What is going on around here...

A lot!  We have so much going on around here and I think this is the most neglectful I have ever been of my blog. So I want to do an update on everything/one. This will be part one--Harry and Will.


Will has been doing well.  His first year of high school has been an adjustment for sure as it is perhaps the first time in his life he has had to study.  That was a bit of a shock for him I think.  It has been hard for us too as we want him to find his own way and make his own mistakes (and learn from them).  But we know how important all these years are in regards to college admissions.  He did make the honor roll and he seems to be improving on his organizational skills and his study habits (with quite a bit of coaching from me).

Will tried out for the water polo team and made the JV team.  We are so happy for him as not many freshmen made the team.  Traditionally, Will has not been one to really enjoy a lot of team sports.  Growing up, he played soccer and baseball and flag football but his heart was never really in those things.   It is so nice to see him finding his niche in high school with swim team and water polo.  His first few games were this week. I am looking forward to catching a game this week as I have never seen a water polo game before.

In other news, Will has his first job!!!  I am really proud of him for this.  Last summer he did a junior life guard volunteer program and they told me he was the best one they'd ever had and that once he was old enough to be certified, they would hire him.  So, he got certified over Christmas break and was hired a few weeks ago.  He is working mostly on school breaks (Spring Break, Easter and all Summer) and a Saturday or Sunday here and there.  He is trying to balance school, water polo and work and so far I think he will be fine.

{instagram /I-phone sneak shot--he really does not let me take his picture much}

I cannot say how happy I am that he is working!! I have observed that fewer and fewer teenagers have jobs these days and it really bothers me. I think having a small part-time job teaches teens SO much (time management, scheduling, personal responsibility, honesty and integrity, money management, communication skills, how to get along with others and the list goes on).  It has always been very important to me that our kids work once they are old enough and it makes me thrilled that Will wants to work. He is at work right now in fact!


Now for Harry...

We are really trying to get some relief for Harry's chronic migraines. I know I probably sound like a broken record but they are so debilitating y'all.  And he gets so many.  Sometimes he gets 4-5 a week.  In fact, as I was typing this, he was upstairs with one that started a day ago.  We have traveled to Austin (3-4 hours each way) for two atlas orthogonist treatments which are meant to help with these and he ended up with a horrific migraine immediately after the treatment.  We have felt so defeated.

I will say that I think the atlas treatments are helping me and I hope they will eventually help him.  But it s quite a challenge to travel there for them at this stage of our life.

{Harry and Scout Instagram shot}

In other news, Harry is loving lacrosse.  He is the team captain and is playing with most of his best friends which is so nice. I love watching him be a leader out there with his peers. He has never been on a team with his best friends before and they are having fun.  They are a new and very "young" team with a volunteer Dad coach (who is fabulous).  So they were losing their games by quite a bit each week.  But every week they narrowed the score and last week, they had their first win!  Of course, it was the week I did not bring my camera and Harry scored 4 of the 6 goals.  He assisted on one of the other goals too.  Harry needed that.  Sometimes these headaches really get him down as he misses out on so much.  So, to be such an integral part of the team felt so good to him. Since it has taken me a week to finish this post...they had their 2nd victory yesterday.  So proud of all his buddies for working so hard.

{how adorable is that smile--taken after the big 1st win and goals?!}

{Habu is #36 here but I think he'll be #18 when his jersey comes in though}

{These are I-phone snaps}

I did not think I would enjoy watching lacrosse nearly as much as I do.  I am not a huge sport spectator (at all) but this game is so fast moving and exciting.  We are really enjoying it.

Also, remember last summer when I told you that Harry and I had something BIG going on?  Well we were invited to be part of a magazine shoot for a great community organization here called Positive Works.  Harry has been really involved in +Works as a student and I attend as many of their functions as I can as well.  We are so thrilled with this organization and what they do.  +Works and Harry are featured in this month's Redbook magazine!  So proud of him.

I am working really hard with fabulous clients, giving talks, organizing our summer camps and vacation, getting things ready for The Nurtured Home site and cheering on my athletes in water polo, lacrosse and gymnastics.  It is just constant activity around here.

Please pray for my friend Mary.  She has an incredible story.  A few months ago my friends and I started meeting to pray for our friend Norma who has Inflammatory Breast Caner (she is doing well so please continue to pray for her too).  We meet every Monday at my house and say a healing rosary. Mary started coming to the rosary and we welcomed her in (I did not know her but figured someone in the group did).  One week, after we prayed the rosary, Mary shared her story with us.  She told us that she was in Houston waiting on a heart.  She always had a back-pack (LVAD) but none of us thought anything of it. It turns out that back-pack was keeping Mary alive while she waited for a perfect match. Mary was here with her youngest son for 2 years waiting while the rest of her family lived in their home state.  She had to be here so that as soon as they got a match, she could have the transplant.  So, we began praying for God to let Mary have the perfect heart in His time.  We prayed this just last Monday with Mary.  And lo and behold, this week Mary got her heart!  She is doing really well but you can imagine how difficult a heart transplant must be.  She needs prayer for continued healing.

I share this story with you because Mary has been such an inspiration to me and my friends.  She showed up every week to pray for other people even though she needed a lot of prayer.  I never heard her complain about being away from her family or waiting so long or feeling bad.  She always has a smile and asks about others.  She wears a collection of miraculous medals and has miraculous faith if you ask me.  I love when God puts these women in my path.  I learn so much from them.

I have Kate's update coming next.  Hope you are doing well.