Just Simply Jen

So many times I've started to come back and post but I never really had anything I felt needed to be said. Other times I would have loved to come back for a place to let the frustration out but the words wouldn't come. I'm finding myself needing somewhere to go where I don't have to worry if I am bugging someone or where I can say everything I want all at once. This seemed like as good a place as any. It certainly worked before.
So here's what's been going on in my life since February.
My sister got married. This of course required a very expensive trip along with the expenses of having someone in the wedding as well as doing the photography..for free. It ended up not being a great wedding at all. She terms it as a disaster and I'm inclined to agree. She is married though and is pregnant with her second child. She moved in July from Hawaii to Florida and we are actually getting along really well. She mellowed out a lot.
My husband switched positions in Hawaii which allowed us a few months of him actually not having to go anywhere. We managed to celebrate our 9th anniversary together though we didn't get to do much. It was still nice to have him home.
Most of the time between May and September was spent ferrying myself and my son back and forth to doctors appointments and getting ready for our move. Right before we moved my son was diagnosed with ADHD and Autistic Disorder with mild symptoms. I guess that means the same as saying he is high functioning. We put him on a stimulant for the ADHD after much consideration and it has helped him so much in school. He only takes it on school days or when he has some function where he really needs to be calm and focused.
We've moved from Hawaii to Kansas in what I consider the move from hell. It was pretty much ruled by Murphy's law and started with me losing my engagement ring the morning we cleared housing. After all those times it fell off at the beach and I found it, I lose it in a house that has absolutely nothing in it except for the few suitcases we are taking with us. All I can figure is it fell in a box we gave to charity or it went down the toilet. all that matters is it's gone. We spent three days in a really nice Navy Lodge and spent most of it worrying about money. We hadn't gotten the advance we were supposed to and were paying for everything out of pocket so it was not fun. We left Hawaii with 100 dollars and no idea how we were going to pay for everything on the Kansas side. It didn't really get any better and we ended up having to borrow money to make it but we got through and eventually our money came in.We had trouble getting to St. Louis MO to get our car and ended up having an accident with the rental car. Nothing major, just backed into a flatbed trailer that was parked in the road. It was definitely just another one of those things. It took us longer than expected to find a place to live but we ended up with a nice duplex off post. We really like it and the only thing I wish was different about the area is that they would hurry up and finish the two houses they are building right around us. The biggest bonus is that we live directly across the street from the school so there is no transportation issues with getting the little guy to school.
School here has been very interesting. Instead of putting him in a self contained classroom they put him in a regular second grade class. He was working on a first grade level in Hawaii because they are so far behind here and this new school is actually more advanced than most other schools in the state so he had great challenges going into it. I'm happy to say that he is doing really well. There were issues with under staffing and him not getting what he needed at first but it's been resolved. He is catching up a lot more quickly than any of us thought he would and he absolutely loves his class. I'm having to work with him a lot more outside of school but I am really liking it. It gives me a chance to see what he can really do and now that I know what was causing all of the communication struggles it's much easier to work around it. It's still a struggle some days but it's so worth it. It has ruled out me working anywhere that will not let me be home when he is. At least until he is caught up with his grade level and that could take a while.
Now for me. I have been unhappy with this move. Mainly because it went so badly but also because I really miss Hawaii. I miss the culture and the beauty and the people. I miss my friends and right now I really miss the weather. The cold is not as easy to adjust to as I thought it would be. It is causing problems physically that no one warned me about but then again I don't think it's something my doctor thought about. My face seems to have gotten worse in the cold. I know the pain part has but the actual paralysis seems more marked. I can actually look in the mirror some days and see it. It's no where near where it was when I first got the palsy but it is enough to be a little depressing. It's been almost three years and I just want it gone. I am in the process of getting things done so I can have weight loss surgery here since it went so wrong in Hawaii. I was telling the people here about the program in Hawaii and they couldn't believe how crazy it sounded. Once I can get a referral from my doctor then it shouldn't take more than three months for them to get me in surgery. I'm excited but at the same time I'm worried because I just found out that my husband will be gone for a month in the spring and might be leaving again in early summer so I don't know how that will effect things.
I guess I can say I'm finally starting to adjust. I don't hate it here and things have improved so I am definitely happier. I get to be with my family for Christmas, barring any last minute Army surprises. That is exciting to me because it's been 10 years since I had Christmas with them. I'm most excited about seeing my nephew because he's grown so much since July and seeing my sister. We have been really close though I have to admit I'm not missing the pregnancy drama that I had to deal with last time. It is the one advantage of not being there.
I guess this is enough of an update for now...not that I have any idea who I'm updating. The few people reading this pretty much know everything already. It is kind of relieving to get some of it out of my head, hopefully for good now.