This boy

I've been spending a lot of quality time alone with my boy lately. This past weekend when ^J^ was out of town, *A* got invited to a sleep-over so (H) and I had lots of quality time together. Also, with him no longer taking naps most days, we have a few hours together in the afternoon. We take trips to the pond, read books, go grocery shopping, cook, and of course, play pirates. Pirates are (H)'s newest obsession.

It's awesome. Except when he wants to constantly bring his arsenal of weapons with him wherever we go. Sometimes we allow it, but often I find myself saying "No, weapons aren't allowed at school".

My favorite times lately have been playing outside during the in-between time when (H) gets out of school but before *A*'s out. It's been sunny and warm so we're rarely inside; we play t-ball, ride bikes,

eat a secret chocolatey snack (the 2nd child gets so many privileges the 1st doesn't get), and soak up the sunshine, hoping it will stick around so we can do this everyday.

And we're back!

Um, hi. I'm sorry. Did you forget about us? Will you forgive us? You see we've had a lot going on:

First it was snowy, for a LONG time and I was tired of posting snow-related stuff.

Then we got sick, not too bad, just one of the many nasty bugs going on around this mountain lately.

Then the sun came out. Ahhhh, warm glorious sun!
So for the past week we've been outside at every possible moment. After school all the kids want to do is be out, we go to the park, we go to the pond, we play t-ball (or a version of it that *A* made up called "high-five, really cool game" where you slap hands at each base and then everyone rotates spots to get a turn). When the sun starts to set, we head home, but I still can't get them to come in. They continue to play in the yard, feed the birds, ride bikes, and play with the dogs. One day they decided to "organize" the back porch while I started dinner. Our back porch is a mess, it's dirty, and neglected. It's where the dogs live. Well they got the broom and got to work. They pulled out the toys and put them in a separate spot, they dusted things off. Apparently Spring Cleaning affects 4 and 6 year olds too.

So we've been busy. And it's about to get worse. This weekend is kind of the calm before the storm. ^J^ is gone to a bachelor party weekend for his best friend (Otherwise known as a bad joke: a deacon, a biologist, and a librarian walk into a comic book convention), so the kids and I are hanging out and doing more of that Spring Cleaning. Next weekend we're off to the wedding (^J^ is basically running the show as much as he is able) and celebrating our nephew's b-day. Then the next weekend we're off to visit a church that ^J^ has interviewed with.
That's the other thing that's been occupying all available brain-space: what comes next. ^J^ has had 3 interviews and will have another one in a week or so, plus has his name in for 2-3 more positions. We found out we might not be going back to Atlanta because no positions are open right now, so we were given permission to look elsewhere. We've tried to focus on a few positions in the Southeast but suddenly people are randomly contacting ^J^ from places we didn't instigate and it's kind of overwhelming. It's all good and it will all work out somehow, but if I think about it beyond this beginning stage, I get kinda frazzled. There is just SO much that needs to be decided in the next 3, yes 3, months and getting a job is actually only the beginning. So, I'm not thinking about it too much, at least not about much beyond the interview stage. It's just too much to try and deal with when there are still so many variables in the air.
But it's exciting stuff too! So, I promise to be better and keep this updated (really Melissa!). And maybe next time I'll even have pictures.

Snow Week...again

It snowed last Sunday, probably the biggest snow the South has had in a long time. We think we had about 10inches total. It didn't really stop flurry-ing until Thursday. I know it was a big pain for much of the South, but in Sewanee, it's beautiful. It's fun. It's kept us home all week. Pretty much.
Our car got stuck in the driveway so ^J^ moved it to the gravel parking spot in front of the house. Then the plow came by and we had a big hunk of snow to try to drive over. It was fluffy and soft so we didn't think it would be a problem but when ^J^ tried, the car rebelled and slid the other direction into our yard. About a foot from the base of a large tree. So it stayed there, we used our generous neighbor's car when we needed to. Finally, yesterday, after lots of shovelling, pushing, and revving, we got out and it was just in time to avoid a total cabin fever meltdown. A trip to our local Piggly Wiggly seemed like a major adventure out into the world. We stocked up on a few essentials (you know, milk, cheese, dill pickle chips), got some movies at the library and came back home to settle in for the weekend. Sledding has been our one sanity-saver. As soon as the kids start to get stir-crazy, we don all our layers (it takes a good 15 minutes to get ready) and head down to the pond behind our house where we've finally discovered an awesome hill within walking distance. Both kids now love sledding and it's super-fun to watch them race and come up with new ways of sledding: backwards, on their knees, on their bellies(superman-style), etc.
Tomorrow it's finally supposed to be in the 40s but I think this snow will be here a while still. Probably just melt in time for the next system to come through, and Winter really has just begun...sigh.

All bundled up and ready to go!

Lots of snow!

Sledding is so fun!

Don't you love the hand-knitted items for a snowgirl?

Our street

Helping Daddy shovel the car out

Shovelling is kinda fun!

That's one way to make a snowball!

Dogs love snow too!



So much fun!



