One last Mabel Fix

Brittany came up tonight to be with us and give us one last evening with Mabel before we go to the hospital. Kids will be off limits while I'm having chemo.

We made our first visit it to the Blue Lemon Restaurant, which is technically the closest restaurant to our house. There is no restaurant in the entire city of Alpine!

We had a great dinner, and I even had dessert! I might be losing my appetite next week, so I might as well bulk up!

Mabel cheered me up. So did a visit from Bishop Shippen and my son-in-law, John, who joined with Ed to give me a blessing before going to the hospital. It was a great comfort, and I'm going in peace and full of hope tomorrow!

Judy Goes to the Hospital

We finally got a diagnosis on my leukemia:  B-cell prolymphocytic leukemia . It is extremely rare and extremely aggressive. I still feel fine, but will report to LDS hospital in Salt Lake City tomorrow morning at 8 a.m. to start a hospitalized treatment of 2-4 weeks, depending on how I respond to the treatment. I'll have a new set of doctors who have more knowledge about this particular disease. We really don't know much about it, but I imagine we will be finding out a lot in the next few days!

I'm taking my good luck charm to the hospital with me. It is Judy Hopps, from Zootopia! (Thank you Crystal.) What could be better luck than a bunny named Judy?

Wride Time

We were lucky to have the Wrides stop by for an hour yesterday. They live in Idaho, but were in Utah to hear their granddaughter report her mission. The don't look a day older than they did when we lived next door to them in Parker. How can they have a granddaughter that old?

It was good catching up on old times as well as new! Parker was a magical time in our lives, and the birthplace of family band as well as old lady band! Good times! Thanks for stopping by!

Aquarium

Ed and I joined the Nuttalls for a trip to the aquarium yesterday. It's always fun to spend a day with Mabel.

Mabel actually has a little sign language movement for the word "fish" which includes moving her hands in a fishy motion. It was fun watching her make this movement at each tank!

She was amazed at the sharks swimming right over the top of us!

She liked the tree frogs!

She made her cute tiger sound when she saw the leopards!

She rode on the back of a sea turtle!

It was fun for us to see the aquarium, but mostly we were interested in getting a reaction out of Mabel!

It was smaller than the Baltimore aquarium, but just as much fun!

Afterwards we went over to Brittany's and John's to sit by the fire and listen to Christmas music. Ed had fun dancing with Mabel.

My broken wrist kept me from dancing with her, but I still had a good time reading to her! We sure like our Mabel time!

Giving Thanks

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving yesterday, with my mother, Brittany, John and Mabel, and the Nuttall family. It is nice we enjoy Brittany's in-laws and are able to share some holidays together. Marti and Ellis had their son Tim, and his family in town, as well, so it made a nice group of 14, which just barely fit in our new dining room!

Ed had his annual fight with the turkey, but it turned out great, despite the fact that the natural gas BBQ didn't heat as fast as the propane we've used for the past several yeas!

After dinner we made everyone (except Grandma who couldn't be coerced) play a game of pool.

By pie time we had all worked up an appetite again! Marti brought all the pies, and they were delicious!

I picked pecan and chocolate French silk pies, my favorite! There was still plenty left when Brittany and Grandma finally straggled in for a serving!

Mabel was as cute, as ever! She recognizes animals and makes animal sounds. It was fun to show her our Christmas trees!

In the evening we drove over to the Riverwoods Mall and walked around just to enjoy the lights! Such a beautiful and happy time of year!

Sleepover with Grandma

Our Thanksgiving celebration started yesterday, when my mom came over to spend the night with us. We had fun getting ready for dinner today, and ended up watching a movie in our new media room last night. We thought it looked great, considering we don't have a projection screen yet!

Mom brought her test tube and finished spitting in it so she can send it off to Ancestry for her DNA analysis! It took her half an hour to work up 1/4 teaspoon of spit! Ed and I were salivating in sympathy!

It was nice hunkering down in our warm house and watching the first snowstorm of the season. It was beautiful, and we can't wait to see a few more!

Happy Anniversary to Us!

Ed and I went to the Harvest Restaurant at Thanksgiving Point last night to celebrate our wedding anniversary! We loved the atmosphere and the pretty lights outside.

The restaurant fit the bill for fancy enough for an anniversary, as it had real cloth tablecloths! The New York Steak and Idaho rainbow trout were delicious! It's been a great 35 years together and we're hoping for 35 more!

Gingerbread Houses

We were invited to dinner and gingerbread house making tonight with the Nuttalls. It was fun to see how they turned out. I also liked eating the candies!

Marti has had a tradition of making these houses each year, and she had a few extra grandchildren from Texas to help tonight.

Mabel was too young to be much help, so she read the newspaper instead!

Ed enjoyed trying to keep her out of mischief! It was fun for us to watch her walking around the house carrying shoes that didn't belong to her! Whatever entertains her!

