Wow. Our Internet modem went out for a few days and I had so much more time! But I lost the ability to keep in touch through this wonderful medium, plus I couldn't look up anything I was interested in, right at the moment I learned of its existence. :/
So, I'll try and update you on our fabulous family adventures!
First of all, Phillip made it safely back to Missouri, for which we are extremely grateful. He drove to Sandy and Jessie's house first, and will go back to Ft. Leonardwood tomorrow night. Phillip drove all the way himself, in the car he'd just purchased; at the last minute, he got a GREAT deal on a 2005 Taurus. It's a gorgeous car, well-maintained and beautiful. We're so happy for him!
He's pretty exhausted, and trying to get the car insured and registered in his name immediately (he drove back on the same day he purchased it!). Maybe he can rest some tonight and finish the insurance up tomorrow, before he goes in at midnite. His next leave is in four months, and he'll have to serve another year, at least, before he can serve his mission (he's still only 18!).
We'll miss you, Phillip! Good luck in your further training!
Secondly, I've been calling and checking on the new grandbabies. They're so sweet! I can't wait to see them again. What lucky little guys, coming to their new homes and being part of new little families. It makes me want to cry, because they are so precious and helpless. They engender such feelings of protectiveness, and you see how important it is for them to learn and grow, and fill the full measure of their creation. The world needs their goodness.
I'm so grateful that their parents made good choices, that led them to the places they are right now, able to fully welcome these babies, and care for them and love them and teach them. I'm so comforted, as I see each of the grandchildren being blessed by the choices their parents made when young themselves. It makes everything that their great-grandparents, grandparents, and parents have done have great meaning. It makes every effort, no matter how tiny, no matter how quiet and likely unknown to others, worthwhile.
And to catch you up on our day-to-day doings:
Well, we took Seth back to the dr.'s for a blood draw, to check for his clotting factors (his blood seems too thick) and blood cell count, etc. He's doing well, though, since he was started on allergy meds last time. He's still been working at Burger King. He seems to like it fine, and he gets some money to save, and some for his own devious purposes! ;)
I finished reading our book club book, The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Dow. It's a super-interesting and informative book, and very sad. Lia Lee, the little girl that is featured in the book, is still alive, although her father has since passed away. She and her mother live in Sacramento now, near her grown siblings. Not only was Lia's story sad, the history of the Hmong people is sad. Their history reminds me of the history of the Jews, tossed and torn and used and misunderstood, yet able to retain their culture.
The book illuminated the yawning perceptual gulf that can exist between caregivers and patients, and the even greater, almost insurmountable, gulf that is created when there are major cultural differences involved. Also, when the patient is a child, a whole new dynamic raises the question: When is an intervention necessary? When do you pull that alarm lever and involve CPS? That's opening a Pandora's box that is very hard to close, and near-impossible to control. How does an unwieldy, blanket approach to such a complex situation result in anything good?
It's a very thought-provoking book, one that should be required reading for all medical and nursing students.
I also finished The Lost City of Z, a new book about the search for the explorer, Percy Fawcett. (Excellent, excellent book, and a good source for new reading!)
Now I'm reading Lone Survivor, written by a Navy Seal, about his experiences in Iraq and Afghanistan. It really brings out how their necessary training shapes their thinking. Basically, the training is meant to create a human weapon, designed to function independently, yet as part of a tightly-knit, smoothly coordinated team. The book points out how the Rules of Engagement don't translate very well in the field. How do you wait to be fired upon before returning fire, when the enemy is running straight at you with his weapon at the ready? Or with explosives strapped to his chest? Good point.
I checked out that book when we went to the library, on the way home from Seth's appt. yesterday, and checked out some movies, too. I was delighted to find an old, torn up book om their for sale section, to be used for a special purpose that I'll tell you about later! (wicked, secretive laugh). And, of course, I want to finish reading The Host.
So those are my reading adventures right now.
When I'm up at night, I've been going outside and stargazing, but the moon is like a big, bright light shining right in my eyes, so it's hard to see even the bright stars right now. It's nice to open the French doors anyway, and to look skyward for comet dust. Reminds me of past years, out on the deck at Redwood St. Remember those? Fun times!
Mark got to play cowboy yesterday, after our guest-horse, belonging to our neighbors the Archibalds, got out via the Coles' pasture, on the other side of us. It was fun to watch Mark running around with a halter in his hand. He succeeded in bringing the horse back to our pasture, and Mr. Archibald is going to use metal fence panels, he says, to patch up the excape route. I love little mini-crises like these, that call for practical know-how. Even Mark seemed to enjoy it. (Mostly because it's not our horse!)
Mark's been applying for anything that looks promising, job-wise. Hasn't heard a thing. He also does some paperwork for his old boss, which earns just enough to make a difference for us (like enough to see a movie and buy pet food once in a while), yet not enough to cut his benefits. (Just between us, though, I'll tell you that it doesn't really feel like we're supposed to move away. It feels like his former employer will change directions a bit and hire Mark back fulltime. He just doesn't know it yet...completely. ;) I plan on investigating the possibility of having some residents live here with us. We have some good ideas about how that could work, but need to learn much more about that.
It's great to live in the USA, where there are always new possiblilities!
Every day I sit outside by the garden plants for a while, before I start other projects. It makes Leto happy, and I get to read and relax. I like to feel that I'm experiencing the seasons, like sitting by the fireplace in the wintertime. Also, it helps my vitamin D levels, and just gets me outside. I sit with my back to the sun, so that I get all kind of blonde streaks in my hair. That's really fun, and it makes me feel like I'm still a work-in-progress, which I am!
I'll post some pictures later, okay?
Kisses!
Here are some pictures of some finished and some unfinished areas/projects - And this doesn't even begin to cover it! 
The side drive to the back pasture - I know, weedy - but you should've seen it before!
It had tons of junk and concrete from construction
Now we can actually get at the weeds!
