These last few months.

In the Yard and Garden:

Planting of 4 trees

Blueberry bushes

Tomatos

Bell peppers

Cucumbers

It is a far harder thing to do with the shoulder issues so few gardening projects for me, just enough to cushion the grocery budget through summer.

The wildflower bed in the front is very pretty with lots of bachelor buttons.

On Education:

Third Quarter grades

 Five to six days a week at least 5 hours a day and my dream of giving an education to the children has been hard won. Dash will continue next year and want to attend Jr High, Dove wants to return to Jr. High next year.
My hopes for a firmer foundation are being met.

I have been earning a new skill in my beading now I am able to better knot and string.

Around the house:

LAUNDRY

Letting go of clutter and passing it on gives space to the bikes.

Just trying to keep up

Parenting:

My days are full of school, fixing three meals a day from scratch and being available to the kids and my husband.

Adoption day 14 for Dove

Dash had his 11^th birthday yesterday.

 It was a different more mature day. All these many years of making a party and spending a budget on that was changed to all of the budget onto one item. His desire an Itouch, not a phone but a tool for filming and correspondence/media.

 Happy Child. The sweet Grandparents took the children out to lunch yesterday and I dashed up to the grocery and purchased a small cake. Due to my arms making one was not doable. The injections the afternoon before left me far too tender.

 Big sister get to share her knowledge for she had one given to her last year for Christmas. All I do mean all kids these days have phones. Mine DO NOT. We much prefer to have the control over contacts and do without incurring monthly bills. I do not even have a cell. We really hate any bills except what must be to have utility and mortgage, insurance.

Daddy Man set up the new tool

It was hard to allow such an expensive item but we kept to the limits. It was wonderful to see Dash so happy and not begrudge his choice to forgo a party (I had to buy a small cake :)

Boundaries have been a huge focus in the training of the last 3 months. My desire is well able young adults, functioning as successful independent people. We are really focusing on responsibility and reality thinking. When you throw a ball up it will come down and one must consider what they will do about catching it or letting it get away to be lost.

The things of the spirit:

For the last several months my spirit has been healing the wrongs done me during the knee replacement. Those feelings left me in a real struggle filled with anger and pain. I really felt that God had abandoned me, or had asked just too much of me. Endurance is a hard thing. One day I will understand when comforting another where only those experienced intimately could. I think that perhaps the pain medication might of actually been stolen by employees. It is a common issue in nursing homes.

Health and self care:

Shots in each shoulder two days ago allow me to sit here and type a while. Although still tender the level of pain has resided significantly. Avoidance of any further surgery left me all but lame in both arms so pain was insistent and tasks stacking up. I was under the false understanding that no further cortisone injections were available that my limit had set me up to have corrective surgery as the next step. So for several months unwilling to go there I have been in pain unable to do much that required me upper body strength. The surgeon has ordered an MRI and surgery will occur on my right shoulder eventually, but today my pain is greatly improved! Bless GOD!

Creative outlets:

Sun catcher

 Mixed media, those are beads (of course) for the back ground. Sorta starry night image. I have yet to do the highlight in the eyes.

 My heart is my offering.

I have been working on a painting for our anniversary as a gift to my husband.

 This is so fun for Dash and his buddy. Imagine two 5th grade boys loving pix-elation the precursor of pointillism.

 Keeps the iron hot every day.

Relationships:

Our 30^th anniversary is in two weeks and we will get to go on holiday.

The children have sleep over’s every other weekend. My house is most often full of children making U tube videos’. They have such fun writing scripts and filming each other.
All of you have been so neglected as has my writing been. Just dealing with the levels of daily pain , slowed by it, I have all I can do to tend to each day. Now that my shoulders feel a lot better due to the injections I have been able to type! However I should stop soon.

Last night Dove and I spoke until well after midnight. She opened her heart up. Best hours spent listening.

Finance and Budgets:

We much prefer to have the control over contacts and do without incurring monthly bills. I do not even have a cell. We really hate any bills except what must be to have utility and mortgage, insurance.

Taxes are done! YA!!!!

We have been saving for our two day stay in Sedona AZ, a Hot Air balloon ride over the red rocks. We were able to match a goal for Dash and gave him a gift that excluded any party. The amounts spent in times past were not too different. We are now partially retired, well at least the checks will come monthly on our years past employer. It really will help us to have a little ease raising the kids into the teen years.

Goals ahead:
In May we hope to have enough saved up for a new refrigerator. My current one is 25 years old! Still works but it is hard on my back to bend now that my knee is now able to be knelt on. We hope to get one with the freezer on the bottom.