Goodbye, 2019!

Goodbye, 2019! You've been good to us.

Welcome, 2020!

"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone the new is here!" (2 Corinthians 5:17)

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas, friends!

"Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord." (Luke 2:11)

December: Part I

Well, I did NOT mean for 23 days of December to pass before posting here. I feel like our month can be summed up with photographs, so I'm going to use my calendar and my phone pictures to show you what we've been up to.

But first, I promised you the "before" picture of our bedroom:

I realize it's not that terrible, but who doesn't love a "before and after?"

The children always love when I pull out the seasonal toys (Sydney is playing Santa, the others are reindeer):

It also means I find all kinds of pictures like this on my phone:

Sydney, Lorelei, and Ford all started playing basketball in December. This has added 2-3 practices/games per week to our schedule, which was for some reason news to me:

Ford is #1, and #7 to the right of him is the reason his team wins all their games, ha!

The (posed) picture of Sydney and Lorelei in their uniforms refuses download, which must be the Lord's way of telling me to leave it well enough alone and go downstairs to watch "NCIS" with Chet.

Happy Christmas Eve eve!

Goodbye, November!

This has been a truly lovely and enjoyable November.

Christmas feels like it will arrive sooner than it normally does, what with Thanksgiving being so late this year, but that's okay.

Speaking of Christmas, we were caught unawares by Santa at Lowe's yesterday (we left the house around 10 a.m., hoping most of the crowds had dispersed):

Had I known in advance we were going to be photographed at Lowe's, I probably would have made the children change clothes. However, I'm glad I didn't know, because that's an accurate picture of how we normally look: a little strange (HA!).

And, no, those Santa hats and reindeer antlers were NOT props provided for the picture by the good people at Lowe's. They were accessories thoughtfully chosen at home and purposely worn out into public by my children, who are experts at keeping me humble.

On to December!

Literal Children

The children came downstairs dressed like this today:

I thought they might have chosen to dress as ninjas this morning, but they informed me their outfits were in honor of Black Friday.

They are nothing if not committed.

A Cozy Home and an Easy Meal

Happy Thanksgiving!

I forgot to post yesterday, but I was (am) VERY thankful for our cozy home, including this Thanksgiving corner that is already looking like Christmas, less than 24 hours later:

This year it was just the six of us for Thanksgiving, and we decided to order a complete Thanksgiving meal from Cracker Barrel. I ordered it online, chose a pick-up time, drove to the back of the restaurant thanks to several clearly-marked signs pointing me toward the Thanksgiving meal pick-up, and someone loaded it into my car:

All I had to do today was follow the included official Cracker Barrel heating instructions and voila! No shopping for food, no cooking (therefore no dirtying what always feels like hundreds of measuring spoons and measuring cups), and hardly any dishes.

So thank you, Cracker Barrel. From the bottom of my heart.

Indoor Days

Today we had a lazy, indoor day (until we had to leave the house for gymnastics this afternoon). The weather was gloomy, the children were happy playing Legos on the living room floor, and I started to put out some Christmas decorations (there is currently a strange mixture of Thanksgiving and Christmas decor in the house).

We don't have any obligations until Sunday, so I'm going to enjoy every moment, and do my best to relax (something I'm not good at, ha!).

Opportunities to Serve and Carpooling

Yesterday (Sunday) we attended a birthday party at an indoor trampoline park. It was a 5th birthday party for our friends' daughter (the mom is currently deployed). Near the end of the party, the birthday girl slipped on the floor and busted open her chin. Our friend, obviously, needed to take his daughter to the emergency room, and we offered to bring the birthday girl's older sister home with us (both girls are friends with our kids and are comfortable at our house).

It was the very least we could do, bringing big sister home with us, and it made the ER visit MUCH simpler for our friend.

I'm thankful for opportunities to serve, and for our children to learn that service can take pretty much any form.

Speaking of service, today I am thankful for carpooling. Sydney and Lorelei on are the same basketball team as their friend down the street, and the friend's mom took Sydney and Lorelei with them to tonight's practice. That is all: I am thankful that tonight my neighbor was willing to drive the carpool.

Happy Monday!

