Last Tuesday, I took Sean, Kyle and Connor to Wrigley Field to watch the Chicago Cubs take on the Houston Astros. My brother Bruce and sister-in-law Susan, along with my nephew Emmett, also joined us, and it was a great way to celebrate Emmett’s fifth birthday.

We took the Metra downtown, then hopped on the L to Wrigley. It was Kyle and Connor’s first Cubs game, and they had a ball, even if they did fall asleep through the middle innings. Ahhh…to be young again and be able to take a nap in a stadium seat with 40,000 screaming fans surrounding you!

Sean got to see his favorite player, Alfonso Soriano, hit a three-run homer. The Cubs ended up on top by a score of 11-7. On the train ride home, we even had the luck to sit near a guy who just happened to have balloons with him, and he entertained the boys by making balloon animals. Only in Chicago!

Kyle and Connor have become quite the little swimmers!

A few weekends ago, Alexi and Greg had friends visit who had an underwater camera. Here are a few photos of Kyle and Connor (and their dad) enjoying their pool.

Several of you have written and asked me how you can get in touch with Kirstin. Here are the details:

Kirstin White

R83319

Dwight Correctional Center

23813 E. 3200 North Road

Dwight IL 60420

From what I understand, she can receive books directly. They don’t have to be ordered through a publisher or other online source like Amazon.

I received a letter from her the other day. She didn’t say much, other than “I’m sorry” (again), but she did mention that she is still receiving radiation and that her cancer is not in remission. I don’t know any details, and I probably won’t seek out any details other than what Kirstin sends in her letters. I can’t go through that hell and frustration again.

So that’s the gist of it for the time being. I had an amazing day on Tuesday with several family members at Wrigley Field watching the Cubs beat the Astros. I’ll post some photos later on. 

Mark and I have begun the househunting/selling process, and it’s an extremely frustrating one. More about that later as well.

I guess it’s just been an extremely stressful and frustrating summer all around. Kirstin’s situation, car repairs in the thousands of dollars, our new dog getting attacked by a pit bull (and the pit bull’s owner not reimbursing us for any vet expenses), realizing that our neighborhood is slowly but surely becoming a pit of hell and we need to get out. In addition, our upstairs neighbors run up and down on their hardwood floors until 3:00 in the morning, and the neighbor upstairs and across the hall holds weekend parties that often get very noisy, depriving us both of much needed sleep. And I won’t even tell you the sounds we hear when the guy has his girlfriend over. But I’m sure you can guess.

I really thought that when we bought a house (even if it is a coach home) that it would be more like living in a single family home than apartment living. But apartment living is what we got for our 165K. Kind of sucks. Well…not kind of…it does.  

Kirstin seemed to think she would get probation for her latest hijinks. Of course, things never seem to go the way she thinks they will.

She got two years. I don’t know all the details, or how these things work, or why they work the way they do, but she claims she’ll only have to serve six months and will have a release date of November 26th. Which happens to be the day before Thanksgiving and four days before her 24th birthday. Another happy, joyous family memory to add to the scrapbook.

We don’t know at this point what State of Illinois facility will be her home for the next six months. The inmate locator I found online doesn’t list her as an inmate anywhere, so apparently she’s currently in limbo.

Once she is released from the State of Illinois’ custody, she will be back in the custody of the Federal system. Her probation officer has gotten a court order for her to enter a halfway house program until June 2009. Hopefully, it will be the best thing that’s ever happened to her. Because if that doesn’t wake her up, I don’t know what will.

Mark and I have a rare weekend coming up with nothing to do but hang out together. We may go look at a few houses (yes, we’re househunting), but we don’t have a set schedule for anything. This was the weekend I was supposed to go to Columbus, Ohio, but with everything going on with Kirstin and work and perhaps the start of selling one place and buying another, I’m exhausted and stressed and don’t think I could handle the whole flying on a plane thing. I’m not very good at it to begin with.

So, that’s the latest. I’ll post when I find out more, including where Kirstin can receive mail and that kind of thing.

When I was a kid, I adored rollercoasters. Anytime we went to a county fair or an amusement park, my goal was to ride every rollercoaster there was, and do it all over again for as long as time would allow. My dad used to give us each five dollars, along with the stern admonishment, “When it’s gone, it’s gone! Don’t come back looking for more!” We didn’t have to. Five bucks bought cotton candy, a big pretzel, a soda…and yes, lots of rollercoaster rides.

