More graduation photos

Me & my hubby who was my biggest support in this journey.




A sea of graduates.




Me & my godparents (also my parents best friends)





With my Mom and sister

Life Goes On?

Abby is having a really hard time with losing her Papa. Last night she woke up crying and told me that she was afraid that when she grew to be an adult she would die really quick. I told her that she'll grow into a very old woman with lots of grandbabies to love and kiss.

After I dropped Abby off at school, it began to snow. It's not accumulating. Just big pretty flakes...the 1st of the season. Another painful reminder of what my Dad is not here to see. But also in a way, I'm sure he's relieved to be missing out another Chicago winter. Chicago winters suck. The shoveling, the slippery pavement, the driving in it.

On my to-do list for today and tomorrow:
*Take 2 archaeology quizzes online.
*Begin writing my paper on Sierra Leone. I love the topic, but also wears me out emotionally. I'm not sure I have the emotional energy for it now.
*Find a psychologist that is in our insurance plan. I need someone to talk to.
*Get the house clean. It's been neglected for so long.

Back to school

This first week of school has been pretty hectic so far, but also good for the 3 of us. Evan seems to really like high school. He's taking French for his language requirement which is probably more exciting to me than him. I can't wait to be able to talk to each other en francais. Abby loves 2nd grade. I really admire her confidence and enthusiasm for school. She sees everything in a positive light. She must get that from her Daddy, because I'm always full of anxiety.

I like my classes and professors so far. I have had a ton of homework already, but yesterday I was able to do some of it (reading homework) while lounging at the pool. So that made it a little easier to deal with. I am looking forward to starting my remaining class tomorrow and meeting that professor. It's pretty exciting to think that this is the beginning of my last year as an undergrad. It is definitely a challenge for me to start off the year while hypothyroid. Anytime I sit down to reading homework, I wind up falling asleep. But I keep reminding myself that in about 2 weeks or so I'll turn the corner and start feeling like myself again. It's hard, but I'm not going to let cancer stand in my way anymore.

Anyway, some pictures of the kids from their first day!

Evan having an early morning cup of tea. He's so like Josh...they both love tea.

Miss Abby and her cool new hot pink backpack.




In front of her new school!

Friday photos

I don't have much to say today because I am pretty worn out from the busy week. So I thought I'd post some pictures of Abby from this morning.

In her jammies:



In her school outfit. She had to wear orange today because they are doing a different color each day. She learns how to spell it and they make a little book about each color which she reads to us when she gets home.



On my to-do list today:
*French class
*Buying some flour
*Housework
*Some "me time"
*Trip to the post office
*Get my parking permit (haven't done it yet)
*Return some textbooks that I found for waaay cheaper on Amazon
*Hopefully get my new NIU Onecard
*Bake banana bread

Back-to-school update

So here we are 1/2 way through the first week of school. Thought I'd post a little update to how we are all doing.

Evan: likes his classes and teachers. He has friends in most of classes and of course that makes it easier. So far, he's staying on top of homework and following the rules. We have sat down with him and agreed on goals for the year and offered rewards for reaching them.

Abby: loves school. She told me that she likes staying the whole day because then they "have time for great big fun". She seems to want to be more independent. She announced today that she would no longer be watching "baby cartoons" because she's a 1st grader. I told her that it is more important to do what she likes and is interested in than worrying about if it's a "baby" thing to do.

Me: I like my classes and professors. I am excited to be learning about 2 different sections of anthropology: linguistics and archaeology. It's easy to get focused on just taking cultural classes since that's my interest. I love my French class and while it is more of a review for me, it's nice. The past two days I have felt pretty weepy about the fact that my babies are back in school. It's hardest to see Abby be there for the full day because it's such a big change. It's definitely a challenge for me to transition through. I am very thankful for the quiet time I have to study during the day. I've never really had that before and I'm sure it will help my grades!

On this afternoon's agenda:
*get parking permit
*archaeology homework
*laundry
*running to Target to fill Abby's eczema/allergy/asthma prescriptions
*baking bread

1st Day of School

Today was back-to-school for Evan, Abby and myself. Evan and Abby had a half day today which is always nice to ease the kids back into the school year. They both had a great first day and like their teachers. Abby has her kindergarten teacher again because she is now teaching 1st grade. We are so thrilled with that because we loved this teacher last year.

I attended my 1st class this morning which was French 101. I was afraid I'd be the only senior in a classroom full of freshman. Well I did feel somewhat old when I learned that our instructor is only 21! Yikes, but he's a Frenchman so he definitely knows that language. It seems like it will be a fun class. I am looking forward to Linguistics tonight because it's a discipline of Anthropology that I know very little about.

Josh took the day off to make everything go more smoothly and to share in the excitement of the 1st day of 1st grade for Abby. We ordered pizza for lunch and the kids each got to pick their favorite toppings.

Here are some photos of the 1st day:




Abby and her buddy Maddie:

Today is brought to you by the letter H.

Today was all about haircuts, hurrying and hamburgers. You see it's the last day before the weekend before school starts. So many last minute things to do! Clothes shopping, haircuts, school supplies, etc. all have to be bought. Can't send the kids back shaggy with pants that are too short. To keep the kids in line for all these errands, I bribed them with happy meals from McD's.

Neither kid has had a haircut in quite some time, so I took before and after photos.

Before:


After: