Tween

 

ARC walks our neighbor's dog 3x/week in the morning before school to make a little cash.

She spends lots of her time hanging out with her favorite sister, dressing her up, and posing her.

She seems to like taking selfies on her morning walks.

But one of her favorite past-times right now is shopping at the DI - and usually finding something to dress MTC up in!

ARC is enjoying her tween phase, and being in middle school. She loves hanging out with friends, and has made a lot of them here. She likes to ride the bus with neighborhood friends. She loves to go shopping at Farmington Station. She gets stressed out by practicing and lacrosse commitments. She could read all day long every day if she didn't have somewhere to be with friends. But she is also making decent progress on cello and lacrosse, and complaining about them less and less.

Teddy Bear Sleepover & ADHD

 GDC, GSC & MTC all took their stuffed dogs to the library last night for a sleepover. GDC felt like he couldn't be apart from Parley, so he chose a different stuffed dog. 

GDC was officially diagnosed this summer with ADHD, and has been trying out meds this school year just like Dad and CPC. He is taking the same medication as them with a lower dosage. So far it seems to be helping, and he is growing more confident in his ability to understand and manage his differences. He is loving school this year with the same teacher he had in 2nd grade. He has good friends and gets to have Dad be his coach for his lacrosse team.

Fire Station Open House & Rhythm Book

 

GSC tends to like all the things his big brother likes. This includes GDC's love of fire stations and trucks. So when I drove past the Centerville fire station this week and saw that there was an open house, I quickly called GDC to ask if he wanted to go, and of course he said yes. When I asked GSC if he wanted to go also, he said "of course!" So we hustled over for them to do an obstacle course, get fire hats, bags full of activity books and emergency preparedness stuff. They loved the opportunity to "drive" the fire truck as well.

GSC also finished his Level 1 Rhythm Book this last week and earned a mommy date for it. He's worked on it for so long, and really is a great little sight reader! As soon as GDC finishes his rhythm book (he's only 10 lessons away), they'll get a mommy/daddy date to Costa Vida! GSC has Mrs. Hope this year for 1st grade.

Daddy time at the zoo

MTC got the chance this week to go to the zoo with just mom and dad. She is getting to be such a big girl. She loves looking at animals, walking by herself, getting drinks from drinking fountains, and feeding herself blueberries & goldfish. But what she really loves most are hugs and cuddles, especially from her mom and dad. She is getting an extra special chance to bond with dad while he's out of work and gets extra time with him. We are grateful that daddy got some unexpected paternity leave!

MTC is a sturdy walker, has 12 teeth, still likes breastfeeding, and is very confident and independent.

She also got to go to a Bees' game and really enjoyed going up and down the stairs the whole game.

Trying Something New

I have tried many things when it comes to getting back on top of journaling for our family. It is so important to me. However, as it turns out, our life is chaotic. So, here's my newest attempt. I'm setting a timer for 15 minutes, and I'm going to do what I can in that time. I don't know when and if I'll do it again, but hopefully I can make a plan and follow through.

So, right now, here's what you get.

PMC - Lost his job in February. Been on ADHD meds for about a year and a half now. That is helping him with work and being my partner SO MUCH. He's quite sad that it somehow turned out not to be enough to keep this job, because he truly loved it. But he's feeling very confident about moving forward, which he has never really experienced in any of his job losses. He sliced his thumb and index finger open on the table saw a few weeks ago, had surgery on it, and is healing quite well we think. He has quite a few job applications in right now and we're hopeful this won't be a long process. He's also pretty confident he knows how to choose a job that will play to his strengths and not require him to be in a position where his weaknesses inhibit him from keeping a job.

ATEC - I have been struggling to keep myself out of depression for about the same amount of time PMC has been on his ADHD meds. I became far too overwhelmed with the mental load of 6 kids and a husband who often relies on me as a child would because of his ADHD. I feel like my soul just decided it couldn't do it anymore. I'm grateful that the timing lined up with PMC taking meds, because it really has given him the ability to stand on his own and start taking back his share of the mental load. I have been able to lean on him, and I'm so grateful. When he lost his job, I decided to do some more Suzuki training, and even went to Kansas City to do Suzuki Early Childhood Education training in March. I stayed with my friend Andrea, and PMC took care of everything at home with hardly any guidance from me. It was such a relief to have nearly a week entirely to myself to do whatever I wanted with my time, nobody relying on me for anything! I am now in the process of deciding how to move forward. I am looking into a job at the Gifted Music School in SLC, but also still considering running my own preschool music classes from home.

MTC - well, MTC was born in April of last year - and she's almost 1. She is our sweet little caboose, and we are so grateful for her. She started walking last month. She seems to think that her purpose in life is to make everyone smile. We are so lucky to have her.