Scared to do it again, but I want to

I'm glad I didn't know,
the way it all would end,
the way it all would go.
Our lives are better left to chance,
I could have missed the pain,
but I'd of had missed the dance.

I wonder what it would be like if you always knew the outcome of the future. Knowing that something you want to do, might not turn out the way you had hoped. Would you be scared to carry on, and miss out on all the good that may come out of it, in order to avoid one bad thing?

Two years ago Christmas Eve, my 35 year old friend Kelly, passed away from breast cancer.
Watching Kelly die from what later turned into a brain tumor, (in a mere 40 days) was never anything I wanted to do. I was scared but I did it anyway, because although I didn't want to see her die, I wanted to be there for her.
Kelly was scared at first, but eventually, the tumor took over, and had I been to scared to be there, I would have missed out on many long nights of talking, story telling, make believe and dancing in our disco diapers.

A few months after Kelly's passing, Mike and I signed up for the 3 day walk. 60 miles in 3 days. Everything about the 3 day scared me, from getting up at 4 am to train, to raising the money. (And of course the distance.) However, walking the 3 day was a kind of closer for me, and I wanted to do it.

We had so much fun, that we want to do it again!
Sept. 2011!
YUP!! That scares me! It scares me because I know the pain and how it will most likely end, but I still want to do it.

This year as I walk the 3 day, I'll be walking for Kelly,
and I'll be thinking of Josh.
Josh is a friend of mine from highschool.
Josh has been diagnosed with
stage 4 metastatic malignant melanoma.
Although he is receiving a study drug, and even has a plan B, these drugs will only prolong his life.
Upon reading josh's newest blog post, I learned that at his last doctor's apointment, he was able to ask some pretty tough questions about the end and how it will go. Turns out melanoma hits the brain rapidly. Just like Kelly. That scares me alot. I'm scared for my friend. Even so, I want to be there for him. besides, I wouldn't want to miss the dance!

A new cancer means a new cause. I wonder how many miles I gotta walk for melanoma? Any more then 60 scares me, but I would do it.
Again and again.

It's homemade and I like it

Do you eat cranberries from a can? Be honest... I can handle it.
Seriously, though, maybe you do because you don't know how to make them, or even that you can.
That was me some ten years ago. I accepted that cranberries came from a can. My mom used to get the jellied kind, and we'd leave it in can shape and slice it at meal time.... you know the look, and it's all I knew, untill I cooked my first Thanksgiving dinner. Now, I make them every year.
Here is the recipe for you.

One 12oz bag of whole cranberries

Combine one cup sugar, one cup water

bring to a boil

Add cranberries

Turn down heat and boil gently for10 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Poor into a serving dish. Bring to room temperature. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Getting stuck

I didn't want to drive! I  went to rescue Mike from work @ 5:30 pm. It could have been worse, he usually gets off @ 9:30.
As we (the kids & I) were getting onto freeway, 6 cars infront of us piled up. 2 box trucks, followed by a sedan of sorts, then a van. A green suv slid sideways and crunched into the van. The truck in front of me sideswiped the suv....he kept going. Somehow I was able to stop our car. We were sliding towards the gaurdrail and the van, but came to a slow stop. We were on a slight downword hill, so backing up was not an option. Also 4 cars came to a stop behind me. We were stuck.
Thank God, Mike was able to walk to us. By the time he got there (about an hour) 3 of the cars behind us left. He was able to back our car up and get us onto the main road (where I had seen the sanding trucks go by) and we made it home!
What an adventure!

Meet Amber

Amber lives on Queen Anne, and works in West Seattle.
She was driving the one car that was stopped behind me when we were stuck.

We took Amber home with us for the night. I just could't leave her there. She was thinking of walking to Queen Anne!

We took her in the morning to rescue her car. Thank God it was still in one piece!

Put out the ice melt and hoped for the best!

Off she went! It was nice to rescue such a sweet stranger. Hopefully she made it home safe!

Who lives in a pineapple under the sea

For now, it's Neptune, Avery's fish he got with his birthday money.
I remember our first fish, Chloe.
Avery was about 3 years old and wanted a pet. After careful consideration, he picked out a beautiful beta. He was so proud!
Well, as you can imagine, Chloe went belly up one morning. This being Avery's first pet, (and brush w/ death) I had no idea how I was going to explaine this to him, knowing it would break his little heart.
Mike and I talked it over and came up with the best plan ever! We explained to Avery that "Daddy's guys" at work wanted to meet Chloe, and so he was going on a field trip! The plan worked like a charm. When Mike arrived back home, from work, he brought a new fish. Avery never did catch on that we called that one "Closely"
Of course, we've had many fish since then, and I'm sure we'll have more in the future. Although it is never easy to break the kids hearts, when the fish die, we've learned as parents, that they can handle more then we give them credit for!

Together forever

I love my Mike. He and I have been together for more then 13 wonderful years. It's not always been an easy road, but we've worked hard and have made it work. Together we are raising Avery, 12 and Evan, 7. They keep us busy, keep us laughing, keep us on our toes, and most importantly, they remind us every day that it's all worth it.

Public speaking

A poem about red

so patient in line

Evan was so nervous, and didn't want to get up infront of his school to read his poem, but he was able to overcome and did a beautiful job. I'm so proud of him!!

I'll make 'em

The time has come

for Avery to become more independent,

and it makes me proud.

Lunch

My work is hectic. My co worker's are grumpy. My customers are impatient. My phone never stops ringing.............Lunch is a wonderful break. I really enjoy walking up to the totem pole park. There is hardly ever anybody there, it has a beautiful view, ( on clear days of the city) and it is peaceful.

Back in February, much to everyone's surprise, some jerk stole the totem pole and took it to Oregon. You would not believe the damage left behind! The guy drove right into the park, smashed through planters, tied a rope around it, and yanked it out of the ground. He even cut it into two pieces. Thankfully, it was found and restored back into it's beautiful original condition.

It should have been Evan!

That's right folks, out of 117 people (mostly adults) Evan came very close to winning the football pool, this week. Unfortunately, Washington's quarterback played like crap, and philadelphia won. Better luck next time, Evan.... but I'm awfully proud of you this week!

Donut Mondays

Mondays are donut day at my work. There is nothing like a donut to get the community out of bed. Guys come from all over West Seattle at 7 am, not because there is work to do, but becsuse they know the donuts are waiting. In fact, I don't mind mondays for the same reason. I guess it's a little something to look forward to on an otherwise humpf kinda day. The local little lumber yard becomes town square as they grab their donut of choice, a cup of coffee, and catch up with eachother.
My life has always been an adventure. I couldn't possibly catch you up on everything that makes me who I am today, but as I blog, i'm sure my story will be told.
I invite you to grab a cup of coffee, maybe a donut and enter my world. Hopefully you are left with a smile, and will look forward to each new post as much as I do, donut mondays.