Sunday 15 May 2005
9:38 a.m.

One hour left till the boys and I leave the house free for real estate agents and their clients. I'm not dressed yet but have had my second cup of coffee and am taking some time to relax and write before I start rushing around.

By 1 o'clock we will be back here to greet hungry family. My brother-in-law's mom arrived from Scotland yesterday and is going to stay and live here, so we have planned a little welcoming party for her.

Yesterday I stopped over at Mom and Dad's after getting groceries at the store near their condo. It was suppertime and Mom was in her chair with a plate on her lap, while Dad, Reta and Karen sat at the dining room table.

"You're just in time!" Mom said. "What do you think we're celebrating?"

We all had a chuckle when I guessed, correctly, that she'd managed to go to the bathroom.

She had a blood transfusion on Thursday after Reta noticed how pale she was and indeed, when her blood was checked, it was dangerously low. She hasn't bounced back quite as vigorously as previous times, but has colour in her face again and would like to come over for the lunch today. That in itself is an improvement, for as Scott remarked, she wouldn't even have been considering doing that a week ago.

Oh, and that arm? It's a fracture in the shoulder, and there is cancer in the bone there as well. Next week there will be three doses of radiation.

Mom is content though, because Reta is here. We could not ask for more.