on the island:
on the floor:
on the chalkboard:
on the shelf:
on the wall:
on the couch:
(+ on the phone)
on a leash:
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
what's on today
on the table:
on the island:
on the floor:
on the chalkboard:
on the shelf:
on the wall:
on the couch:
(+ on the phone)
on a leash:
on the island:
on the floor:
on the chalkboard:
on the shelf:
on the wall:
on the couch:
(+ on the phone)
on a leash:
Monday, June 27, 2011
it's catching
Remember how I mentioned that my kids like to think they're twins all the time now?
Well, apparently it's spreading...
and we've somehow morphed into quadruplets around here...
Be forewarned... if you sleep at our house, we might all start to look the same. :)
Well, apparently it's spreading...
and we've somehow morphed into quadruplets around here...
Be forewarned... if you sleep at our house, we might all start to look the same. :)
weekend report
Let's see... how did the weekend fly by this time?
Friday evening Sawyer had a friend with a birthday pool party we went to. The kids had a blast... two diving boards and a waterslide. Need I say more? We've never had diving boards at our own pools, so while Savannah has braved the board a handful of times during swim lessons, Sawyer had never had the opportunity in his short five years. He was just the slightest bit of hesitant walking out the first time high over the water, but after that first jump, he was hooked! He probably jumped off the diving boards fifty times that night. Backwards, twists, tricks, and the works with some of his favorite friends. They were fun to watch. :)
Ryan had a friend down visiting from Chicago, staying with us all weekend, so Saturday we took him downtown and showed him around, had lunch at a nice little brewery down by the river and came home to finish out the afternoon at the pool.
Sunday morning Mr. L left super early and the rest of us were still in bed when Ryan got back from the airport. He came back to bed and we didn't wake up until about 9... Ryan was still sleeping and I heard the kids downstairs, but they were entertaining themselves so I picked up my book and we didn't actually get out of bed until 10am! So nice. :)
Needless to say, we skipped church and just had an honest day of rest. Which was nice because I feel like we've been going going going and with all the visitors we still have on tap (Laughlins this weekend, yay!!) it was nice to just have a whole day of nothing to do but relax with the family time. We did head out to the zoo for a bit because it had been a nice morning, but the rain caught up with us and we threw the towel in after an hour or so. We had a lazy afternoon just lounging around waiting for the Malones to show up... they were our final houseguests to cap off the weekend, stopping in on their way home to STL. We had a really fun night with Chinese food, some Beer Frisbee in the backyard, and lots of great stories to tell. The kids all slept great, Ryan made us all pancakes this morning and then we sent them on their way with lots of hugs goodbye.
And now we're onto another week.
How oh how do these Mondays always come so fast??!?
Friday evening Sawyer had a friend with a birthday pool party we went to. The kids had a blast... two diving boards and a waterslide. Need I say more? We've never had diving boards at our own pools, so while Savannah has braved the board a handful of times during swim lessons, Sawyer had never had the opportunity in his short five years. He was just the slightest bit of hesitant walking out the first time high over the water, but after that first jump, he was hooked! He probably jumped off the diving boards fifty times that night. Backwards, twists, tricks, and the works with some of his favorite friends. They were fun to watch. :)
Ryan had a friend down visiting from Chicago, staying with us all weekend, so Saturday we took him downtown and showed him around, had lunch at a nice little brewery down by the river and came home to finish out the afternoon at the pool.
Sunday morning Mr. L left super early and the rest of us were still in bed when Ryan got back from the airport. He came back to bed and we didn't wake up until about 9... Ryan was still sleeping and I heard the kids downstairs, but they were entertaining themselves so I picked up my book and we didn't actually get out of bed until 10am! So nice. :)
Needless to say, we skipped church and just had an honest day of rest. Which was nice because I feel like we've been going going going and with all the visitors we still have on tap (Laughlins this weekend, yay!!) it was nice to just have a whole day of nothing to do but relax with the family time. We did head out to the zoo for a bit because it had been a nice morning, but the rain caught up with us and we threw the towel in after an hour or so. We had a lazy afternoon just lounging around waiting for the Malones to show up... they were our final houseguests to cap off the weekend, stopping in on their way home to STL. We had a really fun night with Chinese food, some Beer Frisbee in the backyard, and lots of great stories to tell. The kids all slept great, Ryan made us all pancakes this morning and then we sent them on their way with lots of hugs goodbye.
