After a LONG 20 hour drive w/ 3 kiddos and a dog, we made it to Colorado. (Gabby stayed behind an extra week for her retreat at her old school). It's beautiful here! We're adjusting to the low humidity and dry air, but so far the family is transitioning well.Mike loves his new job, and only has a 1 mile commute to work. He is now working with Vaisala in the Aviation Sales Dept. He is leaving for his 1st travel visit to Canada this afternoon, poor guy huh? It looks like his travel will be minimal compared to his previous job which will be nice for our family.
Gabby had the hardest time adjusting I believe. After a very emotional goodbye with her friends, she flew to Denver last Sunday. Our friend Tracy was gracious enough to let her stay behind the last week for their retreat. Her friends had a goodbye party for her at her favorite restaurant, almost 30 of her classmates came, she was very touched. She was very upset about leaving Huntsville and telling her friends goodbye, but has transitioned very well to her new school, and has fit right in with the group, which is no surprise to me. She attended their 8th grade retreat last weekend and had a blast. She still misses her buddies, but learning to make new friends. They are planning ski trips on weekends, and she is anxiously awaiting for snow. We are now on the search for high school, believe it or not, and will be attending open houses over the next month. We have an open enrollment policy in our school district, so we'll be looking at both public and catholic school options.
Lauren is adjusting very well and seems to be enjoying her new school as well. Just like Gabby, she misses her friends, but is making new ones and transitioning well. She has decided to take a year off of dance and enjoy playing sports. Gabby and Lauren are gearing up for basketball at their school and excited about getting started. She just finished volleyball in Alabama and will be playing for her new school in the spring for their volleyball team...yeah! We had a great time this past weekend seeing High School Musical 3 with her new friends from school and some moms.
Maggie is doing well considering all the changes. Her new school is AWESOME! She has a special ed teacher, speech pathologist, and 2 para professionals in her class of 3 kids(2 days/wk) and 6 kids(3/wk). They are extensively focused on working with children in Autism. She attends Mon-Fri for 3.5 hours/day, so essentially gets one on one therapy daily. They have an OT that comes in for once week for the entire time...3.5 hours! We are very pleased with her services. We are learning she will qualify for other disability benefits including Medicaid, so we can offer her additional therapy after school hours. She is still having sleep issues, but we are learning to manage them better.
Will is just going with the flow...lol. What else is #4 to do? He is doing great, and cooing away. He just said dada earlier, which melted Mike's heart. He is such a daddy's boy, jumps up and down the minute he sees Mike, it so cute. But, loves his mama too, esp when he wants to his milk...lol. He just turned 6 months and started solids, and loves to eat!!! He looks so much like all the girls, I would have to say more like Lauren than all of them, which she loves. He is a very laidback baby, although he still hates his carseat. Unfortunately with a 30 min drive to bring girls to school, he has become a little more accustomed to it. He's almost sitting up, which means we will have a mobile baby soon...yikes! As far as me, busy trying to undo boxes daily, keep kids and myself organized and getting settled. I'm going to start a job in a few weeks as a lactation consultant on Saturdays, and work some shifts in the Nursery/NICU when able. With Mike's travel, I'm very limited to when I can work 12 hour shifts, so I'll be working primarily on weekends, plus that helps avoiding daycare too. I miss Huntsville and my friends, but I'm learning to adjust to the changes well, and meeting new people everyday through kids and around town. I'm looking into starting a new Mommy Milk Meetup in town, with another LC who owns a business almost identical to A Nurturing Moment, and looking forward to possibly doing home visits with her in the future. I miss ANM but I know it will go on strong : )
So that is all for now, we will try to update frequently. Keep in touch!
