Where oh where....

does the time go!!! It has been like a week since my last post. I am on here every day but it seems like finding time to actually sit down and write becomes more difficult all the time.

We have had like 5 straight days over 80 degrees... can you even believe it!! So of course the store is busy which means I am working like crazy during "work" hours. My high school employee graduated a few weekends ago and happily my college employee is home now for the summer. Nicole, the new graduate, headed to Mexico for a graduation trip with her family so Jillian, Scott and I are left in the store. We are pretty darn fortunate to have such hard working, dedicated employees, especially when they are both so young and could have some many better things to be doing (hey I remember those days!). But they both have a great work ethic and I will be so sad when the day comes that they will leave us for their careers.

Our neice Meredith had her 1st ballet recital on Saturday night... she was so adorable!! The kids, Kathie and I went down to the park and watched her dance. It was so hot but we really enjoyed watching all the kids and especially Meredith.

On Monday we celebrated Rick's grandmother's 79th birthday. We had a surprise birthday party for her at her new apartment complex. Rick's mom worked hard to make this a very special birthday for her. Next week Kathie will be taking her over to Seattle to have surgery as she was diagnosed with uterian cancer last week. Rick will be meeting them over there Thursday morning. Please keep her in your prayers that the surgery will be successful and further treatment will not be necessary AND that she has a quick recovery. She is not in the greatest of health so bumps in the road would not be a good thing. I think she enjoyed her birthday party...of course she was a bit overwhelmed by my crazy son but I know she loves seeing and spending time with her great-grandchildren!

Both kids have started summer YMCA soccer. Their first game is next Wednesday. Trace was busting at the seams with excitment for his first real sports season. Kaity is a lot more excited than I thought. She will be going to Richland High's soccer camp next week so hopefully she loves it a lot more then.

The kids are also doing Vacation Bible school this week at the church accross the street from Kaity's school. Their babysitter's 2 kids are the exact same ages as my 2 so the 4 of them go together every day. Jackie puts the boys in the bike trailer take them while the girls get to ride their own bikes. Trace was sick on Monday with the weirdest version of the flu I have ever seen (more about that in a minute), so he missed it but he has loved the last few days.

So Trace's sickness... Sunday night he came down with a fever of 102 and nothing we did bring it down. He had no other symptoms and was still bouncing off the walls in typical Trace fashion. He didn't act the slightest bit sick but was complaining of a tummy ache. Monday morning we dropped Kaity off and I took him into the doctors. Nothing wrong other than his fever and when you touched his tummy he doubled over. We could do nothing to help it other than keep pain reliever in him and give him baths. I brought him home and by 2 in the afternoon the fever had broke and he was good to go. Last night when Rick got him home he just started whining and crying. We had a contractor here moving dirt so Rick was out helping him and Trace didn't get any daddy time. By the time I got home he was just done and had a total melt down. I just sat on the couch and he got his blankie and he plopped down on me. He fell asleep at 7:30 and slept right through me putting him in his bed. He woke up today back to normal, again... but tonight he was still good. So I think we are on the mend.

I'm going to leave you with this... when you have a day when you think you are at the end of your rope with your kids, they won't listen to a word you say, they are doing silly things that they shouldn't be doing in public, WHAT EVER it is, there can be a moment that just stops everything and reminds you when we choose this path and why being a parent is truely the most important and rewarding job I will ever have. GG (Great Grandma Peggy) has been using a wheel chair. She couldn't get her chair back to where we wanted her to sit for the party so she parked the chair and got up to walk over there. Trace stopped what he was doing so that he could help her get to her chair.... it even made Rick stop in his tracks, it was truely one of the sweetest moments I have seen. This is when I know that it is worth every hair pulling moment and I am so blessed!