Update 1: Mom Jones, aka Little Gramma, passed away on April 8, shortly after my last post. I'm still processing this and will be for a long time. When my dad died, I was sitting by his side with my sister telling crappy dad jokes and hoping we could help him transition into whatever comes next. The night my mom died, I was able to stop by and visit, toast a white zin on ice to her life, and say goodbye. When my sister called me shortly after midnight, I knew she was gone. Telling Lili the next morning was by far the hardest thing I've ever had to do. After a few tears, we turned on some Rod Stewart and had a dance party to celebrate her. Of course, I spent some time surfing through old text messages and Facebook posts, and realized that since beginning this blog, she was my most dedicated reader and supporter (of course, she's my mom!). Even though she couldn't be a physical presence for much of the last two years, she was always there in spirit and always will be. Thank you to everyone who sent prayers and thoughts and supported us at the memorial.
Took LiliElla to visit Lil'Gramma and Gage her 1st week home- she LOVED her babysitting gigs
Lili and Gage visiting Lil'Gramma at the hospital
Update 2: Lili turned 3 and had a blast at her birthday party (naturally [why isn't there a sarcasm font?], the day after my mom died). The nook fairies took her nook back to the forest to use for the new babies and we only had to endure 2 rough nights of screaming, pleading, bargaining, karate chops, and tears. Parents everywhere, I salute those unsung battles you've all had to fight and continue to fight. She's gotten taller, heavier, sassier, and smarter. She's going on 13.
Update 3: We moved! Thanks to some of our incredible family and amazing friends (seriously, you all are the best people in the whole world), we were out of the old and into the new within 5 hours time. It was the fastest move ever. We are all SO MUCH HAPPIER now that we are not having mini-heart attacks every time a kid jumps or sings for fear of getting the wrath of the stomp from above. Lili has a built-in friend right behind our house- a yard full of bunnies- and best of all, we got Bucket back! We're back in the Jackson Park neighborhood, still renting, until we figure out our lives and win the lottery-- or fulfill our YouCaring goal-- so that we can finally buy a house.
Update 4: The twins are walking! Well, Katherine was walking until Emmi started, and now she's back to walking on her knees everywhere. They love sneaking onto the stairs, climbing on tables, stuffing rocks in their mouths, chewing on cords, smacking each other, pinching the cat, pulling Lili's hair, pulling my hair, pulling their dad's arm hair, and snuggling. In other words, we have toddlers.
Update 5: School is almost done for the year. Aaron is looking into beginning a new career and I'll be going back to bar tending as well as potentially teaching summer school. While the *idea* of summers off sounds wonderful, for us, it's all about figuring out how the hell we're going to afford to live for 2.5 months. Well, that's how it is for most teachers. Do you know a teacher? Send him/her a thank you text, it's May, we're ready to pass out on our classroom floors and let the kids wreak havoc.
Attempt at a nice family photo- foiled by the 3 year old.
Looking forward, we have until August to raise money for a house. We made it to $3,619 which is absolutely incredible (and we've been clinging on to every penny and managed to add just a few more to put us at roughly $3,622 but I haven't checked the couch cushions in a while) Can we meet our goal? I don't know. Maybe if I do my original plan of asking every single person at State Fair for $1.00. Or, if you pass this blog onto people with billions of dollars they want to spare. Or, if Ellen finally reads my dang letters to her. Here's what we do know...After August, we get to start our new journey of raising money for Habitat for Humanity. I'll be reaching out to them to see how we can help, but I had an ingenious idea last night that involves volunteering Aaron to brew "Home Brew" as part of our fundraising activities. Don't tell him, though. I like to surprise him with the things he has involuntarily volunteered for ;)
