Great News!

REEally? It's already the end of July? Where did it all go? I know time went much slower back in February. Oh well. I'll just adjust to the time-speed-travel phenomenon, but if someone finds the switch, slow it down a little, would ya?

My great news is that this last Monday my doc let me know that my most recent bone marrow biopsy showed no signs of the leukemia! Isn't that fantastic?! I now have the definite and sure "Okay" from him to go back to work. Hallelujah! I love my job. :-) I'll still be going through more treatments for the next year or so, but supposedly they're not bad enough to impair my awesome teaching opportunities... yahoo!

As for our other news, we had a great time in New Orleans. Here's our trip in a quick list:
visiting 6 plantations
eating alligator (if you want to count my 2 bites of it "eating"...not ordering that again!)
boating the bayou
eating great food (even seafood) at amazing historical restaurants
walking/wheelchairing around the French Quarter and cemeteries
inhaling beignets
enjoying some AMAZING Jazz Music
devouring Bananas Foster
learning in great detail TONS of history...including Napoleon, Creoles, Louisianna Purchase, several wars, and Hurricane Katrina
nibbling on pralines
visiting the Gulf of Mexico and

Lake Ponchatrain
sharing muffeletas
riding the riverboat
amazing food with ambiance galore
Mardi Gras World and Mardi Gras museum
really good food
riding the cable cars
eating popcorn while watching Get Smart
walking along the barataria
did I mention the awesome food that we had?
seeing art, doing puzzles, reading books, and visiting the botanical gardens.
I almost feel that I should end the list with, "...and a partridge in a pear tree!" oi. Needless to say, it was fantastic! The weather cooperated so well, but really the best part of the trip was spending time with Mom and Dad Scott. They are quite the witty and enjoyable couple, and we love joining them as often as possible!

I only mention this, because many people have asked...I was not able to up to YW Camp. I really missed being there with the ...young women and younger women.... especially with the stake leaders being so great to keep me included in so much beforehand. (They are incredibly caring, nurturing, and amazing women; I really have taken them to be examples in my life to follow!) It was verrrry sad for me, but I was stuck doing transfussions all week. Blood, platelets; the usual drill. It was a definite Bummer.

Speaking of blood and such, if anyone has a great cure for my obsession with the Twilight saga, let me know! I'm hoping the fourth book coming out in a few days will give me some closure and put an end to the constant pull I have to reread passages, read excerpts and outakes on the author's webpage! Oh, and the movie's trailers...you've got to watch them at least 3 times to get any satisfaction before moving on to something else! I'm such a dork sometimes! (...but I can't stop!) "Team Edward!"

Well, these next few weeks I'll be getting ready to go back to the classroom; I'm so very excited to see all my friends and "kids"! I hope ya'll enjoy these last moments of summer and make the most of them. This summer has been so wonderfully filled with friends and family; it's a bit sad seeing it come to an end. I'm just bracing myself for the zucchini and tomatoe wave to hit. Good luck to all those fellow gardeners out there!

~Sarah