Babysitters and Grammar

Oops, I didn't post yesterday!

Last night we hired a babysitter and went on a double date with Chet's parents to a restaurant we love. Babysitters are the best. I always want to give them $200 because I'm just so thankful they took care of our children for us for a couple of hours.

Ruthie has SUCH bad grammar, but I love it (I would have FREAKED OUT if first-born Sydney's grammar had been as bad). She asked me a few minutes ago, "Why do Daddy sometimes wear him clothes to bed tonight?" WHAT?!

Earlier this evening, while the other children watched a movie Ruthie wasn't interested in, she was playing upstairs, managing her baby dolls and no doubt using a whole package of real baby wipes on her fake babies (as long as it makes her happy, FINE). She came downstairs and asked me, "Can I have a couple tissues? A LOT of tissues. But not ALL of them, just a little bit, but a LITTLE bit a lot. Some. But A LOT."

Go for it, Sister.

Volunteers

I didn't track down that scary "before" picture of our bedroom yet. Soon!

Today I'm thankful for volunteers. I believe I've mentioned Sydney, Lorelei, and Ford are playing basketball this season. I'm not sure yet if Ford's age group does official teams, or if they will just divide the children into teams on game days. I'll keep you posted.

Sydney and Lorelei ARE on official teams, and are (thankfully) on the same team. Their friend from down the street is also on their team (woo hoo for carpooling!), and they are the Spartans.

Sydney's and Lorelei's coaches are a husband/wife pair whose granddaughter plays on the team. They seem to be really good at explaining things to all the girls, and they are SO kind. I'm just thankful that there are people in our community who volunteer their time and talents so that my children can have a positive sports experience.

On to Friday, friends!

Clean Rooms

We have family in town today (Chet's parents!), and they are sleeping in our bedroom while they're here. There is more room for suitcases in our bedroom, AND it means they get their own bathroom (because sharing a bathroom with a 9-, 8-, 5-, and 3-year old is gross).

Because guests are sleeping in our bedroom, it's never been cleaner:

Our bedroom is humongous; I would have rather them given more square footage to the closet and bathroom, but that's okay.

I thought I had a terrifying "before" picture that I took a few months ago when this room was in transition, but I can't find it. I'll look for it and post it later!

Happy Wednesday!

No Frills

Or, at least, very few frills.

Today I'm thankful for our last homeschool group meeting for the year, and that it was a beautifully simple affair.

We learned, we worked, we celebrated, and now we rest.

That is all. Like I said...time to rest.

Canvas

I'll post the picture I wanted to a few days ago when my pictures wouldn't load properly:

I bought this canvas recently from Lindsay Letters, and LOVE IT SO MUCH. I've been wanting to purchase something from her shop for at least a year, and I finally found the perfect item. "O Holy Night" is my favorite Christmas song for sure, but also a song that fills me with hope any day of the year.

I have a feeling I'll leave this canvas up all year long at our house. I'm so thankful for talented people who create beautiful art.

A (Mostly) Lovely View and Team Effort

I meant to post last night (Saturday), but I ran over to my neighbor's house "real quick" to get Lorelei,  and then Chet and the other kids ended up joining us and we all ended up coming home at midnight, so... (Those are our favorite kind of neighbors though.)

Yesterday morning I went for a long (cold) training run, and I had a lovely view:

I almost cropped the random orange cone and drainage pipe out of the picture, but this is a perfect representation of south Mississippi: beautiful, but also a little bit hillbilly.

This evening Chet, the kids, and I all banded together and "tidied the house." It wasn't TOO messy, but we had a full weekend and things weren't exactly where they were supposed to be. And I don't like waking up Monday morning to chaos (although it happens sometimes). (Let's all agree that probably no one likes waking up Monday morning to chaos.)

Lest you think we were all singing "Heigh ho, heigh ho, it's off to work we go!" as we worked harmoniously...no. Everyone kept their cool, but there were some close calls. But I am still thankful for the opportunity to train our children, working together toward a common goal, and a tidy home when it's all over.

Happy Sunday, friends!

O.C.C.

I posted this on Instagram, but Sydney, Lorelei, Ford, and I went to Target this morning to fill our four Operation Christmas Child boxes.

