The last day of April

Here we are at the very last day of April.  Tomorrow is May which is always a crazy month, but at the end is the wonderful expanse of summer.  In 26 days my baby graduates from high school.   He is truly a wonderful young man, and I'm so very proud of him.

Catherine has finished another semester of school.  She came home on Thursday to work.  Yesterday, Andrew's baseball game was cancelled and Thomas's tennis practice was cancelled.  Catherine gets off work at 5 on Fridays, so we decided to celebrate the end of her semester with a family dinner.  Unfortunately, the place we were really looking forward to going was closed for a private event.  We were so disappointed.  The problem with the college town is that after this restaurant, the choices quickly limit to bar food.  We decided to head out to the state park and try the lodge, but when we got there it was an hour wait.  Not going to lie, that's a little frustrating when half the restaurant was empty, but obviously there were reservations.  We drove back into town and ate at a Mexican restaurant.  Not at all what I was going for, but it was still nice to share a meal together that I didn't have to cook.

Today, Catherine works all day and Thomas is also working.  He was even asked to stay an extra hour.  Andrew has a baseball game starting in another hour, and unfortunately it means that he will be home much later than I would prefer on a Saturday evening.  For right now though, I am enjoying a few hours of quiet.  My mind and my soul very much need it right now!

Today my dad would have turned 68

Today is my dad's birthday.  I always miss him every day, but it's always magnified on this date.  And of course, I can't help but think about my grandmother.  No one should ever outlive their child.  It shouldn't be that way.  I am so grateful that I had him in my life for as many years as I did.  He was an amazing father, and I'm so glad that my kids were able to know him.  Love you dad, and miss you so much!

I don't like having winter and summer all in the same week

On Monday, we received snow.  Not just some flurries, but it all out snowed.

This was the view of the playground at the school where I work.  Again, not just flurries.  It did melt in the afternoon, but then that evening there was a track meet where it rained, sleeted, and "grauppled".  That is some new weather phenomenon that is now frequently occurring in southwest Ohio.  As an aside, I've never been so grateful Thomas plays tennis instead of running track as I was that day.

Not to fear though...winter was only at the beginning of the week.  Spring was Tuesday through yesterday morning, and now summer has arrived.  It is in the 80's today and tomorrow.  Yuck and yuck.  Thankfully there is no humidity with it, but we all know that I prefer more mild and transitional weather!!!

I needed this quiet afternoon

I am so grateful that my work schedule has shifted and I am off on Wednesday afternoons.  It truly makes a difference to have this "down" time.  I haven't slept well in over a month, and it was really wonderful to have the opportunity to take a nap.  It was also wonderful that Andrew and Thomas both have activities today, so I'll have about five hours all to myself.  I have a church meeting this evening so I need to leave in a little over two hours, but it has been such a needed afternoon.  I allowed myself a nap, and then honestly, I've just been sitting here.  After having my mother-in-law here all of last week, this quiet time was so very appreciated!

FFA Chapter Degree

This evening, Thomas officially received his FFA Chapter Degree.  I absolutely love that organization.  Thomas has been involved for two years, and my only regret is that he didn't join earlier.  I was so happy to be able to see many families that mean so much to me.  Early next month, Thomas will be able to attend the state convention as a member of the FFA band.  We are so thrilled for him!

Thomas also had a really awesome tennis match today.  He didn't win, but it was an incredibly even match.  He was able to fill in as a singles player for the first time this year.  There were some absolutely great volleys, and I loved how both Thomas and the other player congratulated each other when there was an especially great volley.  It was a fun match to watch.

It was a busy day, but I'm soaking up these last few weeks before we are done parenting high school students!

This past week

I'll be honest, last week was not my most favorite week ever.  For one thing, the weather really was crappy.  Additionally, my mother-in-law was here.  It's not that having her here is so awful, but because Andrew had significant evening commitments, it made it much more challenging for me.  I often felt I couldn't do my thing because I was focused on trying to entertain her.  Andrew doesn't really understand my feelings about the whole thing, but it is what it is.  

