Around Here: Week 51 2022

 {December 18-24th}

Carly to her cousin Liesel:
"We truly are BCF's"
(BCF=Best Cousins Forever)

Carly's Monday Mood
and text kills me.

Grandma & Grandpa

Recording... more elf shenanigans because they crack Carly up.  One night this week he didn't move and Carly was like, "Why didn't Dashy move?" Haha! Oops!

Subbing... and enjoying it so much.  I love it so much.  I love the kids. I love how useful I feel.  I love the staff and the feeling of being part of something bigger than myself.  I love the way I can connect with students and their cute stories and the sweet pictures they draw me and all the ways they try to say my name.  Mrs. Cunn-i-ham, Honeyham, Cuttingham, Hammy-ham... every time there's a new one.  

Grateful... that Josh was able to install flooring at my parent's house to earn a little extra money for this month that is SO dang expensive! Way to go, babe. It looks great!!!

Loving... how cute Jack and Logan are in their new country boy looks.  Jack got a Carhart's jacket, and that, coupled with his boots, just has me swooning.  Love those two cuties.

Suddenly... feeling very (very!) cold here in central Washington when the wind sent our cold weather into negative temperatures.  It is next-level-cold.  Like "hurt your face" cold.  So miserable!!!

Noticing... what a difference a year makes while comparing our family picture from last year to the one from this year.  Logan and Jack look so much older; Wyatt's face has matured and Carly has thinned out from growing so dang much this year. Time just keeps marching by. 

Working... on Monday and Tuesday this week as the snow continued to fall and fall and fall, and feeling grateful that despite my fall on Friday last week (I fell UP the stairs. How does one even do that?!) my knee is feeling fine if a bit bruised. Phew! I really enjoyed the class I was in this week (a third grade classroom) and joked to Josh that whatever grade I'm currently teaching is my favorite. Haha! 

Waving... goodbye to Josh as he took off to Vancouver in search of a new car for his mom.  Just after he arrived there, I-84 closed and so did Hwy 14, and he was stuck.  I managed to not freak out and instead just accepted that "it is what it is", but I think that's only because I was distracted at work in a classroom full of third graders. Hah!
(He did eventually make it home, thankfully!)

Sitting... at the 'teacher' table in the staff room for the first time, and feeling like I moved from the kiddie table to the grown up table.  Haha! I even had one teacher (who I really admire) ask me why I didn't teach full time, and I was able to tell her I am getting my master's degree through GCU.  It was a really neat moment. 

Leaving... Wyatt home coughing while I worked since it wasn't asthma.  His oxygen and peak flow were both good, it was just this persistent throat clearing cough that made it impossible to send him. 

Starting... a new med routine for him after reading about something called post-viral cough.  The person talking about it said that you can get a cough that lingers after a virus for UP TO EIGHT WEEKS. What in the fresh hell?!? So I was like, okay, fine. If you are having this extra cough, I am at least going to do what I can reduce the amount of drainage back there.  So we started him on a daily allergy pill, plus two sprays in each nostril of Flonase.  And you guys!!! By Wednesday his cough was gone.  And it never came back!!! I am so excited and hopeful that this means that after Christmas break he will be able to go back to school full time!!

Loving... Carly's art in Roblox. She made a sign on the wall her Roblox house that said, "This is my happy place." I have a sign in our dining room that says, "This is our happy place." Aww!

Watching... Elf, Home Alone and National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation with the kids.  Next year I want to make sure we watch A Christmas Story with them. I don't think they've seen that one yet. 

Ordering... passports for Jack and myself at the post office.  We had to have Josh present for Jack's, but it was super seamless and not as overwhelming as I imagined.  Granted, I did have our pictures ready (we did them at Staples) and all our paperwork photocopied and ready.  We are getting pretty excited about our trip to Italy, Greece and Turkey. 

Also... getting my new license.  I'm trying to get as much crossed off my list as possible before my classes pick back up in January. 

Loving... bedtime without stress.  Yay vacation! Especially Carly likes when I linger in her room at bedtime, chatting and singing.  Knowing that no one has to wake up in the morning allows me to stay as long as she wants. 

Painting... the twins' bedroom as part of their Christmas gift of a Bedroom Makeover.  Jack and I primed it with two coats on Wednesday, then painted it with a light gray (also two coats) on Thursday.  Then we started pulling the look together.  New desk and chair, new curtains & rod, new bedding, new hooks for their jackets, new LED lights and new art for the walls.  We even surprised them with a TV for their room.  They love it, and so do I.  I'm so happy to have a space they want to spend time in here at home. 

Enjoying... bringing home fast food one night when I didn't have the strength to cook after painting.  We got everyone's favorites (Taco Bell, McDonald's and Burger King) and then we got Crumbl cookies (they're new to our town) for everybody.  We are fans!! Holy yum!

Feeling... really sad about the picture of Grandpa that my dad sent me.  In it grandpa looks so out of it, and it breaks my heart.
We also got the news that Grandpa is stopping his cancer treatment on going on hospice this week.  I know it's the right thing, but it was still really hard news to hear.  The good news is that this prompted my dad and I to plan a trip to see my grandparents after Christmas. So that will do my heart good. 

Attending... my mom's birthday party thanks to Josh who drove me when I was too nervous with questionable weather.  I had the best time- so many laughs and good memories- and it was so good to celebrate my mom with the family.  I was in charge of baking the cake, so we had to transport it over an hour on the road.  Logan was in charge of making sure it arrived in one piece.  He only slept on the job a little. hehe.  Luckily the cake made it just fine!

Hosting... my parents on Christmas Eve with just our kids, and making homemade pizza and cookies to enjoy while we watched National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation.  We were all laughing so hard!  
We were thoroughly spoiled by my parents (thank you Nanny & Papa!) and it was a top night.  
I even got our annual Christmas morning cinnamon rolls made (with a little help from Carly).  We can't wait to eat them on Christmas morning. 

***

This same time 7 years ago!
Pregnant with Carly,
living with Josh's parents,
waiting for daddy to come home from Alaska for Christmas!