Four Months?

Seriously, four months? Sorry, I didn't realize it had been that long.

Since the last post, Christopher has gotten glasses (spiffy red frames that he loves). Poor thing is farsighted, like me, and his eye was crossing under the strain to focus. He takes good care of his specs, and has improved greatly with his recognition of letters and numbers. Interestingly enough, his poor small motor skills (those used for coloring, tracing, and writing) were related to his eye issues. Once he could see, he rediscovered those activities and loves to draw. Within the last month, he's gone from scribbling to representative artwork--I'll have to scan some since it's impressive. At least, it is to me. Currently, we have to put an eyepatch on his left eye each night to help his brain recognize and accept input from his right eye. His opthalmologist is very optimistic about the patching, given how well he took to his glasses.

We took a trip to see Jenn and Jamie, driving to San Antonio. We thought we could make the drive in one day. We were wrong. Driving through West Texas from El Paso is a fat lot of boring, and San Antonio was nothing like we expected. We saw the Alamo. Christopher loved the fish. I was surprised how small it was. I was rather moved by the carvings on the walls in the rooms where soldiers held their ground while woman and children huddled. I couldn't stay very long as I felt guilty being that close to tragedy in a voyeuristic capacity.

We also visited the Witte Museum, the Riverwalk, and had a great day at the Children's Museum. We didn't make it to the beach, but there is always next time. Christopher greatly enjoyed the Easter egg hunt he had with Jamie, and asks to go back someday. He even points to the picture of the Alamo on the Texas piece of his America puzzle, and tells us that's where Jenn and Jamie and Buddy and Ziggy live.

In May, I introduced Christopher to the library (and how to say "library" correctly, which he does, as well as the word, "correctly"). The actual branch is due for construction next year, but there is a room off City Hall where the county has put up shelves of bestsellers and popular childrens' books. Christopher likes to go and play with the puzzles while I browse the shelves, and then he helps me check them out using a scanner. He's signed up for the Summer Reading Program, and is already 25% complete. We're due to go this weekend--the check-out times are very generous, three weeks, and I try to make an afternoon of it with him. We go to the library, then Goodwill, then someplace for lunch, then home. It's like our date. He loves Goodwill. I don't take him very often since that's one errand he typically runs with Tom at least once a week.

Speaking of Tom, we received news in June that his job was eliminated. His last day is July 3rd. Since CJ starts school next fall (2010), Tom will stay home with him full-time and continue his-pre-school education. We've told Christopher that he won't go to daycare anymore to start the conversation. We know he doesn't recognize the full impact, but we know he will ask questions as information sinks in, the more we talk to him about it. We wanted to give him plenty of time to adjust to the idea. The daycare has been fantastic--they'll keep his information and place him in drop-in status so we can take him at anytime for the day should the need arise (like, if Tom gets called for jury duty and I have to go to the office). We knew this was a possibility since last fall and have planned quite a bit for the eventuality. We'll be fine, so please don't worry too much. Tom is very excited about staying home, and has wished to do so for some time.

Oh--nothing major, but I quit smoking last month. It's been over 5 weeks. I'm very pleased. This time, I did it cold turkey--just decided I was done after that pack was done, and held to it. It's been tough at times, and I take it moment by moment. I may be consuming more caffeine and tea, but I haven't killed anyone, so I consider it a success. Now I'm just trying to adjust to the way my body reacts now--I breathe easier, my senses of taste and smell are improved, but I'm often tired, and my brain is slow. I forget I've been using a stimulant constantly for 14 years. My body has to remap itself and my body has to adjust to finding a different form of motivation and energy. I've found some excitement in food; I'm even now with my weight from when I quit, but I've been experimenting in my kitchen. Tomatoes have been lovely, as has fruit, so I'm eating fresh foods, little red meat (more seafood), and trying my hand at making my own "staples". To date, I've made sherbet, banana muffins, bread, gingersnaps, granola, chex mix, and yogurt. Yes, yogurt. Which was awesome this morning with grapes, banana, and fresh granola.

Maybe in another four months, I'll get around to posting the recipes.