Tell Me Something Tuesday was hosted by Rainy Day Ramblings, but she has (temporarily?) stopped blogging. So a group of us that had been doing posts (Linda from Book Girl of Mur-y-Castell, Karen from For What It’s Worth, Roberta from Offbeat YA, Jen from That’s What I’m Talking About and me) decided to get together, come up with some more topics and keep the meme going.Michelle made us a logo and we’re off and running. For more details, check out this post where I reintroduced the meme.
I can be sporadic, but when I do join in I will always share next week’s topic at the end of the post. So, today is about…
Mid-Year Update: What have you been up to?
I kind of want to laugh because OMG what HAVEN’T I been up to? I’m going to keep it brief here, but if you want the real details, my Sunday Post will really keep you informed. I’ll break it down into the main areas of my life: Family, Health, Work, and Blog
Family
In March for Dante’s 36 Month appointment I noticed that he was just falling significantly behind in almost all Development Areas. And that, in consultation with his social skills therapist (SST) brought me to the conclusion that we needed to stop circling – Dante is Austistic. I did a lot of reading and have started doing a lot of things at home for him. I also pushed really hard to get his appointment with the Developmental Pediatrician moved up so that they could do his ASD assessment. In early May he was diagnosed and since then I’ve been visiting ABA Therapy centers trying to find the right place for him. June 10th we finally had his assessment with the center I selected and I’m hoping insurance will finalize and he can get started in the next couple weeks. He starts speech therapy on Thursday of this week.
Kiko has had a lot going on too – his mom was in town for a while from Mexico (first time he’s seen her since 2019 and with her advancing age, likely the last time he’ll see her I fear). Most recently is nephew (35) was killed in a car accident and that has really rocked his family’s world. I feel like he’s just really started being home again after almost a month busy with the funeral and supporting his brother, etc.
Health
I’ve had a lot going on in my personal life – particularly the above family stuff – and the stressors have led to me being less careful about my eating habits. I’ve managed to lose weight still but just barely and I’m not sure that will hold true this month. I’m trying to get back to my habits of not drinking soda, getting in exercise, my morning routine, and healthier eating (water, veggies, etc).
Work
In January I started a coding bootcamp with the goal of switching careers. It was very stressful, working full time, taking care of Dante (especially with all that was going on) AND doing this full time bootcamp. But I made it through – officially ended June 4th – and landed a job as a software engineer at Sam’s Club! I started my new job on Juen 13th so it’s very new and I’m definitely still deep in the learning phase. Jury’s still out on how much I will like it, but I’m grateful to have a job that is remote all but 2 days per month, incredible flexibility, and better pay.
Blog
I actually was doing fairly decent with blogging until late May/early June when all the above just became TOO MUCH and something had to give. I was always struggling to visit and reply to comments, but I was at least keeping up with reviews and posts. I took about 3 week soff and last week was my first week back to blogging. With the new job, I *seem* to have space in my schedule to visit posts and reply to comments every weekday morning. I’m really hoping that holds true, as it will be nice to be really truly engaged in this community again!
You have so much going on and now a new job so it’s a lot to juggle.
I hope you have a more stress free second half of the year.
Karen @For What It’s Worth
Yes, you’ve had a lot going on and it’s no surprise that you’ve been stressed out.
Just a wee bit 😉 Thankfully I really feel like we’re on the other side of our hill/mountain and things are going to get easier moving forward.
I had to double check if I did the wrong post for today! You have had SO MUCH going on over the past 2 years, let alone these past 6 months. I’m hoping things settle down for you with the new job and now that Dante will be in his ABA Therapy!
LOL nope that was me, not you! Apparently I wanted to go back to 2021! That is my hope as well – I think *knocks on wood* we may be on the downward side of this hill!
That is one busy, stressful six month period. So much going on and so much of it involves major live upheavals. It’s hard to continue to take care of yourself through all of it.
It’s definitely been a battle! I’m trying to give myself some grace for not doing as well with my health goals as I had intended. And I’m really hoping that we’ve climbed the hill and are on the other side!
It’s been a crazy 6 months!
Lol that is probably the best summary of all that mess – crazy!