.Merry Christmas.

Merry Christmas from the Ericsons, Danners, Mogers, and Charlie Cat :)

This pic was snapped on my (ahh) 26th birthday! More to come on all this and fam-damily time :)

 Merry Christmas!  Hope you got what you wished for, like a kitty in a box. 

 *Wink* (or in reality, my whiskers got caught in my cone again and you snapped the shot at juuuust the right time)

it's over?!

Say it isn't so!  Thanksgiving comes but once a year, and it's time to say goodbye.  Well, technically we said goodbye yesterday morning, but this is just really an excuse to put up cute baby pics!

We love being an aunt and an uncle.  I admit, since I married into being an aunt (Mason was in the picture before I was...) I've had my hesitations.  Such as, "am I ready for this?" or "Will I love my niece and nephew the best that they deserve?"  And, "will my brother and sister in law forgive us if one of the kids happens to roll over on the other one?"

Whew! Good thing I was taking pictures of said rolling over, instead of preventing it...ah, she's tough, didn't even cry ;)

Here's some more pics of our week up north...just for funzies.

Bath time trio!

 what the heck, man? 

Oh no, we're good.  I can handle it.

Mason loves going for walks...Daisy however, well...this photo explains her attitude about it.  Rookie mistake, Emily.  Thank goodness for this handy bucket on the back!

 "Pop pop, take mower outside?"  He also loves to vacuum! He'll do your whole house...you can pay him in animal crackers.

Lastly, the baby whisperer.  They both fell asleep not too long after this was taken.

This week with family was fabulous.  Just another reminder that life is all about relationships.  I'm thankful we were able to take the time to be with some people we love.  I don't make light of the 8 hour time difference between us, and the blessing it is to just be for a while.  Be with family, be present, be an aunt and an uncle, be a brother and sister in law, a cousin, a nephew, just be friends.

 

Oh, and totally be addicted to The Walking Dead.  Which we now are.  Where have I been since 2010?

In this fast paced world (what am I, a bad Discovery Channel promo?)...but really, in this crazy, smart phone infested, technology overloaded world, take some time to breathe.  The twitter updates will still be streaming when you get back, your Facebook newsfeed will overwhelm you (but what's new?) and there will be no shortage of kick ass sunset pictures with just the right filter on Instagram, no matter how many hours it's been since you logged on...but don't let that overwhelm your day.  Face to face really will make that relationship stronger, repair that friendship, or maybe just give you the opportunity to meet someone new.  Try just being for a while.  Don't fill up your day with do, rather, be.  Try it out :)

xoxo Em

Fashion Show, Fashion Show....

Fashion show at lunch!

 Clearly her favorite...I smell a little fashionista in the future!  Wait...I smell something else too...diaper timeee

 Ah! What am I wearing?

 Oh, you're right.  Super cute. Tutu time!

 She's got snowflakes on her little feet!

 My favorite.  I found this gem in her closet...she's got more clothes than I do...and it's just big enough that I think it'll fit her until Christmas, too! I just want to take her to the opera or something.

Marin and I had a little fashion show yesterday...I'd been dying to do it since we arrived earlier this week, but dang it-that girl knows how to sleep! and I never took the chance when she was awake.  So we made it happen yesterday between diaper changes.  I only got 3 outfits in...I think she had it with me after this last outfit...do you know how hard it is to get tights on a 2 month old?  But we had fun [I had fun] and she was a good sport.  

Thankful for little babies, family, and the opportunity to be up here celebrating with my *new* family for the holiday.  Enjoy your food coma later!

Shout out to all the RI fam-damily celebrating today!  Miss y'all!  And shout out to the Mogers down in VA, and the Ericsons out in CA :)  Love y'all.

Go tell someone you appreciate and love them today.  Tell them with an extra helping of gravy on those potatoes ;)  

xoxo

Semi-Sweet

Semi-sweet...arguably the most used version of chocolate chips.  And also, today's mood.  My mood.  Things are on the up and up, I'm on the uphill climb part of this journey.  I think of life in pictures, and many times I view the struggles I go through as a journey down a mountain, like, "Oh man...going downhill is a metaphor for heading somewhere I don't want to be...there's probably a big stinking pile of poo poo at the bottom of this mountain.  Sucks I'm heading there.  Hope I don't step in it."  On the other hand the excitement, the more joyous times are when I'm climbing up the mountain, like, "heck yea! We're going up, up to the top of this sweet mountain to see the awesome view it has...and anything else that might be up there! cool!"

disclaimer: I know others who use this particular vision/picture/model when thinking of life or situations in life and I also know that it makes perfect sense to view ups and downs completely opposite of how I just described.  Sure, when you're going downhill it's easier, so the downhill could be your positive times.  And yes, climbing uphill sucks.  It hurts, you get out of breath, if you're walking with someone it's embarrassing because you can't get more than 3 words out without gasping for air...I get it.  Let's agree to disagree, eh, pacha? 

but p.s. Going uphill totally helps your butt look good in the end.  So totes worth it.  Ok, ok, choose your own way to think about it.  But it's still satisfying going uphill.

