1. The A to Z Challenge is OVER. It has been a lot of fun, but, well, challenging. Enjoyed it. Glad it's done.
2. Something else that's over: the making of the Mother's Day gifts from my preschool students to their moms, which are individual scrapbooks depicting our year in pictures. They take hours and hours and HOURS to create. HOURS. HOURS. But they're done, done, DONE.
3. And something ELSE that's over: the Mother's Day programs. No one cried, no one peed their pants and no one threw up, which, to me, constitutes a program well done. Oh, and they actually sang the songs, even my little Primary kids. Apparently, there was a minor hair-pulling incident on the other side of the stage from where I was sitting during the Primary program, but (criteria #4 of a well done program) no one fell off the risers.
4. Storms last Sunday were followed by a cold front, but spring came back yesterday, and we are enjoying a gorgeous Saturday with the windows open to the sound of birds singing and lawnmowers mowing and kids playing. Beautiful sounds.
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| I brought the college boy with me to my appointment. He is pictured here under a diagram of an anus. |
6. I mentioned to the doctor that I started a blog about my breast cancer experience after I was diagnosed, and he asked me to give him my blog address, saying it would be a good resource for other patients going through the same thing. Sweet! All I've ever wanted was to reach others who could benefit from my experience in some way. (The downside to Dr. Bumberry reading my blog is that he'll find out that I have crushed on his lovely auburn hair since my first appointment with him, and that I call him Dr. Dorian Gray. I'm hoping he is amused and not creeped out.)
7. I found a dollar in my jacket pocket.
8. I also found my aviator sunglasses in there that I thought I had lost forever and had JUST replaced the day before. So now I have TWO pairs of aviators
9. Late last summer, my daughter, along with several other dancers from her studio, modeled for a mural depicting the arts in Joplin. The mural has been completed and is now on the side of a downtown building, and it is AWESOME! My daughter is the dancer on the left. The artist altered their images slightly, so they are not exact depictions of the girls. You can look at the pictures I took in the studio during the photo shoot for the mural and see for yourself:
10. Last week's Ten Things of Thankful had me and my family in a basement during a tornado warning, and I thank all of you for your concern when you read that post. Fortunately, no tornadoes touched down where we were, and we were able to make it home safely a few hours later. The towns of Quapaw, Oklahoma, and Baxter Springs, Kansas, were not as lucky, and there is considerable damage there. If you feel so led, please consider making a donation to the American Red Cross by visiting redcross.org or calling 1-800-RED CROSS. You can also text the word RECROSS to 90999 to make a $10 donation.
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The mural is beautiful! What a wonderful thing, to be able to think of your daughter every time you drive down that street.
ReplyDeleteGlad you are safe!
Thank you, Kristi! I knew the mural was up, but I kind of forgot about it until my daughter and I drove down Main Street, and BAM, there she was! Really cool!
DeleteYay for spring and the glory of the outdoors, even if it has to involve lawn mowing. That is one chore I DO NOT do. The sound is so soothing, but the chore itself. Bleh!
ReplyDeleteAnd yay for a good report from your doctor with the beautiful auburn hair!
I like to hear OTHERS mow lawns. Lord have mercy, not me! I've never mowed a lawn in my life and don't plan to start now!
DeleteAnd the bad news is not getting to see the doctor with the beautiful auburn hair for a whole year ;)
so is that poster somehow symbolically pooping on the college boy?
ReplyDeletecool a mural! Love murals!
Yeah a year! NO WAY! WAY! How awesome is that ? and a spectacular construction job too!
You could say that. He wasn't the least bit amused that I was taking a picture of him with the poster right behind him.
DeleteThe rest of the mural is really cool. This is less than 1/3 of it. Dedication is tomorrow.
A WHOLE YEAR. Wish the oncologist would say that!
The mural is beautiful. Congratulations on reaching the point of once a year check ups!
ReplyDeleteThank you, thank you, Vanessa!
DeleteI am seriously so happy for the great appointment and that you don't have to go back for a whole year. Also, love your doctor is using this blog as resource for other cancer patients. That really is awesome and also so glad that the tornado warning was a false alarm. Sounded like wonderful week overall and now wishing an equally wonderful week next week, too ;)
ReplyDeleteThanks, Janine! I hope he does pass it on to others and that he doesn't judge me for all the comments about his hair!
DeleteThe tornadoes were a little too close for comfort. Glad they skipped over us.
Hi. I am taking part in Ten Things of Thankful for the first time.
ReplyDeleteIn fact, I sometimes visited your wonderful blog during the A to Z challenge, because you are my neighbor in the list of the participants. I haven't left a comment every time I have been here, but I did enjoy reading your humorous posts, sometimes giggling, and at other times laughing. You are an excellent writer. I hope to come back soon.
