Celebrating Adoption Day

We recently celebrated my youngest son's Adoption Day.  Sixteen years ago a German judge signed the adoption decree making our son's adoption final.  The crazy part is we didn’t even realize it had been done until we happened to check our German mailbox.  J’s birthmother, my husband, and I had all signed the paperwork weeks earlier.

Even though J had been with us since birth, it was very exciting to get the paperwork that made J a legal family member.  It meant a trip to Frankfurt to the Consulate to get his name changed on his passport.  We also had to apply for a new Certificate of Birth Abroad from the Consulate with his new last name.  We had to get a new German birth certificate with his new last name.  This child has MANY different birth certificates.  

How did we celebrate?

Because our family schedule is beyond crazy right now, J's celebration took place over multiple days rather than just on his day.  We had crepes for breakfast one morning.  We had delicious chocolate cupcakes with chocolate fudge frosting one night for dessert.  We enjoyed time as a family hanging out and playing games.

You will find me on the couch with chocolate enjoying time with my family.  

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A Mixed Up Kind of Week

This has been a mixed up kind of week. We had school things that we celebrated. We had an event that made us sad.

The Senior

S finished up his College Algebra course this week!  He applied for ACE credit for the course, and it was approved within hours.  Yeah!  Now, he needs to work on coordinating accommodations for his placement tests at the community college.  He is hoping to have the tests taken in the next couple of weeks, so he can register for his Fall classes.

He has two classes remaining:  German IV and English.  He is continuing with his literature study on To Kill a Mockingbird.  He is enjoying the book. The end is rapidly approaching.

S had a Chiropractor appointment on Monday, Youth Group on Wednesday, and horseback riding this morning.  He will volunteer 4 hours tomorrow.

The Sophomore

J had a busy week at school.  He received his report card the other day and was quite pleased with his grades.  That’s always a good thing.

He had 14 hours of practice this week.  He stayed home one night.

On the Homefront

We had our family pictures last weekend.  We ended up moving them up to Saturday instead of Sunday because of weather.  We thought we had the clothing thing all figured out, but that became a comedy of errors.  We were going to wear black shirts with tan shorts/pants.  

*Does everyone have a black shirt?  My husband didn’t.  We bought him one.

*Realized J’s black shirt had streaks all through it.  Not sure why.  Had to run and buy him a new one Friday night.

*J came down in his tan shorts Saturday.  Are you wearing those?  Yes.  No, you aren’t. They have black paint on them from Art class.  None of his other tan shorts were clean. Washed shorts quickly.

*S had to volunteer prior to pictures, so we sent him in his tan shorts and told him we would bring his shirt to change into.  We did bring another pair of shorts just in case. No problems there.

*My husband went to get his shorts.  Apparently, we should have checked them earlier. They were quite wrinkled.  They were thrown into the dryer quickly.

* I got ready, walked past my husband and J, and they both asked me why I had blood on my pants behind my knee.  I had nicked the back of my leg shaving, and it bled through my pants.  We were walking out the door at this point.  I just said that we couldn’t have pictures of our backs.

The session itself went fine.  Our photographer is a friend from church, so we had a lot of fun. S even survived.  He didn’t want to be there.  As he told me, “You can just photoshop me in.”

We found out this week that a pastor from our church and his family are moving this summer. They will be greatly missed.  They both did a lot with our Youth group.  They were also friends of our family.  I have taken over one of the fundraising activities, and my husband is going to become a youth leader.  

My husband and I are going for a couples massage this afternoon.  We try to go every month, but sometimes it is every two months.  It will be a good way to end this week.  My husband is traveling for 4 days next week, so he could probably use one next Friday too.

Good-bye Spotz

When my boys were 3 and 5, we added Spotz to our family.  We couldn’t have had a more perfect dog for our family.  He came for a weekend trial when he was 1 to make sure he would be good with young kids, and he never left.  He was part of our family for almost 13 years. This week we had to say good-bye to him.

What did I write this week?

Because April is the Month of the Military Child, I wrote: I need my peeps!

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I need my peeps!

April is the Month of the Military Child.  Since we are a retired Army family and I have two military children, I thought I should write about this topic.  I started a post.  I added pictures.  I wrote.  I erased.  I cut and pasted.  I had notes scribbled on my calendar and in my notebook. It wasn't quite right.

And then....

