The Drama of Life Goes On!

This past week has been quite dramatic. Monday was my Mom's birthday, and I really missed her. Of course, I missed her while she was still alive because she wasn't herself the last few years she was living. But nevertheless, I do miss her at times. I miss Katie and Ryan, and Julie and their kids so much after my visit to Utah after Christmas. My arms just ache to hold them all. I miss Eric and Em, too, and wish I could have seen more of them. Rachel started a new job this year, and we are so glad she is out of her old office. We are also very proud of her and that she would not participate in the dishonest practices going on there and that she was strong enough to do what was right. Allen is having some very hard times and we have been on an emotional roller coaster over his current trials in life. Things just sometimes don't work out the way we want them to, and we have to cut our losses and move on. This is a difficult class in the school of life, and right now Allen is at the top of his class. I hope he finishes this one by learning the necessary lessons and gaining personal strength from surviving the hard times. We are looking forward to having Allen come home to live for a while. We hope that he can heal his broken heart and concentrate on getting his education. We love him so much and are glad he wanted to come home. The job of parenting never ends: the older your kids get, the bigger and more difficult their problems are. As a parent, I never quit caring or worrying about my children. And then you can add worrying and caring about grandchildren, too. The love just keeps growing and I am so thankful for all of our children and grandchildren. I have been waiting for a month to go to a specialist because of the results of my yearly mammogram and ultrasound. There were some new developments that raised suspicion of malignancy. I have been very worried about this because of my sister, Janet, and my mom both having breast cancer. I really liked the Dr. I saw today. She gave me some great options. I am scheduled for an MRI next week and will then have a small outpatient surgery to remove the suspicious lumps. Once we get the results from the upcoming biopsy I will know what I need to deal with (or not). Until that time, I am trying not to worry and be too consumed by this unpleasant development in my life. I have always taken my good health for granted and when it is threatened the fear of the unknown is very great. Even though there are hard times, worries, decisions, kids with problems, etc., life is still really grand. I love it - and I am so grateful for the life I have. I certainly would not want to trade places with anyone!!!