And now we're onto another week.
How oh how do these Mondays always come so fast??!?
Friday, June 24, 2011
i get a headache from not being in the water for too long...
That's my five-year-old's claim.
I spent some time on the computer this morning and going thru some paperwork, then did a little laundry and remade the guest bed (for more guests tonight) and we didn't make it to the pool this morning until after 10am.
If you ask my children? Torture.
After all, they hadn't been in the water since 4pm the evening before.
How could I deprive them so?
I have to admit, it was the perfect day for a swim. Bright, sunny and hot, but not too hot, with just the hint of a breeze for Mama to sit and read poolside and not be too miserable. And surprisingly, we were the only ones at our pool for most of the three hours we were there. It was a perfectly relaxing way to spend the morning/midday.
For as much time as we spend at the pool, I realized today that I had yet to take a single picture of the kiddos down there since we moved here. Hence a few quick snaps today:
fyi: Ryan got a waterproof case for our little video camera for Father's Day and he attempted some underwater footage this past week, but since we've had some pretty good storms on and off all week, the water was really too cloudy to see very well the only time he's had in the pool. You can be sure you'll see some under water antics posted 'round these parts sooner rather than later though!
I spent some time on the computer this morning and going thru some paperwork, then did a little laundry and remade the guest bed (for more guests tonight) and we didn't make it to the pool this morning until after 10am.
If you ask my children? Torture.
After all, they hadn't been in the water since 4pm the evening before.
How could I deprive them so?
I have to admit, it was the perfect day for a swim. Bright, sunny and hot, but not too hot, with just the hint of a breeze for Mama to sit and read poolside and not be too miserable. And surprisingly, we were the only ones at our pool for most of the three hours we were there. It was a perfectly relaxing way to spend the morning/midday.
For as much time as we spend at the pool, I realized today that I had yet to take a single picture of the kiddos down there since we moved here. Hence a few quick snaps today:
fyi: Ryan got a waterproof case for our little video camera for Father's Day and he attempted some underwater footage this past week, but since we've had some pretty good storms on and off all week, the water was really too cloudy to see very well the only time he's had in the pool. You can be sure you'll see some under water antics posted 'round these parts sooner rather than later though!
thursday that felt like friday
I kept pinching myself, reminding myself that it was only Thursday yesterday. My days are all out of whack with no school... it seems especially bad this year.
To make matters worse, Ryan came home at noon yesterday to take care of a few house things (both a roofer and a delinquent moving claims adjustor) and then to come with us in the afternoon to see the kids' last day of swimming lessons. So it doubly felt like a Friday!
After swimming, we celebrated with a stroll through SuperTarget (a treat for me, since we don't have one close to us) and dinner after at Red Robin
(kids' fave)
while we waited
(and waited)
(and waited)
(and waited)
for our car's alignment/adjustment next door.
We topped the evening off by stopping over at a friends' house where they just had a tree fort built (complete with trap door) in the "forest" in their backyard and the kids ran around there for awhile while us grown ups chit-chatted.
Arriving home, we threw the kids in bed and went out to find our backdoor neighbors enjoying a beer outside and joined them in watching the sunset and cool looking clouds until it got so dark we could hardly see each other.
And then it was morning and I was really really bummed yesterday wasn't Friday like I thought. :(
To make matters worse, Ryan came home at noon yesterday to take care of a few house things (both a roofer and a delinquent moving claims adjustor) and then to come with us in the afternoon to see the kids' last day of swimming lessons. So it doubly felt like a Friday!
After swimming, we celebrated with a stroll through SuperTarget (a treat for me, since we don't have one close to us) and dinner after at Red Robin
(kids' fave)while we waited
(and waited)
(and waited)
(and waited)
for our car's alignment/adjustment next door.
We topped the evening off by stopping over at a friends' house where they just had a tree fort built (complete with trap door) in the "forest" in their backyard and the kids ran around there for awhile while us grown ups chit-chatted.
Arriving home, we threw the kids in bed and went out to find our backdoor neighbors enjoying a beer outside and joined them in watching the sunset and cool looking clouds until it got so dark we could hardly see each other.
