Wow. It’s been a long time since I’ve posted ANYTHING. We’ve been through a lot since the summer. Not all of it has been good. The construction that I first posted about here is coming to an and. Look for a future post. There’s just a few little things that need to be finished up. I am so grateful to have been able to take on a project of this magnitude, but boy, it was so disruptive and stressful (as well as exciting). Thankfully, it was summer, and we had a grill to cook on for our meals, and it was warm enough to eat outside. I missed having a kitchen like you wouldn’t believe.

Now, onto the not so good part of the summer. Four years ago, Shannon, my only sister, was diagnosed with breast cancer. Over time, the cancer spread, especially into her bones and liver. Then, at the end of August, my sister wasn’t feeling right and was admitted to the hospital. When I realized that she probably wouldn’t be coming home, I spent every night I could with her at the hospital. My amazing husband gave up working his night shifts so that he could stay home with the kids while I was a the hospital with Shannon. She was there for about a month. She passed away at the age of 38. I miss her like crazy, and can’t believe how short a time we had with her. She was an amazing human being; this short paragraph and one picture can’t convey what she was like. A future post perhaps?

My beautiful sister Shannon.

A couple of weeks after my sister died, we lost our 11 year old foster dog, Riley. She was diagnosed with kidney disease about a year ago, and her health declined steadily since then. She has an amazing, crazy story behind her that deserves its own post. Look for it some time in the future.

Riley

So you see, between the construction and upheaval on the house, my sister’s passing, then Riley following her, and many other crazy obstacles along the way, I haven’t been posting like I used to. My energies were channeled elsewhere.

I’m just starting to feel like starting up with the blog again. I thought the blog needed a fresher look, so that’s why you see the changes. Hopefully this will signify a fresh start all around.