Update

I'm still having a pretty bad flare-up, but we're finding ways to cope. We've been very blessed by family and friends who have offered to help out so I can get some extra rest.

I'm in bed sometimes 12-15 hours or more in a day (often most of the day on weekends or when I can be) and am still exhausted, in pain, and having trouble functioning, and seem to be having lots of migraines right now. so would appreciate everyone's prayers that I start feeling better soon. I'm looking for a doctor who will be able to offer me better help than just telling me that of course I feel bad because I have FMS/CFS and there's nothing they can do to help me.

The last few months have been the worst I've felt since I got married, so I know it's possible to feel better and be more functional than this. We just need to work on getting me back to a more functional level.

DH and I have been brainstorming solutions, looking into options and finding ways to make things work. I'm so blessed to have such an understanding and self-sacrificial husband.

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The kids are definitely feeling the effects of having a sicker Mommy, but they are enjoying the extra time they've been getting to play with friends. I usually feel OK for a couple of hours or so after I sleep, so we're trying to do most of our schoolwork in the mornings before I crash.

My mom went last week and bought the schoolbooks we needed, because I haven't been well enough to drive most of the time lately. That was a huge help, and she's been helping me brainstorm about scheduling and making things work around my need for extra rest.

Mira is quite a help, alerting for me before I'm going to have a crash. She somehow knows several minutes before it happens when I'm going to start feeling worse or get dizzy, and that gives me time to get somewhere out of the way and sit or lie down before it gets too bad. She's also getting pretty dependable about bringing me things I ask her to get and delivering things I ask her to take to Mark. Today she started learning how to help strip dirty sheets off the bed and take them to the laundry room.

The kids have been as cute and sweet as ever. AJ and M&M have been drawing lots of pictures, making crafts, and enjoying their schoolwork. Ebee really has a thirst to learn, and keeps asking me what various letters and words say and how to spell things. She really enjoys her pre-K schoolwork too.

The other day Ebee fell down and hurt herself, and there was that long pause before the cry that all parents dread. When she got her breath back, she said, "I couldn't turn on my voice, Mommy!"