I've passed the two-year breast cancer survival mark and finally, I'm making a major life change. Why has it taken me so long? I'm not sure. I guess the time is right and it never was before. There's no reason to dwell on what I could have done sooner. What matters is that I'm taking charge right now.

First it was soda. I totally eliminated it from my diet. It wasn't such a big hurdle, though, because it was never much of a habit. But sweets -- another story entirely.

I love -- or shall I say loved -- sweets. Brownies, especially the gooey variety, were my favorite sugary treat. My oldest child loves them too and together, we would occasionally mix up a batch, wait impatiently while they baked, and then scarf down the whole pan.

There's a brownie mix in our pantry right now. Six-year-old Joey keeps asking me if we can make them. I keep telling him, "No, mommy is not eating sweets anymore." Which means he is not eating sweets anymore -- unless they come from a secret source. It's killing him that I won't give in and make our cherished chocolate dessert. So I promised him I will make the brownies one day soon. We have an upcoming party to attend and this will be my contribution. I just can't make them, keep them at home, and expect not to eat them.

It's been two weeks since I've consumed anything remotely sweet -- like candy, cakes, ice cream. I'm not counting sweeteners that are surely buried in the foods I normally eat -- I'll get there eventually -- but I am committed to passing on anything obviously dripping in sugar. That means no chocolate chip cookie bars that greeted me at work one day. No dipping into the mint bowls at restaurants. No bulk-sized bag of M&Ms sitting in my kitchen cupboard.

Nothing. I can't do it any other way. All or nothing. I'm going with nothing.

I like how I feel. The headaches I suspected were fueled by sugar are less frequent. My stomach feels less full. I know I am headed for better health. My kids are too. My body and my wallet should lighten up a bit too.

When I long for that sweet something, I reach for fresh fruit. Strawberries, apples, pears, bananas, and cantaloupe fill our kitchen now. Joey ate three bananas last night. I figure it would have been three brownies if he'd had the choice. For his sake and mine, I'm glad he didn't.

It's been so long I can barely remember the cause of the family rift that kept me separated from an aunt, an uncle, and cousins for many years. All that remains clear is that a once-close family split apart because of disagreement and hurt feelings and that my grandma -- the glue that held this family together for more than 50 years -- was heartbroken. She did everything she could to repair the damage of her splintered family. But despite begging, pleading, and continued prayers, reconciliation seemed impossible -- until it became evident this sweet woman was about to die.

The progress was slow and began with a rallying of family members at my grandma's bedside. She was somewhat incoherent at the time, and I'm not quite sure if she realized her broken family was on the mend. But I hope she knows, in some heavenly way, that she is the one who ultimately brought everyone together.

After her passing, we all gathered for her memorial service. We took turns spreading her ashes at a tree planted in her honor. We talked and visited and laughed and ate. We broke the ice and opened the door for further interaction. It was refreshing to mourn the loss of Gram without overriding tension and conflict.

I'm not sure if family relations would have continued without what happened next. I suspect we may have all returned to our lives and gone our separate ways, happy we had reconnected but still missing the closeness we once experienced. But then cancer entered our lives, shocked us all, and gave us all reason to stay in touch.

I was diagnosed with breast cancer not long after my grandma died. And the same people who came to her bedside came to my rescue in ways I never would have imagined in the heat of battle. The same people who for years were absent from my life were the ones offering me support and encouragement and love. They helped me get better.

Once I was better, life returned to a somewhat normal routine. And maybe we would have routinely slipped back into our selfish ways. But illness struck again, requiring we all step back up to the plate.

My uncle, who has lived with diabetes for many years, was faced this year with losing his foot. Thankfully, he found specialists who gave him hope and reason to travel every month for several months to a clinic in my city, where eight family members live and where options never before available to him became a reality -- both medically and personally.

My uncle is doing well, walking on his foot with the aid of a brace. And our family is doing well, as a result of frequent visits, lunches, and continued laughs.

It took death and disease to bridge the gap that existed for much too long between the members of my family. And just this weekend, after spending a glorious weekend with my long-lost cousins, I realized we have possibly arrived back where we once started -- before whatever led to our disagreement and hurt feelings drove us apart.

I believe Gram is smiling down upon us at this very moment, content at last that her three beautiful children -- and their children and their children -- are again a happy family.