Ruthie stayed with a babysitter, which may be the smartest decision I've ever made.

The kids were VERY excited to choose things to put in the boxes, but I had to remind them several times to please stop talking all at once and asking "What about this?!" about EVERYTHING IN THE STORE.

It was a tad bit overwhelming (for me).

In addition to leaving Ruthie with a babysitter, I'm also glad I chose a weekday morning to run the errand. We don't normally go to the store on weekdays during school hours, but I knew it would be WAY too crazy to navigate a place like Target on a Saturday, and with such a specific shopping list to follow.

I love any opportunity that helps teach our privileged children that the world is so much bigger than the one they know. They get a taste of that as military kids, but there's still so much they have no idea about. So I'm thankful for service opportunities like Operation Christmas Child to help them learn, a little bit at a time.

Funny Kids

I'm thankful for the comic relief kids provide, especially in this midst of this oftentimes overwhelming season of life.

Ruthie loves playing with stuffed animals, and will often bring one to me and say something like, "This is my puppy, and he's very soft, but he bites."

Earlier I told Ford to relax, and he said he could only relax when he has a glass of lemonade.

Sydney and Lorelei are also funny, but more intentionally so at ages 9 and 8. I can't think of anything they've said recently (sorry!), but we find ourselves laughing at the same things together, and I love that.

I hope you were able to chuckle about something today! Happy Thursday!

Friends-Who-Are-Like-Family

I was going to be thankful for some of my plants and a new canvas I bought, but for some reason my pictures aren't downloading as quickly as I think they should, so I'll be thankful for something else today.

One of the biggest joys and privileges of being a Navy family is the friends-who-are-like-family that we've met. We've acquired more than what feels like our fair share, and I'm EXTREMELY thankful.

Our next-door neighbors in California fall into this category. They also moved to the Gulf coast (Florida) this past summer and I'm delighted that we've already seen them a handful of times in just a few months.

This past weekend we spent Saturday night in Pensacola to visit them and to celebrate our friend's Navy promotion. The children played together as if they still lived next door to each other (Sydney and Lorelei even spent the night to prolong the fun).

Friends-who-are-like-family are truly a gift.

New Mercies

Lamentations 3:22-23 says:

"Because of the Lord's great love we are not consumed,
for his compassions never fail.
They are new every morning;
great is your faithfulness."

Today I am thankful that each morning we wake up to a new day, full of the Lord's mercies.

Yesterday (Monday) evening some of our children went to bed disgruntled (and so did their mom).

I'm thankful we woke up to a fresh Tuesday, went to school and gymnastics, and now everyone is in bed, less disgruntled than yesterday.

We have much to be thankful for.

Happy Veterans Day!

It's Veterans Day, so I'm thankful for our country's veterans!

Here is a picture of Chet and Lorelei last month, when they attended the commissioning of the U.S.S. Cincinnati.

I don't currently have the patience to search for any more Veterans Day-appropriate pictures, but a HUGE thankful to all those who have served (my dad and stepdad included), and continue to serve.

Dishwashers and Health

I went to bed last night feeling like I was forgetting something -- posting on the blog!

Yesterday I was thankful for (Navy) base living, because a maintenance company handles our needs (much like an apartment complex). We'd been having dishwasher problems, so they ordered us a new one and installed it yesterday. We can give the company permission to enter our homes and complete maintenance if we're away (which we do), so even better that the dishwasher was installed while the kids and I were at Walmart picking up groceries. It was like magic (the newly-installed dishwasher AND the grocery pickup, ha!).

Today I'm thankful for our general health, even though Ruthie has been sick today.

She threw up a couple of times this morning and has been on the couch sleeping pretty much all day. It's easy to feel down and frustrated when your child is sick, but it's important (for me) to remember that there are other children and families struggling with much more serious illnesses.

I hope your Friday was lovely -- I'll not be posting tomorrow (Saturday), but should be back Sunday!

Play

I snapped this picture this morning:

Apparently all of Ruthie's stuffed animals were having a morning meeting.

I've minimized our home enough (including the kids' toys) that even if there's a "huge" mess (for the record, the picture above is NOT what I consider a huge mess, ha!), it can be cleaned up quickly, especially when everyone pitches in.

