Rambling

 I think there's probably a reason that the human race generally has children when parents are younger versus older, and it is directly related to the energy level of those little ones. Whew! Preschoolers are hardcore, let me tell you. Especially ones who have started school determined not to nap. Ever. Silly little peeps have no idea they're missing out on one of the highlights of life. Ah well. With age comes wisdom.

That's what they say, anyway.

The students I'm working with are adorable, precocious, ridiculous, sweet, funny, earnest, enthusiastic ... and are wearing me out. I don't want to use the word "exhausting" because it's still early days, but I am amazed by their determination to stay wiggly at nap time and chatty when they should be quiet-ish and, despite announcing repeatedly that they're hungry, much more interested in entertaining their friends than eating their lunches! 

AND, for the love, why do they have to go to the bathroom 15 minutes after they were just reminded to go?

Anyway. We've been going on dot hunts when discussing circles and releasing butterflies and making alphabet books and God bless these brilliant women I work with because I am sheerly there for backup as they present all these incredible and adorable ideas. Letter B's that we've turned into bumblebees, D's that have become donuts, you get the idea. I love that I can quietly whisk the old supplies away and prep the new things while the teachers are explaining what will be happening next. Even if we have to repeat it. Many times. 

I love the staff where I work and these families. I'm having a really good season right now and I'm almost afraid to jinx it by saying anything, but I know some of you wonder so I want to keep you in the loop.

Not sure which kids are allowed to have their photos displayed or not, so you'll just have to envision little people yourself. We have three year olds on Tuesday and Thursday and 4s and 5s on MWF. Last week, one of the 3s decided she wasn't pleased about being dropped off and therefore wasn't going to sit or join the group or sit by herself and stood and stood and stood, only to fold herself in half physically, face down in my teacher friend's lap. Bless the teacher, she adjusted and kept reading to the group right over the top of the little flower's half-prone body. The little one eventually came around and was participating later on, so all's well that ends well.

We hosted Donuts for Dads and are gearing up for Grandparents' Day in a few weeks. We even survived our first two hour fog delay, which means nobody is there long enough to offically have to take a nap, so we had a lovely picnic outside and got to see many airplanes, some butterflies, AND two bald eagles! 

Healthwise, I'm mostly good. All cleared from the hysterectomy, attempted to get back into yoga last week, lamented/raged how much range of motion and flexibility I lost over the summer because of no yoga, and am back at it today. There's more neuropathy in my right arm than I'd like there to be- it often feels fizzy- but I'm not dropping things or in pain from it, so I guess either it'll get better or I'll get used to it. My armpit/pec(?) whatever on that right side has been really extra tight the last several days which is not making me happy, but at least it doesn't feel like a cough will kill me anymore. Sneezes were also terrible, but my body has apparently figured that out because most of them have been aborted, haha! You just don't think about what is connected until something goes wrong. I'm sure it's fine. It's already better than it was late last week. 

Thank you all for praying me/supporting me/loving on me to get me to this point! I think this has been my favorite back to school yet!

The 2547602th day of January

 I hear some of you have gotten some snow! 😀 I'm sure it has absolutely nothing to do with me desperately wishing Weather would go elsewhere, haha. Sorry to those of you getting multiple inches in places unused to dealing with any. I'm looking at you, Outer Banks. And Florida. Still chuckling, though, if I'm being honest. Stay warm and safe. I'm sure it'll disappear quickly, whereas we northerners have permafrost. Our driveway has been a mess for weeks, much to Thing Three's delight as he skids down it towards the bus stop in his tennies whilst I'm out there navigating in boots and sticking to the yard as much as possible. I inherited enough OCD to be driven to distraction that we didn't clear it all off first thing and now it's compacted down and iced over and snowed on top of and and and...

Deep breaths and pivot.

My third Taxol infusion is over with. Thing One kept me company and giggling. Nine more to go. Still seem to be tolerating it well. My port worked like a champ this time- thank you, whoever prayed that it would behave- and even though my white blood cell count was still a little low, it was not at a dangerous level and I got the green light to go ahead with chemo. Thanks also for praying I'm staying healthy for all of this! I wore my compression socks again and sucked on my ice chips and have been holding a bag of ice these last two sessions. So far, no neuropathy, so we'll keep doing what we're doing! I absolutely feel like there is less brain fog with this med than with my previous ones, and less nausea, which is wonderful. I feel like my energy level is increasing. Now if we could just get some sunshine, that would be terrific! Keep those prayers coming when you think of me. I appreciate them all!

We didn't really have Weather, but we sure had COLD. There were no classes here Tuesday or Wednesday as the windchills were ridiculous, like negative teens or something, so it was nice having everyone home and staying toasty by our fireplace. Our Christmas tree is still up as it makes such a nice night light and is cheerful when everything outside is frizzering. We will probably take it down this weekend and I'll be a bit glum, but it's time. And no, I'm not keeping it up and decorating it with Valentines!

I'm still kickin'

 Hiya and happy almost holidays! The title is something my Nana used to say when asked how she was doing. I felt it was fitting to sum up how I'm functioning these days.

For those of you who are panicking because you're not ready, take a deep breath and know that we are right there with you. For those of you who keep getting more things tossed at you in this game called life, take another breath and be still a moment. You're allowed. There is hard stuff happening, and you, too, are not alone. For those of you experiencing a very Blue Christmas, big hugs from us, and more deep breaths, and just do what you can. And if you can't, that is okay, too. Just be. Just breathe. Please know you're loved.

I had the last of the AC part of chemo on Tuesday last week and you guys must have been praying hard, because I was expecting next-door-to-end-of-the-world awfulness but experienced next-door-to-exhaustion instead. Thank you! The nausea has not been fun, but it has been manageable, and I'm still taking as many naps as possible, which helps. The brain fog is real; I've caught myself making out multiple Christmas cards to the same person, so if you end up with three or end up with none- it's my fault either way. Sorry. Next year will be better. Doing a lot of facepalming over here. But, as my Nana said, "I'm doin'."

The next step will be weekly infusions of Taxol for all of the next three months. Supposedly that will be easier on my system and my doc thinks I will handle that well. The new wrinkle will be hands and feet neuropathy, which I'm a bit nervous about as I've been fortunate to never have to deal with that yet... guess we'll see how it goes. Doc said if it's terrible they can dial back the dose of Taxol, but I want this round of cancer to be the last ever round of cancer so I kinda don't want to inhibit any of the meds... no sense stressing over it. It'll be what it'll be. We will figure it out. 

Since that doesn't start until January, I have the rest of this month to recover, gain weight I mean "enjoy Christmas goodies", attempt to finish my cards before Christmas, get my far and wide ranging ducks back in a row, take the boys to the dentist for their appointment, enjoy time with loved ones, hopefully bake some and take more naps. I am very much enjoying not waiting at the bus stop while the temps are in the teens, but I'm sure there will be plenty of that in 2025. 

Don't exhaust yourselves this season chasing down the Stuff or trying to do All The Things. Make the time for the people and activities that fill your spirit back up, and know that you're loved more than you realize. Be good to yourself! You are worth it!

Drink water and wash your hands. The germs are legion!