I'm batting a thousand..

Hey -- it seems like I am averaging a post a year!! Well, in this past year we have had quite a bit happen: moved from Michigan to Texas; my husband lost his father while starting a new job; my son was diagnosed with ideomotor apraxia and is now not on the autistic spectrum and has started kindergarten; my daughter is trying to be potty trained,trying to drop naps, and is in school 2 days a week; and me -- well, I'm just trying to keep going.

I am knitting more, as I seem to get my good friends hooked on knitting. I also am much more active in MOPS and will be coordinator for next year here in Abilene. We also bought our first house and that has been pretty great.

It's hard to sum up a year, especially thinking how surreal it has been to move back here after 13 years -- so much has changed while so much has stayed the same. We are in close contact with mentors, people we went to school with, and with new friends.

Looking forward to discovering more!

It's been a while...

OK, it's been almost a year since I posted last -- I even had to get on the help feature to figure out how to add a post. Oh well...

I couldn't sleep last night and I started reading friends' blogs and found blogs of former teachers and people I really admire. I wish I had the time to really get into this blog thing. It made me somewhat wistful, though, reading what people are doing and dreaming, and still feeling like I am stuck in the daily grind of raising kids. Most of the time Joshua, now 5 1/2, acts like a normal kid, but sometimes we have confusing meltdowns and I remember that I am raising a special needs child. Karissa is 2 now and is really great, but come on! she is 2!

Reading blogs until 2 am reminds me that just because I am a mom I can't stop dreaming myself. I am so thankful for the people that have been in my life that continue to teach me and inspire me.

We did have a wonderful trip to Chicago for our spring break. The kids rode a train for the first time into the city and loved it! We went to the Museum of Science and Industry, the Thomas the Train store, American Girl Place, the Apple store, and the LEGO store, and had some great Cajun food at Heaven on Seven before we went back. I'll try to see if I can figure out how to get a picture posted on here.

new to iPods

Hi -- last week I did something pretty impulsive but something I've been wanting to do for a long time: I bought an iPod Shuffle. I couldn't justify getting the more expensive ones because I didn't know how much I'd really get to listen to it with 2 small kids... but checking out some things online and talking to people who have them said that if you want to use them for working out or light travel that they are the perfect thing.

Well, I have listened to more music OF MY OWN in the past week than I have in the past 4 years. I didn't truly realize how the only thing I listened to was Kindermusik CD's with some occasional Norah Jones and James Taylor in the evenings while I made dinner and was trying to avoid turning the TV on. I have also started running up and down our street while Joshua plays and Karissa naps, and listening to music of my choice while I run (and listening for a baby monitor and a 4 year old) has given me a HUGE sense of freedom. Last night I even listened to it doing some nightly cleanup and folding clothes since I didn't really want to hear the Masters (Steven is still a golf fiend, even though he cycles way more than he golfs).

Steven also got me an iTunes gift card at Valentine's Day and since we use Macs setting all this up has been so easy. I love the shuffle feature -- it's like I'm listening to a radio station that I programmed with all of my favorite music! (Gee, I sound like a commercial, don't I?) It's just for a mom of young ones who doesn't feel a lot of freedom and can't get away much, this is like a real oasis. And maybe if I can keep running, maybe I can finally get this postpregnancy weight off.

New to this...

OK, the whole world of blogs is just so new to me... (I've only done a chat once on my computer, and that was for training to be a Kindermusik teacher!!) But I've read so many of your blogs in the past few days, and I can't help but think where we all were back at the end of college, when the whole world seemed ahead of us. And now here we are, all mid-30-somethings, dealing with families, kids, jobs, faith, life...

Me too -- here in Michigan struggling with how to deal with my 4 year old son who has disorders on the autistic spectrum, and balancing that with my daughter who just turned 1 year old a few weeks ago. Balancing that with keeping a marriage of 12 years vibrant and with still trying to be a musician and teacher every once in a while.

I will enjoy reading everyone's pontifications (don't ask me where I pulled that word from) and hopefully you won't all laugh at mine...