The Boy Scouts of America issued a statement on their website with their new MembershipStandards/Resolution on May 23 (2 days ago) that they will be allowing openly gay students to join the BSA as of January 1st, 2014. Some may applaud this decision, but we are heartbroken over it.
For 103 years, the Boy Scouts has promoted high moral character, upright living, with a focus on doing good, learning survival skills, and encouraging boys to be boys... with strong moral character.
Now, they have apparently decided that strong moral character is no longer important? Since when?
My husband, an Eagle Scout, and our oldest son, who just crossed over to Bear Scout (3rd year Cub Scout) are withdrawing from the scouting organization with heavy hearts.
We aren't opposed to the people who say they are gay - it's the actions we are against, not the people. We're all sinners - gay or straight - but the gay lifestyle is living intentionally in that sin - and some of them so flagrantly that they feel the need to smear it in our faces. We don't push our orientation in their faces with our comments or excessive displays of public affection - and we certainly do not want them pushing theirs in ours.
Love the sinner, hate the sin. We don't hate the people - but we hate the *lifestyle* of men being with men, and women being with women. It is contrary to the Biblical standards we hold so dear, and we don't want this forced into the awareness of our children. As the children mature, we do explain to them about how different people choose different lifestyles than we do - some just different from us, some wrong, some right, but we also stress that it is not our place to stand in judgement. It is, however, our place to stand firm in our convictions and to stand for what is right. This is something the Boy Scouts of America used to be proud to do as well. Why they stopped, what changed all that, is baffling.
I don't get it - why does sexual orientation need to factor in?
Now, for the arguments that the BSA isn't about sexuality - no, it's not. It's about boys being boys and learning to do things in nature, in life... their camping trips and things are supposed to be "safe" from certain kinds of influences - one of the reasons why it's not co-ed, right? It isn't appropriate for a bunch of girls and boys to go camping together, sharing tents with the opposite gender, when they are unrelated. How then is it ok for boys who are attracted to boys to share a tent with other boys? How safe is it (for the straight boys or the gay boys) to go camping in the same tent with another boy who may decide that he has a "crush" on his tentmate, or for a straight boy who is so opposed to the gay lifestyle that there may be bullying? what about if there are 2 or more "gay" boys who decide to go after a straight boy? (it's happened - maybe not in scouts, but I know it has happened - I know a straight boy who was attacked by 3 gay boys and spent much time in intensive care recovering from what they did to him, and he will never be the same *physically* as he was before that time, never mind the emotional and psychological trauma). Boy Scouts is supposed to be safe from all that stuff.
Years ago, I worked as a secretary in am auto glass shop. The tune up shop next door had a gay female who worked there - she decided that she liked me "that way" and really pursued me - even when I made it clear that I was not interested. At. All. I didn't want to be rude to her, but it reached a point that I went to my boss in tears, begging him to deal with her and make her leave me alone (he treated me like a daughter, and at that time, I went to him as a father-figure in need of his help). That behavior was intimidating- at times it was frightening. And yes, I was an adult. I was a mother. I'm not easily intimidated, but she managed to do it with how pushy she was and how forceful she was about if I would "just try it", I'd find that I would "want it". Um. No.
Am I saying that all gay people will be pushy like that? No. Are all straight people pushy like that? No. But some are. Do I want my sons to go on a scout outing and potentially have to deal with that? And if they speak up, will they be accused of being "intolerant" or "hateful" for refusing the advances of a gay person? That's just not fair. But it has happened to others for not being gay or being opposed to the gay lifestyle.
There have been gay scouts (I imagine there are some right now), but they are/were not *openly* gay - it wasn't a topic, it wasn't an issue - but by making it an issue through allowing *openly* gay boys to join the Boy Scouts, it has become an issue. Sex has suddenly become a topic that our boys must have thrown in their faces as a result of this. They are boys. Not men. Not yet. They should be building things, learning about nature, putting up tents, going fishing, doing good deeds... exploring the world. Not exploring sexuality. That is for the adult world.
