Monday, January 8, 2018
Another day at home
The entire family is home again today. We knew there was snow/freezing rain/sleet/rain arriving in the early morning hours, and we knew with road temps it was extremely unlikely to be a school today. Our school district went on a delay last night, and around 5:30 this morning we got word we would be closed for the day. Because we knew the roads would be bad, we had decided Robert would be home as well, and as it turns out, his school is closed today as well. Over the course of this weekend, we have managed to equal the number of snow days for the last two years combined!
Friday, January 5, 2018
Everyone is home today
We received an unexpected surprise last evening. As I was researching exactly what time Robert's school starts so we could drive him (after all, he is always on the bus!), we found out that his school was closed today as well! We were stunned! After all, the roads aren't bad, it's just frigidly cold out there. It was so awesome to know before we went to bed last night and know that we got to sleep in this morning...for all of us! And it leads right into the weekend!
Thursday, January 4, 2018
No school tomorrow!
Andrew and Robert returned to school yesterday, and Catherine and Thomas went back today. I also got to work today, and I loved the day! The temps though, are brutally cold, and I was cautiously optimistic that tomorrow might get us a school delay. However, I was shocked when the announcement was made at the end of the day that there would be no school tomorrow. It is all about the temps so the roads are fine. The air temp is supposed to be below zero though, and the wind chill is going to be below -15 degrees. Robert's school won't close, and I hate for him to miss a day when the roads are fine, so we are planning to make the trip over. The rest of us though, have a day of freedom!
Parenting struggles
I'm grateful that this post is not about any specific struggle our family is facing...but goodness knows we have had our fair share. I never looked forward to parenting teens, and even with that "low" expectation, I still feel that I had no idea what I was facing. My husband has taught teenagers for over 20 years, and yet I still think we were only slightly prepared for the "job" of preparing these young people to go out into the world...and it so isn't just us.
Over Christmas I had a chat with someone I've recently had the opportunity to know better. Her son is a junior and is one of my favorite human beings. Her daughter however, is the young lady who took her own life as a fourteen-year-old almost four years ago. We talk about our struggles raising our sons, and while I'm sure sometimes she thinks we have nothing to complain about, she also knows only too well how the little things can suddenly become so serious, and deadly.
On New Year's Eve, we spent the evening with our closest friends from our former town. All of them, with the exception of one couple whose oldest child is a year younger than our youngest, have kids in high school and slightly younger. One of them talks about the anxiety that their son faces, and how he is currently medicated. They talked about how he will most likely be medicated for the rest of his life, and if he isn't, there will most likely be a suicide prevention plan similar to the ones they've had in the past. I suspect they feel as though they can literally never let their guard down. This kid is on his way to Harvard or Stanford or Penn, and they are just grateful for each day that he is alive. Another of our friends talked about their daughter's anxiety and the physical manifestations that are occuring within her. She is having seizures that are literally caused by absolutely nothing physical. She can't be left alone, and it is affecting every aspect of her family's lives. She couldn't attend her brother's graduation last spring, and her parents have to take days off work on days she can't attend school. Her sister and brother are often responsible for keeping an eye on her, and it's just taken a toll on the emotions and stress levels of all of them. The friend with younger children is not currently dealing with teen issues, but pointed out to us that she is not wearing her wedding ring as she and her husband are having marital issues.
All of this brings me to this...you just never know. Everyone posts on social media about the good things that are happening, and to a certain extent I think that is a good thing. Social media should often be upbeat and positive. At the same time, that isn't reality. I am grateful for the blessing in our lives each day and I do believe, through my faith, that things are mostly going to work out okay. However, parenting is hard, and stressful, and emotional, and at times just down-right terrifying. We literally never know what is happening in someone else's home or what they might be fighting in their own hearts or heads. I pray that I can remember that whenever someone treats me poorly, and I hope that there are times when maybe I can make someone smile, or just take away the stress for a little bit. Sadly, the craziness and chaos, the fear, the pain (and all of the good things too), are truly what is normal.
Over Christmas I had a chat with someone I've recently had the opportunity to know better. Her son is a junior and is one of my favorite human beings. Her daughter however, is the young lady who took her own life as a fourteen-year-old almost four years ago. We talk about our struggles raising our sons, and while I'm sure sometimes she thinks we have nothing to complain about, she also knows only too well how the little things can suddenly become so serious, and deadly.
On New Year's Eve, we spent the evening with our closest friends from our former town. All of them, with the exception of one couple whose oldest child is a year younger than our youngest, have kids in high school and slightly younger. One of them talks about the anxiety that their son faces, and how he is currently medicated. They talked about how he will most likely be medicated for the rest of his life, and if he isn't, there will most likely be a suicide prevention plan similar to the ones they've had in the past. I suspect they feel as though they can literally never let their guard down. This kid is on his way to Harvard or Stanford or Penn, and they are just grateful for each day that he is alive. Another of our friends talked about their daughter's anxiety and the physical manifestations that are occuring within her. She is having seizures that are literally caused by absolutely nothing physical. She can't be left alone, and it is affecting every aspect of her family's lives. She couldn't attend her brother's graduation last spring, and her parents have to take days off work on days she can't attend school. Her sister and brother are often responsible for keeping an eye on her, and it's just taken a toll on the emotions and stress levels of all of them. The friend with younger children is not currently dealing with teen issues, but pointed out to us that she is not wearing her wedding ring as she and her husband are having marital issues.
