The Post In Which I'm Back

Wowzers! So I kind of fell of the face of there earth there for a few months. Yeah, sorry about that. It's been insane here, just a little bit, just slightly, oh who am I kidding? It's been down right driving me out of my mind craziness in our world. LOL!

In case you missed the news, Russ, Damaris, and I are moving to Scotland. Yes, that Scotland. The one across the ocean. A whole different country. Almost 5,000 miles away from where we currently live in Texas.

And we leave on Sunday, August 25th, (less than 19 days from now at the time of the writing of this post) so you can surely understand the craziness I mentioned above.


Another reason for my disappearance has been my health. It has gone from bad to worse to the point where I struggle to function through each day. I leave the house only about once a week and spend most of my time in the recliner. Sleep has been difficult (insomnia issues, troubles staying asleep, pain during sleep, etc.) which has been hard as well. It stinks! I hate it! I'm hoping for a change after the move.

So, yes, Russ is going to be attending the University of Edinburgh to study for his PhD in Theology. Damaris and I are going to homeschool (she'll be starting 9th grade after we arrive) and knit. Hopefully, I'll be getting my chronic illnesses under control (we won't get into a political discussion about healthcare) because I will have healthcare in Scotland. Damaris and I are hoping to be able to go to a swimming pool that is located very close to where we will live for exercise. And we want to explore and travel as much as possible in this totally new to us city and country.

We have sold (or are selling - for Abilene people, we're doing another garage sale on Saturday, August 17th if you're interested) almost everything we own as we prepare to move. My parents are storing 4 or 5 Rubbermaid tubs of stuff for us (memories type stuff that we want to keep but won't be taking with us) and Russ' mom is storing several boxes of books that he wants to keep but can't take with us. As for what we're taking with us, we each will have 4 bags for a total of 12 bags (3 of those are military duffle bags full of clothing, 3 of those are suitcases full of other stuff although 1 of them is completely full of Russ' books, 3 small duffle bags that will be our carry-on luggage that are full of Russ' books, and our 3 personal bags that we'll carry on the plane) plus my folding wheelchair. That's it. It's kind of scary and kind of refreshing all in one. LOL!

We have secured a flat (that's an apartment in American speak) from the University that is 2 bedrooms and 1 bathroom that we'll move into upon our arrival in Scotland. Thankfully, it is furnished with the necessities of furniture as well as the basics for cooking/eating and cleaning. We'll have to fill in all the blank spots but at least the basic stuff is there for us. Our official arrival date in Edinburgh is on Monday, August 26th, and we'll move into the flat on that day. Russ doesn't start University stuff for a couple of weeks after that so we'll have a bit of time to recover from jet lag and adjust to our new surroundings.



You may have noticed that my blog has undergone a makeover of sorts. I have moved to a different host and made some changes to a few things. I also updated the RSS feed but as long as you're subscribed to the feedburner RSS, you shouldn't have to change anything to keep receiving my posts. If you want to receive my posts via email, you'll need to enter your email address in the box over in the far right column (near the top just under my photo) ----> and then after you do that, you'll receive an email that you'll need to click a link in to confirm your subscription.

The reason for the changes are we're planning to use my blog as a platform to share photos and such about our time in Scotland. We'll be there at least three years and we hope to have lots to share.

I know I owe yall a HUGE post to check in on my word of the year, create, since I haven't done that since March. I hope to do that soon but will need to fit it in between all the other things on our "to do before we move to Scotland" list.



Prayer Requests:
1 - For Russ as he finishes out his final days of work at his job here in Abilene (his final day will be Friday, August 16)
2 - For our garage sale on Saturday, August 17
3 - For safe driving travels for us as we visit family in New Mexico and Texas between Saturday, August 17, and Saturday, August 24
4 - For no complications with flights and for safe travel (we fly from DFW to Newark on Sunday, August 25th in the morning hours and from Newark to Edinburgh in the evening hours of Sunday, August 25th into the morning of Monday, August 26th when we arrive in Edinburgh)
5 - For my health as we are doing all this traveling.
6 - And for my health after we arrive in Scotland. Especially that we find a good doctor and can work together to make my pain manageable and life more livable.
7 - For our adjustment to life in a new city and country
8 - For Russ as he begins his research and figures out a schedule for his studies
9 - For financial implications of our move including a part-time job for Russ in Edinburgh (his visa only allows him to work part-time)
10 - For us to find a community to live life with, for new friends for all of us



