August

Creative title, I know......

But really, there is no other way to title this post than simply August.

August came and it did its thing, and this family is not at all sad to see August go.

And we're hoping September has better days ahead.

The worst thing that happened in August, and perhaps ever, was having to tell my seven year old son that his best friend had been killed in a car wreck the night before. I NEVER want to see my son take in those words and grieve like that again. Never.

Kyrail was a sweet little boy who spent a lot of time with our family and we adored him. He was fun and energetic and spunky and, most of all, he was loyal to Isaac.

He is sorely missed.

And if you're the praying type, his mother and grandmother could use more prayers than there are hours in the day. Please please please pray for them!

And pray for my sweet boy who is having a harder time with this now that school has started back and he is realizing he'll never see his friend again on this side of Heaven.

And while we were climbing that mountain, this happened:

Owen got a serious infection in his stoma. We were in and out of the hospital for two weeks. It was not fun. For anyone. 

Luckily we have amazing family and friends who swooped in and helped us out with the older two while we slept on tiny hospital couches.

Owen and Spiderman were finally released and he has been doing well ever since. (Aside from a little bit of swelling today that we're hoping is the result of having his button changed two days ago.....)

Anywho......

But August wasn't all doom and gloom.

The kids did start school and this Mama was ready for them to go.

I love summer.

I love the lack of routine.

And after twelve weeks of it, I love when their teachers welcome the little cherubs back.

Thank you, teachers! 

They love you.

I love you.

And I miss them, but I'm not even gonna lie, I do not always miss their noise.

So there you have it.

August in a nutshell.

Now we're transitioning back to school and gearing up for football and cooler weather. 

Happy Thursday.

Fixed.....

My awesome husband fixed my blog for me.

I think.

So hopefully now we'll be back to more frequent updates along with commenting and linking abilities.

Thanks Todd!!

I know you're all on the edge of your seats now........

But it's late.

And I'm tired.

Here's an old pic of our first baby to tide you over.

You're welcome.

Oh Bobbie. Poor Plastic Hermaphroditic Bobbie.

(I've decided I shall call him Bob or Bobbie, depending on the parts being used at the time.)

Last night in class, Bobbie was being moved from a shelf to the bed for her full bed bath.

And mid-move,  her vagina done fell right out onto the floor.

It was very sad.

There are just things that happen in nursing school that you never thought possible.

So of course, wanting to know exactly how I should handle that situation in real life, I asked the professor what to do? 

(I figure in real life, laughter was not the appropriate response for the loss of one's vagina.)

"Get a camera, go tell your charge nurse, and video her facial expression when she gets to the room."

And that's just how we roll sometimes.

PS - Bobbie continued to have issues keeping her parts in the right places so we finally just removed them and she went without private parts for the rest of the night. She seemed okay with it.  She was probably just excited she wouldn't have to deal with her periods anymore and things like that.

Goodbyes and School

We said goodbye to sweet Yelizaveta yesterday and left her at the airport with nine other Belarussian children and one interpreter to make their way across the world and back home.

Her parting was bittersweet. She was excited to be going home, but saying goodbye to Emma Grace was more dramatic than Terms of Endearment (which I've actually never seen, but I hear it's heartbreaking.) And oh my word they did some sobbing. These sweet friends that don't need to speak the same language sure know how to show each other love.

And thanks to my dad, we were able to do the only thing Liza asked to do last summer. Roller coasters! And she was one happy girl!

Liza, you will be missed.

And now summer is winding down.

This goofy boy starts pre-k next week. He will be in Track 4 in a fully special ed classroom setting. And my emotions are mixed about that. Mainly I'm excited for him, but occasionally a sad feeling creeps in and I try not to worry about him being in a big public elementary school that's huge and crowded and overwhelming and new. Yeah, we don't need to unpack that right now. God's got this, right? 

And speaking of back to school......I have also gone back to school.

I know. Scary, right?

And crazy?

And how the heck am I going to do all this?

I have no idea, but I figure I spend so much time in hospitals with Owen, I may as well get paid to be there, right? ;)

No for reals, after everything our family has been through and much prayer, I have decided to pursue an RN associate's degree through Wake Tech.

Why Wake Tech? Because it's cheap and close by and supposedly a great program.

Why not go for the 4 year BSN program? Because I'm scared about that time commitment and rumor has it, if you get your associate's degree, many of the area hospitals will then pay for you to continue on to get your BSN while working for them. I like that. Free schooling is never a bad thing.

Why nursing? Because I love blood and poop. Or because I know the system. I know you see doctors for like 2.5 seconds of your visits. I know the nurses are the ones in there hugging and loving and supporting and helping you get through what you need to get through. And I want to do that. And yes, I know it is more than that too. I know it's hard hard work, and patients are difficult, and there's a lot of cleaning involved, but I'm excited about it. So don't bust my bubble if you think this is the dumbest idea you've ever heard. Unless you really want to.

