100 posts

It turns out this is my 100th post.
Don't have much to say really. It's the beginning of Advent. That always makes me happy. I love preparing for Christmas.
Actually, this is the first year that we are not set up right after Thanksgiving. Hopefully by the end of the week we will be. Why didn't we get it done? DISNEY!!!
We surprised our kids with a trip to Disney. It was my first experience on a plane as well as the kids. It was the kids first Disney trip and mine as well. (okay so I went when I was 3 but I don't remember any of it so it doesn't count).

Things from that trip:

• you can see some of our adventure on our trip blog
• I am so glad we waited until the kids were older
• I will never go with a baby or toddler. It may be a kid friendly place but never never never would I want that hassle. 
• My kids are fantastic travelers
• I am not
• Disney is all it's hyped up to be

I know I don't blog much. I keep saying I'll do more and then I never do. I wanted to post some pictures. But I'm not a huge picture person. I love playing with my camera. I want a fancier one. But I want to enjoy my photos and keep them to myself. I'm not a huge fan of photo blogs. For me pictures are to trap memories. I like the shots that capture moments in time. I don't like posed shots. I don't like looking at 100 pictures that all feel the same. With my big camera I took almost 800 pictures at Disney. Most of them didn't come out the way I wanted. But a lot of them caught some great moments. I tend to hold the shutter down and snap 3-5 pics at a time. It creates a really neat affect sometimes. 

ANYWAY, the tumblr has some pics and maybe in a few days we'll add some more. Right now we are prepping for Christmas. It's a time for shopping, crafting, baking and so much more. 

Catch you later

i know you miss me.

Well, I did it. I let blogging take a backseat. To, well, everything.

My last post was September 16.

Here's a disjointed brain vomit of what has happened since then.

Since then I have dove head-long into the world of working mom. The fall was/is pure insanity. Things are finally mellowing out with the sports season coming to an end.

There has been a lot of adjusting and a lot of eye-opening in the last month and half. Honestly it feels so far away. I can't believe that it's been only a month and a half.

I work 4 days a week and my schedule is inconsistent from day to day but week to week it's mostly the same. Each of the four days my hours are different and my location is different. It's taken me these last 8 weeks to really wrap my head around the ever changing days.

I'm learning that I need to take in more caffeine. I was a one cup a tea a day kind of person, but I find I need more just to get through the day. I don't know how else to keep my energy up and not pass out by 8am.

Thankfully the kids have adjusted beautifully to a working mom. For the most part it doesn't really affect them that much. They spend their days in beautiful ignorance of what I am doing and where. What they have noticed is my lack of presence at their school. Last year I stepped up big time and was volunteering twice a week. This year I am very rarely there.

The nice thing is that what my daughter really wants is to see me come to school masses. Those happen every Friday. Which happens to be my day off. I have been to two so far. :/

Some of our survival skills that were employed when the twins were born have really come back to good use. For a while there we were running to early evening practices four nights a week. Being big on the family meal we had to do some creative menu planning. Much like when the kids were babies we have made a lot of freezer meals to pull out on those nights where there's no time to cook. (A new favorite is taco pockets) (A book I recommend: Don't Panic Dinner is In the Freezer). We've been big menu planners for years. Every week we sit down and hammer out what we are going to eat for the week. This cuts out the "What are we eating for dinner?" problem.

In general we are doing good. Life is crazy. We have done a lot but I lack the time to tell you all about it.

Perhaps later this weekend. I'll get to some photo blogging. 

The thing about Josh.

Joshua is five. He is the younger of my twins (by 1 whole minute). Does this matter? The doctor thought it did. He litterally ifted his hands up on and watched the clock tic off a minute before he pulled Joshua out.

Joshua for a long time was my smallest child. He was born at 4lbs and change. Definitely the runt of the litter. :) Being small has never really slowed him down. If anything it gave him the perfect cover. Josh, from the time he was a small baby has always been my independent one. He thrives best when you leave him alone.

The irony to this is that he is also my space-cadet. This boy can get lost standing next to you. The poor kid comes by it honestly though. He doesn't mean for things to happen they just do.

Today marks the end of the 3rd weeknof school. In this time my darling boy has:

• lost track of a sweatshirt
• thrown away a Tupperware container
• put an open gogurt tube back in his lunch box
• put all of his lunch trash in his lunch box, rather than throw it away at school. This included and open applesauce, juice box and trail mix crumbs.
• left his library book in his desk for two days

The thing about Josh is that he's a little bit forgetful. A little bit exasperating. And a lot of fun.

i'm working. it's working.

A think to ponder before I do a full update:

A stay at home mom should be praised for her sacrafices. Admired for her ability to get it all done. A stay at home mom needs love and support from her community.

A working mom should be  praised for her sacrafices. Admired for her ability to get it all done. A working mom needs love and support from her community.

Some mom's can choose to stay at home and do so because that is what is best for her family. Some mom's can choose to go to work and do so because that is what is best for her family.

Some mom's have no choice to work or stay at home those are the mom's that need love, support and encouragement the most. They choose life and for that they should be praised.

Motherhood is hard. Motherhood is challenging. Motherhood is beautiful. Motherhood is rewarding. 

holy cow.

Hello September.

What the hell happened to August?!?

We went on vacation to Myrtle Beach and had so much fun.