And then it was morning and I was really really bummed yesterday wasn't Friday like I thought. :(
Tuesday, June 21, 2011
hello summer
Today, as summer starts, I am...
wearing: gray tank, teal tee, jean shorts and bare feet
playing: lots and lots of Drop7. So. Addicted. It's not even funny.
wearing: gray tank, teal tee, jean shorts and bare feet
playing: lots and lots of Drop7. So. Addicted. It's not even funny.
wanting: a baby in our house
needing: to make dentist appts for all of us
eating: no carbs. boo.
drinking: too much diet coke and not enough water
enjoying: a standing date with my book for an hour during swimming each day
not enjoying: the thunderstorms during swimming lessons every day... you know, cuz it's interrupting my book date!
daydreaming: of a nice patio to enjoy on these summer evenings
anticipating: a trip to the beach in July :)
Hello First Day of Summer...
what are you up to? :)
Monday, June 20, 2011
this is what its all about...
here's (part of) our calendar for this summer:
JUNE:
H Family staying w/us 12th-15th
M Family staying w/ us June 18th-19th
LH staying w/ us June 24th-25th
M Family staying w/ us June 25th-26th
R Family staying w/ us June 30th- July 1st
JULY:
L Family staying w/ us July 2nd-5th
[Nic and LA, I have just enough room for you to book in here somewhere?!!] ;)
G Family staying w/ us July 15th-31st
AUGUST:
B Family staying w/ us first week of August
[and then school starts August 11]
END SUMMER (boo!)
plus:
C Family staying w/ us in September, S Family coming in October, and G Family again at the end of November.
(and that' just people staying here with us. not taking into account things we're doing/places we're going!!)
Some people might think we're crazy.
(especially this summer)
But I love it. :)
I love that we have the space and the means and the desire to fill our house... to fill empty beds and empty plates and host friends and family who either need or want a place to stay with us. I love that my kids get a chance to practice hospitality (and practice and practice and practice) and what it means to serve others. I love that we get to spend time with all these people -even people we don't know all that well- and get to share even just a bit of our life with them. I love that they take time out of their busy life (or their busy vacation!) to stop and relax and be here with us for even just a meal.
I love it.
Sunday, June 19, 2011
the week end
I feel like I say this almost every week, but I honestly cannot believe it is Sunday night already! If normal weeks fly by, this one was mach speed... but also incredibly loooong at the same time. :)
We had VBS all week with all of us having to be at the church from 8 to noon every morning. And then we had swimming lessons at a private pool over in Smyrna (a 30 minute drive for us) for both kids having us out of the house from about 2:15 to 4:30 every afternoon. Bookend that with houseguests last Sunday thru Wednesday and then houseguests this weekend and you have got one tired mama! And kids.
So glad this week is (so far) more laid back!
Last weekend it was the Howards who were here visiting. LeeAnn's sister lives here in Nashville and they used our house as a crashpad. It was fun to catch up with LeeAnn... I've always been a little disappointed that we didn't become friends until just literally weeks before we left Michigan. And the fact that two of our boys are just a week apart in age... Sawyer and Lukas were fast friends this week (not having remembered each other from before). They were basically joined at the hip and there really wasn't one ounce of tension or arguing, they got along so well! And LOVED sharing a bedroom. I always think it's so funny... when we have girls over it takes hours for Savannah and her friends -or even when it's Sawyer and Lucy- to settle down and we usually end up having to move one of them to another room before they'll actually settle down and go to sleep by midnight. But every time we've had another boy stay in Sawyer's room, they are out like lights. Love it!
This weekend, the Malones made a pit stop (I'd link to their blog too, but it hasn't been touched in two years(?!) so....) for the start of their vacation. Always great to see them... the kids all had a blast and we so enjoyed our time with old friends! They came to church with us this morning and we all went out to lunch for Father's Day before they hit the road again.
After lunch (at Ryan's favorite bbq joint) and bidding the Malones adieu, we did a little Father's Day shopping to celebrate the resident father here (he's had a few things on his list from Academy Sports so we hit that up... new sunglasses, flip flops, a bike pump and a new frisbee!) and then the four of us went to see a movie (KFP2) and are following it up with a fairly early bedtime... we all need it!
All in all I'd say it was a happy day!
We had VBS all week with all of us having to be at the church from 8 to noon every morning. And then we had swimming lessons at a private pool over in Smyrna (a 30 minute drive for us) for both kids having us out of the house from about 2:15 to 4:30 every afternoon. Bookend that with houseguests last Sunday thru Wednesday and then houseguests this weekend and you have got one tired mama! And kids.