When Great America opened in Gurnee, I was about 16 or so, which is why the opening of this park was so exciting — ROAD TRIP! Granted, it was a daytime road trip, but it was 40 miles away. Still a road trip to us. The main purpose of even going to the park was to ride every single coaster there. And we’d stand in line for hours in order to do it. We could even ride a rollercoaster immediately after eating some disgusting concession stand lunch and manage to keep it all down. What a feat!

As I got older, however, my fondness for rollercoasters wore off. I became a bit more cautious about the combination of high places, thrilling rides, and fried foods. Nowadays, even the high albeit slow and laborius Ferris wheel at Navy Pier gives me pause.

I’m not sure why I lost my thirst for fast, high, loopy, dizzying carnival rides. Maybe because I found plenty of other thrilling (and sometimes not so thrilling) life situations to take their place.

One day my daughter’s home after being gone for 18 months. The next day she’s not. One day we’re planning on taking my grandson to his first ever major league baseball game, the next day we’re spending a small fortune to get Mark’s car fixed and even thinking about buying baseball tickets seems ludicrous. One day my laptop is working fine, the next day it’s fried and I’m scouring ebay for something really inexpensive. Work is totally crazy this year — I’ve never dealt with so many Sybilesque clients in my life. I can only be thankful that I no longer have the added stress of an 80-minute commute. Ten minutes is a much nicer one, that’s for sure.

The rollercoasters of my youth are nothing compared to the rollercoaster of life. My day-to-day life is enough of a rollercoaster ride to thrill me to bits. Highs and lows, back-and-forths, two steps forward, one step back (or vice versa).

What a feat!

This is Wrigley in her crate, where she feels most safe and secure. Unfortunately, she was also a bit drugged when I took this photo this evening, although she’s feeling much better than she did last night.

Last night Mark and I got home from our usual Wednesday night date and, like always, took Wrigley out for her walk. It’s the last thing we do every evening, and it’s a nice relaxing time for all of us. Not this night, however.

This is still the same blog it’s always been, but considering the recent turn of events, I decided it was time to change the look of it, and perhaps change the focus a bit.

I don’t feel guilty about what has happened with Kirstin. She had the free will to make choices, and she chose to make ones that obviously didn’t land her in a good place. I’d like to be able to say, “It’s no skin off my nose”. But that’s easier said than done. Despite Kirstin’s lack of responsibility towards and disrespect of her family, both immediate and extended, there is still that small I-can’t-sleep-at-night-where-did-I-go-wrong factor that nags at me because of those choices, even though I didn’t make them.

Anyway — I am much more than the sum of Kirstin’s parts. While I could wallow in a pit of pity over what may or may not be my failures as a parent, I’m choosing not to do that. I have three other children who, by all appearances thus far, are successful, happy, and very functional members of society. I have a very special husband, a nice house, a loyal dog, three amazing grandchildren, great friends, and a TBR pile a mile high (which sends shivers up my spine just thinking about it). The baseball team that has turned me into a puddle of Jell-O on the floor some years and made me mad as hell other years is poised for a history-making season. I have a very cool little car that makes complete strangers walk up to me at gas stations and start conversations. I know how to navigate my way through downtown Chicago on public transportation and I’m not afraid to ride the L. I have a serious habit of getting hooked on quirky obscure television shows that no one else seems to watch. (Does anybody else love the great “Swingtown” ’70s soundtrack or think that Graham Norton is one of the most hysterical people on the face of the planet? I thought so.) I still like reading “Winnie the Pooh” every once in a while, and the last really great book I read that made me cry was “The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane” by Kate DiCamillo. I like sending people little surprise gifts for no reason at all — or even for a great reason like a birthday or Christmas. I could spend a very long time looking at Georges Seurat’s “A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte” and not get bored. I think two of the coolest jobs in the world are gourmet chef and veterinarian, and I’m very okay with the fact that it’s highly unlikely I’ll become either of those things.

And that’s just the tip of the iceberg.

