It's Been Awhile...

Hi everyone. Or, at least, those of you who still read this blog. The blog that is never updated.

It has been pretty much exactly one year and 2 months since I posted last. Folks, I never meant to go that long without updating. The unfortunate truth is so. much. life. has. happened. So many day to day things plus so many big and hard things have happened that I just haven't blogged. I haven't blogged because I have been preoccupied. I haven't blogged because I have been tired. I have been sick. I have been hurt. I haven't blogged because some of the things that are on my mind are things that aren't "fun" or "exciting" and some of the things that have gone down are difficult. There have also been good things, things that have thankfully taken my attention from blogging because they were so amazing and fun. So, I will do my best to recap the last 14 months for you.

Here is our top 10 happenings (for better or worse)....

10. Emma started preschool

She is currently going full time, 5 days a week at a school by our house in Zachary. In short, her transition was (is) rough, she enjoys the social time and the activities but hates the moment of separation from me at drop off. Every. Single. Day. Continued prayers for her and the rest of us in this matter is greatly appreciated, as we feel this is the best thing for her development at this time.

9. I started graduate school

I am also currently going full time, working towards my Masters degree that will allow me to become a Nurse Practitioner. I am enrolled in Southeastern which is about an hour from the house, but the coursework is all online. I am hoping to finish in May of 2015 as a Family NP :)

8. We had a hurricane

In brief....trapped in the house with a then-2-year-old, three dogs, a cat, and watching all heck break loose outside your windows with no electricity and NOTHING you can do about it. No one in their right mind would sign up for that. Our air conditioner was fried in the storm and had to be replaced. Oh, and I was coming down with something, or so I thought, because two days after the storm....

7. I was hospitalized

Sheesh. Give a Momma a break. Or was this considered my break??? If it is, I demand a do-over. The day of the storm (see above) I felt odd. Achy. The day after I hurt all over and felt as if I was dying. Funnily enough, I actually was. That night I was sure I had the flu. During the night with fever around 103 F I was so incredibly miserable. The next morning I wound up in the ER as I felt worse than I have ever felt in my life. Admitted with diagnosis of sepsis. Culprit? Severe and rare drug reaction to a sulfa drug. Odds that I would have died? 40%. I'm convinced God has plans for me that are WAY bigger than I can imagine. Physical recovery time? Approximately 4 months.

6. We took a family vacation

WOO there is something exciting and exhausting about vacationing with a three-year-old. We spent Thanksgiving week at Navarre Beach, FL with my parents and had an absolute blast, however it is a unique brand of tiredness spending every waking minute on the go like that. The memories we made with each other are priceless and I will never, ever forget the joy on my girl's face when she played in the sand.

5. Preschool Syndrome

Emma has been so sick so frequently. She has had RSV, croup, the flu, ear infections, and most recently, pneumonia. My girl has fought and fought nasty crud and seen fevers up to 105.4 F at the highest. Weeklong to 10 day courses of all of these sicknesses. That, of course, does not lend itself to blogging. Or anything else for that matter. Thank heaven for spring.

4. We renovated the outside of our new house

Wet concrete, new plants, a preschooler, and three dogs that must be walked on leashes to potty. Fun. But the new courtyard looks amazing and we have spent so much time outside since it was completed. It only took a couple of months.

3. We had our identity stolen

And the individuals filed federal taxes with our information. Awesome! This required trips to the state police, the bank(s), the CPA, an attorney, and calls to the Federal Trade Commission, the IRS and the credit bureaus. Time consuming. Annoying. Thanks to the person who decided to steal our lives and use them as your own.

2. I took 2 trips

California!!!! This was an amazing trip to spend some time with my Ellen, her hubby and their new baby boy :)

Georgia!!!! The annual Created for Care retreat for adoptive mommas was once again wonderful and refreshing and much needed.

1. Javier took several trips

Let's do the tally: Germany, California, Florida, Germany (again)....and still to come: Texas, Mexico, Utah,  and California (again).

Ok, so those aren't NECESSARILY in the order they deserve, but can a girl get a break since there has been no activity since last March? LOL

I know you all can't imagine why I haven't had the time to update.

To prevent this post from becoming a snoozefest, here are some recent-ish pics for you!!! I promise to try and do better with blogging. :)