So glad this week is (so far) more laid back!
Last weekend it was the Howards who were here visiting. LeeAnn's sister lives here in Nashville and they used our house as a crashpad. It was fun to catch up with LeeAnn... I've always been a little disappointed that we didn't become friends until just literally weeks before we left Michigan. And the fact that two of our boys are just a week apart in age... Sawyer and Lukas were fast friends this week (not having remembered each other from before). They were basically joined at the hip and there really wasn't one ounce of tension or arguing, they got along so well! And LOVED sharing a bedroom. I always think it's so funny... when we have girls over it takes hours for Savannah and her friends -or even when it's Sawyer and Lucy- to settle down and we usually end up having to move one of them to another room before they'll actually settle down and go to sleep by midnight. But every time we've had another boy stay in Sawyer's room, they are out like lights. Love it!
This weekend, the Malones made a pit stop (I'd link to their blog too, but it hasn't been touched in two years(?!) so....) for the start of their vacation. Always great to see them... the kids all had a blast and we so enjoyed our time with old friends! They came to church with us this morning and we all went out to lunch for Father's Day before they hit the road again.
After lunch (at Ryan's favorite bbq joint) and bidding the Malones adieu, we did a little Father's Day shopping to celebrate the resident father here (he's had a few things on his list from Academy Sports so we hit that up... new sunglasses, flip flops, a bike pump and a new frisbee!) and then the four of us went to see a movie (KFP2) and are following it up with a fairly early bedtime... we all need it!
All in all I'd say it was a happy day!
Friday, June 17, 2011
Sunday, June 12, 2011
i will paint anything
Eventually the day has to come where I'm not constantly in the middle of a project, right?
The thought occurred to me today that if there weren't a painting project going on around here, my kids might not know who's house they were in...
I bought 6 cans of spray paint today.
We'll see what happens. ;)
The thought occurred to me today that if there weren't a painting project going on around here, my kids might not know who's house they were in...
I bought 6 cans of spray paint today.
We'll see what happens. ;)
Friday, June 10, 2011
looks like it was a good night
You know you're a blogger when you take pictures of your garbage can contents at the end of the evening ...
(and no, we don't have glass recycling service here... so annoying! especially coming from where we come from!)
We had new neighbors move in behind us and just met them yesterday. They joined us this evening for dinner and stayed for some great get to know you convo and a few drinks and games of pool. Fabulous company.
It helps that they're the only other people we've met in our immediate neighborhood under the age of 50.
And that they're a pretty cool couple.
Also nice that they like to play games.
And enjoy a few drinks with us as is apparent by the above image.
Let's just say I can already tell morning is going to come too soon...
Super fun night though. Seriously enjoyed the company. So fun to be talking over the fence again and having friends just able to walk around the corner to head home. :)
(and no, we don't have glass recycling service here... so annoying! especially coming from where we come from!)
We had new neighbors move in behind us and just met them yesterday. They joined us this evening for dinner and stayed for some great get to know you convo and a few drinks and games of pool. Fabulous company.
It helps that they're the only other people we've met in our immediate neighborhood under the age of 50.
And that they're a pretty cool couple.
Also nice that they like to play games.
And enjoy a few drinks with us as is apparent by the above image.
Let's just say I can already tell morning is going to come too soon...
Super fun night though. Seriously enjoyed the company. So fun to be talking over the fence again and having friends just able to walk around the corner to head home. :)
friday drive by
Bullets real quick like--
- I'm having a hard time with the fact that it's Friday already. I mean on one hand, I've thought each of the past three days have been Friday (I'm lost without a school schedule to keep my on track!), so it's about time it really got here. But on the other hand, our week has been packed full of so much miscellany -and our weekend's got more of the same- it seemed to fly by. Glad it is Friday though.
- Playroom is officially finished. All I need to do is throw a fresh coat of paint on the built-ins (someday) and to go buy the fabric for the window treatments (already picked out). Yay! I believe that completes the entire first floor (well, minus the laundry
closetroom, but that's always closed off anyway. i do have plans to get to that too though. someday). so nice to make this house ours! - I've been a little spray paint crazy lately. Don't sit still too long around here or you might get a coat yourself. Chalkboard paint (to match our new chalkboard wall) is the flavor of choice lately. :) I'll share some projects soon!
