corafortsupport.org

First Place for a bit, Second place in Team Rank

Originally uploaded by Cora Fort Support.

Just thought I would take a picture of this while it lasts

Poster copy

Originally uploaded by Cora Fort Support.

Here is the poster advertising the calendar that I amde along with my friends Shelley Mauss and Kyle MIller along with all volunteers from maristas Coffee Shop in Federal Way. it features 14 of their baristas. Hopefully the photo is big enough to see!

If you would like to purchase a calendar, and also support the American Cancer Society and our team, just go to our fundraising site and make a donation, and then email me at ewihome@gmail.com to tell us where to mail your calendar! thanks

Well for the first year, I am heading up a Team for Relay for Life Tacoma, the original relay. I am inviting anyone who reads this, and is not participating already, to join our team! More information can be found at http://www.cancer.org. If you would like to join our team, go to

http://www.acsevents.org/tacomarelay/ewi

To make a donation or buy a calendar, go to http://www.acsevents.org/tacomarelay/ewimichael

Thank you so much!

Love, Michael

Well for the first year, I am heading up a Team for Relay for Life Tacoma, the original relay. I am inviting anyone who reads this, and is not participating already, to join our team! More information can be found at http://www.cancer.org. If you would like to join our team, go to

http://www.acsevents.org/tacomarelay/ewi

To make a donation or buy a calendar, go to http://www.acsevents.org/tacomarelay/ewimichael

Thank you so much!

Love, Michael

We had a wonderful visit with Mom, Dad and Kweeya (aka Michael) over the Christmas holiday. We shared a lot of laughter, enjoyed delicious meals and created many cherished memories. Aidan held firm ground in staking his claim to his spot in Mom’s bed. When we arrived, it was suggested that Aidan not sleep with Mata and Papa because Papa’s back was hurting. But, I think it was too late because Aidan was already setting up his stuffed animals and Santa pillow in the middle of Mom’s bed. Every morning I would find Mom, Aidan and Dad (in that order) sound asleep together, usually with Mom and Aidan cuddling. Aidan was usually the first to wake up, and, while he patiently waited for Mata to wake up, he kissed Mata and gently stroked her arm while she slept. Sometimes Aidan would come out of the room in the morning and I would ask, “Is Mata awake?” He would respond by proudly saying, “You have to ask me if you want to go inside because I am taking care of Mata.”

The kids understand that Mata is sick. They pray for Mata and her “caregivers” every night. Aidan said, “I wish that Mata lived with us so that I could take care of her all the time- then she will get better.” The kids are also very accustomed to going to the hospital since we were there so frequently this summer. They are pretty well-behaved even though we are usually in tight quarters in a treatment room. They are always very entertaining to the hospital staff since the staff rarely see young children at the treatment center. Mom’s doctor, Dr. Goodman, was so pleased to receive a picture from Nina that she created on the internet. It was a “Higglytown Hero” (a show on the Disney Channel) and the Higglytown Hero was dressed up like a doctor. At the top of the picture it said, “My Hero”.

On Christmas morning, the kids were very excited to see that Santa left presents for them on the balcony. They had been very concerned because there is no fireplace at the condo and they didn’t know if Santa would know where to find them. Just in case Santa got confused, Nina left him a letter on our fireplace in California. I guess Nina’s plan worked because Santa was successful in locating them. I’m glad that Santa’s presents didn’t get wet or blow off the balcony because it was very windy Christmas Eve night. It was so windy that Paul and I couldn’t even open the balcony door to put cookies and milk out on the balcony.

One day Mom and I took the kids up to the top of the Space Needle. They have been asking to do this for several months, and we were finally able to bring them. It was too cold to go outside at the top, but, they got to see the sights from inside. The day after Christmas, we re-enacted an activity that we once did 6 years ago in the year 2000. We surprised our parents by renting a limo to drive us around to see the Christmas lights. At the beginning of the ride, we stopped at my favorite coffee place, Uptown Espresso, to pick up some warm drinks for the ride. It was fun, but, we realized that there was a lot more room the last time we did this same activity 6 years ago. Christmas 2000, we had one less person (Aidan wasn’t born yet) and Nina was only 2 yrs old. Next time, we’ll need to rent a Hummer limo because it was pretty crowded. Of course, you can never count on the weather in Seattle. The night we rented the limo it was pouring rain outside and the windows were totally fogged up inside. So, every time the driver reached a destination, we had to quickly wipe down all the windows so that we could see the Christmas lights. It was pretty funny, but still, a memorable experience.

We had the most fun playing games with the kids. We played this game called Apples to Apples. We quickly realized that the kids were so focused on who was winning and who was losing, that we knew we had to make a change, or stop playing! So, I suggested that Nina and Aidan be on the same team- this way, they win together and lose together and neither one gets upset. This worked out extremely well and it was hilarious for the adults to watch the kids interact as a team. We were laughing hysterically the whole time. Every time they had to confer with each other, they would put their faces together and whisper behind a huge pillow, giggling and laughing together. Then, when it was time to hide their eyes, they would bury their faces into the couch with their cute, little butts sticking up in the air.

We felt very blessed to have the opportunity to spend Christmas Eve with the Gatbunton Family. It was a beautiful reminder of the importance of traditions. When we were growing up, we always wore matching outfits that were hand-made by Grandma. We would change into PJs before midnight, sing Christmas carols and pray at midnight. This year, the little girls- Nina and cousins Rachel and Alex- wore matching PJs and all the boys changed into PJs. (We have 12 great grand-children in the Gatbunton Family and 2 on the way!) We sang Christmas carols and we sang Happy Birthday to Jesus and prayed at midnight- just like old times. It was such a fulfilling experience and we were really happy to be able to participate this year.

We also spent a fun evening with Kweeya’s friends, at the special request of Nina. Nina is just like her very social Uncle and she requested to see his friends during our visit. Nina was on cloud 9 being able to spend time with Kweeya’s friends and they also brought a lot of cheer to Mom and Dad.

We thank God for blessing us with another Christmas together and for helping to manage Mom’s pain and side effects during our visit so that we could enjoy spending time together as much as possible.