I had a great conversation today with an old old ...wooden ship?  Why does a movie quote pop into my head right when I'm getting all serious!?  No, I had a great conversation with an old friend today.  Our conversations are always spot on (that's for you, Katie Sienicki) and this friend is one of those people I can be transparent with, completely honest.  Ha, sometimes more honest than I'm willing to be with myself.  Anyway, things are on the up and up because I'm being honest with myself...about a lot.  Starting with why chemo isn't fun anymore.  Not to sound like a broken record about it, but I am...sooo, oops!  I'm a verbal processor...written word processor?  So you get to process some of this with me :)  All in all, I was made aware today that I'm fed up with chemo because the novelty of it, the idea of it has worn off.  If I'm honest with myself, and I'm trying to be, before I liked the idea that I had cancer.  It set me apart from others, it made some people recognize me, or remember me, feel for me, care for me.  And I like that.  I wish I could say "I liked that," but the prideful part of me still relishes in that.  I'm in a constant battle against my pride.  Like St. Augustine noted, "pride is the love of one's own excellence."  I wish I knew that because I read it somewhere cool, but I totes got it off Wikipedia.  Ah, a work in progress I am.  It's an ugly part of who I am, my pride and everything that it brings, but I have hope.  Hope for myself, if I may be so bold.  I don't want to be this way forever, even if it's just a part of me.  So I'll look forward to that day, and work on those things that are a bit ugly about me and my character, and I ask for grace during it. 

Whew.  That was emotionally taxing to write that...paragraph.  Haha.  but it was, don't hate.

On a lighter note...haha, this reminds me of a favorite skit of mine, by the comedian Bill Engvall...he comments that we should all be so lucky if we could only change subjects the way newscasters do.  by looking to a different camera. [stage left, camera 1] "And the severed head was found in an elevator shaft." [stage right, camera 3] "Good news for egg lovers!"

Did I distract you long enough?  Good!  Cause today I'm also bringing you semi-sweetness in the form of a family favorite around Thanksgiving.  Chocolate mint cookies.  (the name could use some work, thanks for noticing)

nom nom nom, the finished product!

Oh, the best part of them...they use Andies candies as the "frosting!" I couldn't find the boxes of them this year, so I got the bags and they have little Christmas decor on them...getting freshy fresh Andies!

unnecessary photo.  You'll do just fine and recognize your own dough without the photo comparison, I'm sure.  But yes, I did win #1 Dad, thanks for noticing!  What? Yes I won fair and square. The contest ended last week, where were you?

Anyway.  They. are. delicious!  But don't just take my word for it, make them yourself.  They're super duper easy!  Here's the recipe:

 

Chocolate Mint cookies.

 

Combine and microwave to incorporate: (maybe 1.5 min?)

3/4 c. butter or margarine

1 1/2 c. light brown sugar

2 Tbsp water

 

Add  2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips, stir to melt.

Add:

2 eggs

2 1/2 c flour

1 1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

mix!

Chill dough for 1 hour.  Shape into balls and place on cookie sheet (with Pam) (or parchment paper) Bake at 350 for 10-13 minutes.  Wait at least 5 minutes for cookies to cool. Frost with 2 boxes melted Andies candies.  Recipe freezes really well!  

*Depending on your oven, I would try them at 9-10 min at first, see how it goes, but you'll probably need more like 11-12 minutes.  

Happy Baking!

xoxo Em

Bittersweet

Do I really have cancer?  Doesn't my life right now consist of Thanksgiving activities, planning for Christmas, visits with friends, getting ready for my birthdayyy (next month, and as Lizzie Douglas always told us, "It's not your birthday, it's your birth month.") and an inordinate amount of baking ... other shenanigans? 

Yes.  Life does look like that.  But not just like that.  There's chemo treatments, recovery period, lots of sleeping, excessive eating [oh, that's not different because of cancer?  yea, you're right. dagger. ] and then doing it all over again in two weeks.  I feel like I'm busy trying to fit in what I want to be doing in the time left.  Family, friends, remembering anything for longer than a few moments. 

It's just odd.  Just odd when I step back sometimes and think, "Wow.  I have cancer."  Even though I feel like cancer is so prevalent these days...I think we all know someone who's been affected by it, everybody we know has a loved one who's had/has cancer.  It's still weird, maybe one of those things I thought I'd never be affected by...not personally at least.