I've been better lately about not stressing over intricate toy scenes staged around our home, because it means they're using their creative little minds to play (and usually together). (Emphasis on BETTER; I'm still a recovering perfectionist.)

I suppose this means I'm thankful for my quest for minimalism, but more so for the creative play that happens in our home each and every day.

Lorelei, Ford, Ruthie

Our homeschool group meets Tuesdays, and this year (4th grade) Sydney started the afternoon language arts program (English grammar and writing) that goes along with our curriculum. This means that after lunch Sydney and I go to class while Lorelei, Ford, and Ruthie go to the childcare room from 1:00 p.m. until 3:00 p.m.

Normally there are other younger siblings with them in the childcare room and a teenaged sibling that cares for all the children. Today the teenaged sibling couldn't be there, and the other families with younger siblings were able to make other arrangements...leaving Lorelei, Ford, and Ruthie the only ones ones in need of someone to watch them.

Thankfully the iPad was in the car with a couple of movies downloaded onto it. My kids usually wander off in the middle of the movie to do something else, and they did that today too, but overall  they played very nicely together and didn't need me for anything (I checked on them from our classroom two doors down every 15 minutes or so, and Ruthie came in a couple of times to sit on my lap).

Good job, kiddos!

Everything?

Whew. It's been a DAY. Lots of school work accomplished (with Ruthie at the babysitter's house), basketball "tryouts" (not sure why they use that term since everyone is put on a team) for Sydney and Lorelei this evening, and children (and parents) who are still not used to the time change and are at the ends of their ropes come bedtime.

Yet...I am still thankful. I'm thankful for Domino's Pizza for dinner tonight, and for the washing machine and dryer that do my laundry for me (there are currently several unwashed piles waiting patiently for their turns in the machines), and for Ford -- who should be in bed -- asking me deep questions such as, "But WHY is there no very last number? I DON'T GET IT!"

Happy Monday, friends.

Running

(I'm posting this just under the wire -- eek!)

I'm thankful for a body that has the ability to run. I'm training to run a half marathon in mid-December, and I completed a 7-mile run this morning before church (thanks to the time change!).

That was the very shortest thing I could think of to post about before falling into bed (ha!).

Hope everyone had a lovely Sunday!

Soccer

Today I'm thankful for Sydney's soccer league. Sydney plays through a program called i9 Sports, and while it it not a perfect program, it is currently perfect for us.

Like most American parents, I have to fight against the urge to make sure my kids are ALWAYS EXCELLING (!!!) at whatever they participate in. Part of that is due to my (sometimes overbearing) personality, but it's also most definitely an American problem.

This sports program has allowed Sydney to have fun playing soccer without it taking over our lives. Is she getting the very best coaching the state of Mississippis has to offer? No. Does she NEED the very best coaching the state of Mississippi has to offer? Nope. Is it far more important for her mother to be nice and calm because she has a manageable schedule? YES.

Despite touting all this wisdom about youth sports, I still have to remind myself almost daily that it really is okay if there are better programs out there that we're not participating in. Again, this is mostly a (my) personality problem. So in addition to being thankful for i9 Sports, I'm also thankful I have a healthy family and that we live in a country where worrying about soccer programs is a thing. Lord, help me keep things in perspective.

Happy Saturday!

A Season of Thanksgiving

September flew by, but October came and went in the blink of an eye.

I've claimed for years that October is my favorite month, but I think November is actually my new favorite. I won't go on and on about how I'm a Halloween grinch like I usually do (you can read all about that HERE and HERE), but I AM thankful the best day of the year (November 1st) has arrived!

I've done it before, often halfheartedly (not on purpose!), but I'm going to strive to post each day in November, focusing on thankfulness. I almost talked myself out of writing a blog post this morning, but persevered, and I even updated the blog background and my "recently read" book list on the sidebar!

This first day of November I'm thankful for a safe neighborhood where our children can trick-or-treat, and I'm equally thankful that I was finally allowed to throw away all the fake spiderwebs on our bushes after the kids were in bed last night. Here are pictures of our Halloween decorations, as well as the kids in their costumes (Sydney was a ninja; Lorelei was Harry Potter; Ford was quidditch-playing Harry Potter; Ruthie was a monkey -- it was cold and windy last night!).