- I lost 7 pounds this past week (since last Thursday). So encouraging!!
- Although we baked cookies today, so we'll see how my willpower holds up to the test.
- This weekend kicks off our summer of visitors... LeeAnn and fam arrive on Sunday for a mini vaycay and to see her sister who lives here in Nashville as well, and we are providing room and board :). Really looking forward to seeing everyone!
- Got to spend the day working with one of my favorite new friends here preparing for VBS next week. So glad to be working with her and excited for the week ahead!
- Did I mention I'm glad it's Friday?!?
Tuesday, June 7, 2011
these kids today
~These kids of mine like to match and dress up as twins as often as possibly lately. Which gets a little tricky when you're talking about a boy and a girl. Especially a girl who likes the color purple. ;)
They often pull it off nicely though... here are my "twins" today:
~These kids will never tire of Hide and Seek. I thought it was a phase... oh about two years ago. And they're still at it. They've formed all sorts of new versions along the way. This morning they used a Magnadoodle and made a map of the house and the Seeker got to have three rooms marked off where the Hider would not go. Then later they drew a map of each room they were going to hide in and drew all the furniture and such in the room except for whatever they were going to hide in/around/behind/under and the Seeker had to try and figure out what was missing and hence, where the Hider was. Then they started hiding a penny... considerately marking the map as to which room the penny was in.
I am not exaggerating when I say that they played Hide and Seek all. morning. long. Just the two of them.
~These kids are obsessed with fire right now. There was a big house fire about a mile from our house this past weekend (this family lived there*), just down the street from our good friends... who we were joining for dinner that same afternoon... which meant driving right through the neighborhood just a couple of hours into the ordeal. News crews, police, firetrucks, lights, barracades, the works. And our friends knew the kids from that house, the whole neighborhood was smokey and stinky and so of course it was a big topic of conversation all night.
So the kids have been playing fire, saving their stuffed animals, making emergency plans, and just asking and talking about a lot of that stuff in general this week. Not stuff I really like thinking about, but hey, at least they're more in the "let's be prepared" camp than the worried or frightened of a house fire place they could be.
~These kids are getting along pretty well in general as of late. Except when they're not. And then it's pretty ugly. Ironically enough, it's the older one who's having more of a problem. I guess she's always been the more dramatic, emotional one, where Sawyer is just kind of laid back and lets things roll off his back. But I'm kinda sick of my eight year old being the one hitting and pinching and hurting her little brother in almost every altercation. Seriously? You're eight. You didn't do that when you were two thru eight so why now??
~These kids are doing awesome at helping out with house stuff since school's been out. They've been doing their jobs without complaining and keeping their bedrooms cleaned up and helping with lots of extras. Here's hoping that lasts the whole summer!!
*I'm embarrassed to admit that when we heard who's house it was, I had to ask who Trace Adkins was. I mean, I knew I knew the name, but I couldn't tell you if he was a sports guy or a movie guy or a music guy or a even politician. Is it sad that I live in not only Music City, but basically Country Music City and I didn't know this guy was a country music star? Hmmm... listen to country much? Not if I can help it.
They often pull it off nicely though... here are my "twins" today:
~These kids will never tire of Hide and Seek. I thought it was a phase... oh about two years ago. And they're still at it. They've formed all sorts of new versions along the way. This morning they used a Magnadoodle and made a map of the house and the Seeker got to have three rooms marked off where the Hider would not go. Then later they drew a map of each room they were going to hide in and drew all the furniture and such in the room except for whatever they were going to hide in/around/behind/under and the Seeker had to try and figure out what was missing and hence, where the Hider was. Then they started hiding a penny... considerately marking the map as to which room the penny was in.
I am not exaggerating when I say that they played Hide and Seek all. morning. long. Just the two of them.
~These kids are obsessed with fire right now. There was a big house fire about a mile from our house this past weekend (this family lived there*), just down the street from our good friends... who we were joining for dinner that same afternoon... which meant driving right through the neighborhood just a couple of hours into the ordeal. News crews, police, firetrucks, lights, barracades, the works. And our friends knew the kids from that house, the whole neighborhood was smokey and stinky and so of course it was a big topic of conversation all night.
So the kids have been playing fire, saving their stuffed animals, making emergency plans, and just asking and talking about a lot of that stuff in general this week. Not stuff I really like thinking about, but hey, at least they're more in the "let's be prepared" camp than the worried or frightened of a house fire place they could be.
