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So I got to thinking I should post more often, especially when Rory is sort of out of commission, so she can know how things have been going. I've never been much good at official "journaling" so this little exercise will be both difficult and good for me.

Since I ended up taking the day off from work on Monday, Tuesday was the first "real" day of the second complete cycle for Rory. C came and took the little kids away for a few hours in the morning, with the intent that it would free up the big kids to get some school done. Sounds like Kylan had a great time doing some school activities with her, and all three of them absolutely LOVE going over to her house. Thank you thank you thank you!

Unfortunately it sounds like that time might not have been used 100% as intended at home, but I can't really fault the girls too much for that. When Ceana gets overstressed she doesn't function very well doing school, but instead starts cleaning stuff. Thank goodness someone else had already taken care of the playroom or we might not have seen Ceana for the rest of the day. She did work on everything else downstairs though.

Kaeli is still bumping up against being 40 lessons behind, but she often bears the brunt of the childcare needs when little ones ARE home. Probably going to have to set up a check-in-by-phone schedule to keep her on task when I can't be there. I am glad that Caiden seems to be keeping up fine.

I did get to see Rory for just a few minutes in the morning before she went back to bed. I'm guessing the nausea is still too much to handle without medications, which in turn knock her out cold. I didn't hear from her at all during the day, so hopefully that means she was resting. Hopefully it also means the meds did enough to suppress the urge to vomit so she didn't feel the need to call for a ride back to the hospital like we did on Monday. If that's the case, then she might be "over the hump" towards having some good days again by next week. Hopefully (theme of this paragraph) that's the case.

In the evening I was honored to attend "Young Women in Excellence" night. All of the girls were completely decked out in formal dresses, had their hair and makeup done by sisters in the ward, and were "introduced" one at a time pageant-style while they walked (or "teetered" as some are not used to high heels) in through a decorated lattice arch and down a red carpet. The descriptions of each girl were perfect, and gave every one of them a well-deserved moment in the spotlight. We were then treated to a video presentation of things they had done during the year, such as girls camp, other activities, videoes showing off their various talents, and more. Pieces of "interviews" with the girls talking about the Young Women program, importance of the Temple, testimonies of Joseph Smith and the Savior were all awesome. I assume / hope that they make copies available. After a brief word from Brother McCallister we gorged on decadent chocolate and other sugared treats. VERY cool night; really wish Rory could have been there to share in it all.

Thanks again to those who continue to bring meals. I realize it's a sacrifice for people to help our large family, and know we're already a strain on ward and family members. I'll be trying to reduce some of those pressures. Unfortunately I think that means more pressure on the girls, and Kaeli especially. When other kids are taking their 2-week holiday break from school, and when her grandparents are here for a visit, she'll probably still be spending most of her days trying to catch up. Ceana and Kaeli are being asked to grow up way too fast and take on mother roles, while still being expected to keep up on their "children" duties in school and Young Women. I'm so thankful for and proud of them for how they are handling everything. I only hope upcoming changes don't become too much for them. The first two weeks exposed some flaws in our plans, though, so we'll just have to see how things continue to evolve.

"Hanging in there ..."