Gimpy McFear and the Week 8 All-Stars

For those of you who are playing along, you may now cross week 8 off of your Countdown to Jay's Graduation calendar. Whoo hoo!!!

It was a busy week for Jay that was not made much better by the fact that he hurt his hip during PT on Wednesday. He had to go to the medic and they put him on light duty for a week, which means he could not do PT, PMA, or any marching. Don't get excited though, that doesn't mean he got to sleep in. Instead he spent his PT time doing things like cleaning all the PT mats and wiping down all the gym equipment. Jay takes those kinds of things in stride though, so it was no problem. I was of course freaking out inside about his hip (especially since he was limping when I saw him Wednesday night), but he has been able to rest a lot and it seems much better. He is pretty sure he will be able to get back to regular duty this Wednesday. Thanks for all of your thoughts and prayers on his behalf. They certainly do make a difference!

As far as the rest of the family goes, we are all doing well. I'm over my strep throat, thank heaven. (QUESTION: Is there any common illness that is worse than strep? ANSWER: no.) And the worst part about my strep throat was that my house was filled with goodies and I couldn't eat any of them. It was torture! You can trust that I made up for that as soon as possible.

Dexter is growing, growing, growing. He still has no teeth but is drooling like a mad man, so I'm sure it'll happen soon enough. He is a happy baby for the most part. He loves to watch his sisters (which is a good thing, because they are always about an inch away from his face). He is also a really good eater and has started eating those little puff treat things for babies. I feel really blessed to have such a mellow baby... I would probably be in a padded cell right now if he were cranky.

Beatrice is doing well also (besides really missing Daddy). She absolutely loves going to preschool. She only goes 2 days a week but every morning she asks me "Is it my school day?" She adores her teacher and her school friends as well. I volunteer in her class twice a month and am always so proud to see what a good little student she is. She sits quietly and raises her hand, and I sit there wondering, "Umm... whose child is that?!?" It's so funny to me that she's so quiet (and almost shy) at school because she's a loud, bouncy, laughing daredevil at home. We don't call her The Blond Bomber for nothing!

Natalie had a very, VERY good week. We've been working on some behavioral issues that she's had at home and she was just wonderful this past week. She was kind and helpful and although she and Bea fought at times, it was nothing too crazy. She also really enjoys school and even though she's always done well there she did extraordinarily well this past week. Her teacher called me three times this week to tell me that Natalie went "above and beyond" the good behaviour expectations of the class. (There is a chart and rewards, etc, that accompany this, and the teacher calls home when you exceed expectations.) Natalie has gone above & beyond several times this year but never 3 times in one week! It was truly an accomplishment, and we all celebrated by going to Johnny Rockets on Saturday. Mmmm, milkshakes all around!

So all in all it was a good week. We have already said goodbye to Jay and in my mind that means that Week 9 is already underway. I am hopeful that we'll have another good week but I'm bracing myself for the worst. What a horrible attitude! Ok, strike that. This is going to be a great week and I am looking forward to the adventure that awaits me! (Better?)

The Bagel Montage