The Blog After Christmas

I got a message from a friend reminding me I don't blog anymore. I am facehooked!

Last time I posted was August 24.

So, since then I have:

--taught the most wonderful group of 2nd graders

--been to many football games (including 2 beyond the regular season)

--had a colonoscopy

--moved daughter #1 home in a hurry

--gotten through a diagnosis of skin cancer with daughter #2, then rediagnosed to a precancer instead

The first item on the list is self-explanatory. The 2nd item says we had a wonderful season, Keith had a stellar Fall, and we got into post-season play. The 3rd item is simply one more reminder that I am getting old. However, I woke up during the procedure and then they knocked me out again. I had two polyps, one small and one large, and I get the honor of going through the whole thing again in two years.

Going on to the next item, Laurel had a horrendous living arrangement with one of the roomies stealing food, "borrowing" items without asking, never picking up after herself, basically slovenly. There was a proverbial straw that broke the camel's back, and we moved her home.

And finally, Caroline found a mole that was a little weird in November. She read an article in Cosmo, of all magazines, and watched it for a little while, then asked me to get her in to see her doctor over Thanksgiving break. The doctor took a biopsy. On Dec. 4, we were told it was malignant melanoma. From there, everything was a flurry of activity. Appointment with a dermatologist, who sent the biopsy to someone who specializes in dermatology biopsies. Then an appointment with a plastic surgeon, with a recommendation to not only excise the area, but also shoot dye at the site, track the pathways, and take the first lymph node to test for cancer.

The 2nd biopsy reading showed that it was not cancer. So that man sent it to a specialist who only reads melanomas. A few days later, the specialist also agreed that it was not melanoma, but a rare cell change that was considered a precancer.

So, Caroline still needed to have the area excised, which she had done on Christmas Eve. She's doing well, and her butt continues to be shipped around the country this side of the Mississippi.

We're looking forward to a new year. Too much loss in 2009.