Five on Friday (October 9, 2020)

The kids saw their pediatrician for annual physicals last month, and, surprisingly, Rory is the one doing all the growing these days. She grew about 5 inches and gained 20 pounds. In fact, Dr. H says she's moved from tiny (3-5th percentile which has been her norm) to just small/petite (10th percentile). Camden is 5'11" and 129 lbs so he's still a beanpole. The most significant information from this visit is Dr. H confirming that Rory's asthma is most improved from the last several years.

Unfortunately, Rory came down with a seasonal cold (and a few allergies thrown in) not long after she finished her COVID-exposure quarantine so she sneezed her head off and was generally miserable for a couple of days. Because of our current COVID climate, she was unable to attend school in person while having these symptoms, which is understandable. She shed a few tears the first morning, but a hot cup of coffee perked her right up. Can't do that at school!

Our lives have changed tremendously over the last 14 days - Camden got his license! While I continue to be anxious every morning when he and Rory pull out of the driveway, the convenience of not having to be a full-time chauffeur is pretty amazing. So far we've stuck to school trips, but he's doing really well. I think I might even be looking forward to the near future when he handles errands and all social events. What will we do with all the extra time on our hands?

Another big piece of news is that my recent CT scan showed stable cancer and my CA125 dropped an entire 20 points! That's probably the biggest drop I've ever had, and I hardly know how to feel with such good news all around. After 9.5 years of cancer and cancer treatment, bad days are just my reality but I am certainly grateful that my current medicine has few side effects. Unfortunately, my oncologist continues to request that I stay home, avoiding stores and gatherings. Quarantining for 7+ months is not easy. 

Rory's 14th birthday last month was a bright spot. How did our little munchkin turn into such a grown-up beautiful teenager? She requested a lemon raspberry cake and my grandma's chicken and dumplings. We celebrated once with grandparents, Aunt Liz and Addison and then again on her actual birthday with wings (again, her request).

Fall break officially begins this afternoon. I hear Camden a date scheduled (yes, his very first one and very official), we're attending Addison's soccer game, and I have to have some testing done on my port (why are my ports so much trouble??). Happy weekend, friends.