Expanding the shoe

It has been a very busy week. We are not only preparing for the wedding on Thursday but also preparing for more toes in our shoe! Greg and Carinna will be joining us while they go to school in the Sacramento area so we are having to do some remodeling and adjusting around here. After spending the first 23 years of our married life living in fixer uppers and doing all the work ourselves I begged Joe to buy a house that did not need any work when we moved to Las Vegas. I was tired of living in construction zones and just wanted to have a home we could live in as it was. Two years ago when we moved back to CA we bought a brand new home that only needed to have the walls painted. Now after a 6 year reprive the construction signs are back. Joe, Brian and Tyler (yes Tyler!)are in heaven.

We have a tandem garage that has now been converted into an office/den/schoolroom. This required the building of a wall in the garage to divide the space from the cars and the removing of a wall in the house to access the new room. When it is finished we will move all the computers and the "schoolroom" into it. We are then building a new wall to turn the "old" loft/schoolroom into a bedroom. Kevin will move into the new bedroom, while Riley, Kelly, and Kaitlin will move back upstairs into the room Kelly & Kaitlin used to share. That will give Greg & Carinna a private bedroom & bath, but it will also mean that the other four kids will be sharing one bath again. So wall number three will be built to subdivide the bathroom. That way someone can shower (or potty) while others use the sink and mirror - hopefully preventing the rioting and banging in the hallway when someone else needs the room.

Part of the fun has been watching them teach the next generation. Tyler loves nothing more than being with his daddy. He already knows the difference between real tools and plastic ones and he'll take the real ones thank you very much! He has been a constant fixture in the garage and the den as they have been working. At any given moment he can be found hammering (this takes some supervision so he doesn't hammer holes in the walls where we don't want them), or "drilling" (he hasn't caught on yet that the drill & saw are not plugged in when he has them). It takes great effort but he tries to pick up the saw, and even climbs the ladder to give Papa Joe the tools he needs. Needless to say Mommy & Gran watch with laughter and some trepidation as he learns new skills. Despite once again having everything in my house coated with drywall dust, I am so grateful to have men in my life that can do all the work themselves. I am even more grateful that they enjoy doing it.

Life in the shoe is good!

The Happy Couple

Here are some pictures of Greg & Carinna since they did not include one in their announcement. It is hard to believe the wedding is next week! We feel very lucky as each new member comes into the family. I told Joe that with 10 kids eventually one of them is going to bring someone home that we don't click with but so far all is well!

Thank You Andrea & Brian!!

I can finally send out my blog info to friends & family now that my kids have helped me make it more atractive! Brian helped me learn how to post pictures, hopefully I won't forget! Andrea helped get the background up and the title posted as well as font changes & color. THANKS. Aren't adult kids great!

Long Journey

So this is one of those times when you feel like you should do something that you aren't really crazy about but know you have to do. I have been putting off this particular post as it strikes right at the heart of why I struggle to journal or blog. I have a hard time writing down personal things and don't always want anyone else to have access to my thoughts but I keep having the impression that I need to share this so here goes.
Back in July shortly after Brian & Katie arrived we found out that I was severly anemic and would have to be resting as much as possible. No lifting (try that when you have a 14 month old grandson lift his arms up to you!), no cleaning (okay so that one isn't as hard as the last one), no doing anything that was not absolutely necessary and laying down as much as possible(which ended up being MUCH more than I thought possible). It started out as a 30 day thing but quickly expanded into a 60-90 day thing and is now looking like a 4-5 month thing. I really struggled for the first couple of weeks. Katie and I had a conversation one day about obessive compulsive disorder and addictive personalities and how each of us at different times and in specific circumstances may qualify as obsessive. Thinking about that conversatin I realized that I have a very deep seeded sense of responsibility, if I think something is my responsibility I cannot let someone else handle it. My own version of being obsessive. I tried my best to hang on but found myself rapidly getting worse so I finally gave in and let Brian & Katie take over. This may seem minor but considering all that they ended up having to deal with it is a major undertaking. Riley, Kelly & Kaitlin do online school from home, and Kevin does traditional home school which meant daily supervision of lessons and internet use not to mention overseeing and correcting homework for all of them. It also meant that Katie became the new "PE teacher" as I could no longer go on walks with them in the mornings. Brian became the designated chef - since he is a gourmet cook there were few complaints and we are thinking of holding him hostage even after they are on their feet and can leave the shoe. They have both been chauffer and subsitute parent as Joe has had to work very long hours overseeing major construction at the plant the last few months. Along with all of this they have been trying to set up a photography business, find employment for Brian, oh yeah and did I mention they have a 17 month old son to care for? None of that even includes the class Brian is trying to finish, Katie going back to Utah one week a month to do her photography assignments for the magazine, 4 dogs, 1 cat, and a tank full of fish that need looked after, as well as overseeing all the housework, yardwork and the never ending "to do" list around the house. Last but not least helping plan a wedding dinner for Greg & Carinna. Thank heavens Katie is so talented!
So now it is October and I am slowly getting back into life. I have learned several lessons during this time. 1.Don't take your health for granted. I have been anemic in the past but nothing like this. There have been days when I literally could not sit up. It made me recognize how fortunate I have been to be healthy all my life. 2. The world will not fall apart if I let someone else handle something that I consider my responsibility. Brian & Katie have been amazing as they stepped right in and ran the house for me. 3.No matter what they say teenagers need their parents. I have to make sure to spend time with each child and stay connected to their life no matter how I am feeling. Kelly was starting to feel like she had lost both of her parents with me down & Joe so busy with work. Thankfully she was able to tell us how she felt and we made adjustments so she could spend time with each of us. 4. Grandchildren are a choice experience. Many days Tyler made me smile and laugh when it seemed there was nothing to smile about. 5. Daughter-in-laws and mother-in-laws really can get along! 6.Most important of all my Heavenly Father is aware of me daily and knows exactly what I need and when I need it. I have felt His hand often during this time. While I had hoped and prayed for a quick resolution to this He has had other plans. I have had to learn patience with myself and allow myself the "time off" to heal. I have had to be humble enough to accept help and allow others to offer service when I am used to being the one serving. I have more compassion for those with chronic health problems. While the journey isn't over and I'm sure there are many more lessons to learn, it is getting easier. I am thankful for each day that I feel good and grateful that I am aware that I have a loving Father in Heaven to look after me.

Perfect Picture

Several weeks back (yes I know this shocks all of you that something happened that long ago and I still have not added it to this up to date blog!) we headed down to Dinky Creek to camp with Brian, Katie, Tyler, Kelly, Riley, Kaitlin, Kevin and all four dogs. On the way there we drove past a real estate office that had a giant shoehouse for it's sign. Katie thought it would make the perfect title picture for my blog but we had already passed it and being so excited to actually be out of the house and headed for nature we didn't stop. So two weeks ago (yes again we did something and it is just now being added) when we headed down to the central coast for Carinna's bridal shower we stopped and took some pictures of it and it is now the proud banner of our blog. Since Brian, Katie, Tyler, Tank (the boxer), Harley (the Boston Terrier who thinks he's a bulldog), and Chopper (the cat) have moved in with us and Greg and Carinna are soon to be here as well, not to mention the possibility on the horizon that Andrea, Todd, Avery & Kaedon may soon head this way, I think the sign on top of the shoe totally sums up our life! Does anyone have a shoehorn we could borrow??

Look Pictures!!!

I did it!! Not without much frustration on both my part and Brian's as he tried ot help me get it all figured out but I actually got some pictures up! Now I just have to figure out how to edit the layout and picture size better. I tried to go back and put the pictures in a different location but that is still eluding me!