Everyone is back to school today. I'm not going to lie, it was a tough morning. It is generally my least favorite school day of the year, but I'm grateful it isn't a Monday on top of it. In fact, we are expecting to leave town tomorrow morning so this is the only school day this week for the youngest two!
Anyway, we are expecting 2 - 4" of snow during the day today. It only began as a dusting this morning so of course there is school, and there is going to be a mid-day break. However, it is supposed to get heavy and icky this evening. I would love, absolutely love if the swim meet for the evening would be cancelled. I know my kids enjoy them, but with us leaving in the morning it would be great if we could have the opportunity this evening to get ourselves packed tonight rather than tomorrow morning. It's probably not going to happen that way, but I can dream!
Thursday, January 5, 2017
Wednesday, January 4, 2017
The last six weeks
Six weeks ago was the very first day of Thanksgiving break. Today is the very last day of winter break. These six weeks are pretty much my favorite six weeks of the year...especially those that fall during the school year! I really, really love Thanksgiving. As much as I usually love the Christmas season, Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday. Maybe it is because it leads right into the Christmas season! I also just love the long weekend that is usually very unscheduled, that includes lots of family, lots of traditions, and awesome college football!
Today though, is the end of all of that. I'm always a little bit sad and depressed by this. Probably because it is never further away from the next holiday season then the end of the current one, but I'm also sure it has to do with school lives as well. We are really into the thick of the school year and it's busy, but the weather is also cold. I'm great with snow, not so in love with just the general cold.
What I need to remember though, is that each day, regardless of how mundane or stressful or chaotic or even sometimes unpleasant, is still a blessing. I try to hold on to that, and I'll be honest, I'm also hoping for several (not just a few, but SEVERAL) snow days that might help our family to have some togetherness!
Today though, is the end of all of that. I'm always a little bit sad and depressed by this. Probably because it is never further away from the next holiday season then the end of the current one, but I'm also sure it has to do with school lives as well. We are really into the thick of the school year and it's busy, but the weather is also cold. I'm great with snow, not so in love with just the general cold.
What I need to remember though, is that each day, regardless of how mundane or stressful or chaotic or even sometimes unpleasant, is still a blessing. I try to hold on to that, and I'll be honest, I'm also hoping for several (not just a few, but SEVERAL) snow days that might help our family to have some togetherness!
Tuesday, January 3, 2017
Happy birthday to my husband
Today is the birthday of my best friend. I'm so incredibly grateful to have this man in my life. I can't imagine spending any of this without him, and he's just amazing. He's an amazing husband and an amazing father. I absolutely hit the jackpot!
Monday, January 2, 2017
Thinking about undecorating
Even though I like the decorations to stay up until a little later, since reality is beginning I'm seriously considering taking down the decorations. I'm especially enjoying the trees so I kind of don't want them to come down. At the same time, I really, really don't feel as though I was ever in the Christmas spirit this year. I'm not sure if it was because we had very little snow and very mild temps, or if it was because I went back to work and life was so busy. I normally love sending my cards out and can't wait to get to them, but this year I started two weeks later than normal and it felt like "work", not the pleasure I normally feel. There was also this break. The kids had swim practice every day from 8-10AM and then again from 5:30-7:30PM. Andrew and I appreciate the need to be committed to the team, but it has serious consequences on our family time. Not once over break did we play any family board games, nor did we have an opportunity to go see any lights. Most evenings, we didn't even get to eat dinner together. It really was the exact opposite of last year's break I enjoyed Christmas, but I just don't feel like I "felt" Christmas, and I really regret that. I'm not going to lie...swim season really can't end soon enough!
Easing back into reality
Tomorrow, Robert returns to school. I'll be honest, in no way do I look forward to being up at 5AM. It is what it is though, and it is early. Andrew heads back for a teacher work day on Wednesday, and then the younger two go back on Thursday. Tomorrow Catherine has to be at swim at 8AM and then I have to go into the office for church items, so once I get up at 5 I'll pretty much be up. Wednesday I can go back to sleep after Robert gets on the bus, and I'll be honest, that is exactly what I plan to do! It's kind of nice to be able to ease back into the craziness!
New year = vacation booking
Our family sat down yesterday and booked this year's vacation. We had purposely saved to make this year's vacation special since there is a good chance this will be the last one we get together. Robert is planning to enlist in the Navy and will be able to do so at the end of May. That will mean in 2018 when he graduates, we have know idea when he'll need to be reporting, so we decided to make this one awesome. After our fabulous trip last year, our family decided we wanted to go back to the Outer Banks again. We decided that since we had saved, we would allow ourselves to splurge on the lodging. We have a rented a house that is soundfront and it's located in an amazing resort with ocean front pools and snackbars and so many amenities it's just amazing. It's hard not to wish away the next five months, but we definitely don't want to do that. It sure will be fun when it happens though!
Sunday, January 1, 2017
#1700 at the beginning of the year
A milestone post that begins the new year...hard to believe! We are spending a very, very quiet day as most of us are very, very tired. Robert had a fairly quiet New Year's eve with his girlfriend, and it sounds as though Catherine and Thomas enjoyed their evening with my mom, and my mom definitely enjoyed her evening with them. They also got to see both of my grandmothers while they were there.
Meanwhile, we were having a fabulous evening. So many of our dear friends were in attendance, and in many ways it was even better than "old times". There were six couples and one additional friend (she and kids didn't stay until Midnight) and several of the kiddos. I particularly enjoyed hanging out with the teenagers, strangely enough. I couldn't help but think back to the evening I took the then third-grader and second-grader to meet their teachers, and last evening I sat there with the senior and junior and enjoyed their senses-of-humor and laughed with them. I was so grateful for these friends who have been a part of our lives for so long that I've watched the kids grow up, just like they've all watched mine grow up. While I missed ringing in the year with my kids, I'm so grateful to have been able to ring it with others we love so much.
At Midnight, we were all very wide awake...and continued that way. We ended up all being up until 4AM, so I'm very grateful we just slept there which is half way to my hometown anyway! It wasn't difficult to get up and moving this morning to go get our kiddos (I went after the younger two, Andrew picked up Robert) and then we all got home here about the same time...where we are spending our quiet day!
Meanwhile, we were having a fabulous evening. So many of our dear friends were in attendance, and in many ways it was even better than "old times". There were six couples and one additional friend (she and kids didn't stay until Midnight) and several of the kiddos. I particularly enjoyed hanging out with the teenagers, strangely enough. I couldn't help but think back to the evening I took the then third-grader and second-grader to meet their teachers, and last evening I sat there with the senior and junior and enjoyed their senses-of-humor and laughed with them. I was so grateful for these friends who have been a part of our lives for so long that I've watched the kids grow up, just like they've all watched mine grow up. While I missed ringing in the year with my kids, I'm so grateful to have been able to ring it with others we love so much.
At Midnight, we were all very wide awake...and continued that way. We ended up all being up until 4AM, so I'm very grateful we just slept there which is half way to my hometown anyway! It wasn't difficult to get up and moving this morning to go get our kiddos (I went after the younger two, Andrew picked up Robert) and then we all got home here about the same time...where we are spending our quiet day!
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