The Last Week in February!?!

 The weather this week has been very warm for this time of year.  

In the upper thirties with mild wind some days.  

So I geared these crazy boys up, and out we went.

(And yes, this is what getting three boys out the door in snow gear looks like. Lots of unnecessary wrestling & an overabundance of boots and bodies in the arctic entry.)

 At the park we played with this puppy & the student who owns him. 

He was so cute!

 The twins brought their bikes and rode around in the snow.

 We also climbed on the play equipment.  I pushed boys on swings and we laughed, and the entire time, I never thought of my anxiety once.

It's been a week since I took any anxiety medication.

It's been a week since I woke up crying.

It's been a week since my heart pounded in my chest & my thoughts raced.

 I feel like I am living for the first time.

The sun shines brighter,

things smell sweeter,

and it seems even the kids laugh louder.

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 We're potty training this cutie.  It's going well!  Wednesday he had no accidents at all!

 Homeschooling is going well, too.  The boys reading has really taken off, and last night they read their first "real" books to Josh.  They were so proud of themselves!

 The three have been fighting constantly lately, so I was happy (as were they) with the opportunity to get outside and run off some steam!

Today we got the tent they ordered, along with the fake campfire (which is really just a glowing light) and their kid-friendly Swiss Army knives.  

 I will be posting pictures soon. They were all so excited! I'm excited, too, because it will entertain them for days!

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I love this series of pictures:

 They had so much fun crashing each other on the slide!

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 I have been making dinner every night for two weeks, and it's amazing how much better I feel.  It's a lot of work to get in the kitchen with three boys running around, but when we sit down to a meal together as a family, it's all worth it.

I feel like their manners are improving with more meals taken together, and I just like the feeling of providing my family with a well balanced meal that I put a lot of effort into. 

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Josh is currently taking a super hard class for his Masters Program.  This makes for long days followed by lots of homework.  The nice thing is that the end is in sight. He'll graduate in June.  In the meantime, I am grateful to be feeling better and carrying my weight around here so he can focus on his schoolwork & job.

Contracts for next school year came out, 

and Josh was offered one.

We are excited to be coming back to Marshall for another school year,

and I think we are both (finally) feeling optimistic about the future now that I am well.

Happy weekend!!!