All of this brings me to this...you just never know. Everyone posts on social media about the good things that are happening, and to a certain extent I think that is a good thing. Social media should often be upbeat and positive. At the same time, that isn't reality. I am grateful for the blessing in our lives each day and I do believe, through my faith, that things are mostly going to work out okay. However, parenting is hard, and stressful, and emotional, and at times just down-right terrifying. We literally never know what is happening in someone else's home or what they might be fighting in their own hearts or heads. I pray that I can remember that whenever someone treats me poorly, and I hope that there are times when maybe I can make someone smile, or just take away the stress for a little bit. Sadly, the craziness and chaos, the fear, the pain (and all of the good things too), are truly what is normal.
Tuesday, January 2, 2018
The rest of our break
The time off since Christmas has been absolutely wonderful. I'm so grateful for a little bit of down time, and I'm trying not to dread the return of the rat race. I'm trying to just enjoy each moment, regardless of the chaos involved!
I particularly appreciate that we did not travel to my in-laws on the 26th as we have for the last couple of years. It made Christmas evening more relaxed, and with no activities scheduled on Tuesday it was a nice day to just hang out. I did laundry and we packed, but there was no real schedule.
The time at my in-laws was really nice. I feel badly that our kids ended up missing all three days of scheduled practices, but I will never regret that we took this time. My father-in-law has been diagnosed with dementia, and we can really see him slowing down. My brother-in-law had two fingers amputated right before Christmas, and he continues to struggle with his diabetes. Even though we were only there 48 hours, it was the longest visit we've had in quite some time, and we were able to help them in some ways and truly visit with them.
The drive home took longer than expected. About an hour away from home it began to snow, and the road conditions deteriorated quickly. It took an extra 45 minutes, but Andrew took his time and I wasn't really worried...and it was very pretty.
Saturday we spent the day picking up the house for company. Our friends who moved to Missouri several years ago were in town, and they were coming over with another couple. We really enjoyed our evening and laughed so much!
Robert worked briefly on Sunday, and then we took the kids up to my mom's house. We spent the evening in our former town hanging out with our best friends there. It was another incredibly fun evening, and although we had taken clothes to stay over, I'm glad we drove home. I appreciated sleeping in my own bed.
Yesterday was exactly the day I love it to be...football all day and not much else. Today, although there are practices, it is still a day to relax a bit. I'm enjoying a feeling of peace (and productivity) before it gets crazy again!
I particularly appreciate that we did not travel to my in-laws on the 26th as we have for the last couple of years. It made Christmas evening more relaxed, and with no activities scheduled on Tuesday it was a nice day to just hang out. I did laundry and we packed, but there was no real schedule.
The time at my in-laws was really nice. I feel badly that our kids ended up missing all three days of scheduled practices, but I will never regret that we took this time. My father-in-law has been diagnosed with dementia, and we can really see him slowing down. My brother-in-law had two fingers amputated right before Christmas, and he continues to struggle with his diabetes. Even though we were only there 48 hours, it was the longest visit we've had in quite some time, and we were able to help them in some ways and truly visit with them.
The drive home took longer than expected. About an hour away from home it began to snow, and the road conditions deteriorated quickly. It took an extra 45 minutes, but Andrew took his time and I wasn't really worried...and it was very pretty.
Saturday we spent the day picking up the house for company. Our friends who moved to Missouri several years ago were in town, and they were coming over with another couple. We really enjoyed our evening and laughed so much!
Robert worked briefly on Sunday, and then we took the kids up to my mom's house. We spent the evening in our former town hanging out with our best friends there. It was another incredibly fun evening, and although we had taken clothes to stay over, I'm glad we drove home. I appreciated sleeping in my own bed.
Yesterday was exactly the day I love it to be...football all day and not much else. Today, although there are practices, it is still a day to relax a bit. I'm enjoying a feeling of peace (and productivity) before it gets crazy again!
Bitterly cold
It is absolutely brutally cold here right now. It has been really for the last week. It is dangerously cold in fact. Fortunately, no one is in school today, although Robert has to wait out for the bus tomorrow, and Andrew has to report for professional development as well. I wouldn't be surprised if school is closed on Friday, but we will see what the week brings.
Today we don't necessarily have places we need to be, and I'm going to enjoy the day of not much happening while easing back into reality!
Today we don't necessarily have places we need to be, and I'm going to enjoy the day of not much happening while easing back into reality!
Monday, January 1, 2018
Beginning 2018
Here we are at the first day of 2018. My kids spent last night with my mom (and she kept the dog as well). I will write about our New Year's Eve and the rest of our break on another day...today is just about the very first day of this year. After retrieving the kids from my mom's house this morning, we are spending the day exactly as I like it to be. We are watching football ALL DAY(Go Irish), there is chili (compliments of Andrew) in the crock pot, a lovely scented candle is lit, and we are all sitting in the glow of the Christmas tree lights in a relatively picked up house. January 1 is always one of my favorite days of the year. Tomorrow the kids have swim & basketball practices again, but no one goes to school yet, and we get to spend today just being. I am being grateful and my heart is full!
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