So, while I’ll surely keep people updated as to Kirstin’s movements as I find out about them, it’s no longer going to be the main focus of this blog.

As much as Kirstin’s trials and tribulations have affected me and the rest of my family, it’s important to remember that there are still young children in the family who need to be assured that they, too, are important, and that there is still a sense of normalcy in their world.

For Kylie (Kirstin’s daughter), it’s being with her Grandma Denise and enjoying a safe and secure environment. For my grandsons Kyle and Connor, it’s knowing that Papa and Gram (Mark and I) are still pretty cool adults. And for my son Sean, it’s knowing that special days, like birthdays and holidays, are still important milestones that deserve to be celebrated.

Sean will celebrate his 11th birthday on June 20th. Since he was with us this past weekend, we marked the day a week early. My daughter Alexi called on Saturday and asked us if we wanted to come and enjoy a cook-out to celebrate the completion of their new deck. We had planned on taking Sean out to lunch and a movie, but when we asked him, he jumped at the chance to spend the afternoon at Alexi’s enjoying the pool.

Alexi, being the wonderful big sister that she is, threw together a great impromptu birthday party, complete with a cake and presents. And yes, Sean’s lips look a bit blue in this picture, since we had a hard time dragging him away from the pool for any length of time.

On Sunday, we took Sean to Ridemakerz where he built his own remote control Mustang and free wheeling PT Cruiser. After lunch at Hooter’s (it’s become a Father’s Day tradition for us to have lunch there and watch the ballgame), we took a very exhausted Sean back to his dad’s.

In other family news, Mallory and Josh will be moving back to Illinois! Mallory’s new job starts next Monday, so she is moving back at the end of the week and will be staying with my mom. Josh will follow once he gets things wrapped up in northern Virginia. We’re excited they’re moving back to be close to family again!

If you’re any kind of a sports fan at all, you know how exciting it is to be a Chicago Cubs fan nowadays. If you live anywhere near Chicago, you can feel the excitement in the air (well, the Northside air anyway).

I’ve been a Cubs fan for as long as I can remember. My dad claimed that even in the crib, the most soothing voice for me was Jack Brickhouse’s. I don’t know about that, but it’s a nice thought to think my passion for the Cubs was inborn. And while we couldn’t afford the Wrigley Rooftop wedding we dreamed of, Mark and I did choose to get married on April 22, 2007 at Elfstrom Stadium in Geneva, Illinois because Ryne Sandberg’s Peoria Chiefs were playing there that afternoon. So we still had the Cubs connection.

I’ve yet to see my beloved Cubbies win a World Series. But I think that will change this year.

There has been a revival in Chicago of a Cubs fan social club called the West Side Rooters. The last time this club was in existence was in…yup, you guessed it…1908 — the last year the Cubs won a World Series. Some former Cubs players and Grant DePorter, the President of the Harry Caray chain of popular Chicago-area restaurants, along with Harry Caray’s widow, are heading the club.

To make a long story short…the West Side Rooters are currently hosting a contest for members to recruit new members. The winning member will receive dinner for four with Ernie Banks’ at Harry Caray’s and four front row seats to a Cubs game. Now…anybody who knows me knows that I would give almost anything, including my first born, middle born, or last born child (maybe even all of them), to have dinner with Ernie Banks and watch a Cubs game from the sweet seats.

Membership in the West Side Rooters is free. All you have to do is go here to sign up or click on the West Side Rooters link under “Sites to Check Out”. Where it says “Who referred you?”, enter my e-mail address — cubsgal1@sbcglobal.net

Don’t sign up just to sign up, though — you’ve got to be a true blue Cubs fan. Of course, there’s nothing that says you can’t become a Cubs fan RIGHT NOW. Normally, I’m not fond of fair weather fans, but in this case I’ll make an exception.

So…if you are…head on over. If you’re not, please pass this on to anybody you know who might be!

“Our loving thoughts affect people and situations we never even dream of, and so do our mistakes.”– Marianne Williamson

I have spent over a week thinking about how I was going to write about the latest chapter in Kirstin’s journey. It’s not the chapter I wanted to write, but life has a funny way of writing its own stories, regardless of our desires.

