The Cabbage Patch

The House is Ours!!!

We closed on our house--two weeks late, but worth it.  Now for the hard part:  moving in.

 

Note to Self

Leave for church early on the day you "fall back".  All those people who are usually late,thus leaving parking spots open, will be on time. 

On the Flip Side

With all the sadness I've been immersed in, I've neglected to mention that we're closing on our house on Monday!!!!  It's been a long time coming.  Frankly, although my parents have been quite generous in housing us these 4 months, it's time for us to move into our own home again.  At 2 pm we will start our closing and then we will be official homeowners.  YAY!!!  It would've been today, but we had pouring rain all day Wednesday and they couldn't lay the sod.  Nor on Thursday.  And, not even today.  So, they will lay sod tomorrow and we will close on Monday. 

We had a preliminary walk through on Wednesday.  The house is beautiful and close to perfect.  I'm a bit daunted by the task of keeping it orderly, but with these handy dandy handy dandy notebook project ideas (click on each word for different entries by Kim and Elizabeth). 

I will post pictures of the empty, very clean house as soon as I am able.  Which at the rate I go on the blog will be after I move in!!  LOL!!

Please Bear With Me

Please bear with me as I grieve.  I don't think I can make it to the funeral and it's sunk me pretty low.  Too many forces are against me and I think God is telling me something.  I feel this need to talk about this friend of mine.  I tend to be very stoic so I'm pouring myself out here on this blog.  I just got this link to a news article about Dave.  There's a wonderful picture of Dave and his family before he returned to Iraq after his R&R.

Random Thoughts

It rained almost all day today.  We had our house inspection before closing (supposedly this Friday, but most likely on Monday) today on top of therapy.  I have a one hour drive each way.  So, in the rain, I had a lot of time to think.  It's been a bit of a melancholy day.  Here are some of my random thoughts:

• I think at times I felt such disbelief at my friend's death.  Even after speaking with his widow.  Even after hearing the grief in my husband's voice.  I don't know why, but this makes me realize--It's true.  I won't ever get to talk to him again.  All my teen and adult life I've always been the one to take care of things--my brothers, my husband, my children.  I don't resent it at all.  Dave was one of the few people who took care of me.  He really was like an older brother (I always wanted one).  Oh, I miss him so much. 
• Why is it that when people ask me how I'm doing with all this, I tell them, I'm doing okay?  I'm not.  I want to scream and cry at the sadness of it all.  This has always been a big thing with me.  I never will say if I'm down or sad or mad or anything.  Is it cultural?  In Korea, a sick person won't tell his family about his illness.  He doesn't want to burden his family with it.  That's also why during their economic crisis, the men who didn't have jobs left the house acting as if they were still working.  Not to worry the family.  Now, mind you, this is not healthy, but it seems I've picked it up. 
• I should be happy about the house, but frankly, I'm so tired that I don't want to move in.  Ugh.  The thought of moving everything and then unpacking all those boxes.  Ugh.  Yuck.  All I can say is it will take a big crane to pry me out of that house.  I'm staying.
• There's too much information out there.  Just too much.  My little brain can't get wrapped around it.  What am I talking about?  Treatments for autism.  Brother has auditory processing difficulties.  This makes read alouds difficult because he can't attend or hear what's going on.  I've tried so many different ways of doing it.  Maybe the newest thing (The Listening Program) we're going to try will work.
• Papa was slated to escort Dave home.  That means he would have left early for home.  Some higher ranking officer pulled, well, rank.  It stinks.  We'll have to wait two more weeks. 

So, as you can see I'm pretty melancholy.  On the flip side although I didn't get any pictures, the house is beautiful.  Absolutely beautiful. 

10 Random Facts about Me

Cheryl tagged for this.

1. I dislike reading out loud, but I do it because as Father Corapi once said, "Love is sacrifice.".  I love my children and know that reading is one of the best things to do for them so I do it.  Sometimes very reluctantly, but usually very enthusiastically.
2. I'm an office supply nut.  I love any office supply store, the office supply aisle at stores.  Give me colored paper, pens, markers, binders, you name it and I am happy as a clam.
3. I am a ridiculously patriotic person.  I'm a naturalized citizen and there's almost nothing that rivals hearing the Star Spangled Banner. 
4. Along with number 3, I absolutely love Lee Greenwood's song "God Bless the USA".
5. My friend, Dave, once (pre-kids) gave me a skydiving lesson for my birthday.  It was absolute wonderful. 
6. I am not a confirmed Catholic.  I hope to be confirmed soon, but am having trouble getting the proper documents.  I know we had them once because I had First Communion.
7. Chocolate is my favorite food.  How can it not be anyone elses?
8. I used to be the student manager for my college men's basketball team.  I traveled with them everywhere.  It was so much fun and I was able to visit so many states.
9. I'm a sap.  Commercials make me cry.  I remember in college watching a Hallmark commercial and crying.
10. I'm extremely shy.  The above number 8 helped me to not necessarily overcome it, but to learn to work around it.  When you are walking across the court with the team before games, halftime and end of the game, you sort of learn to get used to being out there.

I think everyone else has been tagged.  If you haven't then know I've tagged you!

Rest in Peace

We met while my husband was stationed at Fort Bragg.  He and my husband were assigned to the same unit and became fast friends.  He had quick wit and kept me laughing all the time.  He had a generous spirit.  He was what I called a closet softie.  He was all bark and no bite. 

Yesterday, he was killed in action by a roadside IED.  He leaves behind a wife and 4 month old son.  I am having such difficulty with this tragedy, but his wife is a true wonder.  Even in the midst of her sorrow, she knows that he died doing what he believed in.  He thought we needed to be there and that we were doing a good thing.  She also knows she will meet him again. 

Please pray for my friend, Major David G. Taylor.  I loved him like he was my own brother.  I miss him terribly.

   

Loveliness of Babies

Get ready to laugh and cry reading this Loveliness Fair hosted by Elizabeth.  Get a cup of something warm (it's cold even here in Texas) and a box of tissues. 

Minor Issues

When Brother was a baby, he never cried when he received shots.  He was a mellow baby so I thought it was just part of his personality.  Since receiving his diagnosis of autism 2 years ago, I realize it was he did not feel the pain.  He cannot feel soft touches on his body and if he does, he can't stand it.  You can see it in how hard he grips his pencils.  There's a name for it, but I don't remember it.  It's part of his sensory integration dysfunction.  I've read too many technical terms in these past years to be able to keep in my head.  So, one of the problems we encounter is this:

We went out to eat with my family last night and a mosquito or two entered the car with us.  These awful bugs went to town on Brother.  He didn't realize he had been bitten until they started to itch.  By then, the mosquito(s) had dined quite well on Brother.

Homekeeping Notebook

One of my favorite bloggers, Dawn, has a great post about her homekeeping notebook.  It's perfect timing as I'm working on putting mine together.