Today was Jesse's first show in over two years. She did quite well, placing first in her classes. Abby was tremendously helpful as groom, and once Jesse calmed down, Jake did as well. It was blessedly sunny and quite warm, so believe it or not, we were all quite happy to be sweating.

Sunny, breezy, warm today - an unexpected gift. It was supposed to thunderstorm much of the day.

Boy is helping Dad to wash his car. Lawn was mowed, walkway edged. Printer drivers reinstalled.

The girls have just left to go to their first concert - they're pretty excited. Jesse got three of her friends to go along, so there's strength in numbers. They're going to see Montgomery Gentry. I hope it is a good night.

And Jesse has her first horse show in well over a year tomorrow - excitement! Abby'll be her groom and Dave and I will show up to watch her.

The children had their ketsuka class tonight. Kyle has refused to spar since he earned his white belt and could spar. He has decided to do jujitsu instead of sparring. I am happy he decided not to quit doing the martial arts - I could see what they were giving him.

Today was Abby's day off from babysitting and it was warm and sunny. After many days of rain, we're all a little sun and warmth starved, so they had a day free of seatwork. They frolicked outside, took the dog for a walk, practiced their katas outside and generally just enjoyed being alive.

Abby went through a stage when she really like the bunny shirts. Now she thinks they are too mean, so she has edited hers.

She and Kyle hung out together and did their seatwork together today. It was so nice to have sun today, for them to be nice to each other and enjoy each other's company. Each day we have together is a blessing.

No posting recently as it's been a challenging couple of weeks and we've been doing much life schooling. Jesse got in a severe motor vehicle accident last Wednesday. She's extremely lucky she lived, let alone walked away. Abby and Kyle had Chess Club the following day - we were trying to keep things as 'normal' as possible. Abby went to a dance at the local high school Friday, but unfortunately got hit by a nasty flu that night. She seemed to get better on Monday, then both she and Kyle were sick by Tuesday night. They attended their ketsuka classes on Tuesday (before they acknowledged being sick) and Thursday (when they were feeling much better). They've been reading much. Kyle has even been reading fiction! Historical fiction, but this is good for the boy who would much rather read technical manuals, National Geographics or history books. This week has been rather quiet albeit very grey and rainy. We've just been trying to regroup, recover and be grateful. Very, very grateful.