End of Summer

I realized that I haven't blogged in forever. I've been doing it less and less since I often share things on facebook, and all the people who read my blogs probably have facebook by now. But anyway, I went to the doctor yesterday. I started freaking out the day before when I noticed a lump in my neck, kind of under my chin. It's common to get swollen glands with lyme, and I've had it happen to me several times. However, I've never experienced what felt like a cyst in my neck – and it has never been in that particular place. So, with my anxiety, I started freaking out and was thinking the worst possible scenario. But, the doctor said that it's just a swollen lymph node (submental lymphadenopathy) – and he gave me an antibiotic for a week. I kind of think that he probably should have done some blood work or something, considering enlarged lymph nodes can be caused by several different things (like cancer)... But I'll try to put my anxiety on hold to see if it goes away within the next week. I should totally not ever google any of my symptoms...

So anyway, summer break is over. It went by way too fast. Mikayla is in second grade now and it seems to be going ok. She doesn't particularly like going to school because she doesn't like to be away from me. And she has to walk into the school now by herself – she doesn't have her big brother to walk in with her anymore. Dakota is doing ok so far at the middle school. He was really excited to start. He's not quite as excited now, but he's not fighting us on going to school (yet). I know that he has cried at school on two different occasions already. Not because anybody has been mean to him – I think maybe he is a little overwhelmed but I'm not sure. He did homework last night for the first time this year, and had a meltdown about that. So he said that middle school isn't fun anymore.

We got Dakota his own cell phone. I found out that I could get him his own line for only 5.95 a month (or something like that). The kids at school have phones. They're actually allowed to take them to school. Times sure have changed. We only got him a simple flip phone though. Texting on those suck! When I decided on the cheapest phone, I wasn't thinking about how hard it would be for Dakota to get the hang of texting on that kind. Mostly, we got Dakota a phone for my own peace of mind. I'm one of those crazy paranoid mothers, so I worry when my kids are outside playing and I can't see them. The kids are making a lot of friends at these apartments, and Dakota will go to their homes to play. When I need him, I like the fact that I can call him to come home instead of trying to figure out whose apartment he might be at. I didn't figure he would even use the phone much, because he's never liked talking on the phone – but he has been calling people like crazy! He will come up with excuses to call me just so he can use his phone. It's so funny. Maybe this will help with his social skills.

We have been wanting to move into a house and get out of these apartments, but now the kids have made so many friends here. I'm not used to my kids having friends. After the apartments FINALLY agreed to let kids ride bikes out here, it was like all the kids came out of the woodwork. I didn't realize there were so many kids out here. These apartments drive me nuts though. Just last week, we all got letters saying that kids are not allowed to use chalk on the sidewalk. It wasn't exactly a nice letter either. They have the stupidest rules here. Oh, and we also got a letter saying that we now have to wash the OUTSIDE of our doors because there is dust on them. They will check to make sure our doors are clean when they do the routine housekeeping checks. During the last housekeeping checks, they got after us for Mikayla hanging a piece of paper on her door with tape and Dakota had some tape on one of the posters on his wall. But that same lady hangs her notes on the outside of our doors with TAPE.