Rex

I just noticed that it has been a very long time since I've added a picture of Rex to our family blog. Just the other day we were learning about proper nouns in school. The boys decided that Rex had to have to have a middle name so that he could have three proper nouns in his name. So, we decided that his middle name should be Brown. Appropriate - huh.

It seems like he is growing bigger and bigger every month. On average, he sheds his skin every other month. It makes a huge mess, and I always have to change the bedding in his cage after it happens. This past shed was the best one he has ever had. That means it happens very quickly instead of lingering to fall off. He was finished in just two days. When we first got him, it took over a week. The humidity level in his cage plays a major part in how quickly he sheds. I'm glad we've improved in that area since getting him.

Ladybugs for Science

We are learning about animals for science this year. Luke is especially obsessed with animals of any kind. This week we are learning about Ladybugs. We even learned the poem about the ladybug flying home. It's been so much fun.

This morning we decided to explore our yard to see if we could find any ladybugs. We typically have tons of them in the early spring. The kids and I got excited when we discovered an exoskeleton of a ladybug. Sweet!

Eye Problems

A month ago I went to the eye doctor because my eyes have been hurting so much when I wear my contacts. Also, for about 2 years I've dealt with eye discharge that has been annoying. After an exam the doc said I had probably developed an intolerance for my specific lens type.

So, he ordered a different kind of lenses (Accuve Oasis) and a week later I went to pick them up. I wore them for a week and nothing was improving. Hum....I wasn't too disappointed because this brand of contact is expensive. I went back and he said we would try a different brand. This time it was a monthly contact which he had me try for just a week. After a week, I was still struggling. It felt like I had a strand of hair under my left eyelid. Nothing would help. I would add eye drops multiple times a day, plus wear gooey eye ointment at night. Still didn't feel any improvement.

This past Monday I went back for a checkup and explained that nothing was improving. I asked him if it was possible to get ulcers under the eyelid because that's what it felt like. He peeked under my eyelid (not a fun experience) and said there was stuff going on.

Turns out I have giant papillary conjunctivitis. Ewwww! After getting home and looking up pictures I understood why my eyes were hurting like they were. Dr. prescribed some very expensive eye drops ($77 with insurance) and said to come back in a week. He thinks it will be all cleared up and I can go back to wearing contacts. I'm really hoping so because my self-esteem can't handle wearing glasses for much longer.

Goodbye to the old - Hello to the new

July was an expensive month. Brandon began to experience car problems and I highly recommended that he take the car into the mechanic. He knew that the news wasn't going to be good, and it wasn't.

After getting the estimate back we had a decision to make. We decided it made more sense to invest in a new car now instead of using thousands of dollars to repair the one we had. Brandon did a lot of research, asked a lot of questions, and we finally went and bought a 2018 Toyota Corolla from Brent Brown in Orem. Brandon is fabulous at buying things and he got most of the additional fees waived. We walked out of that sale with the car Brandon wanted for only $1,000 more then our best projection. It is a fabulous commuter car and it should last us several years of getting him up to Salt Lake.

The only downside, in my opinion, is that we decided we didn't want a car payment. We dropped our savings account to the lowest it's been in a decade. Yikes. Hopefully, with careful planning over the next year, we will be able to replenish it.

Then, we needed to decide what to do with Brandon's car. We talked about trying to sell it on KSL, or donating it to the Kidney Foundation. In the end, we gifted it to our nephew Zach. It will be a fabulous car to get him to school, work, and around town. I'm so glad we were able to give it to him. He was beyond excited to get it.

I thought I would be super sad to see it go, but I wasn't.  That car had so many memories associated with it. When we were dating I didn't have a car. Twice a month, Brandon would come and pick me up and we would go grocery shopping together. We also brought Peter home from the hospital in it, drove it to the temple to get married in, and used it to move into our 1st apartment, our Thorneberry apartment, and finally our Springville home.