Sorry that I have not blogged in a while, but I have been so busy. I was toying with the idea of stopping the blog, but G4 told me not to. So I guess I will keep it up a while longer.
We got home from Amanda’s nationals tired and recuperating from sickness. We had really been burning the candle at both ends and were feeling the results. I think also that the time we had been spending on traveling and Amanda had taken away from the family as a whole. G3 pointed out to me that we had really become 2 families, one of me and Alex and another of him, me, and the kids, and the two were not meshing together well.
I realized that he was right. I was so busy walking on eggshells around Alex, making sure that he was happy and then dealing with Amanda and her training, that I was not looking at the big picture of the family as a whole! I was overwhelmed with the details of getting her ready for her competition (like making hair pieces for the demo team) not to mention keeping the house clean for the showings we are having. It is all I can do to get the laundry and the dishes done some days. Also, in between there are dental visits for everyone and Amanda’s medications - yikes! G3 was complaining that he missed having a wife around! I was always busy with something else, and he was getting lost in the shuffle. So, I have been really trying hard to come up with activities that all 5 of us can do together. We went to play racquetball the other day and had a lot of fun. It was a great workout and we all were able to participate. I suggested a comedy club last night that was also a lot of fun. Alex didn’t understand much but he was able to pick up some of the physical comedy and was talking to me about it today.
Then in the midst of all this, we found contraband in Alex’s room! He can’t hide anything worth a damn (excuse me - but it is true) and his messiness caught up with him. G3 hit the roof. We had a big discussion the next day in which G3 revoked almost every privilege that Alex has. Alex was upset, but G3 followed it up with a really nice metaphor for Alex about how much he was loved, and how much we wanted to make him a part of our family forever. He was really sincere and it was great watching Alex’s face light up as he realized that discipline did not mean out of the family. I think he really thought that he was going to be sent home! It broke my heart to realize how tenuous this relationship still is. He has fussed a little at the constraints on him, but not as much as I would have thought.
We are now going to have to focus on packing and moving. G3 and I have to decide when we are going to Seattle for a house hunting trip. As well, we need to get G4 to his orientation and registered for classes in this coming fall semester. At times it seems overwhelming, but I also love moving and cleaning things out. Moving always gives me a chance to have a fresh start.
I have also been trying to cook some of Alex’s favorite foods. I made vareniki (spelling?) a couple of days ago from scratch. It wasn’t as hard as I thought. I made two kinds, potato and cheese, and then cherry. We all loved them, they turned out really good. I think Alex really enjoyed them. Then the next day, I made a Ukrainian salad (kind of like a potato salad) that he also liked. I love cooking, and cooking ethnic foods is always fun. Being vegetarian sometimes limits recipes, so I have had fun finding Ukrainian foods that I can modify to our herbivore ways!
I can’t believe that we are at 8 weeks already as a family of 5. It has been great, I can’t imagine life without Alex. His English is coming along despite some of his reluctance to do Rosetta Stone. He has completed this family and I am so grateful that he is with us. I love this little guy so much!
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