Mid March!

Wow, middle of March already! I have lots of updates...the kids, the weather, my health , Darren's schedule, and a long awaited wedding! Whew! I'll work backwards.

My cousin Joey is recently engaged to long time girlfriend Arlee. We are VERY excited about this. Everyone in the family loves Arlee and we are incredibly excited to make her an official part of the family. They've also asked Ayla to be their flower girl. As you know, Ayla is an experienced flower girl. Her debut was in August of 2010 at my cousin Jordan's wedding. She is ecstatic about being a part of their wedding and I have to say, I am too!

Darren's schedule has been awful for the past 4-6 weeks. He is working tons of hours, days and nights. It's been hard on everyone. He wants to be home, the kid's miss him and so do I! The good news is that within a few weeks he should be back to having a semi normal schedule.

In a week and a half we're heading to Minneapolis for a little R & R. We're going to spend three days there...to take the kiddos to MOA to play at the amusement park. We'll also do the indoor water park for a day. I am excited for a few days for the 5 of us to hang out. It'll be good for us all.

I've continued to heal from surgery and am doing very well. I'm down 35 pounds, going to the gym 3 days a week and overall feeling more energetic. I had one little scare a week or so ago, passed out in the shower and crashed through the shower doors. Whoops! Ayla heard me and came in. I thought she was going to freak out and be worried about me. Nope, not at all. She put her hand on her hip, looked at the shower door and said "Dad is NOT going to be happy about this!" That's my girl *rolling my eyes here*. Anyway, the dizzy spells have passed, I'm keeping up on my protein, water, vitamins and an iron supplement. All is well.

The weather has been FAN-freakin-TASTIC! We've been in the 70-80's all week! Needless to say we've been spending lots of time outside. We've been to the park nearly everyday, blowing bubbles, sidewalk chalk, walking the dogs, grilling our dinner and airing out our house. I love this weather, it does so much for every one's moods. The kids are requiring daily baths again. At the end of every night they've got dirt under their fingernails, sand in their hair, scraped knees that could use a good soaking and that "dirty kid smell". It's totally worth it though.

Overall, the kids are doing well. Ayla is sassy and mouthy and it seems to be getting worse. I suppose some of that is her age and the other part may just be that she's a bit too much like her mama. Either way, she and I have had some knock-down drag-outs about her behavior. Sigh. I'll just say we're still working on it. She's doing great in school and is reading at a first grade level. She should have no problems in the fall when she starts kindergarten!

Dailon is good. He really wants to be in school, we're trying to get him in to a specialized program for kids who have behavior issues. His behavior is fine at home but at his visits and in a school setting he still struggles. He's had weekly therapy sessions for about a month now, hopefully he's making progress. He's a happy boy, so social and outgoing. Everyone who knows him loves him. He is so smart and has great potential. I pray that there is resolution to this ridiculous case and he gets the permanency that he needs and deserves soon. I know that when that happens, his issues will subside.

Chary will be three in a few short months! Ack! She's been totally potty trained since December and is becoming fiercely independent. She wants to do everything for herself - buckling her car seat, putting on her shoes, zipping her jacket. She gets mad when she in unable to do these things easily. Last night and this afternoon for her nap she slept in her big girl bed! I've had her bed in her room for about 6 months but she's still been sleeping in her crib. I'm sure she was ready, but I wasn't! Amazingly, she did great. She stayed in her bed all night and waited for me to come get her out of bed this morning. She's such a big girl!!

I have pictures to post but need to upload them from the camera. That'll have to wait until tonight. I'll just create a separate picture post later.