Bargains at Barnes and Noble

I had the afternoon to myself today. Yup-me time. I so needed to get out of the house. It's been a stressful and busy few weeks, so to be able to get out without the kids in tow was refreshing. Where did I end up going? Barnes and Noble of course. I lost myself in books and magazines and coffee from the cafe'. Did you know that Barnes and Noble gives homeschoolers a 20% discount on all books for educational purposes? However, I always manage to get the rude cashier that has no idea about homeschoolers. When I went to renew my card, he asked for all kinds of paperwork from the "school system" to prove we were homeschooling. Like he would even know what it meant. Despite my homeschooling ID card, he just wouldn't give in. This was just before Christmas and the store was packed. I threw a tantrum that caused the manager to come over. She quickly remedied the problem and I was able to get the discount on all $100 of my purchases. The cashier threw the form at me and told me to fill it out another time. I politely told him that, no-I would rather do it now. He was quite annoyed that I held up his line. I was quite annoyed that he was rude.

Today (I got the same cashier), he asked me for photo ID when I gave him my Barnes and Noble Educator discount card. I told him that it was not policy to ask for photo ID, he abruptly told me that I wouldn't get the discount without the ID. Since I was paying with my bank card that had my name on it-I really didn't see why he needed more ID. So what did I do? I stood there and said nothing and gave him the blank stare and just blinked. He was so uncomfortable because he didn't know what to do. "Photo ID please" he continued. I stared more. I blinked more. Then I swiped my card thru the machine. "The name is verified on the bank card," I said.

"The receipt is in the bag," He said.

My very nice purchases today include Hobby Farm Home Magazine (my new favorite), a Vegetarian cookbook (we're not vegetarian but I wanted some recipes), The Backyard Homestead Book that I've been wanting and a book for my daughter that was on clearance. Total cost-$39.00 with my discount.

Then I stopped at an educational store called "Up With Learning." I bought this really cool calendar set for Tae to help teach him his numbers, days of the week, and month. Besides, it comes with little weather tabs that he can add on to tell us the weather. Everymorning he checks the weather forecast and then tells us all what we should wear according to the forecast.

This would be the reason for my stress. My husband had surgery on Monday. He had his other Cochlear implant placed and stayed overnight at the hospital. He'll probably growl at me for posting this picture on the blog too. Thanks to all my co-workers who took such good care of him. As you can see-he is ever so thrilled that I am taking his picture of his head bandage. Not to mention he had a slamming headache and was annoyed with everything.

Love you honey!

My garden is just gorgeous. The Bleeding Hearts are in full bloom.

The deer have been busy grazing at the Hosta salad bar.

The birds are busy building nests like this one.

We are finding lots of pretty blue eggshells from the nests.

The Columbine are a beautiful grape color.

My Azalea bush was so bright it looked as if it was on fire. It needs a trim very badly after it is done blooming. It looks like something out of a Dr. Seuss book.

The garden is all planted except for my gourds and loofah gourds. I picked those seeds up today and will plant them this weekend. I planted Marigolds throughout the whole garden to discourage bugs and pests on my vegetable plants.

This is not Marijuana although it looks like it. It is growing beside our pond and is called a May Apple. It gets very large and overhangs the pond.

The bullfrog is huge!

And is enjoying the murky green water.

This is not a garden hose. It's a garden snake sunning himself on the warm rocks by the pond. Snakes are very beneficial to the garden because they eat small rodents. Their shedded skin also makes a very cool item to look at under the microscope during our homeschool lessons.

See her little head peaking out.

Tae has been working on his writing. He LOVES dry erase boards and workbooks.

Osmosis boy is pretty much teaching himself these days. I'm amazed at how much they absorb at this age and how fast their development is.

Our pool is being opened tomorrow. It will be at least another month before we can swim but the solar cover will warm it up quickly.

Next week we have a field trip to Quonset Air Museum. We are enjoying the days as our formal school year comes to an end.

New Years Coming and Going

Happy 2009! I hope you all had a terrific and safe New Year. I spent the night celebrating with my patients at the hospital...most of whom had no idea that the New Year had even come upon them. Instead of the usual homeschool/life snippet today, I thought I would recap the year at our lovely home.

Last January, we hired a dog trainer for our new dog named Pete. Pete was a rescue from Boxer Angel Rescue and came to us with some issues. Jeff from Solid K9 training (http://www.solidk9training.com/) continues to work with us and helped us understand

Pete's behavior.

I was busy with the church visioning weekend where we determined our vision and mission statements for our church (http://www.westminsteruu.org/). It was a great experience in planning and the event took the whole weekend. Thankfully, I had my fellow church member and friend Maureen to help. Our Small Group Ministry program was in full swing and going well and my group of six women continued to support and uplift me.

Larry continued to act as treasurer for the RI Chapter of the Tourette Syndrome Association and Patrick attended many meetings with other kids who had Tourette's.

The kids all continued with their Sign Language classes at Exeter Library on Thursdays.

