I forgot to mention one small thing.

I passed my exam!

I don't ever have to go back and take it again!

Dear Hen House grocery store people,

I've been shopping at your store for 10 years. I could find all my groceries with a blindfold on. If you are going to take the time to remodel your store and move EVERYTHING to new aisles, you could at least hand out a map. I knew things were changing, but was it necessary to move my Whole Grain Melba Toast (restrain yourself from making fun of Melba Toast) to the far back corner of Aisle 8? I used to find it easily in the middle of aisle 5 but with your new layout, tracking down the melba toast was like finding the freaking Ark of the Covenant!

Julie Andrews makes everything better.

I'm not gonna lie. I am struggling with my post-grad school transition. I feel like part of me is still stuck in stay at home mom mode and part of me is in this new, weird role of wannabe working mom, and part of me wishes I were still in school with my friends who know me so well.

These feelings came up a lot this week because Lauren has been sick and I've been home with her. One part of me is thrilled that I get to be flexible enough to care for her in her illness, and the other part of me is FREAKING out because I still have no clients. I started to feel really awful and stressed out this afternoon, and I needed a remedy.

We watched "The Sound of Music." This movie inspires me - probably because I've watched it since I was a little kid and it means so much to me. It helps me believe that I can do anything. It helps me believe that SOMEDAY everything I've been through (and everything my family has been through) will make sense.

I give you... Julie at her finest!



I am kicking my heels and carrying my bag to the gate to see what awaits me!

I almost forgot - the highlight of my month!

The absolute best night in October was the night we FINALLY saw Ben Folds. We have loved Ben Folds since 1995, and every time he has been in town we have either...

a) had a family event we couldn't get out of

b) had a baby due so close to his concert date we knew it wouldn't be safe for me to be around crowds of people because humid heat + standing, pregnant kara + crowds = Misery.

c) had to take Kara home because of that stupid timeframe in her life where she was having anaphylactic reactions to everything she ate.

So on October 21, we finally saw Ben. Our friend Jodi and her son Ethan were kind enough to let us sit with them. I'm normally not a great concert person anymore because I like to be at home in my pajamas at a fairly decent hour, but I didn't want it to end!

If you have not ever seen or heard Ben, please check him out. He is the muse of my life aside from my husband and children.

We are family...

I know I haven't posted in awhile. We've had a month that has been frustrating and scary... mixed with a lot of fun. In the midst of all the stuff we've had going on, I'd like to take this moment of my blogging habit reawakening to point out one very small, very important point, if only to remind myself:

I LOVE MY FAMILY!

NO MATTER WHAT WE DO IN LIFE, NO MATTER WHAT HAPPENS TO US, WE ARE GOOD PARENTS WITH GREAT KIDS WHO ARE HAPPY AND HAVE WHAT THEY NEED!

The kids had a great Halloween. Joe and I decorated the house beyond the expectations of a normal Johnson County household. But then, we're not normal Johnson Countians! Forgive me for not having any pictures, I think I accidentally erased them. Dylan was Spiderman (with built in muscles) and Lauren was a Panther. If I can find them, I will post.

The morning after Halloween, Dylan tested for his next Taekwondo belt. He is loving the sport and doing incredibly well. Lauren is getting back into horseback riding and is SO excited about that!

This past weekend, we traveled to Cape Girardeau for Joe's cousin's wedding. We had fun seeing Joe's parents and family. For those of you who haven't had an update in awhile, Joe's dad is doing GREAT - he is using crutches now and hopes to be walking by Christmas. We never dreamed he'd have a recovery this long and this difficult, but we always knew he'd beat whatever odds they gave him.

We are looking forward to Thanksgiving, although Lauren is upset that I do not own any Thanksgiving decorations. I encouraged her to draw some pilgrims and turkeys and tape them to the front door to satisfy herself.

Joe's job is going great. The next few months should be vedddddddyyyyy interesting for him.

I finally got moved into my office and got my website up and running (http://www.karathompson.com/). The website is a basic informational one until I can afford something bigger.

I feel so lucky that I found a building with such nice people. There are several other therapists, a wonderful lawyer who represents the needs of children (http://www.yourchild1st.com/), and a non-profit that advocates for kids. I am blessed beyond belief to be in the company of such amazing people! I am hoping to find out about my exam any day now, and as soon as I know I've passed, I'm on my way. It is a strange experience to do something I love to do...so many steps in my life have been on the path of least resistance!

Dead Ant, Dead Ant, Dead Ant

We chose "Honey, I Shrunk the Kids" for our Friday night movie. If you remember correctly, Rick Moranis' crazy shrinking invention accidentally shrunk his kids and his neighbor's kids. During this movie, the children adopt an ant. The ant, like a loyal dog, defends the shrunken children when they are being attacked by a scorpion and dies in battle. Dylan was just devastated at the thought of this brave bug dying. In between sobs, he said, "It's just so hard seeing a bug die."

The therapist in me did not want to ignore or turn away from Dylan's unique grieving process, yet it's really hard to comfort a child grieving over an animatronic ant with a straight face. But I did it, and no one will ever be able to say I'm not a good actress EVER again.

I haven't posted in awhile. I spent the last month studying for the National MFT Licensure exam. I took the test on Monday and have absolutely no idea if I did well or not. If I don't pass, you can bet I'll be crying harder than Dylan did over that ant.

I know what you're thinking.

"That cut doesn't look that bad."

"That looks like a broken fingernail, she's exaggerating."

"Surely she can hit the space bar with her left hand and pull her pants up with another finger."

No, she can't, and don't call me Shirley.