Last Friday, May 27th, Kirstin was arrested again. I’ve only spoken to her once since then, and she told me “her past was catching up with her”, which led me to believe that she was arrested on an old charge that had happened prior to her being incarcerated. But as the details have trickled in, it is as I suspected — the charge was recent, not something from her past. She made a poor choice and betrayed a friend by using that friend’s debit card illegally. The friend pressed charges. So now Kirstin is sitting in Cook County Jail unable to post bond. She has a court hearing on June 27th.

What will happen after that, we’re not sure. We do know, as hard a decision as it was to make, that she cannot come back to our home.

We are devastated and disappointed. Even more than that, I feel horrible that many other people, not just family members, are going to feel the same way. Many of you have never met Kirstin, yet you supported her and believed in her.

Kirstin, for whatever reasons, continues to make the wrong choices. Instead of asking us for money, as we told her many times to do, she stole it. Instead of being honest with us about what she was doing, she lied about it. Instead of surrounding herself with positive influences, she sought out negative ones. Intead of being patient until things she earned came her way, she took what didn’t belong to her. It’s tragic, really — and other than apologizing for her, I don’t really know what else to say.

She had planned on making a visit to California to visit Kylie in mid-June, and had been planning on attending the First Descents program in Kalispell, Montana in July, where she had received a scholarship. Both of those trips are now obviously off the table. I sent an e-mail to the Operations Director of the First Descents program and explained why Kirstin wouldn’t be able to attend. Amazingly, I got a reply that they sincerely hoped that Kirstin could get her life together and join them next year. There are still so many people out there supporting and rooting for Kirstin to succeed — it’s unfortunate that she can’t seem to realize that.

On a lighter note, I’ve had a few pictures I’ve been wanting to post for a while:

Mallory and Josh had this bullfrog take up residence in their front yard for several days a few weeks ago. They named him Jeremiah. Riley wasn’t too sure about the whole thing, and was understandably curious.

We welcomed a new family member last Sunday. That’s Mark, Sean, and me with Wrigley. She is a retired racing greyhound, and she is the sweetest, most laid-back dog I’ve ever met. We’re enjoying her very much, and she has been a welcome distraction from the unhappier events of the past week.

A momwriter friend of mine, Teri Brown, is having her first YA book released in six days! How exciting!

I actually got to meet Teri once when she was visiting Chicago. We had appetizers at Miller’s Pub on Wabash, walked through Millennium Park, and had cosmos at House of Blues. I do remember the cosmos were outrageously expensive — something like $12 a piece!

Anyway, you can view the trailer for her new book “Read My Lips” here. The premise — Serena, who is deaf, moves to a new town, and finds the popular crowd suddenly wants to use her lip reading skills to find out the latest gossip around the high school. Serena could be accepted into the “Mean Girls” crowd — but does she want to be?  

You know the old saying: “When life gives you lemons, make lemonade”? Well, I’d say Kirstin and I have been doing quite a bit of that in recent weeks.

Kirstin applied for the First Descents program, and got the call last week that she was accepted, including a full scholarship for travel! She has already received her itinerary, and will be spending a week in Kalispell, Montana in July kayaking, white water rafting, hiking, and making lots of new friends that she can relate to, since all of the participants are young adults with cancer.

Her doctor, counselor, and probation officer have all given her the okay to go. The P.O. was the big one, and I’m so glad he’s allowing Kirstin this opportunity, because I think it will be a great one for her.

As for me, I received information a few months ago regarding the Livestrong Foundation’s annual Livestrong Summit, which is a conference designed to teach ordinary folks (like me) how to become grassroots advocates, fundraisers, and political activists in the area of cancer research and treatment. Each year’s event is limited to 1,000 “delegates”. This year’s Livestrong Summit is being held at the end of July on the campus of Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio. There were also scholarships being offered, so I decided to go ahead and apply. I found the application intimidating, since it asked for past experiences with fundraising, volunteerism, etc. Essentially, I didn’t have much to offer in the way of experience. But I figured I wouldn’t be losing anything by applying, and could gain a lot if I were chosen as one of the delegates.

I was notified by e-mail on Wednesday that I am one of this year’s Livestrong Summit delegates! I also received a full scholarship, which will pay for my conference attendance, travel, and accommodations. It’s a bit scary, since I won’t know a soul, but also very exciting that my application “passed muster” and I will get the opportunity to learn more about being an advocate for those living with cancer.