Happy November 1st!

Flying through September!

It's September 19th -- WHY NOT WRITE A BLOG POST?!

First of all, let me express how glad I am that we're more than halfway through September. August felt like it was 65 days long this year, and I've mentioned before how August is a tough month for me (sorry, Aunt Shannon -- it's just SO HOT!). Even though September isn't really any cooler, I'm filled with hope that fall-ish weather IS actually coming.

I also need to quickly recap, for myself, that I didn't post a single thing on the blog the month of May, June, or August. Now I'm going to remind myself that that's okay, because we moved our family of six from California to Mississippi this summer, and things I want to do may have to wait a little while due to readjustment and settling in.

Speaking of readjustment and settling in, I feel like I don't have a single update to share, although I know LOTS has changed as we've reintegrated into Gulf coast life. Our homeschool group started August 27th; we meet Tuesdays here, instead of Fridays like we did in California. Sydney started the afternoon language arts program associated with our homeschool group (4th - 6th graders), so that's been a (good) change. We've had to adapt our daily schedule the rest of the week to accommodate the work required for that, but all is well as long as Ruthie continues to nap from 1-3 p.m. each day (LORD HELP US ALL WHEN SHE GIVES THAT UP).

We went on a little family vacation last week (Tuesday through Friday) to Gulf Shores, Alabama. More on that later, although I hardly took any pictures because we were too busy having fun and eating ice cream for dinner.

The kids continue to play outside despite the oppressive heat and humidity. Sydney's favorite pastime is catching frogs and carrying them around in her pocket (I wish I was kidding about the pocket):

Ruthie is having the time of her life, as this is the neighborhood where SHE finally has a friend that she can run the roads with. She's often sweaty, dirty, and thirsty, but also very happy:

Lorelei and Ford are still finding their footing here. They're a little more shy than the other two, but lately our backyard has become a gathering place for lots of kids, so they're doing fine, but miss their California friends. They DID start gymnastics this week; we go Tuesdays after we finish with our school group, and Sydney, Ruthie, and I watch. Ruthie will join them the MINUTE she turns four.

This took longer than expected, because I'm out of practice -- off to get ready for the day before everyone emerges from bed! Happy Thursday!

The "After"

Apparently by "tomorrow" I meant four days in the future.

Here's the "before" picture again:

Here's the "after," painted "Anchors Aweigh" by Sherwin Williams (yes, the name of the paint DEFINITELY convinced me to choose this color):

Also, I took this picture of our living room the other day:

But here's what it actually normally looks like:

I know it's not that bad, but I want you to pay special attention to how the ottoman is stuck on the rug. Last night we sat down to watch "Fixer Upper" and I wanted to put my feet up. But the caught ottoman combined with all of the legos on the floor (special legos! please don't move them!) was too much for me to deal with, so I gave up and put my feet on the ottoman right where you see it in the picture (to the right of my chair), while the top part of my body faced left, toward the TV. It was complicated.

Happy Friday, friends!

Anniversary: Lucky #13

HELLO!!!!!

(Did you like that overenthusiastic greeting after a 3-month absence?)

My last post was about moving, and I'm coming to you today having completed a(nother) move. I *might* post more details later about the move in general, but Sydney and I (and Papa John!) accepted our household goods here in Gulfport on June 13th, and 5.5 weeks later I feel like we are settled. There are still a couple of things to do: hang the curtains in our bedroom, finish organizing the garage (Chet), but for the most part we are THERE.

Whew.

I will quickly say that I think this was the fastest we've ever gotten everything out of the boxes, and that will be my strategy from here on out.

Today is Chet's and my 13th wedding anniversary! Lorelei just woke up (the first awake of the kids), ran over to me at the computer, hugged me hard and said, "Happy anniversary, Mommy!" She's the sweetest.

That's all for now. Here's a quick "before" picture of a little painting project we did yesterday. This cliffhanger will force me to come back and post tomorrow!

Happy Monday!

