It's been nearly a month since I posted. Whoa! Where did the month go? I remember thinking at the beginning of summer--when we thought Matt wouldn't be teaching much this summer, how peaceful our summer would be--HA!
First of all--this hasn't been your typical summer "weather-wise" in Colorado. In the six short years we've lived here, I've never seen this much rain. Or, for that matter, such cool temperatures--IN AUGUST! I'm definitely not complaining, it's been a joy to be able to spend time outdoors without melting. It's not like the heat and humidity of Oklahoma, but the intensity of the sun (my husband says it's because of the altitude) is enough to wear you out pretty quick.
I fear Murphy was a mistake, and seconds later I love him. Owen has informed me that "he wuvs him," and that "we need two Murphy's, mom." Argh. What was I thinking? It truly is like having another kid, but smellier. The kids adore him though, and they've grown so much in the past four weeks of Murphy joining our family. Owen's language skills are flourishing, Eden LOVES to "play" with Murphy--which, consists of putting the dog in a headlock, wrestling him to the ground, and jumping on top of him. Somehow Murphy manages to wriggle lose, but Eden hunts him down again. It's pretty hilarious.
Owen starts preschool next week. What?! You thought we were homeschooling. Yep, we're doing that too. Huh?! Preschool is 2 days a week for just a couple hours. We've noticed Owen struggling with respecting authority outside of Mom & Dad, and he's overly dependent on us for social interaction. So, we're scooting him a bit out of the nest. Giving him a bit of room to grow. We might have to pull him out, if he starts getting sick too often, but we're praying for protection and that this is a blessing to his development.
Eden, oh, Eden. Where do I begin, little girl? She is quite the chatter box, saying a new word or sentence--what feels like--every day. She keeps me guessing too. One minute she's the star of her own show, the next--shy as can be. She'll want to kiss and hug Owen, and seconds later deck him for no apparent reason. I've always said--Eden is scrappy, and she's holding me to it. She'll be taking gymnastics and swim lessons this fall. Plus, we'll start some "learning time," while brother is at school.
We're praying for Matt to find a better job situation. We had hoped for many students this fall, so that he could cut back at Starbucks. Unfortunately, we lost 8. We've gained a couple since then, so hopefully it will steadily climb back. Truly, though, Matt needs a job that provides health insurance. So, a career outside of teaching is still needed. We just hired my company, The Tenfold Collective, to re-brand Matt's business. We've renamed the company to Forty Foot Music. (We're on facebook, and a website is in process.) He's building amps, selling pedals and other gear, and trying to get more students.
I'm trying to keep the chaos to a minimum. SO thankful for my MIL today, who cleaned MY ENTIRE KITCHEN--bless her! When I left work, with a pile of "homework," knowing the dish demons that awaited me--I was quite down. Coming home to a clean house, kitchen, sleepy dog, and happy kids--WOWZER. Lots of babies coming this fall through February. I'm a back-up doula for most of those, so hopefully it won't be to insane. Matt's trying to take more of the responsibilities of the music school, so that I can focus once again on being the home manager. Something I must do right now--balance the check book. Hope this suffices as a sufficient update. ;)
