Pam turns 60

I arrived in Boise late afternoon on May 12th; Mom's birthday.  The driveway was filled with cars, which surprised me and Scott.  Turned out that the Bogus Basin crew had surprised Mom by showing up with the biggest cake ever made.  They are always doing such wonderful things for Mom and I doubt they know how much it means to all of us.  It was great to arrive to so many happy faces, and see Mom already celebrating.

The evening was calm, with a small family dinner.  The big surprise was that Dad will be taking her to Hawaii. It is the first time for them both and I know she's excited because she went straight out and bought 3 swimsuits. --Getting there is half the fun.

The following day, we celebrated Elsinore's first birthday with friends and then that same weekend we had another Birthday celebration for Mom, that included her entire family.  We had the party out at Jodi and Ival's new property.  They have set up a sheep herders tent so they can sleep out there when they want some peace.  They offered it up for Mom and Dad that night and Ival even had an outhouse ordered.  It was a raining day and evening, which somehow made the party more adventurous and fun but really made the camping experience special for Mom and Dad.  The fresh air and sound of rain on the tent seemed to give Mom one of the best nights sleep she has had in a long time.  It was a very special gift.

Prior to the big day, Mom had had a month of fatigue and colds.  She also had a fluid that was filling the outside of her lungs and the doctors had to drain it.  It's a painful procedure and we all hated that she had to go through it.  The fluid will continue to come back but when I spoke with her yesterday she noted that it is moving a lot slower.  It doesn't sound like they will have to do anything before her trip to Hawaii.  (Yes!).  If it does fill up, they may have to consider surgery this time.  If that happens, I'll be sure to post the details.  

Every day is a new day of challenges for Mom but she takes it with the same grace and gratitude for the good stuff that she always has.  I think she really enjoyed her weekend of turning 60 and I know she will have a wonderful and relaxing time in Hawaii.