Recap of Spring........Moving into Summer!

Good times for the Carrolls......it was a busy spring.  Nothing new for us!  Anna thoroughly enjoyed gymnastics, practicing and practicing her moves at home.  Anna is becoming more and more independent with her Diabetes management and will be heading to Camp Sealth on Vashon Island for four days and three nights at the end of July with two of the "D"iabetes friends. We visited the camp recently to get the girls prepped.  Anna loved it and can't wait.  I, on the other hand, am nervous.  We are thankful for the doctors and nurses from Children's who will be there to help all of the kids manage their insulin needs!  So far this summer, Anna has been spending a lot of time on the trampoline doing flips and other tricks to get ready for another season of gymnastics.  She's also secretly checking out Dora the Explorer videos and watching them on my laptop.  Unlike her siblings and most of her friends, she is NOT too old for Dora!   

Julianne was a "star" soccer player on a team with mostly girls who had never played before.  It was a huge self esteem booster for her!   She's now reading chapter books which is a huge leap for her.  Her favorite books right now are the Ramona series.  She's also our budding scientist as such, the theme for her birthday was science and Joe helped her prep various science experiments that the girls could do at the party.  She is also VERY into the Animal Planet channel and the Earth and Life series.  I can't believe what she knows!  Her current obsession is my sister's pregnancy.  She is trying really hard to wrap her head around how the baby will come out.  She knows the basics but can't figure out how her aunt's bladder won't explode...
 
Jackson played baseball and managed to safe all of his teeth this year.   Unrelated, he did manage to get another slice on his forehead due to a sword fight with one of the neighbor boys.  Thankfully, stitches weren't warranted and superglue was used instead.  Now, just trying to keep his head covered for six months to help with a "finer" scar.  Hmmmm.... not sure that will work.  He is boy through and through with three battle scars on his forehead!   Jackson just finished four days with a fever above 100 degrees.  I've never seen him want to stay in bed that long.  He did manage to go to swimming lessons with my friend Jamie yesterday (who is watching all of the kids while I'm at the hospital with my sister) but as soon as they got home and had a snack, he asked if he could take a nap and crashed out until Joe came to pick him up in the evening.  He's such a little trooper!

Joe has been great.  Of course, he is the best dad and husband ever, constantly stepping up when I don't or can't.  This weekend, he helped me clear out our garage for a garage sale in which we made $250 to go toward the 3 Day Walk for a Cure for my friend Teresa who is living with us with her 8 year old daughter.  Teresa is recovering from Breast Cancer and has taken up residence in our downstairs with her daughter as she does.  It's been great having them there for various reasons; we love having people around, it's a HUGE reminder of how lucky we are to be in good health, Tess, the 8 year old, is a GREAT playmate for the kids, etc, etc....  It's been a win win for all of us.  Teresa and I will be walking on the 3 Day walk together in September!   Joe has been working a lot of hours again on the 787.  It doesn't look like that will change anytime soon.  Unfortunately, he has lost two employees due to change of groups at Boeing for them.  He has been spending nights scouring potential recruits to join his group.  Sounds good but will be more work for him as he hires and then trains them as the "Veteran" leading his group.  Joe's Explorer is almost ready to be replaced.  He's been talking about it and thinking about a new vehicle.  Sad little Explorer has been a really good car for him.  I believe it has over 150,000 miles now and is starting to nickle and dime us.

For me, this past year was a whirlwind with me back at work full-time.  Work-wise, it was great.  Home-wise, it was very stressful.  I like to "be in charge" if you can believe it and really wasn't at home.  Joe, with the help of my mom, took over most of our home and family life.....I'm hoping to make some changes this year so that I can reengage.  I applied for a half time job in Edmonds, very close to our home, but found that I was overqualified.  I'm now keeping my eye open for other positions but part-time is very challenging to find.  Something closer to home would be good though.  Thankfully, I still have a great job at a great school with a great staff, great kids and great parents!  I am especially thankful for this job because we are finding more and more of our friends and neighbors looking for jobs.  Since school ended a little over a week ago, I have read two books, disassembled the girls' room (ready for make over), and gone through a ton of paperwork both at home and the office!  It feels so good to get things done! :)  We have been staying up late as a family having some movie nights and letting the kids sleep in late in the morning.  It's nice.  All three of the kiddos started back to swimming lessons yesterday and love it.



Hugs and love to everyone!  Michelle