{November 2-8th}
Changing... all the clocks around the house for daylight savings. I remember when this day used to be a nightmare for weeks for us. Now that the kids are older, it's more just that funny feeling of the light being wrong based on the time.
Remembering... that when I have a lot going on emotionally, it's always a good idea to get out of the house. I was able to help another shopper reach what he needed and just get a fresh perspective on things since I was out and about.
Telling... my ADHD children what the upcoming week has going on because they do better when they know what's coming. Who has appointments; what days I work; and when dad will be home.
Researching... the land under Antarctica thanks to Wyatt's curious mind. He decided to come with me to pick up Carly for some reason, and I was delighted to spend some extra time with him. Somehow that led to me teaching him about the monarchy and that the Queen of England is also over Australia. He always has me thinking & learning, that one.
Enjoying... half days Tuesday through Friday so teachers could have parent/teacher conferences. Because of the half days, it was really hard to get the boys to go to school each day, and I had some combination of kids home all week.
Attending... Carly's parent/teacher conference and feeling so proud of that little girl that I could positively burst. Her teacher said that Carly is a friend to everyone. That she is an incredible helper, but she always makes sure her own work (and needs) are met first. As a people pleaser, I love that. Learn to put your own mask on first, sister. Her teacher said that she makes sure Carly is part of the group lessons, but then she makes sure she has challenging work during small groups so she doesn't get bored. Carly is an amazing reader and does so well in math that they're starting algebra. (What!?!) I am so proud that in addition to being really smart and curious, she is also really kind and fun. Her teacher said Carly lights up the classroom and is a joy to be around. I couldn't agree more.
Visiting... the book fair after Carly's parent/teacher conference, and stocking up on books for her. She reads so fast, she inhales graphic novels at this point, and I also had her pick out a journal to tuck away for Christmas. Legitimately every time we're at the book fair it makes me wish that grown ups had book fairs. Hah! So fun!
Staying... up way too late with the kids on Tuesday night. I don't know why I do that to myself, and for the most part I have been trying not to do that. But every once in a while I just rebel and stay up regardless the consequences.
Loving... couch snuggles with Carly after school; when Josh or I load the dishwasher and it looks SO organized; and the new 7 Up Shirley Temple flavor. Yum! I am also loving the Barbies Carly has set up around her room (she's so cute- most of them are characters from K-Pop Demon Hunters) and loving how she's using the pretend phone she got at the book fair like it's real. She makes phone calls and sends texts and takes selfies... all with this plastic play phone. Her imagination is the best.
Makes me think of this quote:
"The true secret of happiness
lies in taking a genuine interest
in all the details of daily life."
-William Morris
Laughing... at Carly starting the Halloween countdown Aunt Julie made her again. I woke up November 1st and she had it reading: 364 days until Halloween. Haha!
Impressed... with my little brother Dallas' tattoos. He tattooed someone in his shop who has a large scar on their back, and the detail he was able to put on their drawing just blew me away. If you're in the Portland/Vancouver area, you should hit him up for a tattoo. Dallas Raatz at Donovan's Black Label in Vancouver.
Doing... everything as if I were in danger. I saw a post on Instagram recently that was talking about how if we continue to do everything at warp speed, our body never learns that we are safe. So I am *attempting* to slow down, but damn, old habits die hard.
Prepping... for Christmas! I cannot believe that October is over and November is upon us. In the next two weeks we will be getting our Christmas tree up and settling in for a cozy winter season!
Heading... to the hospital for an appointment to ultrasound my leg. I found a lump on the back of my calf and out of an abundance of the caution, the doctor I see said we should just get an ultrasound to be sure it's fine. Turns out it's a lipedema- just a little collection of fat cells. Phew.
Grateful... to Josh for (gently) digging up all my dahlia tubers and rinsing them. Once he was done with those two steps, I got to work cutting them apart, making sure each tuber (imagine a potato) had an eye and seemed healthy (not too dried out, nor too mushy). Then I wrap each of those individually in plastic wrap and store them in a plastic bin in the garage. Come spring we'll see how many survived. I am really praying that some of my cafe au lait has at least one tuber survive.
Pausing... every time I see or hear the geese, migrating across the sky. It is, hands down, my favorite part of fall, and it helps me accept that summer is truly over.
Hitting... Lowe's one night after dinner so that Jack can strip and sand the vanity my sister gave me for Carly. We are hoping to give it to her for Christmas since she has become so makeup obsessed as of late. I think she's going to LOVE it. And I love that Jack is willing to work on it.
Watching... I Like Me, the John Candy documentary (so good) and Dancing With The Stars, which is so entertaining. I also caught a couple episodes of Fixer Upper, which is an oldie but a goodie. I love them.
Taking... Jack to see our favorite orthodontist, which he did not want to do, but which I knew was the right thing. I knew that he would be the best person to tell us whether Jack should have oral surgery to fix his jaw and his bite to improve his sleep apnea. Sure enough, once we were in the office with Dr. Feller, we both felt completely at ease and he explained how the surgeries would help and even confided in us that he had these surgeries himself! Jack and I left feeling confident in our plan to meet with a different ENT about his tonsils being taken out and with the oral surgeon about potential jaw surgery. I think Jack will see a big difference in his quality of life when his windpipe is the size it should be. (Thank you so much, Dr. Feller, for your patience in explaining everything to us, for your honesty and for being a comforting adult that all my kids can turn to when they aren't sure what to do next. You are the best!!!)
Receiving... good news about one of our teens and feeling ELATED after weeks of what felt like bad news and hard times. Hallelujah!
Seeing... my counselor again (I see her about every two weeks) and discussing marriage. She told me the top three things couples fight about are: money, kids and sex. We don't fight about money, thankfully. But damn if we don't struggle around parenting & sex. We're getting more on the same page with parenting lately (since the children have pushed me to the end of my rope) but sex is still hard at times. Having been raised in a church that taught Purity culture, I have a lot of baggage when it comes to sex, and even twenty years into our marriage, we still don't have it all figured out. It's nice to talk to Dr. Hunter about it because I know she doesn't judge me, and she always reminds me it isn't an emergency despite it absolutely feeling like one. She suggested reading Passionate Marriage and Come As You Are. So I'll be adding those to my TBR.
Swapping... bedtime duties with Josh now that Carly and I have finished The Wolf Wilder. He will be reading the next Harry Potter to her and putting her to bed, and I'll be downstairs with the boys. I tend to wrap things up from dinner and get the boys to do their evening chores, then I read and journal. It's a nice change of pace and Carly gets to bed much earlier. (When I do her bedtime, somehow we always end up dragging it out, and it leaves us both feeling exhausted!)
Thinking... about this quote I read:
"Trauma is not what happens to you,
but what happens inside you
as a result of what happened to you."
-Gabor Mate
Learning... and feeling relieved that a secure parent/child relationship is connected and emotionally in tune only 30-50% of the time according to attachmentnerd on IG. It often feels like me and my kids are not matching energy, so to read that the goal isn't perfection was helpful and comforting. Maybe knowing that will help you, too.
Reading... Wreck, which is the sister book to Sandwich, and loving it so much. God it's just so relatable. I also finished Mrs. Dalloway (on audio) this week and started These Silent Woods, which is super good. What are you reading lately?
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| My mom found and sent me this of us camping. I love how I'm rubbing her back. |
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| She also sent me this of my fortune teller costume from fourth grade. |
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| I felt so cool! |
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| An excerpt from my first journal. I was 8 years old. I wanted to share it with my niece to encourage her to write down her feelings. Looking back at this journal is one of my favorite things. It's cracks me up! (*Dolton=Dalton, my older brother) |