I received this text from a 17 year old senior while we were driving to Pennsylvania two weeks ago.

This is what being a military child is about.  It means having people in your lives who aren't family but become like family given our unique circumstances.  

We have known this young lady her entire life.  We have had the privilege of watching her grow up.  My husband and I became friends with her parents (her dad was a soldier) 5 years before she was born.  We had been stationed in Texas and North Carolina together.  At the time they were expecting, they lived in Alaska and we were in Germany.  We received a letter from her mom telling us she was expecting.  I remember the day we received it in the mail.  

From Germany and Alaska, our families reunited in Alabama.  In the meantime, J had joined our family.  Their family had added a second daughter.  The three kids spent a lot of time together playing, fighting, tattling on each other.  

This family was there to help us when S came home from Bulgaria.  Now, there were 4 kids together.  Their girls and our boys match up in age.  There was a lot of laughter when we were all together.

They left Alabama and went to Alaska.  We left Alabama and went to California.  They came to see us in California when they moved from Alaska to Tennessee.  The kids picked up like they had just seen each other.  We left California and went to Virginia.  

Their family added a third daughter.  We did not add a third son.  We went to visit them in Tennessee.  Again, the kids had a great time.  They then moved to Delaware, so they were even closer.  We met up in Washington DC and had a long weekend sightseeing.  We would go to Delaware.  They came to Virginia.  

They added a son to their family.  We still just have two.

Then.....

Our friends divorced.  The mom and the four kids went to California where she has family.  It was difficult because I knew we wouldn't see each other as often.  We called.  We emailed. We were on Facebook.

But because we have these Army bonds,

my friend started dating another soldier we knew.  The rest is history!  They are now happily married.  They have melded their families.  And they live in South Carolina!  We still get to see them and hang out.  Sometimes it is just for lunch as the kids are being taken/picked up to see their father since their meeting point is 75 minutes from our house.  Sometimes we get to have long weekends at each other's homes.

And now,

our oldest kids are graduating. This young lady texted my husband and told him that she needs her peeps there to celebrate.  

Her peeps will be going to South Carolina to celebrate with her.  She didn't know that we pulled out the ipad during our drive and made hotel reservations shortly after we had our texting conversation with her.  My boys are as excited to go as we are.

Throughout the years,

our kids have shared stories about moves, various houses, friends left behind, visiting family far away, having family come to visit, telling their dads good bye when they left for months at a time, our times together in so many different states.  In this month of the military child, this is what it is about.  

I will be on the couch with chocolate thankful that we have such wonderful peeps in our lives!

Our Favorite Adoption Books

My husband and I adopted two sons, 16 and 14 years ago.  Each of their stories is as unique as the child involved.  Therefore, we have two favorite adoption books.

Our first child, who is our youngest, was adopted while we lived in Germany where my husband was stationed for three years.  We had planned on doing an international adoption from Russia while we were in Germany.  While we were in the process of filling out paperwork, plans changed.  Six weeks later, we had a newborn son.   Our favorite book for J is Tell Me Again About the Night I Was Born by Jamie Lee Curtis.  As my husband and I stood in the German hospital trying to read the signs to figure out what floor we needed to get to, we felt like the parents in the book as they stood in the hallway of the hospital.

Our second child, who is our oldest, was adopted at the age of 4 from Bulgaria while we lived in Alabama.  Our favorite book for S is Through Moon and Stars and Night Skies by Ann Turner.  We like this book because it is about a boy who is a little bit older going to his new family.  He talks about having pictures of his new family, house, room, etc.  We still have the little photo album that we gave to S that had pictures of us, extended family, our house, his room, and our neighborhood.  It also describes the boy flying to meet his family and all of the emotions he felt.  The difference is we flew to Bulgaria to bring S home, but I can only imagine that S was feeling many of the same things.  Everything he knew changed, and he had all of these new things in his life.

Books have come and gone in our house as our boys have grown up; however, these two books will always be on my bookshelf.  

You will find me on the couch with chocolate and some books reliving the moments.

When parents and students make a difference

After writing about our California school experiences, I thought I should write about the wonderful parents and children we encountered there.  It wasn’t all bad in California.  

Because my children attended a neighborhood school, the kids walked to school.  In S’s case, he rolled to school.  That meant every morning and afternoon there were a lot of people on the sidewalks in our neighborhood. At the end of the school day, the parents would gather around picnic tables outside the classrooms at the school while we waited for the kids to leave the classroom (the rooms had external entrances).  This allowed me to visit with the other parents. Because the majority of us were military families, we had that common bond even though we represented all branches of the military.