A year ago, I didn’t have any idea what having a family member with cancer was like, much less having it be one of my own children. I didn’t even know anybody who had cancer or who had a family member undergoing treatment. It’s quite the life-changing experience. Not only from the standpoint of appreciating life, realizing you are stronger than you ever believed you were, or finding out that you can do things you never imagined yourself doing — but also from the perspective of suddenly discovering a talent or passion you never knew you had.

I never considered myself a ”pushy” or confrontational person, but I suddenly found myself willing to go to the mat for my daughter. I spread the news as far as I could, as loud as I could, and tried to get as many people as I could to follow suit — and I actually believe that made a difference in the care Kirstin received while she was incarcerated. Maybe it even saved her life. 

And I discovered that I kind of liked doing it. So…I’m hoping I’ll learn more about how to organize my efforts and make an impact not just for Kirstin or the rest of my family, but for many others as well.   

We are also in the planning stages for Kylie to make an extended visit this summer. Kirstin will be traveling to California in mid-June to spend five days with Denise and the rest of the family. Initially, she wanted to return from that visit with Kylie, but with a very busy end of June and beginning of July for her, we finally convinced her it would be better to have Kylie visit after she returns from Montana. We’re all excited about being able to have Kylie here for a while, and we’re so thankful that Thomas’ family and Kirstin’s family cooperate so well together that we can make things like this work! That’s a pretty amazing feat in itself, I think. 

Observation:

Shoe shopping is one of the most torturous experiences any parent can endure with a child — son or daughter.

Mark and I spent two arduous hours with Sean shopping for new gym shoes on Sunday. I’d forgotten how awful the experience is. As a matter of fact, I think that’s why I had four children — I quickly forgot how difficult it can be to be a parent. God is tricky that way.

We left the mall with a pair of very nice shoes, but they weren’t Sean’s first choice. Oh well — he’ll get used to them. I am anxiously awaiting the day that he can buy his own shoes without our participation.

Reminder:

My sister Joanne and her daughter Erin will be walking in the Epilepsy Foundation of Greater Chicago’s fundraising walk on May 17th in Lincoln Park. This is their fifth consecutive year of participation. As many of you may know, Erin has suffered from epilepsy for many years, and was diagnosed at age seven. I urge you to visit Joanne’s participant page and sponsor her and Erin. Or you can visit Erin’s participant page and donate from there as well. Any donation, no matter how small, is very much appreciated. Help Joanne and Erin reach their combined goal of raising $950.00 for epilepsy research!

Life’s Little Surprise:

I woke up this morning and began getting ready for work as I usually do. I noticed something on my desk that hadn’t been there before, and when I walked over to see what it was, I quickly realized they were Cubs tickets. Mark and I are going to see the Cubs and the Diamondbacks on — drum roll, please! — Mother’s Day! I can’t think of a better Mother’s Day gift. The only downside? The promotion that day is a pink cap. Why is it that everyone assumes women love pink? I hate pink. Of course, I suppose I could always sell it on ebay. Or give it to my co-worker who loves pink. Well, I suppose if I must get a pink cap in order to see the Cubs play, it’s a small price to pay.

And is my husband cool or what?

Observation:

I am of the firm belief that customer service is the ultimate marketing tool.

Remember last October when my writing workshop weekend in Middleton, Wisconsin was marred by the soccer kids and the parents who couldn’t seem to get out of the lobby and away from the bar in order to supervise their children? Courtyard refunded my entire stay, including taxes and fees. I love Courtyard hotels. And I’ll be returning there in the future.

Well, Microtel Inn and Suites most definitely doesn’t have the same policy of making their guests happy. We stayed at the Madison, Wisconsin Microtel the weekend of May 2nd. Since the hotel was only two doors away from the bowling center, we registered and got our room key, even though we were told the room wouldn’t be ready until 3 p.m. No biggie — we wouldn’t be done at the bowling center until late afternoon at the earliest.

We arrived at the hotel after 6 p.m. and entered our room to discover that the only thing that had been done was that the bed had been made. Water bottles, soda cans, napkins, etc. were strewn throughout the room. There were even clothes hanging on the towel bar in the bathroom, and an ironing board and iron were set up in the room. Seriously — the room still looked occupied.

