Update

After three days on steroids, Dane's legs and hand are finally looking a little better and he can sleep without scratching constantly. Two more days of the meds to go, then we'll see if he has a rebound to them. If so, he may have to go back on them and be tapered off.

Don's going back to England. His company won the contract that he helped write and was the reason we went over the first time. They found out the Thursday before we left for the beach that the contract had been awarded and Don got a call that day asking him to come over from Saturday to Saturday. We were thrilled - he'd be in England while we were at the beach so he wouldn't be home alone and I could send him with an empty suitcase that he could fill with all kinds of yummy English treats like crumpets, Hob-Nobs, white chocolate spread, PORRIDGE (oh, yes!), and Tate and Lyle's Golden Syrup. However, his boss said no. They were being audited last week by the DOE and Don was the point-person for the audit, so his boss said he just couldn't part with him.

Don was horribly disappointed and my dreams of warm crumpets with Belgian chocolate spread and a hot cup of tea on a cool winter morning were dashed. But then he called yesterday afternoon to say that they've called again and want him to come for three weeks. He's trying to negotiate not flying out until the afternoon of Daelyn's first day of Kindergarten so he can be there to see his last child march out of the gym in his uniform, just like the big kids. Today they broke the news to him, though, that there's some big meeting on Wednesday and they need him there in time to prepare.

The good news is that he'll be working in the same office with many of the same people. The good news from HIS perspective is cooler temperatures. My friend Monika told me last night on the phone (when I called to tell her and her other half, Chris, that Don's coming over) that she's already turned her heat on. I'm hoping he'll get to see all my friends and get to our church for Sunday services. I've called two of my friends and e-mailed a third. I'll miss him terribly, but I'm thrilled he's getting to go.

My latest news is that I have a Crafts Show lined up for my soaps. Our church has a Winter Bazaar each year that does VERY well. I'm signed up to have a booth there. I'm hoping to make at least $300 for the day. I've also been invited to set up a booth during our church's pumpkin patch each Saturday in October. I'm setting aside two Saturdays for that and the Bazaar is November 3. So I'm quite busy building up my stock. There won't be a lot of time between the Saturdays at the Pumpkin Patch and the Crafts Show the first weekend in November, so I have to have everything ready before October.

We're getting settled back in from the beach and I'm beginning to get the house a little better organized. And, lest you think I've forgotten about furniture, I've been watching on-line prices for the best possible sales.

That, in a nutshell, is the latest. Add to that all the preparations for the first day of school and life is very busy, as usual.

If you had told me a year ago that I'd be looking forward to the children being back in school, I would have laughed in your face. However, as the day approaches, I find that I'm ready for Daelyn to jump into Kindergarten - not because I want him out of the house, but because I can't wait to get the house REALLY, DEEPLY clean and I'm totally convinced that I'll be able to accomplish it once the kids are gone all day.

Of course, I'll be spending Mondays in Daelyn's class with him. I couldn't possibly go cold turkey.