~These kids are getting along pretty well in general as of late. Except when they're not. And then it's pretty ugly. Ironically enough, it's the older one who's having more of a problem. I guess she's always been the more dramatic, emotional one, where Sawyer is just kind of laid back and lets things roll off his back. But I'm kinda sick of my eight year old being the one hitting and pinching and hurting her little brother in almost every altercation. Seriously? You're eight. You didn't do that when you were two thru eight so why now??
~These kids are doing awesome at helping out with house stuff since school's been out. They've been doing their jobs without complaining and keeping their bedrooms cleaned up and helping with lots of extras. Here's hoping that lasts the whole summer!!
*I'm embarrassed to admit that when we heard who's house it was, I had to ask who Trace Adkins was. I mean, I knew I knew the name, but I couldn't tell you if he was a sports guy or a movie guy or a music guy or a even politician. Is it sad that I live in not only Music City, but basically Country Music City and I didn't know this guy was a country music star? Hmmm... listen to country much? Not if I can help it.
Monday, June 6, 2011
monday monday
The first crazy, lazy, went-way-too-fast weekend of the summer has already come and gone.
Friday we met up with the Daniels family and Scott and Ryan after work and took in a Nashville Sounds game, complete with hot dogs and fireworks.
Saturday's happenings included some pool time, some late spring cleaningish housekeeping, some grilling with friends, basketball on the driveway until it got too dark, followed by ice cream pie. Yum.
Sunday was church, out for lunch, more housekeeping and a movie night.
And here we are at Monday again.
The kids and I hit the library this morning, ran a couple of other errands, came home and decorated new library book bags, and have been moving furniture and prepping the playroom for new paint job this evening (finally!!). Excited for another chalkboard wall! :)
Maybe now that the whole main floor of our house is "done" I'll get around to posting pictures. Maybe. ;)
In the meantime, here's a snap of the kids and the book bags they painted today...
Is it strange that the contents of my daughters bag make me a little sad? All chapter books all the time. What happened to my baby??
Friday we met up with the Daniels family and Scott and Ryan after work and took in a Nashville Sounds game, complete with hot dogs and fireworks.
Saturday's happenings included some pool time, some late spring cleaningish housekeeping, some grilling with friends, basketball on the driveway until it got too dark, followed by ice cream pie. Yum.
Sunday was church, out for lunch, more housekeeping and a movie night.
And here we are at Monday again.
The kids and I hit the library this morning, ran a couple of other errands, came home and decorated new library book bags, and have been moving furniture and prepping the playroom for new paint job this evening (finally!!). Excited for another chalkboard wall! :)
Maybe now that the whole main floor of our house is "done" I'll get around to posting pictures. Maybe. ;)
In the meantime, here's a snap of the kids and the book bags they painted today...
Is it strange that the contents of my daughters bag make me a little sad? All chapter books all the time. What happened to my baby??
Thursday, June 2, 2011
as summer begins
There is not going to be any "Summer of Fun" around here.
You won't find Memory Making or Vacationing or Soaking Up All the Sunshine We Can on the top of our priority list this year.
My single main objective for our summer break this year?
Building a better family.
Hopefully all those other things will still be obtained along the way, but my one big goal for this summer is bonding and building up our family.
Honestly, I feel like we've really fallen apart this past year.
With the time in limbo we spent last year and then the quick-as-lightening move and being thrust full-speed into the school year and all it's busyness and then easily getting lost in the momentum of the holidays and then hello it was all of a sudden spring time already around here... we've been here for a whole school year now (and it still REALLY does not feel like that long) and it's time to really collect ourselves as a family. To relearn how to love each other best, to develop true unity and to shape this life together in our new home the way we want it to go forward from here.
The next couple of months, it's going to look a little like boot camp around here, I'm afraid. A fun, summer boot camp I hope, but a boot camp nonetheless.
Kids are going to relearn respect, obedience and responsibility when it comes to the parents, each other and our things.
Grown-ups are going to relearn respect, patience and a 'lead by example' mantra when it comes to the kids.
A lot of the tones and the attitudes in this house have gone -or I feel are on their way to going- way downhill and I need to stop that train before it runs away.
