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Well, I guess the first order of business is announcing our newest addition! Kender Allyn Hunt was born at home on July 22, 2008, weighing in at 10 pounds 8 ounces. He’s a big chunky monkey, just like his big brothers were, and everybody just loves him. We named him after the Allyn branch of my mother’s ancestors, who we recently found out actually come from Vermontville, Michigan, just up the road from where we live now.

It’s just one of those things you have to deal with when you have a grill outside that sits unused for a season. Every spring, something will have invaded, and you have to chase it out before you can use your grill again. Every year here in Michigan, it’s been wasps. They crawl into the main grill space, even into the legs through the bolt holes, and I have to go out there and hose the thing down with wasp spray before I can use it.

Today was the last day of the big kids’ first session of swimming lessons. The boys missed out because they are still sick (and I wish I had stayed home!), but the girls were able to go. Caitlin officially graduated level 1, complete with a Red Cross certificate, so next session she will be in the level 2 class with Tamara. The boys are still in level 1. Yay Caitlin!

Well, it’s time to announce it to the world. Brenden, Tamara, Caitlin, and Liam will be starting school this fall at Cedar St. Elementary here in Mason. Elayne’s fibromyalgia has gotten to the point that she can barely keep up, and while we really feel that a change in climate would help, financially it’s not possible at this time. So the kids will go into school, and Elayne will ramp back up on working from home, saving up the funds to make the move to a better place. Elayne is not happy about this at all, but the option is always there to pull them back out if things don’t go well.

Margaret Elayne Buck Yard passed away last Friday night. She was a wonderful woman who gave everything to her family. She made all of us feel welcome at her home anytime, even those of us who weren’t born to her family. She loved to create things. I always remember her as making something, ceramics, porcelain, crochet, handmade dolls, clothing. She taught me some of those skills. I missed out on others. She made the best shrimp gumbo in the world, and I learned that recipe from her, as she learned it from her daddy. My mother and her brothers remembered her spirit.

We’ve definitely had our share of bad luck around here. We could certainly use some happy vibes, helpful prayers, magick spells, or anything else you want to throw our way, before anything else happens. I know I haven’t posted in a while. It’s been crazy, and our domain forwarding was down for a while anyway. Here’s the scoop:

I just can’t win. I’ve spent today packing up and tying off loose ends, preparatory to driving to Texas tomorrow. Grandma is officially on her deathbed, and we’re hoping to get there before she dies. At least they’re finally letting her go home…if she doesn’t die before Saturday, that is. But now I’ve got to make my annual trip home at the last minute, and BY MYSELF, which royally sucks. It’s not Brian’s fault. He missed too much work this month from being in the hospital. I tried to talk him into quitting his job and becoming beach bums, but he’s not interested.

I turned in our van to the body shop today. They’re going to do the bumper this week, and the doors in a week or two. They overbooked the only minivan they have available for loaner, so that’s why they’re doing the work in two parts. Once they fix the bumper, though, I’ll be able to open the doors and get the spare tire down, so the rest is cosmetic.

I didn’t get to post on my family blog tonight, because the domain forwarding STILL isn’t working. I’ll have to get on the phone with GoDaddy about that again tomorrow. Tonight, I don’t want to deal with it, I just want to make my blog entry and get to bed. Jarod waited until after midnight again to go to sleep. I’m trying to start being good and get my before bed routine done each night, starting tonight, so here I am.

My Aunt Marianna has been diagnosed with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, stage 3. She’s going to be starting chemotherapy soon. She is almost as far away as the rest of my family is, in Atlanta, so I can’t visit her, either. I can’t send flowers because she’s become too sensitive. But the kids are sending get-well cards, and my dad has posted a website where well-wishes and prayers can be left: http://www.caringbridge.org/cb/viewJournal.do?method=executeInit