News?

I am blown away by how many people are checking Glen's blog. (Or could it be that a few of you are just hitting it to mess with me??!!) What an incredible testament to Glen that so many friends, family members, colleagues and associates are keeping up with him. Would it be redundant for me to reiterate...we are blessed?!

I wish I had some really exciting news, but we are just sort of in the "take it day-by-day" holding pattern. Glen continues to make progress toward "perfect health." One exciting thing (and this will tell you about the level of excitement in our lives right now!) is that the irritating hang nails he has had for months seem to be clearing up! The doctor has told him that he just has to deal with them until his body begins to heal itself. So we take the fact that they are healing on their own to be a good sign that the rest of his body (the inside) is healing as well. WoooHooo!

I don't think that I have mentioned some of the wonderful remedies people have shared with us during these months. A good friend of Glen's brought by a large jar of pure coconut oil. It had been recommended by a friend of his as the only thing that saved his skin during radiation. All I know is that every time I open that jar I want a pina colada on a beach! The dear Vietnamese custodian at my school brought me a newspaper article from his community recommending that Glen drink pure aloe vera. Obviously, Vietnameses is not my first language, so Hien read the whole article to me and told me that he would find the stuff if Glen would drink it. Glen has been using aloe vera, but externally. Recently I saw that Trader Joe's carries 2 different styles of aloe vera to drink. I guess Hien had a viable remedy! Glen has also received tools for pain relief (use your imagination or perhaps think back to college) tons of reading material to help him spiritually and emotionally. Some of it just good plain fun reading, others were more serious in nature. Videos, magnets with "isms" to cheer him up, plants, flowers, meals, meals, meals, a homemade blanket, diet supplements...the list goes on and on...At the beginning of this I kept a list of all the wonderful things people had done and brought so that we could write thank you notes. I must admit that not only did I not keep up on that list, I lost it. So...please know that we are ETERNALLY grateful for your support throughout this entire 6 month blip in our lives.

Another group I feel that I have not thanked is the wonderful people I work with at Cambridge. My friends/colleagues have been incredibly supportive and understanding of my personal situation these last few months. At one point I walked into a meeting thinking that I had my act together and I burst into tears. Everyone in the room just wanted to know what they could do to help both at home and at work. No "sorries" for some of the stuff I let slip through the cracks. They all just figured out what needed to be done and kept everything moving forward. I must especially thank my friend/principal, Marie. She has been so forgiving and supportive. She has made it easy for me to do what I have to do to take care of Glen and the family. I know that it has made her job even more challenging to "cover" for me from time to time. She is truly a wonderful amiga. I cannot think of any school I'd rather work at than Cambridge. We have the best kids, families and staff. A HUGE Coyote Howl to you all! Thanks from the bottom of my heart...

I should probably update you on Niels and Blair. Niels seems to be loving UO. He called Glen the other day to check in. It appears that he's attending class and spending lots of time playing soccer, basketball, and beach volleyball. We're trying to give him his space, but we do miss him around here. Less than 8 weeks till we see him at Thanksgiving! Blair is doing well with her volleyball team. They record is 1 and 1, but she points out that the loss was to an 8th grade "A" team (they are a 7/8 "B" team) and they took them to 3 games, so it is a moral victory! She also would like us all to know that she has the highest grade in geology! (I hope our geologist friends, the Quillins read this!) She has moved into Niels old room (it's bigger and brighter) and is getting ready to paint it...purple...help me please! Niels will have her old room when he returns. I guess we should probably repaint it too! The work never ends. Oh...you're asking about Fred? Yes, he is "wonderdog" and keeps us all laughing. The other night I sat on the couch next to Glen to cuddle and congratulate him on his shrinking hangnails. Fred was outside, but saw the "move" and came bounding in the door, leapt up on the couch and planted his butt firmly on my lap, facing away from us. He's such a mama's boy. Okay...enough about the children...

Okay...anything else you want to know? Don't hesitate to check in and ask. Enjoy the wonderful fall weekend. I'll see if I can get Glen to post soon.

XXOO
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