A little personal update now that all the holidays are over…
End of soccer. End of scouts. End of school. Lots of endings.
T2 mediocre soccer season ended with a not unexpected loss in the first rounds of play offs. T1’s undefeated team lost for the first time in their first play-off game. The other team apparently did not practice good sportsmanship and we took consolation that they too were defeated in the championship.
T1 got her cast off and x-rays show nothing. The arm is a little weaker and still smarts if she has to put her weight on it but we will work on that over the summer. She was awarded first chair viola during a chair-challenge ever with the cast on. She has worked hard to regain her seat against a very talented challenger.
I say end of scouts but really it is just one year ending, taking my old troop on a 3-day trip, and starting right back up with a new level and new troop. But I will breathe a sigh of relief when the Court of Awards is over Tuesday night and I can hopefully put this stressful year behind me.
End of School. End of Elementary School for T2. How did this happen? Seriously? End of running the school store program for three years (plus maybe 2 previous years of volunteering). The best part of the job was going to all the kindergarten classes for them to exchange their Caught Being Good coins for school supplies or fun toys. Remembering what they were like on the first day of school and seeing them ready for 1st is always a treat. This being my last time, I went and got Sweet FROG gift certificate for the teachers so that I could tell their students their teacher had been caught being good. It was fun! I saved T1 & T2’s teacher for last. Both of us started choking up. Eight years ago she helped me begin this public school journey, welcoming me to her class so that I could be as involved as my heart desired; and then allowing me to repeat this with T2. Now T1 towers over her and T2 can look her in the eye. T2 graduates tomorrow and I am not ready.
Speaking of public school… last year I had warned T1 that if her standardized tests did not show an improvement and reflection of her classroom grades, I would seriously consider home schooling her. They went down. The day after she received an award for Straight A’s and she’s 2/3s of the way to receiving a special 8th grade award for achieving this feat three years in a row. I loathe standardized tests. I am beyond frustrated.
T1 and I finished our run at the local renn faire. She did a fabulous job with our greyhounds. I had to send her on her own one day as I managed to pick up strep. Went in to double-check a tick bite and I come back with strep. I loathe both but one is the lesser of two evils. With my compromised immune system due to the PsA, it hit like a ton of bricks. Even low-grade fevers make every joint protest with pain. I am on the mend and no longer contagious–but it made me miss not only a day of faire but T2’s 5th grade picnic and water balloon fight. I was not there to capture a single picture… I have nothing to document this right of passage with. It makes me sad.
And yesterday began what will probably be the longest I will have to go without hearing the Chief’s voice in a very, very long time. I will probably get one more phone call or two when they make a port call mid-way but after that it will be “radio silence” or at least phone silence for another 5+ weeks. I will be able to e-mail but it will be company e-mail and he has said he may sat-phone call me from their destination… I guess it is a good thing school and scouts are ending and I have trips planned and summer camp and award projects to keep me busy. But I miss his voice already and am saddened to know I won’t hear his familiar ring-tone for a long time.
snipewife 