Writerly Wednesday and Did You Know

 What's your synonym, example or sentence for:

Example:  The protesters staged quite a ballyhoo.

AND

Did you know, dogs can sniff out cancer in humans.

 For more information: The science of sniffs: disease smelling dogs :: Understanding Animal Research

Rollercoaster Rides

Do you love them? They just aren't for me and recently I've been on the most terrifying ride of my life.  The baby had congestion in his lungs and had pulled out his feeding tube so back to the hospital he went. While they were putting in the feeding tube they decided to do an MRI. After reading the scan they told my son and DIL that the tumor was back, growing aggressively and that the baby needed surgery asap.  The fact that it had been less than four weeks since he'd had surgery and at that time, we were told the remaining tumor/mutation was at this point nonaggressive, knocked everyone flat. It didn't make for a good outcome.
The son and DIL decided to take him to a hospital that specialized in Ped cancer so he was put in an ambulance and driven out of town, with the expectation of another surgery shortly after he arrived. I went to bed thinking we were going to lose this child and how unfair it was for a ten-month-old to get dealt this hand. Oddly enough, when I woke up my entire perspective had changed and while I knew the odds were not in our favor I also knew odds could be beaten and felt we were going to do exactly that.  Not too long after this I learned from my son that this hospital team told them it was not a life threatening situation and he didn't have to have surgery immediately. The next day they got the diagnosis. The first hospital had misread the scan. The second hospital was kind enough to say they could see how it had happened. When the tumor was removed and the water drained from the brain the remaining tumor shifted positions and that is what showed up on the scan. This current tumor is not aggressive and the plan is to do chemo to shrink it. Needless to say we are so relieved. I know folks make mistakes in all walks of life, but this one threw everyone in a tailspin, not to mention how it devastated the parents. But it is such a huge relief we can't get too upset about the misread. The good outweighs the bad.

The bro...well that's a story for another day.

AND...since we are both January babies, the sis and BIL are flying in today to celebrate this week. So we are off to the airport to pick them up. Feel free to party down right along with us.

HA...I bet you thought I was through.
The hellebore and kale are blooming.

AND...

Solar bluebirds I got for Christmas.

AND...
I'LL END with this parting shot. Heh. To be captioned, I bet you can't see me.

Add on....
Blogger buds. I've pre-posted but my bro is having his transplant so I will be offline for a bit.

Ketchup Day

A belated wish for a:

As the regular blog buds know the end of 2019 hit my family like a tsunami.
My cat was diagnosed with cancer, as was my grandbaby. My brother went in the hospital with a failing liver. At the end of the year Captain Stubby went on to his next cycle of life. He was eighteen and pretty much lived life on his terms. We miss him, but it's such a relief that he is no longer suffering.

On the plus side of the Cox Board and it's a huge plus. The biopsy report on the baby came back a one-two astrocytoma. It's non-invasive. It does have mutations with the potential for growth in the future but that's not a given. Also he's on a feeding tube, but all in all wonderful news. Update: I wrote this Friday. He's now back in the hospital with congestion. Hopefully, they will get him squared away soon and it will be a short stay. 

My brother has been in the hospital since well before Christmas and they've run a gazillion tests on him. He's down to a PET scan and approval from the review board, then he'll go on the list for a liver transplant.

But enough Cox angst. How do you like this wrapping paper? My son-in-law took plain brown paper and added the design. Isn't this amazing? And what a great idea, hey?

AND...
Our grandson's drawing was chosen for the school Christmas card. Proud? You bet:)

AND...
In with the HH's BDay presents were advent treats for the dog. Heh.

AND...I got some wonderful mementoes for the holidays including a beautiful card from EC, a fun Jacquie Lawson card from Val, a PERSONALIZED bookmarker from Rockin' Ro and these delightful socks from the grandbaby--with a little help from his daddy, of course;)

How were your holidays? Have you ever designed your own wrapping paper?