According to the manager, it wasn’t. He came to the room, looked around, then looked at us and said, “So…what…you guys wanna move?”

After we carried the clothing we found in the bathroom down to the front desk, the “manager” gave us $15 off the room. As far as I’m concerned we should have been upgraded to a suite and had the night comped. We will not be patronizing this chain ever again.

And you know what they say — word of mouth is a powerful advertising tool.

Reminder:

Kirstin’s last day of radiation will be Monday, May 12th. She missed one day this week due to the machine at the hospital being inoperative, so she will go on Monday to make up for that missed session.

In other Kirstin news, she has been approved for a few government programs, so she is on her way to at least having a small income and being able to begin paying some bills and maybe saving a few bucks along the way, too.

She is applying for the First Descents program that I discovered while she was still at Carswell. Her probation officer isn’t exactly on board with it, and says we may have to go in front of a judge to get permission for her to participate, but I’m of the firm belief that this is a very positive program that Kirstin would benefit from tremendously. So I’m going to do all I can within my power to try to make it happen for her.

Life’s Little Surprise:

Mark just called me to see how my day was going so far, and to say “I love you.” He does this often, and it still blows me away every time.

To answer the rhetorical question I asked a little while ago: Yes, my husband is very cool.

My daughter Alexi took this candid photo of either Kyle or Connor (Yes — one day I will be able to tell them apart) while her family was on vacation in Virginia visiting my daughter Mallory and her husband Josh. Mallory says he’s taking after Uncle Josh. Perhaps…but I can’t remember the last time I visited my bathroom without reading material. In fact, it was a family joke when I was a kid and my dad always used to ask, “Going to the library?” whenever he saw me heading down the hall towards the bathroom.

Funny how family traits trickle down through the generations. Even ones you’d rather keep in the…ahem…linen closet. 

My wonderful husband surprised me with a gorgeous bouquet of flowers for our anniversary on Tuesday, complete with a Cubs flag in the center of it. He also gave me a Cubs “W” flag, which we will display proudly on our baseball wall at home.

Kirstin’s radiation treatments are moving right along. Of course, we don’t really know what effect they’re having until she has another PET scan after the radiation ends in May, but we’ll cross that bridge when (or if) we come to it.

We have discovered a wonderful new resource that will be great for Kirstin. Wellness Place, located just a short drive from us, is a cancer resource center for patients in remission or currently undergoing cancer treatment and their families and caregivers. There are loads of programs like yoga, Tai Chi and guided imagery, support groups of many different kinds, counseling, an art studio, a lending library, family events, and much more. It is amazing that such a wonderful place exists just a few miles from our house. Kirstin stopped by yesterday and registered for a few programs and spoke to a counselor. I think she will find a lot of very positive influences there.

My mom found an article in yesterday’s newspaper about the First Cut Program, a new program launched this spring by the American Cancer Society. Post-chemotherapy cancer patients can receive a certificate for a free haircut at one of several area salons. Kirstin called and will be getting a certificate for a local place called Hip Salon. She’s probably still a few months away from having enough hair for a cool haircut, but she’s looking forward to the day!

Mark and I will be heading to Madison, Wisconsin this weekend for the first bowling regional of the season. It will be nice to have a weekend away for just the two of us. It’s been a while since we’ve been able to do that.

Kirstin has had three days of radiation thus far. She doesn’t seem too affected by it physically at all, even though Dr. Ruffer, the radiation oncologist, told her she might be fatigued by it. So far, I haven’t seen too much of that and Kirstin says she really hasn’t felt it that much. Her appointments are mid-afternoon, and she generally comes home and takes a nap, but she hasn’t been overly lethargic. 

The only physical symptoms Kirstin has mentioned are some numbness in her leg while the actual radiation is taking place and some redness on her upper arm. The doctor gave her some cream to apply topically to the skin for any minor irritations like that and also has massaged her leg on those days when the numbness sets in.