Last Monday Andrew had to work a lacrosse game, and wasn't home until about 8:30.  I had made a lasagna for dinner so that we could have leftovers during the week.  Tuesday he had a baseball game and wasn't home until about 9:30.  Leftover lasagna and potato soup was dinner.  Wednesday I worked until Noon, then went to the church to work for a bit.  Dinner that evening was a chicken stuffing casserole, and I skipped my band meeting that evening so we could eat dinner together as a family since baseball and tennis were cancelled (you wouldn't believe the amount of rain we've had around here).  Thursday I left work early to pick up my mother-in-law so that we could watch Thomas play tennis.  I was so glad that she was able to see him play, and I was even more grateful that he and his partner were able to get a win!  I was a whole lot less grateful that we had to slosh through so much mud though.   We had some chicken tortilla soup for dinner that evening that I had picked up the day before.  Friday I had to take the dog to the vet before coming home to get my mother-in-law so that we could venture to Andrew's away baseball game.  We didn't stay for the entire game because they were getting clobbered.  I came home to get pizzas in the oven, and Andrew got home around 8:30 again that evening.

By Saturday, I was pretty exhausted from not sleeping well, and honestly from being tense about entertaining my mother-in-law.  She's a lovely person generally, but it's just tough not having my own space for an entire week.  Usually when she is here I can take a little time for myself while she and Andrew do something, but he just wasn't available much during the week.  Fortunately, dinner Saturday was an effort by all of us, and my mom came down to join us.  Unfortunately, she was in a car accident on the way home, but she's okay overall.

It was a long week overall.  Andrew took his mom back yesterday and returned today.  It SNOWED this morning, so sporting events are canceled.  He's at practice, and I'm ready to enjoy some quiet this evening!

Another new cousin

Today, my cousin K gave birth to her daughter, Ruby.  Our family is having a bit of trouble with the name, as I had an Aunt Ruby who was an absolutely horrible woman.  K never met her though, and as one of my co-workers said today, maybe this little Ruby can turn around the memories of that name.  It's a little hard for me to believe that K had a baby today, as she was born my senior year of college, and she was the first baby I was every able to see on the day she was born.  Welcome to the world little Ruby!

When our house is full, my heart is also full (aka Easter Weekend 2022)

We have had a full house here this weekend.  My mother-in-law arrived last weekend, but that's another post.  Catherine arrived home Friday evening.  Things had been tense between her and Thomas with some sibling issues, but everything was wonderful this weekend.  Oh my goodness, so much laughter between those two, and it absolutely filled my heart.  In fact, I even had to ask them to try to keep it down a couple of times so we could hear the TV we were watching.  I loved it, and I'm so very grateful for it.

Catherine hadn't been feeling well, so we watched Easter on the livestream this morning.  It does truly feel like a season or rebirth as many aspects of the worship that had to be discontinued during the pandemic are returning.  I'm not entirely sure how I feel about that, but I was watching from home so no issues with that.

My mom came down and joined the five of us for dinner last evening.  It was nice to have a meal all together, and since Mom brought eggs and coleslaw and my mother-in-law brought our ham, it was a fairly simple meal to throw together.

My heart has been very full this weekend, and I'm so very, very grateful.

Newest family member

Today, my second cousin Monica gave birth to a baby boy.  I am so excited for her to be a mother.  She will be fabulous!  Today also would have been my grandfather's birthday, so the little guy was born on his great-great uncle's 92nd birthday.  The circle of life certainly makes the passage of time feel stark.

It's funny how quickly generations can become "wacky".  Monica's mother was exactly one year older than my dad (he was literally born on her first birthday).  I was twelve when Monica was born, and now her son is literally decades younger than my children!

A bit of a melancholy Saturday morning

I'm feeling a bit melancholy this morning.  I suspect a great part of it is the weather.  It's been a cold and wet week, and this morning we've had snow showers.  I appreciate the togetherness it has brought us as sports activities have been postponed, but it hasn't been a fun weather week.

I suspect it also has something to do with the fact that six weeks from now, I'll be staring down at the week my youngest child graduates.  I'm far more emotional about this than I expected to be.  I've been looking forward to many things about empty nesting, but given so many family situations, I find myself wondering what's next in life.  Do I get to grow old surrounded by a loving family, or will it all fracture and be mostly alone?  That sounds so dramatic, I know, but Catherine and Thomas aren't getting along (and haven't been for months) due to significant others, and it breaks my heart.  And of course, I can't help but look back and wonder if we did everything we could to teach them the right things in life and make them strong, content, independent people who make good choices.  