I'm reading a good book these days, called Bittersweet by Shauna Niequist.  It was gifted to me by a great friend (thanks Elise!...shameless plug photo of her at one of her IntoHymn concerts while she was at JMU, and you can see everyones fav Erica, too!)

 I've had to start the book over this week on account of my poor memory and I had forgotten everything that had happened, so we're on round 2, but it's great..again!  The tagline for the book reads, "thoughts on change, grace and learning the hard way."  Perfect.  I think that describes my stage in life pretty darn well.  I'm learning the hard way a lot these days.  A lot about myself, how I react to change, how I react to myself, my own thoughts...and it's an uphill climb.  Ha, I think I just described everybodys experience, ever.  Aren't we all always in a constant state of change and difference in life?  Mine just happens to be something I never thought I'd go through and never have to deal with.  But like Shauna says, (and she says a lot I'll be quoting in the future) "I believe that suffering is part of the narrative, and that nothing really good gets built when everything's easy," and also "change is not a function of life's cruelty but instead a function of God's graciousness."  I believe that.  How am I supposed to learn about myself except if my status quo is changed?  And I want to be challenged, I want to be stretched, remolded and to go beyond what I'm currently capable.  I think we all do.  But to do that, we have to be comfortable with the unknown.  Which is an uncomfortable feeling, most of the time.  Hmm.  I smell trouble.  Which is where I find myself these days.  Dissatisfied with my current situation...and I know what's in store!  (at least for the most part.) No matter how unpleasant it can all be, all the chemo, all the recovering, all the stretching, all the molding, it's how I react to it all that really molds me.  And I'm a little moldy these days ;)  I'm not the most pleasant person to be around, my temper is shorter, and I'm more prone to depressive states.  It's a fight, y'all...and I have thoughts on it.  You've heard of Charlie, aka Ninny.

Ninny and our nephew Mason, ready for the season with his jammies!

Well, little Ninny has had a cone of shame on since we adopted him, back in April.  Sidenote, we just found out last week that he does have allergies-yay! and boo.  But at least he's not crazy. Shoot, at least I'm not crazy. (oh, the jury's still out on that?) So the cone is on a little longer, as we get him used to his new drugs so he won't scratch himself to death.  So this little kitty has had to wear a plastic accessory which hinders his ability to eat, sleep, run...hahaha you should see him run down the hallway, reminds me of dizzybat game on Rodeo night at Young Life Camp, or a completely drunken college experience.  He swerves and trips with the best of them.  But he doesn't complain.  No protests, just love.  He's still the cuddliest, friendliest little feline.  He's even adapted and sleeps cone-down sometimes.  It's almost as if he says, "I know you're trying your best, I'll just wait here until you know what's wrong with me."  Charlie deals with his cone better than I deal with chemo.  I've been outdone by my cat.  

Maybe God allowed little Charlie to wander out of the woods into our lives to teach me something right now.  To show me that we're all hindered by something, whether lifelong or for a season.  And yet, it doesn't have to stop life.  Rather, in different ways it can season it, sprinkle it with change and challenges.  And like Shauna says in her book, "when life is sweet, say thank you and celebrate.  And when life is bitter, say thank you and grow."

Hello Heartburn

My heart burns for this little nugget

and probably also from the deliciously spicy Chicken Pad Thai Cory (bro-in-law) made last night.  I shouldn't have done it, but I couldn't help myself. 

Latest fun fact about chemo: Heartburn! It's not just for Senior Citizens anymore!  We're in NY for Thanksgiving week, visiting the niece and nephew (see cuteness above), but for the few days before we left, I was on the couch, sleeping upright so the fires of hades, and all things I ate didn't consume my throat...passage. 

More to come this week, but for now Mason and I are enjoying what we all should at any age...lunch.  Enter PB&J and carrots.  :)

life is good.

Sonic strikes again

What?  What is that title?  Super cheesy.  Maybe I'm secretly hoping to name a movie someday.  But I'm going to leave it because it describes this little post perfectly.

So my other half (Katie) and I have a slight infatuation with the Sonic commercials, you know-they ones with the two guys in the car.  Classic humor.  And along with our love of them, we've made a few videos in the past.

Well, since Katie's been MIA (or out of the country, doing great work for IJM this past year and a half) we haven't exactly had the opportunity to make one. 

Well, she visited a few weeks ago and we remedied that.  Magic was made.  Enjoy :) 

Making Banana Pancakes

not literally.  I don't actually like bananas in anything.  Except banana bread.

But I've been taking tips from Mrs. Paula Dean herself these days!  I've gone through at least 11 pounds of butter in the past month.  I have a cookie recipe I like that *LIT-cherally* calls for 1 pound of butter. 1 POUND.  That's 4 sticks, y'all.  But I'm not telling you which cookie recipe it is...everyone who's had it likes them.  No need to ruin a good cookie experience.

