ALEXANDER'S BLOG: RESTING ON LABOR DAY!

Hi All.
It's been a long time, huh? The last two weeks have been action packed and I will do my best to fill you in on all the family fun....don't worry, it will be the condensed version!!!

~Spencer is now officially a full time college student! He moved into Pennington, his dorm at George Fox, on Thursday, Aug 23rd, with the help from his Uncle Matt. Hmmm, "help" might not be the right word....they pulled the car up, a group of students came running to unload the car and carry all the boxes to Spencer's room. Spencer turned down Matt's offer to help unpack, so Matt took it upon himself to "break-in" and "test out" Spencer's pillow.. The final report: it works just fine! Oh, Matt wants everyone to know that he did carry in one box (there were only 8 students and 9 boxes)! Yes, Matt, you were a great help....and alot more fun than MOM!
Spencer is all settled in, staying busy with school work and campus activities and as far as we know, loving college life. If any of you hear from him, please let us know how he's doing! :)

~Mikaela had her senior pictures taken on Friday, Aug 30th. It feels like just yesterday she was a young freshman starting high school.....now she's all grown up.....where does the time go?? Mikaela starts school on Wed, Sept 5th. She's excited to be a senior, is really happy with her class schedule and can't wait to get started. She did mention that it will be lonely without Spencer there, but is looking forward to seeing all her friends! She is in the process of getting her 100 driving hours and can't wait to get her license....actually, it's her mom that can't wait!!!

~Isaac and Pearce are playing football for the Linus Pauling 8th and 6th grade teams. They are working hard, playing hard, and sleeping hard! They have their 'start of the season' Jamboree this Saturday and can't wait to get on the field and compete! The boys will be home schooled again this year and we are gearing up for the school routine. Their hair is growing in fast and I haven't heard the latest with what style they want next. Send in your votes for your favorite hair style and we'll see what happens!

~Bruce, as you well know, turned 50 on Aug 17th and boy, did we celebrate!! We need this whole next month just to recover! Our friends, Hugh and Tracy, hosted a party in their Bellevue home for friends and family in the Seattle area at the end of August. Bruce's sister, Kirsten, rallied together a handful of his high-school friends from Portland and 4 cousins he hasn't seen in years to come and crash the party!! What a total surprise for Bruce! The party was fabulous, with many close friends and family there to celebrate. Bruce was overwhelmed and came home with such a feeling of comfort, love and consolation. Thanks to all who made that such a special day. Pictures will be coming soon on the blog.....Bruce is wearing a very special outfit that he wants all to see!

~Bruce will be having a CT and brain MRI this Tues, the 4th, here in Corvallis. We will go see Dr Curti at Providence Medical in Portland on Friday, Aug 7th, at 10:30 am. We will find out if the radiation was successful on the brain tumors and what is going on in his body. The appt is scheduled for an hour and I know we will walk away with alot of new information to process and have some decisions to make regarding recommendations for future treatment.

We have enjoyed this "free-time with no treatments or surgeries. Bruce has been very diligent to get his body, mind and spirit in shape for whatever comes next. We have spent TONS of time together as a family and making sure we enjoy the simple things each and every day. What a gift each day is!

We will be attending a dear friend's wedding on Friday night and we want to fully enter into the joy of this celebration. So, we will share any medical news (good or bad) on Sat morning with our children (Spencer will be with us for the night) and then we will update the blog on Saturday night. We wanted to let you all know so that you are not alarmed by the delay in any posts. Thank you for understanding. Thank you all for your constant love, support, prayers and commitment to us!

More pictures will be coming soon......there are so many, it's hard to keep up!

HAPPY SEPTEMBER TO ALL!

Love,

The A TEAM!

BRUCE'S HIGH SCHOOL FRIENDS WHO DROVE UP FROM PORTLAND TO SURPRISE HIM. A HIGHLIGHT OF THE DAY FOR HIM! GUESS HOW OLD THEY ARE?

BRUCE WORE A DUCK T-SHIRT (thanks, Tim) AND A DUCK HAT BEFORE HE JUMPED IN THE LAKE...RIGHT WHERE THEY BELONG!! LATER, HE WORE THE RIGHT COLORS.....BEAVER ORANGE AND BLACK!! FUN, VERY FUN!!!