This last month or so has been a whirlwind of changes...some good and some bad...
Cassidy started 4 year old preschool and she absolutely loves it. She attends 3 days/week (MWF) in the morning. She has a "best friend" and they are so excited to see each other on school mornings. Outside of school we have been having some behavior issues. I am kind of at my wits end with it. I have tried every method of discipline I am comfortable with and I just haven't had much success. Our biggest difficulty is listening/following directions. Somedays I just have to walk away from her and regroup...she definitely challenges me. Cassidy is the eptiome of a firstborn child. If you have ever read Dr. Kevin Lehman's
The Birth Order book, you know what I am talking about! As a firstborn myself, I think that is why we have difficulties...I am praying that we will find a way to overcome this hurdle in a positive manner.
Cailin is Cailin...she runs the full range of emotions everyday. We go from happy, silly Cailin to Hurricane Cailin in full temper tantrum mode in a matter of minutes. This little girl loves to wear dresses, hates having her hair brushed, wants to be a big girl, loves to cuddle, and hates to go to bed. We have been enjoying our morning together. Jake tends to nap for a portion of the morning while Cassidy is at school, so that allows Cailin and I time to do some things together. She loves to help, so I am trying to be intentional in doing things that she can help me with during our mornings together.
Jake is a lovable, but challenging baby (at least for me)! He loves to cuddle with me and melts my heart with those big toothless grins. However, he is
REALLY attached to me, which makes it difficult to (1) get things done, (2) spend time with the girls, and (3) go anywhere without him. I can't wait to see him grow, but I am really enjoying the baby time. Since he is probably our last child, I just want to soak up all these little moments with him.
I am excited to see my childen develop and grow. I can't wait to see all the adventures they will have, but I am definitely enjoying all these moments with them. I especially like the "kid's say the darndest things..." moments. We have had many of those over the last few months!
It seems that September brought a lot changes to our house. Sadly, my Grandmother lost her battle with breast cancer a month ago today. She battled breast cancer for 18 years. The last few months were brutal. I didn't know quite how bad they were until I went to visit her about 2 weeks before she died. Each time I called her prior to my visit, she always said she was fine...a little tired, but fine. Well, that was typical Grandma...she never wanted to burden us, but there are days that I wished she would have. That visit with her was shocking. She was so thin and weak. She was struggling to breath and could barely get out bed. The next week I went up to visit and she was hardly coherent. My breath caught when I walked into her room and saw how frail she was...it broke my heart to hear her gasping for breath. It was almost a relief to get the phone call that she was finally resting in peace. There was so much pain and I was relieved that she was finally free of the pain that she had endured for 18 years. Some good as come of those days spent up north with the family. My aunt and I have developed a closer relationship. I am thankful for it. I hope it maintains as I can use as much support as I can get!
September also brought a bit of a surprise...we sold our house, which wasn't ever for sale! It is amazing how things work out. God was really watching out for us and presented a great opportunity. Our friend offered to purchase our house and we agreed. We were concerned about where we would live until we found a new home, but again He opened doors for us and others. Lucas' brother, Caleb, purchased a home last year in the area. However, he was offered a great job opportunity in Nashville, TN. Thus leaving his house available to us. We will be renting his house until we get a house. We put an offer in on a house that we are really excited about, but it is a short sale, so we are now waiting to hear if the sellers bank will accept our offer. We are praying that it goes through.
Now we are in the process of moving into Caleb's house as we finally have a closing date on our house. There is so much to do in the next couple weeks. I hope that we are able to stay sane during the next few weeks as we move and wait for news on our potential home.
For now...the days go by...and we try to enjoy the moments!