Boy Scouts used to be a safe place for our boys to grow and learn and explore. Now, it isn't going to be that safe place anymore.
It feels like the leaders who have made this decision (and yes, we did get the survey, filled it out and shared our voice in opposition to this move) have failed. They have failed as strong, moral characters, they have failed as men. They have failed our boys. Shame on them. They should be as ashamed of themselves as we are of them.
Saturday, May 25, 2013
Tuesday, May 21, 2013
Graduating our oldest
Here are some pictures of her special day:
After TJ spoke (using Proverbs 31 and Colossians 3:12-17 as the "foundation" of his talk), and I gave a little history on our homeschooling journey, he gave Natasha her diploma (after reading it aloud to our guests) and I gave her a little statuette (both pictured at the top of this blog entry)
After the short ceremony, we served refreshments and had a time of fellowship, enjoying the quiet afternoon - we had about 25 show up to celebrate her day, and had fun in each other's company. It was a relaxed time, and she came away from it all smiles!
The cupcakes were made by a friend who has done a good bit of professional catering and cake decorating - they were scrumptious! (and her frosting beats the pants off of mine - I need to get a copy of her recipe!!)
Natasha made regular and blueberry scones, and I sliced strawberries and watermelon and pineapple, plus put out some pretzels, and we had a 7 layer dip with chips made by a friend as well. Simple, easy, and nice.We also had a display board with pictures collected from infancy through her birthday last month, which came together nicely, and her friends especially enjoyed the ages and stages of her "life in pictures".
All said, it was quite an exciting experience! One down... at least eight more to go! I'm not in any rush, though! *grin*
I never thought I would...
Things I never thought I would do…
Put my hand in a cow’s mouth
Put a thermometer in a cow’s rear
Stick any animal with a needle
Land in a pig slop trough
And laugh about it!
Stay awake at night worrying about a calf making it through the night
Spend more on animal feed in a month than on people groceries!
Get to where I wouldn’t buy meat
Because of raising all of our own!
Be excited about all the manure outside
Because it’s free compost for the garden!
Skin a pig
Make my own bacon
Cure my own ham
Grind my own meat
That I raised and grew and fed
And played with!
Chase a cow through a muddy pasture during a thunderstorm
To keep it from getting out through the barbed wire
And spending half of the next day fixing fence that startled cows trampled
And unbending/ straightening the cattle panels.
Putting up 5 acres of fence by myself
Making sure the fence line is straight and panels attached securely.
Learning to raise animals while raising nine kids
Having nine kids
That are mine!
And loving it!!
Running 3 loads of laundry
Every day
6 days a week
And still getting behind on laundry at times!
Yup, learning to be a hobby farm wife and mom to a large family has been a growing and learning experience! Make that MANY experiences!!! J
And you know what?
I wouldn’t trade it.
Not for the world.
Sunday, May 12, 2013
Polar Bear Dance...
Living with a person who has bi-polar disorder is like a long and winding roller coaster - sometimes things go smoothly, with a few minor bumps and curves (that everyone everywhere experiences from time to time in life) and sometimes you're holding on to the edge of your seat almost certain that you're going to be thrown from the ride or derail in a horrific accident. There are immensely satisfying days and excruciatingly painful days. The trick is figuring out which one you get more of.
