Winter has come!

We can't complain, but this week it has finnaly arrived with a bang! Today it is - 26 C with of course a windchill. It will probably be another day of indoor recess - nothing like keeping a bunch of kids locked up in school for a whole week! I feel sorry for the teachers - I know what they are like when they get home! Growing up I never remembered having a week of indoor recesses - I think they are getting soft! I must be old! (Oh yeah we also walked uphill both ways!) I plan to meet them at the end of the day and walk home I'm sure that there will be lots of complaining! Hope is getting cooped up too - she is missing her 3 daily walks! She is doing well and growing like a weed.

I was at Cancer Care last week for port care and blood work - I'm like a car I need to go in for monthy tune ups! I have no idea what my labs are like - it has taken me this long to finally stop trying to manage my care and let my doctor and nurse do it for me! I have to admit I am a bit curious though!

Next month we have a lovely Valentines Day plans - NOT! I have my Feb MRI scheduled for then with the results at the end of the week. I am so grateful not to have to wait long for the results - they take such good care of me. I really am lucky to have such a great team at CC!

In my opinion no news is good news! Sorry for being deliquent with the blog!

Thanks again for all your support and prayers,

Karen

Christmas Greetings - A Little Late!

We had a busy and fantastic Christmas - quite different from last years!  I told Doug that I wanted a "do over" of last years festivities as I was only an onlooker and not a participant!

We had a fun Christmas Eve at Doug's cousins - 8 kids ranging from 8 to 17.  Christmas morn was just the 4 of us to open presents.  Doug's sister and brother-in-law were here for Sunday brunch and yet more presents for the kids!  On Boxing Day my family was over for a BBQ!  It was mild with the temp around 5C!  Perfect BBQ weather in Winnipeg!  And of course more presents! 

Our Christmas festivities are still not over, we have dinner in Oakville with 5 more cousins for the kids to play with!  We also have my mom's famous and huge dinner with hopefully some of my Aunts, Uncles, and cousins joining in the celebrations!

Oh yeah in the midst of this we have had our puppy Hope for 2 1/2 weeks.  We have become potty trained once again!  She is our 5th member of our family and we love her! 

What a difference a year has made! 

Thanks for all your prayers and Christmas Wishes - we have heard from lots of people over the holidays!

Wishing everyone a very Happy New Year!

Love,
Karen and all

Happy Anniversary!

Yesterday it was my 1 year anniversary of being diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumour.  Today I got the results of my 1 year MRI - To everyones delight and surprise it has shrunk yet again - so much so that I have a hard time finding it in the MRI copy that I have.  I am so grateful and thank God for every day and for answering our prayers.

Once again we want to thank everyone for all their support, prayers, cards, rides, taking the kids and everything else.  We are certainly surrounded by wonderful people! 

Thank you and enjoy your weekend - we will!

Love,

Karen and gang

A Beautiful Fall

So far the weather has been great!  The kids had a mild Halloween - Luke Skywalker and Wilma Flintstone came home with waaaayyyy too much loot! 

Things have been quiet on the CancerCare front - MRI and appointment are the end of the month.  I am feeling the same - some days I am exhausted and some days I am not!  Probably how everyone else feels too!  Somedays I have numbness and somedays I don't.

Once again I'll update shortly after my next MRI.

Thanks for caring, thanks for praying!

Love,

Karen and all

61.......

My Platellets that is!  I am half way to normal - watch it I know what you are thinking!  I actually have 5 weeks off from CancerCare - a mini vacation!  Whatever will I do with myself?  Oh yeah - I have piles of laundry from closing up at Bird River, cards to catch up on, apparantly "there is nothing to eat in this house", you'd think they'd give their mom a break!  I guess that I have had 10 month break in their minds.  I never realized how tired and sore a body could get until this year.  I can't complain - I am alive and I thank God for that everyday!  I try to treat everyday as my last day and enjoy it to the best of my ability!  Someone asked me once "how can you be so happy with all that is happening?" - I replied "because I am alive".  The conversation ended fast!

I must go - I promised them soup for our sore throats and baking for breakfast!

Thanks for all the support, prayers and love that we continue to receive!

I want to wish everyone a Belated Happy Thanksgiving - I know that we have a lot to be Thankful for!

Love Karen

A New Angel.....

I have some sad news to share today, a fellow brain tumour patient, Ramsey, passed away last week.  He leaves a beautiful wife and 3 kids behind.  Please keep them in your thoughts and prayers.  For those of you with kids please hold them close and tell them how much you love them everyday!

Karen

New Orleans......

Well it's not sinking!  Thank goodness! Doug had a conference/meetings to attend there and I was able to tag along.

I had last been to New Orleans some 20 years ago - it was a different trip this time - much more subdued!  If you have never been there it is a fantastic city to visit, for short time!  We had a wonderful hotel, excellent food, the people are so friendly and so grateful for visitors.  With Katrina and then the economy crash they are still struggling.  At one restaraunt we overheard 2 waiters talking about how the love it when it is busy - and it was packed that night!  There are still vacant high rises/ houses and buildings with windows smashed and blown out from the hurricaine.

My highlights were, of course getting permission from CancerCare to travel, finding wonderful people to care for the kids while we were away - Thanks so much - eating great food - even if a bib was required, the hustle and bustle on every street, the music that filled the air, riding the street cars - it was like stepping back in time, and of course my favourite - getting to spend time with Doug!

Thank you once again for all you do for us.  We are so lucky and grateful for every day! 

Love,

Karen