Wasn't this a glorious weekend? The blossoming plum and cherry trees, the cheery daffodils, and the sweet daphne just make me want to sing along with the birds. And topping that, we have fallen in love with our puppy Jack. See for yourselves how charming he is! Ah, to be in love in the springtime.

As if adding a puppy to our love life weren't enough, we just learned from our son David that we will be grandparents by the end of October. This was truly a Hallmark day.

I had a great time in Seattle walking, reading, knitting, eating, shopping, and visiting with "cousins" Wendy and Susan. One day of luxury I spent in the Washington Athletic Club, taking a yoga class, getting a massage, eating, reading, and simply lounging. Ben spent most of his days and nights at the boat show, not as much fun. The show shut down Saturday night so we had all of Sunday to explore Seattle. We went to the Pike Place Market and to Pioneer Square where we took the underground tour and ate in the cafe of the Elliot Bay Bookstore. We agreed that riding the train was much better than driving between Portland and Seattle.
I started day one of the second cycle of chemo on Tuesday. All my blood work was normal, despite my plateaued low weight. Wednesday Ben and I drove to Gold Beach to visit Billy. Being so close to the California border, we decided to return to the redwoods in Jedediah Smith State Park out of Crescent City. The grove we hiked through this time had some amazingly huge trees. One fallen tree was about 12 feet thick, widening to a root base of over 20 feet wide. We found a place to scramble on to the tree and walk its trunk to the root base, taking us pretty high into the air.

I am standing at the root base on the ground (above left). Ben and I are standing on the same tree just above the root base (above right) and Billy is on the ground below us at the base.

I am standing behind one of many gnarly lumps at the base of another huge tree.

Today we have sun so Billy has surfed while we strolled the beach. Tomorrow, we will drive north to Bandon on our way back to Portland. We will be picking up Jack at the breeder's in Junction City. Our life is about to change yet again!

Here's Jack, at 6 weeks. Cute, huh? Ben and i are off to Seattle on the train. He and Zac are ready to go, so this will be short.

Medical update: I was able to get the chemo treatment yesterday, which pleased me. I feel well and seem to be able to continue with my usual activities. I am looking forward to lounging in the Seattle hotel and reconnecting with some former relatives.

Thanks for all your caring support.