Our little family has experienced quite a lot the last few months. A little while ago, Hub’s Mom suffered a pretty devastating stroke. She made it through but not without some major pitfalls. She lost control of her right side. At the moment she is an hour and a half drive away from us in a wonderfully staffed hospital. I really cannot say enough good things about them. The last time we were able to visit, before more restrictions were put in place, every single person we met was just so friendly, and welcoming, and helpful. From previous experience, I know this is not always the case. We are trying to move her closer but, again, with all the restrictions in place, this might take some time.
Being a step parent is probably one of the most difficult roles I had ever had to play. I knew going in, it wasn’t going to be easy. The children already had a mother. They might not have a great, or even safe relationship with her, but I understood clearly, that was their mother. To be honest, I wasn’t really prepared for how lonely I was going to be, even in my own home. I have always felt loved and supported by Hubs. That has never been in question. We have had a lot of disagreements. Most based on the language barrier, some on our very different upbringings. All that being said, we agreed strongly on what sort of rules and behaviours we wanted and expected of the children. The rules are simple. Be honest. Do your best. Do not hurt any living creatures. You make a mess, you clean it. We all work as a team and try to help each other.
It is really difficult to try and keep consistent balance when someone who lives outside the home undermines your basic rules of behaviour. As a parent you enforce your rules with consequences. You do pretty good? Great! You get some sort of treat. You do something when you know you should have done otherwise? There are consequences for your actions. These are just rules of life for the most part. I understand that there are great injustices. This alone breaks my heart. Looking into how home is run, we just want what is best for the children, that will help them navigate for the future.
Long story short. Our boy has decided that the rules are not for him. Hubs started to question more, the various details he was being given and let his son know, he did not appreciate the lies and questionable behaviour. This is where things get difficult. It is so hard to stand firm in your beliefs when they have a place to run to in order to avoid taking responsibility for your actions. So, the boy has decided to live with his mother. I guess for quite a few of us, we really need to hit rock bottom really hard, to realize change is in order.
Let’s change the subject, shall we?
Tomorrow is Halloween. Sadly, I will nit be celebrating as usual, as these are nit usual times. We are quietly going to scare ourselves silly and just enjoy each other’s company.
I have been keeping busy.
This will be dress at some point.i thought I did rather well with my pajama pants, I thought I would try a few more articles. We shall see how it goes.
I have also been sorting through my art supplies. Trying to keep things in better order. Organized, if you will. So far, so good. I have been much more productive. We had a bit of sun the other day, so I was able to take a better photo of my oil painting, The Moon. You can see the different colours I attempted in the night sky.
And have I ever been knitting up a storm!
I completed my Margaritaville Socks!
I was a bit concerned I would run out of yarn. But I made it!
