As time goes by…

I see that my last post was June 23rd… *sigh*  Well, don’t get too excited!  I don’t have many witty words, but I figure I can at least throw a bulleted update on here for those who care, and I think I’ll even throw in some of my recent instagram photos.  I would say I plan on updating more often, but I can’t promise anything.

• Vega is doing better.  She is taking Zantac, and while I hate having any of my kids on drugs – especially on a regular basis – I hate even more when my baby cries in pain!  I did figure out that dairy, eggs, and tomatoes bother her (and I don’t eat any of those now, even in trace amounts), but we have not figured out what else seems to be causing her reflux, gas, and skin rash.  At her 2 month appointment (she started the meds at 1 month), the doctor recommended backing off the meds now and then to see how she does.  So far, she doesn’t do well when I skip a dose.  We’ll keep trying though.  She is a VERY happy baby when she isn’t hurting.  We just can’t get enough of her constant smiles and coos!

  
  

• Britta moved to Greensboro.  She is renting a room from a lady, and starts college on the 20th.  Please be praying that she finds a job soon.  Her savings won’t get her too much further!

• We have decided to send some of the kids to the local schools this year.  I will continue homeschooling Jacob (first grade) and Paige (pre-school), but Darby (6th), Jarvis (10th), and Justice (11th) will be going to public schools.  Multiple things contributed to our decision, including MUCH prayer, but a couple of them were the fact that I just had a baby and the fact that Andrew will be deployed throughout the school year.  Darby is registered as of today and chose Art and Drama as her electives (one per semester).  She’s excited about the change in pace and making new friends.  The boys will hopefully be registered by the end of the week, and they are both hoping to do JROTC.
  
• Andrew spent 2 weeks of July in New Mexico training.  Two weeks of him being away was brutal.  It makes me dread the upcoming 8 months of deployment, and that’s sneaking up on us very quickly!  Please pray for his safety during the deployment, and please pray for my sanity back home with 6 kids!  :)(the following photo is by Andrew – he takes some amazing sky photos with his phone!)
  
• So… it was time to get my cats spayed and neutered when I was busy having a baby.  So I didn’t do it. I put it off. I waited too long.  Valkyrie and Chili both had new litters this past week.  *sigh*  They have decided to combine their kittens in one box and have a commune going on.  No one knows whose kittens are whose. We don’t know. They don’t know.  It’s madness.  So let me know if you want a kitten in 6 to 8 weeks.  It looks like we have some fluffy white ones and some Siamese ones.  All adorable.  All free.
  
  
• We had a ‘family day’ at Andrew’s work the other day.  Well, not actually *at* his work, but with the people he works with.  He was dreading it (in our many years of military, we’ve gone to some pretty lame ‘family days’), but the kids all ended up having a BLAST!  There was a dunk tank, basketball, playgrounds, a lake to swim in, rock climbing wall, free food, and safety vehicles.  I took some videos and maybe one day I’ll post them.  Maybe.
  
• Since I have health issues and food intolerance issues, and so does Vega, and I am breastfeeding, now I have eliminated even more foods, and some days it feels like there is nothing to eat.  Usually that just means that I want cupcakes and I can’t even see the healthy foods in my pantry, so I say “there’s nothing to eat”… the same thing I yell at my kids for doing.  Eh.  Anyway, if you have any gluten-free, dairy-free, egg-free, chemical-free, tomato-free recipes that you love, please share them! Seriously.  I’m dying here.  ;)
  
• It’s raining cats and dogs, dinner is almost ready (thanks to Jarvis for making tacos – which I will be eating sans cheese or tomatoes), and my brain is fried, so I leave you with one more photo…