It's been 20 days since I've last posted, and again, my sincere apologies in not doing a better job of keeping up! I'll try to do better.

This month began with a sigh of relief as I completed my freelance project for Carroll Electric. Each year this electrical contractor participates in the Association of Builders and Contractors Projects of Distinction Awards. Since they don't like to write, and the submission requires extensive writing, they hire me. And they won again this year! I'm two for two now, which was why they were just fine when I raised the price of my work a touch. Yeah for me!

Classes and school have continued on in a desperately strenuous grind. Soon after Chris's birthday the stomach flu hit the house swiftly and mercilessly, and I found myself falling out of my patterns of working out. I'm slowly getting back into it, but the stress of classes has left me longing for sleep and time with my family.

Speaking of the loved ones, they continue to blossom. Jarod turned 8 on September 28, and Maria will be 6 this Saturday. Natalie has been wonderful also, and I keep getting funny notes about all of the goofy things she says in class from her teacher. This weekend, with the birthday on the horizon, we'll be carving pumpkins and hanging out at home, enjoying the beautiful autumn weather. And of course cake is part of the equation!

I'm two weeks away from completing this round of classes, and in that time I have 7 papers to write, so I'll definitely be working on that. I also have the end of quarter grades approaching, so as soon as I can, I'll be tackling that as well. I'm a mere two weeks from being mostly finished with my grad work, and my final class will begin--this time only one class per week for seven weeks. By the time the holidays roll around, I should be almost finished.

In the meantime, my happy thoughts are with you as Wisconsin's brilliance grows increasingly golden this fall. Be well, friends.

Turn of Events...

Sorry for the delay in updates. I've been a little buried the last few days.

The past couple of weeks have been an endless windfall of blessings and chaos. I was thrilled this week when I finally submitted the final copies of my freelance project for Carroll Electric of Janesville. It was a huge amount of work that I struggled balancing against my classes and school, so it is a tremendous relief to have it behind me.

The kids are sick this week, though, and that always takes a toll. Stomach flu is rampant in the schools these days, and our kids are no exception. Natalie had it first, and now Maria. I'm crossing my fingers and saying a prayer that it passes Jarod by (not to mention Chris and me), but time will tell.

School is, otherwise, going well for everyone. Jarod's doing well, though he struggles with math and social studies. SS is particularly difficult for him since the concepts are rather abstract, so the teachers are working to find ways to help Jarod connect with the material. Natalie will be going on a field trip with her class to a fire house, and Maria's class is going on a walking field trip to Menomonee Park so she can collect leaves and other autumn treasures.

Thank God, though, for Chris. He's been wonderful these last few weeks as things get pretty hectic around here. Things are going well at the lab, and he's pondering whether he wishes to pursue a graduate degree as well.

Good news came that we did not use our entire budget this last year for Jarod's therapy, and we have money left over for respite. And, as long s/he fits the county's requirements, we are allowed to hire the individual of our choosing. Kathy, a former therapist of Jarod's who has babysat our kids and knows them very very well, will be doing respite for us. We're thrilled to have this opportunity, and it'll be an extra support for our family. We're always grateful for the blessings we have in family and friends!

Jarod's birthday was a nice day. We had a special breakfast, and took the kids to the toy store to let him pick out his own present. Later, he and Chris went swimming at the Y while I took the girls to a birthday party for their friend next door. In the evening, we had dinner with mom and dad, including Jarod's birthday cake of choice--white cake, white frosting, white ice cream!

We're looking forward to celebrating the kids' birthdays on the 11th with our family. We can't wait to see you! Until then, be well friends.