Thoughts on Moving

My last post on April 10th was titled "1/3 Way Through April," so perhaps this one should be "9/10 Way Through April." Maybe I should just title all of my posts that way...

Our move from Lemoore, California to Gulfport, Mississippi (via Texas) is upon us. As in, the kids and I are leaving California for good in 10 days (maybe 9). I'm going to attempt to share our moving timeline in the most non-confusing way, but prepare to be confused anyway.

Let me first say that every move plays out differently for us, logistically, and this time we chose for the kids and me to leave California before the moving company arrives and puts everything into boxes and onto a moving truck. The kids and I will spend May and June in Texas with my parents while Chet wraps up work in California and attends a 2-week class in Rhode Island. We think we will be moving into our house in Gulfport at the end of June, possibly early July.

Okay:

May 6/7: Chet, the kids, and me drive to Texas.
May 12: Chet flies back to California.
May 17-22: The moving company packs up our house/Chet hopefully finds a place to sleep for the rest of May (HA! but seriously...)
June 1-14: Chet attends a class in Rhode Island.
June 15-ish: Chet flies from Rhode Island to California to retrieve his truck and drive it east (maybe he'll have time to stop and spend time with us in Texas? Maybe he'll have to hightail it to Mississippi? These are details we can't set in stone yet...)
Last week of June: Chet begins his new job in Gulfport, Mississippi.

Moving in general, but definitely military moves, are all about flexibility, because there are always aspects of them that can't be planned (or not until the very last minute). It doesn't matter how organized you are, or how organized you wish to be: parts of your move will be messy and disorganized, and you just have to pray not to lose your mind.

Military families hear this all the time: "But doesn't the Navy/Army/etc. move you? That makes it easy!" If by easy they mean: "Doesn't the Navy/Army/etc. hire a company to put all of your belongings in boxes (except the things they CAN'T pack like food, toiletries, anything liquid, cleaning supplies, plants, etc.) and then unload all 600 boxes at the new house for YOU to unpack?" then...yes!

Don't get me wrong: I am EXTREMELY grateful that we don't have to box everything up and incur the moving costs ourselves (at least, not all of them). It is a HUGE burden lifted. But, honestly, that's the least the Navy/Army/etc. can do for their families, whom they require to move EVERY TWO YEARS. If they didn't take on this burden, no one would serve in the armed forces (at least, no one with children).

Please keep in mind that there are SO many other aspects to moving than simply transferring belongings from one house to another. Here's a snippet of our to-do list every time we move (that has nothing to do with the house itself):

1. Figure out schooling for the children
2. Find a church (and a Sunday school/small group)
3. Find a doctor (for the kids and you)
4. Find a dentist (for the kids and you)
5. Find an orthodontist
6. Find an eye doctor
7. Find a hairdresser
8. Find a vet (not us, but most people we know)
9. Find a babysitter/petsitter
10. Get a library card
11. Update ALL of your address and billing information with everyone/company you can imagine
12. Order new drivers' licenses with your current address (since we are military Florida residents, we currently have Florida drivers' licenses with a California address -- this costs us about $50 each time we move, and we kind of have to do it because you KNOW that the library isn't going to issue us a library card if we don't have 12 different ways to prove our identity and address)
13. Find a (decent) kids' second-hand clothing store
14. Find out where to get your oil changed
15. MAKE NEW FRIENDS

And imagine all of the paperwork and sub-to-do items that go along with these things. The leg work, the phone calls, the research, the joining of and posting on new social media sites to ask for recommendations...all in addition to making sure your family has clean clothes to wear and food to eat. It's best not to think too hard about it (unless you LIKE feeling overwhelmed, HA!).

And the friend/relationship aspect of moving? That's another post for another day. I already know, without a doubt, this move will be the most difficult emotionally.

So, please, think of these things the next time you meet a military family (or any family that has to move frequently!). It's not easy, but it's certainly an adventure!

1/3 Way Through April

I should probably update this blog since we're TEN DAYS INTO APRIL. Dang.

What to tell you? We had our last day of school Friday, April 5th:

Monday Sydney finished her last oral exam and is officially a Classical Conversations Memory Master. (You can read the first part of the linked article to get a pretty good idea of what that means.)