Thankfully in this day and age, mental illness is not looked upon as a spiritual disease (except in a few extremist groups) and it is something that is becoming more and more recognized and treated in the medical community. I remember growing up in my father's home under his manic-depressive rule (manic depression was later re-named bi-polar disorder) and the swing between fear of catching his attention and desperation to catch it. It wasn't until after I left his home during my high school years that he was diagnosed, and I remember the tremendous relief to hear about it - it wasn't all my fault after all! There was something much bigger than me or his dislike of me going on. Sometimes I wonder if it was a blessing or a curse to grow up in his household, with the issues mental illness brings with it - on the blessing side, I was able to recognize many signs in my daughter to get an early diagnosis from a good psychologist for her "early onset" bi-polar, and we have since been working on getting a good, stable hand on her medications. Of course in the medical community it seems they have drugs for just about everything - not all of them good for you, and many that are long-term detrimental to a person's health - many untested over long periods of time, or not intended for use in children - all of these especially good reasons to research medications suggested by the docs and to also research natural alternatives (to be used with a knowledgeable mental health professional so that we don't do more harm than good or use something that may contraindict with another medication, etc...) Needless to say, this has been a learning journey. And the difference between being the daughter of a bi-polar parent is a significant change from being the parent of a bi-polar child. Add in the teen age years and you get a very interesting (and sometimes tenuous) combination.
In our case, we get a bear of many colors. Much like a "mood ring" of the 70s and 80s, her colors can change in an instant and last for seconds, hours, or days. Bi-polar swings do not always come with a depressive swing, but can come with an anger swing instead - taming that beast (the swing, *not* the child - definitely not calling the child a beast - just to be clear) can be difficult and sometimes feels impossible. We're still figuring it all out - sometimes it feels like we're making headway, and other times it feels like an absolute, utter, and complete failure. Sometimes as a parent *I* feel like an utter and complete failure because of the bi-polar behaviors we struggle with at times. It's a roller coaster.
Personally, I always preferred the tilt-a-whirl, the carousel, the thunderbolt... the rides that can feel like you're going round in circles and sometimes a little like things are spinning out of control, yet you know the ride is firmly grounded. There are no tracks to go flying off of, and there are seatbelts to help you stay in your seat - oh, and there's not flipping upside down where you might fall out of your seat! Unlike roller coasters where you can have any and/ or all of those things.
No, the roller coaster of bi-polar is more like a dance from one roller coaster to the next - and no one in the home or family escapes the ride. In some ways, it helps to build character and helps a family learn problem solving skills and life skills in how to handle more... challenging... kinds of people (ok, I'll say it - difficult people, because some people just are, bi-polar or not!) On the flip side, it can also hurt. Like dancing with a partner who keeps trodding on your feet. It can be downright painful at times.
Growly bear, grouchy bear, the so-not-a-morning-bear, the snuggly bear, hungry as a bear, teddy bear, and mad on-a-rampage bear... Which bear will we dance with next?
Thankfully in this day and age, mental illness is not looked upon as a spiritual disease (except in a few extremist groups) and it is something that is becoming more and more recognized and treated in the medical community. I remember growing up in my father's home under his manic-depressive rule (manic depression was later re-named bi-polar disorder) and the swing between fear of catching his attention and desperation to catch it. It wasn't until after I left his home during my high school years that he was diagnosed, and I remember the tremendous relief to hear about it - it wasn't all my fault after all! There was something much bigger than me or his dislike of me going on. Sometimes I wonder if it was a blessing or a curse to grow up in his household, with the issues mental illness brings with it - on the blessing side, I was able to recognize many signs in my daughter to get an early diagnosis from a good psychologist for her "early onset" bi-polar, and we have since been working on getting a good, stable hand on her medications. Of course in the medical community it seems they have drugs for just about everything - not all of them good for you, and many that are long-term detrimental to a person's health - many untested over long periods of time, or not intended for use in children - all of these especially good reasons to research medications suggested by the docs and to also research natural alternatives (to be used with a knowledgeable mental health professional so that we don't do more harm than good or use something that may contraindict with another medication, etc...) Needless to say, this has been a learning journey. And the difference between being the daughter of a bi-polar parent is a significant change from being the parent of a bi-polar child. Add in the teen age years and you get a very interesting (and sometimes tenuous) combination.
