5.27.2011

Whoosh!

So today is the last morning of preschool for Kara for this year. Did you hear that whooshing sound? For me, that's the sound of this school year blowing by me in record speed and leaving me feeling a bit windblown and battered. It's been a year of lots of ups and downs and many, many bumps. I must admit that I'm glad to have it over (at least for Kara and soon enough for John too) and am ready for the adventures this summer will bring for us.

Let's do a quick review of the last year: kitchen renovation, summer vacation and lots of time at the pool, 1st grade for John and year 2 of preschool for Kara, fall soccer and finally losing a tooth for John, MAJOR flood in the basement and kitchen leading to all kinds of hurdles and problems and stress for us all, allergy/reflux issues for John and just allergy issues for me and Kara, the unexpected passing of my dear Aunt Martha just a few months after she had retired, Matt's appendicitis surgery and recovery, another flood in the basement (much less dramatic this time, but still water in the basement - not fun), a great spring break trip to Nags Head, NC, me becoming president of the preschool board for next year, and many plans ahead for a fun and adventure filled summer.

This summer will bring: a third trip to Lancaster, PA to go to Dutch Wonderland (a kids' theme park that is fabulous), more wonderful veggies from our CSA, finishing up John's baseball season, finishing up repairs on the basement, yet another renovation project (this time the kids' full bathroom, which needs to be fully gutted and replaced - what fun...), a road trip to Maine to attend a celebratory party in honor of my Aunt, closely followed by a road trip south to Topsail Island, NC for our annual beach week, then football, tennis, sports and arts camps for John, and lots of time at our neighborhood pool with friends, before the school year begins and John will go into 2nd grade (how on earth did that happen so soon??) and Kara will start her final year at our preschool (oh my baby!).

Are you tired yet? I am....I know for sure by the end of this summer I will feel pretty windblown and battered too, but I am looking forward to having less unexpected bumps along the way, less stress, and way more fun.

It's been a tough year for us and for our family for sure. But it has also brought me a new respect for my support network. I have been forced to ask for help more times in the last year than ever before. And for those of you that know me, that does NOT come easily for me. I am always willing to help out my friends and family, but I have a very hard time asking for help myself. But everyone I have asked has been very willing and very supportive and wonderful to us. We have gotten through this year in large part due to the love and energy of those around us. It hasn't been pretty and it hasn't been easy, but I am hoping we have survived, learned a few lessons, and will find the road ahead just a little smoother than the road behind us.

Well, I'll keep my fingers crossed for that. I certainly won't hold my breath for it though. ;-)

3.08.2011

An Update

So yet again, time seems to pass too quickly for me to take the few moments to sit down and type out a post about one of the many many things that I think each day would make a great blog post. To my defense, life has been very very busy and exhausting lately. I'm continually hopeful it will slow down, but as usual, the pace only seems to gradually be picking up. I've got no idea how parents with four or five or more older kids keep up with all that must be on their schedules. I'm having trouble keeping up with two and one is still in preschool!

One of my recent, and on-going, adventures involves the preschool we attend. This year I am serving as the admissions officer and have been spending a lot of time on the phone and at the school answering questions, giving tours, and basically being a full-time cheerleader for the preschool. Which I love doing. It's been a lot of fun to meet new families and convince them as to why the school would be a great fit for them. We had our open house last week, which is when we open up registration to new families for next year. I had been hoping that my role would slow down after that night, but no such luck! Now we get to follow up with everyone who has applied and start the paperwork process required to get all the kids enrolled for next year. Oh, what fun! It is truly fun and I have enjoyed it, but it has taken up more time than I had expected.

The kids have also been busy bees. Swimming, gymnastics, playdates, and various princess parties have overtaken Kara's quite busy social calendar, in addition to her 3 mornings of preschool each week. John is keeping busy with schoolwork, sports activities, ice skating, losing teeth, and dressing up as Thing 1 for Dr. Seuss's birthday last week. He's reading like crazy and has recently started getting an allowance. We'll see if the money goes towards a sports item or a new book. He's also continuing to challenge himself with new math skills. They're both growing like weeds and already are looking forward to all kinds of adventures this summer.

With the warmer weather we've started getting out and about. Seeing neighbors emerging after the super-cold winter we've had is nothing short of wonderful. All the kids have grown, lost teeth, gotten a new baby sibling, or had other adventures they're dying to share with each other. It's a fun time of year and we're so ready to embrace it.

Speaking of which, I think it's time for me to get to the bus stop! Hopefully I'll post again soon...but if I don't, you can probably find me at the playground instead. ;-)

1.10.2011

New Year, New......Hmmmm.....

So far the new year has only brought me congestion, achiness, and most recently, a LOVELY cough that I'm becoming convinced is not likely to leave my body much before February. It's been a GRAND start to the new year. Not.


Fortunately, through the fog of sickness, I truly can see that the year ahead holds promise. We're finally getting to the end stages of the flood recovery process. We're still purging, donating, organizing, and packing away our things that were uncovered during the flood and the reconstruction. But it is coming to an end. The basement looks better than ever. There is a new couch, a new tv (albeit still in the box), a lot of new plastic storage bins, new shelving in the laundry room, and A LOT less stuff overall. We're getting there. The process has been long and painful, but we know in the end it will be worth it. And now we can finally see the end in sight. I can't tell you how good that feels.


The end of 2010 could not have come sooner for us. For although the year had many high points, we also endured a lot of challenges for us and for those around us. It seemed like every high was immediately followed by a new bump/diversion/illness/whatever that made it impossible to stop and enjoy the high point. We're hoping that 2011 holds more calm moments (although with the 4 and 7 year olds around, it's not likely to be all that calm), more healthy moments (again, a challenge with young ones around), and more enjoyable moments for us and for all those we love and care about.

For now I'm holding that hope and holding on to it with all my might. I know there will be challenges and bumps in 2011, and we will meet them head-on and hopefully get past them with minimal disruption. That is my hope for us and for all of you in the new year.