Romi
I'm so glad you joined the TToT this week, Romi, and thank you so much for the kind words! I read some of your A to Z posts as well, before I got behind in my reading! I'm hoping to get caught up over the next couple of weeks.
DeleteWow, that mural is amazing! Your daughter is so beautiful, too.
ReplyDeleteOMYGOSH I didn't know about the tornadoes in your area!! *lives under rock* But I'm so so so glad you and your family weren't hit and are okay.
Laughed out loud at the pic of your son under the diagram of an anus. CONGRATS on a great check up!!!!!
Thank you so much! And yes, we are a tornado magnet. It was certainly freaky flying down the highway, seeing one dipping down from a cloud.
DeleteI thought taking a picture of my son under that poster was HILARIOUS. As you can see, he did not share my enthusiasm.
The wider shot didn't fit in my PicMonkey collage, so everyone was spared the nekkid lady in the curtain.
ReplyDeleteWe are awesome. The boobs are awesome. Two pairs of aviators is awesome until I lose them again.
Good doc appointments and beautiful dancer murals are awesome!
ReplyDeleteAs a mom who has received gifts of projects similar to what you describe...the hours and hours and hours of work kind for the preschool teachers...I say THANK YOU! They are precious and priceless.
Thank you, Lisa! Oh, those scrapbooks are the project from hell, I tell you! But so many moms came up to us to say how much they appreciated them, especially the ones who are teachers themselves and never get to visit the preschool classroom because they are stuck at their schools.
DeleteYou've reminded me that Mother's Day's a comin'. Got to get all those gifts ready now, and I'm glad that no tornadoes happened where you were!
ReplyDeleteIt's not too late to make a scrapbook, Michelle :)
DeleteTornado free this weekend; storms possibly coming through by the end of the week, though.
Glad you all survived the storms, too. We don't have basements in Florida. If ever we were seriously threatened with a tornado, we'd be in the bathtub! =/
ReplyDelete#3, funny and true!
I recently lost my favorite sunglasses. Looked "everywhere", then finally bought another pair. I went to put the new pair in the safest place where I should always keep my sunglasses, and guess what I found.....yep....my favorite sunglasses. Ooops!
I don't think I could live in a place that had tornadoes and no basements. Like Tulsa. Or Florida.
DeleteI wish I'd seen the hair-pulling incident!
It's a good thing I wear cheap sunglasses. Mine disappear with regularity.
I laughed out loud at the caption about the diagram of an anus. So glad you had a great follow-up appointment. That's great news.
ReplyDeleteThank you! And he could not have been sitting in a better spot for a photograph!
DeleteSo glad you were able to stay safe in your basement! It sounds like you had a lot to be thankful for this week.
ReplyDeleteDodging a tornado is worthy of many thanks. So glad we have a safe place to go to when there is a storm!
DeleteWow that mural and your photos are amazing! And how great that you don't have to go back to hospital for a year. I am glad to see that. Your poor son though, what a photo! :-)
ReplyDeleteThe mural is stunning - this is less than 1/3 of it. No surgeon for a year, which is awesome. And this will go down as one of my favorite pictures of my son!
Delete"...No one cried, no one peed their pants and no one threw up, which, to me, constitutes a program well done.
ReplyDeleteOne of the things I like about you, very clear (and relatively attainable) standards of success… I will endeavor to hold this up before I judge my efforts at work in the week coming.
See? A successful program. And if they actually SING, well, that's just gravy!
DeleteMentioning all of those preschool Mother's Day activities makes me a bit nostalgic! Those were some of the best gifts! I, too, must commend you on your ability to define success realistically!
ReplyDeleteBeautiful mural! I've not kept up with all of the restoration/renewal efforts in Joplin after the devasting tornado...so it was good to run across it here!
I so hate tornado weather and I've not experienced anything like your community did. I wasn't alive during the famous "Palm Sunday" tornado(e?)s that destroyed much of northern and central Indiana. I was at home alone as a youngerster when a microburst blew our window in...it was pretty traumatic. Glad all are safe!
I also go over the list of where NOT to put your hands during the program, including, but not limited to, in your mouth, eyes, ears, nose, hair, or pants.
DeleteThe restoration is ongoing and exciting to watch. The new high school is supposed to be ready for classes in August.
I grew up where the previous worst tornado in Missouri history was. It was in 1957, before I was born, but we lived under the shadow of it. And here I go again! And I don't care what the weather people say, I believe a microburst is a tornado that the weather service didn't see coming....