Enjoy some of the things I've been 'a bakin' up!

Aimee Kessick monkey bread.  lots of butter.  totally worth it.

the mixing part of an Apple Cream Cheese Bundt Cake with Praline Frosting that I got the idea from this gals great blog.  Not butter heavy.  Butter light recipe.

An average fall pumpkin bread.  Butter medium recipe.

Aimee Kessick Choco Choco Chip Cookies.  Seriously excellent.  I'm gonna say butter heavy, and again, not sorry for it.  Aimee also studied under Paula Dean, for a while.

Not edible.  Just my poor Cambodian spatula that apparently should have been labeled "for display only."  Couldn't handle the pancakes.

I've had Jack Johnson crooning during this sesh, so I must give a shout out to Mark Cruz!  757 love.

So I'm not sure if I've written it here yet or just shared it with people in conversation, but I've gotten to the point of chemo where it's not fun anymore.  That should be capitalized.  It's Not Fun Anymore time.  I feel like it's a season I'm in, and I need to watch myself, because I can turn into a Negative Nancy if I'm not careful.  I've hit that 6 session mark (yea!), but I've also hit monotony.  (Yea, this is sounding familiar as I type.)  And I've hit a point where it's hard to stay positive about it all.  I know what's coming each time, and I know what to expect afterwards, recovery-speaking.  But I still can't get over the freaking OUTPOURING of LOVE y'all send my way.  Seriously, I've definitely said this before, but not a day has gone by without something coming in the mail.  Letters, cards, care packages, food....and this gem was in a bag around my front doorknob yesterday

I literally laughed out loud. (right after Africa LITCHERALLY turned into a beehive!!) You know how people say LOL, (or maybe how they used to like 7 years ago...ouch, dating myselffff) well, I did it.  Actually laughed out loud on my front porch.  Brought a smile to my face.  Thanks, Hayden.

Haha, what was I talking about before?  Oh yea, not being able to be positive anymore?  Well, looks like I'm cured ;)  Haha, funny how I was just digging into a good "wah" venting session and it was turned around.  Love does that.  And I've felt it.  In the facebook messages and posts (which I still haven't responded to 90% of them, I'm sorry.  Working on it!  I read every one though, and love them all. Thank you.  Thank you.), texts and calls.  Y'all do that for me.  I feel loved.  Y'all show me how God loves by how you love.  And I'm humbled by that.

I recently read The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo trilogy.  Definitely a favorite now!  I recommend trying them out.  But when I love a good book, or a good series, I get involved with the characters.  I feel for them when things happen, and I get excited when things work out well for them.  I feel like I know them [yea yea, I "know" characters in books...just another indication I'm well on my way to becoming a cat lady.  Wait til you see my new bathrobe-I call it my housecoat :)]  But I do feel a connection with certain characters, and I get sad when the books end.  Because it was just for a season in life.  Just for a time.  But then that reminds me that cancer and chemo are just a season in my life as well.  [oh, that Emily Danner. So deep. ;) ]  

Fun Fact for the day: I love my head scarfs, but I do have trouble hearing in them.  I'm constantly asking people to repeat themselves, or sometimes I just nod and pretend like I heard everything, because the only way to remedy it is to wear my scarves like this:

 Nerd alert!  Or, Lord of The Rings alert??!

*Disclaimer.  11 pounds of butter did not just go into those 4 recipies and one broken spatula. There were more goodies not pictured.

Last fun fact: Chad just yelled "Bruce Willis, you idiot!" From the living room.  Then I heard the familiar "zchoom zchoom" of Jeopardy.  Welcome to our Wednesday evenings.

The Word of the Day: Siesta!

No no, it's true.  The word of the day really is Siesta!  And yes, that is Bob Ross as my background.  Also just bought the first Christmas gift of the year, I'll give you 6 guesses as to what it is. Ok,
It's a collection of Bob Ross's "The Joy of Painting" on DVD.  Get excited!  I'm not telling you who it's for ;)

I feel like Bob Ross is underrated.  Probably because he's dead and his show is no longer on PBS.  But many artists become more famous in their death.  Hmm, thoughts to ponder as I fall asleep later.

Sooo, it's Sunday.  And Sunday is definitely a day of rest in this house.  Minus when I get bursts of energy to do dishes (ugh) and simultaneously have a desire for fresh sheets on the bed.  [Spelled simultaneously correct on the first try, I know I know...you're in the presence of greatness.]  Fun fact, I love fresh sheets.  I would change them 3 times a week if that didn't mean I also had to wash them that many times.

