Rhodies are Finally in Full Bloom

This is what I see when I look out my front window. The rhodie is right next to the window and it explodes the inside of the house with vibrant color.
This is a view from the front yard. This is the first time I have had so many blossoms. This bush is 15 years old. One year I cut it down, chopped it to pieces and I think that is why it doesn't look so tree-like and spindly.

The bees are in a pollen feeding frenzy. I think they have passed the "pollen" word to the bee colony. They love the huge blossoms from which they can obtain an un-ending supply of pollen!

Memorial Day Weekend on Whidbey Island

Kali's kids had a soccer fest on whidbey island. It was interesting because it was just 3 on 3 games which were very short - only a half hour. Unfortunately, I did not get any pictures of Jennifer and Ethan. We had the opportunity to have four of Eric's five kids overnight. Colin stayed with his cousin on the other side of the family. Camron stayed all day at our house by himself 'cause he did not want to go to the Island. He loves computers so he had a fun day too! So no Camron in these pictures either.

Kali holding Adyson, Dave Goodwin holding Ben, Terrin looking over Owen's shoulder and Michelle, eating at Wendys after the soccer fest on Whidbey Island.
Aunt Kali with her nephews and niece.
Adorable picture of Ady feeding little Ben his first frosty.
We saw these two ground maintenance ladies picking up trash around the soccer fields. One was a black lady. Owen said, "look at that beautiful lady." I don't know if he meant her dangling earrings or that she was a pretty black lady! The funny things kids say!
Ady is excited to finally get to Whidbey Island after a long, 1 1/2 hr. ride by car.

Camron Action Shots at Arcade B-Ball

Colin's Pizza Party

After 4 or 5 pictures with their eyes closed, Ady seems very discouraged that she has to wait to eat her cupcake.
Yeah grandma take our picture!!!

Colin was proud to show off his new Trophy and his special baseball themed cupcake. One of the mothers took extra time to make his day special.
Camron came because he heard that there would be food! Cupcake munchin' galore!
Video games at a a Pizza Palace - not out of place at all!

Frank wanted to see the trophy so Eric is showing it to him! Lots and lots of pizza! Ugh. I don't like the grease!

Living Life to the Fullest

Went for chemo this morning at 8:30 am. Pretty sure I won't have insomnia tonight because I'm having it early in the day.

Came home and prepared lunch for the Elders. Made a great Asian Stir-Fry that they seemed to love. I buy the lo-mein and chow-mein frozen dinners and add other stuff to it.

I had some Thai noodles, ginger root, costco garlic, added some cut up broccoli, little brown sugar and soy sauce topped it off perfectly.

Then we had brownie sundaes with ice cream topping and chocolate syrup on top. Yummy!

Tonight I have a practice for a quartet that is performing on Sunday. We have invitation Sunday where the ward members invite their friends and neighbors.

Then we will possibly go over to our friends house and watch a movie.

Flower Power

My poppies have gone wild this year. I keep them in a pot to keep them from spreading throughout the yard.
This year there was a spectacular surprise; an albino poppy! Never have seen that in the 6-8 years I have grown them.
This is an awesome picture of the poppy once it has bloomed. This contains all the poppy seeds to propogate new poppy plants.
Rachel, this is the clematis plant you bought me one year. It has gone crazy beautiful with lots of blooms.

Rhodedendrum buds are enormously huge, but very intensely beautiful in their own way.

Insomnia (lack of ability to sleep no matter how tired)

Chemo 4-5:30 forgot I was supposed to check in 45 min early to do blood work and wait for results. So getting off at 5:30 made me late to pick up Frank. Only about 15 min.

They take blood pressure, oxygen levels, pulse rate and temperature.

First is an infusion of Steroid, then anti-nausea and then chemo is a 3-5 second push with the syringe through my port. I brought a friend with me who asked if she could come the first time. She was all about asking questions which the nurse so graciously answered. The time flew by having someone with which to talk.

The oncology nurse asked if I had anti-nausea prescription bottles at home. She instructed me to have a prescription called in tomorrow. She said the anti-nausea was given in the chemo so I should be alright. Nausea presents itself in 25 % of the patients.

Had dinner, watched a movie, went to bed and said prayers with Frank.

Things that transpired after Frank went to "lullaby land:"

• Put tomato plants in the house that are spending daytime in the sun and night time in garage.
• While in garage clean up junk in garage for pickup tomorrow
• Find broken glass from a picture frame, deposit in trash can
• Find empty boxes and place in recycle bin
• Locate my family scrapbook and look through all the pictures. I'm so glad I did that scrapbook. It brought back so many terrific memories of events as the kids were growing up.
• Tally up food storage and note what items are most needed. I'm ordering powdered butter in a #10 can. It is equivilant to 6 lbs. of butter. You just reconstitute with water and a little vegetable oil. Robbin Foules is our canning specialist and she is always finding us bargains on-line.
• Realize that it is 12:15 am AND that I'm not the least bit tired!
• Realize that the steroids they gave me at 5 are sure working. Now I remember why I always requested chemo early in the day.
• Take 2 benedryl capsules, eat two cheese sticks, make hot chocolate, piece of whole wheat toast with honey; eat and drink it all!
• Get on computer. Change my background to purple irises. Change and inhance colors on different pictures in Photo Shop Elements.

