Isabel had class outside again today. Her school group hiked around Helen Putnam Park and ate lunch under Grandmother Oak, a tree that has been living for more than 100 years.

It was a hot day and the class hiked for hours. We arrived at the park around 9am and didn't leave until 2pm. Isabel held up great. She walked all over the place, exclaiming over the aquatic invertebrates in her pond microscope and doing her best to pull up the non-native plants as part of the STRAW project (students and teachers restoring a watershed http://www.bay.org/watershed_education.htm).

I had a little cry to myself on the way home, feeling so incredibly thankful for Isabel's continuing good health and happy go lucky attitude. It's almost as if I didn't realize just how healthy she is until I saw her in action. She was so pink cheeked and strong, keeping up with all the other kids and happily leading the way up and down the trails.

Isabel has come a long way and is a true success story in every sense. Just last year, while she was on maintenance chemotherapy treatment, her first grade class had a field trip to the very same park. I kept Isabel home because I knew the day would be too long and arduous for her. This year, seven months off treatment, it's a completely different story. She's doing marvelous and it's absolutely incredible to witness.