I think it's time for a catch-up...

Hello all.

I hope that this post finds you all well and blessed.

I have been sick. I posted about that in my last post, but, oh, how awful I have felt. This past Saturday, I spent the entire day in bed sleeping (or trying to sleep) minus the hour and a half that it took to go to the hospital for a scheduled CT scan.

And I have to admit that I don't handle sick very good. I push through it as best as possible, but oh do I detest it. I detest not having my normal gumption and motivation. Life carries on, and I want to as well, but when my entire face is throbbing severely, it's exhausting. And it drives me crazy to be lying around in bed while things need done. Especially when the weather is beautiful. Okay, enough complaining.

My CT scan came back essentially negative. So my doctor thinks it's all allergy-related. I'm now on three allergy meds. Ugh. But I'm also taking matters into my own hands. I had a couple readers suggest natural sinus remedies, and let me say that I've tried them all over the last five weeks, and didn't get relief from them.

However, I do suspect that I have some food allergies that have thus far been undetected. I'm already gluten and dairy free, but I scheduled an appointment with an allergist to have extensive food testing done to see if there are any other food allergies present. I've already been tested for environmental allergies five years ago, and I have multiple severe allergies in that arena.

I also have my first acupuncture session later today. I'm actually really excited about this. I had considered acupuncture in the past when I had suffered from horrible sinus problems and migraines but never actually pursued it. Well, today's the day, and I'm excited. I'm excited that this might (hopefully) be a natural cure to some of my problems. I'll keep you updated. :)

Despite the fact that I have been sick, I have been trying to maintain at least a little sense of normalcy and routine around here. Mostly for the sake of the kids. I spent some time on Sunday winding some yarn for a crochet project I'm doing for a friend of mine. Lily and I spent some time sewing last week. She made a pattern (it was really cute; drew it all out on a piece of orange construction paper) for a stuffed cat and then I helped her cut it out and stitch the pieces up. We also made sleeping masks. Sergei even made one.

Because I've been sick, I've been doing more reading than usual. I forgot how much I love to read fiction. Most of the reading I seem to do anymore is nonfiction, but I'm on my second knitting novel in the last three weeks, and I'm loving it. And these knitting novels are making me want to work even harder on my knitting skills. And they're making me want to start up a knitting/crocheting club! I'm also reading Hinds' Feet on High Places as a read-aloud to the kids. This has been one of the books that I've had on the shelf for several years meaning to read, and so I picked it up the other day and delved in with the kids. So far, it's reminding me very much of A Pilgrim's Progress. It's that same kind of Christian allegory book. We're really enjoying it.

The weather has been delightful. We've had T-shirt and shorts days sprinkled in with cooler days, and even some nice spring thunderstorms. This warmer weather means the kids have been outside as much as possible. Riding bikes, playing with the chickens, digging in the dirt. It's glorious. We've been busy refreshing ourselves with hand-squeezed lemonade and strawberry/mango smoothies.

And this little guy. Oh my. He's growing up! He's 9 1/2 years old now. Goodness he'll be ten this year! And he's so mechanically inclined and talented. He totally gets that from his father. We had recently purchased a new grill, and this kiddo put it together. By himself. He followed the directions and schematics and put the darn grill together. I was impressed. I swear it's from all of the Lego building the kid has done over the past five years of his life. Brad stayed with him and made sure he was doing it properly, but he did it himself. I was so proud of him.

He's also started driving the quad independently. This happened during one of those days I was sick in bed. I got up and went to the kitchen for water, looked out the front window and saw this:

He was rolling our front yard! I kind of gasped, threw open the front door and asked Brad what in the world he was thinking! However, I went out yesterday to trim some shrubs, and Ian drove the quad with the cart on the back to haul off the limbs I cut off. I, of course being the mother, was reminding him to go slowly and to be careful. "Mom, I know!" was his simple answer.  Last night, he helped Brad get the lawn mower ready and was out riding that around the yard.

The chickens are happy in their yard. With all of that compostable material we have in there, they are in chicken heaven. My garlic is coming along nicely, and the sage is coming in green where I trimmed it off earlier this spring. Yesterday I noticed that our almond trees were flowered! The sight of the first blooms on our trees always thrills me! Our weeping cherry tree is also starting to bloom. It's a beautiful sight!

I can't wait to get out there and fix up my raised beds. They are in much need of a nice manicure. Rocks need picked out, the soil needs aerated, and they need a nice layer of compost mixed in. I'm anxious to get this done so I can plant some lettuce, radishes, and green onions. It's time for that now. Now I just need to get myself well so I can dig into the dirt!

And then there's this robin. She's a bit of a mystery to me. She has been hanging around our house for the past week. For a whole week, she has been tapping on our side door or on the sidelights of our front door. She won't leave! It's so strange! At first, I thought it was wonderful but when her tapping is waking us up at 6:15 on a Saturday morning (the only day I get to sleep in) and there are prolific amounts of bird doo-doo on my decks and deck furniture, well, that gets a bit annoying. I have never had a bird do this before! It's like she wants in the house!

Well, I must get going. Ian is taking his assessment tests this week. Thankfully, I was able to offer a company that offers the CAT tests online so that has been such a blessing.

I pray that you all would have a most blessed day! I appreciate you all!