Thirty years ago today

Thirty years ago today one of those event occurred that if you were alive, you will always remember where you were.  I was in sixth grade, sitting on the seats waiting for gym class to begin.  Mr. Hoover walked in from study hall to tell us that the shuttle had exploded.  I remember we kept watching it over and over again at home that evening, and we all gathered in the library later to watch the memorial service where President Reagan spoke.  It seems impossible to believe it has been 30 years!

Sometimes it is easy to feel jealous

Due to commitments yesterday, Thomas was going to have to get off the bus alone.  He didn't particularly love that fact, so I have my friend Jenn if she could pick him up when she got her kids and she offered to keep him for about 90 minutes until I could get to pick him up.  He had a blast, and it is so adorable that he has a little crush on her daughter Bella.  Jenn and I met through various school activities, and are very excited that we now have the opportunity to work together at church.  We've had lunch and we've vented to each other about life and been there for hugs, but we haven't been to each other's houses.  When I picked Thomas up yesterday and went down to their beautifully finished basement, I pointed out that her basement was pretty much the size of my entire house.

It is so easy to feel jealous about that.  I absolutely love our house and I'm so grateful for it every day...it is so much more functional than our previous home, and for the most part I love the layout and the location.  However, seeing what others have can trigger jealousy, and I know I shouldn't let that happen.  After all, I read an article yesterday about how many Americans do not have enough in their savings to cover a major car repair.  I am so grateful for the blessings in our lives, and for the decisions both Andrew and I have made over time.  I am also so very grateful that we choose time with family over being out in the world finding ways to make money.  I'm grateful we both agree that cutting spending works just as well, and I'm just so grateful for the life we live together as a family.  I know that sometimes I'll allow the green monster to creep in, but I also know there might be people out there who feel the same way about our life!

So grateful for our church

I can not put into words how grateful I am for our church...and all of it was made possible because Robert decided to switch schools for 7th grade.  It shows that you truly never know how big an impact any decision will make.

Because Robert decided to switch schools for 7th grade, we learned how truly fabulous these schools are...and we decided to move here so that all three kids could attend here.  When we made the move, it was an opportunity to church shop.  My husband was aware that I was not at all happy in our previous church or in that denomination as a whole.  He was willing to look around to see if he could find something that would work for our entire family as a whole...and that is how we came to find the church we are currently attending.  I LOVE our church!  I love that I am able to be a full member and to truly participate and be a part of the church.  I've been asked to be on the Religious Ed committee, and it's also the source of my very part-time job.  It is truly not a lot of money, but just a little bit of extra that will be very helpful.  It's also been a source of comfort as we've struggled with some of Robert's choices, and I appreciate that the pastor will sit and talk with us, and that he truly knows our family.

Yesterday was the annual congregational meeting at our church.  It was going to be contentious as the discussion of whether or not the church was going to allow our pastor to perform same sex marriages, both inside and outside the walls of the church, was to be voted on and decided at this meeting.  There was a great deal of discussion, and I found it to be as respectful a discussion as could possibly take place given such an emotionally charged topic.  As people talked, I was especially grateful to hear some of the older members express their desire for our church to be open and welcoming to everyone.  At the end of the day, we know we don't all agree, but the measure did pass by nearly a 5-1 margin.  I was so very grateful to be attending a church that is such a good fit for our family!

It was a busier weekend then I expected

This weekend ended up being much busier than I had expected, but for the most part it was fun.  As I mentioned in my previous post, our Friday had a lot going on, and then Saturday morning Thomas had a basketball double header.  My mom brought my grandmothers down to watch his second game, and we went out to lunch with everyone following that.  I had to return a sweater Robert had received as a gift while Andrew took the boys for hair cuts, then we were asked to join some friends at dinner.  We have so much fun hanging out with them and are grateful we've made some friends here in town!  Yesterday I had to step in at the last minute and be the Sunday School volunteer, and then we had our annual congregational meeting afterwards.  I knew there would be some contentious discussions (I'll write another post) and then I had to deal with some of my job duties.  I certainly didn't expect to be at church for nearly five hours yesterday!  I went to pick up Robert from work then ran to pick up some things I needed for a new recipe I was trying for dinner...which then proceeded to take me over an hour to prepare.  So much for the easy soup recipe I was going for!

After all of that though, I sat down and was able to watch the Broncos victory over the Patriots.  I have always been a fan of the Broncos, and when Peyton Manning became their quarterback, well, how can you not love him as well?????  And then of course there is the fact, even more delightful in some ways then the Broncos victory, that the Patriots lost.  Few things make me happier than that!

We are headed into a busy week as well, but I'm grateful for each day and the opportunities!

Not exactly a relaxing Friday evening

I am pretty accustomed to Friday evenings not being overly relaxing, but usually it doesn't involve family members heading in several different directions.  Last Friday we were even all home and cleaning our house (and I very much appreciated and enjoyed being with my family).  This evening I almost completely forgot that Thomas has basketball practice to make up for the cancellation earlier in the week.  Andrew is working as a school site manager and Robert is also working, so it's going to be me running around this evening.  I don't mind, but I do prefer quiet Friday evenings at home!

The snow event that isn't

Earlier in the week it looked as though we might get some serious snow this evening and overnight.  By Wednesday, it was evident that we were too far north, but just across the Ohio river they were basically calling for "snowpocolypse".  Schools began issuing early dismissals and many even closed last evening.  Even Cincinnati Public shut down for the day.  Of course, it's pretty much turned into the snow event that wasn't.  We are going to get absolutely nothing, and Cincinnati is only going to get an inch or two overnight.  There were a lot of kids out of school today for no reason!  I guess in that regard, I am grateful that it was obvious early on we weren't getting anything!

We got a snow day!

We had such a mild December that Andrew was convinced we would have no snow days this year.  After not closing last Tuesday when clearly we should have,  I was beginning to think he might be right.  Over the weekend, it was looking good that today and Friday there would be significant snow.  As they forecasts got closer though, it was definitely not looking good.  By 10:00 last night, it was forecasted for us to get less than an inch, although it would be falling during the morning commute.  Because of this, I was surprised when the phone rang at 5:00 this morning letting us know we were delayed.  I knew that things were only going to get worse during the commute, so I suspected we had a pretty decent shot at that point of being closed, and when I looked out I noticed we already had a pretty decent amount of snow.  Sure enough, about 90 minutes later the "closed" call came.  It was so wonderful to sleep in!  It turns out the path of the snow changed and when I got up this morning we were over 2" of snow, although not much more was predicted.  As I always say with snow days, it's like being given the gift of time...especially since it means Thomas's basketball practice is also cancelled this evening!