July 2008

Oh, I was going to do so much better about posting to the blog, but things got crazy, and my mind was focused on survival rather than on creatively documenting our adventure. So we get another summary post.

The good, the at the time seemed bad, and the sitting pretty

We'll start with the good. We had a great 4th of July celebration with the Hales and the Knapps. We attended the annual parade in Idaho Falls, and the kids loved the bands and the horses. Nathan thought all the beauty queens were Cinderella and Abbie told them all to get sleeves. We were fortunate enough to be joined by Grandpa, Uncle Ryan and Jo! After the parade. Abbie helped me make red, white and blue cupcakes for a fun flag dessert for a chicken party at Grandpa-Great and Jo's house. We all enjoyed the firework show and the sparklers, too. It was just a great day. (Pics below)

Another good was that Michael and I celebrated our 5th anniversary on July 12. Hurray for us. So many things have happened to and for us in the last five years, and I am very happy to say that the majority fall in the "really great" category.

The what at the initial shock and time seemed bad part was when Sento (Michael's employer for the last 8 years) experienced yet another financial set back and did another round of lay offs in which Michael was included. We weren't sure how things would work out so Michael could finish school, have medical coverage for me and the baby, and still eat on a regular basis. Michael immediately began networking and had a job offer for contracting work in a matter of days. We felt extremely blessed. Our prayers had been answered.

Now the sitting pretty party.... After Michael had accepted the contract job offer, he was invited to interview for another position that would be permanent and offer benefits. We once again were blessed with a fantastic job offer. Michael turned down the contracting offer to begin work Aug. 1 at BYU-Idaho as an application analyst. We feel so grateful that they will allow him to finish school and we'll have the medical benefits we were concerned about. This position will bless our family in so many ways. We are extremely grateful that our prayers were answered. What could have been a really ugly situation has left us grateful and from our point of view...sitting pretty.

The kids are doing great. Abbie's new thing is to identify rhyming words. Occassionaly, she comes up with crazy ones and asks what rhymes with things like fireplace and butterfly, but is starting to understand the concept pretty well. Nathan is speaking more words in his own language of Nathanese. At his last well-child visit, the pediatrician recommended that he visit a speech therapist to identify or rule out any problems. We're still in the diagnosis phase with the therapist, but we hope to have some more information soon. Andrew (in case you didn't hear that's the name we have chosen for baby #3) is growing like crazy. So far so good. I have my dreaded blood glucose test on Monday so hopefully things will continue in a positive way.

Well, that's our July so far; it's been a roller coaster, but we have lived to tell the tale. Hurray!

Abbie enjoying the parade and her flag

Nathan enjoying the bands in the parade. He loved the trombones and the trumpets

Nathan sneaking one of Grandpa's cookies when he didn't think anyone was looking :-)
Nathan enjoying the fireworks at 1333.
Abbie enjoying a sparkler.
Grandma enjoying a sparkler. Grandma always has fun with the sparklers :-)
Haven't we all experienced the "so now what?" feeling at the end of a great day?
Abbie and Dad were going to campout in the backyard on the 4th of July, but the noise from all the fireworks in the neighborhood and the river (yes you could hear the rumble from our house) were a bit too much for Abbie so Dad ended up camping solo.