March brought more changes for us. Our dog Pete went to spend 3 weeks with the trainer, Larry decided that he needed a new hearing dog after all of these years without one and we traveled to Princeton, Mass to NEADS (http://www.neads.org/) to have his initial interview. Larry was also evaluated by Dr. Duff to see if he would qualify for a Cochlear Implant. Many hearing tests and physical exams followed this appointment before they would schedule the surgery. It had been difficult for Larry as his hearing continued to deteriorate at a rapid rate.

March is the time when Larry's bonus comes in and I ordered all of the kids curriculum for homeschool for the coming year. Whew-that was cumbersome. And for the first time, I involved the kids in what they wanted to study besides the normal subjects. It has been a huge turning point for me to let the kids take charge of their own learning.

May brought the return of our DRE Renee at church, she has been traveling and homeschooling for the year with her two girls. They shared their video slides with us from across the country and we marveled at the hospitality that other UU churches showed them.

Our new above ground pool was installed and it wasn't long before the kids were swimming in the chilly 58 degree water.

I also started my own homeschool group called The Meetinghouse. We started meeting once a week in our empty in law apartment. The group has now grown to over 30 and we've made some remarkable friends. I also ordered some baby chicks in our efforts to become more self sustaining. It would be several weeks before they arrived but in the meantime, Larry tilled me a new huge garden and put up a fence to protect it from the deer. We also purchased two rainbarrels to help water the garden and Larry was busy working with the kids on the chicken coop that was converted from part of our existing barn.

The kids finished up the school year at the end of May and I submitted report cards to the school and filed our letter of intent to homeschool next year. The new superintendent was apparently not aware of homeschooling laws and denied almost every homeschooler their "permission" to homeschool. Many months of negotiations took place until an understanding (in the homeschoolers favor) was reached. All of us were eventually approved.

June found us planting our garden and spending many hours out there with the kids. We planted bottle neck gourds, pumpkins, beefsteak tomatoes, cherry tomatoes, lemon cucumbers, eggplant, broccoli, and tons of sunflowers.

Roger Williams Zoo also opened their Flutterby exhibit and the kids and I made several trips there. It was a calming, relaxing place with the most beautiful butterflys.

In July, our eight baby chicks arrived by mail. The kids were so excited and spent the next few weeks taking care of chicks.

Morgan also got two Guinea Pigs for her ninth birthday. It was a momma and a baby named Hazelnut and Oreo.

Larry went in for his Cochlear Implant surgery. He did well but it was a nerve wracking time for me. It would be six long weeks before the implant was activated and whether we would know if the surgery was a success. He was plagued by tinnitus for the entire six weeks while he waited.

The kids had a great time yucking it up with Larry and the phrase, "Can You Hear Me Now" was heard often.

The kids swim lessons continued in August and we made full use of our pool. I celebrated my 40th birthday by getting Lyme disease. The tick that bit me also gave me Erlichiosis and Babesiosis. It was a difficult summer but my church helped us out tremendously by supplying meals when I was unable to cook and visiting when I was feeling down. Larry took much time off from work to help care for the kids and for me.

Morgan started Soccer in September and had games every Saturday. The kids started back to their schoolwork around the second week of September but since the weather was still so warm we spent a few last dips in the pool.

Larry and I were busy finalizing fundraising efforts for his hearing dog named Stewie. We managed to raise the full amount needed for his hearing dog and decided to go ahead with the planned fundraiser and donate the money raised to the Canines For Combat Vets program thru NEADS. There was much to be done for the fundraiser and my long time friend and fellow adoptive mother Lori B., helped tremendously with planning.

Larry also had his Cochlear Implant activated and it was a huge success in bringing new sounds to him that he never experienced before. Things like dripping water faucets and squeaking sneakers on wet floors were all new to him.

Larry's mom also went in for knee replacement surgery and stayed at a rehab facility for a few weeks getting her strength back.

October was very busy. Our fundraiser went well and we raised several thousand dollars toward the Combat Vets program.

Larry's brother Kevin and his Jazz band provided the entertainment for the fundraiser. Larry's niece Sofia sang and Gabriella played the drums.

Kevin plays an awesome sax.

Lori helped me with the auction table and did an outstanding job of promoting the items.
I was also able to attend the UUA conference in Worcester, Mass with several other church members. It was a wonderful day of faith and fellowship.

Our chickens finally started laying some eggs. They were delicious. The eggs-not the chickens.

Sadly, on October 12th, Larry's mom passed away. It was a difficult time but the family, as always, pulled together.

The last week of October Larry traveled to Princeton, Mass for a weeks training with his new Hearing dog named Stewie. He was gone for the whole week which was really difficult but came home on Halloween in enough time to see the kids in their costumes.

November brought with it some colder weather. I harvested the last of my gourds for drying over the winter. Morgan finished outdoor soccer and started competitive indoor soccer after making it through tryouts.

