Little Bits of Life 25

Where shall we start? It's been so long.

1. Joe and I are exhausted. I mean EXHAUSTED with capital letters. He's been working late and on weekends to get the wind farm up and running. I am not sleeping well at night, getting up every 1 1/2 - 2 hours to use the restroom, and then taking forever to get back to sleep. For instance, last night I was up at 3, but couldn't get back to sleep until 5:30.

2. The wind farm project has been one-heck-of-a-mess. Joe stated that "I need to go to law school just to be able to read the contract." Others have told him that his contract is a nightmare, one of the worst they've seen, etc. However, the end is in sight. 25 turbines should be up and running by the end of this week.

3. The kids seem to have an endless supply of energy no matter how we try to wear them out. Letting them stay up late leads to a little more sleep in the a.m., but not much. Taking them all over the county to doctor's appointments, shopping, and adventures don't seem to wear on them at all, just the parents.

4. The kids have been asking "When can we get our cat? We've moved now." We had to pacify with an aquarium of fish. 4 fish to be exact. However, we are now down to 2. The other 2 got their tail stuck in the filter and that was the end of their short-lived lives. The kids flushed them down the toilet!!

5. The playroom/studio is a constant mess. Toys everywhere, food crumbs on the floor, and my baskets' contents emptied out on the floor daily. It's a never-ending battle.

6. We think we have finally decided to send Joci to the private school in the area. One of the reasons that have helped finalize the decision is that the public schools have large 1st grade classrooms (up to 25 students in each class) this coming school year with no aides. Another reason is that we have talked to a couple of different individuals in the community and it just seems that the people we encounter send their children to the private school. The third reason is that if we continue to stay and live in this area, then within the next coming year we hope to have a house in the community that Joe works in and where the school is located. There are some other major concerns that Joe and I have discussed about the public schools which have led to our decision but don't feel comfortable mentioning on the blog.

7. On the other hand, we have no idea where Byron is going to go to preschool. He wants to go to the same school with Joci, so he can ride the school bus. Ha! The public preschool is $90/month for 5 half days of school; I think that is a little steep on the price. It is similar to a model school, where the majority of students have developmental and/or learning needs. There is a private preschool that we have yet to check into, and there is a preschool in the Catholic school (not affiliated with the church or school--just using the building).

8. We have found a little ice cream shack down the road from our house. They serve baby cones just like in Nebraska, but only a little bigger and with candy faces on them. The kids love them!!! We frequently visit--1 or 2 times a week!!!

9. I decided not to do a summer list, like we did last year. I just didn't know how much we would get done with the move, the new baby, and the new job.

10. We thought about going to another minor league baseball game on the 4th of July to see the fireworks display, but after the past couple of weeks with little sleep and exhaustion Joe and I decided we better stay around town and find something else to do.

11. We've only been living in the rental for a month, and both Joe and I are ready to buy a house in the area. Our rental is smaller, carpeting everywhere--yuck, and then Joci and Byron are sharing a bedroom, which is not working out the greatest. We have to get on to them 3 or 4 times a night because they are giggling, talking too loud, banging on the walls, etc.

12. The garage still looks the same as it did in the last post. Tons of boxes still in there, just a little more organized on shelves.

13. We have 4 1/2 weeks until the due date of the new baby's arrival. However, it's not looking like it will be that long. My blood pressure is continuing to rise while on medication, and there is protein in my urine now. This doctor is not messing around. He's trying to hold out for another week or more, but he said that the first time my bp is high without going down while laying on my left side we're going into the hospital to deliver. And, if the protein reaches a 1.0, then we're done.

14. We just had a sonogram yesterday. The baby looks good. He/she weighs around 5lbs15oz. I've had both the steroid shots now. So, it's just a matter of waiting to see how long the little guy/girl can hold out.

15. Sorry there's no pictures!!! Maybe next time!!