May 2013

This last month has been interesting and went incredibly fast as well. We started the month with M and E getting diagnosed with Whooping Cough. Seeing as they had both been immunized and had received their boosters, this was a shock to us. What it meant was the whole family needed to go on antibiotics and be quarantined until the five day dose was over. It also means, from beginning to end, that we will be coughing for three months. We decided that to make our quarantine fun, if that's possible, we would have a May the 4th be with you! We had a Star Wars marathon and all Star Wars themed food. It was fun and totally what we needed.

Poor M has been on so many antibiotics that I don't think he has anything left in him. He did get an ear infection as well as the whooping cough. He got everything the worst, being asthmatic. He coughs so hard that he throws up. Poor guy is pretty tired of this whole thing. He even did his strength and conditioning through it all, even though he had to stop and throw up. It shows that he really can push through things and that he really wants to play high school football! It is nice to finally be done with school and moving on to the next step. This last year was a tough one for him. The day after school was out put him right into youth conference. It was a little hard for him at first because of the whole cough thing. He toughed it out and ended up having fun. He is learning to push through things, even when he doesn't want to, which was a lot this year.

 E ran for and won student body vice president for her high school. She had a very clever campaign all based on the Wizard of Oz. Apparently she won by a landslide, which made her feel really good. It was tough for her though, since she couldn't go to school the last two days before the election. She didn't even get a chance to vote for herself. She still won and is really excited and driven to make next year the best year yet. She had her last choir concert in Versailles, the select women's choir.  She made the top choir for next year, which is mixed, and is so excited about it.  She lettered again this year for academics, making it her third year in a row. She does love the little pins and is excited to wear the cords in graduation. She is an incredibly talented and driven kid. I couldn't have imagined she would come as far as she has, from the shy little dyslexic girl in third grade. She had to do a hard thing this month too and broke up with her first boyfriend. He was more into her than she was him and she just didn't have time to devote to the relationship. She did it in such a nice way (ice cream in the park), that he didn't realize they had broken up. That was clarified on Facebook and the following Monday when they went to lunch. She said it was really hard, but she feels a lot better. She decided that she just wants to date and not get serious with anyone till after high school, at least. I think that is a great plan :) She finished her month with youth conference and a student government retreat. She loved being with friends and doing what she loves best, planning, playing and feeling the spirit!

B has had an eventful month. A sad thing is that one of her friends from her adoption group was diagnosed with brain cancer.  This was just a few weeks before they found out anything was even wrong.  We pray ever day for Daisy that she will heal.  B got to do a fun game night with her dad at the school. She played laser tag, rode in a hamster ball and danced in a big screen video game. She also had her school's field day on a very cold and windy day. She loved being outside and doing all the challenges, except for the water ones. She was sick too this month and it didn't appeal to her to be cold and wet. She has loved being in school later than the other kids and is NOT excited about the upcoming summer. She would go to school all year if it was available. Hopefully we will be able to fill her summer with enough fun that she won't miss school too much.



T has loved getting into his new job. He works really hard and pretty much ten hour days, but it helps that he is working from home now. The raise has been nice as well. We were able to get his office built and are waiting for the painting to get done and then decorate it. It is a big improvement over the cubicle and the 45 minute commute.

This month has been a hard one for me. I hate having my kids sick for one thing, but there were also some lasts. I did have a great Mother's Day with my kids and T spoiling me. It was nice to have family around me. I also taught my last lessons to my art student, M, and had her show. I have been teaching her for 12 years and can't believe that she is grown and gone. She graduated this year and is off to big adventures. It just made me realize how fast this last remaining year with E will be. I can't believe that I have been a mom long enough to be at the point where I'm saying goodbye. I had a friend give me some really good advice though. She said that if you spend their final year crying, you will miss it. I have resolved to be there for her and M as they move towards their own life journey. I have cut back to two days of piano and am not really replacing or looking for new students. I want to be there and enjoy every minute of their childhood before it is gone.