Back online
We've moved into our new house and I finally have internet access (six days later... you'd think I might have actually withered away by now). We still don't have a working stove, but as of yesterday we have a gas line in the kitchen so that we can now connect the stove. However, that involves finding someone to help Mark LIFT the stove over the island because the kitchen is rather small and with the refrigerator in place, we can't simply move the stove through to its intended location. But the grill and microwave works, so we're not tied to take-out (though having a Buca di Beppo a mere five minutes from our house could be dangerous... one order almost took us over our monthly dining out

Thankful A to Z: F=Friends
F is a tough one. I first thought "Family." But also in the running was "Food." I figure food is a given. And family will hit some other posts.Possibly coincidentally, there are a couple of friends with whom I have lost touch since getting Micah's diagnosis two years ago. But maybe it's not a coincidence. Maybe they don't know what to say. After a few months of reaching out to them, I gave up. If I think about it too much, I get sad.But those friends aside... I have felt a crazy amount of love expressed by our friends near and far. Thick and thin... faithful friends. I'm not the easiest person to love. But there are some dear women in my life who have been

Thankful A to Z: E=Emily Pearl Kingsley
It seems appropriate on Sesame Street's 40th birthday to mention Emily Perl Kingsley. She wrote the story: Welcome to Holland. It was one of the first things sent to me after we received Micah's diagnosis. Link here for the text. This story made me feel like I wasn't alone. And through it I realized that the sooner I accepted that Italy wasn't going to be our destination, the more I would enjoy Holland.Ms. Kingsley has a son with Down syndrome and she is a writer for Sesame Street. I'm fairly certain that she has had a major impact on the show having actors with disabilities.I've actually heard of peop

Thankful A to Z: D=Digital photography
I cannot imagine having to keep track of prints and negatives during this crazy busy season of life. Digital photography rules! I can look back on my laptop to find photos of previous moves, such as when Mark found a job in Orlando and "followed" me there in 2001. And I can also find out by looking on my laptop that I took no photos of our move from Orlando to Nashville in 20

Thankful A to Z: C=Children's Hospital
Micah was supposed to have been born at Froedtert Hospital (the birthing center is attached to Children's Hospital in Milwaukee). We didn't make it there for the delivery. But so much of Micah's first year was spent at that hospital under wonderful care that I couldn't let this month go by without expres