Christmas Recap

Christmas was magical this year to the kids. Santa is a BIG deal now and the magic of all that is so fun to watch. Scooters were the big requests this year and they've been such a hit! How are scooters a hit in the winter you might ask (especially with close to 10 inches of snow currently on the ground)? Well, we've discovered they are actually great indoors too because of the hardwood floors and the "loop" around the house. Yesterday, at a peak of cabin fever, the kids had a scooter race around the loop while ^J^ and I sat on the couch and acted as spectators and announcers. On Christmas morning, the kids just had to take a scooter ride outside so we headed down to the pond which was barely iced over and they had a blast playing with the paper thin sheets of ice. Later that day we headed to Atlanta to do Christmas with my family which was fun and relaxing because we got to spend the whole day there. It also snowed which is a rare event anytime in Atlanta, but especially on Christmas. I think I was in middle school the last time that happened. Here are some pictures to enjoy:

Christmas Eve

Reading The Night Before Christmas

Cookies and Milk for Santa

Santa came!

Christmas Morning

Discovering her scooter

He was so sleepy but *A* lured him out of bed with presents.

Vroom!

(H) would fish them out and *A* would throw the ice on the iced pond and watch it shatter.

The Recap Begins...

It's been a really great Christmas break so far, and it's still going, at least for me. This week the kids are back in school, ^J^ is taking his BIG ordination exams, and I'm off for 2 more weeks. Next week ^J^ and I will have off together which will be nice, we can get some things done and organized for the upcoming semester, the LAST semester here. Oh my goodness. Perhaps we'll start packing boxes. glup.
The week before break we had a pretty big snow so school was actually cancelled for 4 days, the last day we had planned to not send the kids because we needed to be in Atlanta to prepare for ^J^'s ordination to the diaconate. So they basically have had 3 weeks off school instead of 2.

Speaking of Ordination, it was a great day and a beautiful service followed by a ton of pictures. We joked that it was like getting married again and being tired of smiling. There were so many people there from all parts of our lives, college friends, extended family, Sewanee friends. It was so fun to have all that support and share the day with everyone. Afterwards we went across the street for pizza and beer with family and friends and it was a perfect way to end the day. Here are some photos:

The 7 ordinands from Atlanta

^J^ and our bishop

With the priests who have helped us along the way.



 

More holiday recap coming soon...

Snow Day(s)!

Sunday we woke up to snow and it continued the rest of the day and on into Monday night. We usually have a snow this early in the season, but it isn't usually this much! Once it was all said and done, we probably had 6-8 inches. So, of course we've been playing in it the past 3 days and of course the kids have had off school. It has also been extremely cold so our playtimes have been pretty quick with multiple layers of clothing that end up in big wet piles all over the foyer. But it's so fun!
Monday I invited a bunch of families to come over and have a snow day at our house. We had 7 moms and 13 kids ages 6 weeks to 11 years. It was a blast! Everyone was so thankful to have a place to go and not be cooped up at home all day. We stayed mostly in our yard that day becasue we tried to venture to the golf course and the wind was so cold, no one could stand it for long.

Yesterday we had PMO because it rarely closes for snow, but the elementary school was closed to *A* got to come with (H) and me. We went caroling around the seminary and then send sledding. Super fun!

Today *A*'s school is still closed and they're calling for a wintry mix this afternoon. (H) went to school which is good because *A* now has the fever virus that's going around so she's been asleep all morning. The snow is getting kinda yucky but it's still fun to look out and see white and be able to stay warm and cozy inside. On today's agenda, celebrate ^J^'s birthday and start baking holiday goodies to give as teacher gifts!

Catch Up

Between the tree incident, hosting Thanksgiving, illnesses, planning Morning with St. Nick, lessons and carols, and trying to close out the semester, I've not had time for this blog. I'm hoping to improve since this time of year is my favorite time for reflecting and sharing holiday fun. Here are a few fun things to catch up on...
We've enjoyed many fires the past couple of weeks. After a mild start to Fall, we are making up for it now with highs in the 30s and lows in the teens the past week or so. It's not just the humans in this house that like fires...

It was too warm on Thanksgiving to have a fire, but the next day was freezing so the kids were glad we had a chance to have S'mores. YUM!

Sadly, these were the only pictures I took during Thanksgiving weekend. It was a great Thanksgiving this year though and I felt like I was actually able to spend time with my family while still hosting and cooking. It was relaxed and everyone stayed until Friday afternoon, so we were able to share more than just one meal together. We talked about how this is a year of "lasts" and how this would be our "last" Thanksgiving in Sewanee. While that is sad, it is also exciting to think about where we might be hosting next year!

Last weekend we had a few more "lasts" with Morning with St. Nick, Lessons and Carols. ^J^ was able to read at Lessons and Carols as student body president and get us great up-front seats, it was as beautiful as always and the sparkling tiny snowflakes all night long made it really special.

We also went to get our tree and the kids picked a very full one that is just an inch shorter than our ceiling. We've been slowly decorating it and trying not to rush the season, but we're all a bit anxious about Christmas this year since we'll be gone longer than we usually are and we want to be able to celebrate at home as much as possible.

Things are slowing down though for the semester and we're starting to pass on some of our responsibilities to get ready for our departure. I've been able to start thinking about what the future might hold. It's becoming exciting. Looking forward to more exciting Advent happenings this week and then a nice long break.