Thanks for your prayers and support during these past months and during the days, weeks, and months ahead. I'm glad to be back to blogging. I've missed it more than I realized (it has felt amazing to sit here and write these words to yall today). I'll be back as soon as I can with the post I owe yall and hopefully much more regularly in the days and weeks ahead. If not, I give you permission to pester me repeatedly until I post. :-)

The Post in Which I Catch Up & Share More Finished Knitting

Happy Wednesday Friends! I'm still playing catch up from the Ravellenic Games.

Need to get back on a regular schedule since Damaris will be starting 8th grade on Tuesday, September 4th. Our plan is to use 2 online programs, 1 that has Language Arts, Reading, Vocabulary, Math, Science, and Social Studies, and the other that is American Sign Language, plus continuing to use knitting as her art and we're still figuring out how to add PE in (suggestions welcome).

I'm so ready for the heat to go away and for Autumn to arrive. We've been having some fluctuations in the weather the last couple of weeks and it's wreaking havoc on my fibromyalgia. I'm having to have the air on high so that I can use my heated throw (that I use as a huge heating pad for my whole body).



Now, in regards to knitting, I have several projects to share that I couldn't share before (for various reasons). Click on the picture or name of the knitted item to view the details on Ravelry (like needle size, yarn, pattern, etc.).


Pineapple Ornament Cover - Just before the Games began, Yarnies hosted a Christmas in July workshop. They convinced me to do a crocheted ornament cover. Ummm, so I know just enough about crocheting to be dangerous! Thankfully, the amazing Helen stood by my side and helped me through over half of this and then she finished it up for me.




Sweater In Progress Pins - Damaris and I worked on these together. We made 22 of them - 1 for each member of Team Yarnies for the 2012 Ravellenic Games. They are meant to invoke the look of a partially knitted sweater on a set of knitting needles. There is a pin on the back to wear it or put it on a bag.




Heartfelt Rings - Damaris and I worked on these together. We made 22 of them - 1 for each member of Team Yarnies for the 2012 Ravellenic Games. Each of them was hand felted and turned out just the right size to wear as a ring.




Key Cozies - Damaris and I worked on these together. We made 22 of them - 1 for each member of Team Yarnies for the 2012 Ravellenic Games. Each one is the perfect size for a key to fit in and then be closed up to provide a little "sweater" of sorts for a special key.




Zig Zag (Chevron) Baby Blanket for Baby Griffin - This project has actually been finished since May, but I had to wait until after Abby's baby shower to share it. When I first was looking at patterns for a baby blanket for Abby and Cody, most of us didn't know if they were having a boy or girl. When I saw this chevron pattern, I knew I had to make it, because Abby loves chevrons. I chose colors that would work for a boy or girl and I think that Abby really likes it. :)




Shelby's Seafoam Scarf - This was a quick project as a gift for Shelby's 16th birthday.




3S Shawl - Back in January, I won this amazing yarn that is 50% deep dark brown from a Shetland sheep named Comfrey (Sommarang Farm) combined with 50% mohair from a female Angora dark gray goat named Catie from Yarn Miracle’s 12 Months of Mindful Fiber. I finally got around to making something with it and I'm in love with how this shawl turned out. Now if only it were cool enough to wear it. Another reason for Autumn to get here soon!




Hiatus: The Official Dish Rag of Waiting - Yarn Miracle has hosted the Dish Rag Tag for several years now. Essentially, participants are put into teams and there is a race to ship the box all over the country, knit the dish rag when the box arrives, and then ship it out to the next person (with yarn and goodies of course). There won't be one this year as the software used needs to be updated, so Emily put out this pattern to tide us over. She offered the first two people to knit it up a prize and I was the first one finished. Now, to figure out what to make with the yarn I won!



As always, find all my completed projects plus what's currently on my needles on Ravelry:


Better get back to knitting. I'm teaching a class on Christmas Stockings in October and I need to get some more done on the sample for the class so it can be displayed in the shop to garner some interest. Thanks for stopping in!

