October 23

After being diagnosed with cancer back in March and undergoing months of treatment, my mom had her last round of chemo this week. Although we never really know what's around the corner, we're hopeful that her scans will be and will remain clear from here on out, and my sister-in-law thought it would be nice to celebrate the milestone with a FaceTime call. So that's what we did this evening.

My mom will no doubt not love this picture, but it's the only one I quickly snapped during the call (and I think she looks fine. And for the record, Isaac and Brady are in the upper right-hand corner). We were all eating dinner as we chatted and though the call was relatively short, it was nice to "connect" in a face-to-face kind of way.

I know it's been a tough year for her, but I'm grateful that she's finished her treatment protocol and can now look toward the future. And I'm grateful to and for my brother and his family, who --as they live in the same area as my mom-- have devoted so much time to supporting her as she's gone through her protocol.

And now... onward.