fly by posting...

don't worry i'm still alive and kicking! came back from reno and have been thrown directly in the fire! trying to juggle my new routines with my old. have been pretty hit and miss and have been struggling to do it all. need to dust off my cape maybe. my kids have been hogging my computer (and my laptop! at the same time too!) so i'm very behind in blog postings and email correspondence. paperwork has accummulated since i was away and i'm having a hard time digging out from under it. i am walking (the murray hill powerlines hills!) with paris and simba every morning (about 45-60 min) and i'm getting more sleep than i have in years. i'm trying to keep on schedule with my supplements, water, juicing and eating, but i'm having trouble timing it all and being in the right place at the right time etc. nothing goes as i plan! does anyone know of a place that juices organic veggies in the area?

spencer got glasses this last week. he's looking very studious! i need to post a photo of him. he's always struggled with migraines and so i took him in to the doc and they tested his eyes. he was borrowing owen's at school to see the boards. they also want to do an MRI on him because the doc thinks a couple of things are going on, not just the glasses.

kaelin got her cast off the week i was coming home from reno. they xrayed her hand and it's still not healed, so 4 more weeks without sports. but without a cast. she's already fallen several times on it during tag at recess and PE. i can't keep that girl down! she missed her entire hoop season and competition season for gymnastics (we sure had fun at nationals in boston last year!) and i'm bummed! (she's not! LOL). she can't wait for soccer. she lives for soccer. and we love to watch her play! she's going to play U11 this spring. she's going to be 9 in april. she plays up on a team of mostly 4th graders and they play up a year, so she's playing up a couple years. she's just stronger and faster and more coordinated (thanks to gymnastics!) than most kids in her age group. she needs the challenge and competition of the older girls.

spencer played in a chess tourney this weekend with 3 other kids from his class. they got 4th place out of 14 teams. he plans on running track in the spring. that's a new one for him. he hates to run! but he dropped out of classic soccer and basketball this year. trying to drop out of violin but i won't let him drop everything! he's spending a lot of time on homework and wants to pick up electric guitar and go back to martial arts. he's an orange belt but hasn't done it for years. just more running around for me!

dave's team (the 3 time defending state champs the southridge varsity girls basketball team) went 10-0 this season in league and are getting ready for the playoffs that start next week. the real estate market has been really quiet as everyone knows. but competitive edge basketball and private lessons keep him busy.

i'm meeting with my oncologist tomorrow at 2pm to update him on my trip to reno (he doesn't know i went!) and to figure out a plan. my doc retires in march, so this will be my last meeting with him i'm sure. i'm hoping he can reccommend someone good. i'm still going to my support group on wednesdays (went to another memorial service today for a classy lady that passed away from stage 4 breast cancer) and i joined a writing around portland journaling class that meets right after my support group. http://www.writearound.org i really enjoy the ladies and activities from both groups. my hair is starting to grow back in. i have a 5 o'clock shadow on my head and brows! lol dave prefers me bald, without my wig. he likes the natural look of bald and hats. so i've not worn my wig since i've been home. i'm going to start working with my trainer again and once i meet with my oncologist, may talk about going back to work. i just need to figure out how to balance everything. i'm going to try hiring a housekeeper to come every other week to help me with my housework so i can focus on other things and not my to do list. now to hire a chaffeur for my kids. lol

ok, this was supposed to be short and sweet, but it's a rambling novel as usual. i will post an update once i meet with my oncologist tomorrow. my OHSU med student is going to meet me at the doctor's office. I'm a patient teacher again for the Living with Life Threatening Disease class in the Ethics Center at OHSU. It's been a great experience and I've been blessed with two fabulous students so far that I enjoy very much. Jenny randomly selected my name out of a hat and it just so happens she lost her mom to cancer when she was 1o. So it's a good pairing for us both. I am learning as much from her as she is from me. It's so helpful for me to hear the child's perspective and to see how well she turned out, despite the physical absence of her mother. It's pretty powerful.

Thank you for reading this far and for being patient with me while i've been drowning in my crazy life.

xoxox
shauna