Sharing Our Spoons Week #6

Sharing Our Spoons is a weekly link-up for those of us with chronic illnesses where we support and encourage each other in a holistic way by focusing on five goals each week. The five goal areas are: Physical, Mental/Emotional, Spiritual, Something fun, and BONUS: One thing to get you out of your comfort zone each week. We'll be linking up on Tuesdays. We'd love to have you join us.



My Goals From Week 5:
1. Physical: Work on getting to bed before midnight every night.
6 times out of 7. Not too bad. And the other time, I was only a few minutes late. Need to keep working on this though.

2. Mental/Emotional: Continue knitting on my sweater as well as working on the sample afghan for the shop.
Making good progress on my sweater - working on the waist shaping. Finished square #2 of the afghan & square #3 is about 80% done.

3. Spiritual: Continue reading/journaling You're Already Amazing: Embracing Who You Are, Becoming All God Created You to Be - last 3 chapters this week.
Done!

4. Something fun: Have something fun planned but can't share because someone might see this. I'll share what we did next week.
Damaris finished 7th grade on Wednesday so I surprised her by taking her to the beauty college for pedicures.

5. BONUS: One thing to get you out of your comfort zone a week: Continue working on plans to open an Etsy shop.
Banner design is done, created a Twitter account & Facebook page.



My Week 6 Goals:
1. Physical: Continue working on getting to bed before midnight every night.
2. Mental/Emotional: Continue knitting on my sweater as well as working on the sample afghan for the shop.
3. Spiritual: Begin reading/journaling What Women Fear: Walking in Faith that Transforms by Angie Smith.
4. Something fun: Celebrate Worldwide Knit in Public Day and Yarnies first anniversary on Saturday.
5. BONUS: One thing to get you out of your comfort zone a week: Continue working on plans to open an Etsy shop - start nailing down patterns.

Your turn! Our host Jamee from A New Kind of Normal is out of commission this week so if you are Sharing Our Spoons, make sure and tweet your link with the #sos hashtag so we can find each other. You can also join the Facebook Sharing Our Spoons group by clicking here.

Goodbye 7th grade! Hello 8th grade!

(Photos from beginning of 7th grade in August & the end of 7th grade celebrated today with a pedicure)

It seems like just yesterday
she was a babe in my arms.
She began by learning her ABC's & 123's
just a drop in the bucket of her current studies.
Goodnight Moon and Dr. Seuss
up on a shelf, they're no longer in use.
They have gone away & been replaced
Harry & Hermione & Lucy are now embraced.
Writing stories, imagining what it might be like
if she were The Doctor's companion, she'd never go on strike.
The days pass so quickly
a college grad before we know it!
Goodbye 7th grade! Hello 8th grade!

So proud of you Damaris!
Love,
Mamma

A Day in the Life

Today is day 25 of the WEGO Health ~ The Health Activist Writer's Month Challenge 2012. I will be writing a post everyday this month and each will in some way focus on what life is like with fibromyalgia (as well as other health issues including migraines, hypothyroidism, and polycystic ovarian syndrome).

Today’s prompt is plain and simple: write a schedule of what your typical day looks like. Where does your health fit in? Do you manage your condition throughout the day or have specific times that you check-in?

As a woman living with fibromyalgia (a disease characterized by chronic widespread pain [my major pain areas are back, hips, and legs] as well as a host of other issues - brain fog, depression, sleep problems, fatigue, migraines, gastrointestinal problems, etc.; the two biggest difficulties in treating this disease, in my opinion, are that the symptoms are different for every person and the so-called fibromyalgia medications don't work for everyone, they don't help me at all!), I never know how I will be feeling when I wake up in the morning.

A "normal" day in my life looks something like this:

10:30am - Wake up, it takes about 10-15 minutes for me to get out of bed because I'm so stiff and need time to stretch.

10:45am - Take medicine and eat breakfast while reading email and other computer stuff

11:45am - Take a shower and get dressed

12:45pm - Eat lunch and check Damaris' schoolwork (I homeschool our 12 year old/7th grade daughter. Thankfully, she is very self-motivated. We chose Alpha Omega's Switched On Schoolhouse curriculum since it does much of the teaching and grading for us. I still check all of Damaris' schoolwork and am available to help her if she needs it.)