The parents took this time to ask about S.  I took this time to answer their questions and questions their kids might have.  S was invited to birthday parties there.  He was invited over to homes to play.  No one shied away from having him in their homes.  They figured out how to make it work.  It was nice.  We miss that aspect of California.

We moved from California in 2005.  To this day, S still stays in touch with his best friend from the second grade.  That is cool.  

While remembering these people who made a difference in our lives, I will be on the couch with chocolate.

California School Experiences

When S was finishing up first grade in Alabama, we found out we were moving to California. We were excited when we were notified of our upcoming PCS (permanent change of station). When I had taken my Education courses in college, we heard about how progressive California schools were.  Imagine the possibilities for S in these progressive schools!  Knowing what had been done for him in Alabama at a Department of Defense School (great experiences), we could only imagine what California had to offer.  Imagine was all we could do. Here is what we encountered....

Early notification:

While we were still in Alabama, my husband called the school to talk to them about our upcoming move and the fact that S would be attending their school.  Their first response when told we had a child who had Cerebral Palsy was, “He will go to a special school.”  Really? The only information you have about him is that he has a disability.  You don’t know the severity of it, what his functioning level is, etc.  Papa and Mama Bear came out, and he attended that school.  As my husband said, “If you want to call your school special, you are right.  He will attend a special school.”

Playground:

S was asked to not play on the playground equipment because he might get hurt. Don’t the other kids ever get hurt on the playground equipment?  

Special Education Teacher:

After I sent a clarification letter to the Special Education teacher after our initial IEP meeting, she asked me in the walkway, “You are going to keep me on my toes, aren’t you?” (Thank you Wrightslaw).  

Emergency Evacuation Plan:

S was left in the classroom during a fire drill because the staff member (see above reference) who was supposed to get him didn’t.  Her response the next day to him (a 2nd grader) was, “You got out, didn’t you?”  

Classroom:

Spelling tests were given when he was at Adaptive PE so the teacher didn’t need to wait for him since it took him longer to type his answers.  

He wasn’t given extra time on the timed math facts tests if he had to write for himself because that wouldn’t be fair to the other kids.  

Field Trips:

S’s class went on a number of field trips during the school year.  That was good.  The problem was the school REALLY expected either me or my husband to chaperone to “help” with S.  My husband was in graduate school, so his attendance on the field trip depended upon his school schedule.  

Since I am a SAHM, I could usually go with; however, for one field trip, I ended up being very, very sick.  I was going into my fourth week of strep throat (I don’t have a spleen).  After an emergency visit to the ENT, I was placed on bed rest.  I was told I could only get out of bed to go to the bathroom and make sure my children had something to eat.  Needless to say, I wasn’t going on the field trip.

The teacher went into slight panic mode when she found out that neither one of us would be attending.  Here’s the deal, S is quite self-sufficient.  He was going in his wheelchair. He just needed some extra assistance maneuvering his chair around.  He might need help getting his drink open.  Not much more help than any other 2nd grader might need.  The school was able to get the Wednesday afternoon aide to come along to be his helper - not much of a stretch since she was going to drive the bus.  The biggest issue was that his wheelchair would be taken apart and stored in the storage compartment under the bus.  “Who is going to be able to put his chair together?”  (Really? It involved sliding the two wheels onto pins.)  My husband had to clarify for the teacher that the dads who were chaperoning, and had degrees in aerospace engineering, would be more than qualified to put the wheels on the chair.

End of Year Testing:

At the end of the year, we were asked if it would be possible to keep him home during standardized testing.  My husband told them that anything was possible. We asked if other students were being asked to stay home during testing. This question was never answered. Needless to say, S went to school.  

Homeschooling:

After all of this, the school was surprised that he was homeschooled the next year until we moved again. As his Adaptive PE teacher told me the next year, “They have not had to deal with parents like you before.”  We decided to take that as a compliment.  [We were very visible and vocal parents at the school. Can you blame us?]

Side note:  Despite all of this, our youngest son had a great time and experience there.  There were good teachers there.  You would have thought the two went to two different schools to hear us talk about their school experiences.  In fact, people who heard our stories asked us if they went to different schools.