So that's about it. I've started one class and start two more in two weeks.

And balancing it all is going to be hilarious.

And yes, we have a scary looking mannequin in our classroom as well. And I've heard we will eventually be talking to him/her while we practice skills.

Oh this should be good. I've got a lot of pent up talking for someone who can't run away from me at will........

I think I shall name him Bob.

To El Paso and Back......

Hi friends.

I'm back from El Paso. Everybody survived the trip and separation and Owen did even better than grandparents were expecting. Hallelujah for that!

 Our trip? It was awesomesauce. It was exhausting and exciting and emotional and hilarious and God used those teenagers in a big way. And they stepped up to the challenge. And I love them in a big way! And I'm so proud of them!! Seriously. If you're one of those people who has little hope for the next generation, come spend some time with these hooligans because they will knock your socks off with their smarts and wit and dedication to doing God's will in their lives.

(And they have epic photobombing skillz.....)

 

I spent most of my mornings doing this. I was the resident hair stylist and I loved it. 

 

The rest of my time was spent in this bathroom. Most of the time I was by myself but occasionally Chelsea would come in and liven things up with her quick wit and mad painting skills.

 

We affectionately titled this photo "Mother Hen." Seriously. I was chilling on my bed braiding Jen's hair when a homeless man stopped by and was trying to get into the church. While Todd and Gene were outside taking care of the situation, this is what my bed looked like. Scared much, teens? As soon as he wandered off to try to find somewhere else to stay, the baby birds left the nest and it was just myself and Jen again. Hilarious I tell ya. Hilarious.

 

Best advice I can give you when hanging out with teenagers? Do not, under any circumstances, leave your phone unattended. I deleted 1200 pictures like these off my phone last night. Yes. 1200.

Thank you Chelsea. Just you wait. Payback's a you-know-what.....

 

Saturday morning part of the group got to do some hiking. And by hiking I mean rock climbing. And by rock climbing, I mean I was seriously wondering where our waiver forms were and if we were going to make it out alive. It was awesome and a little bit scary and we even saw a rattle snake. Amazing views though!!

 

And this is just one of the millions of reasons I love these teens. They gave of their time, their energy, and showed anyone and everyone the love of a big God! 

 

Thank you to everyone who encouraged me to go. Thank you to everyone who kept our kids so we could both go. Thank you to the teens for making it a memorable trip. Thank you to our God who kept us safe and changed our lives.

To my teens?

 I miss you!

To the flying cockroaches of El Paso?

I do not so much miss you!

Thirteen Years and Counting.....

Thirteen years ago today was my wedding day.

Yup. 13 years of wedded bliss.....or something like that.

And what better way to celebrate than leaving together on a mission trip to one of the hottest places on earth with 30 teenagers?

Awwwww yeah.

We live it up big at the Fischer household.

And I wouldn't have it any other way.

Love this guy. Even when he's difficult to love. And you married people know what I mean.

(Luckily for him, I'm never difficult to love.)

Ha ha. That was funny.

Anywho.......

Good luck to the team of people that are taking care of our kids and sweet Liza while we're gone.

May the Force be with you.

And thank you! 

Just the Five of Us....ish

We got back yesterday from a week long beach vacation with just the five of us.....ish. (We did have some friends come down and share our beach house with us for one night) but the rest of the time, it was the Fischer Five and we haven't done that in about five years. 

 

It was time.

And it was awesome.

As I've said before, the kids are at that great age where they would bake all day in the hot sun and sand if we let them. They had such a blast together and we had a blast watching them.

I'll let the pics speak for themselves.

There's a plethora. 

What can I say? I like the camera and the beach and salty, happy kids.

 

 

And there were mucho surf lessons this week. And I have to say, I was impressed with my kids mad surfin' skills. Lord knows, they did not get that from me. I tried once.....a long time ago.....and we almost got divorced..... So I relish my role as photographer now that he has new subjects to teach. :)

 

 

 And this is what they looked like most nights.

And dang.

These three people?

These little souls that God entrusted me with?

They're pretty cool kids.

And I know I'm biased, but really, I like them. A lot.

Our transition back to being home has not been a smooth one. It has been full of screaming and four of us needing a lot of extra patience to help one of us understand that we're home and we're staying put for awhile and that it's okay if his toothpaste is a little bit crooked or his brother wants to play something different or his chair is not perfectly aligned at the dinner table.

And during the screaming and the crying and the needing more than I sometimes feel I have the energy to give, I come back and look at these pics and I know. 

It was worth it.