March, April, & May 2016

It's been almost 5 months since I wrote a blog post and it feels like 5 years. Life can get so unbelievably crazy and insane, but it's nice to be able to sit down and reflect on what's happened over these past few months, the good things, the bad things, the great things, and even the sad things. As hard as it's been, I always, always try to keep things in focus, not dwell on the tough stuff, and remind myself of how far all of us have come over these past few years. It's not easy, I certainly won't lie about that; I find myself getting emotional, sometimes daily. I don't see it as a weak thing, but as a chance for growth, to find what's really important and see that these boys of ours are continuing to do amazing things on a daily basis.

"Tough times have their benefits. They show you who you can really count on."

Back in March, I was still attempting to make Lincoln's life as easy as I could. (For those of you that are just starting the blog, you may want to go back and read some earlier posts). After being diagnosed with degenerative myelopathy, I was trying to get him to lose weight by making his food for him. I was able to get him to lose 14 pounds, which, for anyone that's ever spent any time around him, was a miracle! I was giving him short daily walks, bringing him for acupuncture, as well as bringing him for workouts at a water treadmill.  He certainly kept me busy, but if I had to do it all over again, I would.

"Every time I say, 'Life can't get more f**ked up;' Life replies with, 'Challenge accepted."

There were 10 days of March that were spent with each of us getting the stomach bug, sometimes overlapping. Unfortunately, Nate had it the worst...5 long days. Such a tough time, but we got through it.

Nate decorating Easter eggs

Ben & his Easter eggs

Lincoln at his heart testing

the boys on Easter

the boys with Lincoln at the vet

me & Ben at basketball

Nate walking Lincoln

Ben got a puck at the Williams College game!

Lincoln at water therapy

"Sometimes you can get so busy trying to be everyone else's anchor that you don't even realize you are actually drowning."

April started off with 2 snowstorms. Ugh! Benjamin even had a delay! There was barely any snow all winter and then, bam, April snow. But, by the time April vacation rolled around, we were ready to get outside and spend some time with friends. We filled that week with the museum, the zoo,  a local farm, a local park, mini-golf, Flight trampoline park, and the Cheesecake Factory. We couldn't have asked for better weather or a better way to spend the week off of school.

April can sometimes be difficult because it was the month Nathan was diagnosed, but after seeing how well he is doing, it was nice to kind of celebrate the fact that it's been 3 years! Three years. Just crazy!

Back in April, I received a message from a writer at the NY Times. He was interested in doing a story about duckpin bowling and wanted to talk to me. I was intrigued, overwhelmed and flattered all at the same time.

Nate feeding one of the animals

Nate bought flowers for a friend's birthday

Ben reading to Nate

Nate cheering on Lincoln at therapy

Lincoln looking great!

me and the boys at Flight

the boys at mini-golf

me and the boys at Look Park

Ben hanging out in CT

me, Katie, and the boys at the zoo

Oops...doctor visit for Ben. Thankfully, his finger wasn't broken!

"Surround yourself with people who get it."

May seemed to fly by...Ben was playing baseball, we had play dates in the park, some big milestones for Nate, Lincoln started to really struggle with walking, and HUGE news for me.

Nate really started to shine in May. His independence was growing and this was period of calm for him and he started to do things on his own that we all thought would never happen (even though we knew they would, we just forget that he likes to do things on his own timetable). First, he finally went poop on the potty. Previously, he would ask for a pull up, do his business, and then he would asked to be changed. He attempted full potty training multiple times, but his anxiety took over, and he just wasn't ready. One day, I asked him if he wanted to sit, he did, he went, and never looked back. Oh, what an accomplishment! Second, he was ready to swing on his own at the playground. Not on a baby swing, but on a big boy swing! It may sound silly, but so many things have to happen for a kid to want to swing alone. His core strength was never strong enough to hold himself up and balance at the same time. Again, one day, he asked to sit on a swing, and then asked me to push him. I think I may have cried just a little. And finally, he became a coloring fool. One of my kids actually wanted to color! I know it sounds crazy, but coming from someone who couldn't hold a crayon the correct way until a few months prior, this was huge for him. So many things to be excited about! :)

Okay, so my news (this might be old news for those of you that know me in the real world!)....the day before I left for my first bowling tournament of the year, the NY Times article came out online. Whoa. I was speechless. I never, in a million years, ever thought, something like this would happen for me. Here I was, sitting in a chair getting a pedicure (haha!), reading a NY Times article about me, duckpin bowling, my accomplishments on the lanes, my kids, and the fact that a sport I am completely in love with is fading away. What a moment! I cried. I laughed. I shook my head in amazement whenever I looked at people's reactions on Facebook. I couldn't have been more proud to see my sport get national headlines that it so deserves. And the fact that someone thought enough of me to include me and my story in it? Wow. So humbling. If you haven't read the article, here is the link The Lost Art of Duckpin Bowling I hope you enjoy it as much as I loved sharing my story.

On the same day that the article came out, which was the Sunday of Memorial Day weekend, I was bowling in Hagerstown, MD. It just so happens that I broke 2 world records in the process of winning my 20th tournament. It may have been one of the best weekends of my entire life.

Ben playing baseball

Ben

The boys dancing in the rain

me & the boys on Mother's Day

Nate swinging!

me & Lincoln

Ben playing basketball

NY Times article, second page

NY Times article, Sports section front page!

And just like that....a few weeks go by and I still haven't posted this. Even though, this particular post is somewhat unfinished, I'm still going to post it. Life is certainly reminding me that if it's not one thing, it's another. Nate's had a busy few weeks, but more on that later....he certainly keeps us on our toes! ;)

Until next time....