So when Chad and I were engaged he mentioned this program that his church had for the local cadets (kids that go to VMI)  It's called Adopt a Rat.  Rats, or the equivalent of freshmen at other universities are tweeners.  They're not quite 4th years (it's backwards at VMI-4th:Freshmen, 3rd: Sophomores, 2nd: Juniors and 1st years: Seniors) but they're also no longer common citizens of this great country.  Until they earn the right to become 4th years (super secret stuff happens, I would include it on this here blog, but I value my life) they are rats.  Forced to (as much as I understand it) march for long periods of time, have "sweat parties," (I'll let your mind wander) and get yelled at incessantly.  They also aren't allowed off post (campus)...unlesssss it's Sunday.  And then they're allowed Religious Liberties.  I'm not sure why I capitalized that.  Except that I think it's a big deal.  Soooo, Adopt a Rat.  Different churches in Lexington participate and if you so choose, you get to...Adopt a rat!  On Sundays, from the time your church service starts to like 8:30ish pm.  You get to take a rat home with you and..really just give them lunch and dinner and most likely a couch to sleep on.  Poor things, they're always so tired. Anyway, when Chad mentioned he'd been wanting to do this for a few years, I was all for it!  And we agreed we would wait until this fall, because Chad doing it by himself would be kinda weird...much more "within social norms" to do it as a married couple.  And much more fun!  So we signed up.  And we. hit. the. jackpot!  Hahaha, no pun intended.  Seriously.  Wait, that doesn't make sense to you yet.  So we hit the jackpot with our rat-he's awesome!  Such a cool guy, so sweet and genuine.  Oh, and his name is Jack.  Hence the ridiculously early laughter a few sentences back.  So we adopted Jack back in September and it's been love ever since.  He's the best adopted son we could ask for. (tear)  We're already stoked for graduation in 4 years.  We look forward to Sundays when he can come over...when he's not in trouble ;)  There's a lot of couch lounging, Kenney's eating and football watching.  Speaking of...did anyone else just watch that 60 minutes with Aaron Rodgers?  Rawr.  So handsome.

This afternoon I was in the front bedroom, engrossed in another season of White Collar while the boys (minus Charlie...teehee) were watching football in the living room.  I got up for another go at the leftover halloween candy and came across this:

Like father, like son ;)  Just had to share this photo!  And a little about Jack, since I haven't mentioned him here yet.

Anyway, I'm just (still) recovering from Chemo last week.  Dang, it kinda kicked my butt hard this time.  Friday and Saturday were super rough...just feeling blah, overall.  I know that doesn't accurately describe it, but it's difficult.  The words don't quite do it right.  Anyway, on the up and up now!  Just keep swimming, right Nemo?

Here, check out this picture of a bunny on our street!  Bold, my friend.  And did you also leave that trash in my yard?  Bad form, bunny.  bad form.

xoxo Happy Sunday!

Bring it on Home

dear sweet ninny, I've neglected you.  And not because I want to.  Where do the days go?  They slip right on by...while there's fun being had, struggles being worked out...I've had quite a few folks tell me I need to update, and I do, I do.  I know I do...

I'm torn tonight.  I pulled up a trusty old playlist on my iTunes and the first song was Bring it on Home by Little Big Town.  Now, don't hate if you're not a country music fan, cause I'm gonna show you how you can love this song regardless of what musical snack you choose to dine on regularly!  I'm torn because it's speaking to me y'all...("Tony, dogs don't a talk!" "He's a talking to me!"  -NAME THAT MOVIE!)

So it's been speaking to me tonight...while I'm in a few days of recovery (Chemo #6 happened on Tuesday-oooh halfway there...living on a prayer...ok ok I'm done)  But seriously, I am halfway done with chemo, if you're not following my rabbit trail here.

Anyway, back to the song...pull it up on YouTube, or "The YouTube" as some peoples parents have been known to call it...read along, listen to it, enjoy some thoughts in red...

You got someone here wants to make it alright
Someone who loves you more than life right here
You got willing arms that'll hold you tight
A hand to lead you on through the night right here
I know your heart can get all tangled up inside
But don't you keep it to yourself-I'm the worst culprit of this...I wish to be open and honest with people but I frequently keep it inside, the good and the bad, thinking I don't want to bother others...but is it really easier to try and do it all yourself?

[Chorus:]
When your long day is over
And you can barely drag your feet-I feel this tonight.  Quite literally I am dragging my feet, mainly because all my toes are once again numb and it's a bit of a struggle walking properly, but you know the feeling they're talking about here...
The weight of the world is on your shoulders-ha, maybe the weight of my little world, but man, doesn't it seem like the whole dang thing when you're facing a tough time in your life?
I know what you need
Bring it on home to me

You know I know you like the back of my hand
But did you know I'm gonna do all that I can right here
I'm gonna lie with you till you fall asleep
When the morning comes I'm still gonna be right here (yes I am)
So take your worries and just drop them at the door
Baby leave it all behind

[Chorus]

Baby let me be your safe harbor
Don't let the water come and carry you away

[Chorus]

You got someone here wants to make it alright
Someone who loves you more than life right here

Like how I left all the "chorus" cues in there?  Just for funzies, even though it's driving me crazy.