In our case, we get a bear of many colors. Much like a "mood ring" of the 70s and 80s, her colors can change in an instant and last for seconds, hours, or days. Bi-polar swings do not always come with a depressive swing, but can come with an anger swing instead - taming that beast (the swing, *not* the child - definitely not calling the child a beast - just to be clear) can be difficult and sometimes feels impossible. We're still figuring it all out - sometimes it feels like we're making headway, and other times it feels like an absolute, utter, and complete failure. Sometimes as a parent *I* feel like an utter and complete failure because of the bi-polar behaviors we struggle with at times. It's a roller coaster.
Personally, I always preferred the tilt-a-whirl, the carousel, the thunderbolt... the rides that can feel like you're going round in circles and sometimes a little like things are spinning out of control, yet you know the ride is firmly grounded. There are no tracks to go flying off of, and there are seatbelts to help you stay in your seat - oh, and there's not flipping upside down where you might fall out of your seat! Unlike roller coasters where you can have any and/ or all of those things.
No, the roller coaster of bi-polar is more like a dance from one roller coaster to the next - and no one in the home or family escapes the ride. In some ways, it helps to build character and helps a family learn problem solving skills and life skills in how to handle more... challenging... kinds of people (ok, I'll say it - difficult people, because some people just are, bi-polar or not!) On the flip side, it can also hurt. Like dancing with a partner who keeps trodding on your feet. It can be downright painful at times.
Growly bear, grouchy bear, the so-not-a-morning-bear, the snuggly bear, hungry as a bear, teddy bear, and mad on-a-rampage bear... Which bear will we dance with next?
Monday, May 6, 2013
Gearing down... or is that winding up?
Not sure which it is, or if it can/ will actually happen, but the goal by the end of this month is to get our schedule a little quieter! :)
It's been non stop the last few months - between handling farm chores (we did decide on a name, by the way - "Windy Acres" - it just fits :), feeding and fattening up our new babies (wow are they getting big!!) and playing mama-vet to a sick calf (long story, but he's much better now!!), then of course my normal day to day stuff of schooling the 6 oldest kids, preparing for our oldest daughter's graduation (less than 2 weeks away!!!), keeping up with laundry and trying to keep up with housework (a little here, a little there - it's mostly done by the end of the week each week) and adding in a couple hours of driving my husband to and from work each morning and evening - whew, I'm ready for a break! :)
Happy endings - 4-H projects are wrapping up and the kids are "gearing down" and getting busy with individual projects to submit for the fair in July - that comes with it's own set of busy, but I'm trying to keep everyone on top of what needs doing so there isn't any last minute rushing right before the deadline!
School... well, the 3 youngest aren't old enough yet, the 3 middlest are done (yeah!!) for this year, and the 3 oldest are wrapping up - Lord willing they should be all finished by the end of this week! (please, please, please....) We've pushed hard and are all looking forward to the break :) Of course, the beginning of that break includes my annual lesson planning for the upcoming year - usually takes a couple hours a day for about a week and I'll have at least our summer term and first semester planned out! I'll tackle the second semester in December, and probably not before... *grin*
Cub Scouts - Andrew is close to finishing up his year as a Wolf, and will be crossing over to Bear later this month. He is beyond excited - this means that he gets to get his hands on the new book and start working his way through a new set of projects, some with Daddy, some with me, and some on his own - regardless of who he does things with, it gives him a whole new set of adventures to tackle. It's great to see him take off with this and enjoy it all so much!!
Speech class - Abigail, Rachel, and Sarah are finishing up their classes tomorrow, with the "grand finale" being their presentations for parents. Each girl (as is true of each of their classmates) has been selected by their instructors to do certain tasks/ performances for the parents & guests for their last day of class. It's been a great learning experience for them, and we're looking forward to the next class coming up again next school year! :)
GRADUATION DAY!!! Such an odd feeling, realizing that Natasha will no longer be in high school after this year... wow! She starts college classes, or at least that is the plan, in the fall. I've requested that she take a minimum of one year of basic courses, and of course she can add in electives for fun stuff (underwater basket weaving anyone??) She's really thinking that she would like to work as a bank teller until the time comes for her to be married (no, nothing on the horizon there - just something she's thinking about long term. She is in agreement that a wife's place is ideally in the home once she is married, so while she's interested in learning the intricacies of banking as a short term goal, she is eventually wanting to marry, stay home and have children, and has talked about how she looks forward to homeschooling them when the time comes (oh, that does a mama's heart good!). Until such a time as the Lord brings the young man into her life that He has for her, she plans to remain home, taking some classes to expand her education and working part time while she prepares for the future.