As I said to Andrew a couple of weeks ago, life feels "heavy".  It's not that life is awful, but it feels heavy.  We are (hopefully) coming out of the pandemic, and I know life will never be the same.  Certainly some changes are good, but I also know there have been relationships that will not recover from all the time apart.  It's a fact of life.  There is a war happening in our world, and the ramifications are immeasurable.  Again, I'm not miserable nor is life awful, but it's truly hard to ignore these things.  And for this morning, it adds up to just a big of a melancholy feeling while I clean the house.

What game are we watching???

Today is the beginning of baseball season.  Anyone who knows me, knows that this is what I live for...I love baseball!  This year though, I haven't felt the enthusiasm.  Two years ago during the pandemic, I realized that tI could live without it...I had no choice!  There was no baseball to watch!  Last year, we weren't able to watch the Reds on TV due to our TV carrier.  The Reds weren't all that great either, and we just didn't really follow along.  Then, the lockout happened and my enthusiasm continued to plummet.  Once the lockout was settled, the Reds traded so many players that it all just seemed ridiculous.

Tonight's game is on ESPN, so we could watch it.  It was late enough in the evening that even Andrew would be home from his baseball coaching to watch.  This whole thing though, seems ridiculous.  First of all, I DETEST the designated hitter, and I hate that it is part of the National League game now.  I find it ridiculous that the catchers are no longer giving signs to the pitcher and there are communication systems.  It all annoys me.  Then, we have "entertainment" that isn't really part of the game.  As far as I'm concerned, the game coverage hit an entirely new "low" when Joey Votto, who agreed to be miked for the game, was expected to have a conversation with the analysts while he was in the field trying to play first base.  Andrew and I kept looking at each other saying, "What is happening?"  I mean, how is this okay????  The man has a job to do, and having a conversation during seems a little bit distracting.  Don't get me wrong, I LOVE Joey Votto, and I find him absolutely entertaining.  The problem is, I would really rather be entertained by the game itself, and maybe we could have a chat with the ball player later??  This is just odd, and I'm not a fan of the current game as it is!

We've had a really wonderful weekend

This has truly been a wonderful weekend.  For one thing, Catherine was home for the entire weekend, and honestly, our house just feels a little more complete when she's around.

It was very nice to have all four of us at home Friday evening after Thomas's tennis match.  I had made some pork chops earlier in the week, and we were able to reheat them for dinner that evening.  It was a very nice low-key evening with all of us at home.

Yesterday was busy.  I had to run errands for school as well as work at the church.  Thomas volunteered at the church before working his lifeguard shift.  Andrew and I had dinner and then an evening of live music at a wine bar.  It was a little tense because there is some drama between our two families, but it was still a fun evening.  Today, we all slept in, and Andrew made waffles and eggs for everyone before Thomas had to leave for another work shift.  We had dinner with my mother and Catherine headed back to her apartment.

I'm very grateful for this weekend.  As our youngest graduates, I know having my kiddos around and just hanging out here is down to numbered days.  I am blessed to have these days, and I'm so grateful for them.

Today my friend turns 50

Today, one of my very dearest friends, Stephanie, turns 50.  We have been friends now, literally for decades.  I remember being at a surprise party for her 18th birthday...we've been friends that long!  It's hard to believe it's been ten years since we celebrated her 40th.  We've been in each other's weddings and shared more milestones together than I can even begin to describe.  This year, her daughter is turning 18 and graduating, so Stephanie wants to make sure this year is about celebrating the senior.  I'm so grateful to have Stephanie in my life and look forward to many, many more wonderful memories!

March really flew by

Many years, I felt like March really moved slowly, but this year sure felt like the exact opposite!  It felt like it absolutely flew by.  In two weeks we'll have Easter weekend, and two weeks after that we'll be heading into May.  I'm not trying to rush life away, but it feels as though it is moving at record pace.

Catherine is home for the weekend, and it's always delightful to have her around.  She'll be adding hours to her work schedule next weekend, so she'll be spending weekends here at the house.  It doesn't make me sad at all to have her around.  Thomas is staying busy with many things, including tennis.  He is playing JV again this year, which doesn't bother him at all.  In fact, I appreciate that he is willing and able to have a leadership position with the younger boys.  It's fun to see.  

My heart has been very full this weekend as time flies by!