Gratitude!

This year, we've been so overwhelmed with help and blessings and meals!  Weeks ago, I sat down with my friend Cindy, and we wrote Thank You notes to everyone who had donated money to our medical expense fund.  So many people have reached out to us!  Even more has been donated since our goal was reached.  I feel like I'm so far behind, it would be impossible to thank everyone personally because the blessings just keep rolling in, and I can't keep track of it all!  So, if I never get these cards out, I hope every one of you knows how truly grateful we are for everything that you are doing for us right now!  I hope that I have adequately expressed it in my day to day life!

I had a cancer friend, Charity, reach out to me a couple of weeks ago.  She does "foot zoning" and offered to help me through chemo by working those toxins out of my body.  She came clear from South Jordan on Monday, and I was so grateful!  She has a very light touch, but I was amazed at the results.  It was great to talk to her, and find that the life changes we made as a result of the original diagnosis are very similar.  I hope she never has to deal with another diagnosis.  My wish is that no one would ever have to deal with a diagnosis in the first place.

Mat was really excited to pull out the camper on Wednesday and take it for a drive, practice backing it in to a space, etc.  And the kids were super excited about sleeping in it!  All four of them packed bedding outside and set up their beds, and made it all night-despite the cold!

Thanks to Jeanne and Cathy for coming to chemo with me yesterday!  Everything went fine, just as expected.  I can't imagine doing chemo alone, even though I feel good enough to drive myself and get home again.  Having friends there makes all the difference to me!  This Friday is #9, CT scan happens on Dec. 6.

I got to see another dear friend, Olivia, for dinner yesterday.  She's here from out of town, and is one busy lady, but she made time for me.  Livi is one of my favorite people, she moved into our ward when we were teenagers.  But it took us both being married with kids before we figured out we could be great friends!  She's lived and traveled all over the world, and has so many great stories, and dreams, and aspirations!  There was so much stuff to talk about that cancer never even came up.  I was happy to have a respite for a couple of hours, to just not think about it.

I taught another Christmas tree class last night, this one at my house.  It was especially fun because I didn't have to dismantle the tree after I got it decorated!  :)  I've been buying ornaments for this years tree since August (love Hobby Lobby!).  And, in my humble opinion, it's GORGEOUS!  I've got 4 more classes scheduled, and would do more if anyone was interested.  I love sharing what I learned about decorating last year!

Maddie went and turned 20 on us!  She's such a great girl.  I'm so proud of everything she's accomplished.  She's grown up a lot at Snow College, it's been a great experience for her.  She's paid for everything on her own, and learned a lot about life and budgeting and priorities.  She'll get her associates degree after next semester, and then move home and figure out what to do with her life after that.  :)

Becca, a friend from Wasatch Peak Academy (where our kids go to school) contacted me a couple of weeks ago, she had just heard the news.  She, like so many, just want to help.  She has a friend with a house cleaning business and offered to pay to have them come clean our house.  Arrangements were made, and two women came today (who also have kids at WPA) and cleaned every corner of our house, it looks amazing!  I told the kids they weren't allowed in the kitchen or bathrooms ... ever again!