Summer Update A Little Late

WOW!! It has been a long time since I wrote any update! This has been an interesting summer. I have been babysitting my nephew (Brad's older sister, Kim's son) every other week all summer. Zack is eleven so he is a little older than my kids. Christopher, Cassidy, and Barry are all fine. They love having Zack over every other week. Cassidy and Chris were is Danny Martin's wedding in July. Cassidy was the flower girl. Christopher was the ring bearer. They thought it was great fun. I am still working for my mother. Nick (my brother) is building a deck for her. I am helping as much as I can. The kids start school next week. Barry is in full day kindergarten, Cassidy is in first grade and Christopher is in second. Cassidy and Christopher are in a multi-age class. These classes have about 10 first graders and 10 second graders, so they have the same teacher two years in a row. I really like the program. They do have two different teachers, but the teachers work together some of the time. Cassidy is still riding the horses. She moved up from the Leadline class to Walk/Trot. She is working on the canter part and is almost ready to move up to the Walk/Trot/Canter class. She is also learning to ride an English saddle and bareback. She has not competed in English riding or bareback yet, but she is getting there. She went to the Lake County Fair last Friday and came in first place in the Walk/Trot class and second place (out of 12 people 18 and under) in the costume class. She had a great time. Christopher came in first in the Leadline class and Barry came in first in the "Stick Horse" class. They both thought it was cool that they got to be in a horse show like Cassidy does. She has another show hopefully on Sunday of this week and them she is in a weekend long show on the 22nd-24th. She can not wait. The boys will be able to ride in the show if we go this Sunday, but not the 22-24. On another note, I had a meeting with Brad and his counselor about two weeks ago. It was the first time I had seen or talked to Brad in over four years. It was very hard to get through that meeting. I got the first apology since everything happened and he also told me that it wasn't my fault. (I know I did nothing, but it was nice to hear from him.) He had to tell me some stuff I did not know about. I thought I was over most of that stuff, but, it reopened the hurt and I guess I am not as over it as I thought. He will still not be allowed to see the kids for at least a year. After a year he can petition the parole board and maybe get to see them, but if not it will be at least three years. We will see what happens. I have a meeting with his counselor on Saturday and then another meeting with him and her in about two weeks. Anyway, life is not bad. The kids are ready to go back to school and I am more than ready for them too. :) Here is a picture from the wedding.