Once we got back from Indiana, we settled back in to enjoy the last bit of summer before school started back up!
Harper was able to celebrate her birthday with her bestie, Nora (3 months late) at the house with matching pjs, American Girl dolls, and pizza- they were in Heaven. Not AS much fun, was Harper finally getting a couple teeth pulled to help with crowding in her mouth. She was a trooper- seriously- and wore that bandage with ice, without issue. I mean, she was pretty content to have extra, ahem, "needed" quiet time playing xbox- ha!
The garden was doing well! This year we decided to add wildflowers to the mix and we LOVED it!!!!
We still had some yummy veggies- zucchinis for DAYS, but Pete kinda fell in love with all the pretty flowers and the pretty birds and bugs that came as well!! I sense a redo of flowers happening from now on in that garden-ha;).
The kittens finished their shots and were finally allowed out to "roam about the cabin"- ha! They were sloooooow to venture out and preferred our master bedroom to being anywhere else. The best part was watching the bond the kittens and Pete formed. Katie LOVES Pete, Chloe rolls over for him to rub her belly, and Teddy (who's scared of everything), "talks" to Pete whenever he is home- her incessant meows are adorable. My not-cat-loving husband was coming around it seems...
Last step in kittenhood: getting spayed. Poor babies were NOT fond of the silly cones, and were little escape artists at first, wiggling out of them whenever we weren't looking...
...but they DID it and are free and clear in the house. Gosh we already love these 3 furballs so much!!!
Lastly, before the school year began, we went on a fact finding mission with Mags. She was having neurological episodes that resembled seizures and we wanted to understand them better. To St. Louis we went for a week-long in-patient EEG.
Nana and Papa swooped in to help with Harper and Evelyn so Pete and I could split the week-long hospital stay.
Side note: I said goodbye to the girls and ventured out to get some dinner for Maggie and I. Took a turn a bit too quickly and busted both tires on the right side of the van-ugh! What a mess, but was grateful to my parents for turning around, keeping us safe while we waited for a tow, and for getting Maggie and I to a rental car. Goodness, never a dull moment.
Away the girls went to Camp Nana & Papa for the week....
Having. A. Blast.
SO darn grateful to my family for not only taking care of my crew when asked, but for all the fun they bring... gosh, it pays off to have an artist/art teacher as a sister!!!!
We settled in nicely to our home away from home for a week. St Louis Children's Hospital treated us well. Maggie wasn't super excited about the leads going on her head, but once it was done she was set....
We brought toys, all her favorite foods, and literally had Katy Perry on repeat the whole time.
Icing on the cake: Nana packed a "Christmas in July Santa Sack" of gifts for Maggie to open every day. It was her favorite part- she got soooooo excited to open the gifts each day and show them off to the nurses- haha!
Mom, your idea was genius and meant so much to me- you look out for my bunch ALWAYS and it means the world to me.
My favorite part: having some one-on-one with my middle child. It's rare these days, and I loved playing playdough, cuddling, and singing with her. She even wanted to hold my hand- ahhhhh- YES, Maggie Lou, I will cuddle with you all day long!!
On Thursday, my better half arrived. It was so great to see Pete (he stayed in Arkansas to work the first half of the week). He was there to do the last part of the EEG stay so I could head to Indy to spend a couple days with family, before meeting him back home in Arkansas that weekend.
I don't think I slept well in the hospital, because I got to my parent's house and literally slept for 13 hours- ha! I spent those couple days resting and eating and resting some more. Nothing like having my mom around to put the pieces together for me while I crashed- ha! My village came in strong that week- STRONG!
After a long week of travel, we spent the last few weeks of summer just being together.
I think the sisters missed Maggie a bit... they wanted her to be a part of all the games and all the playtime!! I kinda loved the three enjoying being together again- sweet sisters.
Maggie is getting stronger and stronger with her walking! It's amazing. She actually asks for it and we've started taking her into therapies/appointments using her walker rather than her wheelchair. It's fun to cheer her on, but that first day she WALKED out of therapy in her walker- wow. Tears. Was so special to me that a friend of mine was there too, just as teary and happy as I was. Special needs moms- they get it. They are there for the rough stuff. There through the confusing. And there to cheer and cry alongside you through the exciting.
Little Bear MAY be starting kindergarten in a few weeks... being a big girl and all that... but she STILL is the BEST cuddler. She is the first one to crawl into my lap when I'm on the couch, and the first one to hold that hug just a bit longer. For as fiesty and stubborn as she is, I hope that part is always there- her love of loving...
Girls busied themselves with making homemade dog treats for the neighborhood dogs...
...and loving on all the horses at Zuriel Stables. Harper brushes and pets them. Evelyn comes armed with treats for the horses and pig alike- she is DETERMINED that Gus love her- ha!
Cake decorating: quickly becoming a COVID pasttime, they love mixing up all kinds of colors and adding lots of toppings- ha! Easy and fun... and hilarious to see them get competitive over it- ha!
Papa Bear is getting pretty good at the hair cuts!! One of the COVID situations we opted out of, taking kids to get their hair cut, so a couple you tube searches and a fresh pair of scissors later and we are DOING it- haha!
COVID is crazy. Keeping things fun and exciting while maintaining safety has been challenging, BUT I think we've had some good times together. We've learned how to MAKE our fun, be more tolerant of each other, and grow closer- I know.... I know... cliche. But seriously, being a part of a pandemic is surreal. We are learning as we go, praying for safety and calm of everyone, and grateful for all the health care professionals and teachers working their BUNS off to keep things running in the right direction. No idea what this school year holds for this crew, but I am channeling all the patience and understanding I got and just moving one day at a time.
One day at a time...
