Before everything else

Gearing up for a busy weekend here so wanted to catch up a bit before that...

Here, then, are a bunch of things I'm thankful for lately:

1. Starting Micah's new treatment plan. Last Friday, Micah was able to have his first infusion of his new medication. We had to go to the hospital outpatient clinic and were there for about 3 hours. He let me take a picture to send to his 9 year old cousin who was having a bone biopsy at the same time and was a little nervous; they were procedure buddies...

Micah didn't get a fun hospital gown or to hold the needle for a minute, like his cousin. But, he got to order lunch and was pretty stoked about that...

And the best part was that Micah and I had a lovely time just chatting...something to take advantage of with teenage sons, for sure. 

(He'll go back in a couple weeks for an extra initial infusion. Then it will be once a month after that. It takes awhile to build up so he might not know whether it's working for a few months still.)

2. Sidewalk chalk. It's been awhile but my new job has me appreciating simple things like sidewalk chalk...very handy for so many things outside. I taught a little girl how to play hopscotch last week. :)

3. Ramen. So, there's a type of ramen that Noah discovered during college. He likes to add peanut butter to it. Micah and I, though, find it too spicy. We love the smell and the noodles and all, but the spice packet (even when I only add a small part of it, lol) is just too much for us. Recently, I learned that the same brand makes a not spicy type! It's great!

4. New dishwasher top shelf. Relatedly, our new dishwasher has an extra top shelf for utensils and such. We're still getting used to it and sometimes forget to check it but are happy it's there. Now we can run the chopsticks (that we use for ramen) through the dishwasher.

5. Skyline Honeylocust. Remember last fall when we planted our little tree in the front yard? Over the winter, the boys were convinced that it had died. (I remained optimistic, for the record.) It just looked like a stick. I'm happy to report that it's still alive!!

6. Past purging. I'm trying to be thankful for the purging I've done over the years, as the boys outgrew things. Mostly, I totally am. But, lately, with my new job, I have to admit a little bit of regret because I know so many of those things (bins and bins of legos, tubs full of craft stuff, homeschool materials, etc.) would be totally useful to me right now. Sigh. I'm trying to remember that all of my past purging went to similarly good homes and use. 

7. Ladies' night. Always so thankful for ladies' night! Most of my lady boot camp friends and I got together Monday night and had a great time catching up! (It's hard to chat when exercising and trying to breathe, lol.) 

And that's my list for now! Gotta get back to my to do list before Micah's graduation this weekend. More later! :)