Part of it is, I think, never having really regrouped from the crazy year we had getting here and getting "settled". Part of it is just kids getting older. Part of it is my depression and struggles this past winter/spring and part of it is Ryan having to spend more time and more stress at work.
But whatever it is, I want to use this summer break... this time of having our kids home and to ourselves without as much influence of the "outside world", this time of togetherness... to pull everybody back in, remind ourselves that we're all on the same team, that our job as a family is to back each other and uplift each other, to enjoy life together and to be the family God wants us to be.
I want to spend the summer soaking in that and be ready in the fall to go back out "into the world" not only refreshed and recharged, but that our relationships with each other within our family might make a difference in the way we live our lives.
I want my kids to go to school together in the fall and be each others' allies, not be against each other. To be a source of confidence and strength for each other. I want for them the ability to never doubt for a second that their sibling is on their side, no matter what. To be proud to say to their friends "yep, that's my brother/sister!" (okay, this all might be a stretch in reality, but I know we can at least make a little nudge to going that way!)
I want to spend the next 10 weeks bonding these kids to us as their parents, loving them and building them up, binding our relationship so that when Fall comes and they're off to school and in the midst of their friends and other influences during the week, that our ties are strong and their security is steadfast.
I want them to see and know -to feel firsthand- that family fills them up, builds them up, and holds them up better than friends.
And I want to be as ready as we can be and have the strongest base we can have as a family as we step out waiting for whoever or whatever the Lord has in store for us in the future as far as Foster Care or adopting more kids.
I grew up in a family where everyone often spoke to and treated each other in ways they wouldn't be caught dead treating friends or others outside the family. Respect and love and comradery would not be things that stood out to you in our home when I was young.
I want different things for this family. I want us to truly be each others best friends.
Don't worry, I'm not in dreamland; I know it's not all going to be peaches and cream and perfect harmony forevermore. But I just can't help thinking that if we put in the work and lay a good foundation...
It can only get better.
I believe that every day of this summer can be an adventure with these children of mine. I need to thank God for trusting them to me and I'm praying that each day would be one that I would embrace as a time to love and to teach. To listen to them and take the time to look into their eyes. That I would not seek to just please myself and take each moment I can to sneak off to do my own thing... but that I would use those moments to talk to my kids, to really be with them, teaching them, enjoying them. I'm fervently praying that the Lord will bless this summer- that He would help me to respond to my children in the right way; how to grow them and stretch them and have fun with them... and to enjoy each moment. To savor this time and to be thankful in all things. To be raising this family to honor Him.
I don't have a concrete plan yet for what this all looks like other than lots of prayer.
I do know it means more intention, more engaging, more quality time, more consequences, more practice, more of a schedule, more chore charts, and also hopefully more fun.
And it definitely means less TV and less computer time.
And by the way, any experiences, tangible ideas or resources that would help promote any of this agenda would be greatly appreciated!
You won't find Memory Making or Vacationing or Soaking Up All the Sunshine We Can on the top of our priority list this year.
My single main objective for our summer break this year?
Building a better family.
Hopefully all those other things will still be obtained along the way, but my one big goal for this summer is bonding and building up our family.
Honestly, I feel like we've really fallen apart this past year.
With the time in limbo we spent last year and then the quick-as-lightening move and being thrust full-speed into the school year and all it's busyness and then easily getting lost in the momentum of the holidays and then hello it was all of a sudden spring time already around here... we've been here for a whole school year now (and it still REALLY does not feel like that long) and it's time to really collect ourselves as a family. To relearn how to love each other best, to develop true unity and to shape this life together in our new home the way we want it to go forward from here.
The next couple of months, it's going to look a little like boot camp around here, I'm afraid. A fun, summer boot camp I hope, but a boot camp nonetheless.
Kids are going to relearn respect, obedience and responsibility when it comes to the parents, each other and our things.
Grown-ups are going to relearn respect, patience and a 'lead by example' mantra when it comes to the kids.
A lot of the tones and the attitudes in this house have gone -or I feel are on their way to going- way downhill and I need to stop that train before it runs away.
Part of it is, I think, never having really regrouped from the crazy year we had getting here and getting "settled". Part of it is just kids getting older. Part of it is my depression and struggles this past winter/spring and part of it is Ryan having to spend more time and more stress at work.
But whatever it is, I want to use this summer break... this time of having our kids home and to ourselves without as much influence of the "outside world", this time of togetherness... to pull everybody back in, remind ourselves that we're all on the same team, that our job as a family is to back each other and uplift each other, to enjoy life together and to be the family God wants us to be.
