Today is going to be Wicked awesome!

Happy Anniversary to my awesome hubs who got us tickets to see Wicked today at the Opera House! When the tickets first arrived 3 months ago, it seemed like a lifetime away. I'm so excited.

It's our 18th anniversary. All year I had been thinking it was our 19th, and next year would be the big two oh. Wrong. 2013 will be 20 years. Basic math skills, I has them.

18 years and two great kids is nothing to sneeze at though! I may complain and whine from time to time, but my life is pretty blessed :)

2 more days!

In two days I will be finished with radiation. I am beyond excited!

I won't miss driving to the Cancer Center daily for treatment. I won't miss wearing the stiff hospital gown. I won't miss the blue marker on my clothes.

I had my last visit with the doctor yesterday and got my discharge papers. She also gave me a prescription for a healing cream, and warned that my skin will become worse before it becomes better. The effects of the boost haven't even taken their toll yet, and already I have some blistering and very sort spots. My armpit especially...It hurts like an SOB. Hopefully the cream will help ease it.

In other news, Winter decided to return with a vengance on Sunday night. After enjoying 50 degrees and sunshine last week, it hardly seems fair to get 12" of newfallen snow. It was coming down fast and furious, and we were out in it. Cars were off the roads and getting stuck going up the smallest of inclines. I've never seen anything like it. My little Pepper just motors right through! I love AWD. School was out Monday for mid-winter break, and I was surprised to wake up this morning and find the kids still in bed! The roads were so bad, still. I guess the severity of the storm caught everyone off guard.

I toook the above photo with my iPhone, using the camera bag app. This filter is called 'silver'. I am having lots of fun playing with it :)

Hello, February!

Today was supposed to have been treatment 15...half way through. Instead, today is a snow day. A day to spend in the house and contemplating the end of winter, which feels like a million years away.

Snowmagedden? Not so much. We got about 5 inches, doubling what we had. No 'storm of the century' snowfall. I feel cheated.

A Florida Christmas

I didn't mean to go this long without blogging about our trip to Florida pre-Christmas...time just got away from me! (And I hadn't gone through iPhoto and deleted the photos I didn't need so I had no idea really what I had in there.)

Travelling during the holidays was really great. It forced me to be organized and get everything done before we stepped foot into the airport. Good. It did feel weird to not have any last minute shopping to do, and it was annoying that everyone else did! No strolling thru our favorite malls just for fun...they were crowded!

At the terminal super early. Like 90 minutes early. We expected long security lines but were through in less than 10 minutes. Instead we shopped and ate at a Coney Island. Lots of good stores in the new terminal. They even have a pet store!

The entire family and their electronic devices. Ahhh, technology!

We arrived at the apartment a little after midnight. Dad & Carol had decorated for us with a small tree and our stockings! It was a really great surprise. Made it feel Christmasy.

Sunsets are hard to catch from the apartment...this was our first night. The whole day had been crummy; cold, breezy, no sun at all.

We went out to dinner for our 17th anniversary on Saturday night. This night also began Evan's reign of terror for the remainder of the vacation. 11 year olds are not fit human company.

Think it was a little windy? Check out the waves!

The kids & Bart also took turns riding in my dad's ocean kayak. Evan got flipped coming back over the surf and the kayak crashed into his head and back. Needless to say he didn't ride it again. He also didn't come out of the apartment for 24 hours.

Emma & I went down to the beach several times a day. The water was cold but we still went in. The third day at low tide the pools started to form. I love when it does that. The shelling is great and the water trickling past looks like spun gold. Very cool.

We spent one evening driving around looking at Christmas displays, mostly in Las Olas. It's really hard to photograph them at night, in a moving car without them being totally blurry. These were a few of my favorites.

Sharing a big bowl of mussels at Southport Raw Bar. Emma won't touch them, but Evan can eat an entire order by himself.

The very first year we took both kids, I got a shot of them at this railing. We try to re-create it. but both would have nothing to do with it. I just love this age.

Hello fattie!

All in all, it was a very nice vacation. We had more sun than clouds. We ate good food. We relaxed. We swam. We body surfed. We got sand in unmentionable places. And then we got to come home and celebrate Christmas!

Leaving on a jet plane...

...but I will return on December 23rd.

So excited to just relax now that all of the Christmas shopping, wrapping, gathering, carding, & baking are done. For the next five days I plan to just enjoy the plentiful sunshine.