Through all of this, our children have both learned how to advocate for themselves and stick up for each other.  What more could we want?  Maybe some time to sit on the couch with chocolate…

We are an Army family.

Our family has many labels.  We are a family built through adoption.  We are a family with a child who has special needs.  We are a homeschool/public school family. We are a gymnastics family. First and foremost, we are an Army family. My husband retired 4 years ago after serving 22 years in the Army and 2 years in the Minnesota National Guard.

My husband and I dated through high school, and he joined the Minnesota National Guard his Junior year in high school.  He went to Basic Training between his Junior and Senior years in high school.  He finished his Advanced Training after his Senior year.  He swore up and down that he would never go on active duty because “that is no life for a family.” After a year of college, he made the decision to go on active duty.  That decision made the Army the life for our family.  

What did that mean for our family?  

We moved frequently, especially the first four years we were married.  During that time period, we lived in Colorado, Alabama, Texas, and North Carolina.  

"Home is where the Army sends you."

I have a heart that has this saying, and it has little hearts hanging from it listing places we have lived during my husband’s 22 years in the Army.  We have not always loved every place we have been sent to; however, each place has been our home.  We have stories for each location.  Life is what you make of it.

1. Fort Carson, Colorado
2. Fort Rucker, Alabama
3. Fort Hood, Texas
4. Fort Bragg, North Carolina
5. Fort Benning, Georgia/Minnesota (He attended school, and I went back to my parent’s house since our house in North Carolina sold in less than 3 weeks.)
6. Fort Rucker, Alabama (just under 6 months)
7. Hanau, Germany
8. Germany/Bosnia (This is a broken heart since we were apart while he deployed.)
9. Fort Rucker, Alabama
10. Monterey, California
11. Fort Monroe, Virginia  (My husband did 5 short notice trips to Iraq and Afghanistan while he was stationed here.  Fortunately, none of them were longer than a month.)

During this time, we have met some of the most amazing people.  We have developed friendships that withstand time and distance.  Moving away from our friends and having them move away from us is hard, but we often see them again.  We have places to stay and friends to visit as we travel. That is a really cool part of this lifestyle.  

Our kids
We didn’t have children until our last year in Germany when we adopted J.  He has traveled to some really cool places in Europe and has no memory of it. We adopted S from Bulgaria while we lived in Alabama the last time.

It was during our last tour in Alabama that we first started sending troops to Iraq and Afghanistan. I remember seeing military kids on TV sending their moms and dads away, and I thought, “Those poor kids.”  Then I realized that could be our family.  Up until that point, it hadn’t crossed my mind because...this was what our family did. This is what our friends and their families did.  It was our way of life.

My husband's Change of Command ceremony (November 2001).

My children didn’t think twice about attending Change of Command ceremonies or promotion ceremonies.  In their young minds, it always meant cake.  Attending the movies on post meant that the “Star Spangled Banner” was played prior to the movie starting and you stood for it.  It was strange for them the first time they attended a civilian movie theater.  They asked when we had to stand.

Even though my husband is now retired, we still identify as an Army family.  My kids know what it means.  They know what it is like to be the new kid. They know what it is like to move away from friends. They are understanding of friends whose parents have to leave home to serve. It wasn’t always easy, but it was OUR life.

I will be on the couch with chocolate appreciating our veterans, my family, and our life.

Built through adoption

We are a family built through adoption.  This was not the plan my husband and I had when we were married, but it was God's plan for us.  We can't imagine our life without these two children.

J, who is our youngest, was our first child.  He was an American baby born in Germany.  We were living in Germany at this time because my husband was stationed there.  J has been with us since birth.  At the age of 2, he went from being an only child to the little brother.  

S, who is our oldest, was our second child. He was adopted from Bulgaria when he was 4. Yes, we knew he had Cerebral Palsy at the time we adopted him.  

Our children know they were adopted.  It's not a secret.  It's part of our family story.  They also each have their own story to tell.  Their stories are not my story to tell without their permission.  

I will be enjoying some family time on the couch with chocolate.

His Last First Day

Today is the first day of school in our city.  I sent my sophomore out the door to catch the bus at 6:10 this morning. Needless to say, S was not starting his day at that time!

It is hard to believe that S is starting his senior year.  He is in denial about it.  We are trying to look at the realities of it.  As a friend of mine from church said when I asked if her senior was ready, “It doesn’t matter if she’s ready.  It’s coming.”

