The past few weeks have provided a good reminder of how important family is. Whether you're celebrating long-awaited news or coming together to rally behind someone who needs your help, or both, we're lucky to be surrounded by people who love and appreciate each other, their needs, and their gifts.
As many of you know, August has been full of challenges as Owen and Maya's Nana Aalberts was diagnosed with a brain tumor three weeks ago. On August 7 she had surgery to have the tumor removed from the speech/reading center of her brain.
I was with her and his dad the day of the surgery. Amy took on more with Owen and Maya and Auntie Pam came over that Friday to help out and spend time with her favorite nephew and niece. I am so thankful for both of you in giving me the support I needed to be there and not worry that things might be in chaos at home.
The surgery went very well. Her neurosurgeon was confident, if not even a bit giddy, that he was been able to remove the whole tumor. Indeed, the entire surgery team was very impressed at how the procedure had gone and what an over-achieving patient Mom was.
She recovered well and continued to impress the staff at her cognitive abilities, which they said would be further impaired as the post-op swelling of the brain further prohibited the functions of that part of her brain.
We all drove up again this weekend to see her.
It was an exciting week for us at home. Amy and I celebrated our ninth wedding anniversary on Wednesday and I finally got the news that the "interim" title had been taken off the title of the job I have been doing since April. As of Tuesday I am now the Performing Arts Director for the City of Bloomington and the director of the Bloomington Center for the Performing Arts.
Many months ago we planned this weekend as a celebration time for Amy and me. After we took Owen to a Celiac Disease conference and food expo, Mom and Dad were going to sit for the kids and we were going to go downtown for a show and an overnight by ourselves.
We still went to the Celiac conference, where we loaded up Owen on a wonderful variety of gluten free food ... but the celebration took on a different focus.
We had a wonderful time on Saturday just hanging out with Mom and Dad. We made dinner, the kids went to sleep early, and we just sat and enjoyed a wonderful, relaxed night of conversation. Mom's focus is really on being around family. And her appreciation for the people in her life has come into even sharper focus. As has ours for her. She's been doing a great job of taking care of herself and preparing for the treatment and recovery ahead.
Speaking of, the pathologist report came back on Friday and her tumor was categorized as a malignant stage four astrocytoma. She meets with her neuro oncologist on Thursday, but it is almost certain the tumor will require a mix of chemo and radiation to make sure whatever highly aggressive cancer cells might remain can be contained and removed.
There is more information about her treatment through a CaringBridge page we have started for her: http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/leonannaalberts1
Family is so important, so I'll end this post with a couple pictures taken of Nana with two of her three favorite little people.
But first, a little reminder to the two grandmas. I hope you know you don't need to be celebrating a birthday or fighting to get your health back to know we all love you. These occasions and challenges bring that affection into sharper focus, but it's always there.
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