A lot has happened since I last blogged here

Many of you have emailed me asking about my grandma. Thank you for that. ♥ She's doing much better than we could have ever hoped. Her breast cancer is stable. Surgery and radiation were not options for her, but fortunately she was eligible for what amounts to a miracle drug that has contained her tumor and shrunk it by about 50%. Her diabetes is stable. She is still dealing with congestive heart failure and the side-effects of her medications, but she is in good spirits and overall very happy and having a pretty good life. She was being stubborn about moving up here. Flat out refused to at one point (understand, she is very independent and doesn't want to change doctors), but she called last night and has decided that she is ready to make the move. I am looking forward to having her here. We'll have four generations under one roof: grandma, my mom, myself, and my oldest son (poor kid. lol!) I'm a little worried about the financial responsibility of caring for both my mom and grandma, but I know everything will work out.

My follow up appointment with the oncologist went well. There is still no signs of any further growths on my cervix. They got it all and no radiation was required. I am very lucky. I still have that stage one melanoma on the back of my leg, but my insurance will not pay to remove it until this coming February because it was pre-existing. Fucking assholes. My doctor is keeping a close eye on it though and it is still only on the surface. It should be fine. It is begins to advance at all, I will suck it up and pay for the surgery with savings. I am going to try and not do that though, especially since I am going to be responsible for my mom and grandma.

This past September, I had to have Zeke euthanised. He was my best buddy in the whole world and the best dog I have ever been blessed to know. He had been suffering for a long time. The medications were no longer providing relief and anything stronger would have rendered him basically catatonic. He had lost control of his bowels and his kidneys were failing. My heart is still broken. I smell his old collar almost every day. I miss him.

My cat Earl is hanging in there. His estimated age is between 17 and 19 (we'll never know for sure since he was a stray when I found him so many years ago) and has a hard time chewing his food. He's had several dental surgeries. I have to puree everything he eats. He's still super affectionate and social and doesn't act like he's uncomfortable, which is a blessing.

Critters got most of my garden again this year, with the exception of my herbs and two varieties of tomatoes. And boy did I ever get tomatoes. My local family and co-workers got tomatoes. Everybody on my block got tomatoes. I couldn't give them all away. I made and canned a ton of spaghetti sauce (marinara, vodka, and basic hot) and salsa. My mom dried grape tomatoes in the oven and they were to die for. I ate them in handfuls like chips. They were also yummy with pasta, fresh basil, spinach, garlic, and olive oil. Nom nom nom.

I have been dating a little. I've been on two dates so far. One I'll see again, the other talked about his ex the entire time (ugh.) I, once again, created a profile on an online dating site. I live in a much heavier populated area from the last place I tried this and was not prepared for the response. At one point I had 85 messages in my in-box. I feel overwhelmed and am trying to respond to everyone who contacts me, whether I am interested or not, and it's taking up a good hour and a half of each day. I hope to meet someone for a long-term relationship, someone who is open to the possibility of that and is compatible with me, but I also am not ready for anything super serious right now. I just want the possibility to be there, but to not rush. I'm pretty much over my divorce and any other men I have let in since, but I am still feeling kind of tired. Like I'm at the tail end of the stages of grief, if that makes sense? I'm in a weird place, I guess. I know what I want, but finding someone else that I like who also wants the same things will be a challenge. I'm trying to just go with the flow and not have expectations. To take the time to really get to know someone so I can recognize if we aren't compatible before I have too much of my heart invested to be able to let go. You know what I mean? It's a slippery slope.

I'm rediscovering Kundalini Yoga. How or why did I ever stop? I am also going to finish a 10K this March. My default is to eat my way through stress, and I am still eating plenty of brownies and ice cream, but at least the activity will keep me from getting even more, um, curvy, improve my health and give me something positive to focus on. I'm truly enjoying myself.

There's more, but that basically brings you up to date. What has been going on with you?