We had such a wonderful day yesterday! Our day began with church, and I always like to begin our Sunday that way. Robert had to work afterwards, but was off in time to go to our family reunion later in the afternoon. Unlike past years, everyone was there except for my sister (and one cousin, who has simply decided he no longer wishes to be a part of our family). All together there were 19 there, including two young men who are "significant others" in the lives of two of my younger cousins. They are both nice young men. Unfortunately, my mom needed to come to my house before she headed north and wanted to get back home so I wasn't able to stay as long as I would've like. It was really great to be able to get together though, and I loved the photos that were taken with my grandmother. She is such an incredibly spry 86-year-old woman!
Our evening consisted of the five of us sitting in the family room and watching a movie. I so enjoy the evenings that we can make that happen. I appreciate that my kids actually want to be home, and I appreciate that they want to be with us and watch a movie together. I love watching them enjoy things I've enjoyed and I love sharing these moments together!
Monday, July 17, 2017
Less than a month to go
Our summer is now down to less than a month. I'll be honest, I'm a little sad about this. Even though we have swim, band, football, doctor appointments, work, and goodness knows what else this week, it still isn't quite as crazy as the school schedule. Andrew and I are very much feeling like this summer has been more scheduled than any other, and we regret that we aren't getting to do some of the fun things we thought we might do. At the same time, I know I will enjoy having some quiet days home alone, and I'll enjoy the opportunity to make some extra money when school begins again.
There are still four full weeks of summer left. Hopefully we can still have some fun!
There are still four full weeks of summer left. Hopefully we can still have some fun!
Wednesday, July 12, 2017
An emotional couple of weeks
I'm not going to lie, it has been an emotional couple of weeks around here. Two weeks ago, Robert officially enlisted in the delayed entry program for the Navy and was sworn in. For safety and privacy, I will be very careful of what I post on here. I will say though that while he currently has a contract to work on airplanes, his ultimate goal is to be a SEAL. As a mom, that is terrifying, but it's what he wants. I'm not sure that when it comes down to it that he has the drive and toughness, but I'm proud of him for wanting to try...all while being terrified myself.
Next we had to deal with the dog situation. I was terrified that we adopted a dog that we were going to lose right away. I couldn't imagine how awful that would be for all of us, but especially Thomas. He has wanted to be a dog owner his entire life, and we wanted it to last more than just a weekend! And Catherine had put so much love and care into her...it was just awful. Fortunately, she is getting better each and every day, and is absolutely delightful.
Friday evening I worked the Vacation Bible School registration as a favor to a friend. I hadn't planned to be involved this year, but I agreed to work just for a couple of hours that first evening. Right after we had finished getting everyone checked in and I was beginning to work on the last thing I needed to finish before heading home, phones started going off everywhere as we were under a tornado warning. We were able to get all of the kids to the basement, and I called home to make sure my family knew as well. I learned Andrew was out on the road which was terrifying, and that meant the kids were home alone, which was equally terrifying, especially since Abby the new dog was already suffering so. Andrew was able to get to a safe spot, and we were all able to be texting each other. I especially kept reassuring Thomas that things would be okay, and encouraged them to listen to Robert who would make sure they were safe. It was a draining experience, and I couldn't wait to get home and hug everyone. We had a pretty significant tree branch come down, and Andrew cleaned that up Saturday and enjoyed using his chainsaw!
All of this just really cranked up my emotions. So much so, that when Andrew realized he and Thomas had forgotten about football Sunday evening which meant he wouldn't be able to make dinner and have all of us eat together after I got home from a 12 hour road trip on Sunday where I took Robert to cross country camp, I shed a ridiculous amount of tears. I know I was really crying about the stress of the week, and I was also pretty exhausted from the really long day I'd spent driving to Michigan and back. I wasn't angry at him, just disappointed.
I'm grateful things are settling down. Abby is doing great and we enjoy her more and more each day as we see her personality. I'm trying to just enjoy each minute of summer!
Next we had to deal with the dog situation. I was terrified that we adopted a dog that we were going to lose right away. I couldn't imagine how awful that would be for all of us, but especially Thomas. He has wanted to be a dog owner his entire life, and we wanted it to last more than just a weekend! And Catherine had put so much love and care into her...it was just awful. Fortunately, she is getting better each and every day, and is absolutely delightful.
Friday evening I worked the Vacation Bible School registration as a favor to a friend. I hadn't planned to be involved this year, but I agreed to work just for a couple of hours that first evening. Right after we had finished getting everyone checked in and I was beginning to work on the last thing I needed to finish before heading home, phones started going off everywhere as we were under a tornado warning. We were able to get all of the kids to the basement, and I called home to make sure my family knew as well. I learned Andrew was out on the road which was terrifying, and that meant the kids were home alone, which was equally terrifying, especially since Abby the new dog was already suffering so. Andrew was able to get to a safe spot, and we were all able to be texting each other. I especially kept reassuring Thomas that things would be okay, and encouraged them to listen to Robert who would make sure they were safe. It was a draining experience, and I couldn't wait to get home and hug everyone. We had a pretty significant tree branch come down, and Andrew cleaned that up Saturday and enjoyed using his chainsaw!
All of this just really cranked up my emotions. So much so, that when Andrew realized he and Thomas had forgotten about football Sunday evening which meant he wouldn't be able to make dinner and have all of us eat together after I got home from a 12 hour road trip on Sunday where I took Robert to cross country camp, I shed a ridiculous amount of tears. I know I was really crying about the stress of the week, and I was also pretty exhausted from the really long day I'd spent driving to Michigan and back. I wasn't angry at him, just disappointed.
