I've Done It Again...

I've went too long without updating... that's something I said I wasn't going to do anymore.
Oh well, I'm here now and that's all that counts, right?

I hope that y'all had a great Thanksgiving filled with everything that makes you feel all warm and good inside!
I think that Thanksgiving for special needs families is a little different than others...we seem to have long since formed the habit of being thankful every day, not just one special day out of the year. Oh yes, I know it is easy for us to get caught up in the busyness of each day, but I really do believe that for the most part, we go through each and every day realizing just how blessed we are to have our children...we've learned to recognize blessings that many others unintentionally take for granted. You know, when you struggle or when you spend so much time wondering what the future holds, you learn to "live in the moment" and say many extra prayers of thanksgiving, not just on Turkey day, but all year round...
We had an absolutely great, but non traditional Thanksgiving...we spent the week in Disney World!! Yep, first time in my life I have spent a major holiday away from home.
We started talking about this trip when Sage was in the hospital and it just went from there. It worked out perfectly that Tehya's school break and Richard's long weekend lined up with each other so we off we went!
There really are no words to describe the amazing time we had. Our resort was totally "us", we had perfect weather, and of course everything was all decorated for Christmas. We met princesses, had dinner with characters, saw 3 great musicals, we had front row seating to the castle show and fireworks, rode some crazy rides (well, Richard and Tehya did! Sage and I stuck with Pooh!), Sage was made a honorary Disney citizen, and most of all, we gave our girls memories of a lifetime! Richard had never been and I went as a child, but SO MUCH had changed so really it was like my first time to go all over again!
We laughed so much every day, even on the way home, and I think we have all had a bit of a hard time getting over our "Disney buzz".
Sage is already asking to go back. Maybe in a few years, but our next big trip is out West! One can only take so much of the crowds!

Oh, Richard and I went on a little weekend getaway the weekend before Disney and had a blast. We
spent one night in Chattanooga for a concert and then went to do some deeper exploring of our little getaway spot. Let's just say that if we ever had a doubt that we want to have a place there one day, that weekend sealed the deal.  We've been going "up there" for years, since Tehya was younger than Sage, and we've always known we wanted to have a place there...but that weekend just really did it! We discovered an area that we've been missing and that was just it..I guess you could say that one look is all it took to know we had found the right spot for us!

I guess the other bit of news is that Sage had her first rod expansion the end of September and did just great. We went up on day before, met with our doctor, and she had her surgery bright and early the next morning. Everything went perfectly and we will go back in a few months.
There is however, some very sad news out of our AMC/VEPTR community. A little boy who recently had rod placement passed away this weekend. It is a very sobering reminder of what our children face and kind of helps drive home that whole "being thankful for each and every day" thing, doesn't it?
Sometimes the worry and downright fear of what the future holds can drive us almost crazy. I seem to be having a hard time with a few things lately. It comes in cycles...sometimes I am great, strong
physically and emotionally, and other times...well, other times I really could just curl up in ball and lay in bed and cry.
There are just things that hit you out of nowhere. The best thing to do during those times is count your blessings. It seems that there's nothing like taking stock of all you are blessed with to help run the blues away...

You know, I've held alot of things in for so long and as I have went back and looked over some of my earliest post that I have taken down, I realize I was sharing my {very} raw feelings...I don't know if I can do that anymore, for several different reasons, but it does feel good to be here writing again and I promise I won't wait so long next time.

See you soon with some Disney pics!