I want to spend the summer soaking in that and be ready in the fall to go back out "into the world" not only refreshed and recharged, but that our relationships with each other within our family might make a difference in the way we live our lives.
I want my kids to go to school together in the fall and be each others' allies, not be against each other. To be a source of confidence and strength for each other. I want for them the ability to never doubt for a second that their sibling is on their side, no matter what. To be proud to say to their friends "yep, that's my brother/sister!" (okay, this all might be a stretch in reality, but I know we can at least make a little nudge to going that way!)
I want to spend the next 10 weeks bonding these kids to us as their parents, loving them and building them up, binding our relationship so that when Fall comes and they're off to school and in the midst of their friends and other influences during the week, that our ties are strong and their security is steadfast.
I want them to see and know -to feel firsthand- that family fills them up, builds them up, and holds them up better than friends.
And I want to be as ready as we can be and have the strongest base we can have as a family as we step out waiting for whoever or whatever the Lord has in store for us in the future as far as Foster Care or adopting more kids.
I grew up in a family where everyone often spoke to and treated each other in ways they wouldn't be caught dead treating friends or others outside the family. Respect and love and comradery would not be things that stood out to you in our home when I was young.
I want different things for this family. I want us to truly be each others best friends.
Don't worry, I'm not in dreamland; I know it's not all going to be peaches and cream and perfect harmony forevermore. But I just can't help thinking that if we put in the work and lay a good foundation...
It can only get better.
I believe that every day of this summer can be an adventure with these children of mine. I need to thank God for trusting them to me and I'm praying that each day would be one that I would embrace as a time to love and to teach. To listen to them and take the time to look into their eyes. That I would not seek to just please myself and take each moment I can to sneak off to do my own thing... but that I would use those moments to talk to my kids, to really be with them, teaching them, enjoying them. I'm fervently praying that the Lord will bless this summer- that He would help me to respond to my children in the right way; how to grow them and stretch them and have fun with them... and to enjoy each moment. To savor this time and to be thankful in all things. To be raising this family to honor Him.
I don't have a concrete plan yet for what this all looks like other than lots of prayer.
I do know it means more intention, more engaging, more quality time, more consequences, more practice, more of a schedule, more chore charts, and also hopefully more fun.
And it definitely means less TV and less computer time.
And by the way, any experiences, tangible ideas or resources that would help promote any of this agenda would be greatly appreciated!
Wednesday, June 1, 2011
and she's no longer a second grader
Our second "graduation" this year;
Savannah is officially done with the 2nd Grade.
We had our ups and downs and I'd say she's no longer in the LOVE school phase, with a few trial runs of "I think I'm too sick to go to school today", but overall it was a good year.
Mrs. K was a fabulous teacher who helped tremendously to make us feel at home and I believe Savannah was truly blessed to end up in the classroom she was in.
I hope we are so lucky next year.
Savannah is officially done with the 2nd Grade.
We had our ups and downs and I'd say she's no longer in the LOVE school phase, with a few trial runs of "I think I'm too sick to go to school today", but overall it was a good year.
Mrs. K was a fabulous teacher who helped tremendously to make us feel at home and I believe Savannah was truly blessed to end up in the classroom she was in.
I hope we are so lucky next year.
summer's here
It's the very last day of school and looking at the calendar I'm getting a little anxious about our summer filling up so fast!...
Finishing up our Upwards camps, swimming lessons and VBS all in the next three weeks.
Already expecting at least two houseguests (taking up three weekends) in the month of June plus we're really trying to get a camping trip (or two) planned, my parents here in July followed by a week on the East Coast, and then no real plans for August yet, but school starts just two weeks in so it's pretty much a given that that'll be crazy.
Hold on to your hats, it's shaping up to be a busy (and fast, I'm sure!) summer!
Finishing up our Upwards camps, swimming lessons and VBS all in the next three weeks.
Already expecting at least two houseguests (taking up three weekends) in the month of June plus we're really trying to get a camping trip (or two) planned, my parents here in July followed by a week on the East Coast, and then no real plans for August yet, but school starts just two weeks in so it's pretty much a given that that'll be crazy.
Hold on to your hats, it's shaping up to be a busy (and fast, I'm sure!) summer!
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