As we prepare to roll into this year that is coming, I thought it would be fun to look back at S’s “first days” of school.  He doesn’t fully understand how hard he has worked and how far he has come. His school journeys started when he was 4 years old, barely speaking English (he was adopted from Bulgaria in March 2001), racing around in his walker up on his toes, “W” sitting in class, constantly talking, and charming everyone in the school building.

First day of preschool (May 2001):  We pulled up to Fort Rucker Primary,  I got S’s walker out of the van, took him out of the van, told him, “Don’t move!”, and turned to get J out of the van. Because S was so excited about school, he didn’t listen to my instructions to not move and walked right off the curb with his walker - both hands still holding his walker.  He landed on his face in the gravel next to the van.  I put J down, picked S up, found something in my van to wipe the blood off of his face (probably a dirty Kleenex), and proceeded to herd my children into the nurse’s office. We ended up at the hospital because S had a cut very close to his eye, so it was bleeding badly.  I walked into the Pediatric Clinic and begged them not to send me to Urgent Care.  They saw S, and it wasn’t as bad as it looked.  Needless to say, his first day of Preschool wasn’t at school.

First day of PreK:  The first day of PreK was cancelled due to bad weather - Tropical Storm Barry.  His initial IEP meeting was scheduled for the second day of school which ended up being the first day.  Imagine our surprise when we found out that no one from the school had informed his teacher about his needs related to his CP or that English was not S’s first language.  Her reaction in the meeting was priceless.  She went from thinking she had a child who had a lot of issues to telling us how well he did for the first day.

First day of K:  S was so excited to get to school!  His PreK teacher had moved up to Kindergarten and had requested that he be in her class.  He could write his name at the start of school which was very exciting!  We had worked on it all summer long.

First day of 1st Grade:  At this point, S felt like he was king of the school.  The staff at this school was amazing.  He went to school using crutches for primary support and his walker for PE and Recess.  He had to walk to the neighborhood bus stop, so he and J could ride the bus home together.

First day of 2nd Grade:  S started school in California.  He was a “walker” for school transportation purposes.  He would ride in his wheelchair while we hung his walker across the back and strapped his crutches into the holder on the wheelchair.  We were a sight!  He had helped write an informational book about himself to be shared with the class.  It had pictures and explanations of the different equipment he used and why.  He discussed things he would need help with and when not to help him.

First day of 3rd Grade (CA):  S was homeschooled the first half of third grade.  We did not have a good experience with the school system the previous year.

First day of 3rd Grade (VA):  It was a great first day!  Everything he needed was in place on the first day of school:  transportation, support services, correct seating in all of his rooms.  We had given his book from second grade to his teacher prior to his first day so she could share it with the class ahead of time.  We made the decision to have him in his wheelchair during the school day to conserve his energy for academics.  He used his crutches for near walking and his walker for PE and Recess

First day of 4th Grade and First day of 5th Grade: We sent S on the bus to school and then we met him there to make sure he had everything he needed in his classroom.  Again, the various support services from the district were there to make sure he was set up for success.

The Homeschooling Years - 6th-11th grade: First days have been different for him than his brother who is attending public school.  They are much more relaxed.  Some years he has let us take a picture on the “first” day.  Other years he has told us no.  Some years he hasn’t even been here for the first day.  He travels to Minnesota in late August/early September.  Some years he has had appointments on the first day of school.  Public school kids aren’t taking those slots. One year he picked up new AFO’s followed by a shoe shopping trip to the mall.

First day of 12th grade:  That brings us to his last first day.  He is a senior.  Before we know it, his last last day will be here.  It is bittersweet for us.  He even let me take a picture of him on his last first day!

Through the years, he has progressed from using a walker to crutches. Surgery and AFO’s have helped to correct the toe walking.  Thousands of hours of PT have stopped the “W” sitting.  He still talks constantly, and he definitely has a way with people.  He learned English and uses as many words a day as he can.  He has learned so much and has worked so hard to be successful in school.  In addition to his CP, he has been diagnosed with ADD and Low Vision. Everything he does requires so much more work on his part than it does for other students.  Yet, he has persevered and taken the classes that he needs so he can go to college.

So, ready or not, it’s here!  Let’s enjoy this last year on the couch with chocolate!

