Lots of random thoughts and updates here.

I know, I know.... you can all yell at me for talking so long to post (a few already have, but I still love ya!)



My reason (no excuses here!) is that my computer crashed last week, the hard drive went bad right in the middle of my last week of algebra. I was a basket case, stressed as can be. No one else had a computer with the Microsoft office 2007 programs that I needed to use to open the assignments, type in my work and send them back to my teacher. I could have gotten a mean teacher that would not accept any work in the improper format, but mine was very understanding. It is clear in the course that formatting is part of your grade, so I did loose some points, but I passed, I ALMOST got an A in the class (I would have actually made it if the computer had not broken!) So besides that being really annoying, I lost all my pictures and videos and have bean a bit down about that and didn't feel much like posting.



Most of you know, but here are pictures finally.... Aidan had a great fall and broke his arm not only once, but broke both bones in his lower arm. He was at the playground a few blocks for my in-laws house (where we are STILL staying!) He is often allowed to walk there by himself, he knows all the safety rules and is very responsible with them. So that morning he was there without a parent. He said he was swinging and did a "totally wicked" jump off the swing and just went a little further than expected and landed on the stairs on his arm. A nice man that had his kids there called me, but I didn't know the number so I didn't bother to get off the phone with my sister... ooops! So then the nice man (it is a pretty close knit community thank god!) drove Aidan home and told me that he thought it might be broken. Adam was out at the time with our only car so I gave him so ibuprofen and put ice on it, and in a half hour or so he said it felt much better. It was bruised, but the swelling had come way down with the ice. So I waited. After dinner I asked him how it was feeling and he said it only hurt if he bent his arm a certain way. He could wiggle all fingers, wasn't very swollen, and the bruising was not that bad, so we all decided to sleep on it. Adam made him a very custom splint out of a paint stir stick and ace bandage, and off to bed we went. Aidan didn't make a peep all night and woke up early running through the house yelling "my arm feels perfect, dad fixed it!" I was relieved and didn't think too much about it. He continued to do great as far as pain, swelling, bruising.... the only complaint was that it hurt when the splint was off. I mostly thought that was for attention. His dad came by a day or 2 later to see him and begged me to take him for an X-ray. He is a worrier, but I humored him because he is Aidan's dad of course. So I took him in to urgent care, they did the xray, and said "oh, you will have to go to see a pediatric orthopedist, this is a worse break than normal........ of course! So we went to the specialist, the checked him and his Xrays out and showed me how Aidan had broke clean through the bigger bone in the lower arm, and buckled the other bone. It does not go through his growth plate, so he will be just fine :)

SOOO, he is in a cast for a month... no bike riding, no swimming (of course there is a FREE water park where we are living!) no playgrounds, running, jumping, or just plain being a boy!

The funny part was after the Dr. finished the cast he patted Aidan on the head and said I bet you won't be jumping off swings anymore, and Aidan of course says "oh if I could do a jump that cool again I sure would!! So here are the pictures of the super cool green cast... finally!



Zander is fabulous, he is bar none, the funniest 2 year old I have ever met. He has his daddies personality, and loves to do anything rough and crazy. Rides on daddies motorcycle are the best thing ever, and the kid spends hours at the park with one or both of us almost every day! He is coming along on potty training, learning his ABC's, counts to 20 and loves to sing. His favorite songs are the opening song from scrubs (which is so cute I had to put it on his baby MP3 player), and the song Anne Hathaway sings in the movie Hoodwinked. He is still a lover and his favorite thing to do is snuggle. Any time his daddy is laying down anywhere, no matter what Zander is into at the time, if Daddy holds his arms out towards Zan the kid will drop whatever he is doing and run to his dad. He will then lay on top of his daddy, on his tummy, put his head on dad's shoulder, and tuck his little arms in between his stomach and dad's. It is so dang cute! He also can't start the day off right without coming in to my bed in the mornings for a drink and some snuggling.... he will lay there and mimic every thing I do. If I run my fingers down his face, or kiss he little button nose, he does it right back to me. That must be one of my favorite times of the day lately!

I have been homeschooling Aidan along with going to school myself since the beginning of January. Aidan is doing great, he is very smart and always gets his work done quickly and well. We have enjoyed this time together, just me, him, and Aidan.... but this has stretched on longer than I wanted it it to, and I am starting to feel like I am either not challenging him enough, or I am holding him back depending on how I approach it. He is currently working at a 5th grade level in math and English, 4th grade in science, he has taken an interest in some local history, so we have worked on that even though it is not in any curriculum I have found for his age group. He should be in 3rd grade, and the only thing he is doing 3rd grade level work on is handwriting. So we have made the decision together to allow him to attend the school right down the road from us. We are staying with my in-laws in this "community" called Anthem. Basically they want to have everything you need without ever leaving the community. There is a Safeway, a gas station, parks, water parks, pools, and even a school without ever leaving the safety and boundaries of the neighborhood. So this week Aidan and I will look into the school and see if the gifted program they have is a fit for us, so he may be back in school and hanging out with friends soon :) This is bittersweet for me. I love hanging with him, and watching him learn (holy cow I cannot believe how the kid picks things up...... I kind of feel like he would "self teach" just by reading the text if I let him, and he has done just this thing when he wants to work ahead. But the poor boy is feeling a little bored without the interaction of kids his age. He thrives on that, and he needs it. During this time of transition I have a hard time providing that basic necessity for him. We are not members of a church, I do not reach out and make friends that I know I will be moving away from, our only real activity is our weekly trip to the Coolidge library.

On another note with Aidan he is doing very well with all of his emotional issues. We have found a medication combo that is working well, and he is a normal happy 9 year old. No more talk of suicide, visiting his dad for a few days every few weeks. There are still some issues that he has, but he has Adam and myself as well as a counselor and we are all there for him. Thanks for all the prayers that I know came from alot of you on this subject!

We are visiting my parents right now. It has been a fantastic little break, and I will be sad to leave tonight. My dad shaved his entire face for the very first time in my life, and holy cow does he look like his fabulous sisters!!!! (Lori I miss hanging out with you. You were such a rock for me this past year, and I loved every minute that I got to spend with you and Jim!)

We had a picnic at woodland park on Saturday, the boys had a great time.... it is so sweet how they slide holding hands :)

My little Monkey

I have had some emotional moments this weekend. My dad and I were sitting in the living room on Saturday watching James Taylor live..... James Taylor is music that just reminds me of my daddy every time I hear it. My dad had to go and talk about which songs were the most important to him, even so far as to tell me what he would like played at his funeral. I hate to think about these things and still refuse to believe I could possibly loose these two incredibly important people in my life, but I could not help it. I found myself thinking of sitting in a room alone watching the James Taylor Live DVD we were watching, except that in this thought of mine I had lost my dad, and I just started crying just thinking about that. I love my parents very much, my dad has always been counted on my list of not only family that I love, but friends that I love as well. They are both amazing people, I am so lucky to have them as my parents!

Me and my sweet Zander ............... the poor kid was falling asleep in the bath

Zander was using Papa's "back to life" machine, so cute!

Seriously can you believe how much my dad looks like his sisters now?

I hope you are all well, leave me a comment, or an email to let me know.
Jen