time to catch up

I'm going to backtrack a little to the week of September 13. I worked my Monday and Tuesday-during which time Michael, and then again with a variety of friends, played the newest version of Halo. At one point we had four boys downstairs playing the game. The tv area is directly below our bedroom. I was thinking that they were getting a little loud and at any other time, I would have asked them to tone it down a bit. But, I quickly thought that at this time next week, Michael would no longer be living at home, one would be at Easter Wash. Univ, another in southern Oregon, and one staying close at Edmonds CC. So, I appreciated the noise, knowing it was one of the last times I could hear that group of boys here at our house.
Wednesday was the day to take Michael out to get the last of the shopping done. I enjoyed spending the time with just him. He even let me get a picture of the two of us at Red Robin.

Thursday, I finally had some catch up time with my aunt Karol. Yay! Later it was our home cross country meet. It poured! Here are the goofy girls:

Pat was getting out of work on time on Thursday to make it to the meet. But when he got to his Jeep in the garage at Microsoft, he found that someone had tried to steal it. In that process they had jammed the ignition-and now it would not start. Needless to say, he did not make it to the meet. I was thankful that Michael volunteered to drive in the traffic to go pick him up. 

Kelsey wrapped up her training at Albertsons this week. She was appreciative of the middle seats being out of the van and tinted windows, as she used it for her changing room.
Friday was my Kennedy kids day.
Saturday was an invitational meet over at South Whidbey High School. We took the ferry over to the meet. The last time we were there was when Michael qualified for the state meet, last fall.  The weather was unexpectedly nice. All of us were over dressed. And it was muggy, for the Northwest. Kelsey, unfortunately, had a very difficult run. She dropped out at the mile mark-about the same spot she dropped last year. I was around the corner, but Pat saw her "drop." He said she was literally staggering because she could not breathe. Of course, she was miserable on many levels. And, therefore I was quite emotional too. This vocal cord dysfunction is so challenging for her. Pat and I, her friends and coaches just don't know what to do to help. (more on this later). On the trip home I saw that Michael posted a "goodbye" video on facebook.  He was nice enough to let me share it:

Michael's "Goodbye" video

When I got home, Michael was packing. After the emotional events earlier with Kelsey, and watching the video-I kind of lost it. Not directly in front of the kids, though. It was mostly with a friend who happened to call at that time.

We got up early Sunday and traveled the 1.5 hours north to Bellingham. We were in the staging line on campus a half an hour prior to move in starting. So, our car was one of the first cars allowed up to the dorms to off load. Michael is in a dorm that isn't crazy big. So, we were able to leave our van in the parking lot all day. Pat bunked the twin beds, as Michael and his roommate, Tennyson had agreed upon. We got him unpacked and the technology connected. Michael met his suite mates. My co-worker's daughter, Rachel, stopped by to say hi. Then we walked to campus to activate Michael's bus pass on his student card, and find some lunch. Chick-Fil-A is closed on Sundays: boo-hoo. We hit up the bookstore to get WWU shirts for Kelsey, Pat and I. After lunch and a walk around part of campus, we returned to the dorm. Tennyson had still not arrived. We said our good-byes-and I DID NOT CRY!!  :) 

Michael posted these pictures later:

So, my long post continues:

This week I talked to Kelsey's pediatrician about her running/breathing. She recommended a speech therapist at Seattle Children's Hospital, that specifically deals with athletes and vocal cord dysfunction. Our first appointment is next Wednesday.  I hope she can teach Kelsey techniques on how to deal with this! And maybe we can find a nice article to share, so others understand also. 

Michael started his classes on Wednesday. He seems to like them all. One is over 200 students, the others have just 30 or so. Unfortunately the Albertsons in Bellingham did not hold a job for him, as he was told they would. That was a bummer to hear about. So, with his extra time, he signed up for a PE-ultimate frisbee class. 

Yesterday, Pat left for NY for work, for four days. We had another meet. It was rainy, Kelsey did ok. She finished, but still battled breathing stuff. Time for a quick dinner, and then off to curriculum night. Kelsey should have a busy, challenging junior year.