Hello. Remember me? Yes, I know, I dropped off the face of the world wide web --- and I needed to --- there was a lot going on in my life and honestly, I didn't have the energy or brain space to blog. But slowly, and with some prodding from some beloved readers, I am ready to dip my toes back into the waters. I cannot guarantee faithful daily blogging, but rest assured, I will try to be more attentive.
Oh, and just so you know. I did not stop being an advocate and activist during my blogging hiatus. I was busy facilitating PFLAG meetings, writing letters to the editor, coming out to the last of our straggler friends and acquaintances we'd missed on our first round of coming out, speaking in front of church congregations about PFLAG and my son, and being on panels discussing glbtq issues at certain Arizona universities, etc.
So here is what has been going on in my life since we last talked.
My mom:
As longtime readers know, back in 2007 my mother fell and sustained a pretty bad brain injury - a subdural hematoma - to be exact. I blogged about it when it happened.
Well that fall changed my mom's life. And mine too. Her husband died while she was up here in Scottsdale going through the 8 months or so of physical and cognitive therapy. She completely lost her sense of smell, her short term memory, and eventually the ability to drive and live alone. Confusion and dementia started creeping in. And for much of that time, I was in denial, not really seeing that it was time to make some really tough decisions. Finally I realized that my mom needed me to step in and make some big changes, which was actually the catalyst for dropping out of the blogging world. I just couldn't handle it all and still be fair to my family.
So with the help of some of my more supportive brothers, we sold my mom's house, moved her into assisted living, and helped her make the transition to her new life. She has done pretty darn well. I am very proud of her. And life has gotten significantly easier for me now that I know my mom is safe and happy.
My kids:
Our oldest son is getting married to his long-time girlfriend whom he met in the Peace Corps back in 2007. I blogged about him and the Peace Corps here and here. Our middle son (yes, the gay one) will be his best man. We could not be happier about this wedding and welcoming our new daughter-in-law into the family.
Our middle son (yes that one) is still plugging away at getting all his pilot ratings with the hopes that one day he will be hired by a commercial airline. It is something he has wanted to do since he was a little boy (see picture below). He has also been in a very happy long-term relationship since about 2009. We could not be happier about this relationship and welcoming his boyfriend into our family.
Our daughter graduated from college about a year ago and just got accepted into medical school here in Arizona. She will move back here from Seattle, where she has lived the past 5 years, in June. We are so proud of her and absolutely thrilled she has chosen the medical school here in Arizona and will be living close by.
And on a sad note. Our beloved little doggie and beloved family member of the past almost 17 years, Maggie, passed away 2 weeks ago tomorrow. Our hearts ache. We miss her so much. She enriched our lives in ways that only dog owners can understand. I am having a tough time right now, but I know eventually that hole she has left in our lives will eventually be filled with good memories that make me smile again.
And finally, to lighten up the mood for the conclusion of this post, how about this (sorry about the ad, just click on the skip ad button):
Bye for now. Love you all.
Kim
Oh, and just so you know. I did not stop being an advocate and activist during my blogging hiatus. I was busy facilitating PFLAG meetings, writing letters to the editor, coming out to the last of our straggler friends and acquaintances we'd missed on our first round of coming out, speaking in front of church congregations about PFLAG and my son, and being on panels discussing glbtq issues at certain Arizona universities, etc.
So here is what has been going on in my life since we last talked.
My mom:
As longtime readers know, back in 2007 my mother fell and sustained a pretty bad brain injury - a subdural hematoma - to be exact. I blogged about it when it happened.
Well that fall changed my mom's life. And mine too. Her husband died while she was up here in Scottsdale going through the 8 months or so of physical and cognitive therapy. She completely lost her sense of smell, her short term memory, and eventually the ability to drive and live alone. Confusion and dementia started creeping in. And for much of that time, I was in denial, not really seeing that it was time to make some really tough decisions. Finally I realized that my mom needed me to step in and make some big changes, which was actually the catalyst for dropping out of the blogging world. I just couldn't handle it all and still be fair to my family.
So with the help of some of my more supportive brothers, we sold my mom's house, moved her into assisted living, and helped her make the transition to her new life. She has done pretty darn well. I am very proud of her. And life has gotten significantly easier for me now that I know my mom is safe and happy.
My kids:
Our oldest son is getting married to his long-time girlfriend whom he met in the Peace Corps back in 2007. I blogged about him and the Peace Corps here and here. Our middle son (yes, the gay one) will be his best man. We could not be happier about this wedding and welcoming our new daughter-in-law into the family.
Our middle son (yes that one) is still plugging away at getting all his pilot ratings with the hopes that one day he will be hired by a commercial airline. It is something he has wanted to do since he was a little boy (see picture below). He has also been in a very happy long-term relationship since about 2009. We could not be happier about this relationship and welcoming his boyfriend into our family.
Our daughter graduated from college about a year ago and just got accepted into medical school here in Arizona. She will move back here from Seattle, where she has lived the past 5 years, in June. We are so proud of her and absolutely thrilled she has chosen the medical school here in Arizona and will be living close by.
And on a sad note. Our beloved little doggie and beloved family member of the past almost 17 years, Maggie, passed away 2 weeks ago tomorrow. Our hearts ache. We miss her so much. She enriched our lives in ways that only dog owners can understand. I am having a tough time right now, but I know eventually that hole she has left in our lives will eventually be filled with good memories that make me smile again.
And finally, to lighten up the mood for the conclusion of this post, how about this (sorry about the ad, just click on the skip ad button):
Bye for now. Love you all.
Kim
1 comment:
So glad you're back. I've missed your posts but figured if your life was like mine, all kinds of stuff must have been happening while you were making other plans. Every time a state went for full marriage equality, every time some dumbass politician or religious leader said something eye-rollingly stupid or hateful, I thought: "Wonder what Kim's blog entry about this would look like?"
Congratulations on the good stuff that's happening in your family's lives; my heart goes out to you for your mom's health issues.
The video: so much awesome, thanks for sharing it.
--Lynne
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