a blended life

These pics were taken at a field trip that I went on with Leah about a month ago. We went to...wait for it...wait for it...the grocery store and the post office. She was so excited to have me there. I'm glad I went since this is probably that last year she'll feel that way. Something needs to be said about how well Leah is doing right now. She made HUGE progress in her first grade class and is on grade level in EVERY subject! She's a fantastic speller, loves Ivy and Bean books, is doing well in math and can make friends with just about anyone. We still have our days, those kind where I wonder if we'll all survive without bloodshed of some kind. She struggles with off-the-charts anxiety and mood swings and I hope to find some good help for that. She starts horseback riding next week and invited some neighborhood friends over on Thursday for an "End of Year Hot Dog Party" (that was her grandpa's idea, not mine. I don't do hot dogs.) She has admirable...

Here's a small sample of the beautiful pictures my sister took at graduation. She has a knack for catching people at just the right moment. I won't give a long commentary since they speak for themselves, plus I have a wide audience that reads this blog and I don't want to overload y'all. Those that came were my close friends and family (minus a few out-of-towners, you know who you are) that knew how difficult that degree was and how much I fought to finish it. I'm horrible at expressing gratitude, both verbally and writtenly (that's a new word), but I do want to say that I feel deep, bottomless gratitude for those of you that came and saw me through the process. I would not have made it without the support. I wouldn't have the courage to jump into a new, rigorous, exhausting program (I really know how to pick 'em).

I'm trying out a new name. I don't know if I'll keep it or not, but I'm in the mood for something different. Here's a brief background of where "Catching a Fly With Chopsticks" came from: When I started this blog, we were living in a trailer house in Logan. I was trying desperately to finish my music classes, teach piano lessons, had three callings at church--including teaching Spanish Sunday School every week--plus I had a few high maintenance, never get any sleep or respite kind of kids. I really felt that my life was impossible and looking back, I was really, really unhappy. I though it was normal, that life was supposed to be super bad all the time. I was flipping channels in the stupid trailer house (this comes to mind when I think of it, "%$#&*") and I turned to the first Karate Kid where Mr Miyagi is trying to catch flies with chopsticks--an impossible feat. Hence, the cheesy blog name. That black, ugly period is over and things are ...

I don't have any pics of today, but it needs to be recorded that I had a great day! My kids are young and make cute things. Hannah was so excited to show me what she made at preschool. This was my first Mother's Day as a single mom and I wasn't sure what it would be like. Mostly, I spent the day reminding myself of what great little girls I have and how much I adore being their mom. I'll post pics of graduation soon.