Health & Life Updates

Just like June, this past month has flown by too. We have been super busy on all fronts. Scott took two classes at UMKC this summer and managed to get 8 credit hours in just 8 weeks. He worked really hard even when his body was quitting due to Lyme Disease. He is double majoring in Physics and Philosophy. He is now officially an artist, musician, scientist, philosopher and mathematician. Cool huh? He is starting his oral abx regimen again for babesia because in the past year (on a break from treatment) his babesia count has gone sky high. Babesia is a BAD, BAD boy and really affects scott. I just really despise Lyme Disease and all it has taken from us.

I have been at my new job for 4 months and started full time in June. It is crazy busy but I am loving it. I have an opportunity to mold a new company and I find it to be a huge challenge. I am learning a lot about myself and my management style as we move along. I see every day that I have so much more to learn! I have managed to work from home 6 days this month and brought the kids to the office with me a few times too. They still fight over who gets to come with me and they are great helpers while there. Eli insists that he is going to skip school to be my assistant. I haven't endorsed that yet....

Grandma has been gone since June 19th and she is really flourishing at her home. She is keeping cool in AC and cleaning, sorting, eating, resting and sleeping. She has weaned herself off of her bottled oxygen and she is feeling great. When we talked last night she told me she really wanted to try and mow her yard (10 acres!) but that she knew it was too hot. Um....yes mother....did I mention she LOVES to work? Our next step with her is to get her driving again. We will be bringing her van to her next month and will let Billy work with her. She thinks she is strong enough but I am a little worried about her still. We are working on a BIG surprise for her 70th birthday and I know she will be super excited. When it is official, I will let you know.

The kids are awesome and growing so fast! Autumn (14!!) will be starting 9th grade this year and she has her first real boyfriend. She feels like she loves him and he does too. Unfortunately for her, he just moved to Germany with his military family and won't be back for 3 years...Fortunately for daddy though cause he wasn't ready for the first love...

Noah is 12 but looks 15 which could be quite a problem next year. He is starting 7th grade and is very excited to be at a middle school. He is so handsome that I think the "looking 15" thing will get the attention of all the girls quickly. Luckily, he doesn't necessarily go looking for a girlfriend but they always seem to be looking for him. We have read thru his middle school's website several times trying to get him mentally prepared for the experience. I went thru the school calendar last night and if he does every activity he wants to, he will have something every night of the week. I know our life is about to change and I know it will be a good change but I am not ready for it yet. My main concern will be keeping track of 3 boys at 2 schools. I can't wait to see him perform in the activities he wants to join but this means he is really growing up!

Eli is 11 and ready for 6th grade. He was so excited to turn 11 because now he can spend an extra night with his daddy! During the school year the boys come home every weekend. One weekend is a long one (fri-mon & sometimes tues) and the other is a short one of Fri-Sat. Their mom works 3 nights a week with 2 of those nights falling during the weekend. Noah had always begged for more time with Scott and we finally got an extra night with him during an evening when he was being babysat by his grandma. That privilege started when he turned 11. And when we took Eli out for his 11th birthday breakfast, the first thing he said when he got in the car was...."When I woke up, my first thought was that I can finally come to your house on Sunday nights!" A few months earlier Eli had asked his mom if he could spend some extra time with his dad while she worked and she told him that he wasn't old enough. Eli came home and told us he didn't understand WHY. We didn't agree with that answer at all. It doesn't make sense to us to tell a child who feels like they need one of their parents, that they are not old enough to see them. That answer only comes if you are competing for time. He was pretty disappointed but knew that 11 was right around the corner. Needless to say, he is excited about this extra time during 6th grade cause every boy knows that 6th grade is tough. Right?

Lucas is getting smarter and smarter every day! He loves doing math exercises with Scott and really absorbs any new info he gets. He is silly, sweet, considerate and all boy. He still runs and jumps in my arms and still cuddles in those quiet moments. He is also getting super tall! He went to work with me last Tuesday and we had a great day. We had lunch together and had a great conversation too. He told me some things that bothered him about one household and that he would like them to change. He isn't sure how to make that happen and is scared to ask for certain things. I am constantly reminded of my responsibilities (that I see for myself) as his bonus mom and encourage him to use his words and tell someone how he feels. As he gets older he is feeling an emotional shift (my words, not his) and he doesn't know how to work that out. I am always just so proud of him. He has a huge heart and wants to make everyone feel good. He doesn't want to disappoint anyone and feels a strong pull in several directions. He is becoming his own little person and has even decided on a new nickname. He wants to be called Lucky and we think that is great! I can't wait to see what he does in 3rd grade!!