1:30pm - Watch some tv and blog

3:30pm - Knit for a bit while I watch more tv

5:30pm - Talk to Russ about his day after he gets home from work before he and Damaris prepare dinner

6:30pm - Eat dinner and watch tv with Russ and Damaris (depending on how I'm feeling, I may knit a bit more)

9:00pm - Damaris goes to bed

10:00pm - I start prepping for bed by eating a snack so I can take my meds which I cannot do on an empty stomach.

10:30pm - Take medicine. Read in bed.

12:00am - Attempt to sleep. Insomnia and fatigue are bad with fibromyalgia and it's difficult to find a comfortable position to sleep in. That's why it's usually 10:30am before I wake up.

I do a lot of things from bed and/or my recliner. Some days I spend all day in bed. Other days I can be up and about a bit more.

That's a "normal" day for me. What about you? How does your health affect your day to day life?


Portions of this post were edited from a previous post C.C.'s Homeschool Day in the Life of a Mamma with Fibromyalgia

Dialogue

31 Days to Become a Better Writer - Day 23

Today's Challenge:

I want you to write three excerpts of dialogue. They don’t need to be lengthy. The focus is the exchange of words even if it is just back and forth a few times. So, first identify which register it should be written in and then write a few lines of text back and forth between the parties.

1. A boyfriend and girlfriend saying goodbye as he is deployed for the next year.

2. A professor giving a lecture on the importance of attending class regularly.

3. A discussion between women at a local Mom’s group regarding preschools.

1. "I swear I'll be back as soon as I can." He reached out his hand to wipe away the tear that was sliding down her cheek.

"A year is such a long time. I'll be counting the days. 365. I can do this. We can do this. Only 365 days to go." She takes a deep breath trying to stop more tears from falling.

"I adore you my love. 365 days. I'll be back."

"Promise me. Promise you'll come back to me."

He raises his hands to cup her face and gently presses his lips to hers. "I promise."

2. "Good morning class. I'm Professor Holmes. This is Creative Writing 3315. If that is not the course listed on your schedule, you are in the wrong place and you can be excused." He waits in silence as two students attempt to leave the room without being seen. "Now, I assume the rest of you are ready to begin. We will meet Mondays and Thursdays from 9am to 10:50am. Not 10:48, not 10:49, 10:50. We start at 9:00, not 9:01, not 9:02, 9:00. I expect each of you to be in class every session. If you miss more than 3 class sessions, you will have 3 points deducted from your final grade for every additional class session you miss. If you miss 3 class sessions, you will fail my class. Is that understood? Good. Now, on to the syllabus."

3. "I don't know about yall, but I'm just terrified to send her to preschool. She's still my baby. She can't be old enough for that yet." Cherie looked at the other moms sitting around the picnic table. As a first time mom, she was depending on those with experience to help her through this next milestone.

"You have to decide what is right for you. There are a couple of days a week programs. There are morning or afternoon only programs. There are full-time programs. Or you could think about homeschooling." Lizzie had 3 kids and often filled the role of expert of the group.

"We've talked about homeschooling. We're already kind of doing it." Cherie hesitantly volunteered.

Several of the kids ran up asking for a snack at that moment. Lizzie had brought snacks today so she started handing them out.

Molly leaned over to Cherie and whispered, "We're thinking about homeschooling too. I'm going to a meeting next week for a local homeschooling group. Do you want to go with me?"

A wave of relief washed over Cherie's face. "Yes, please. Thank you Molly!"

~

I'll say it again, conversations are hard for me to write. Definitely not my cup of coffee, I mean tea. ;-)


Image Credit

31 Days to Become a Better Writer - Day 12

Today's Challenge:

Make a list of ten of your passions. Pick one and write about why that topic/subject is your passion. We want to know the nitty gritty whys and hows. Maybe your love for war reenactments stems from your father taking you to battlefields and forts when you were younger or perhaps your pottery obsession is from a desire to understand the verse, “You are the potter and I am the clay...” Whatever your passion, for whatever reason you pursue it, we want to hear about it.

