Spring has arrived

I think spring has arrived! Most of the snow has finally melted, and the temperatures are warming up. In addition to the season, other changes are taking place. My parents changed countries (temporarily). The chemotherapy schedule is changing. Lastly, the house is Door County is changing.

My mom and dad have returned after a week long trip to Ireland. My brother and one of my brother's friends were able to accompany my parents at the last minute. They all had a wonderful time. Below is my mom's summary of the trip.

Ireland was great. We stayed in Castledaly Manor. It is an old manor in the middle of Ireland. The manor has a pub and a restaurant in it also.

Michael and one of his buddies came along with us. We went on tours every day. We saw many castles and churches. We saw many small towns and many pubs. We ate here, there and everywhere. We were in Dublin and Galway. We saw the Cliffs of Moher and the Clonmachnois.

Most days we got up in the morning and headed out. After an hour or so, we stopped in a small town and took a potty break at a local pub. Then, we would go to lunch which many times we had at a pub. On the way home we would stop in another town and would go into a pub. When we got back, we would spend the evening in the pub.

All of Ireland is nonsmoking so it was very nice to sit and eat and socialize in the pubs. The people in Ireland were very friendly. We did some shopping, and Phil went with the boys on a pub crawl one night. Many of the pubs had music and on the last night the pub at the manor has music and Irish dancers.

Phil felt fine and had no problems. We had a great trip and have many stories to tell. We came home Thursday at about 7pm.

My dad had a CT scan and blood work done on Friday after the trip. My parents have appointments to see the psychiatric nurse practitioner on Monday and Dr. Ritch, the oncologist, on Tuesday. My dad hasn't had chemotherapy since before the trip, but he should resume treatments again on Tuesday. The results of the third CT scan are also expected that day.

Also, my parents are planning another trip to Door County before Easter. The floor is done, so they can start moving furniture into the upstairs. The refrigerator, stove, and combination washer/dryer have been ordered and will be delivered soon. My dad and mom are excited.