Good News from Florida

We left for Florida last Monday to see Charlie's radiation oncologist for a six-month check-up.  I got my big cast off on Friday and was fitted with a Star Wars Storm Trooper boot just in time for the trip. With wheelchair service at the airport, I got along well on the trip from Greensboro to St. Petersburg.

We were nervous about the scans because of the recurrence of cancer last year, but everything looked good this time.  He goes back in six months for the next evaluation.

A big thumbs-up after his check-up at Dattoli Cancer Center in Sarasota!

We are so happy!

 The day after that, we had lunch in Punta Gorda with some other friends that we met at Dattoli last summer.  Bill and John just finished their long three phases of treatment in December and are doing well.  It was so good to visit with them again, as well as John's wife Beverly.   We spent many hours together last summer.

We stayed in Ft. Myers with my brother Jeff and his wife Anna for most of the week.  We had some nice visits with family while we were there.

I don't have much artsy or quilty to report.  Since we flew in and out of St. Pete, I would have loved to visit the Dali museum and Chihuly glass collection, but this was not the right time for gadding about with my cane and giant boot.  Maybe when we go back in July.

Meanwhile, Life is Good!

A Great Long Weekend

We are sad that this weekend is over.  Our sunset cruise around Sarasota Bay was magical.  It started out rainy, but the clouds soon parted and the music started playing.  We saw dolphins, gorgeous sunsets, and lots of birds.  We definitely recommend LeBarge Sunset Tours!

Charlie finished his fifth week of radiation on Friday.  He is feeling some fatigue and also loss of his sense of taste.  We are considering acupuncture if the problem continues.

Friday night Charlie' brother Richard and wife Phyllis flew down from North Carolina to spend the weekend with us.  Their son Chris lives near Tampa, and he and his girlfriend also joined us at the beach on Saturday and another boat ride on Sunday.  We left from Marina Jack Yacht Club.

Here are Richard, Phyllis, Chris, and Elise on board the Mako Me Nuts, a deck boat that Jeff rented from the Freedom Boat Club.

We saw the Ringling Mansion from the bay side.  Very impressive!  Charlie and I visited there in 2015 when he first came here for radiation.

 Here is LeBarge in port, waiting for its evening departure.

Everyone has gone home now.  When you are away from home and going through something as stressful as cancer treatment, it means so much to have visits from family members.

Something Quilty for my Birthday

We are still in Sarasota for another month.  Today is my birthday.  I got a wonderful surprise this morning when the FedEx truck pulled up.  My sister Katy sent me a package with this cheerful apron and potholders!

Upon closer inspection, some of those fabrics looked very familiar!  When we moved from our Raleigh house, I gave Katy several huge bags of fabric scraps.  She works with an organization that helps disabled adults with careers and living arrangements.  The recipient of my fabrics made this cute set.  The pockets and potholders are my fabrics!  Now look what I could have been doing!

She also sent me this beautiful card that matches the apron, and also looks like patchwork butterflies.  Be prepared to see these again, perhaps on my Bible journal pages!

Charlie took me shopping for my birthday at the Apple store.  He said he has not been able to shop for me because I am always with him down here!  No complaints, I have this beautiful Apple watch with a ribbon watchband.  It is fun trying to learn how to use it.  I have this flowering watch face that changes to different colored blooms.

I bought him an i-Watch when we were down here in 2015 for his first radiation.  So now I have an expert on hand to show me how to use it.  He also bought me this nice product that we were introduced to at the Table restaurant.  Their restrooms had this great-smelling hand scrub made from salt filtered from the gulf waters in this area.  We found some of the product when we were looking for a gift for our sister-in-law who is coming down tomorrow.  

Tonight we are going on a party boat cruise around Sarasota Bay at sunset.  This was a gift from my children before they left last week.  There will be a musician playing Jimmy Buffett music, live palm trees, and a bar mixing up some birthday margaritas, I hope!  

I feel very grateful to be in this beautiful city for my birthday, even though I have to be away from home.  Healing for Charlie, and wonderful experiences and memories for both of us.

Florida Fun

We have just returned from a wonderful week on the Gulf coast of Florida.  First stop was Sarasota, where my husband Charlie had his one-year check-up at the Dattoli Cancer Center.  Scans and ultrasounds and exams showed no recurrence or new cancer!  Great news!

Then it was on to Lido Key Beach for a couple of days.  We stayed once again at the Sand Castle Resort.  It was only steps to the water from our room, and warm enough to enjoy sitting on the beach.

On Thursday, we drove down to Ft. Myers for the weekend with my brother Jeff, his wife Anna, and their son Michael who has recently graduated from Florida State.  He leaves on Thursday for a new job in Washington, DC, so we were glad for a chance to visit with him, too.

Jeff took us on a boat ride up the Caloosahatchie River in Ft. Myers, right up to the bridge we crossed every day on our trips to Sarasota for Charlie's treatment.

We saw a lot of great sunsets on this trip.  This one is from the deck behind my brother's house.

And on our last night, we sat on the causeway to Sanibel Island and watched our last Florida sunset for awhile.  

Next check-up is in September, and we hope that visit will be just as magical.

Early Spring

February brought some extremely warm temperatures this year.  Raleigh is in full bloom.  I was inspired to paint some bunnies.