If you've been a reader here for long, you probably could name ten of my passions. LOL! Just in case you can't, here we go:
1. PINK (seriously, anything the color pink has me at hello)
2. knitting
3. coffee
4. my amazing hubs and daughter
5. fibromyalgia/chronic illness/invisible illness/disability
6. Gilmore Girls
7. women in ministry
8. gluten free
9. homeschooling
10. reading

I had already planned to write a post today about passion #5 - fibromyalgia/chronic illness/invisible illness/disability and then when I read the assignment for the Better Writer challenge, I realized that my planned post totally fit the bill.


I read this blog post a few weeks ago and knew I wanted to respond. I just wasn't sure exactly what my response was going to look like. For those who don't want to read the entire blog post I cited above, in short, a woman with a chronic invisible illness was going into a store and used the handicap accessible door. A woman in a wheelchair about ten feet away went off on her and yelled that she wasn't handicapped and couldn't use that *&%^ing door. The first woman approached the second and informed her that she did have a disability, however, it is an invisible one. She proceeded to tell her that she was allowed to use whichever door she wanted and that she was not in the way or stopping this other woman from using that door. The second woman continued screaming profanity and pitching a fit as the first woman walked away. The blog post continues as she reflects on the need to support each other and stand up for each other whether our disease is invisible or not.

I have to admit, if this had happened to me, my temper would probably have gotten the better of me and I probably would have said some things I shouldn't have. And then my mind jumps to those times when I've seen someone park in a handicap parking space and then jump right out of the car and run in the store. In those moments, I have instantly made the assumption that they aren't handicapped and how dare they park in those spaces. The truth is, I am in the wrong in those moments. I don't know if they are handicapped or not. Who am I to judge?

As my fibromyalgia has gotten worse and has gone from true invisibility to a bit more visible as I use my cane or wheelchair, I have begun to experience a new type of invisibility. Shopping using a scooter (the only way I can shop) is one of the most miserable errands I have to do. Why? Because most people pay no attention to what is going on around them. I have been run into by shopping carts more times than I can count. Many times the aisles are so narrow, it is like running a gauntlet to try to get through. Those scooters have a horrific turning radius so when I go to turn down the next aisle, invariably I am run into head on by a cart or suddenly I am in someone's way. 9 times out of 10, by the time we are finished in the store, I am so angry that I want to yell at someone or so emotionally beaten that I am in tears.

All of these events and reflections lead me to some questions. When did it become acceptable not to have common courtesy for each other? And why do many with visible illnesses or those with no illnesses think it's ok to bash (verbally, emotionally, and sometimes physically) those with invisible illnesses? How can we change this? How can we encourage and respect and support each other? How can we have compassion for each other? How can we make a difference today?



Image Credit

Tag… I’m It!

My BBF (best blogging friend) Shari from Rain Into Rainbows tagged me in this blog challenge. So, to start, here's 11 random things about me.

1. We just moved back to where we consider home, Abilene, Texas, 2 days ago. We lived here for almost 3 years when Russ and I were in seminary. We're so glad to be home!

2. (totally stealing from Shari!) I really really really want to attend the 2012 Allume Social conference.

3. (again stealing from Shari!) Yes, I would LOVE a sponsor to attend Allume Social. How sweet of you to ask! ;)

4. I have a major thing for sweets. Chocolate is really high up on that list. Almost any candy. Cake, ice cream, brownies, pie...just hand over the sweets and nobody gets hurt!

5. I love TOMS shoes. I wear them probably 95% of the time. I really want the Fuchsia Crochet ones and the Natalia Rose Linen Ballet Flats. I wear a size 9 if anyone wants to buy them for me!!!! LOL! But seriously! :D

6. I'm a TV person too. I have to noise on most of the time and I usually fill that need with tv. SciFi shows are a favorite. Crime dramas too. Netflix Streaming and I are BFFs!!!

7. My 12 year old daughter Damaris is only about an inch shorter than I am (I'm 5'4.5"). She also wears the same size shoes as me.

8. I adore the color pink! And I like it so much that I wear it, decorate with it, paint my nails pink, etc., etc. I'm so blessed that I have an understanding husband!

