Cancer, Snow, Old Friends, Hair, Remodeling, and Phuket Seafood

2 Months in a Nutshell:

For those of you who don't know yet, we found out my dad has liver cancer. It went undetected until he had knee replacement surgery in IA City after Thanksgiving. Bloodwork from the surgery revealed that Dad has Hepatitis C, which is the worst type to have. He had a scan done on his liver, showing 2 lesions. They did a biopsy and confirmed our worst fear: liver cancer.

Dad's scheduled to go back to U of Iowa hospital for further testing. All together, they need to determine what stage the cancer is in and inevitably, more information about a liver transplant. Typing all this is like opening wounds again, so I'm cutting it a bit short.

Visit dad's CarePage to keep up to date with how he's doing and his latest medical trials and tribulations! Sign up and search for dad's page by typing in 'meandad'. {He's not really all that mean...usually}

What is up with all this snow????!!!!! It's snowing right now! Poor Nathan is taking a nap because he's going to have to plow all night again. I don't remember the last time we had so much snow. Wait...I do...I was in high school, though, if that says anything.

Regardless of the snow, and the fact that I can't wait for summer, I've managed to make some new old friends. Yes, new old friends. Thanks to the powers of Facebook and MySpace, I've managed to keep in contact with friends from long ago. This was one of the things on my '43 Things' list, so I'm pleased that I've managed to make progress on my list.

Mom and I did something that was super super hard for me....we switched hair stylists!!!!! {cue blood curdling scream} I absolutely loved my stylist, but William Wesley's Day Spa was getting a little too pricey, so we ventured a few blocks down the road to Capri College of Cosmetology.

Last Saturday we both got haircuts, hair color and highlights. What would have cost over $125 at WW's Day Spa only ended up costing $43.00. Well, mine did...mom's came out to $53 somehow and we didn't know it until we had already left. Somehow she was charged more. The results, you ask: I'm OK with it...not thrilled, but for a fraction of the cost, I'm willing to set aside a Saturday for a significantly longer chair time, listening to 19-year olds talk about how they have it so rough. The color was exactly what I had in mind, but it's not bad looking. The cut is really cute.

After treating ourselves to hair makeovers, we ate lunch at Crazy Wok. I hadn't eaten there before, so we had Spring rolls {yum} while we reviewed the menu. Mom settled on the Seafood Combination, while I bounced between Teriyaki Salmon and Phuket Seafood. The reason for the bounce was not because Teriyaki sounded better, but rather because I didn't know how to pronounce Phuket {does it rhyme with bucket or not?} and didn't want to embarrass myself...even though the dish sounded SUPER yummy. I opted for Phuket, deciding to forego the embarrassment by simply pointing at the menu at ordering time. It was a decision that I don't regret. The dish was SOOOOO good, even though it came with Mussels (which found their way onto my mom's plate).

This week consisted mostly of figuring out our kitchen remodel and installing the new doors for the bedrooms and bathrooms.  Our house was built in the '70's, so all of the trim and doors were an ugy brown. We're replacing the doors with six-panel white ones and all white trim throughout the house. It's really starting to make the house take on a whole new look. I'm absolutely loving it! Nathan and my dad have most of the doors in, so now all we have to do is trim around them.

Last Sunday I came home and heard a ton of loud hammering. I thought, "what on earth is going on?" I got upstairs and saw Nathan and Clayton tearing out the old tile flooring by the front door. Clayton had on ear protectors, pajamas, and snow boots and was pounding away with a hammer that had to weigh at least half as much as he does.

The kitchen is getting completely redone with new cabinets and flooring. We had a rep from Flick's in Moline come out and draw up some plans for us to give us an idea of what we're looking for. We have decided on the type of cabinetry and flooring. I absolutely cannot wait until it's done!!!!!