That line in the first verse, "I know your heart can get all tangled up inside..." oh man.  I'm living that right now.  I'm constantly torn between being joyful during this experience and being absolutely miffed, pissed off!  Dear Chemo, you're not always so fun. 
True, some of the things that have come out of time at the Emily Couric Cancer Center will forever make an imprint on my little life...relationships made, relationships changed, relationships grown...seeing a trend?  It brings me back to things that are important to me in life. But the actual chemo drugs suck, don't let anyone tell you differently.  It just drags me down sometimes.  Last week was especially hard, even though it was a "good week." I think the monotony of it all is getting me down.  I know what my weeks look like for the foreseeable future, I pretty much know what to expect as I recover each time...only to do it all over again in 2 weeks.  I usually live my life from one fun thing each week to the next, anybody else do this?  Like in high school my show was Alias, with Jennifer Garner and Michael Vartan-rawr!  So I would live my life from Sunday to Sunday, when new episodes aired.  Then when I went to college and started leading Young Life, my weeks went from Monday to Monday, or Club days to Club days.  Now I feel like my life is lived in 2 week increments...chemo treatment to chemo treatment.    Even this past time, meeting with my doctor was monotonous.  Nothing new to report, no major upsets in recovery, no drugs changed, no new developments (except I'm totes losing my eyebrows now too! haha)  He understood, told me it would be like this for a while, with a knowing smile upon his face.  Ah, here's where the actual struggle begins, isn't it?  It's not in the new, the different, but rather the regular everyday that shows you how you handle things...or at least that's how I feel now.

Ah, too long.  There's a need for a picture...here, enjoy this picture of my mum, oooh pretty mum!  Thanks to Jamie and Lori Inman, those secret mum-givers ;)

I'm also brought back to the Lord with this song...I'm not sure if Little Big Town intended it to be easily corresponded with the Gospel, but it sure did with me.  "Someone who loves you more than life..." hello Jesus... Shoot, the whole second verse-"Know you like the back of my hand...?!"  "When the morning comes I'm still gonna be right here.." Beautiful. beautiful.

I was also brought to tears at different points in this song.  
Baby let me be your safe harbor
Don't let the water come and carry you away
I know everyone out there is somehow touched by Superstorm Sandy, and hearing about continued destruction, the need for food, power, basic necessities...man.  We all want to help, but what can we do?  Pray!  Donate-money, time, blood.  The Red Cross is doing great things to help those in need-go to their website and find out how you can help in your area.  Gosh, waterworks here...just started crying again.  Dang you chemo emotions!  But seriously, I'm thankful for all those who were brought through unscathed, because houses can be rebuilt, cars fixed, boats put back where they belong...but lives lost?  It's so sad.

Well thanks for stopping by, and enjoy this pic of Charlie being shy. Or was he sleeping here?  

Taco Night!

Oh ho ho, I got your attention, did I?  Yea, I'll always run for Taco Night!  (As will Katie Sienicki and Megan Clegg...though Meg might not remember that story as well as we do ;) )

It was a solo taco night today.  My bff, but she's really more than that...my other half, dare I say?  "She who I share a brain with" left today. That's it.  That's how I define our relationship.  [Katie Sienicki] left good old Lexington this afternoon. But we've had a wonderful week, being together again, after almost a year! Gosh, listen to me.  Getting all nostalgic like we caught up after a 25 year high school reunion.  It's not that dramatic, Em.  She'll be home at Christmas-time and home for *good* in March!  

So, delightful partner in crime that she is, flew almost 9000 miles-one way- just to spend a few days with her ailing bff.  That's love.

There she is!  Look at how cute she is.

Naw, we didn't go gallivanting off to a tropical paradise this week...but we did hang out in good old Lexington, caught up on life face to face (without skype-love you skype!) and did what we do best...shenanigans and making memories!


As I'm writing this, so many thoughts come to mind about what I should actually name this post.  Fun fact: that's the hardest part for me when I do actually write here ;) -figuring out what the heck to call each post!  I do the same thing with Facebook albums...it's a name.  A name can define you, or at least update folks on both who you are by what to call you, and will also make someone think certain thoughts when they hear a name, your name!  Your name, you-by the memories made and experiences shared with someone, will trigger certain thoughts when someone mentions you, thinks of you, brings you up in conversation.  Just a thought as we go through life...what memory are you leaving behind? 

By the way, I did actually have tacos tonight.  I just failed to elaborate on that earlier.

And I just caught my cat watching tv.  A Crate & Barrel commercial to be exact. 