I'm grateful things are settling down. Abby is doing great and we enjoy her more and more each day as we see her personality. I'm trying to just enjoy each minute of summer!
Monday, July 10, 2017
Never my favorite day
As of two hours ago, the marching band season officially began. I can't say that I'm particularly thrilled about it. I never love the beginning. The first month is the most labor intensive part for me personally, and it's just a really long season overall.
I am pleased however, that Catherine will be getting off the couch and being active. She had friends she was sitting with during the meeting and I'm pleased to see that. It's a good activity for her, generally speaking.
Here's to another season!
I am pleased however, that Catherine will be getting off the couch and being active. She had friends she was sitting with during the meeting and I'm pleased to see that. It's a good activity for her, generally speaking.
Here's to another season!
We have a dog
A week ago today, Andrew and I went to find a medicine cabinet for our new bathroom. We were also planning to visit the shelter and think about a dog. When our cat Wally passed away in February, we knew we wanted to get a dog. I know Thomas really wanted to help pick out a dog, but we were afraid if we included him in the process he would want to bring home every single dog he saw! While we were at the shelter, we found a purebred beagle who was an absolute sweetheart. We were all set to bring her home, but they wouldn't let us. She was scheduled to be spayed and we couldn't bring her home for three days. We were disappointed, but it gave us time to get ready.
We got home and showed the kids pictures, and Thomas was so excited his eyes filled with tears. It was such a long three days until we could get her home, but we were able to get lots of fun things for her. Thursday afternoon finally arrived, and we were there at the earliest possible moment they told us we could be. She was still in surgical recovery, because she had just been spayed that morning. We hadn't counted on that when we left her Monday afternoon! It also turned out that her surgery was tougher than expected. We brought her home Thursday evening and things seemed to be going well. We named her Abby, and we were all immediately in love!
Friday things went downhill. She didn't eat or drink at all, and by early afternoon I felt we were at a critical point. Fortunately, Andrew managed to get her into our vet, and they discovered she was a pretty sick little girl. So this poor, sweet dog had not only had surgery and been sent to a new family the same day, but she was fighting a double ear infection and possibly an upper respiratory infection. Ugh! The vet gave her a shot of pain meds, a shot of anti-nausea meds, and some IV fluids. At that point, we just needed to wait.
Saturday morning brought great news! Abby clearly felt better! We still kept things mostly quiet for her on Saturday, and yesterday was even better. She is just the best little sweetheart. Because she is so low-key, the cats don't really care that she is here, and she doesn't really seem to care about the cats either. It was an incredibly stressful few days getting her to this point, but it was entirely worth it. She is a fabulous addition to our family!
We got home and showed the kids pictures, and Thomas was so excited his eyes filled with tears. It was such a long three days until we could get her home, but we were able to get lots of fun things for her. Thursday afternoon finally arrived, and we were there at the earliest possible moment they told us we could be. She was still in surgical recovery, because she had just been spayed that morning. We hadn't counted on that when we left her Monday afternoon! It also turned out that her surgery was tougher than expected. We brought her home Thursday evening and things seemed to be going well. We named her Abby, and we were all immediately in love!
Friday things went downhill. She didn't eat or drink at all, and by early afternoon I felt we were at a critical point. Fortunately, Andrew managed to get her into our vet, and they discovered she was a pretty sick little girl. So this poor, sweet dog had not only had surgery and been sent to a new family the same day, but she was fighting a double ear infection and possibly an upper respiratory infection. Ugh! The vet gave her a shot of pain meds, a shot of anti-nausea meds, and some IV fluids. At that point, we just needed to wait.
Saturday morning brought great news! Abby clearly felt better! We still kept things mostly quiet for her on Saturday, and yesterday was even better. She is just the best little sweetheart. Because she is so low-key, the cats don't really care that she is here, and she doesn't really seem to care about the cats either. It was an incredibly stressful few days getting her to this point, but it was entirely worth it. She is a fabulous addition to our family!
Wednesday, July 5, 2017
Halfway through our summer
Six weeks ago today was the last day of school. Six weeks from today will be the first day of school. I really can't believe the summer is half over. It has flown by, and frankly, that was the easy, laid-back, relaxing portion of our summer.
The last two weeks, which were supposed to be especially relaxing, have not exactly been so. We really had been hoping to do something fun while swim was a little less intense, but other things have gotten in the way. Tonight and tomorrow evening we have some plans with friends, and there are a few other things that have been going on that are warrant their own posts. Hope to be back on here soon!
The last two weeks, which were supposed to be especially relaxing, have not exactly been so. We really had been hoping to do something fun while swim was a little less intense, but other things have gotten in the way. Tonight and tomorrow evening we have some plans with friends, and there are a few other things that have been going on that are warrant their own posts. Hope to be back on here soon!
Saturday, July 1, 2017
It makes me happy every time I walk by
Our bathroom is finished! Well, for the most part anyway. I still need to get some kind of curtain to hang over the window, and we need to hang the towel hooks, but essentially it is finished. We were so excited yesterday that we ALL took our showers there even though Andrew and I have our own bathroom. It truly makes me happy to every time I walk down the hallway.
I am so, so grateful that we decided to go ahead and do this. The vehicle issues this year have been a HUGE blow to our budget and I was questioning whether we should have committed. We need to start replenishing our savings, but I am so glad those savings were there so we could do this. Right now that bathroom is my favorite room in the house! 😊
I am so, so grateful that we decided to go ahead and do this. The vehicle issues this year have been a HUGE blow to our budget and I was questioning whether we should have committed. We need to start replenishing our savings, but I am so glad those savings were there so we could do this. Right now that bathroom is my favorite room in the house! 😊
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