L is for lighter than air!

My Mom and I just went on a hot air balloon ride. We had a fantastic time and if you get the chance you should go. We had to be in Newberg, OR at 5:15am so we left my house at 4:15am.

It was beautiful weather and a nice breakfast after. Here are some pictures.

L is for Long day, but worth it!

I will start out with the end results of the day - all of my scans at OHSU are clear of cancer! I will go back again in 4 months for the same scans. My first appointment this am was at 9:45 for CAT scan of lungs (usually 10 minutes), then 10:30 am for MRI of ankle and foot ( usually 2 hours) and then 3:30pm to get results from my doctor. I got delayed in traffic for an hour and a half and thought I would not be able to make any of my scans. Luckily everyone was having a late day so when I showed up at 11am I waited for 45 minutes for my CAT scan - it still only took 10 minutes, then I waited another 1/2 hour for my MRI - it still took close to 2 hours. I had about 1/2 hour to have some lunch before I got to see my doctor for results - he was on time. Now I am home getting ready to go out for a celebration dinner. I plan to make the most of the next 120 days before my next scans.

Disney Pictures

L is for lines

I just realized it has been a month since my last blog entry. I guess the kids have been keeping me very busy.

We just returned from a week in Disneyland and we had a great time - lots of wonderful memories. Some of my favorite time was spent waiting in lines for rides - that may seem strange, but you really get a chance to watch other people and talk to the people you are waiting with - Disney does a good job of keeping the lines moving. We had been to Disney World most often when we lived in Wisconsin, so this was my first trip to Disneyland since my teenage years. I was surprised at how little Cinderella's castle is compared to the one at Disney World and how large the Small World ride looks compared to the ride at Disney World. I will try to upload some pictures in the next few days.

I just started an online class on how to write children's books - it was fun to have my first week of class and be on vacation at the same time.

I have my next follow up at OHSU on July 8th - I will let you all know the results.

L is for lazy summer days?

Jake is already done with his first year of pre-school. William and Luke only have 4 and 1/2 school days until they are done. I am looking forward to a relaxing summer, but I already see our calender filling up with vacation bible school, road trip to Disneyland, Rudishauser family reunion in Silverton, Scott family reunion in Pacific City and soccer camp. I am sure we will also squeeze in trips to the Roaring Rivers Fish Hatchery, Portland Zoo, Gilbert house, OMSI, and Enchanted Forest. I am already exhausted thinking about all we are going to do, not so lazy days of summer, but I know I will enjoy each moment with my boys!

I had an appointment with my radiation Doctor yesterday - my ankle keeps healing, but the surgery site still has a little opening - he says it should be healed by the end of summer - the one time when I want time to go faster is with the healing process, but I will be patient. I go back to OHSU in July for more scans.

L is for lots and lots and lots of walking

I participated in the Relay for Life on Friday and Saturday - each team had to walk for 25 hours - it was the 25th anniversary of the relay. Our team was the Whitworth Wolves - William and Luke's grade school. I think I walked about 3 hours and am so impressed with all of my friends that walked and slept in tents and worked hard to raise money to fight cancer. I was the one team member that was also a survivor - this means I had a purple shirt instead of white and got to have a special lap with more than 40 other survivors. It was very strange compared to last year when I was just a walker. I do not wish cancer on anyone and am inspired by the spirit and humor of the other survivors. It also reminded me to slow down and appreciate the uniqueness of each day - like snowflakes no two are exactly the same. I pray to make each day joyful!

L is for Looking Up

Jake has been sleeping late the last few days so I have been able to watch a little of the morning news shows. I saw an interview with Michael J. Fox about a book he just wrote -
Always Looking Up: The Adventures of an Incurable Optimist.
It reminded me about the award I got for Optimist of the month when I was in high school. I hope that I still earn that title most days. He also talked about finding happiness in each day and said that his happy moment for that day was going to be when the kids get off the bus and hearing about school and helping them with their homework - he said it was the music of life.
I have been busy getting ready for the Relay for Life - our team had a garage sale this weekend and raised over $1200! I am looking forward to hearing other people's cancer survivor stories and being inspired to keep looking up!