Norma at Ray's backyard party

Ray hosted a party for the Ohio gang. Here my mom is enjoying a conversation with Andre, a dear friend from Holland who now lives in Mt. Vernon, IL with his wife Annelies.

This week, Norma started her first round of another chemotherapy treatment. While her oncologist was pleased with my mom's response to the first form of treatment, the cancer was starting to outsmart the chemo. In an effort to continue to fight the cancer, Dr. Laufman is trying another approach. So, Norma receives five days of chemo this week, followed by a 2-week break. Then she does it again.

She is perfecting the art of living with cancer. I think she deserves a prize, and so does Dr. Laufman and her wonderful team of doctors.

Tomorrow is my mom's birthday. After treatment, she is going on a picnic with my dad, Lisa and Emily and Paul.

Happy Birthday Mom. Celebrate YOU!

Donna, Norma and Kathy

Pictured here is Donna, my mom's sister who drove in from Evanston, IL, Norma, and Kathy, my mom's sister-in-law. We had the pleasure of hanging out in Highland, Illinois at cousin Al and Kelly's pool. We played water volleyball for 4 hours and then enjoyed a wonderful dinner prepared by Kathy, the most efficient, amazing hostess in the whole world! And her husband Gervase, my dad's brother, has perfected the art of cookie baking, debuting his famous oatmeal cookie.

Brian and Emily too!

Ralph and Paul

Another photo from Trattoria Marcella.

Ohio gang visits St. Louis

Instead of blogging, I've been enjoying the Ohio gang who visited St. Louis. Pictured here is Andi Groff, Norma and grandson Paul. This is the first night of many fun times in St. Louis. We had a fabulous dinner at Trattoria Marcella and had several surprise visitors. First, Andi greeted my mom when we arrived. She drove over from Illinois. Andi is a dear friend and retired teacher. She is the wife of retired superintendant Jim Groff who my mom enjoyed working for at Central High School for almost twenty years.

Second surprise was son-in-law Brian from Ohio, who snuck in and surprised us all! It was a special treat to have him for the weekend. His wife, my sister, and his kids were already here and did a great job of keeping his visit a secret.

Then, four more of my mom's teacher friends from Breese made their grand entrance. The waiter did a great job of keeping up with all of us.

More to come...stay tuned.