9. I have piercings - 2 holes in each ear plus a cartilage piercing in my left ear and a nose stud as well - and tattoos - on my right wrist, I have the word grace and on my left wrist, I have the word peace (shalom) in Hebrew.

10. My 2nd toe on each foot is longer than my big toe. I've been told that means I'm smart!

11. I'm kinda crunchy - I don't wear makeup, I clean my face with castor oil & EVOO, I wash my hair with baking soda, I condition my hair with apple cider vinegar, I homeschool Damaris, I use lots of herbal/homeopathic remedies, on good days I eat organic/naturally, etc.

And here's Shari's 11 questions for me...

1. Do you have pets? If so how many and what kind?
Nope, no pets. Russ and Damaris want a Siberian Husky. I say no until we have a backyard.

2. Are you a city gal or a country girl?
Country gal but I need access to certain city things. I'd love to live in a town like Stars Hollow from Gilmore Girls.

3. What’s your favorite fruit?
Strawberries!

4. How many countries have you visited/lived in?
Ummm, well, I visited the Bahamas and went on a choir tour in Europe. Other than that, only the US. I dream of visiting Prince Edward Island and other places in Canada.

5. How many states have you visited/lived in?
Lived in - only Texas and New Mexico
Visited - Arizona, California, Colorado, Alabama, Oklahoma, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, I think that's all

6. What’s your favorite color? (I already know for some of y’all!)
Now that's a silly question! PINK all the way!!!!!

7. Do you WOH or WIH? (I’m not even gonna say SAH, because we all know just how much work *that* can be!)
Work inside the home as a wife and Mamma

8. Are you married? If so, for how long?
yep, 14 years this past September

9. What trend from your teens makes you cringe when you look back?
those gigantic bangs

10. What makes you feel great about yourself?
I'm a caring, loving, compassionate woman who is fighting her way through a very difficult illness because life is about the journey.

11. What is your dream vehicle?
a pink Volkswagon Beetle convertible like this:


Tag Rules
Post these rules on your blog
You must post 11 random things about yourself.
Answer the questions set for you in their post.
Create 11 new questions for the people you tag to answer.
Go to their blog and tell them that you’ve tagged them.

I'm not going to tag anyone but if you want to do this, here are 11 questions to answer. Let me know if you do this. :) [*Cough, cough* Russ, Damaris, Mom, etc.]

1. If you could live anywhere, where would it be?

2. What's your favorite sweet treat?

3. Do you name the inanimate items in your life (your car, your phone, your computer, etc.)? If so, what are their names?

4. What is your favorite song of all time?

5. Do you have any reoccurring dreams? Tell us about it/them.

6. What's the most serious illness or accident you've had?

7. If your life story was a book, what would the title of it be?

8. What's your favorite special occasion?

9. If you could trade in your car for another mode of transportation, what would it be?

10. What would your perfect day look like?

11. What's your favorite quote?

C.C.'s Homeschool Day in the Life of a Mamma with Fibromyalgia

I've been reading the Day in the Life series at Simple Homeschool with much interest. I know that every homeschooling family does things differently. We each have to do what works for our individual family. I love to see what others do and am many time inspired to try different tactics or adjust a suggestion to something that might work for us.

As a woman living with fibromyalgia (a disease characterized by chronic widespread pain [my major pain areas are back, hips, and legs] as well as a host of other issues - brain fog, depression, sleep problems, fatigue, migraines, gastrointestinal problems, etc.; the two biggest difficulties in treating this disease, in my opinion, are that the symptoms are different for every person and the so-called fibromyalgia medications don't work for everyone, they don't help me at all!), I never know how I will be feeling when I wake up in the morning. Thankfully, our 12 year old daughter Damaris is very self-motivated. We chose Alpha Omega's Switched On Schoolhouse curriculum since it does much of the teaching and grading for us. I still check all of Damaris' schoolwork and am available to help her if she needs it. I do a lot of things from bed depending on the day. Some days I spend all day in bed. Other days I can be up and about more often.

Here's what today (Thursday, February 2nd) looked like:
8:00 - Russ leaves for work. I wake up briefly to tell him goodbye and then go back to sleep for a little while.

