Around Here: Week 45 {2018}

Spending... the weekend at the beach with my friends from small group (bible study).  We met every Monday from seventh grade through high school graduation and have stayed in contact all these years later.  Together we have 13 kids, but somehow we managed to get away together.  I love those girls so much!  We were bummed that Emily couldn't make it this time (love you, girl!) but the three of us made the most of it, talking, walking on the beach, enjoying dinner out, and savoring each other's company.  I even squeezed in a little reading and journaling while we were there.

Driving... home from the beach, which took forever!  There were two huge car accidents and traffic in general was just terrible.  It took me almost ten hours to get home! Blah!  The good thing about that much time in the car is that I got to finish Marilla of Green Gables on audio, and I got to start A Spark of Light. 

Relishing... being reunited with my kids after a weekend away.  All four kids ran out to the driveway when I pulled in, hugging me and welcoming me home. It was so sweet!  I was so happy to be home, and they were so happy to see me.  It was really tender. 

Creating... our family Christmas cards with the pictures my sister and I took of my kids a few weekends ago.  Josh and I opted out of our family pictures because my hair was falling out and Josh had Bell's Palsy at the time... so this year's Christmas card will star the children. ;)  The cards turned out *adorable* and I cannot wait to get my hands on them. I always use Shutterfly and have never been disappointed.  I will probably get started on addressing them after Thanksgiving.

Taking... Halloween decorations down, finally.  The last two weeks have kind of flown by, and with my being out of town, November sort of snuck up on me.  It felt good to tuck Halloween away.

Putting... Thanksgiving decorations up.  The kids' favorite part of each new holiday decor is, hands down, the books that come out.  So they were thrilled to wake up to all the Thanksgiving books on their shelf.  I love their enthusiasm so much!!

Suffering... some random anxiety symptoms on Tuesday & Wednesday this week.  I'm not sure why I was feeling so shaky and scared, but I felt miserable.  Thankfully, Josh was home Wednesday, so he was able to take Wyatt to Spokane for his Pulmonology appointment for me, so I could stay home, take a nap and engage in some self care.  Self care this week looked like a lot of sleep, and a lot of time on the couch watching TV.  Josh was really understanding, and between the sleep and the rest, I was able to start feeling better by Thursday, and by Friday I was back to my old self. Phew!
Josh thinks that maybe I was having anxious feelings about taking Wyatt to see the Pulmonologist, and he may be on to something.  His Pulmonologist is at the hospital where he was in the PICU back in December, where he almost died, so going there with him is always a bit emotional for me. I didn't put two and two together, but after he got back from taking Wyatt for me, he told me he figured that was why I was having a hard day.  Such an insightful guy.

Reading... and finishing Not That I Could Tell.  It was a good read, but I felt like the ending was weak.  That was a bummer.  I have since started The Patron St. of Liars by Ann Patchett.  It's good so far.

Taking... the kids to school in the car on Friday after the weather suddenly got very cold!  I am so grateful we got to walk/ride bikes to school for so long this year!  Making it this far into November has got to be some kind of record!  Now I will start waking up before the kids and working out with Leslie Sansone's Walk at Home videos.  In addition to that, I will be meditating in the morning.  I'm praying those two things will keep my mental health in place the way that walking the kids to school used to do!

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Around Here: Week 44 {2018}

 

Visiting... the pumpkin patch after school last Friday, which was an awesome choice.  There was hardly anyone there, and it was so fun to have the place to ourselves.  The kids loved climbing the hay pyramid, visiting the animals and riding in the train behind the 4-wheeler.  The twins loved riding the zip line they had there, and even convinced me give it a try. It was so much fun, I did it twice!!  Toward the end of the afternoon, we all got to pick pumpkins on the hay ride.  It was an awesome family memory to make, and I'm so glad we did it.

Happy... to be back on social media after a month long break.  I did some serious culling on Instagram, so I don't waste as much time on there, but otherwise, I am just watching how much time I spend on my phone.  The extended break showed me that my FOMO (fear of missing out) was unjustified and that I won't miss anything if I don't check my phone every two minutes!

Helping... Carly heal with plenty of snuggles, popsicles & story time. Thankfully by mid-week she was feeling much, much better after that terrible cough & cold she had.

