Too busy to blog seems like a good thing…

Happy Maggie Day! We picked her up from the airport this morning after her European adventure. She left Venice, went back to Barcelona (all night in the airport) then London and finally to Seattle! Our job today is to keep her awake until a proper early bedtime. It is great to have her home, she is glad to be home and I’m considering burning (or at least hiding) her passport! Enough my dear!

Tuesday one of Mike’s very best college buddies and a huge fan of this blog, Wee Wee (or Jimmy) came to visit. He brought a beautiful bouquet of sunflowers (as he learned on this blog how much I love them) and a copy of David and Goliath by Malcolm Gladwell with a lovely note about how David did it and I can do it too! We had a great visit with Jimmy. Mike gets so silly when they are together. I swear he made Mike laugh so hard he almost peed his pants. Jimmy is a dear guy and it was great to see him! But there was not enough time…come back, Jimmy!!

Yesterday I  went to work for a little while. I’m trying to clear out some space and recycle unnecessary papers. At the end of the school year I spent only one day cleaning up the room. I usually spend at least 3 or 4 days. I knew I was coming back mid-August for Jump Start and thought I would just do it all then! HA! So I have a little work to do to get things ready for the sub. And I’m feeling up to the job…so into work I went.

I have a sub and I could not be happier! Jessica and Maggie are friends and soccer teammates from high school. Jessica’s brother is one of Michael’s friends. I used to sit with Jessica’s mom through Maggie’s soccer games. Well, Jessica finished her student teaching last year and subbed in my room a few times in the spring. And now…she’ll be running the Salmon Clan this fall. It is a huge job and I know she will do great!

She is looking forward to working in such a supportive environment. My teaching team is ready to mentor her and help her as much as she would like. I have parents who are already signing up to volunteer (though I am encouraging Jessica to have them wait a few weeks, just as I would, so she can get her ducks in a row). I’m just really excited for the kids to have such a young, positive, energetic, creative teacher and I’m excited for Jessica to have this opportunity. It is a good situation and I’m not the least bit worried about the outcome. It will be great. I will be sad, but then I’ll get better, and then I’ll be back!

Last week Jessica texted me and asked when she should get started. That is a good sign! She also said she too had a teacher/classroom nightmare ...that too is a good sign! So she came in for a while yesterday, I gave her a tour of the cabinets, gave her some curriculum and some coaching tips. Gave her plenty to think about. She is excited and ready to start getting the classroom together. We’re planning to go in again next week and work on it a little more. I really think this is a great job for her, great experience with such a supportive team, and believing that it is so good for Jessica actually helps me feel a little better about the whole thing.

Yesterday while I was at work Mike went out and bought new beach chairs and came home, packed up our beach chairs, a picnic lunch, beach towels and blankets, books and little Rudy. We went over to Vashon and picked up his momma, Dee, and headed to a sweet little Vashon Island beach, Lisabuela. We sat and enjoyed the silky breeze for a few hours. Then headed up to Carrie’s where Carrie, Lindy and Lillie were preparing a delicious salmon dinner with a quinoa salad (that’s right Wee Wee…quinoa salad!!!). We had a lovely evening and caught the 9:55 ferry home. So when I say…too busy to blog…now you know it is true!

Speaking of little Rudy…now that Maggie is home and we’ve talked to Michael I can let you know that she is not well. She has a fast growing melanoma in her mouth. It is in a place where they can do no more surgery. Treatment would include driving to the other side of Washington state multiple times for radiation therapy (this cancer does not respond to chemo) and doing immunotherapy for the rest of her life which since the treatments are so new, they can say might be a year, maybe longer. It is too much money and too many hoops and way to much to put our little dog through. She shakes the minute she gets in a car; driving to Pullman…no way to treat a dog. So we are doing what we can to keep her healthy and comfortable and for now she is doing ok. It is damn bad luck and I do not know how it is possible that we both have cancer. I don’t even know how to think about or categorize that.

I still feel strong. I still have my hair (though it’s predicted exit time is within the next few days). I must be kicking cancer’s butt!!! Rudy has still got some frisky in her…so she is ok for now too! 

Maggie update: between the time I started typing and now she has succumbed to sleep…oh well! She’s young; she’ll bounce back!

Thanks everyone for reading and supporting me.

Love to you all!

Janet