I never quite know where my blog-ing will take me, either.  (By the way, do you pronounce it "i-ther" or "ee-ther?"  I waffle back and forth)  Sometimes my thoughts come out as I've been thinking they would, and sometimes-like today-I'm brought to further reaches of my thoughts and psyche as I pour out a snapshot of my life to you.  Beware!

But what's the purpose?  I guess I could have asked any number of questions next...but what's the purpose of what I'm sharing here?  Part of my life, yes.  My Our life right now.

Oooh.  Perfect excuse for a shameless plug!  From 1/2 priced sushi night (what what!) earlier this week with Katie.  (Metro is a delicious little place Chad introduced me to early on in our marriage..wait, we're still early on in our marriage! ahha.  Anyway, if you're in Roanoke, try it out! 1/2 priced sushi all week, 5:30-6:30 pm!)

So, back to purpose?  Part of me doesn't want to even elaborate on it, there's so much that can be said!  But ultimately the purpose of this blog: to share our life with cancer (womp womp) right now, and hopefully glorify God through that.  Wow, that was much simpler than my jumbled brain wanted to make it out to be.  But there's so much more behind the words that actually make it on this site.  Like, I know not everybody we're friends with believes in the same God we do.  And in this diplomatic age I find myself, I waffle with whether or not I should be so bold as to talk about someone who brings out more raw emotion than anybody else I've heard of!  But I go back to what I read in The Perks of Being a Wallflower, by Stephen Chbosky, and I would urge you to "be a filter and not a sponge."  He was referring to a specific author and situation when he wrote that, but I've taken it with me through the years and tried to apply it to everything I read.  So as you read here, "be a filter, [y'all,] and not a sponge."  Figure out for yourself what you believe, because you have a choice on what to read, what to occupy your time with, in whom you believe.  I know I'm not the best example to look for when you look for a Christian in this day and age, but does that also make me the best example...cause I know I'm not perfect? hmm.  put that in your pipe and smoke it!  Nah, all I can do is go through life living it as I see fit, and hopefully learning from my stumblings along the way, instead of letting them stop me. "Just keep swimming..."Oh, chemo emotions!

So Katie, Chad and I had a fabulous week-here.  It was filled with too much food, lots of down time and great conversations.  Enjoy some pictures instead of more rambling!

Katie, with Tim's invisible arm around her ;)

You know, just caramel apples on a Sunday afternoon.

Get to it, KT! Those pumpkins won't glitter themselves!

Thanks for reading.  Sorry for the shambles and word vomit.  And remember, make good choices! ;)

Halloweens of Old

Dear Fall,

I am so glad you're here!  I've been waiting all year for you :)  I've got my pumpkin spice and apple cider candles burning, Halloween Decor inside and out, even Charlie is excited for whatever coned costume I put him in this year ;)  I'm so happy to have crunchy leaves to step on and orange and purple lights up on the house.  One thing I would love next year are some sweet hay bales, but I can wait, it'll be something to look forward to.

So as I get PUMPED for Halloween 2012, I think I'll share some past costumes, just for funzies.

Where the Wild things Are

Nancy Drew.

This was for an Inappropriate Party. I'll leave it at that.

Kindergardeners! Complete with Macaroni necklaces and a line leader.

Yesss! I love it when EVERYBODY dresses up. Check out that robot, he's beast.  Oh, and I was an orange traffic cone.

Redneck/Hillbilly/Nascar.  Ali really got into character and got knocked up for it!  (oh I kid, I kid.)

Happy Almost Halloween Friends!

birthdays, weddings, new stashes oh my!

Well, hello friends.  oh gosh.  I can't even get through the first sentence without an entirely irrelevant thought running through my head.  Since I mentioned it, I'll share.  Even though it's not how he used to introduce his show, I immediately had a vision of Mr. Rogers when I started writing tonight, welcoming y'all to the latest edition of Sweet Ninnymuggins.  Maybe that means I should start wearing a sweater when I write, and changing to my "indoor" shoes.

Well this is definitely the longest hiatus I've taken in ninny's short life.  I do apologize, it was not intended!  We've just been having such fun the past few weeks, and something gets lost at the end of the day.  Part of that is absolutely chemo brain, part of it is poor planning, and part of it is pure laziness.  Shambles.  I'm a work in progress :)

Well, latest cancer update is that I have another WEEK until my next treatment!! Wee!  Usually I have treatment on Thursdays, but we're switching to Tuesdays per my dr.'s request...I think it's easier on his schedule or something.  You'll have to ask Chad, I'm not entirely sure. But we do have to go up to UVA this Thursday for my 25% Completed Chemo Pet Scan!  I don't think the staff calls it that, but it's what it is!  I'm 1/4 done with chemo, y'all.  And it's crazy.  Life flies by, whether you're having fun or not ;)  Naw, I'm having fun but I wouldn't count chemo among my "besties" if you know what I mean. 