Organizing... the boys' school memoribilia.  For the last two years, all of it (every.last.piece) has been in a humongous green laundry basket (all the boys' stuff-- all mixed together) and I finally got around to sorting it this week.  Now I just have to decide how, exactly, I want to separate and store it from here on out.  It feels amazing to have come this far!

Walking... finally, and for the first time, in a month!  I am SO happy!  My broken toe is all healed, and it felt great to be pushing Carly in her stroller, out for a long walk.

Choosing... my book of the month!  The options were so good this month that I actually chose 2 (instead of 1), plus I threw in an additional book! If you have thought about joining Book of the Month, I highly recommend joining this month and picking up these amazing books for only $14.99 for the first & $9.99 for each additional!!
The books I picked this month were:

• Nine Perfect Strangers by Liane Moriarty (she's a fav author of mine, LOVED What Alice Forgot)
• Unsheltered by Barbara Kingsolver (she wrote Flight Behavior, which was so good!)
• As Bright As Heaven by Susan Meissner, which is about the Spanish Flu in 1918.

Carving... pumpkins with all the kids.  Logan & Wyatt did well with theirs, but Jack really struggled emptying his.  He hates the smell and feel of the guts inside the pumpkin, so I had to help him out quite a bit.
All their pumpkins were super adorable, and I was surprised how quickly they got it done.

Celebrating... Halloween and loving Carly's enthusiasm for life.  She was SO excited to go to and get candy.  We started at the Trunk or Treat in the church parking lot near our house, then we marched around the neighborhood, the kids' pumpkins getting heavier by the house.  When we got home, the boys dumped their candy out all over the kitchen table, taking stock of all they had, and they spent the entire next morning trading candy with each other.  It was so cute to hear them negotiating.

Leaving... Carly with my mom all day Friday after a Thursday night dinner with her and the kids while Josh had parent/teacher conferences for his students.  She was going to be in town visiting my sister over the weekend, so we scheduled a visit for us as well.  Once the kids took off for school, I hugged both my mom and Carly and took off.

Road tripping... 7 hours, alone, listening to good books & great music after leaving Carly with my mom.

Getting... away for the weekend!!!  I finally made it and met up Friday night with the girls from my small group bible study at Katie's in-law's beach house along the Washington coast.  We had an amazing weekend, but I'll be blogging more about that next week.

Adding... a new medication to Logan's repertoire after he had 3 seizures this week.  He had two in class and 1 at the pool during 5th grade swim lessons.  Luckily he always feels them coming on, and told a friend each time, so he was safe during all of them.  The emotional toll that his seizures take on me, however, is high, and by Friday, I lost it.  I cried and cried (I was alone in the car, remember?) and let it all out.
I just wish that I knew why he had them. And I wish I knew how to stop them.  He is so brave.  And thinking of him, so vulnerable and disoriented, hurts my mama heart.  By the end of the week, though, I was fighting to keep him at school.  If he's going to have three seizures each week, he certainly can't afford to come home after each one. So his teacher and I worked together to get him to stay in class, hallelujah.
Now we're all just putting our hope in this next new medicine.  He will take it in addition to the medication he's already on. (So he'll be on two.)  And I think when he has his follow up neurology appointment in December, I will be requesting more workups.  This mama needs some answers.

Reading.... and finishing Lord of the Flies, Marilla of Green Gables, Not That I could Tell. I had read Lord of the Flies in 10th grade, and revisiting it was super disturbing.  What a messed up book!  Marilla of Green Gables was fun to listen to, but I enjoyed Caroline much more.  Caroline's writing was far more poetic.  I am still working on Grace (Eventually) by Anne Lamott.  I started A Spark of Light (on audio), and The Untethered Soul by Michael A. Singer, that my mom sent me for my birthday (which is on the 18th) which I couldn't wait to open & read!  I listened to it earlier this year, and having the actual book in my hands is a dream come true. I am underlining something on nearly every page!  It's a life transforming book.  If you want to know what it's about before ordering it, I highly recommend listening to this Supersoul Conversation he has with Oprah.

Contemplating... the last year of my life as I rapidly approach 36.  My oh my, it's been a doozy!  But with the struggles & challenges, has come so much growth.  I've learned that I can't wait until life slows down or is perfect to find joy.  And I've learned to enjoy the bits of peace as they arrive, no matter how long they do (or don't) last.  And that I'm strong enough to face whatever comes my way.

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