Yeah, so it's been a long time since I've written. Lots have been going on. Really. One thing after another since August or so.
Within seven days…
1.) Baby gets the flu
2.) Dog is throwing up for three days. I take her to two different vets and six hours later they tell me, "She needs to have surgery RIGHT NOW. Sign here on the dotted line." I ask how much it's going to be and they give me an estimate of $4,500-$7,500. Nice and precise.
3.) Boy gets the flu
4.) In between vomits, I am called to pick up Dog after three days in the hospital with a list of instructions longer than my arm. Things like "Don't let her jump, run, play, or lick the incision." Well, they must thing she's a snake and not a canine. How am I supposed to not let her do those things and be Florence Nightingale to sick boys?
5.) Dog is healing, children are healing, only to discover that little tiny winged insects are landing on my bed. By day three of finding them on my bed, I have found approximately 100 of them. And this is gross… they shed their wings all over my bed. Apparently these little insects are attracted to light so many of them have found their way into my pillowcases. Discarded wings, crawling insects inside my bed and pillowcases. We have no other bed so I'm not exactly sure where we are going to sleep.
6.) After a little googling I discover that our house has termites. Really?
7.) I frantically ask around for some eco-friendly treatments for termites and a few grey hairs later I discover that there is such a thing! They use heat instead of chemicals. Beautiful. However, in between all of this searching, none of these companies are really in a hurry to inspect because I have learned that termites don't destroy your house in a matter of hours or days. It takes a couple years before there is significant damage. So everyone is pretty relaxed about the whole thing, taking a day to get back to me. Little do they know that these little demons are landing on MY FAMILY'S BED!!!!!!
8.) I discover that they are entering thru a loose air vent right above our bed, so I put a step ladder on my bed (oh yes, very stable) and tape a trash bag around the vent because I will die if any termites decide to land on my face or in my mouth while I am sleeping. This trash bag stays up there for four more weeks till we finally make our appointment for the treatment.
9.) We discover…. WE'RE PREGNANT!!!!!
All this in one week. It's now December and things haven't slowed down. But with stuff totally not worth writing about. Except for the pregnancy part of course! Yup, Baby #3 due in May. We are beyond thrilled and loving the experience. I am blessed to have amazing pregnancies, amazing births, and well… amazing children if I do say so myself. But who doesn't say that about their own children! By the time it's all said and done, I think I will have been breastfeeding for eight or nine years straight without break. And hopefully tandem nursing this time around will go as wonderfully as it did the first time between Boys 1 and 2. Breastfeeding is like the magic elixir around here. It's what keeps us all sane.
Anyway, I really wanted to post this TED Talk by a 13 year old kid. Seeing how hard it is for me to write these days, this video got me to the computer to write this blog, THAT'S how great it is. At first I just thought it was my super weepy pregnancy hormones but I have shared it with others already and they are in agreement: It is worth watching!!!!! Really, just trust me on this.
He's a kid that talks about being happy. He really put a spotlight on what you've been doing your whole life and how miserable or less than satisfied so many people are on a daily basis because of societal pressures. And what's the point of living like that? He is of course a homeschooler… I wasn't surprised. He inspired me at just the right time on our own homeschooling journey. Second guessing whether I can really take on this experience. After watching him I realized that not only am I able to take it on, but I must. For my children's sake.
This is the kind of child I hope my own kids will grow to resemble. Not to be like him, copy him (although I did love his long hair!) or act like him. But I want my kids to know what makes them happy, as this kid so clearly knows about himself at the young age of 13. I'm not hoping for overachievers who have resumes as long as Steve Jobs by the time they're in college, I just want them to know how to make themselves happy.
Enjoy it...
http://thefreethoughtproject.com/13-year-boy-blows-myth-public-education-water/