Thank You from Ed and Judy

Ed and I want to thank those of you who fasted and prayed for us today, as well as those of you that have sent good wishes! We felt the strength of your prayers and feel that we will beat this leukemia, whatever form it might be. The warm wishes we received from you brought such tender feelings to us! Thank you so much! It meant the world to us!

We should find out precisely what I have and what the treatment plan would be by the end of the week. We're planning on having a rollicking Thanksgiving and a low key Christmas!

Musical Milestones

Since breaking my wrist October 19 and surgery to put in a plate on October 27th, I have achieved several milestones this week. I can take off a shirt by crossing my hands and gently pulling up on both sides! I can lift light objects and even use my left hand a little while putting on socks. There are still so many things I can't do, but I'm stretching the tendons and working them several times a day, specifically with music in mind.

I am able to play the piano now, and can reach an octave with my left hand (albeit, not without some discomfort)!

Brittany suggested I try the ukulele instead of the guitar or banjo. Yesterday I failed miserably, and today I can play two chords: C and G7! I am thrilled! Here is my joyous rendition of Clementine!

BYU vs UMass

Yesterday we had tickets to the BYU/UMass football game, thanks to Tim Whipple! It was a beautiful day, and about 20 warmer than the game we saw last week!

We had fun sharing the day with our friends, Chuck and Renee, who are always fun to be with!

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We were introduced to the pleasures of Cougar Tails there. They are giant maple bars, my favorite kind of donut!

BYU won 51-9, which meant I didn't have to have my stomach in knots like I did last week during the Iowa/Michigan game!

QuiltAnthropy Auction

Friday night Ed and I went to a quilt auction to benefit refugees. It was held in a beautiful barn owned by some neighbors of ours.

We were fed a hearty dinner to get us warmed up to get in the mood for giving.

We enjoyed the comfortable, cozy atmosphere and the opportunity to visit with some of our new friends.

We're still waiting to see if we are the new owners of a Halloween themed quilt, which we bid on in the silent auction!

Leukemia

Many of us were shocked last Tuesday by the results of the presidential election. I'll never forget the additional shock I received that day. I was in the hospital waiting for the results of a blood test and CT scan. The doctor looked me in the eye and said, "You have leukemia."

I couldn't have been more stunned! Other than a broken wrist and some minor abdominal pains I felt fine! I still feel fine, despite being on medication to reduce my white blood cell count.

The doctor doesn't know what form of leukemia I have. Early results pointed to CLL, but another test indicated MCL, which is a lymphoma. The CT scan showed no enlarged organs or lymph nodes, with the exception of the spleen. I am now waiting for the results of a bone marrow biopsy to determine what form of leukemia I have and what treatment that would require. We should get the results around Thanksgiving, and after that I will begin chemotherapy treatments.

We realize there are many new drugs out that are very effective in treating these diseases. We also realize that it is a serious disease and there are no guarantees. Ed has asked some family and friends to join with us this Sunday to fast and pray for me. I have felt your love and prayers already, and if you would like to join with us on Sunday in whatever manner you feel you could, it would be appreciated! Even just sending a few happy thoughts our way would be great. Send some for Ed, too! This is much an ordeal for him as it is for me! Thanks so much. I love you all!

Home Again

We arrived home in Alpine this afternoon. Coda was pretty happy to be home. She was so afraid we were going to leave her again that she sat up or stood up in the car the entire 8 hours!

I was very faithful with my hand exercises, and got a ball (as recommended by my good friend Martha Boon). It had 8 exercises in the instructions, and they were very therapeutic.

The happiest part is I am now able to type this entire blog posting with two hand typing! Hooray!

Drivin'

Eleven hours n the car today was a long drive! I spent it all lounging in the back seat!

Ed and Crystal did all the driving, listening to the cool sounds of Whistling Prairie all the way!

We were happy to make it to Denver in time for dinner at Sweet Tomatoes with Verlene. She had the bed all ready for us, and we were ready to hit the hay!

Coda had fun with Brandy and Holly, but was pretty happy to see us again! It made us think she really loves us!

Amana Colony

We had some time this morning for a little cat therapy before going sight seeing. Drizzle let Crystal cuddle him. He's loosing his hair again, and looks cute and rat-like.

Ed had some fun with Flurry, who we think has lemur-like legs. He's soft and furry.

We spent most of the day at the Amana Colonies, the home of the original radar-range ovens. They were a German communal society established in the 19th century.

Now they have a woolen mill, a furniture factory and lots of arts and craft and gift shops.

We also had a very filling family-style dinner a the Ox Yoke Inn.

We enjoyed stopping in at West Music, where Amanda works. She's in the flute department, where they sell expensive Miyazawa and Sankyo flutes. This one is made out of gold! Amanda is taking lessons and played a couple of songs for us on the flute. She was happy we were able to recognize them!

It has been great to see Amanda's new surroundings. When she tells us stories in the future we'll be able to put them in their real settings!

We got home in time for a little more cat therapy before bed. I had both cats crawl on my lap and was able to scratch them with the stiff fingers of my bad left hand! I was very proud!