More Zoë Christmas fun

Peg and I have had a running joke for years that the longer we're married, we're one year closer to wearing matching track suits. You know, old couples wearing matching sweat pants and tops, cruising the mall... so our daughter decided to make an "old parents" ornament. We laughed really hard when we opened her gift.

Also for your enjoyment... the running of the bulls at Pamplona--uh, the running of the child down the hall while decorating the tree.

Tonight we'll play some Scrabble and try some exercises from the book, "Drawing on the right side of the brain." If we get too rowdy, I hope nobody calls the cops.

This year's Christmas is "in tents"

When we go camping, Zoë bails on the cabover camper and pitches a tent out back. She's been stuck with our six-man tent, so for Christmas we gave her a two-man REI tent... that she wants to sleep in tonight in our back yard. It'll get down to the low 30's, and she's got a good mummy bag, so she'll be all snuggly.

Last night Peg's sister Jeanette and her husband, Greg, had us over for a great vegetarian Christmas Eve dinner. Our nephew Jon's girlfriend, Maki, played her sitar for us after dinner and invited us to try it. I've got a serious jones for the thing... I suspect there's a sitar in my future. Far more interesting and intriguing than the bass guitar I played briefly (and badly) a few years ago.

The hallway photo shows a family tradition... before we string the lights on the tree, we run them all the way down the hall into Zoë's room.

Best Christmas present of all, and it almost goes without saying, is having Peg with us and healthy. She doesn't have eyebrows or any other flavor of hair, but is absolutely full of piss and vinegar. As I write this, she and Zoë are laughing and playing "Hearts" on our bed. Best Christmas "music" ever.

The holidays: medical and merriment

Medical

Peg gets her abdominal port yanked out on the 28th (that's the chemo port that went straight into her belly-- the one near her collarbone worked so much better it was only used once, in July). It's a wee little gizmo like a wine cork, just under the skin. The procedure is in the hospital, but they'll just do a "Whoa, where am I... and who am I" light anesthetic and she'll be out of la-la land in a half an hour.

Still looking for hair to sprout. A watched pot never boils.

Merriment

Now for the merriment: last night we saw the Sacramento Master Singers perform their annual Christmas show in a grand, old Catholic church downtown, something we always really enjoy. This year they also featured Mary Youngblood (center of the circle), a two-time Grammy winner and wonderful native american flutist. If you get a chance to hear her, even on a CD, it will make your hair stand up on end. Same for the Master Singers... they hit a crescendo while singing "hallelujah" that had me having a near out-of-body experience. As a prelude to this wonderful concert, Zoë and I saw "Avatar" in IMAX 3D. Astonishing. Run, do not walk, to see this movie.

Greg and Jeanette (Peg's sister and her husband) are having a small solstice gathering tomorrow night, and they're hosting us for Christmas Eve dinner; Peg's a lot stronger, but not up to hosting a dinner. Spending New Year's with dear friends the Andre family, who we met 12 years ago through an interesting story I'll tell you sometime and with whom we've had many fine adventures.

And we have yet to score a Christmas tree. I see from Peg's cousin Diane's comment on the last post she has a connection with a guy who has good smelling ones. This old dog's gonna give her a call in the morning.

Our winter crop...

...Peggy's hair! So far, nada, but it's about a month out from chemo. Looking forward to the day when she has eyebrows, as opposed to applying them (having said that, she's gotten really good at it).

We planted our winter garden crop last week-- kale, cabbage, onions, beets, broccoli, sweet peas, spinach and salad greens. Everything seems pretty happy and is either growing or failing to croak.

We've only had two freezing nights, and today it was in the low 60's... I'm sure the plants are quite confused as to what season they're supposed to be responding to.

Packed our friend Marge back to Denver on Monday. What a treat to have her out, though the visit was too short. Lotsa schmoozing and reconnecting, Afghan food at the restaurant just up the hill, and more yumminess here at home-- we cooked beef barley soup, orange scones and some indescribable French baked egg thingies she discovered on HGTV.

Zoë and I are headed out sometime this week to snag a Christmas tree. We have a wreath on the front door that I sniff quite often, old dog that I am. Love the smell of fresh pine needles. We're planning on a pretty low-key Christmas and New Year's... quiet and thankful.

Life after chemo

Said farewell to Peg's wonderful oncologist today for three months. We'll check back in again in March... then every three months for five years. After being in medical mode for what seems like forever, this is new territory.

We are thankful to have found Dr. Bobolis through our friend Karen, who also works at Sutter Roseville. Sacramento Magazine surveyed 3,000 local physicians and asked them who they would refer a loved one to... and Kristie was one of just 39 docs chosen by her peers. She's been our rock through the twilight zone that was the second half of 2009.

We're already making plans for Spring Break-- I've got to make sure the camper is still in one piece. It's been waiting patiently behind a rental property owned by Peg's sister Jeanette and her husband, Greg, since last April. Greg's tenant says the tarp is pretty beat up, but the thing is sound and true and hasn't leaked in the seven years we've had it. Take another look at Peg's photo at the top of the blog, hanging out of the back door of the camper last March. We're shooting for an identical shot this March, albeit with considerably less hair.

Looking forward to our friend Marge coming out from Denver to visit this weekend (longtime friend, maid of honor at our wedding). We were hoping to treat her to the summerlike weather we've enjoyed out here until recently, but it looks like cold rain starting Friday. But that's what home and hearth and friends are for... to push the cold away.

The circle game

This summer our friends Mary and Estelle came to visit Peg and Estelle brought her guitar, nestled carefully in her little pickup truck. That afternoon we were priveleged to hear angels sing in our living room. This song touched us very deeply. We will never forget looking into our friends' faces as they shared their voices. What a wonderful gift.

Here's a photo our friend Chris took amongst the Gingko trees two days ago and Peg's video "hello" from the blog in June... and sandwiched in between are the wonderful words sung by our dear friends that so gladdened our hearts.

Yesterday a child came out to wonder
Caught a dragonfly inside a jar
Fearful when the sky was full of thunder
And tearful at the falling of a star

And the seasons they go round and round
And the painted ponies go up and down
We're captive on the carousel of time
We can't return we can only look behind
From where we came
And go round and round and round
In the circle game

Buh bye, chemo...

Another milestone. Today was Peg's last chemotherapy. Ever.

Between chemo, blood draws and hematocrit/white cell booster shots, we've made the trip up to the Sutter Medical Center over 30 times so far. Twice a week since early July. From the sweltering Summer heat to the falling of Autumn leaves, Peg's either been poked, prodded, injected, infused or whupped upside the head with a chemo stick like clockwork.

To celebrate, she put on Zoë's Mickey Mouse wizard hat as they pulled out the needle and the staff at the infusion center applauded.

Peg says it feels surreal (but exhilarating) to know this is it. Time now to get healthy again-- eat normal, nutritious foods, exercise and ease out of the stress of major surgery and the effects of chemotherapy.

When we came home, the light was just kissing the trees in the front yard and a breeze full with the smell of crisp leaves was kicking up. Great end to a great day.

Tomorrow, and the tomorrows to follow, will be very different than the previous five plus months-- we're no longer on any kind of a treatment cycle. Just life.

As awful as it was, Peg is grateful for chemotherapy. Without it, she would have left us sometime over the summer. It really, really worked... but is she ever glad to move on.