End of Times - or the semester

[Can you believe its nearing the end of the year? I still remember begging for July to come as soon as possible! Where did it even go? I blinked... I missed it.]

It couldn't be better timing. Its almost over... I mean [insert munster music] THE FALL SEMESTER.

The end of semester blues have officially set in. Everything gets neglected: dishes, laundry, date night. He misses his friends, I miss my husband. Ironically, just when you need each other the most, you can't seem to make it happen.

At this time of the semester, I have to prioritize. Decide what is most important to me, my family, and my emotional sanity.

Those things include a home-cooked meal made by one of us (hello, CROCK-Pot!), fresh baked bread (today I made muffins - from scratch! Like, Zoinks!), giggles from my babies, and time with our parents. Joe doesn't get a lot of time for the last part and its left to me to be sure that the youngest generation spend time with the older generation. Just that part can be taxing.

So, understandably, the little things start to get under our skin. We start to pick at everything - about the house, about each other, and mostly, for me, about ourselves.

But, at the same time, I have found myself enjoying the small things more. Like, Joe sacrificing time sleeping to be with me and kids before class: helping change diapers, pack a bag, make dinner to go, and loading up the car, or just tickling Brea until she can't breathe from laughing. I have begun cherishing those moments in my heart. They lift me up and help me continue going these last few weeks. I know I can go 3 days without him if I hear him reading a story before he goes.

We discussed our wedding and what we mean to each other. This is somewhat preventative, I think, to keep us strong. Our vows included the phrase: "...cherish our union a little more each day." I sometimes forget that, when there are 3 milk jugs on the counter that haven't been rinsed and starting to sour, or when I have 10 pairs of socks to pick up and put in the hamper 2 feet away.

But the other day, after class, I asked him, if he ever had a epiphanic moment, a moment of complete clarity and understanding. He said yes. He said that when he decided he wanted to marry me was one of those times and that he never felt better about anything.

After the missing and the sadness and the brief midnight conversations, that will keep me going strong for the rest of my life, if not the rest of the school year.

Thanksgiving

I had a thought the other day (and I remembered it!). I heard someone say we should be giving and thankful all year long, and happy and joyful, and not just during the holiday season. But I thought to myself that if we spent all year long singing and baking (okay scratch that, we do an awful lot of that around here) and basically going over the top in our everyday activities, the seasons would lose some of its charm.

I'm not saying we should be rude and cynical (oh, stop pointing fingers at me) during the year; I think its good to take cookies to your neighbor on a June day "just because," or send someone a "thinking about you" card in the middle of February. But if I were to profuse my gratefulness everyday, wouldn't you get tired of hearing about it?

Something about this season is special, and part of it is everyone stands up and takes notice when someone else is about to say what they are grateful for. Every other day of the year, we just keep our heads down and truck on.

This is a round about way of saying, I am grateful for Thanksgiving, and for the time of year where I am able to be sugary sweet and smother people with it.

Today I am grateful for:
*drumroll*

~A beautiful healthy happy family. My kids love each other, they laugh A LOT, I am married to an amazing man, and everything is as it should be.

~A warm home - really, just somewhere to live. We have lived here for almost 4 years, and not a day goes by that I don't love my home. Its small, and its getting kind of crowded, but its warm, inviting, and it works for us, for now. A few months ago it was a scary thought in our household that we wouldn't even HAVE somewhere to live. Nothing like losing your home (due to school and housing issues) to make you grateful.

~Extended family who are (or at least act) happy to see me. My sister always gives me a huge hug when she sees me even if she's tired, my mom always tells me how much she loves me, and my brothers always make me laugh - even if its at my expense. Joe's parents are always so inviting to us, even when we come over without him (which happens sometimes... they gotta see their grandbabies and Joe is always busy! :D) and they are ALWAYS happy to spend time with their little ones.

~The biggest one I think this year is that everything is calm. We are not at risk of moving (unless we choose), we have a steady income, with a little extra for Christmas (no credit-Christmas for us!), a car that runs reliably, and a schedule that runs pretty well. I'm also grateful that I'm able to be home with my babies and not have to juggle a work schedule, a kiddo schedule, a husband work/school/sleep schedule and an upcoming preschool schedule. Its just.... peaceful.... around here.

Thanksgiving will always mean something of sadness to me, though. 3 years ago today, my grandpa died. (Technically I believe it was the 22nd but for me it will always be Thanksgiving Day.) I had a bit of a deja vu experience this morning with that situation... When we got the news that he had died, I was sitting on the couch at my mother's house, feeding Brea a bottle, and the phone rang. I knew instantly what it was about, as he had been pretty sick for a few weeks, and I just buried my head into the soft fluff of my daughters hair.

Today, I sat on the couch holding my baby boy Christian, feeding him a bottle, being one of the only ones awake, and the phone rang. I froze. Goosebumps filled my arms and I couldn't bring myself to answer the phone. It was just too.... fresh. A wound you think is closed gets a fresh sting.

I will always love my Grandpa. I lived with him for about 6 months and I will forever and ever be grateful for that small time when I was his 'kiddo' and we sat at the table eating tomato sandwiches after school. Thank you, Grandpa, for showing me what true love is and how to be a better person.

Sorry to end on a sad note.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

(Hahppy Thangsiving Bahck) [psst: name the movie]

A. Good. Day

What do you count as a good day?


Family Naps equal multiple points.... say, 31. [isn't this killer? *melt*]


Baby Snuggles and smiles: +27 [i love my moby wrap! its a life-saver!]


Homemade warm bread: +19 (subtracting points for the labor lol)


Day One of Potty Training: +467 points for a successful day!

[pardon the bare chest - we were in the middle of a clothing change... :D]

I don't know if you would call 9 clothing changes, 5 puddles, and 2 loads of laundry a success, but around here, I think we were all starting to think she was never going to be in the beloved princess panties we bought as incentive a few months ago.

I could NOT get her to sit on the potty, and every time she'd start to go, she'd hop off, saying, done done DONE!!! just to run off and pee in her diaper or pull up.

After hearing horror stories about moms who had kids in pull ups for a year or longer, I decided to do it the way I originally wanted (until I was dissuaded by many an article): cold turkey. Put 'em in panties and let them go. I talked to my mom and told her this was the way I had wanted to but had been warned against it, and she said DO IT! :D That's how she did it and it worked, even if you have to wash clothes every single night.

So, into the princess panties we went - and I think today was successful. Not only did she pee in the actual potty chair FIVE times, she asked me many times to change her clothes (not her typical response to a wet diaper). She told me once when she had to pee, and a couple other times I had to watch for signals.

But I consider today, a success. A GOOD DAY.

Seriously, this is my life? I love it. I'm grateful for it every single day.

**did you know I have another blog? Check it out tomorrow for my TIP TUESDAY post!**