Valentine's Day

This morning we woke to breakfast in bed with sausages and egg wraps, we are so glad Michellie chose us to be her parents and that she was so inspired to spoil us today!  We wish everyone out there a great day of special treats too!

Well, the adventures of Thursday and Friday caught up with me the most I think.  I spent most of the weekend resting and recouperating.  David spent it working on the computer and giving his banged up knee from kneeling in the attic a rest.  Now some of you may wonder why he would be up there praying, but really he was trying to get the insulation in and finish the floor boards.  There is not a lot of head room and so he spends most of the time on his knees.  Either way, he was crazy busy!  Michellie was up early on Saturday morning to get Sam from his place.  They actually got out coasting on Saturday afternoon and loved the icy run.  That exertion was all Michellie could muster with her low blood counts, so she was a little more reserved for the rest of the weekend. 

We wanted to make sure we had an adventure to tell, so on dropping Sam off on Sunday afternoon in Port Hawksbury, she let me know she was not feeling well.  She held on to get Sam home, but she was worried because her lungs didn't feel right.  So, we passed through Mabou and headed straight to emergency in Inverness.  After a blood workup and chest x-ray, it was concluded the blood counts were down but ok, and there was nothing in her chest.  This was a relief to Michellie as she had vivid memories of the last chest xray in Inverness and she was scared.  The conclusion was that the inhilation treatment from Friday was irritating the lungs and producing some side effects.  A little Ventolin for the rest of the week would take care of that.  Phew!  We even had the Ventolin at home from the last treatments and had forgotten it was there as we never needed it before and, the medicine box is huge!  So, after what was to be a short day trip, we returned home in time to catch the Anniversary of the Olympics programming and a late supper.  That was  a good trip down memory lane.  We can't believe a whole year has passed since MacKenzie was able to train for his part in the opening ceremonies.  That was pretty special!

Michellie's poor little body was all aches and pains for the rest of the night, and the low blood count left several bruises on her from blood tests, steroid shots and coasting.  Her feet and lower legs could not warm up and rubbing her legs (which she adores) was tender too.  We did a lot of cuddling and settled in with Heartland (one of her favorite shows) to be side tracked.

At 11:30, my beautiful neice called us and was VERY EXCITED.  She had made her ultimate goal!  Something she never imagined possible... she crossed her fundraising objective of $1000, with a tally at the end of the night at $1015.  She confided to me last week that her school had raised $1500 at the Terry Fox Run, and that when she surpassed the $200 mark, she wondered if it was possible to reach half of the school's fundraising.  I think she is well on her way to beating the school's fundraising.  Can you imagine?!:)  A 10 year old can create such an incredible bit of momentum.  For those of you who read this blog and wonder what difference a few dollars can make, I want to add more for you.  With all of the moving our family has done over the last couple of years, we have lost contact with a few people and have had more distance separating some of us too.  This project has brought some people back to us and many people closer.  We are truly touched by how friends across time can still reach out and make a difference.  We are thrilled to have people reconnected and sharing their stories with us too.  We are so blessed by all the warm wishes and love that has come pouring through Jessica's initiative.  The Canadian Cancer Society will be able to put this money to good use.  We have used many of their resources already, and we hope to be able to add more to help others.  So, from the bottom of our hearts, (on Valentine's Day), thank you for making Jessica's dream a reality, and for helping her to help Michellie find a way to get through this part of life. 

On a final note today, Michellie has some very blonde fuzz on the top of her head, and we have started some Qi Gong exercises to stimulate hair growth, as well as adding walnuts which help with this also.  She is a little scared her hair will not be the same color, but more importantly, she is worried she will end up with my curly hair.  That would mean more time with the straightener to get the look she wants back.  We are just happy to see growth and we look forward to her metamorphosis!

For those asking:  Michellie's Ultimate Smoothie with a Magic Bullet!

1/2 cup rinsed Kale and 1/2 cup water - blend until smooth.
Add 6 ice cubes, half a banana, 6 strawberries, 1/4 cup blueberries (wild blueberries are tiny, so we measure them this way), and top with apricot juice.  Blend everything, if a little thick, add water to desired thickness.  Definitely suck through a straw, its more fun!

Flax oil can be added, but we are not supposed to do that.  Apricot juice helps with the liver detoxing, and we have to avoid citrus fruits like orange juice.  Pineapple juice could be substituted for apricot, and is great for bromelain which helps decrease swelling and aids in digestion. 

Have a great day!