The first one I call "I'm not fat, I'm fluffy!"

And for one slightly less whimsical but still colorful, how about a rainbow rabbit?  I was inspired by one I saw on Pinterest.

After several days of wearing shorts and sandals, we came up to the mountains yesterday and this morning it snowed!  Bummer!  We went to town this morning and picked out flooring and carpet for the new basement studio.  We chose a wood-look tile for the floors and a thick carpet for the stairwell.  And tomorrow our nephew is going to help us finish the basement ceiling.

This afternoon I started a new painting.  I worked from a photo of our woods, and added a nice buck. Needs some work before it"s done.

Our little granddaughter Layla turned six months old this week.  She is getting to be full of personality and LOVES attention.

On Monday we will be heading back to warm weather when we go back to Florida for my husband's one-year check-up at the cancer center.  We are planning to meet up with a friend from Raleigh who is  currently being treated at Dattoli Cancer Center, and also my husband's business partner who is vacationing in Florida next week.  Then back for a long weekend with my brother Jeff and wife Anna, who graciously hosted us during Charlie's months of radiation.  We are looking forward to a good report from the doctor, and then some good times in the sun.

Great News, a Fun Week, and More Great News!

We have just returned from a week on the Gulf Coast of Florida.  The purpose of the trip was to revisit the Dattoli Cancer Center in Sarasota for my husband's six-month check-up.  If you have experienced cancer in your family, you know there is always a bit of anxiety when you go back for tests or exams.  Fortunately, Charlie got the all-clear:  he is still in remission.  Yippee!  Charlie had Stage 4 prostate cancer that had spread throughout his skeletal system and lymph nodes.  We are still numb with shock that he is in remission.  Thank you, Dr. Dattoli and your staff!

On to a week of fun in Florida!


We stayed in Sarasota for two nights and enjoyed great dining, the pool, and some sunsets.  Then we spent one night in St. Petersburg on the beach.  Great sunsets!

On Thursday we drove south to Fort Myers to visit my brother Jeff and his wife Anna.  We had some great meals, a beach day, and a boat ride.  

We left on Monday, and got home before Hurricane Hermine would have affected our flight.  

After that we planned to go to our mountain place for Labor Day weekend.  Instead...my daughter-in-law went into labor!  She was about a week early.  Maybe the change in barometric pressure from Hermine had something to do with it.  

Now I am proud to present my newest granddaughter, Layla Grace McBrayer!

We kept big sister Charlotte all weekend, and then had a family day on Sunday.

Of course I have not finished Layla's baby quilt, but I have at least started it.  Here are some patchwork strips and pieced butterflies.

Life is Beautiful

The past few weeks have been a whirlwind.  We soaked in a lot of beauty in Florida on our daily travels to and from Sarasota.

 We splurged and stayed for two days at Lido Key in Sarasota to save a bit of travel time and relax on the beautiful gulf beach.

                                          

We crossed a lot of bridges, both literally and figuratively.

And we are happy to say that on the last day, Charlie's doctor told us that he is in complete remission!  We cannot believe it.  It is almost a miracle!

Here is our Florida team that was with us all the way...my brother Jeff and his wife Anna.  We cannot thank them enough for providing a home, car, meals, and constant support and friendship.

So this part of our journey is over.  We are home.  We are feeling blessed and grateful.

If anyone you know is experiencing prostate cancer, even advanced cases with metastasis like Charlie's, I can highly recommend Dattoli Cancer Center in Sarasota, Florida.  All they do is treat prostate cancer.  And they do it well.

Life in Florida

They were still having technical problems with one of the radiation machines yesterday.  Another long delay.

Meanwhile, back at my brother's house...

They were enjoying this gorgeous sunset on the lake while we were driving home from Sarasota.

Last night there was a huge storm with thunder and lightning.  I lost a lot of sleep.

Apparently these otters who live in the lake had a rough time, too, and needed some drying out!  Can you see the otters sunbathing in the grass?

We have been binge-watching a series on Amazon Prime called Mozart in the Jungle.  It is about an oboe player from North Carolina who is trying to make it into the New York Symphony.  It is funny and quirky and delightful.  I highly recommend it!

Must get ready for the drive again.  It is taking about two hours now since it is tourist season.  At least we are not leaving at 5:45 AM like we did last fall.  I love my mornings!

Valentine's Day

This might have been my nicest Valentines Day ever!  It was twelve degrees at our mountain cabin, twenty-six degrees in Raleigh, and we went to the beach at Sanibel Island!

First we went to church.  When we were here last fall we found a church that we liked very close to my brother's home.  Jeff and Anna went with us yesterday, and they liked it, too.

Then we went to Sanibel.  A plus for me...they were having a lovely Arts and Crafts festival.  I did not purchase anything, but it helped feed my soul to see all the lovely artwork.

And being on the beach with my sweetheart was very special.

He gave me some beautiful roses.

And for an extra sweet treat...some Norman Love chocolates!  We fell in love with Norman Love the last time we were in Fort Myers.  Oh, my, his candies are works of art as well as delicious treats.

Today we will drive to Sarasota for the first of the radiation treatments.  I think it will be so much easier for Charlie this time.  I hope so.