This also starts the mark of some new things - more time with the barn babies - working on barn projects more, more time to play outside, gardening projects, weaning the bottle calves in a couple more weeks (or rather, starting the weaning process...) and gearing up for butchering our second cow (he's finishing now!)
TJ is very much looking forward to his CT scan at the end of this week, which will determine if he will be allowed to start walking anytime soon again or not - we're all hopeful that things will look good and the doc will give him the green light to start putting some weight on his new foot and work on regaining the strength that has been lost over months of not using it. His running will be on the back burner for some time yet, but he's really looking forward to at least getting to walk on both feet again. Upside is that once he's back up to strength, he can be more independant (this dependance thing has been hard on him, and I know he's feeling guilty watching me do all the work that we both normally do, and when I'm too tired to stay awake for a good conversation or anything else at night, he feels it even more so) - the downside is that it will put him back out in the missile field, so he won't be home every day again for who knows how long. That part stinks, because it's been nice having him home every evening (even when I'm not energetic and awake enough to be much company, lol). I guess pretty much every knife has two sides to it, though, huh? Some things are good, some are not as much.
That said, when he's driving again, I'll also regain those hours of my day driving back and forth from the base to catch up on things that I've fallen behind on and can have more energy to spend with my husband when he is home - and more focus on the kids, too! :) IN the meanwhile, kids and I have been working together on barn things and feeding animals and what not, along with school time, so at least it's not like we have to ship them off to public school and then they only get me when I'm already worn down to a nub of alert energy :) Homeschooling is a tremendous blessing in so many ways!
Another up and coming is with the animals - kids will be getting horse riding lessons starting at the end of this month, through the summer - even better, it's a barter deal (suggested by their teacher, who is also one of their 4-H leaders) - they get 2 hours of lessons once a week at our house with our horses in exchange for a quarter of beef when we butcher our next cow! Sweet! :)
We also have the upcoming learning experience on training hogs and calves - that is going to be a new experience for us, but we're looking forward to getting those things figured out that escaped us so very badly last year! ha! :) I'll be out there learning right alongside the kids, too - I don't want a repeat of George, our last cow (and wow is he yummy!!) with his charging and rough play when he's 5 and 6 times a grown man's weight! that got a little scary for me, lol - I"m looking forward to learning how to teach the calves (while they are still small enough!) how to lead tie, halter, and follow on the lead rope without the bucking and playing and trying to wrestle the humans handling them! *grin* all good lessons for them and us to learn!
