I am trying to add music to this, but seem to have problems. Maybe I should learn HTML. 

The heat in Vegas seems to cause a weird sort of seasonal depression. We can't leave the house, and it is so hot, it drains any energy you may have had to begin with. Because everyone stays in illness spreads like it does in the winter. Oh, well, we'll just have to adjust. Benjamin has been sick, his asthma has been triggered by a cold, and once again we are putting him on prednisone. I hate the prednisone because it makes him really hyper, but that's better than sick. 

Damon has been substitute teaching so we can go to Montana in August. We've been married six years, and I have never been to Montana. That is a problem I hope to rectify. It is weird to think that we have been married six years. Time has flown, and it hasn't been an easy six years. It's weird to look back and think about how everything seemed so difficult and drawn out, when now it has just flown by. Time is a funny master. 

I got Damon addicted to Facebook games. He loves Mafia Wars, and Vampire Wars. It keeps him busy. With the change to HD T.V. we lost most of our channels, which means we have spent more time on computers and watching movies. Benjamin thinks he needs to watch movies all day. When I turn the t.v. off he cries for his daddy. I am the strict one in the house, even though Damon has a temper, and is a teacher. He gets impatient and sometimes is easy to annoy, but inconsistent. It makes summers hard, because we loose all semblance of a schedule and the rules I enforce during the day seem to go out the window. However, Damon teaches Benjamin all day, and Benjamin is so much closer to reading because Daddy has been teaching him letters and their sounds. I guess a loss of schedule is an adequate trade for a Daddy who's home and involved. That's one of the great things about being married to a teacher. The other thing is naps. He's usually home in time to give me an afternoon nap if I need it, which is nice. We joined the YMCA to stay busy this summer, but with Benjamin sick, we haven't been able to go. He even missed his first swimming lesson. Hopefully by Saturday he'll be back to swimming and we'll be able to cool off and have fun swimming again.

I am trying to find my role without working. I still teach violin and piano, but have quit most of my other jobs because it was too hard to coordinate. It is nice to be home, but most days I find myself wandering around wondering what it is mom's do all day. Benjamin is getting better at playing on his own, but he doesn't require as much supervision and interaction as he did when he was little. Now he just talks to me, and has to show me everything he's working on all day, which can be irritating. He has a weird habit of repeating everything three or four times, sometimes more. I love the talk, and his creativity, I just don't enjoy the repetition. 

A friend of mine just had a stillborn baby. That combined with the birth of my new niece Addison has really thrown me for a loop. It's weird how we think we've moved on and then life happens and old feelings and patterns return with a vengeance. I don't know why this has affected me so strongly, but it took a long time to work through the same feelings and concerns. My health has been struggling too with the heat, and with the cold that we've had. Hopefully as we all feel better, I will be able to find my equilibrium. Damon wants me to take up oil painting, and I think I may try my hand at scrapbooking again We'll see how it works out. I cleaned out my room yesterday and realized I have an awesome sticker collection. I have to find some use for all the wonderful stickers and excess pictures that we have. I just get intimidated by the ability, and prolific albums that my in-laws have produced. 

Benjamin is in love with the outdoors, which only makes the extreme heat more disgusting. He loves rocks and collects them everywhere we go. He is fascinated by animals, numbers, and anything with letters. He wants to go to school with Daddy, but has to wait another year. I think we'll try to do Joyschool again this year, and involve him in some kind of Kindergarten prep. He is on a gluten free diet and doing well. Today he asked me if the chips he was eating were gluten free, and then when I said yes, he said that tasted more like gluten four. He is a sweetheart who thanks us when we feed him and give him his medications. He tells me stories from the pictures in books and the pictures on the wall in his room and at the doctor's office. His creativity and intelligence constantly amazes me. He loves the library and loves being read to. I'm sure I could read to him all day and he would be happy as can be. We are so lucky to have him for a son. He is the perfect match for his parents.