Ups and Downs in My Life

Wow!  A lot has happened since I last posted.  I'll try to paraphrase.

We really enjoyed our time with little Maliyah over the holiday season. She was staying with Becky and Rusty, going to daycare at Little Eagles Daycare with Karla Danielson. She was happy, and learning some good habits and keeping a regular sleep routine. She had made friends at the daycare and was coming to Story Time at the Library.   Regan was struggling with some issues in Colorado and needed some stress relief.

Regan called and wanted Maliyah to come and stay with her for a "couple of weeks" so we met her in Colby, KS to hand deliver our precious cargo over to her.  I had my suspicions then, but was afraid to voice them.  A couple of weeks later, we learned that she had called Becky and said she was keeping Maliyah out there.  Ordinarily this would be good news, but we were concerned that Maliyah would be unhappy.  We didn't hear much from Regan or Maliyah for a couple of months.

Then on February 11, Dennis lost his dad to Alzheimers and depression.  When I notified Regan, she said she wanted to come and attend the funeral.  And she needed to get the rest of Maliyah's things which we hadn't taken with us to Colby, thinking it was for a two week stay.  An argument between Regan and Becky caused some tense moments over the phone, but thank God they got that pretty much worked out before Regan arrived.  It was killing me to have that strife in my family.

Regan and Maliyah and Regan's friend MJ left to return to Colorado this morning. They should be getting home about now.   We've been texting back and forth now and then.  I asked her to send videos and pics of them and she said she was missing us already. I told her there was a fix for that.  She said "you'll be moving to Colorado then?"  I said "I wouldn't hold your breath on that one.  Grandpa in a liberal state?  He'd stroke out."  Then I asked her when she could return for another visit.

I'm hoping that the weather isn't too nasty on Teresa's Angelversary, so I can take out some new fake flowers.  I wish I could use living ones, but the icy cold we've been having would only kill them, and the wind would blow them all over the cemetery. I want to write more about Teresa and her life this week.

I gave up my job at the library at the end of January.  The demands of the Board at the insistence of the consortium at Great Bend was more than I knew I could physically handle. I'm having neuropathies in my feet and sometimes they lose feeling and I almost fall, usually after standing for several minutes.  Some of the work there requires standing or walking for longer periods of time. Jobs that required standing and walking were being neglected.  I did the best I could do, but it just wasn't good enough.  So I turned in my notice.  I miss the job. I enjoyed the work, and most of the people I dealt with there.  Mostly I miss the paycheck, meager as it was.

Now I'm looking at other ways to make some spending cash and help pay some of the bills, so Dennis isn't carrying the entire load.  My Social Security doesn't go very far.

But that is life. Just when you think things are going pretty well, someone pulls the rug out from under you.  Sometimes I do it to myself.  But I look at it like God is closing a door so he can open another one for me.  So I put it all in His hands.  I'm ready Lord.  Where is it?