Family Update

I know I haven't written in about a week and I apologize. It has gotten hectic here at work and considering this is where I do most of my writing, I have had a bit of a lapse. Hopefully I can get back to it.

I wanted to update everyone on how the kids are doing. Balin is eating us out of house and home and continues to grow. He is a big kid for only being 16 months old. He still isn't walking yet. I joke that I want him to be a baseball player but he isn't going to make too many teams I'f I'm out there picking him up and carrying him to first base after he hits the ball.

The little guy is showing signs that he is about ready to walk. We know he can do it. He actually walked all the way across the living room the other day without assistance but he is still too tentative to let go and just start walking on his own. Angie and I have made a point of working with him every day, coaxing him to take more steps. One positive, he has stopped crying when he falls down. Instead he is now laughing. Granted he refuses to get back up and try again after falling, but at least it isn't a traumatic event when he does fall.

Balin has been loving it outside. He goes out everyday. Angie made the mistake of taking him and one of his little walker toys out in the cul de sac the other day and now that is the first place he heads when he gets outside. It is much flatter ground than out sloping driveway so he likes to beebop around there. It doesn't help that Grace goes out there and rides her bike or scooter. He loves his big sister and enjoys playing with her.

Speaking of Grace, she is officially out of school and now joins the ranks of the 1st grade. She was sad when school got out because she loved her teacher and doesn't want a new one next fall. I was impressed by how well Gracie did this year in school. We had a little trepidation because she was such a young kindergartner but she is a smart little girl and did very well. More impressive was how she met so many friends and learned to be more social without being so bossy. She is going to miss school this summer. Already she is planning play dates with her friends (she has one this afternoon). Hopefully we will be able to have her first sleepover with a friend sometime this summer as well. I know she'll enjoy that as long as I can get them to sleep.

Gracie's ballet recital is Saturday night. I guess the whole routine is only about three minutes long so I shouldn't have much problem recording all of it with my digital camera so I can post it here for everyone to see. She had her last practice yesterday and I guess they are ready to go. It should be fun watching her perform for the first time. She is such a princess and watching her dance confirms it. I think she is going to end up being a performer sometime in her life. I would love for her to take up singing when she gets older. I love listening to her sing even now. It melts my heart.

Megan is done with her freshman year of college and has started working fulltime in preparation of leaving to go to Ball State in the fall. We don't see much of her, but when we do it is nice to have her around. I'm going to enjoy going on vacation with her as it means we'll get to spend a great deal of time with her before she leaves for college the third week of August. We've warned her that Balin will be moving in to her bedroom when she leaves and she seems cool with that as long as she has somewhere to sleep when she comes home. We are planning on leaving her bed in there, just moving the little guy's crib in so we can have some space in our room.

Angie is still looking for a job. It is getting close to crunch time as her unemployement is about to run out. She is aware of the deadline and is a bit stressed out. Hopefully she'll find something soon. In the meantime she has been doing a lot of scrapbooking. Her books are looking very good and she is improving each time she goes and works on them. It is nice that she has a hobby that she enjoys. Doubly nice is the fact that Megan does scrapbooking too, so they can go together and spend time with each other. I've always though that it is important to have one-on-one time with your parents.

I'm doing okay. My job is incredibly stressful right now. Home life is a bit stressful as well. I've got a lot on my mind and I don't sleep well these days. I usually toss and turn for an hour or so when I go to bed before I fall asleep. I'll do that for 3 or 4 days in a row then have one night where exhaustion just takes hold and I crash hard. I've started season 3 of my Warmachine League on Thursday nights and have been enjoying that even though it keeps me out late. It is a very nice distraction, something I need once in awhile.

So, that's about it; a quick update on the family and me. Since its been so long since I've written I will be posting some more stuff later today including another submission of Corpse as well as some other ramblings. Thanks for reading.