i first put these contacts in my eyes on saturday, october 15th, not an especially eventful day, except for one email from my dad... containing devastating news... his psa level was up around 7000... "off the charts" according to his doctor. he's been battling prostate cancer for almost 6 years, and the cancer had spread to his bones and there was no getting rid of it or even keeping it under control anymore... against all of the treatments (prostatectomy, two bouts of radiation, agressive hormone therapies), the cancer was winning, and my dad had decided to "let nature take its course." :'( problem was, he lived in a remote mountain town in the sierra nevadas of california, with difficult access to medical services... sooo...
i scheduled and booked a trip to go down and see him on october 27th... then, on october 18th he calls to say "how flexible is your schedule?" turns out he wanted to move the trip out a week or two and turn my visit into me going down there to help him move up here to washington... so we rebooked everything for a week later. i was to fly down on november 3rd, pack up all of his stuff into his car and take two days to drive back to washington...
october 17th was your typical work day, BUT i did get to see my vegas girls (we call ourselves that because back in the day we used to all go to vegas together once or twice a year... but that seems to have ceased as of about 4 years ago...) we got together for a birthday celebration, and it was great to see some friends who have moved away... good day!
october 26th: my niece, kyana, had her 3rd baby... a sweet little boy named ahviel elias... congrats kyana and pete!!
then, october 27th happened... the day i was originally supposed to be flying away, leaving my kids here to hold down the fort and take care of the dogs... thank goodness the travel dates changed, because on october 27th, while the kids were at school, and i was working at home, around 10:30am, two guys tried (unsuccessfully) to break into my house... probably the scariest day of my life thus far... the police were called, and as far as i know, the guys were never caught, although they had attempted a break-in a few blocks away just 20 minutes before the police got my call (same description of guys and car.) and now, in the midst of being freaked out, and unable to sleep or eat, i knew that in just one week, i really was going to have to fly away, leaving my kids here... alone... to hold down the fort and take care of the dogs... so i went into panic mode... i hit up the sportsmen's store and stockpiled pepper spray; i contemplated buying a shotgun; i bugged the security company daily to get them to come out as soon as possible to activate the security system; i talked to the kids to make sure they were comfortable staying here alone while i went and retrieved my dad... all of this on very little sleep or sustenance of any kind...
also going on during this time, was me trying to secure a place for my dad to live (he absolutely refused to live with us,) make sure it was furnished, and stocked with the everyday things one needs... he was bringing very little with him, just what we could fit into his suv, so there was a lot to do...
on november 3rd, i was set and ready to go... bags packed, kids settled, alarm activated, pepper spray in every single room of the house... i saw the kids off to school that morning with big hugs and tears in my eyes while THEY assured ME they would be fine... i wasn't fine... i was leaving them home alone just a week after someone had tried to break in... and i had to go get on airplane... and i hate flying... so at about 12:30pm, the shuttle express shows up to transport me to the airport and i walk out to see a LIMO parked in my driveway ????? ummm, i definitely didn't order a limo... apparently that's what they had available, so i was getting a FREE upgrade, which seems like it would be pretty cool, but to be honest, i'm not really limo material, unless it's a wedding party, or a bunch of us girls in vegas... being all by yourself in the way back of limo is... awkward... unless you're donald trump, i suppose...
november 3rd-5th: getting my dad here was a whole event unto itself... you can read about it here...
november 14th... another good day! i got to meet up with two of my good friends over some cheese and chocolate fondue at the melting pot happy hour (the cheese and chocolate were separate :) and the conversation was GREAT! i am super thankful for all the great friends i have...
november 17th-19th: much less great... i flew to idaho (on short notice) to be with my mom while dealing with her husband's illnesses... oliver middlebrooks (my stepdad) passed away on november 18th with his wife of 24 years (my mom), his son, curtis, and me sitting by his side... he is greatly missed by a great many people... go here for a video montage...
november 24th (thanksgiving): we had a fun and casual thanksgiving dinner at my house with my kids, my dad, my friend mary beth and her kids, and my friend dana and her kids.... and at some point we thought it might be a good idea to try to hit up wal-mart for the black friday stuff at 10pm... after sitting in traffic for 45 minutes, we canned that idea and went home :) going home was the best plan EVER!
november 26th: my niece, mikaela's baby shower! we have been waiting to meet her little bundle of joy... mikena kaleia arrived (finally!) on december 16th, after 25 hours of labor (but that's a new pair of contacts :)
november 29th: my uncle harry (my mom's brother) passed away after being diagnosed with cancer only two weeks before... i'll miss you uncle harry!
december 3rd: winterfest! good beer... but note to self, there is never any need for me to buy more tokens than the ones allocated with the entrance fee... drinking too much beer could cause you to pass out in the public restrooom of a pizza joint (hypothetically speaking, of course.)
december 8th: darbey's high school of the arts, dance concert - first time i've ever seen my daughter do the splits - amazing!
december 15th: new contacts! new things to see... until next time...