So I get a PET Scan on Thursday-a full body scan.  They're looking for progress in the shrinkage of my mass (I think.) (again, I defer questions to Chad, he's a much better remember-er than I)  I also have an appointment with a pulmonologist on Thursday.  I keep failing the darn lung function tests, and that's no bueno with my treatment, as it could be because of one of the drugs, oooor (as I suspect) because I haven't worked out since 2009 and I believe the human body likes a good sweat and elevated heart rate more than twice a decade.



But a plus of having to go to UVA twice in the span of a week: we get to have some vittles with T$ and Steve Rawls, who will also be in the C-ville area on Thursday.  Yay!  T and I have been trying to have a date since, well, since I moved here.  And it's finally coming true!  Big things are happening, y'all!  This must mean I'll have good results from the PET.  PET Scan sounds so cuddly, doesn't it?  It's not my favorite thing to get but they make it worth it.  The test takes about 2 hours total.  First they hook you up to an IV that has a tracer thing running through it, and this "tracer" runs throughout your body, clinging to cancer cells and then when I get loaded up into the MRI machine, it'll light up the affected areas, which will tell the docs where and how big my mass is.  [again, that's the best as I understand the process-they're nice and use small words and big hand gestures when they describe procedures to me]  Oh, and you have to drink this stuff that tastes like chalk...or what I think chalk tastes like.  Something I never tried in my childhood.  Now, gluing my hands together with Elmers?  On a weekly basis.  Deeply inhaling the big fat Sharpie my mom only used for writing on packages at Christmas time?  Check.  But taking a nibble of chalk?  Never tried it.  Anyone have personal experience here?  Sooo, once I get IV-ed up and drink my chalk smoothie, I have to wait for it to run through my body for like and hour and a half.  But I'm in my own room, and last time my nurse Jose dimmed the lights for me (he thought I looked like I wanted to nap-how did he know?!) And I'll have a TV and a nice leather chair that reclines and a red "COME NOW" button that will send nurse Jose or whomever is closest to my bedside immediately.  It took all my strength not to push that button every time he left the room last time...I'll have to hide it again this time...deep in my chair, out of sight, out of mind, ya know?


Anyway, I have an extra 5 days of a "good week" this time because of the switch from Thursdays to Tuesdays, and this is probably going to be my favorite stretch of treatment throughout this whole treatment.  I feel like my birthday came early.  


Oh hey great segue!  So speaking of, there have been birthdays galore recently!  One of the celebrations was for my bf CParrie.  I also unveiled one of my new wigs (thanks to my mother-in-law!) for the occasion!  Enjoy with some pics

I felt like Katy Perry #missionaccomplished

Family Photo

And at the end of the weekend, we continued the celebration and invited CP and Mike to one of our favorite places ever.  It's called the Inn at Willow Grove in Orange, VA.  (think Bed and Breakfast but upgraded) It's right outside of Charlottesville so within reasonable driving distance for anyone in VA.  It's also the nicest place I've stayed, and quite possibly has the nicest people working there as well.  To kick off our honeymoon we stayed there the night after we got married, and fell in love with it.

CP and I before gorging ourselves at dinner.

Dinner at Willow Grove-couples shot! :)

 Whew!  I feel like I've word vomited so many things already, but I have oh so much to share!  I'll keep the rest short.

2012 is the year of the wedding.  Congrats to just the weddings that we've had the pleasure of attending this year! Ash & BMo, Kaitlyn & Travis, Derek & Kelsey, Kara & Will, and soon-Drew & Kelsey and Michelle and Joey!!!  My cousin Melis also got married two weekends ago, but unfortunately it was the day after chemo and I just couldn't swing the 10 hour trip.  So many many congrats to Melis & Derek, we wish we could have been there.

But the latest wedding festivities happened just this past weekend, and I'm happy to announce Mr. & Mrs. Will Siewers on Sweet Ninnymuggins!

The wedding was beautiful, with lots of laughter and only happy tears.  This couple-for anyone who knows them-exemplifies what it means to walk with Christ everyday and love others as He loves us.  If you're looking for fabulous new friends-try and holler at these two ;)

Well, since I put it in the title, I'll include this last thought for today.  I'm always looking for new and innovative things to do with mustaches.  So Shannon shared a very motivational photo on my facebook wall the other day...
 

He even looks like my charlie!  So, Shan shared this and I was STOKED!  I was like, "yes, let's do this, Charlie!  We got this!"  Well, enjoy the results:

Poor ninny.  Couldn't keep it frontside.  All he cared about was when my hand was going to pet his head.  Oh well, I enjoy a good "top stash" with the best of 'em!   

Well thanks for reading and make good choices!

p.s. Have you come up with your Halloween costumes yet?