Happy 4th Birthday

We have three dogs in our family, Bella, Buddie & Skyra. We love them all very much. They all have different personalities and make us laugh all the time. Many times they make us frustrated also with their behavior. My baby, Skyra, has a special place in my heart that I can't put into words. She is my personal therapy dog. She is by my side all the time. We lay on the floor together and watch tv. Of course she loves all the shows I do. She shares my food, bed and anything else she wants. Today Skyra turns 4!!!! Unfortunatley for her and all of us in the family the gift she has gotten is a diagnoses of cancer. I haven't been able to get this sinking feeling out of the pit of my stomach. I have cried more than I can say and can't seem to put myself together. Am I crazy for feeling like this over a pet. I will argue with anyone who says yes. When we decided to take on the responsibilites of having pets, our furry family members, we took this job very seriously. Now as a family we have some decisions to make on how to care for Skyra now. I don't have all the answers on what to do right now but I'm hoping when I take Skyra in next week to have her sutures out from her surgery I will get more information to help me be a bit calmer. I'm not good at loss. No matter who it is. Animal or human it is hard to deal when someone leaves your life. For now I will just hug on her and get all the doggie kisses I can get.

Times are Changing

I haven't been on here in over 6 months. I have become obsessed with Facebook. It is so easy to keep up with everyone at a time. So may changes going on at my house & life. Some big ones thanks to Facebook. Making some connections with family that have gone off the radar. So nice to be able to reconnect. I have a niece that I haven't seen in at least 15 years due to some crappy circumstances but we have been talking for a while now and she will be coming out to my house in a couple weeks. My boy has graduated from 8th grade and is now going to be a Freshman in high school.(Pic is of Mitchell & best friend Nick) Where does the time go. I have now become a "Football Mom". Basketball has been put on the back burner. Braces are going to become a part of Mitchell's life in a few weeks. Life with my hubby is good. We have been so busy we forget to take some time for ourselves. I haven't forgotten about my MS friends. I do try and at least read everyones blog. My MS is in standby mode I would say. Not really showing its ugly head but there enough for me to not take it for granted. I still haven't been able to get my memory back to the way it was but that is ok. It is my reminder that I have a disease. But I do know there are people out there dealing with it much worse than I. I still watch my baby friend and he makes me laugh and realize how precious life is. Not that my own son doesn't do that but when you have an 11 month old think you are the greatest and a 14 year old that still at times thinks I know nothing, I want to be around the 11 month old. :) I have learned in the past months that having my house spotless clean isn't all that important. Spending time with family, friends and people is more about what life is. A couple weeks back my eyes were opened to realizing how life is passing and not to take a moment for granted. One of my 4 brothers has had to go to the hospital and have two stints put into one artery. I am actually taking him again today for more. I have learned a lot from going to my church about change and that it is a good thing. Sometimes I have a hard time with that. I have learned who my true friends are and who steps up when times are hard. Life is good right now because I have my eyes wide open and I am learning. I will still make mistakes, big ones at that, but I will keep my eyes open for the experiences that everything will bring.

New Season of Our Life

Tonight I will be going to the local high school in our town to hear our first orientation for the incoming Freshman of 2009. Where has the time gone? Where is the little boy that used to sit on my lap and cuddle? Wait, he still does that at 5'10" 180 pounds of solid boy. The boy who once listened to my every word with eyes wide open like I was the smartest person in the entire world. I have totally taken my time with my son for granted. The worst part is I can't get any of it back. The best part is that I can change and learn from that mistake and never let it happen again. I look at the young man my son has become and do nothing but smile. I couldn't imagine anyone else as my kid. It is funny when he is doing something that drives my husband crazy, my husband just looks at him and says "You are definitely your mothers son". I take it as a compliment. The hard part now is listening to Mitchell talk about how he wants to join the military when he gets out of school. I have such mixed emotions. What I have learned as a parent that I think is one of the hardest things is to sit back and let your child make mistakes so they can learn from them. But the best part is being there to pick up the pieces if needed and be the shoulder to cry on when it doesn't work out. I think I am going to need the mother load of klenex to get through these next years with my boy. Happy or sad I will need them. I love my #1 boy!

My New Little Friend

I started babysitting part time at the end of September. I only do it one to two times a week. I love this little guy so much but he is a hand full at only four months old. He is my friend Nicole's little guy. I have never seen a baby at such a young age know exactly what he wants and scream until he gets it. It makes me appreciate the great , laid back and easy going baby Mitchell was. He spoiled me when he was a baby. I would have had a dozen more with how good he was. My new little friend, named Garrett, makes me laugh and cry all in the same day. When he starts the waterworks I can't help but cry with him. Nothing seems to calm him down. On the other hand he gets this pouty face and I can't help but laugh. Garrett teaches me the meaning of patience and a whole lot more. I am excited to watch him grow and see his personality develop. I just had to share what an adorable baby he is. I'm sure I will have some stories of "Baby G" as my son calls him. Stay tuned.

Basketball Thoughts

Not to long ago my husband and I were talking about all the away games Mitchell has for basketball. At that time gas prices were not the best and his suggestion was for us to maybe not go to all those games. My husband has changed his work schedule around the best he could to try to go to all Mitchell's games. His feelings are that Mitchell will only play 8th grade basketball one time in his life and even though there are many games they are all different and he didn't want to miss one. So when he brought up the topic of not going to away games I was shocked. I did stop and think about where he was coming from with his thoughts but it still surprised me. With the way gas prices are (were) and the economy in general, I got it. So it really got me thinking and this is what my heart was telling me: Since I was diagnosed with MS I have had a pretty good health. It has just been in the last year and a half or so that it has gone down hill. I am going back up the hill now but it is a struggle every day. I told Mitchell when he started sports that I would be at every game no matter what. I know one of his concerns was that my health would stop me. So I make every effort to go. So far I haven't had to miss one. My thoughts are that as long as my legs will get me there I will be there. I don't know when the time will come and I won't be able to make it. Mitchell is only in 8th grade and has many years to play sports but if I miss any I can't get that time back. Don't get me wrong, Mitchell is very understanding about this. He knows that I might miss a game. He says he doesn't want me to push it. But there is nothing like it when you are in the bleachers and your son makes a basket and as he runs down the court he looks up to see you sitting there. It just tears at my heart like nothing else I have felt. When I told my husband this he said he never thought about me ever missing a game. He figured he would get me there one way or another. One thing that has been weighing on my heart since dealing with my health issues this past year or so is that there are big things and little things that come into our lives, why miss anything if you don't have to, just because there is an obstacle in the way. Find a way to get over it and keep going. No it won't always be easy but at least we tried.