I gave my first sermon on Organ Donation at our church and did an info table after the service.

I completed my RN credentialing and CPR renewal for work and the kids took some time off from school for Thanksgiving.

I returned to my doctors office as my Lyme disease entered the chronic phase and I was plagued with new and also returning symptoms. Lots of repeat bloodwork didn't show much but my body was not happy.

December brought the joy of the season as I spent lots of time with the kids. Our homeschool group made lots of Christmas ornaments, had a great cookie swap and the mom's got a nice night out at Clayground where we painted ceramics and we celebrated a wonderful Christmas pageant and Christmas Eve Candlelight service with the kids at church.

Larry's Dad came to spend some time with us and we so enjoyed having him here.

I was finally able to see an Infectious Disease Doctor and restarted another course of antibiotics for the Lyme disease. We are contemplating IV therapy to hopefully eradicate this nastiness and get me healthy again.

Larry took some much needed vacation time away from work but managed to get a lot of house repairs done. Our bedroom is now painted (we only stripped the wallpaper off last February so completing this within a year-well not so bad for us).

New Year's Eve we were hit with another snow storm and the kids are happily playing outside in 12 degree weather.

Overall, it was a difficult year but also one that brought many blessings of family, friends, fresh chicken eggs and an abundant garden, healthy, happy, thriving kids, friends, hearing dogs and new hearing, outpouring of support for our fundraiser and a renewed hope with the election of President Obama. We are focusing on the positive aspects of our lives as much as possible and this year for us was all about developing the community of love and sustenance around us. It has all happened, perhaps not in the way we envisioned, but it did happen.

Financially, we continue to struggle as do many others in these hard times. But our home and family provide the haven and respite that is so needed in times of struggle. We continue to provide the best example we can for our children and for ourselves because ultimately, the rest will work itself out. We hope that all of you continue to look for the everyday gifts that are present in your lives despite the trials and turmoils that may come.

Blessings to all for a prosperous, healthy and happy New Year.

Bev

DuraSoft 3 Litetint

Can You Hear Me Now?

It's been a few days since I've written. It's September and life is busy once again. Soccer season has started, the homeschool group is busy and life has punched us in the gut this summer.

Saturday, Larry's mom came home from rehab after having her knee replaced, got very sick and ended up back in the hospital. She's very ill with c-diff colitis. Problem is she is allergic to the antibiotics she needs to help the infection. She's lost so much weight. I'm having difficulty with this as it brings back horrible memories of my own mother's illness.

After my Dad died, Mom deteriorated so quickly. It was a short 18 months after Dad died that we lost Mom. Larry's own mother is showing those same signs. She is so frail all we can do is pray.

His father is in a bad spot. His mind has been showing signs of dementia for some time and he is not functioning without mom there beside him. It has become apparent how little he can do for himself without mom there. Larry is struggling. It's been a busy week and he feels like he's abandoning his mom.

He's wanted to travel to see his mom really bad but tomorrow is a big day. Last month Larry had his cochlear implant placed and tomorrow is activation day. It's been 6 weeks since he's had any hearing at all in his left ear. The anticipation is killing him. Tomorrow we will travel to Providence to see Troy the audiologist for Larry's first mapping. I'm bringing my camera to take pictures so that I can show his mom. She's been very worried about him so we are praying this works for Larry. It will be his first time in 38 years that he has not worn hearing aids. We are very hopeful but trying to not have any expectations. Not sure that is possible but it is all we can do.

Our church year is off to a great start. In true UU fashion our church goes to lay ministry during the summer and with me being ill with Lymes disease I wasn't able to attend. Our first service is water communion. The entire congregation brings water from their summer travels and adds it to the communion bowl. It is a symbol of coming back together, a symbol of our travels leading us back home and a wonderful time for everyone to hug and get back together.

In June I did my first sermon with a few other people on our Small Group Ministry program. It was a great service and really wonderful to be in the pulpit. In November, I will be doing a sermon on Organ Donation with our minister. I'm so excited and hopefully can find some other opportunities to be in the pulpit. There has always been a secret love to go on to Seminary, but money, time and life will not allow right now. These are the busy years with the kids so for now I will fulfill the need with cameo appearances.

Our church and congregation really uplifted and sustained us this past summer. The Caring Circle at church brought us meals for two weeks when I was unable to cook because of the Lymes. We received so many cards, phone calls and offers of help for both Larry and for myself. They gave me rides to the doctors office when I couldn't drive and they came on pastoral care visits to cheer me. Our minister also came and I so enjoyed giving her a tour of my gardens when they were at their peak. It was delightful to be able to walk with her and listen to the birds and waterfall from the pond. A few dragonflys flitted by and the koi lipped the surface of the water to greet us. Small moments this summer that were a delight and respite for me. Larry has joined on as Vice-President of the church this year. I think he's starting to realize why I devote so much time them. He's getting it-he saw it this summer with the care we recieved.

Despite the hardships this summer we are very blessed in all that life has given us.