Summer Coming To An End

This summer has been a whirlwind, with Jason leaving, 2 trips, and getting ready for school, I can honestly say we have been busy. Jason left the first week of June, and since then, I have tried to keep myself and the boys very busy. The first 2 weeks of summer Jay attended summer camp. I can't say that this was a success, but it was an experience I'm glad he had. We weren't too pleased on how the camp was ran, but now I know he needs a more structured environment. Jack and Jacob went to MDO once a week this summer too and loved it. Once camp was over with, we made our way to North Caroline for a trip that has been planned since January. NC is a 16 hour drive for us, but we couldn't wait to get there and see family. Jason's brother and his family live there, and we were meeting Jason's dad, step mom, and his younger brother and sister. We stopped in Atlanta and spent 2 nights with my sister so we could break the drive up. We then met Jason's dad in ATL, so we could drive the rest of the way up together. We spent a whole week in NC and had so much fun. The boys enjoyed being with their cousins and family. We hadn't seen our NC people in over a year! Liz, my sister in law, and I are so close, and talk just about everyday, so it was so nice to spend time with her and my mother in law. Once we got back from NC, we had a couple of weeks of being home. My dad then flew to Memphis and rode with us to Blue Ridge, GA, where we met my mom, Granny, sister and brother in law. I am SO grateful that my dad was with me because on the way up there, one of my tires lost the tread! I knew I needed new tires, and planned on getting new ones when I got back. Yah, didn't happen. Scared the crap out of me when it happened and I am so glad that the tire didn't actually blow! We were about an hour from Chattanooga and in the middle of nowhere. We had drive about 20 minutes backwards to a Wal Mart. I got 4 new tires put on, and we were on our way again! We finally made it to our cabin in Blue Ridge, and it was BEAUTIFUL! Our cabin sat on the Taccoa River and it was so peaceful. We spent times fishing, mining for gems, and exploring the downtown area. I was sad for it to end, but knew that we only had 2 more weeks left before I had to go back to work. Well, those 2 weeks are up, and I start back on Monday. Next week will be full of meetings and getting everything ready for the students to arrive on August 5. The 2 school systems in Memphis have recently merged, and there is so much change and chaos going on right now. I am looking forward to getting back in the classroom and getting a more structured routine down for us. I will be teaching 10th grade English again, and I'll be co-teaching with one of my favorite people! Ami and I co-taught together for a couple of years before I left for my hiatus 3 years ago. We are a great team, and she is one of my best friends. For anyone who doesn't know, co-teaching is when there are 2 teachers in the classroom, a regular ed teacher (me) and a special ed teacher (Ami). This is different than inclusion, and we are thrown challenges everyday, but I love co-teaching, especially when I have such a great partner. I have been co-teaching since I started in Shelby County in 2006, and I have been lucky enough to have great partners through those years! Jason is doing good. He's staying busy and we get to Facetime everyday, which has been wonderful. Jay is having the hardest time out of the boys dealing with him being gone. I knew he would, but we are doing our best to assure him that everything is OK and giving him things to look forward to. I will be going to El Paso in September and I can't wait. I will spend 4 days with my love and we have so much planned already! He wants to take me hiking, dinner, manicures, movies, you name it, we want to do it! I wish the boys could come, but just 1 plane ticket cost almost $1000! Jason will be trying to get home for Thanksgiving to go back to Blue Ridge with us. He will for sure be home for Christmas, which will be great because Jay and I will be off of school the whole time he is home. We miss him like crazy, and some days are worst than others. We are both dealing with our own issues being apart, but because we have such a great relationship we talk about them and try our hardest to make one another feel better. He has sent the boys letters and they love them! Jay will be starting 1st grade in a week, and Jack and Jake will start back at MDO after Labor Day. Our week days will jammed pack with school, work, dinner, HW, and CrossFit. I am hoping with such a tight and structured schedule, we will be in such a routine, the days will not seem so long. Continue to pray for us as we continue on this journey of being separated. I am hoping with school starting, it will be a good distraction for the boys and myself. We have a countdown and change the numbers daily; it's so great to see the numbers decrease! We miss our Daddy!