It's been a while - sorry about that, we've been busy!
It's a little over four years since we started this blog - back then Karen wrote the posts and I typed and posted them. They came almost daily early on and when she wrote them I made sure I found the time to post them.
I've thought back to those days often over the last few months. We've been busy, sometimes maybe too busy, this winter and I've thought back and wondered how we did all this stuff plus all the trips to CancerCare and everything else that winter. The short answer of course is we didn't. The kids weren't teen/pre-teen middle schoolers with all the activities that come along with that. This winter we've been on the go with 2 basketball teams, hockey, choir that now includes some Saturday practices, yearbook for the co-editor, piano, drums and we still have curling as before and of course there was that visit to the high school open house and the high school grade 9 application to submit. All that and I'm at work, not part-time like then but full-time, so the days fill up quickly.
The other part of the answer is a little deeper. When Karen was sick we were in full battle mode in our war against cancer. There was no thought of letting our guard down or taking a break and the adrenaline made sure we always had the energy to keep going. Four years later we aren't in a battle, but just living our lives, and instead of adrenaline, we need things like sleep and quiet time to recharge our batteries. Unless you've done both I'm not sure you can really appreciate the difference.
When the kids were younger, before Karen was sick, we spent a May long weekend at Clear Lake for a family reunion and on the way home stopped at an old church south of the park that had been converted into a craft and collectibles store. I bought a cap with the caption "Life is Good" on the front. Inside it says "Do what you like. Like what you do". I love that cap and grabbed it this morning when I took Jen to her rehearsal for the musical her grade 8 class is presenting in a couple of weeks. Through all of the busy days of this winter, and the last four years for that matter, I've kept that cap handy, if not to wear, at least to read, just in case I might have been close to forgetting that life is good and to try and remember and teach the kids to do what you like and like what you are doing. I think I'm mostly there and I think the kids are figuring it out too.
We have done a lot this winter. After Christmas we headed to Orlando for a week of Disney, Sea World and warm weather and in February we headed off to Montreal to visit Paul and Cat and the gang and do some skiing at their chalet south of Montreal (and ended up with a day in Toronto too thanks to a snowstorm and Air Canada!). We've done all the hockey, basketball, singing (including a PTV performance with the symphony and a school choir performance with the Philharmonic Choir), curling, yearbook, school and work I mentioned earlier. Jen's choir competed at the Winnipeg Music Festival last week (doing well as always) and Kris wrapped up another hockey season today with another goal, a second week winning the Golden Jersey as player of the game and another year of skating and skill development. Curling also wrapped up today with the annual wind up party - four years ago it was kind of Karen's coming out party after weeks in her bubble. Oh yeah and yesterday was report card day and Grad picture proofs came home. The report cards were good, Jen with another Excellence award and Kris with some pretty respectable marks despite his aversion to homework and studying! And the proofs - they aren't baby pictures - how did that happen?
There's also been the not so good stuff. Our friends who lost their wife/mom to cancer last year said goodbye to a friend at Riverview last week after her battle with cancer and a couple of weeks ago I learned friends of Karen's and mine were working through a marriage breakdown. Sometimes it's hard to remember life is good.
The next couple of weeks will be full as the final rehearsals for the musical happen and the big event happens before spring break - Jen's in the cast and Kris in the chorus. If you like Charlie Brown, this will be the event to see!
The snow is mostly melted and today was a beautiful, warm sunny day - not unlike a warm, sunny March day four years ago when Karen and I got the first good MRI results, that despite all the challenges we had with bloodwork, the tumour had shrunk! I think we will try something this spring break that we haven't done in four years and stay close to home, hopefully we will see you soon!
That's about it for now - take care and thanks for all the good thoughts people send our way, and remember, life is good!
Oh, one last thing, if you want to find more frequent updates on what we are up to find Jen and I on Instagram (or e-mail us and we'll tell you our usernames). If you don't have Instagram we'll try and not let so much time pass before our next blog post.
Love,
Doug, Jen and Kris
