Gosh. It has been over two months since I last posted.

I finally finished up with my twice a week physical therapy for “frozen shoulder” at the beginning of June. A little more than a week went by before Michael informed me he had gone to see our family doctor for a problem he had been noticing for about 6 months. It had to do with his right testicle. Way back when he was in his early 20’s he had a motorcycle accident and hurt his right testicle. Life went on without any problems.

When he saw our doctor on 6/8 they scheduled him for an ultra sound on Monday the 12th. At the ultrasound they were unable to get a view. The next day he was scheduled to meet with a urologist. I went with him. The urologist had a look and said he was almost positive it was cancer and that it needed to be removed. Michael was scheduled for blood work, x-rays and a CT scan all in that week.  The CT scan with contrast showed some cancer in a lymph node in his chest.Surgery was scheduled for 6/22. I was getting nervous that they were moving so quickly. Not because I wanted them to slow down; it was the urgency. My husband is going to be all right…..right?

The surgery was a success. More difficult for the surgeon because in those 20+ year since that little accident, a lot of scar tissue had developed.

In the mean time my sister had booked us(months and months ago) for two nights at the time share in Seaside. That booking was only five days after the surgery. Michael wanted to go but decided it would probably be better for him to recover in the comforts of his home. We hired a friend to do all the milking.

Michael remembers this part differently than me. He said the surgeon said “I hope to see the pathology report back in a week.” I heard, “The pathology report will be back in a week.”

Four weeks later (today) we met with the Urologist and it is testicular cancer. Now we need to get into an oncologist as quickly as we can. Thankfully, there are two hospitals in the general area. Prayerfully, one will have an opening soon. On a really good note, testicular cancer responds nicely to treatment. The survival rate is 95%. Whoohoo!

There is a Christian musical group called “Mercy Me.” They released a new song shortly before all this happened. I fell like they have been inside my heart and know exactly how I feel through all of this.

Ch-ch-ch-ch-changes (Turn and face the strange) Ch-ch-changes.

Apparently, we need more to deal with. After my surgery, I was so uncomfortable  that the boys carried on with their schooling without me.I made sure the schedule was ready each week and they did what they needed to. I corrected when they told me they had stuff to be corrected.

Math was going OK, not great, but they were doing lessons. Usually, I would watch the lesson with Joshua (Nicholas doesn’t watch the videos )and when I corrected I would do the problems they got wrong first by myself so I could explain what they did wrong. Well, too many lessons had gone on without me learning how to do it (prealgebra)  and I didn’t feel like catching up.

So one day, I told the boys I wanted them to take math at the public school. Our superintendent’s family homeschools and does some public school so I knew it was possible. They fought me. Nope they didn’t want to do it. Then all of a sudden, they wanted to go. Not just for a class or two but full time. They want access to more friends. I get it.

Now I need to find a job. I will go stir crazy staying home every day. I had dreams of putting on suits and high heels again and re-entering the business field, but I don’t want to work full time anymore. I want to still be there for all my guys. Today I submitted an application at the school district. If that doesn’t work out I can probably easily get a part time job at a grocery store. I’ve been out of the work force for so long this whole fill out an application online and send it in electronically is so impersonal. My favorite part was always the interview.

Enough with the drama that is our life.

The boys and I had a lot of fun at the beach. They took a mutual friend (Alex) and spent time on the beach, in the pool and of course on their computers playing video games. The weather was amazing. It is rare to get multiple days in a row on the Oregon coast with nice weather. It was a God thing.

Our front entry is finally done. We added plants and bark. Michael didn’t like the light fixtures he had picked out so he changed those. I didn’t get them in the picture but off to the left we planted seven lavender plants.

Last but not least at all…….drum roll please….

A new refrigerator!!! We have lived for three years with a really beat up side by side refrigerator that came with the house. One morning I woke up and the refrigerator was making a strange noise. Oh no! We might have to get a new refrigerator;-). Michael woke up later and sure enough, he agreed that we need a new refrigerator.

It is the newest Samsung model. French doors, bottom freezer with an ice cube maker.

My favorite part of the refrigerator…….

Cold filtered water! I’ve never wanted the water/ice in the door. Mostly because you loose so much refrigerator space. Plus, I have boys. I can just imagine water and ice all over the floor.

Since it was the beginning of July they had a great sale price on it. I love my refrigerator. Ok, “love” is a bit strong. I have a crush on my refrigerator.

Well thanks for sticking around with us.

I’ll keep you updated on how things are going.

Half way through summer. Make the most of it.

Karen