The mural is amazing, what a cool thing to be a part of! An awesome reconstruction result is priceless. The son under the anus picture is mighty cute, and I'm betting that your doctor will be flattered that you think he is too! :-) It's wonderful that he senses you have the right stuff to be a source of encouragement for other going thru the same experience. Giving back in life... so important! I assure you that the mom's will long appreciate the work that went into those little albums, they will be keepsakes for many years to come! Most important of all, you were safe during the tornado. My heart goes out to those trying to deal with such tragic loss. Great post... and yes, being done with the A-Z is very freeing! Maybe that's one of the good side-effects! :-)
ReplyDeleteIt's kind of startling to drive down a street and see your daughter's image on the side of a building, but I LOVE the mural! And my reconstruction. And the picture of my son under a diagram of an anus. And Dr. Bumberry and his luscious red hair. I also know the moms appreciate those scrapbooks, and they are fun for me to look through and see how these little kiddos have grown over the year. And tornado free for another week, although others weren't so lucky. At least Joplin has demonstrated that it is possible to pick yourselves up and get on with life. I will check out your A to Z; I didn't realize you were doing it, too. What a relief that it's over!
DeleteHow awesome is that mural?!
ReplyDeleteAnd kudos to you for being so healthy that you don't have to go back for a whole year. Yeah! Hope you celebrated BIG!
The parents in your classroom are so very lucky...hope they realize and tell you often.
You're so kind! And yes, big yay for not having to go back to the surgeon for a whole year!
DeleteI just realised Mothers day is around the corner after reading the post. Thanks for reminding me :)
ReplyDeleteSpring would have been so bful ! do post some pictures. Glad to know u r not effected by tornado . Hope others who faced the wrath/ damage get the courage to deal with it :(
those murals r bful , so is ur daughter
So much in just one post!
I guess there really r many things to be thankful about. Never seriously thought about it . This is a bful prompt
Thank you, Afshan! You should join the blog hop next weekend. You just list ten things you are thankful for and link up. It goes live around midnight England time on Friday and is open until Sunday about midnight Pacific time in the U.S. We have a lot of fun commenting on each other's posts and have become a close-knit group. Would just love for you to be part of it!
DeleteI was thinking as I was reading about what I was going to say when I got here and then I stopped at the mural. That is stunning! Wow!
ReplyDeleteI am glad that you were spared, I think of you now when I see these things on the news, but I'm sorry to hear that nearby places weren't as lucky. I will gladly make a donation to help.
Very cool about your doc sending others to your blog. No doubt you would be a terrific calm in the storm for some. You have an amazing spirit!
College boy has GREAT hair! Why do the men always get the great hair???
I'm still a little worried about my surgeon finding out how I totally crush on his hair. Probably should have thought about that before I gave him the blog address!
DeleteMore severe weather expected tomorrow. It's what happens when you live in tornado alley.
And doesn't college boy have amazing ginger hair?! It's so thick and has curl but doesn't look like Howdy Doody. Lucky, lucky boy!
Love that you made scrapbooks! What a fantastic gift. And that others can read about your journey and connect - so smart of your doctor to pass your blog along to others. I will cross my fingers for you - no more storms and lots more spring-y weather with open windows.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Melanie! The scrapbooks really are cute, even though they are a lot of work. And I really hope someone reads things in my blog that helps them.
DeleteI love the mural! Turned out great, and it is something that will continually remind your little dancer of her passions.
ReplyDeleteI used to leave a dollar in different coats at the end of the season so when it came time for me to wear that coat again, I got a little surprise. I haven't done that in a long time, perhaps I should leave myself another surprise for next year. It is even better when you find a lost item. And I never think there are too many pairs of sunglasses, because come summer, there is a guarantee I will drop at least one pair into a lake and probably sit on another pair. I even have back up pairs in my car ... just in case I suddenly need a pair. Two pairs of aviators is really only a benefit.
Keep us posted if you ever hear about Dr. Bumberry coming across your blog. That's awesome.
I am so glad you and your family was safe from nearby tornadoes last week.
Kate at Daily discovery
That mural is something else! I need to post a picture of the entire thing; it's huge!
DeleteI get really excited when I find money in the washing machine or dryer, until I remember it was most likely my money in the first place, since I'm the only one in the family who puts money in my pocket.
I'm a little scared of Dr. Bumberry reading my blog....
Finding money in pockets is one of my favorite things. And the days when nobody pees in his pants, or cries. The mural is amazing!!!
ReplyDeleteFound money is found money. It's always good when nobody pees his pants, including me. The mural IS amazing!
DeleteThat mural is absolutely fabulous!
ReplyDeleteIt really is! Really interesting how the artist painted it on some skin-like thing, then it was glued to the brick wall.
Delete