I love a good cancer comeback story -- like the story of Phil Kessel and his courageous return to the NHL.

Kessel, 19-year-old Bruins forward and fifth overall draft pick for 2006, was diagnosed with testicular cancer last month. He underwent surgery and has been recovering off the ice until just recently -- when he was recalled to Boston from its farm team in Providence.

It's back to life and back to work for Kessel -- who is winning his match against cancer.

Kessel, a Wisconsin native, was the second Boston athlete this year diagnosed with cancer. Red Sox pitcher Jon Lester was diagnosed in August with lymphoma.

Bruins rookie Phil Kessel is surviving testicular cancer. And the 19-year-old former University of Minnesota player, drafted in the first round this year, is talking about his shocking diagnosis and the surgery from which he is currently recovering.

Kessel, who is expected to rest for two weeks before returning to the ice, found a lump in his testicle and went immediately to his team internist, Dr. David Judge. Judge examined him, referred him for an ultrasound, and learned with Kessel that the lump was in fact cancer -- embryonal testicular cancer.

Both Judge and Kessel are happy to report that the cancer was localized to the right testicle -- which was removed during surgery -- and had not spread. Kessel, therefore, has a very low liklihood of recurrence.

Kessel, who has five goals and four assists in 27 games this season, says about his diagnosis, "I couldn't believe it. It was tough. I had a hard time with it."

Kessel thinks cancer will help him gain perspective on life. And he plans to speak out about his experience so others may benefit.

"If you're not feeling well go get checked out and make sure you're all right," he says. Getting checked out is what saved him -- and he hopes others will follow suit.

Kessel is the second Boston athlete to be diagnosed with cancer this year. Red Sox left-hander Jon Lester was diagnosed with lymphoma in August. With chemotherapy behind him, he is currently cancer-free. And so is Kessel.

When it comes to portion control and weight gain, you would think that 85 food and nutritionist experts would know better than to serve themselves heaping bowls of ice cream. One of the common sense theories that links the continuing increase of weight gain in this country has been the tendency of Americans to super-size meals.

Cornell University researchers held an ice cream social and invited 85 food and nutritionist experts to the serve yourself function. The guests were given a choice of bowl and spoon size. The ones that chose the bigger bowls and bigger spoons served themselves over 50 percent more ice cream than the guests who chose the smaller bowls and spoons.

Based on the experiment, the researchers recommend anyone interested in losing weight to downsize their plates, bowls, forks and spoons. It might be as simple as that -- smaller portions on smaller plates looks like more food. Smaller portions on larger plates looks like deprivation and not exactly a motivator to eating less. Perception is everything.

If you live in the Boston area, the Jimmy Fund Scooper Bowl has launched a new fundraising program called Scooper Schools, and are inviting schools, youth groups, and other student organizations to plan and run an ice cream fundraiser to benefit cancer care and research at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.

According to the Jimmy Fund Scooper School program, "No idea is too small. Groups can host an ice cream social, or set up an ice cream booth in the school cafeteria, or dish up an ice cream eating contest. The goal is to help students be creative, build self-confidence, and most importantly, understand the significance of philanthropy." Special incentives for the schools that raise the most money include free admission to the three-day Scooper Bowl at City Hall Plaza. For more information on the event, go to Jimmy Fund Scooper Bowl webpage. The Jimmy Fund comes up with some delightful and fun ideas for fundraising that other communities might want to check out.

On day three of the race now, friends Mike Dann, Simon Edmundson and Tim Tottenham, known as the ATP team, are into the 350 mile trek across the frozen Artic to the Magnetic North Pole as one of 15 teams taking part in the Sony Polar Challenge North Pole race. Temperatures can get to a frigid -50C. To add to the danger and drama, 80 percent of the world's Polar Bear population live there. Considered one of the world's toughest endurance tests, the teams are expected to reach the destination on April 27. Having just crossed Polar Bear Pass, ATP is one of five leading teams. If you are into extreme sports, and unique adventures, the Polar Challenge teams are keeping daily diaries online, as well as an overall summary of the day's events during the race. They provide an excellent photo gallery, live video and a map. The images are spectacular. The ATP team is raising funds for the Laura Crane Trust.

The Laura Crane Trust was founded in memory of Laura Crane, who died just two weeks after her seventeenth birthday from a complex mix of four types of cancer. The foundation serves teens and young adults living with cancer.