8:20 - Damaris wakes up, gets dressed, eats breakfast, and starts a load of laundry since today is one of our two weekly laundry days.


9:15 - I wake up and open the bedroom door to let Damaris know I'm awake (I love that I can reach the door from bed!). She comes and gets her computer out of our room (we're temporarily living with my parents so the layout of our stuff is different than when we're in our own place) and starts her schoolwork at the table in the kitchen. She starts with a 7th grade Bible lesson about Obstacles to Growth. While she does this, I spend time in bed reading email and Twitter on my tablet. It takes a little while for my body to wake up so I've figured out this is the best thing for me to do.


9:40 - Damaris comes and asks for help with a question in her Bible lesson. I was just finishing making the bed so I go to the kitchen to help her. While I'm in there, I get some breakfast and Damaris makes me a cup of coffee (she knows just how I like my coffee!).

I come back to the bedroom and do a bit of stuff on my laptop while I eat breakfast. Damaris starts on her 7th grade History and Geography lesson about Anthropology - Seeking Food.


10:00 - Damaris comes and gets me to help with a question. While I'm up, I show Damaris which load of laundry is next and she switches them out. I do some Facebook stuff and answer some emails. Damaris continues with a 7th grade Language Arts quiz about Affixes, Biography, and Sequence, a 7th grade Math lesson about Scientific Notation, and a General Science I lesson about Structure of the Atmosphere.

11:15 - I take a break to get a shower while Damaris continues with her school lessons. She also does a one minute quick writing session using One Word. She puts it in her SOS journal for me to read later.

11:45 - Just as I'm about to get some lunch, the mailman arrives with the much anticipated W-2 we've been waiting for so we can finish our taxes. Damaris gets herself some lunch and I spend the next couple hours finishing our taxes (we're moving back to Texas in a couple of weeks and will definitely need that tax refund).

1:15 - I make a phone call to locate a missing piece of paperwork I need to finish our taxes. Damaris does her PE on the Wii.


1:45 - Damaris practices her piano while I finally eat lunch.


2:15 - Damaris reads a book in her room and works on the book report she writes for each book she reads (she loves to sit in the space between the wall and the bed in her room). She also switches out the last load of laundry. I start working on reserving a Uhaul and finding a storage unit in Texas since we'll be staying with some friends until we find a place of our own.


2:45 - Damaris does one of her weekly chores, her least favorite!, cleaning the bathroom. She is such a help with the household chores especially since I became sick. I continue working on moving details.

3:15 - Damaris gets her shower and gets dressed (she'd normally put on PJs, but we have small group tonight). I'm still pounding away on moving details.

3:45 - Damaris gets some free computer time (she really enjoys her friendships on Ravelry, a community for knitters and crocheters). I'm finally done with moving details for now so I check her schoolwork before turning on some Netflix and starting to write this blog post.


5:15 - Russ gets home, changes clothes quickly, and we run out the door to the store, the library, and to grab some dinner at Subway before small group.

6:30 - Small group - we're studying Ecclesiastes right now. Damaris and I both knit during small group (it's a very calming and relaxing thing for both of us and we also count her knitting as her art for school).

(I took this picture once we got home so I wouldn't interrupt small group trying to take her picture there. She is currently knitting the Harry Potter House Unity Scarf.)

8:15 - Home from small group. Russ gets on his computer to do some Facebook, etc. Damaris checks in on Ravelry. I work on finishing up this blog post. Russ and I watch tv while we're both on our respective computers.

8:45 - Damaris starts her nighttime chores, brushes teeth, cleans her face, etc.

9:00 - Damaris heads to bed after telling us and my parents good night.

(Obviously since I'm posting this before 9:30, the following haven't happened yet, but this is what happens on a normal night.

9:30 - I start prepping for bed by eating a snack so I can take my meds which I cannot do on an empty stomach.

9:50 - Meds time.

10:15 - Put the computer away. Brush teeth, etc. Read until I get tired.

10:45 - Go to sleep.

I hope you enjoyed a day in the life with me! I'd love to hear how other families with a parent with a chronic illness deal with homeschooling. Or if you have questions or suggestions for me, I'm a pretty open book so ask or suggest away. Thanks again for stopping by!