Friday, December 18, 2009

A Weeks Recap

We have had a lot going on in our world this past week. Where should I start?

Let's start with Jon...
He got a new job! No more piecing together work between the two of us! This couldn't have come at a better time. I knew this month would be rough but I didn't think it would be this rough! We some how managed to pay the mortgage bill this month but the living expenses that we always put on the credit card (so I can get the Airmiles) will be paid off with the line of credit. That has NEVER happened before! I was really stressing about it. Things are looking up now though!

Jon is now a Quality Service Analyst for Community Living BC. He had to quit his part time job as a Behavioral Interventionist. Did I write about that before? He had a small 10 hour a week contract working with autistic kids at the Fraser Valley Child Development Center. He really loved it but was having a difficult time making it full time work. We are very excited about the CLBC job though. He is grossly under qualified but they loved his passion for people with special needs so much that they gave him the job anyway! It will not be working with persons with special needs as much as he would've liked but maybe we'll get to find another way to bring that into the mix soon. It is much more administrative. I think he is basically in charge of different funding and contracts and making sure the people who do have the privilege of working hands on are doing their jobs properly, safely and in the best interest of the client. He has a lot of power and his position is generally hated by caregivers because he is the one who says "yes" or "no" to funding. I really hope he loves it! He'll be in charge of contracts anywhere from Boston Bar, Hope, Chilliwack, Mission but probably mostly Langley and Abbotsford. The pay is much better than we are used to. I'm quite excited to have some breathing room in the budget to put towards paying off debt or in to savings towards a down payment for a house!

Me next...
I've been very excited and proud of my husband but I have had some major stresses this week too. My anxiety level has been steadily rising because of everything so I think I'm going to go back to my therapist in the new year. I've wanted to for a little while but haven't felt like I could afford it.

My Grandpa's health is still going down hill but I think I am okay with it. He has lived a full life and maybe he is ready to go. I just wish he would accept some help along the way. He is still talking about driving again one day and is very reluctant to accept the assistance we are so eager for him to take. It is becoming a safety issue and I'd hate for something bad to happen to necessitate us going over his head to get him in to a safer environment. He is a very proud man and his dignity would be very hurt.

The other major stressor is my sister (who is still not talking to us) got engaged a few days ago. I'm not really sure how exactly I am feeling about this yet. I go from feeling extremely positive and gracious about it, hoping a wedding could be common ground that brings her back to us, to thinking she can go fuck herself and I am done. Not very congruent emotions hey? I really do wish I could be authentically gracious, forgiving and accepting of the situation, but I'm not. I'm too reactionary and worrisome. I'm not sure how much hope I have for our relationship and if I don't have hope what is the point in trying? That is a very depressed statement but it is coming from a very real, hurt place. I think seeing my therapist will be good for me.

Gallstones are a BITCH! I've been getting attacks about twice a week! There doesn't seem to be any definitive triggers... well, except for food in general! I'll eat crazy healthy one day and get an attack, then eat really yummy Christmas goodies another day and be fine! I've done some research on the internet about what I should and shouldn't be eating but it really doesn't seem to matter. I mentioned this to my doctor and he is running some blood tests thinking it has something to do with my gallstones blocking the tube that empties from my pancreas. If that is the case that would only mean an extra procedure during the surgery I think. No long term effects thankfully. I don't have a surgery date yet. I am seeing the surgeon on December 23rd. I'm really hoping for a quick surgery date, but I have heard horror stories about the wait list. Let's all pray for a January 4th date!

Last, but definitely not least... Livi!
She is a very busy little girl. If we've been cooped up a little too much she'll end up running circles in our home between the kitchen and living room. She loves going out and socializing. She has no fear... except for maybe jumping off high places. She will run in to any situation eager to experience as much as she can. I like that she is such a little independant daredevil. She still needs her Mommy though :) At the end of a busy day she fills are home with illegible babble telling us everything that has happened and giving us lots of hugs, kisses and cuddles.

Her vocabulary has completely taken off. She repeats EVERYTHING we say. We have been getting way better at watching what words come out of our mouths :)  I've completely lost track of the number of words she has said. I think she is well in to the 50's. Livi has started building towers too. Those Megablocks that I bought at a garage sale last summer are finally getting used for other than sucking toys!
 
She is becoming such a big helper! She will systematically pass me all the dishes out of the lower rack of the dishwasher for me to put away. She puts things back in to the fridge when asked and can follow verbal prompts to pass me things. She cleans up her toys, when the clean up song is sung, and she LOVES closing doors and drawers for me.


I got to take Livi out to play in the snow for the first time the other day! She looked like a marshmellow. Her snowsuit was a size too big but it kept her dry! She was fascinated by the snow... but did not enjoy having to use her forehead to get up or the snow that fell in to her mitten. She had a lot of fun running around in it though. I loved how it completely wore her out. After we came inside and I had given her a bath, she went and got her fuzzy and soother from her crib (which she only ever uses for sleeping) and sat on the couch resting her head on the arm. It was ADORABLE. I didn't want to put her down for a nap quite yet because it was an hour early and she hadn't had her lunch yet. I got a three hour nap out of her though!

**I have pictures to post but Jon still hasn't fixed the desktop! I'll be sure to post lots as soon as I can.

1 comments:

LeAnna (and David) said...

I am so excited for you guys with Jon's new job!