Updates

The Graduate~ Received his precious diploma June 12 during a mercifully fast graduation that had speeches & awards etc over and done within 2 hours. For 560+ grads. We were quite impressed. The GF had received hers (after quite a battle with the school system, apparently, due to her serious illness) several days before. We, all 5 of us, the GF, my MIL & FIL & SIL & niece, went out to dinner afterward, which the ILs sneakily paid for (with a *huge* thanks! from us. The stadium job is turning out to be only 2 days during the stretches when the team is in town, so another job search is on. Him and every other teenager around here.

Daughter~ Just left this morning on the church sponsored pilgrimage to Germany. We squeezed in a visit to the Holocaust Museum to fill her in on relevant information as WW II has played a huge part in the formation of modern Germany. The museum is not for the faint of heart. It isn't graphic per se, but definitely roasts your heartstrings & makes you angry about the Balkans, Rwanda & Darfur. We had to forcibly remove Daughter's fanfic notebooks & take them to a GF's house. The idea of the pilgrimage, obviously, is to leave your comfortable & familiar things behind you to explore other cultures & push your boundaries & deepen your faith. Which would've been hard for her to do if she'd had her head buried in her fanfics. I did buy her a journal & a sketchbook to record her thoughts in though. And told her that drawing might be a good way to meet people in the hostels in Germany. Now if only my BIL (or my Mom) could've taught her some basic German. Like- "Where's the mac & cheese?" & "Where's the ladies' restroom?" or "I'm lost & I don't speak German!"

Son #2~ Is due to visit my parents starting Saturday. I've been told there's painting in the air, the upstairs hallway I believe. Also, deckwashing and vegetable gardening. Soon afterward he'd due to go away to sleep away camp up in the mountains near the WV border. It'll be his first time (he's 11) away from the family. Like Daughter, he too will be pushing boundaries & comfort zones & learning how to get along with others. I already copied out his reading list for next year, lucky boy!, although I've not purchased any titles yet. He only has to read 2 (I think), but he's on the waiting list at the library for three audiobooks of Eoin Colfer's Artemis Fowl books. Plus there's the new Harry Potter book & movie. I can see Son #2 putting me off until August with the required reading. Easily.

Husband~ Is still battling away with the former employer. The wheels of bureaucracy grind oh so slowly. The new job suits him to a T, but the 12 hour shifts are routinely 13-14+ hours. He's exhausted after his usual 3 day stretch. He says it's like going from Econolodge healthcare to the Ritz, though. The place is amazing. They've already put him through a pharmacology refresher & a disrhythmia course with seminars on the newest insulin dosing and research.

Oh yes, funny family story. The FIL loves to try & pull the wool over his family's eyes about what his drs. tell him about his illness. The newest one being diabetes. Husband calls his dad one day, by coincidence his dad was waiting for meds at the local pharmacy. FIL tries to tell Husband, "My Dr. says it's ok if my sugars are too high. It won't seriously effect my other illnesses or make me feel worse." Husband braeks out into guffaws of laughter, tears running down his face, turning bright bluish-purple (sounds scary, but he looks just like a giant blueberry). He holds the phone away from him for at least a minute. "Dad. You don't expect me to believe that BS do you?! I'm a nurse. Remember?" The FIL was not best pleased. At ALL. We however, found it quite quite funny. And sad.

Remind me to tell you about the 6 mile hike we took. In 95 degree heat. Also- not read a damn thing in the entire month. Next Thursday I've a neato 13 about stuff I saw around the Capitol last Wednesday. I think.