The doctor told us yesterday that the kind of chemo they are giving her is fast acting and that within 12 hours of administering it her immune system will be dead and the chemo will be out of her system. They give her one day off (Thursday) to kind of regain some strength and then on Friday (Day 0) she will be given her 3+mils of her stem cells back. I do not really know what the measurement of 3 mils is in relation to the amount of blood that we have in our body (5 liters or so) but they bring in her frozen stem cells and thaw it right in her room, hook her up, and that is her transplant. However, they have mixed a chemical in with her stem cells that can be harmful to those of us not getting the transplant. For example, Katie my pregnant sister in law, can not visit with her for a little while, and the babies are going to stay away. In the next few days Mom will have a few whole blood or platelet transfusions to help build her blood up faster to what it should be. They used to give white cell transfusions but stopped because while it brought the immune system back up 2-4 days faster, the white cells tend to clot in the lungs and heart which is too dangerous.

How is Mom? Well over all I think she is just fine! We all, except for Colleen's hubby Brad who had to work, went to dinner last night at Red Lobster. I told Mom she could go anywhere she wanted and she chose Red Lobster because she really likes the cheese biscuts they bring out. Her sister's (my aunts) Colleen and Della came with us too. Aunt Della had a heart attack 2 weekends ago and is doing really well. Aunt Colleen told her they needed to come because she needed to learn to eat and like fish.

After dinner Mom and I went home and packed a bag for her stay. She has pj's that open in the front so she does not have to wear the hospital gowns and slippers of her own. We also packed her 2 television series she liked from the 90's so she could watch them. She took some knitting and I will take up some painting projects for her for after her transplant. She has a few books as well, so I think she is as set as she can be for a 3 week stay!

Cancer Walk Photos

Here are the pics from the Cancer Walk on October 11 (Happy Birthday Barry!) It was cold, it snowed a little that day! From left to right Colleen, Patrick, Brad, Katie, Debbie, Barry, Liz, Candice, me, Dad and the babies down front are Lottie and Ainsleigh. Mom's treatment prevented her from coming and Everett was sick.
Lottie bundled up ready to go.
Ainsleigh has the coolest wrap to keep her toes warm.
And we're walking, we're walking...
My chum Carrie gave me some pink hairspray and this is what we did to Patrick with it. Colleen and I tried to do our whole head with it. It looked pink on her, red on me.

The walk was fun. I ran into Damon Yauney from Fox 13 news. Damon and I did a show together a few years ago, Oklahoma. He was Curly and I was Aunt Eller. So we walked together for a minute and he said, "I was thinking about you and Matt (Jud) the other day because I found my cowboy hat in the closet. It still has a bullet hole in it." In the scene Poor Jud is Ded the guns we were using misfired in his face and it was... oh man it was something. Damon does the news in the morning and he had to have some work done to make him pretty again. So it was nice to see him again, and yes he is just as pretty in person as he is on the news.

It was a fun day and I am glad we did it. Our team raised $1,850 for cancer research. Thanks to all who participated and helped us with donations.

Family Hair Evening

So here is the story: My mom, once coming to grips with having cancer, told my sister Colleen and I one day that she did not want to lose her hair to chemo. The first chemo she was on was not strong enough to make her lose her hair but the chemo she will have Tuesday and Wednesday this week will. Colleen, and keep in mind that this is my sister who was Miss Midvale 2000, decided that if mom was going to lose her hair we all were. My brothers Barry and Everett have not had a hair cut in months to prepare for it. Sunday night was Family Hair Evening and the photos are below, enjoy! I know we did! Above is the whole family. Notice my brothers on the extreme sides. Barry is the one with the goofy grin and his hair was longer than everyone's but Colleen (squatting by the babies), Everett is the one with the beard. Pat is standing in the middle and his wonderful wife took all of these photos.
Mom was first, such a sad face. I think she cried just a little.
So what we did was each choose a fun outrageous hairdo first. Mom is a punk rocker...

There is the smile we were waiting for!
Dad has had a mustache for as long as I can remember. He was a brave little toaster and let Mom cut it off. Then Barry did a little Foo Man Choo on him.
This is me trying to do the Joe Biden, but looking more like a Benedictine monk.
We shaved Cancer Sucks into Patrick's head.
Everett did some extreme spikes

Colleen was Cyndi Lauper circa Girl's Just Wanna Have Fun/True Colors era.
And Candice's hubby Hutch even joined in the fun...
Barry wanted a Jean-Luc Picard from Star Trek... look at his daughter's face looking at her daddy... priceless. Right after this she burst into tears.
What no one tells you is that this itches!!
Colleen the beauty queen with her one braid up front. Business up front, party in the back!

Colleen with her family right after. Brad was a sport about his wife losing her hair. Colleen looks great even bald, if I did not love her so much...
Barry looking so preeetty in a hat that Mom's friend Mirriam sent her.
Thanks Mirriam for the hats, they are so soft!!
The crew all bald now.

The crew plus Hutch, thanks for being a part of our fun Hutch!
Mom and Dad, seriously without a stache he looks 10 years younger!
Barry grabbed my head and asked if it felt like velcro...
It does....

So that was our fun night... FHE can stand for more than Family Home Evening...