Welcome Home, Titan!

Billy waiting to see his dad

Waiting for Bill to come in

Having Bill return from Afghanistan was truly the bright spot of my week.  I was so happy when my boss let me have the time off to greet Bill at the airport.  The timing of Bill's return couldn't have been better.  Tina's parents, Ralph and Abby, happened to be in town to help with Eliza's birthday party and to be there for the birth of their latest grandchild (due Wednesday).  Eliza's party was Saturday and her actual birthday was Sunday, so Bill didn't miss a thing.
We had a pretty good little group waiting for Bill at the airport.  Emerson and I were there (the boys had to work).  Tina, Billy, and Eliza were there (of course).  Tina's parents, her brother and his wife and kids showed up soon after we did.  Then some of the other Air Force wives showed up with homemade signs to help welcome him home.  Their husbands just left for Afghanistan a few weeks ago and it will be about five more months before they get their happy reunions.

Our first glimpse of him

Bill and Tina reunited

We were all so anxious waiting for Bill to arrive.  Tina got a text from him when the plane landed, but it seemed to take forever before he made his way to where we were.  Billy and Eliza ran to greet him.  It was so cute to seem him scoop up Eliza (in her best Halloween colors).  Tears definitely flowed as the whole family was reunited.

The happy family!

Tina has lost weight and looks amazing!  Bill has slimmed down, too, but it's not nearly as obvious with all his gear on.  Billy and Eliza would hardly let go of their daddy for the rest of the time we were with them.  At lunch, both kids were pretty much leaning against him.  I know it will wear off, but it's so cute to see how devoted they are to him.
Bill was fortunate to have been in an assignment that didn't put him in as much danger as other areas of Afghanistan.  My boss is having a tough time right now because his son is a Marine and recently began his tour of duty in Afghanistan.  His unit from Camp Pendleton had six or seven deaths just this last week.  I'm so impressed with those who can put their lives on the line for us and I hope I never take it for granted.

A Few More Pitfalls

We knew Emerson's job at Birdseye was going to end eventually as they decided to handle their academic program using the help of the local school district, but things ended in a more unexpected way.  The school district thing didn't ever really happen and they decided to have a tutor/residential employee instead of a teacher. That allowed them to offer much less pay and save some money. That was an unhappy development for us, but at least Emerson won't be making that long and dangerous drive during the winter months again.

So.....the job search takes on new urgency.  Emerson has been hired on as the tutor for the Indian Education program in the Provo School District.  It's extremely part time and he has to hope for Native American students to fail classes and need help so he can get some hours in.  The Utah Valley University Class he taught last year probably won't be offered this school year due to low demand.  We do have one lead on an upcoming teacher's assistant job that might give him some work for the remainder of the school year.  We're just waiting for the listing to show up on the school district's website.

My own job seems a little less certain right now.  I guess the state of California eliminated mental health funding and probably 90% of our clients are from California.  It doesn't affect the kids who are already at Heritage, but we won't be getting any more clients until they figure out a way to fund their care.  It's hard to say how long we have before the company has to start making more cutbacks and I don't want to be caught by surprise, so I'm keeping my eyes open for other jobs.

We've been hoping the truck will hold out until we can afford to repair it.  My precious puppy, Gambit, managed to really hurt himself again and I had to cash out vacation/sick time to pay his vet bill. There are times we feel like the universe is ganging up on us.  We are trying to keep our spirits up and hope for the best.  Your prayers are more than welcome as we brace for more.

Our Idea of Adventure

 I think Emerson and I are becoming an "old married couple" in some ways.  Since finances prevent us from going anywhere truly adventurous, we tend to go to pretty much every home show, outdoor show, and any other type of show that happens around here.  Emerson even tags along with me at the women's expos.  We've hit some good ones recently.  There was a Gem Faire that we got two for one tickets to and they had the best deals on stones, gems, and jewelry making supplies that we had ever found. It led to some great new creations for our Etsy shop.

As part of my membership in the Women's Business Network (part of our local Chamber of Commerce), I got free tickets to a women's expo and won a certificate for a free laser hair removal for my upper lip. Haven't used it yet, but I do like getting stuff for free.

The latest home show we attended had opportunities to try different massage devices (nice!) and we watched a really fun Halloween cupcake competition with local chefs.  Two of the judges were a couple who own Hatch Family Chocolates and were part of a reality show called "The Little Chocolatiers."  They did their own cooking segment after the cupcake competition and we got to experience their fun personalities.  The wife is the chocolate expert and is very focused on what she does while the husband helps and provides comic relief.

With the boys all grown up, we're getting more "us time" than ever before.  Going to events like these keeps us from driving each other crazy and helps us generate new ideas of things to create.  

More Doggy Injuries

Gambit is quite the spirited little puppy and managed to hurt himself again.  This time, it was his neck.  He managed to puncture it on something (still don't know what) and got his collar dug into his neck, slicing under the fur and skin.  He likes to roll around a lot and he has growth spurts that make his collar tighter.  Because he gets himself dirty and the collar covers some of the damage, we didn't catch it until a few days after he must have done the initial damage. Once I discovered it, I kept trying to clean him up.  It was obvious that he hurt a lot and that made it difficult to clean him properly.  Two baths later, he neck was still a mess and he kept scratching at the injuries, making them bleed.  So frustrating!  My anxiety level from this shot through the roof.

When I took him to the veterinarian, the sticker shock of having them sedate him, shave his neck, clean the wound, administer antibiotics, and send him home with appropriate medications was enough to make me throw up (my response to anxiety).  Gambit still kept scratching and Emerson came up with an interesting solution.  He cut the sleeve off a shirt and Gambit is now wearing it like a turtle neck (I call it a "beagle neck").  Twice daily medication and applying ointment to his neck is quite the workout (from trying to hold him still).  Fortunately, he looks like he is healing.  I never imagined we'd be going through this with our dogs, but I love them so much and it's worth all they give back to us.  I just wish they would wait until the economy recovers more...