NOT THE LEAST BIT TIRED! THIS IS GETTING ANNOYING. I'm going to have to borrow those Chad Daybell books from Gloria. Can't remember the name.

I remember in 1999 I read all the Work & the Glory books because I had insomnia.

We bought a bed on craigs list. I'm so excited that we will have an official guest bedroom again. We can pick it up this weekend. So maybe when I can't sleep I'll paint a random room and decorate my guest bedroom and dance in the shadows of the night til' night turns to light.

• Publishing Post, proofreading finding mistakes, going back in and correcting and then doing it all over again three times.
• I like being a night owl; I just don't like the morning time when I want to sleep.

D&C 19:20 I wonder if I have enough.

D&C 19:21 I wonder if there are any left for me.

D&C 19: 30 I wonder if asking is asking too much of Him.

D&C 19:32 I wonder; is Cancer a blessing? Do I thank him for that blessing in my life?

My prayers are being answered (or the benedryl is finally kicking in)

Time: 2 AM

Night awl.

Missionary Work gone MIA

We invited an investigator family for dinner tonight. They were supposed to come to church but didn't show. So Frank and I decided to drop by Sunday afternoon after church. They had been working in their yard all day so it was obvious why they weren't there. I took Frank over to meet them since I had already met them.
Today I felt strongly that they would not come so I paid two visits, one to knock and ring the doorbell and the other with a taped message that said, "Are we still on for dinner at 6 o'clock, call me. Well, basically a really short story is they didn't call and didn't come so we fed the missionaries a simple turkey, brocolli, dressing caserole. We were all somewhat discouraged, but the missionaries got a double bonus by taking home the extra food and a gallon of milk.
Frank and I settled down to watch "Pappillion," with Steve McQueen and Dustin Hoffman. It is a very old movie which both of us couldn't remember it had been so many years. Great movie. I would recommend checking it out from the local library. Superb acting and great script, not so much like you see in todays mindless drivel. As were were about 1/2 hr. into it a fellow called to ask if Frank could help administer to his wife before her surgery on Thurs. So we spent almost an hour there. Frank gave a beautiful blessing promising that she would be calm and she would heal quickly. We came back and watched the rest of "Pappillion" until 11 pm. (Our usual bedtime is 9:30 pm.)
It rained this morning but cleared up this afternoon to just overcast.
Tah tah for now.

My Dilema

We're back from vacation and the yard is begging me to help cure it of weeds and I have been out two days now and have to drag myself back in because I don't want to over do it physically. So with tired shoulders and sore buttox muscles I'm reluctantly writing this blog but would rather be outside in the wonderful sun shiny day.

Tuesday I went to the Oncologist and he informed me that I would need to start chemo again since my counts have been steadily going up and lately going up a lot. (This was no surprise. He let me go on vacation and told me we would start things again when I got back.)

I't's just strange what your mind does. I knew I would have to resume chemo again, but now I'm all in a funk because it's actually happening. Logically I know that this medicine works. It gets rid of the cancer cells, but I am grieving for a life I wish I had, free of cancer. Every time I have to start this process again I get depressed, then annoyed, then angry, then sad, then mad. There I went through all those emotions. Now hopefully I can get on with life as I know it.

Life as I know it ................. Infusions Tuesdays and Fridays every week until the doctor says the those little buggers are gone!

Time Frame........................ I don't know. The last time it took four months.

I love the Beauty of Spring

I love my yard in spring because there is so much color. The poppies are exploding and had been while we were on vacation. The lilacs are in bloom and the azaleas are so colorful. But that ain't all. The rhodedenrons haven't even started blooming yet so there is more color in store for me. I can't wait.

Belated Mother's Day Lunch with my Daughters

We should have had the waitress take our picture but we forgot so we improvised by taking our own at the car.
Precious picture of Kali giving Ben a smooch.
If you come to Stanwood we'll take you to the Granary which houses a super gift shop, Veracruz Mexican Restuarant and Jasmin Thai Restaurant. We had Thai which we all love. Michelle took me here awhile ago and I've been hooked on Thai food ever since.

Rexburg Visit with our youngest son and his wife

Saturday night there was a comedy improv starring Corbin Allred and Kirby Heyborne. They have a improv group in LA that performs and were at BYU Idaho. My youngest son just happened to spot them in the cafeteria when we were eating lunch. We asked them if they would mind having a photo shoot with us.

Kirby and Corbin were in Saints and Soldiers. Kirby was in RM and Singles Ward 1 and 2. They were super nice and the perfomance was outstandingly funnny!!!
This is Corbin on the left and the guy on the right played the looser guy in Singles Ward 2.



I was really aiming for the red wall with all the pictures so artisically placed. My daughter in-law is an artist. I should have got a picture of the wall in her bathroom. I was utterly blown away by her perfect hand-painted free hand art of the shower curtain pattern on her wall complete with exact color match!
Our family is always teasing Frank that he never smiles in pictures, sooo here you go like it or not!
Even though this was in Washington when they came for spring break I thought I would include them since this is a blog about my youngest sons family.
Little Ben, Chelle's son, nine months old. He looks like a mini me of Dave Goodwin.