Five on Friday (March 31, 2017)

Whatever is good and perfect is a gift coming down to us

from God our Father, who created all the lights in the heavens.

He never changes or casts a shifting shadow.

He chose to give birth to us by giving us his true word.

And we, out of all creation, became his prized possession.

James 1:17-18

1. Spring break seemed like a good time to make a fast trip to Cincinnati to use the tickets to the Ark Experience and Creation Museum we received for Christmas. It was a good 2 days of family togetherness that was both wonderful (spring break!) and challenging (middle schooler on board!). Spending the night together in a hotel is a rare event, and Brian went to bed early while the kids ate an insane amount of snacks and watched The Voice. They were bottomless pits! We visited 2 ice cream spots in 2 days time, went to the Cincinnati Art Museum, browsed Findlay Market, and ate pizza while people-watching. The weather was gloomy, but we never got caught in rain or needed more than a light jacket so I would call that a win.

(my favorite picture from the whole trip - such a rare, impromptu smile from Camden)

2. Dr. C decided I was not well enough for chemo this week and it's as if my whole mind and body exhaled long and slow. For weeks I have struggled to regain my strength between rounds of chemo and this extra week (next week is my regularly scheduled week off) comes just in time. I have been lucky in that I haven't been desperately ill, but it is exhausting to feel sick and fatigued all the time. In the big scheme of things, it's not awesome to skip chemo, but it sure feels good.

3. Random bragging on my kids: Camden was awarded Most Christ-like at his basketball dinner 2 weeks ago, and Rory put on a bake sale to raise money for a family in our church who is moving to Uganda for a year.

4. After Cincinnati, spring break has been uneventful: a trip to the library and Starbucks, Karate Kid 1 and 2, church work day, going-away party, and naps every day.

5. Brian decided to tackle a Pinterest project by building a palette privacy fence for our backyard. I have faith in his ability, commitment, and work ethic. I have less faith in his finding the time to work on this over the next few months, but it will look awesome if he can pull it off. He and the kids spent a couple of afternoons breaking down the wood and enjoyed the hard work. Some (the adult and 10-year old) more than others (the middle schooler).

*****

Yesterday was Cancer-versary #6 and we celebrated, as usual, with ice cream for breakfast. Brian and the kids were on spring break and I worked from home. It was nice to not have to rush through it the way we've done in the past. Waffles and praline pecan ice cream were delicious! (there has been a lot of ice cream consumed during spring break this year, and I am not sorry)

It's back to work and school Monday, Becky arrives Tuesday, scan on Wednesday. But first, some basketball-watching tonight and maybe one more nap tomorrow afternoon.