Mark and I will be celebrating our first wedding anniversary on Tuesday. The year has flown by, but not without more than its fair share of trials and tribulations. Still — I think we have weathered it well, and I can only chalk that up to the fact that together we are a partnership to be reckoned with. Maybe it’s maturity, maybe it’s compatibility, maybe it’s the fact that we believe we are truly soulmates — whatever the reason, we have been able to withstand whatever life has thrown at us without too much insanity. Despite the family dramas, the long work hours, the occasional emotional baggage that rears its ugly head, and the little things that clutter our days like dishwashers that die, April snowstorms, or the water heater in the unit above us leaking into our laundry room, we manage to have a few consistent things in our lives that make us realize that, no matter what, we’re going to be better than okay — we communicate honestly about our hopes, fears, achievements, and disappointments, and we share a home that is a safe, secure, peaceful haven for both of us.

No matter what kind of day it has been, at the end of it I get to hang out with my best friend — and sleep with him, too. I can’t imagine it gets any better than that.

Kirstin had her final appointment today before her radiation begins on Wednesday. Today’s appointment was to complete “imaging” on the area where she will be receiving the radiation treatments — essentially from her hip to her knee on the left leg.

Her treatments will be daily Monday through Friday. The actual treatment itself won’t last more than 20 minutes or so, and won’t have nearly the same side effects that she had with the chemo. Her radiation oncologist said that she can expect to feel very tired and will experience some redness similar to a sunburn after each treatment.

Her radiation is scheduled to end on May 9th. Once that is completed, another PET scan will take a look at what effect the radiation had on the cancer that remains, and then we’ll see what the next step (if any) will be.

Kirstin has kept busy working for Alexi taking care of Kyle and Connor when needed and helping around the house. She actually hasn’t been home much, and I’m glad to see her taking on some responsibility that keeps her active. At the same time, she is rebuilding some much-needed trust with me and other family members, and that’s a very good thing.

Kirstin and I enjoyed a relaxing few days at my favorite place to get away — The Inn at Irish Hollow. Even though we cut our weekend a little short — I had lost my voice to some respiratory thing that’s still nagging at me and Kirstin was…well, I think she was a bit bored — we still enjoyed the quiet atmosphere and out of this world cuisine.

Here are a few photos I took of the inside of our cottage, The Gardener’s Cottage. The inn is by far the most luxurious, indulgent place I’ve ever had the privilege to spend some time visiting. I’m returning in November and staying in a different cottage. They’re all magnficent, and this last cottage will mean I’ve spent a weekend in every cottage they have on the property. I hope I can talk Mark into making the trip with me (he’s not fond of the country) but if not, I’ll go on my own and make it a productive writing retreat.

The bedroom (try to ignore all of our stuff — it really was a fabulous room). There are French doors to the left of the bed that open onto a screened porch. It was nice to sit out there and listen to the night sounds without having to worry about something crawling on you or flying into you (I enjoy a quiet retreat in the country once in a while, as long as nothing crawls on me).

The sitting room greeted us with chilled champagne and handmade chocolates and cookies. The stereo was playing when we entered. The sound system in the cottage was amazing — and they even had satellite radio!

Kirstin and I enjoyed a game of Scrabble by the fireplace. It reminded us that we need to play more — it was a pretty pathetic game of five-letter words. Kirstin won. In my defense, it was 1 a.m.

The bathroom was European-style — a magnificent spa tub, luxurious towels and microfleece robes, and separate spaces for the huge two-head shower and toilet.

My view of the fireplace while I was enjoying the spa tub. And all the river rock around the tub? It’s heated underneath — so no cold feet when you’re done and ready to get out! I thought that was so cool. 

Kirstin’s daughter Kylie, her paternal grandmother Denise, and Kylie’s Aunt Amanda visited for a wonderful week in March. Their visit coincided with Kylie’s first birthday and Easter, so it was a week for celebrations. It was also the first time I’d ever had my children and grandchildren all together, which made for some awesome photo ops!

It was a great week of celebrating, as I’m sure you can tell!

Oma (my mom) and Kylie

Amanda and Kyle (all the little boys had major crushes on Amanda); Kirstin and Kylie; Kylie (one happy baby in just about every picture!)

Kylie enjoying her cake baby style; Kylie, Mark, and Sean; me with all the kids and grandkids

My mom with her three great-grandchildren; Kylie opening…err…eating…her presents

Taking after Papa, perhaps?