Thankful

   Well, we are back to civilization, back to work, back to school & back to "normal" after 11 days in the mountains camping! As much as I love being outdoors and away from internet & cell phone service, I'm reminded of why, when I was little and this was my parents vacation, I used to spend half of it in town with my grandma. I don't like being dirty, I don't like doing all of the same stuff I do at home in a smaller space for so long & I don't like mosquitos and meat bees! And I dislike all of these things even more with 3 kids, two who are small girls that require most of my attention. However, I am still so very thankful for the time away & the quality time with family & friends who were able to be there too.
   I'm thankful that Katie got her power chair before we left and she was able to zip around ALL OVER the mountain, from campsite to campsite, go on "walks" throughout the campground and even one nature walk that nearly gave me a heart attack! (Her power chair is VERY heavy & she almost tipped it by not paying attention to the trail and veering off the side of the mountain.) I'm thankful that she has been MUCH more careful since we've been home. My hallway isn't taking near the beating it was before we left. I'm also thankful that Paisley got to spend time getting to know her family so much better, since she's the newest member and all :) Her and little Maverick are the absolute FUNNIEST kids ever, and since they're only about 3-months apart in age, their personalities mesh very well! I'm thankful that Roman was able to experience shooting his very first deer on his very first hunting trip ever. (He told me that I have to share his story on my blog, so that will follow shortly!) I'm also thankful that Bryan was able to experience his only son killing his first deer. I know that many of you aren't hunters, but it runs deep in both of our families and his first deer is a huge thing for us! AND topped only by the fact that he killed it with a bow :) And the fact that he did it, completely on his own.
   He went out walking and told us where he would be, because I require that just in case something happens. He had been gone for a couple of hours and I had been thinking, if Roman's not back soon, we're going to have to go find him. About that time, a shirtless kid in camouflage pants and a shirt tied around his head came RUNNING into camp saying, "I killed a buck! I killed a buck!" We're like, What?!?! He said it again and we asked if he killed one or just stuck one, since MOST people will stick a deer and come get everyone's help to track it. He said NO! "I killed it!" We asked, "Are you sure it's dead?" He said, "YES! I'm sure! I was dragging it" Me, being overly cautious of practical jokes, asked him if he was joking. I got the really, mom?! From Bryan & Dustin too. They were like, "He's NOT joking!" His excitement was evident and very contagious. We asked where the deer was and he said, "Right up the road, out of camp. I marked the trail with an arrow so I would know where to go." So we start loading up into the Jeep and Katie insisted on going with us, and since we thought it was "right up the road", we figured it would be ok. So Tyler & Maverick, Katie, Roman & I jumped in the Jeep and Bryan, Dustin, Robin & Susie jumped in the other jeep. Paisley stayed back & kept Kym company and off we went. We got up the road, Roman told me where to stop, the rest of the gang came back and Bryan said he would carry Katie because we had left her wheelchairs at camp and we still thought it was only a little ways up the trail. Katie was soooo excited!! She kept saying, "Yay Bubba!" It was super cute! Roman had marked the trail with orange flagging tape and on the way back down, Katie pulled it all off & she had to wear some on her hair as "Rambo Junior".So once we get on the trail and we're walking, and walking, and walking, and walking, we ask Roman how much farther it is. THEN he decided to tell us it was "Quite a ways further." UP the side of a mountain, by the way! Susie stopped part way up and decided to wait, the rest of us kept going. Finally, Katie & I decided to hang back and we sent Bryan to catch up to Dustin, Robin, Maverick & Tyler. I carried Katie a little further and we decided to wait by a rock, in the shade. She's over 40 pounds and I am NOT in the best shape of my life! LOL! Anyway, we're waiting and listening and can here the rest of them up ahead and out walks a pretty little doe to stand and stare at us. Then I see the rest of the crew rounding their way back down to us with Roman's deer in tow. They made it to where we were, tied up a harness and Dustin drug it back down the trail. We got almost to the road and they stopped to field dress it. When we got back to camp, everyone else was there and the celebrating began! Uncle Doah showed up and taught Roman how to skin it and we brought the deer down and put it in the locker the next morning. Roman just hung out and enjoyed every last bit of vacation after that. It was a pretty awesome experience and we were thrilled that he had paid enough attention to mark the trail & find his way back to camp. He was actually lost and didn't know where he was, but found the road and figured it out, thank God!
   Now that we're back to our "normal", we've made the decision to homeschool Roman, so we're waiting for a call back from the new program that he'll be joining. Katie has a new homeschool liaison and so her program is completely different than it was before. It's a good change, but it's going to take some getting used to. I'm feeling significantly overwhelmed with trying to recover from camping, getting laundry done, getting the housework done, the trailer unloaded & cleaned, figuring out our new routines, receiving even more new equipment for Katie & trying to keep my marriage in tact as we struggle with some issues that keep coming up. Proverbs 17:14 says, "Starting a quarrel is like breaching a dam; so drop the quarrel before a dispute breaks out." I'm not very good at this! And I'm failing miserably at keeping my cool and keeping it all together, but I know I can do it. Not alone, but I can do it with God's help. Psalm 55:22 says, "Cast your cares on the Lord and he will sustain you; he will never let the righteous be shaken." Boy oh boy!! I am stressed to the max with all that is happening, but I MUST cast my cares upon the Lord! Because even though I am struggling with the trials I'm facing, I can do it all with God's help. And not only do it, but do it well. And even though our mountain vacation isn't my idea of a vacation, I'm still thankful for the time away, for my family, for the talk with my mom yesterday where she reminded me to just breathe & for the growth that was much needed on this trip. I'm also thankful that the kids had an amazing time and that Bryan had a great time too. And even in all of my complaining, I had a great time as well, I'm just having a hard time getting back to normal at home and it took me about half of the vacation before I felt like I was able to relax. But I'm very ready for a beach trip, and hopefully that will be my much needed vacation form vacation. Even if for only a day. ;)