You know, when I started this blog I knew I wouldn’t post an entry every day. Heck, I knew I’d be lucky to post once a week. But I really didn’t think I’d ever be gone for over 3 months! What more can I say than, “I’m sorry”!
What have I missed? Let’s play catch-up… 2 birthdays in January – R4 turned 9 on the 25th and Hubby turned 40-something on the 29th. R2 turned 20 in February – one less teenager in the house, yeah me! R1 turned 25(!) in March while floating out in the middle of the Atlantic. But even better news is that he’s back in the good old US of A as of last week! It was a long 7 months, and seemed even longer than his deployment to the sandbox back in 2007. I think it was because he missed all the major holidays this time and the winter weather just seemed to make the days drag on. He’s still in NC, spending quality time with his sweet wife, but he’ll be home for a visit soon and I can’t wait! I’ll hang our welcome home banner, cook all his favorites and listen to his stories. Sweet!
We had a health scare with R3 this year. She had strep and bronchitis that she just couldn’t kick in January. Two rounds of antibiotics and Advair finally helped and she seemed better and back to her old self. At one of the many visits to the pediatrician, we asked him to take a look at her wrist. She has had, what the ped said, was a cyst on her inner wrist for close to 5 years now and it had been causing her some pain and weakness since cheering in the fall. He gave us a referral to a hand surgeon. After taking just one look, the hand doctor said that this couldn’t be a cyst at all. After an MRI (with contrast, no less; my baby’s first IV!) it was confirmed to be a tumor. Surgery to remove it went well, but it was huge and had wrapped itself around tendons and nerves, and there was lots of inflammation, but luckily no permanent damage. After about a week, she could finally move her fingers, and a few days later, her wrist. She’s still in physical therapy but is back to about 75% usage. It may take a few more months to get to 100%. Unfortunately, softball is out this year, but we’re hoping she’ll be okay for cheering in August. She would be devastated not to cheer so she’s working very hard on therapy and her exercises.
Thankfully, the tumor was benign. But, our local hospital’s pathology lab had never seen a tumor like it before, so it was sent to Sloan Kettering for further analysis. Even SK couldn’t identify it, so samples have been sent to a number of labs across the country. We hope to have more information when we go back to the doctor in May. The doctors have recommended a full body scan and/or PET scan to see if she has tumors anywhere else. Through it all, R3 has been a champ. She can focus on getting better now and even the 3 inch scar on her wrist doesn’t faze her. I can worry for both of us, and I just want her to get back to being a normal teenager again. Okay, maybe normal and teenager don’t belong in the same sentence, but you know what I mean! She went to her Sophomore Ring Dance last week and was absolutely beautiful!
I have been stitching through all of this and will post some finishes soon. I’ve also been crocheting again since I find that much easier to transport and start/stop at all our various doctor’s appointments in the last month.
Life is good again. Mother Nature has started to show us that Spring may finally be here after all. And the Met’s season starts in just 3 days! A healthy family, warmer weather and baseball. What more do I need?