So, yeah, it's been a wild and busy ride these past months, keeping up with most things and trying to at least cover the surface of things that haven't gotten the attention they need - looking forward to our school break, the graduation of our oldest in a couple of weeks, the opportunities with outside and animals and gardens and all sorts of stuff we're learning about :)
We have a trip scheduled in August for kids to see the eye specialist again - if all continues to go well with Rebecca, the doc said she will probably not need the eye surgery we had anticipated her having, which is exciting! Ben seems to be developing a more acute case of the same issues, which becomes more and more visible to my untrained eye, and so I had him in for a check up the other day - sure enough, so we have a referral in for him to see the same doc, as well as Andrew, who has a much more mild case of the same. It's called an eye muscle disease, but isn't a disease in the sense that I tend to think (when I hear disease, I think cancer or heart issues - this isn't scary like that, as with treatment it can be helped and can retain their eyesight (a definite bonus! *grin*) Anyway, sometimes patching the strong eye to make the weakening eye work harder, sometimes corrective glasses and/ or eye exercises do the trick. Having a great doc with the knowledge and expertise (experience and education!) to know how to best help each child's individual needs is key, and we are so thankful for our doc with his decades of experience!! Anyway, the long drive is nice and scenic, and the city we go to see that doc is big with a Hobby Lobby and a Toys R Us, so the kids always have a blast on those trips, long days that they are. :)
I'll try to get updated pictures of our growing barn babies soon - but of course that's time dependant, so we'll see when I can! In the meanwhile, hope you have a great rest of the month, and I'll try to update more when things get a little quieter and less busy around here. :)
Little man Caleb is needing Mama nursies, Hannah and Ben need snuggle stories, and so I need to run! :)
It's been non stop the last few months - between handling farm chores (we did decide on a name, by the way - "Windy Acres" - it just fits :), feeding and fattening up our new babies (wow are they getting big!!) and playing mama-vet to a sick calf (long story, but he's much better now!!), then of course my normal day to day stuff of schooling the 6 oldest kids, preparing for our oldest daughter's graduation (less than 2 weeks away!!!), keeping up with laundry and trying to keep up with housework (a little here, a little there - it's mostly done by the end of the week each week) and adding in a couple hours of driving my husband to and from work each morning and evening - whew, I'm ready for a break! :)
Happy endings - 4-H projects are wrapping up and the kids are "gearing down" and getting busy with individual projects to submit for the fair in July - that comes with it's own set of busy, but I'm trying to keep everyone on top of what needs doing so there isn't any last minute rushing right before the deadline!
School... well, the 3 youngest aren't old enough yet, the 3 middlest are done (yeah!!) for this year, and the 3 oldest are wrapping up - Lord willing they should be all finished by the end of this week! (please, please, please....) We've pushed hard and are all looking forward to the break :) Of course, the beginning of that break includes my annual lesson planning for the upcoming year - usually takes a couple hours a day for about a week and I'll have at least our summer term and first semester planned out! I'll tackle the second semester in December, and probably not before... *grin*
Cub Scouts - Andrew is close to finishing up his year as a Wolf, and will be crossing over to Bear later this month. He is beyond excited - this means that he gets to get his hands on the new book and start working his way through a new set of projects, some with Daddy, some with me, and some on his own - regardless of who he does things with, it gives him a whole new set of adventures to tackle. It's great to see him take off with this and enjoy it all so much!!
Speech class - Abigail, Rachel, and Sarah are finishing up their classes tomorrow, with the "grand finale" being their presentations for parents. Each girl (as is true of each of their classmates) has been selected by their instructors to do certain tasks/ performances for the parents & guests for their last day of class. It's been a great learning experience for them, and we're looking forward to the next class coming up again next school year! :)
GRADUATION DAY!!! Such an odd feeling, realizing that Natasha will no longer be in high school after this year... wow! She starts college classes, or at least that is the plan, in the fall. I've requested that she take a minimum of one year of basic courses, and of course she can add in electives for fun stuff (underwater basket weaving anyone??) She's really thinking that she would like to work as a bank teller until the time comes for her to be married (no, nothing on the horizon there - just something she's thinking about long term. She is in agreement that a wife's place is ideally in the home once she is married, so while she's interested in learning the intricacies of banking as a short term goal, she is eventually wanting to marry, stay home and have children, and has talked about how she looks forward to homeschooling them when the time comes (oh, that does a mama's heart good!). Until such a time as the Lord brings the young man into her life that He has for her, she plans to remain home, taking some classes to expand her education and working part time while she prepares for the future.
This also starts the mark of some new things - more time with the barn babies - working on barn projects more, more time to play outside, gardening projects, weaning the bottle calves in a couple more weeks (or rather, starting the weaning process...) and gearing up for butchering our second cow (he's finishing now!)
