Joanne needs...

As seen on other blogs, I thought this would be fun. You type your name and (needs) in a google search and see what comes up. Here's my list:

Joanne needs....

to become more tolerant
space
intellectual stimulation
a break
to reassess situation
survive the machinations of her fellow wardens
some adult company
Emily's list support
to walk away from or ignore Rachael's tantrums
to go into such detail
a magic drug
delivery of meds daily
to pay for her crimes
all of the milk you have stored


Okay so I have to comment on something. My MIL's name is Joanne and my FIL's name is Gary. Yes, we have the same names as my in-laws. As I was going through my google, I found "Psychic readings and healings with Gary and Joanne". What is it with people named Gary and Joanne hooking up?

The testing is done and the results are in

First, I would like to mention that my computer is very sick. If anyone has emailed me in the last week, and I haven't responded, this is why.

Now for the main reason of this post. Gary has completed all his tests: Xrays, MRI, CT scans... you get the idea. Yesterday, he went to Halifax to get the results and discuss treatment.

The results:

Gary has Eosinophilic granuloma of bone, this is caused by Langerhans Cell Histiocytosis. It is a rare blood disease that is non-transferrable, non-hereditary and affects one in two million people. This means that he has too much of a certian type of white bloodcell which causes benign tumor growth on any bone in his body. So far, he has had them removed off his jaw. The results show that he has them on his jaw, his face (skull), and on his upper leg. The ones on his skull are the danger as they can grow and may rupture, injuring the brain.

The treatment:

He will be going through a mild form of chemo called Vinblastine and he will be taking Prednisone daily. The chemo will be once a week for 6 weeks and then once every 3 weeks for 6 months. He may have to travel to Halifax for this, they are trying to make arrangements so the treatment can be done in Saint John.

Gary is hoping to continue working during the Chemo. Please pray that he doesn't have complications and everything goes smoothly.

Our Adventure

Wednesday, I decided to take the girls on an adventure.

They eached packed a backpack with a change of clothes, a snack and some water. Then we proceeded to walk to the bus stop. The walk would be easy for me, but it is quite challenging for the girls. Don't even get me started that they eliminated our route.

We took the bus to McAllister Place. The whole bus ride was filled with a commentary from the girls that they knew this building or had been in that building. We transferred at McAllister Place and the girls were really excited when it was a "painted bus". Breanna sat on my lap for the drive uptown and by the time we got there, she was starting to doze off.

From King Square we walked to Market Square where the girls had their snack by the water fountain. They just love it there! After their snack, they each threw a penny into the fountain. Breanna has quite a good throw! We then headed to the library. The girls had fun making a craft while I read them one of the Hallowe'en books at the craft table. They remained occupied until the announcement that the library was closing. Just as we were putting our coats on, Gary came in. Perfect timing :)

Since the girls had been so good all afternoon, we decided to treat them to supper at Keystone Kelly's. They remained well-behaved for supper and fell asleep in the van on the way home.

They really loved our little adventure!

Dancing tonight

Yay! Dancing starts tonight! Can you tell I'm excited? I love dancing. Its more than just loving it. Its hard to explain. I just call it my passion :)

In other news:

I'm hosting a Home & Gift party. It's the first time I've hosted a home party. I've been to many, but haven't hosted one myself. Oh wait, there was a jewelry one in University that 3 people showed up to. Hmm, that was a flop. Just not the right product I guess :)

On the weekend, I decided to join Cara and Shelley on a "Black Friday" shopping trip. I won't have much money to spend, but it will be nice to get away with the ladies. Not to mention that the sales will be amazing!

Pictures, strollers and cat/dog food

Today was picture day at Darrelyn's school. We picked out her outfit yesterday. Yes, she has earned her clothing privileges back. This morning, I straightened her hair and drove her to school so the fog wouldn't ruin it. You see, I have some really bad school pictures in my past. Usually because they were taken on a wet day and my hair frizzed all out of control. I didn't want Darrelyn to go through the same. We got the proofs back today, thx digital photography, and they look cute.

I sold my double jogging stroller today. This was a sad moment. I know its going to a good home, but still, it was sad. That was the best stroller I have ever owned and the girls and I have been so many places with it. What is even sadder is the realization that I don't need strollers anymore. The girls are too big now.

Thanks to Scott's blog, I found out that the animal rescue league had food stolen. Who would steal dog/cat food from the Rescue League?!?! I called them to ask what they needed most and they said cat food, but anything would be appreciated. So Breanna and I took the two cans of gastro dog food I had left from Buddy being sick, we went to Wal-Mart, bought some cat food and brought it over to the rescue league. They were very happy for the gastro food as they receive many dogs who are sick and are unable to keep the regular food down. I'll have to keep that as a mental note and pick up a can or two each time we bring Buddy to the vet. Its not much, but its something.

Singing, Birthdays, and Relaxation

Friday:

Friday night I went to Karaoke and sang, I think, 6 songs. It was the most enjoyable karaoke I have been to yet and I have been to many great karaoke nights. I guess being involved in the singing was the big part of it. I even won the draw at the end of the night Gary was quite proud of me, as was I, that I have broken down a barrier I've had my whole life. I always refused to sing and here I was singing in public, with only me up there for people to hear. Its a feeling I can't describe to go outside of my box and do something I always swore I would never do.

Saturday:

Darrelyn's birthday went smoothly. We went to pizza delight. The children picked from the kids menu and we ordered pizza and garlic fingers for the adults. The cake was a huge hit. It had figurines of different Disney princesses, how could it not be a hit The children loved their treat bags and the balloons. As I was paying, the waitress commented that this was the quietest birthday party they've ever had and said I was lucky that the children were so well behaved. She was young and didn't understand that luck has nothing to do with it. Discipline and a caring parent has everything to do with it.

Sunday:

Sunday was a pretty quiet day. Darrelyn and I went to Sunday school and I did some cleaning. Gary and I played WoW. A nice quiet day.

Monday:

I hosted playgroup at my house yesterday. The children were all well-behaved and, other than Breanna hiding in her room for the first half, it went well. Darrelyn's homework was to color a picture for a contest. She was quite excited about this as she loves to color. Maybe I'm looking at it through rose-colored glasses, but I think she's awesome at it and would definitely have a shot at winning. Deifnitely much better than I was at that age.

Today:

Darrelyn was really hard to wake up this morning so I knew something was wrong. Usually she's up by at least 7:00 bright-eyed and bushy-tailed. At 8:00 we tried to wake her up and she just didn't want to wake up. Not the grumpy kind of not wanting to. You could just tell she didn't look herself. It turns out she has a fever. I gave her some medicine and sent her back to bed. Therefore, we will be staying home today. This is probably a good thing since I have piles of laundry to do.