We came back from a great family week to madness. Paul flew out to Hawaii and back (which isn't as great as it sounds, well Hawaii is apparently great, but his trip was not). My garden was in full bloom. It was harvest time.

We have been eating fresh tomato and peppers with our salads. I have so far canned 7 quarts of tomatoes, 10 8oz jars of bruchetta, and 5 pints of relish. I also have 1 8oz container of pesto sauce in the freezer. Today I have to can more tomatoes. It's a fair amount of work but it's worth it to have home grown food.

August was also filled with back to school shopping and the first day of school.

The first week went well. I definitely had some tired and sensitive kids by the end of the week. I'm grateful now for this four day weekend. 

You would think that getting the kids out of the house would free me up, but it hasn't yet. I don't exactly expect for me to get bored. There is always something for me to do. This week I have been preparing for a big consginment sale. You can read about it here. I have dug through every bin of clothing. My living room has bins everywhere. It will be a while before I get everything back in order again. 

I have piles ready to go straight to donation. A pile that goes to one friend. A pile that goes to another friend. A pile that goes to storage until the spring sale. A pile that goes into storage until the kids can wear it. And lastly the pile that is tagged and ready for the fall sale. Lot's of piles, lots of bins, but it's all going somewhere and most of it is leaving the house. 

I also don't plan on being home all year. I have been interviewing for jobs. I am confident that something will come down the pike that is right for me. Something that offers the flexibility I need and the opportunities I crave. 

Well for now I will marvel that it is September. My kids first cross-country race is this weekend. The second week of school is only four days away. So many new and exciting experiences are coming our way. 

wind down. wind up.

It's that time again.

Summer vacation is rolling to a stop. Funny how it starts off with a bang. You move so fast through the days and weeks. And then the final weeks seem to take a little longer as you gear up for the next transition.

My Summer Vacation rocked. Most of the time. I took the kids to the Zoo (twice). We went to the beach. We went to the pool. We completed our Summer Reading Programs at the local library. We went to the movies.

I kept the kids busy, and at the same time we spent lots of time at home. It was wonderful. The kids sleep in until well after 8 most mornings. Every day has started the lazy way. Making our way downstairs and through breakfast. While eating the kids always ask "What are we doing today?"

Some days we had lots to do some days we didn't. To the kids it didn't matter either way. They spent their vacation playing and having fun. But now we are down to the final two weeks of vacation. The school supplies box has resurfaced. Uniforms have been fitted. We are here in the home stretch.

I'm happy for it. Just as I was happy for the start of summer. I am happy for the start of our next adventure. This year will be the first that all four kids will be in school at the same time. I am thrilled beyond measure. I cannot believe that we have finally have come to this point.

I'm hoping for more changes this year. I'm praying for it. Five years ago I gave up my teaching post to stay home with my growing family. It was too much to work full-time with four small children. Day-care was far too expensive. Not to mention the ability to handle the work-load. Now that my kids are older and more independent, I am ready to go back to work. I just wish that finding a job wasn't so difficult.

Going back to work will be a huge challenge for sure. Juggling four school kids and a full time job won't be easy. But I am ready to take that on. I miss being in the classroom. For a long time that wasn't true. I was too busy with my family to want anything else. But my kids are older now. They need me less. I find myself more restless. I find myself wanting more.

It will be a huge change for everyone if I get a job and go back to work. Our lives will certainly get busier. All the things I do during the day will still have to get done somehow. I was a working mom before and we did just fine. I am sure that it will be just the same. Sure it's different. I have four instead of two. But my kids are older and more capable of pitching in then they were the first time I worked.

So here's to transitions. Here's to my kids going back to school. Some for the first time. Here's hoping I find a decent job. Here's to the good life!

9 years today.

I said "I do" 9 years ago today.

10 years ago (not to the day), I said yes to the most important question ever asked me.

I believe that marriage is a calling, in the Church we call that a Vocation. God called me to the vocation of Marriage.

My pathway to Heaven is through Marriage.

He sent me my husband, and when the time was right to full-fill God's plan for us to marry it happened.

We said yes.

And in the last nine years we said yes again and again.

Four times we said yes when we found out we were pregnant.

One time we said yes when we held each other through a miscarriage.

Many times we said yes when we celebrated life's big accomplishments. Buying/Selling houses, buying cars, getting jobs, getting promotions...

Many times we said yes when we sought each others arms during times of hardship. Through deaths of loved ones, day-to-day financial struggles, fear of uncertain futures...

We've said yes on our most difficult days.

We've said yes on our best days.

God promises us that if we have faith we will never be alone. I have never been alone. During the last 9 years I have had the best company. I see God's promise fulfilled in my Husband.

When the days are long and tiring I know that at the end of it Paul is there. I know that he will always be there whether I need him or not. That is the promise he made to me 9 years ago. Likewise, I will always be there for him whether he needs me or not. That is the promise I made to him. We will never break that promise. Never.

I know there are days were I have driven Paul crazy. I have made him angry. I may have even hurt him. But he is always there. He has driven me crazy. Made me angry. May have even hurt me. But I am not going anywhere. Every challenge we work through makes our bond stronger. Every triumph we celebrate brings us closer still.

I give Praise and Thanksgiving that God has called me to Marriage. I thank God for giving me Paul as a husband.

Paul has made me stronger over the years. He has made me more confident, as a wife and mother. There is no one I'd rather be with.

I love what we have said yes to. I love what we have been called to. And I can't wait to see what the next 9 years bring.