TJ is very much looking forward to his CT scan at the end of this week, which will determine if he will be allowed to start walking anytime soon again or not - we're all hopeful that things will look good and the doc will give him the green light to start putting some weight on his new foot and work on regaining the strength that has been lost over months of not using it. His running will be on the back burner for some time yet, but he's really looking forward to at least getting to walk on both feet again. Upside is that once he's back up to strength, he can be more independant (this dependance thing has been hard on him, and I know he's feeling guilty watching me do all the work that we both normally do, and when I'm too tired to stay awake for a good conversation or anything else at night, he feels it even more so) - the downside is that it will put him back out in the missile field, so he won't be home every day again for who knows how long. That part stinks, because it's been nice having him home every evening (even when I'm not energetic and awake enough to be much company, lol). I guess pretty much every knife has two sides to it, though, huh? Some things are good, some are not as much.
That said, when he's driving again, I'll also regain those hours of my day driving back and forth from the base to catch up on things that I've fallen behind on and can have more energy to spend with my husband when he is home - and more focus on the kids, too! :) IN the meanwhile, kids and I have been working together on barn things and feeding animals and what not, along with school time, so at least it's not like we have to ship them off to public school and then they only get me when I'm already worn down to a nub of alert energy :) Homeschooling is a tremendous blessing in so many ways!
Another up and coming is with the animals - kids will be getting horse riding lessons starting at the end of this month, through the summer - even better, it's a barter deal (suggested by their teacher, who is also one of their 4-H leaders) - they get 2 hours of lessons once a week at our house with our horses in exchange for a quarter of beef when we butcher our next cow! Sweet! :)
We also have the upcoming learning experience on training hogs and calves - that is going to be a new experience for us, but we're looking forward to getting those things figured out that escaped us so very badly last year! ha! :) I'll be out there learning right alongside the kids, too - I don't want a repeat of George, our last cow (and wow is he yummy!!) with his charging and rough play when he's 5 and 6 times a grown man's weight! that got a little scary for me, lol - I"m looking forward to learning how to teach the calves (while they are still small enough!) how to lead tie, halter, and follow on the lead rope without the bucking and playing and trying to wrestle the humans handling them! *grin* all good lessons for them and us to learn!
So, yeah, it's been a wild and busy ride these past months, keeping up with most things and trying to at least cover the surface of things that haven't gotten the attention they need - looking forward to our school break, the graduation of our oldest in a couple of weeks, the opportunities with outside and animals and gardens and all sorts of stuff we're learning about :)
We have a trip scheduled in August for kids to see the eye specialist again - if all continues to go well with Rebecca, the doc said she will probably not need the eye surgery we had anticipated her having, which is exciting! Ben seems to be developing a more acute case of the same issues, which becomes more and more visible to my untrained eye, and so I had him in for a check up the other day - sure enough, so we have a referral in for him to see the same doc, as well as Andrew, who has a much more mild case of the same. It's called an eye muscle disease, but isn't a disease in the sense that I tend to think (when I hear disease, I think cancer or heart issues - this isn't scary like that, as with treatment it can be helped and can retain their eyesight (a definite bonus! *grin*) Anyway, sometimes patching the strong eye to make the weakening eye work harder, sometimes corrective glasses and/ or eye exercises do the trick. Having a great doc with the knowledge and expertise (experience and education!) to know how to best help each child's individual needs is key, and we are so thankful for our doc with his decades of experience!! Anyway, the long drive is nice and scenic, and the city we go to see that doc is big with a Hobby Lobby and a Toys R Us, so the kids always have a blast on those trips, long days that they are. :)
I'll try to get updated pictures of our growing barn babies soon - but of course that's time dependant, so we'll see when I can! In the meanwhile, hope you have a great rest of the month, and I'll try to update more when things get a little quieter and less busy around here. :)
Little man Caleb is needing Mama nursies, Hannah and Ben need snuggle stories, and so I need to run! :)
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