Zoe’s had great fun in kindergarten lately (as usual, really). Last week was the letter people parade and Zoe was “Z”. Here she is in costume…

And today the class dressed up for “olden times.” They’ll be visiting an old schoolhouse and playing “olden time games.” Zoe is sporting a Holly Hobby dress I used to wear to church. Since my mom doesn’t get rid of much, Zoe’s dear friends Vera and Lucy were also outfitted from Grammy’s attic. They were delighted.

Our visit at the oncologist this morning was…OK. The tumors are still growing. Slowly.

So, switch meds again. Mark and I (and many of you!) had braced ourselves for the chemo mentioned during our last visit. And chemo it is, but not like before. I’ll have an oral chemotherapy that is FAR gentler than the “shock and awe” chemotherapy I had in 2003-04. I can’t remember the name of it and I dropped off the prescription, but it starts with an X.

The side effects are mostly on the skin. They do not, I repeat, do not include hair loss or nausea. So, Mark will have a spouse this summer–rather than a shadow of me walking around the house in my pajamas (crying) bringing back images of chemo past. And Zoe who will have a mom to play with. And really, that’s all we really wanted. For me to stay me.

We will find out in a few months if this medication is effective. If it is, I will stay on it as long as it remains effective. We’re hoping for years.

Mark and I are so grateful for all of the prayers that have been offered on our behalf. When we are tossed between anxiety and peace, your prayers anchor us. Thank you.

And now, I’m off to get some attention paid to the hair I’ve neglected thinking it would be headed down the drain. Hey, if I get to keep it, I better be nice to it!

I’ve commented plenty here about raising Zoe in my own hometown. The skating party at the same (un-redecorated) rink, the swimming at city pools, the ballet class in my former kindergarten room. In many ways, Zoe’s childhood looks a lot like mine.

Except there are these upgrades. We go to the same Festival down by the Calder, but Zoe gets to buy actual ice cream treats…

We go to the fireworks downtown for the 4th of July, but the same people who raised me now spring for private seating at the museum and buy the glow in the dark things that last all of one night (who are these people anyway, and what happened to my parents?)…

And, the latest upgrade…we go to the Tulip Time parade (which I once watched in the pouring rain with a trash bag on my head) and Zoe sits on a stool on a second floor balcony looking down at the parade below courtesy of the connected Uncle Chris…

Childhood 1.0 would never recognize this newer version. Don’t even try to send it Zoe’s files. It simply hasn’t the bells and whistles required to process it all.

Last weekend, Becki and I celebrated…

Becki’s friend’s dentist, in an act of unbridled graciousness, let us use his lovely home for our annual getaway. Asheville, North Carolina.

Becki and I spent the weekend doing the usual–laughing, thrifting, and sipping coffee (see cool double-decker bus turned coffee shop below).

We also hit a few new highs (or lows depending on your perspective)–thrifting by the pound and dumpster diving. I even let Becki attempt to color my hair–though the risk of this is lost on anyone who did not see my tri-color hair in 1990. It’s no coincidence it took 18 years for me to trust her near my roots again.

It was, as always, good to be with Becki again. We are, somehow, flip sides of the same coin and being with her offers me a unique sense of completion. The next time we’re together can never come quickly enough.