Medical Update

 

Last week was a whirlwind of tests and surgeries.

And ice.

I'm so thankful for the medical personnel and the technology that helped my MUGA, PET, MRI, lymph node dissection, and port placement go as smoothly as possible

I'm also grateful that Aaron can work from just about anywhere. This was 6:30 a.m. in the waiting room.

We've enjoyed some extra time to chat as we've driven back and forth to Little Rock or North Little Rock several times. We've even noticed that each of the CARTI offices is located near a Barnes and Noble, and we often have gift cards.

Chemo will begin next week, allowing Aaron to work remotely with the translation team for some advisor checking this week. God's timing is always perfect!

Happy Father's Day

 

Father's Day weekend presented a fabulous opportunity to see all of our dads in just a couple of days. Aaron and Katherine drove up to spend some time with Aaron's dad on Saturday.

Then after church, the rest of the dads, including my brother, and their families joined us for lunch.

And for the first annual Father's Day croquet tournament.

We're thankful for our mamas, too, 

the mamas were just busy taking care of the dads, so I didn't get any pictures of the ladies :)

Beginning of June

Several of my orchestra seniors surprised me and came by the house with flowers, chocolate, and a pink teddy bear to cheer me up. These guys have been incredibly supportive and encouraging since they learned of my cancer diagnosis. Watching these students grow for the last six years has been a special journey.

June 2nd is National Donut Day, and Krispy Kreme was giving away free donuts, so we took advantage of the fun holiday!

A Saturday adventure to hike to Eden Falls and Lost Valley Trail coupled with Hawksbill Crag was a fabulous way to spend the first weekend in June.

June has been cooler than normal, so the weather was perfect for hiking several beautiful miles.

Cancer Diagnosis

At the end of May, I received a diagnosis of breast cancer. We are still at the very beginning of this journey, and we would appreciate your prayers. Aaron was supposed to be in the Solomon Islands for the entire month of June, but he postponed his trip at the urging of our boss and many others who have experienced cancer.

May (2nd half)

Our school's boy's soccer team made it to the state finals.

One of the young men from church is on the team, and one of our violinists also plays soccer,

so it was an easy choice to take the lunch break to go cheer.

Other orch dorks showed up to encourage the guys, too.  And the Wampus Cats won for the 2nd year in a row!

Our family continued to explore waterfalls.

This time we made the drive to Steele Falls, stopping to eat lunch at JoJo's Catfish Wharf along the way.

The butterflies were everywhere!

Katherine and Aaron, ever adventurous, found a path that led them to the top of the waterfall and waved down at me.

In May, we also added two new guinea pigs to our house.  It has been a year since the last one died, and Katherine was ready to snuggle up with a pet again.

The summer schedule looks like three generations meeting at the gym on Friday mornings.

We enjoyed celebrating Mother's Day this year by spending one-on-one time with each of our moms and then going out to Grandma's house to enjoy lunch after church with her.

The weekend after Mother's Day was Grandma's 92nd birthday, so her grandchildren who live in Arkansas gathered to work in her yard and plant perennials that she can continue to enjoy.

And then it was my birthday. Our kids, minus Hannah, came to Conway and spend a couple of days.

We enjoyed watching "Murder on the Orient Express" at Murry's Dinner Playhouse

We also explored the Arkansas River Trail and shared a picnic lunch with lots of laughter.

 

May (1st Half)

When we heard about the re-release of "Return of the Jedi" to celebrate its 40th anniversary, we knew we wanted to take a trip to the movie theatre. 

My semester as a student finished when I turned in my research paper. Such relief! We celebrated by going to a new place, Las Delicias, suggested to us by one of the violin students at the junior high school. Their logo says "Ice cream, Hispanic cravings, and more". A whole new world of food has been opened...we split the churro split.

The next day, we drove to Dallas to celebrate Sarah's graduation from Dallas International University.

We hadn't been together as a family since Christmas, so there was lots of laughter.

We enjoyed hiking and picnicking at Cedar Hill State Park.

And extended family came to support Sarah and all the hard work she has poured into her last two years in Dallas.

As the time for graduation drew near, I popped into the lobby to get one more hug and found Sarah's cohort praying together before they walked across the stage.

Not only did family members show up, but people we count among our adopted family also attended the graduation.

Our SITAG family Gebauer Power made it after driving all day long.

And the Ashleys, aka Uncle Fudge and Aunt Karen, also attended.

The Huntleys have served as Sarah's adopted family while she has been in school. Watching their family grow over the years has been so fun.

And before we left, some of Sarah's friends introduced me to a "deck workout" and let me tag along.

We are trying to grow some new things this year, planting food instead of flowers in the back and trying to figure out the light in each area of the yard.

 This country provides so many opportunities, like voting and medical care.