The days have managed to slowly slip by. This weekend I agreed to allow both Dannah and Natalie to each invite a friend over for the night. In addition to the two extra girls, I ended up watching a friend's 4 year old son. Having seven kids running around is one way to occupy time, and I even survived, if only with a little less sanity!

Ian and I have been trying to talk in our spare time. He seems to be doing well, has been shipped off to multiple family friends to repair computer problems, but he doesn't seem to mind. If anything, the fact that people are asking for any of his time while he's there annoys me far more than it annoys him.

Today I had Hallie's parent/teacher conference. Other than being the youngest child in the class, she's doing very well! I still have some issues with the fact that my three year old was placed in a classroom with mostly five year olds, but the options are very limited. She really seems to be settling down, which is a positive thing considering Hallie has never been an easy child.

Natalie, Dannah and Claire are also doing well. Dannah received mostly fours on her report card, with a few 3+. She is being graded on a 3rd-4th grade level, so I am quite proud of how she's doing in the program. Natalie is also doing awesome, with all 3s on her report card. She really seems to be excelling this year. Claire is cutting four molars and has been in quite a mood lately. I hate the teething stage! Poor kiddo.

I am surviving. I still hate going to bed alone, but am grateful that Ian will be coming home. I really need a break and am hoping to talk him into a nice date night in the near future. I honestly can't remember the last time we went out without the kids.

Gotta Be Somebody

Ian called to let me know that Tim had been taken by ambulance this morning. Apparently he was having a lot of pain, which made breathing difficult. Ian said that Tim told him to go wait for the ambulance, that he didn't want Ian to see him like that. I texted Ian's sister and asked for an update, an hour later Ian replied and said they were in the ER and Tim's pain was being controlled by IV meds. Currently, I have no idea what is going on or if anyone will bother to contact me. I almost feel like it's "need to know information" and I'm not on the list of needing to know. I really hate being half a world away.

In other unrelated news, we picked up Dannah's glasses. She is thrilled and made comments about being able to see things she didn't know she wasn't able to see before. My poor child!

Snipped

The good thing? Ian made it to Australia. The bad thing? His luggage did not. As of last night it was somewhere between LAX and Sydney airport. In the meantime, I suppose he'll be borrowing some clothes from his dad.

I did talk to Ian for awhile last night. He was tired after his flights and a bit shocked over his dad's condition. I have a feeling he was expecting his dad to be weak, much like our previous trip, but not bed ridden and unable to walk anywhere on his own. He said his dad cried when he saw him, which reassures me we made the right decision for Ian to visit now.

Today I went to the salon and had just over 9 inches cut off. I love it! My hair hasn't been this short since I met Ian and it's nice to have a change. I am going to make an effort to keep up with it, as I can no longer shove it in a ponytail and go on my way.






Before, a bad self portrait.














After.

Heads we will and tails we'll try again

I am grateful I booked Ian's tickets on a whim, because I've been a total mess over the idea of him going. I spent most of the day in spontaneous tears, which is very unlike me. I honestly have no idea how I'm going to cope for eleven days without him! I intend on having both Hallie and Claire in bed with me to make it a little less empty. I hate this. I am so attached and dependent on my husband, he really is my rock. I realize I am being completely ridiculous.































The girls are all doing well. Dannah and Natalie had Friday off, so I managed to get them both in to the optometrist. The result was glasses for Dannah. Her vision was 50/20 in both eyes and I expected this day would come. Genetics were definitely not on her side. She picked out some pretty frames and her order should be in by Monday or Tuesday. Natalie, who has perfect eyes, was devastated that she wouldn't be getting glasses, too. I only hope she keeps her 20/20 vision, glasses are expensive!

I have booked an appointment at the salon on Tuesday to get my long hair chopped off. I really need something different. I've become accustom to pulling it back in a ponytail every day and I'm sure it looks terrible. I'm really looking forward to the change, so we'll see how it turns out.

I suppose I should help Ian pack. Ugh.

Death is the one thing we all have in common

Things have been tough lately. My father-in-law was diagnosed with terminal lung cancer in early April. A shock for everyone, considering he was an otherwise healthy 54 year old non-smoker. In a matter of months he went from a marathon cyclist to wheelchair bound.

In May we took the girls to Australia to spend a month with their grandparents. We wanted the girls to form memories, although we are fully aware that Hallie and Claire are too young to remember much, if anything. Tim certainly still had his good and bad days, but kept his sense of humor. We took turns going with him to radiation and the girls got to "color" on Pop as they marked him. The uncertain future made leaving difficult and while the girls were oblivious, my heart broke for Ian.

Today Colleen (my MIL) called at 8am (2am their time) to let us know that Tim was in the hospital with bleeding in the brain and a clot in his "good" lung. He has signed his DNR and declined in-hospice care, so that he can return home to die. Two hospice nurses will be helping Colleen, who is an RN herself, with his care. They have converted Ian's former room into a "hospital" room.

After months of denial, the reality has finally hit Ian. He agreed to let me book him a ticket to Australia. An hour after he got off the phone, he had a round trip ticket - leaving this Sunday and returning on the 20th. I have been pressing for months for him to go and I am so grateful he is finally doing so. Colleen reported that Tim cried when he heard that his son would be coming.

I just wish I could be with Ian during this time. We haven't spent a night away from each other in nearly five years and I'm panicking a bit over the idea. Eleven days! Purely selfish thoughts on my part and I would never voice them to Ian. My prayer at this point is that he makes it in time.

In the end, only kindness matters

The girls and I went searching for pumpkins. The first place we stopped was a stand that proudly proclaimed they donated 50% of their proceeds to the National Habitat. Unfortunately, the cheapest pumpkin in the lot was $15, which times four, was simply just out of our pumpkin budget. We moved on to a local Sunflower Market that opened last week. After spending a great deal of time allowing each girl to pick out their "perfect" pumpkins, we made our way to the end of the line. Twenty minutes later the cashier gave me our total of $10.40 and in return I handed him a twenty dollar bill. With a look of distress and a long line behind me he announced that he did not have change for a $20 and informed me that I would need to pay the $.40 so that he could give me an even ten back. I explained that I did not have $.40 but I could pay with my card or he could give me quarters for change. Confused he called out for a manager and the manager told him to wait and he would get him some one dollar bills and some change. At that point the older woman behind me reached into her purse and handed the cashier $.40. I told her it wasn't necessary, but thanked her profusely when she insisted. In short, she was probably tired of the stupid cashier and didn't want to wait any longer in line, but her kindness stayed with me. It never fails to amaze me the impact of a complete stranger's kindness.

Fall Break

Rarely does life manage to slow down. The girls have been on "Fall Break" and will return to school on Tuesday. Regardless of the fact that we haven't really done anything, they've enjoyed the time at home.

In other news, Ian and I are in the process of car shopping. Ian's car is in dire need of being replaced, before it blows up...or worse! Yesterday we went to a dealership and he picked out an Outback that he really likes, and the sales man offered a good deal. Tomorrow he'll take the day off work to sort out the financing and hopefully be able to pick it up. I'm grateful, there is absolutely no way we could manage being a one car family.

Bigger news: Hallie is completely potty trained! I was wondering if this day would ever come. Most things seem to be a power struggle with Hallie and this was no exception. She does things on her own time, it seemed that we made little influence with the process. Well she's finally decided that she's NOT a baby anymore, and big girls use the potty! With a new assortment of panties, we've managed to get rid of the pull-ups!