the week

These two--the older one is back to college, semester off to a start this week. The younger is back on distance learning starting tomorrow, due to the pandemic.   So many positive covid tests, though nobody we know is dangerously ill, it is just a lot.  

Probably this is a wise decision, but their anticipated return date of January 25 does not seem likely.

Oh, and her lizard. Kari has a lizard that I was  80% sure was dead when I checked on it yesterday while she was gone.   Oh, boy.  Not good.   But then later I went upstairs and Lillian was quite undead, running around looking quite beautiful.  Whee.

Monday I donated blood, which is something I've been meaning to do for a very long time, and finally it is done, and it was pretty easy--from the scheduling and location, to the process itself.  I intend to do this on an ongoing basis.
 

The reason this is important is because this thriving little beauty of a child was fighting for her life four years ago.  After recovering from RSV, which was life threatening for her as a wee baby with a heart defect, it was realized that she really couldn't go on any longer with her heart the way it was, and before they sent her home, her heart was repaired.  She was like nine or ten pounds, just a wee little minute of a girl.

We were told it was a typical heart defect often seen with Down Syndrome, but it was still overwhelming! Her little heart was like the size of an acorn and someone had the knowledge and skills to repair it.

Amazing.

And look at her now, at three!  She received blood so many times during all that traumatic winter, and here she is, living it up.

In the news today was this--they are opening up an Ice Road up in the northern angle, that weird little piece of Minnesota that intrudes across the Canadian border.  It can't normally be reached other than driving over into Canada and around, and with covid, I guess this was a problem.

(There's not much going on there other than wilderness, but there are people who love their wilderness, true.)

Anyway, Lake of the Woods is very big, and very deep and this Ice Road is twenty two miles long.

I was very intrigued by the story, but guess who will never be traveling there or EVER going on this Ice Road in a million years.

Dan sent these pictures of the puppy, June.   

Dog obviously knows how to live.

He said she's pretty naughty a lot of the time, but you'd never know it by these pictures.

Had lunch with these two today, very fun.  We laughed, and ate, and it was great.

Tomorrow is Friday, best day of the week.

We've to the halfway point of January now, cruising along.

Love, Val