Still so blessed

Its been awhile, I know.  But I've only had a few things going on to keep me busy so…

This new house is a dream come true.  Honestly.  I know how blessed we are and exactly where all our blessings come from.  We are grateful to our Father in Heaven and try our very hardest to serve Him in every way we can.  We don't know exactly why He has blessed us so much but we are more grateful than words can express.
So anyway, we are super house-poor but its worth it.  It feels so great to own the house we're living in!  It feels so great to be able to make any changes we want and to be able to decorate however we want.  And not have to worry about waiting on some landlord to fix things…if I never rent again, it will be too soon!  (Plus our landlord tried to stick it to us on our deposit, it was the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard of and we threatened small claims court because we discovered that they had broken a few laws.  We got most of it back then.  But it is a long story)
Also this house is just so beautiful.  I could not have designed a better floor plan and I love it!  We are putting in the front and side yards right now, and leaving the back for a year from now.  Nobody swims in the winter anyway!  When it all gets finished, I will post some pictures.  If I can take any decent ones.

Adam - wellll, he has had some ups.  I can't say downs, because he has only been a bit manic.  Funny how that bipolar usually shows up as mania now.  I know he did go through a pretty bad depression but for the past 6 months or so, he has been manic.  We had it all under control until we moved, and all that stress tipped him over the edge.  Then we immediately took him up to college…I fully expected him to go manic with all that HUGE change, and he did.  I was a basket case at first, but all the plans that we made before leaving worked and we got him all stabilized long distance.  He is doing great now.  Except that the increased meds make him so sleepy in the mornings…he has missed some classes and exams…I check his email now and again, because I am a stalker-mom, and I saw that he had written emails to his teachers telling them about the bipolar and meds and asking if he could make up the exams.  He even got a letter from his doctor to show the teachers.  He hadn't told me about any of that and I was pretty upset because I figured it was just a typical college student, staying up too late and sleeping in.  I knew I needed to talk to him about it, maybe even get after him about it, but I have to admit that I was pretty impressed that he had taken care of it all on his own and his letters to his teachers were very well-written.  Anyway, I decided to pray about how to handle it and waited for a few hours for the answer to come.  I felt prompted to just ask him about side effects and how his meds were working, and hope he would take the chance to tell me all about it.  I did not approach him in anger.  It was super effective, and he told me about all of it on his own, and I praised him for the way he handled it and we had one of the best conversations that we've had in a very long time!  I was so grateful for the Lord's guidance in the way to approach him!  But the results are, now I am back to waking him up every morning, long distance.  Criminy.  If it wasn't a med thing, I would be mad about it because he is a big boy now.  But he can't really control it so here I go.  I suspect that I will be playing the mommy role in Adam's life for a very long time.  But its a small thing, and since I'm up already, not a big deal.  Plus, it allows me to keep in touch with him more than I was before…we actually went days without communicating at all (I was trying to give him some space).  I have to say that I have actually done better than I thought I would.  So some big blessings there!  I realize that since I am the one person in Adam's life who knows him and can recognize in minutes if he is having a bipolar episode, and I am not with him, he is probably going to go manic a lot without me being able to fix it.  I am having to deal with this.  But frankly, as long as he isn't making life-changing bad choices, I guess he's ok.  I have had to turn it over to the Lord, and while it has tested my faith, I am happy with the results.  Adam is super active in his ward.  He is attending institute, sings in the institute choir, and goes to all the devotionals and firesides.  He has a girlfriend in his ward, and SHE IS A MORMON!  This is a relief, Adam hasn't had very good taste in girls.  He said that I would like her.  And he knows how picky I am.  The girl, as well as all of Adam's roomies, know about his bipolar and are keeping an eye on him.  That worked out better than I expected (even though one of the roommates is gay.  but he is the one who is the most helpful and compassionate so maybe that is meant to be too.  I'm not going to judge)
And man, this house gets quiet.  Sam is going to NPHS now so he is gone most of the day, and Sophie and I are the only ones at home.  We are having a good time.  Sophie is a good homeschooler.  She is a self-starter most of the time and I don't have to nag her much.  She takes pride in her work.  Also I have signed her up for a bunch of enrichment classes so she is getting lots of social too.  She likes it and so do I.
Sam is doing great at public high school.  He is still very socially awkward but he is learning.  He loves seminary and I have never once had to get him up for it.  He is the complete opposite of Adam, and has said that he wants it that way.  He is determined to have perfect attendance at seminary (WHY?).  Anyway, I am proud of him.  He is also super happy with choir.  He even decided to join Men's Chorus which meets at lunch.  I'm excited for him to be part of the choir program.  It is great!
Also, Chad.  That man has amazed me, he is so skilled at just about everything!  He put in our entire entertainment system, including surround sound.  He installed custom closets.  He is currently building our coffee table (we searched all over the place to find one the right size…unsuccessful).  He has had one project after another - and one Saturday a few weeks ago, he just took the day off (first one since we moved).  He said he felt lazy and wanted to accomplish something…so he decided to try his hand at cooking.  Made enchiladas from scratch.  They were delicious!!!  Something tells me he won't be doing much of that in future but at least we know he can, haha!   I love that man.  He is so talented!
Meg has started her final countdown.  She only has 9 weeks left!  She is tired but finishing strong.  I am so proud of her!  But I am excited to get her home so I can pamper her a bit.  She needs a good rest.

I am training for a half marathon in Nov.  It has been so hard.  These past few weeks, it was all I could do to get out and run 4 miles…and the hills have absolutely KILLED me!  And my breathing has been terrible - for the first time in my life, I felt like an asthmatic, like no matter how deeply I sucked in the air, I couldn't get enough.  Then when I get home, I usually crash on the couch and die for most of the day.  I have been so discouraged. And then I realized that I am probably super low in my B vitamins because bypass patients can't absorb any B vitamins from food.  I hadn't been taking my supplements because they taste like the most bitter poison ever, and you have to let it dissolve under the tongue!  So I looked up the symptoms of low B-12 and what do you know?  Extreme fatigue, muscle soreness and weakness, shortness of breath.  Needless to say, I started taking my supplements again.  And I scheduled a B-12 shot next week.  I really hope it helps, running has hurt so bad that it has killed all my joy.  I seriously dread going out there.  It makes me want to cry.  So I am hoping that this improves everything and QUICKLY!  I only have 4 weeks left!

So there you go, you're all caught up.  Long post!