And Happy New Year!

We've just returned from four days of family, chaos, food, and fun. It was the 11th Annual New Year's bash up in Montpelier, VT where all my mother's siblings and their kids get together to ring it in. There must have been about 40 of us total, and although the trip got off to a rocky start with Mom suffering a quick 24 hour bug, we managed to cram in some serious quality time.

So maybe 2008 didn't turn out to be all it was cracked up to be, but I'm holding out for 2009! Hopefully this blog will be long-retired by the 12 Annual New Year's bash. In the meantime, Mom starts radiation on Tuesday afternoon. The first appointment always takes a lot of time, but for the following 24 treatments, she'll be in and out within a half hour. She visited Sloan-Kettering again shortly before New Year's to meet with a physician there who specializes in integrative therapy who was able to provide guidance about diet and exercise during treatment and after.

Mom had been toying with going to a health retreat in Florida for a few weeks where they make you gargle with wheat grass and convince you that endives and dried prunes count as a snack, but this doctor recommended she spend her money on massage and acupuncture, while keeping up her Qigong. She also reiterated the importance of laying off cancer-fighting foods packed with antioxidants during treatment. The idea is for cells to be weak and susceptible to radiation, but after the radiation is out of her system, she's welcome to gorge herself on green tea and blueberries again.

Besides the little bug in VT, Mom looks and feels fantastic. Sometimes I have to remind myself that she is just 7 weeks post-op. Santa brought her a new camera, so I'll include some pictures of us up north soon!