Catching Up

Oh, to be faithful to my blog!  I try and I try, but life gets in the way!

We've had a whirlwind last couple of months, but I think I am finally getting the memo that life with a young family of five children is going to be a whirlwind. "When things slow down" never happens. I may even just start getting used to the idea that life in general with a busy family (no matter how big or little) is going to be a whirlwind! Here's what we've been up to in bullet points:

* 40+ hour road trip to take Clare to Louisville, Kentucky for her annual visit with Dr. Mervis. (And had the bonus of seeing my grandparents, aunts, and cousins in WV while we were traveling.) Other than a deer hitting our car (thankfully minor damage to our car - I don't think I can say the same about the deer), it was a great trip. Wealth of information from Dr. Mervis (and a new learning disability diagnosis of Specific Language Impairment) so we are armed for Clare's upcoming IEP in June.

* Lots and lots and lots of birthdays. Our family's birthdays are between the months of January and June, so we had small family dinners, hockey parties, movie parties, pirate parties, Hello Kitty parties, and are getting ready for Eliza's One Year Birthday Bash with her cousin Finlay (born 8 days apart) next month.

* Clare's Make-A-Wish trip to Disney last month. This has been the highlight of the year so far (and I can't foresee anything in the future topping it). There are no words to describe how magical the trip was for our family and especially for Clare. Going to Disney (and Universal Studios and SeaWorld) is amazing enough, but doing it as part of Make-A-Wish is fabulous. Red carpet treatment everywhere we went. Clare's Wish to see a princess in her castle came true. Clare and Violet were able to go to the Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique and be made up as princesses. Jamie and Simon participated in the Jedi Training Academy at Hollywood Studios and even got to meet Darth Vader and receive signed light sabers. Shawn and I got to enjoy a family vacation without worrying about money, standing in lines with bored, anxious children, and planning every last detail. It all just clicked. And we had an amazing time. Make-A-Wish is such an incredible foundation, and I am so grateful to all the donors, volunteers, and staff who work so hard to give children like our Clare their Wishes. They know how a diagnosis and medical conditions such as Clare has truly affects the entire family, and they strive to take care of all of us.

* End of the school year hoopla. Why do I always manage to forget how crazy everything becomes at the end of the school year? Spring soccer practices and tournaments (and now Simon plays as well as Jamie), ballet lessons, rehearsals, and "Cinderella" recital (and now Violet dances as well as Clare), extra rehearsals for the upcoming school drama club production of "Pinocchio," and planning what's going on for school next year. Simon starts kindergarten in the fall. We are formulating Clare's new IEP for her full-day first grade year. And we're always evaluating what's best when it comes to our children's education.

* Our endless routine outside of school of allergy shots, hippotherapy, speech therapy, nephrology appointments, endocrinology appointments, cardiology follow-ups, blood work, orthopedic visits, orthotic fittings... and that's just for Clare and Jamie! I am incredibly thankful that over this past winter and early spring we have had no major illnesses run through the house. (I better not be jinxing myself now!)


There are my bullet points, and now my oven is beeping to let me know it's time to start making cake pops. Simon's special day at school is on Monday, and ever since he went to a birthday party in March where cake pops were served, he has had his heart set on cake pops for school. So cake pops it is!