November 30/ Day 226: Well, the Month of Peace Is Ending...
Sadly, our month of peace is coming to an end. The boys have actually done wonderful this past month without swords, staffs, or other armaments. I am saddened to see November go. The boys, however, are gleeful at the prospect of fighting a bit. I hope that gleefullness will wear off soon, but probably not. In an interesting development, the Huns* (who the boys had so many problems with) have not returned to our neighborhood, despite the month of peace coming to an end, as they were all hired as part of a jobs program in their home country. We are very happy for the Huns and wish them well.
*The boys learned about the Huns in the Disney movie, Mulan. It was a great favorite for a while at our house -- until I took it back to the library and refused to check it out again.
The boys are enjoying the library tremendously lately. Little B got to go to the library on Monday while Big A was at martial arts class (more on that later), and he picked out quite the eclectic collection of movies: a DVD on addition (Big A is finding it useful), one on the human skeleton (ok, I helped pick that one out), a Veggie Tales (perhaps not surprising), and a Shalom Sesame DVD. The Shalom Sesame has been a tremendous amount of fun (except for the unfortunately addicting dreidel song, which has been stuck in my head for DAYS now). We are learning about the origins of Judiasm in our history books, so it is fun to see a Sesame Street production to put it into real-life (?) terms for the boys.
So Big A and I have started martial arts class. The classes are great, and at the same time, so we both get a good work out. Big A might not be ready for the discipline of martial arts quite yet, but he does very much enjoy the classes. :-) Big A continues to have a tough time finding his way in kindergarten. We are hoping that things improve in the next few weeks, as his class is getting into the "expeditionary learning" project part of their curriculum, which is on trees. Big A and I have a "field study" -- not to be confused with a "field trip" -- even though they are the same thing. Well, we hope to see an improvement. Fingers crossed. Fingers crossed. I am concerned because the teacher seems to not want parent volunteers, but seems overwhelmed with the class size. When I did volunteer (mid-November) she didn't seem to know all of the kids' names. I know she has a larger class, but it was rather concerning.
In any case, Little B is doing well on chemo. Well, more specifically, he is off until December 19, which is a HUGE break for us. He has a full head and spine MRI on the 16th, which always shoots the anxiety into overdrive, and brings with it some risks due to sedation. He is having more difficulty with the thought of chemo, and is very vocal about asking to not have to go to chemo. It is heartbreaking, in all honesty. He looks at me with his blue eyes and says, "I no go to chemo today, OK? Chemo not nice. It's ouchy and me no like." Well, that pretty much says it all. While I tell him that I don't like chemo, either, he still seems to blame me for taking him. It's only logical, but not pleasant for me!
Speaking of chemo and brain tumors, and such gut-wrenching things, would you do me a favor, and contact your senator and representative, and ask them to help make sure that research to fight PLGAs (Little B's tumor type) get funded through the National Institutes of Health for 2012? If you are willing, please contact Amy at amy (at) fightplga (period) org. She will give you fabulous, detailed instructions in how to contact your elected officials. I don't know about you, but I've donated to campaigns, as well as called, collected, and advocated for a number of our elected officials. I'm surprised and somewhat embarassed to say that I've never actually spoken to our elected officials to let them know what I am specifically concerned about. This topic is too important for me, personally, to not do something, though. In any case, let Amy know if you're willing to contact your elected officials! It would be awesome if there was research funding for PLGAs. The first time that the National Institutes of Health had a line item for PLGA research was last year. The basic research for PLGAs is just starting, and front-line treatments have not changed in the past 20 years -- not because the treatments are remarkably effective, but because there has not been research done to advance treatment options. Wow, apparently I am a little invested in this topic...
*The boys learned about the Huns in the Disney movie, Mulan. It was a great favorite for a while at our house -- until I took it back to the library and refused to check it out again.
The boys are enjoying the library tremendously lately. Little B got to go to the library on Monday while Big A was at martial arts class (more on that later), and he picked out quite the eclectic collection of movies: a DVD on addition (Big A is finding it useful), one on the human skeleton (ok, I helped pick that one out), a Veggie Tales (perhaps not surprising), and a Shalom Sesame DVD. The Shalom Sesame has been a tremendous amount of fun (except for the unfortunately addicting dreidel song, which has been stuck in my head for DAYS now). We are learning about the origins of Judiasm in our history books, so it is fun to see a Sesame Street production to put it into real-life (?) terms for the boys.
So Big A and I have started martial arts class. The classes are great, and at the same time, so we both get a good work out. Big A might not be ready for the discipline of martial arts quite yet, but he does very much enjoy the classes. :-) Big A continues to have a tough time finding his way in kindergarten. We are hoping that things improve in the next few weeks, as his class is getting into the "expeditionary learning" project part of their curriculum, which is on trees. Big A and I have a "field study" -- not to be confused with a "field trip" -- even though they are the same thing. Well, we hope to see an improvement. Fingers crossed. Fingers crossed. I am concerned because the teacher seems to not want parent volunteers, but seems overwhelmed with the class size. When I did volunteer (mid-November) she didn't seem to know all of the kids' names. I know she has a larger class, but it was rather concerning.
In any case, Little B is doing well on chemo. Well, more specifically, he is off until December 19, which is a HUGE break for us. He has a full head and spine MRI on the 16th, which always shoots the anxiety into overdrive, and brings with it some risks due to sedation. He is having more difficulty with the thought of chemo, and is very vocal about asking to not have to go to chemo. It is heartbreaking, in all honesty. He looks at me with his blue eyes and says, "I no go to chemo today, OK? Chemo not nice. It's ouchy and me no like." Well, that pretty much says it all. While I tell him that I don't like chemo, either, he still seems to blame me for taking him. It's only logical, but not pleasant for me!
Speaking of chemo and brain tumors, and such gut-wrenching things, would you do me a favor, and contact your senator and representative, and ask them to help make sure that research to fight PLGAs (Little B's tumor type) get funded through the National Institutes of Health for 2012? If you are willing, please contact Amy at amy (at) fightplga (period) org. She will give you fabulous, detailed instructions in how to contact your elected officials. I don't know about you, but I've donated to campaigns, as well as called, collected, and advocated for a number of our elected officials. I'm surprised and somewhat embarassed to say that I've never actually spoken to our elected officials to let them know what I am specifically concerned about. This topic is too important for me, personally, to not do something, though. In any case, let Amy know if you're willing to contact your elected officials! It would be awesome if there was research funding for PLGAs. The first time that the National Institutes of Health had a line item for PLGA research was last year. The basic research for PLGAs is just starting, and front-line treatments have not changed in the past 20 years -- not because the treatments are remarkably effective, but because there has not been research done to advance treatment options. Wow, apparently I am a little invested in this topic...
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