Wrap Up Before School Starts

Wow! I cannot believe that this is the last Friday before school starts. I have a couple of children who are in denial about this fact. It has, once again, been a busy week. Obviously, life is normal at our house. We wouldn't have it any other way. School: S has been working a little bit on his College Algebra. He is plugging away on Brave Writer. He received his acceptance information from Hadley School for the Blind. We are waiting on his initial acceptance packet to arrive from there, so he can complete the high school entrance assignment in order to start his course "The Human Eye 1". He will be "full on" next week for his senior year! Appointments: This week consisted of 4 appointments. J went to the Orthodontist. He has had his braces on for 25 months, and there is no end in sight right now. He is still waiting on a tooth to fully come in. It has started (he's almost 16). Three of the appointments were for my husband. He went to the Chiropractor, Dentist, and Orthopedics. He is having shoulder surgery, and it was finally scheduled. He will be having that on October 29. We have been discussing the day-to-day realities of his surgery (clothing, limitations, recovery time, driving, etc.). I'm trying to explain to him that he won't be wearing dress pants, tucking his shirt in, and doing a belt with his arm in a sling. I'm not offering up my black yoga pants that were my main staple of clothing when I had a broken arm. I told him he needs to get to Target to buy himself some running pants. At least he won't have to worry about having to hook his bra. Practice: J had 18 hours of gymnastics practice again. Found out this week that he will continue with 5 days/week during the school year. He will be switching from Saturdays to Tuesdays. It will be 17.5 hrs/week instead of 18 hours. It is going to be a change at our house since Tuesdays were family night. Volunteering: S volunteered for 10 hours at the Casemate Museum. He will be volunteering on Labor Day for 4 hours since we aren't going away for the weekend. Driving: J has been getting more practice time. He has driven home from practice and to church. He also drove on the freeway. There are some crazy drivers around here. It is a different experience learning to drive here than it was for my husband and I learning to drive in rural Minnesota with our 1 set of stoplights in town. Fun times: This past Saturday I received a facebook message from friends that said, "We are in Williamsburg until Tuesday and saw how close you are. Are you free?" Oh my word! YES!!! We were stationed in Germany with this family with a follow-on assignment to Fort Rucker. We haven't seen them in 14 years. They came over for supper on Sunday evening, and we had such a fun time. It was great to catch up, talk about our Germany experiences, and share stories of who we have run into over the years. Looking forward to seeing them more often since they are now stationed in northern Virginia. Randomness: I received a text from my sister telling me that my nephew dislocated his knee the other night while dancing. I think he might be getting a "Dancing for Dummies" book for Christmas. We had a Gymnastics parents' meeting the other night. We realized that we are the "experienced" parents now. One of the younger boy's moms was asking us for advice on how to treat rips. We shared the secrets we know that have helped J. S received his time slot for horseback riding for the fall. He has an 8:30 slot on Friday mornings. That means we will be leaving our house at 7:30. He is excited about the Friday slot. If he works diligently during the week, he shouldn't have much schoolwork to finish when he gets home. That is one big reason he likes the Friday slots. Thursday night my husband and I had our Budget/writing date night. We completed our budget. Then, I was blogging while he finished writing notes to the kids who will be in his Sunday School class this year. This will be his fifth year teaching the Sr. High kids. He loves it!
As I roll into this last weekend of summer, I have realized that there are some new songs on the radio that I have enjoyed singing along with while driving (I have plenty of road time under my belt). Thursday morning while driving S to his volunteering, I heard all three. His response was, "Oh great! Sing along time with Mary!" That's right!! My Favorite Top 3 Sing Along Songs for Summer 2014: "Rude" by Magic "All About that Bass" by Meghan Trainor "Stay With Me" by Sam Smith
Labor Day weekend: This will be a relaxed, working weekend. S is volunteering at least 6 hours. He just put in for an additional shift.  

J does not have practice on Saturday which means we are having crepes for breakfast. My husband is an awesome cook!  

We have a yard project that needs to be finished before my husband has surgery, so we will be working on that. 

The upstairs bathroom is going to be painted also. If I hadn't purchased the new shower curtain 2 months ago, it probably still wouldn't get done. The whole project has become a "If you give a mouse a cookie" type project. If we are replacing the shower curtain and painting, we might as well replace ______. It was a two cart trip to Lowes.  

We are also going to a cook out at a friend's house. After all this excitement, I am going to try to find time to relax on the couch with chocolate!

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