Sydney and our Classical Conversations Director

Sydney was also given the okay to move up a level in gymnastics, but we're going to decline since we only have two classes left before we're ending the girls' California gymnastics career.

We have one last school obligation this Saturday in the form of an end-of-year celebration, then we will be free to focus totally on our move to Mississippi. Did you know the kids and I are leaving California May 7th? That's in...27 days. My blood pressure just skyrocketed.

That's it for now. Ford and Ruthie are both sick, and hopefully get a better night's sleep than they did last night. (Both have fevers, but no other major symptoms -- lately there have been more sicknesses than I prefer getting passed around on base.)

Happy Wednesday!

Some (Old) Pictures on a Thursday

Happy Thursday!

Let's see, Chet made it home last Thursday night (late). We attended our homeschool group Friday mooning (only two more meetings until the end of the year!). I cannot for the life of me remember what we did this weekend; it was just nice to have Chet home. On Monday apparently we and all the neighbors forgot what day it was and let the kids run around playing until about 9:30 p.m. while we chatted in the driveway, which was very fun, but resulted in us body-slamming the kids into bed (figuratively, of course) and dragging them out of their beds Tuesday morning. I'll miss this neighborhood.

The past couple of weeks I've been going through thousands of pictures on my phone (I wish I were kidding), deleting duplicates/triplicates/twenty-plicates/pictures of the floor/unflattering selfies of the children. I've come across some gems:

So random, but fun to re-discover.

Today at noon is the second portion of Sydney's end-of-year oral exam -- please pray for her if you have a moment (thank you!). She is more than ready, and I'm not nervous for her, but at the same time I'm finding it hard to accomplish anything until it's over.

Bye, friends!

Chugging Along

(Some of these pictures will NOT center, and it's driving me crazy. Just FYI.)

Just wanted to let you know I'm still here, chugging along. Chet is out of town again; three days in San Diego. He returns tomorrow night, and I'll say again that this is good practice for the very near future when we will be in deployment mode.

The end of the school year with our homeschool community is barreling toward us like a freight train (April 5th). Sydney is practicing for her oral exam (the first part is next Thursday, March 28th) and is doing a stellar job. Even though it's school work, it's been a joy to spend more one-on-one time with her these past several weeks.

I still need to do a post for Ruthie's birthday (March 6th). I'm 80% certain I'll get that done before we move (ha!).

Our across-the-street neighbors had a baby February 1st, and all the kids in the neighborhood have taken turns loving on her:

Lorelei and Ruthie got a hold of my phone:

Ruthie had her 3-year old check-up (Ford accompanied us):

When Chet is gone, I usually serve "kid dinners." For example: chicken nuggets with blueberries. If the weather is nice, they eat outside. If children are over playing, they eat too. (Ford was eating across the street.) 

That's all for now; I'm going to attempt to do something productive before throwing in the towel for the day. (Speaking of, I forgot to put the towels in the dryer -- thanks for the reminder!) Happy Wednesday, friends!

A Strangely Good Day

Happy Tuesday, but, more importantly, happy birthday to Papa Greg (Chet's dad)! (AND happy 77th birthday to the Seabees!)

The reason today has been strangely good is because the morning began with Sydney throwing up a few times (gross, but true). My original plan for this Tuesday was to hit the ground running, ordering everyone to complete task after task like a drill sergeant. But Sydney's condition made me cancel everything, and we've had a slow (rainy) day instead. Here's what the living room currently looks like:

Please notice the piles of books/puzzles/toys under the piano.

The reason I was planning on having such a militaristic Tuesday is because we took a quick, fun Sunday/Monday trip to Monterey, CA (and now I'm off-kilter, schedule-wise).

I'll post some more about Monterey this week, but there's a picture to tide you over. (It just crossed my mind that Ruthie may have very understandably been mistaken for a long-haired little boy at the aquarium, what with her striped shirt, Nikes, and no hair tie.)

Speaking of Ruthie -- it's her last day as a 2-year old! 

She turns the big "3" tomorrow! It's a busy week, so tomorrow she'll open presents, but we'll do a little more celebrating and have a cake this weekend.

Happy strangely-good-Tuesday, friends!