This Saturday is my birthday.  I don’t know how much celebrating I’ll be able to do unless I finish this last chapter.  There has just been so much going on.  It’s hard to get work done.  I’m turning 32.  I’m eager to hand the sucker in, even though by no means will I be finished with the process.  I’ll still have plenty of decisions and corrections to make.  But hopefully I won’t feel as rushed or panicked about my choices, and hopefully I’ll have some time during the editorial process for myself.  To get my nails done, hair, all the girl bits.  And to play tennis again, to swim, to walk, to get outside, and mostly to spend more time with my family.  I took these photos the other day of the beans and realize just how fast they’re growing.  Lucas is right now in the hospital having an image-guided spinal tap of some fluid, just a little higher up on his spine than last time to see if anything bacterial grows.  I just know the white blood cell count is going to be higher than last time, even though he’s doing so great.  The cyst has not improved, has gotten, in fact, slightly worse.  It doesn’t make my heart hurt quite yet.  I just hope we learn something from this because he’s still undiagnosed.  We still don’t really know what’s going on, and quite frankly, the neurosurgeon here is worried about what the last MRI pictures from about a week or so ago looked like.  So we’ll see.  As far as the helmet, both his neurosurgeon and pediatrician both said he didn’t need one.  So at least that’s one less thing to deal with.  Next stop?  Letting these little tots eat Cheerios! 

And thank you for all your beautiful sentiments about my grandfather.  I took these of the kids two days ago, the day he died.  I know my dad will enjoy them.