It's gonna be awesome!

Bunco GNO

Friday was an awesome day.

After spending the afternoon hanging out with my high school BFF Lisa

(we power shopped and went to see Black Swan-so awesome!),

I met 4 of my Bunco friends for dinner at On the Border.

Unfortunately, 3 members of our group couldn't make it, but we had a great time all the same. We got there early enough to enjoy happy hour (yeah Maragritas!) and had a few hours of laughs and conversation.

Judy & I wearing our crowns. Aren't we divine?

Kirstie, Brenda & Karen

Judy loves to dangle things from her glasses :)

Kirstie, Brenda & Karen again

The whole lot of us.

Kirstie brought Christmas crackers for everyone; only Brenda & I knew what they were. They are an Brittish tradition (Kirstie's Brittish), so it was really fun to share it with all of us. At least 4 people asked us what we were celebrating and where did we get the crowns. We were the talk of the restaurant.

I had some big fun girls!

Hello, December v.10

I know I say this every month, but seriously...how is it December already??

I think I am going to do a December daily album starting tomorrow. I have the main album ready to fill; I just need to take the time. I figured this would be a good year to commit to it as we have so much going on this month. It's exciting and a little daunting. I have to have all my Christmas stuff done before we leave on the 17th for Florida. I have made some headway, but nothing is done. The decorating, the cards, the shopping. The baking. Ack. Now I just want to crawl under the blankets until then!

I am feeling pretty good. No pain; the incisions are healing nicely and I have been resuming normal activity. Still haven't gotten the pathology reports, but I do see the doctor on Monday. I don't have time to be worried!

More tomorrow...

serendipity

Main Entry: ser·en·dip·i·ty

Pronunciation: \-ˈdi-pə-tē\

Function: noun

Etymology: from its possession by the heroes of the Persian fairy tale The Three Princes of Serendip

Date: 1754

: the faculty or phenomenon of finding valuable or agreeable things not sought for; also : an instance of this

Last night I was wishing for nothing more than to not have to drive to soccer practice tonight.

This morning woke up to a snow day, and the realization that my world looks like the inside of a recently shaken snowglobe. It's beautiful, ethereal, and most undoubtedly will result in no practice.

Serendipity.

M.I.A.

I've got a bad case of the Februaries.

Not to mention a sinus infection. Came up on me superfast. A little bit of sneezing and then a monster headache with incredible pressure for 2 days. Viola, sinus infection made to order. My head feels like it's filled with quick drying cement, and overall I just feel like crap. Haven't felt like doing anything...knitting hurts, reading hurts, laying down hurts. You know you are pathetic when laying down hurts. I've oficially crossed the line.

Already the week has gone to hell in a handbasket. I haven't made out the meal plan. I haven't shopped. I can't really taste anything nor do I have much of an appetite, so cooking just seems pointless. Bart is doing the South Beach diet, so he isn't eating with us anyway. The days have been grey and cold; each day just flows into the next in one long stream of boredom.

I really hate February.

The only saving grace has been watching the Olympics, which I have been whenever I can. Yesterday Evan stayed home from school and we watched the snowboard cross and pairs' figure skating from the night before. The problem with watching with a boy is that he wants to fast forward through all the stuff I want to watch. After 2 pairs, he was done with figure skating and would have watched just about anything else. Heathen.

I just found out that my cousin Reagan is pregnant with a boy, due in September. That brings the total to 4 baby boys I know born in 2010. Julie, I think maybe the odds are with you!

Later!

Igloo!

The best part of 8" of freshly fallen snow? Igloos, of course!

Emma came out in these snow pants. Sized 6x. She was puzzled as to why they were so tight in the crotch. Not to mention, about 12 inches too short!!

The finished igloo, big enough for two!

the difference 24 hours makes

Taken at noon February 9th

taken at 9am February 10th

Well it finally came, our big snow!

As predicted, we got at least 8" as far as I can tell. Everything is calm and quiet and bright. They say that the winds are going to start and there will be lots of blowing and drifting, so for now the kids are enjoying a bonus day off school and I am contemplating whether or not to shovel the foot of the driveway. 'Not' is winning.

I find it very amusing that a kid I can barely get up on school mornings has been a perky little busybody, outside for an hour already! He is trying to make an igloo. He's having fun, anyway!