It's Friday!

--- 1 ---

I made a New Year resolution, though it's not a tough one, I have a feeling I'll find a lot of stumbling blocks to accomplishing it. Also, I'm not telly you what it is. Not for any fear of failure, but because it's a spiritual goal and I don't want to accomplish it only because I posted it all over the interwebs, you know? 

--- 2 ---

Report cards came home this week. It was a little anti-climatic for Kate because the school posts the grades for 3rd grade and up. Obviously that is a good thing, especially if you need to give your child incentive to pull a grade up. Charlotte did well. Not much to say about the big kids. School is old hat to them,  and they both do well.

The littles, Paul and Molly, don't even register what a report card is. Molly failed knowing her address, which is fair because we just moved. Paul failed hopping on one foot, so I asked him to show me how he hops on one foot. The results were hilarious. Oh my, I wish I could have had video!
(No, they don't give little kids "F" grades, but each school has a different system of number or letter grades for littles, so "failed" is a good way to tell you they got the lowest score possible.)

--- 3 ---

I'm  living in a crazy person's house. Unfortunately, I am that crazy person. I have been painting like mad, only the painting is of sample colors. Our kitchen and living room is one great space with walls that are under different lighting. So, I have to paint my samples on each wall to be sure I like the color. I have had one massive fail and one success and one that I like, but I'm going to use in the two front rooms. I also chose a back splash, but not a color for the t.v. room, or the bathrooms upstairs. I also think I know what tile I want for the wall around my bathtub, which means I'll lose sleep over it until I buy all the supplies. 1st world problems, yo.

--- 4 ---

Here's the update you all come here for. Mariana is doing better. I can tell her comprehension of my words and her ability to respond is getting better. Her gears move a lot slower than other babies, so giving her time to process what is expected is key. I've noticed when strangers stop and talk to her she gives them this really dumb look for about fifteen seconds, but if they stick around long enough she will light up with a smile and do her two-armed flappy wave. Now Mrs. J came back Wednesday and showed me how to teach Mae the crawling motions of left/right coordinating movements. She warned me that it's a sweaty workout for mom, only Mariana tolerates it for about two feet, and then just lies down. It's how she deals with stress. The sum total is that I am seeing progress, but I have to give Mariana time to show me. A difficult thing for a busy person, but I've had a lot of things pointing to the need for me to slow down the pace of life, this just adds to the evidence.

--- 5 ---

I'm running again. You know this picture?



Well, I feel like the lower picture. My sister, Kate, is virtual-training me by sending me spreadsheets of my plan, while I text her the results of my runs and walks. It keeps me accountable, which is good because there are a lot of reasons not to leave the house. On Friday's I have to run with the jogger, which is not my favorite thing to do. That said, I'm enjoying myself 60% of the time, so that's nice. 

--- 6 ---

I am getting very excited for Mariana's first birthday, which is a mere two months away. Can you believe that? I'm rolling a post around about that wonderful day. I still look back and feel so glad that I never had that grief for something lost. It's a true grace to hear news like that and feel comfortable with it. I spent a lot of time during my pregnancy feeling uneasy and as soon as I heard she may have Down syndrome I felt relief. Not the usual response to such a diagnosis and I still praise God for it.

--- 7 ---

Has anyone heard of Ryan Freel? He was a close friend of our next door neighbor, B. I was chatting with him when he told me Ryan committed suicide leaving 3 daughters and his wife. I could tell that B is messed up by the whole thing, who wouldn't be? It's a terrible thing to lose someone like that and I know B wants so badly to make sense of it all, which won't happen in this life. Ryan had a lot of problems, and his brain is going to be studied because he had so many concussions and suffered from mood disorders.  The point is, of course, to ask for prayers for B and Ryan's family. It's hard to see a grown man feel so lost like B did when talking about Ryan. I know it's going to take a long time for him to get used to carrying this pain.

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