Post #54 - A Weekend Away

Tomorrow is the day!

Miko and I haven't been away together for more than one night away from the girls, EVER. Yep, and Madeline is 2. So, for at least that long...

To say I'm excited is an understatement!!

We'll put Kate on the bus in the morning, head over to the farm to drop off Lauren and MJ and then hop on the road. We're headed to Dearborn, to The Henry in Dearborn specifically. There is a Farm Bureau Convention there this weekend.

All expenses paid.

2 overnights in a hotel.

3 meals a day prepared and cleaned up afterwards.

Adult interaction. (farmers... but adults nonetheless-haha)

I'm looking forward to an uninterrupted meal (or 2). I will not miss saying "please keep your feet out of your sister's mouth" or "do not color on your face with that marker!". The laundry will still pile up this weekend, but the dishes will be washed. The beds at home will stay made and my bed at the hotel will be made and I won't be the one to do it.

I'm hoping for a few glasses of wine in the evenings, quiet alone time with my husband and adult conversation.

And then... we'll get back Sunday and Miko will immediately leave to head to Iowa. He'll be gone until Wednesday.

I'll be overwhelmed with dealing with the 3 littles alone, but at least I'll have memories of a wonderful weekend away.

Day #53 - Winter

I'm trying real hard to come up with something inspirational, or thought provoking today... Struggling... My mind just keeps going right back out the window, to the snow, and the wind, and the cold, and the overcast cloudy crud.

Winter does this to me.

Christmas time winter is wonderful. The build up with hopes of a snowy Christmas day I can totally get with.

It's the February 19th, no end in sight, frigid, stuck inside, yuck that I could totally do without.

Every year this happens.

And every year, mid-August, when it's been miserably hot for weeks, I wish for the cold. I long for sweater wearing, scarf toting days... knowing that once they get here I'll wish them away again.

It's like I'm running on a hamster wheel.

I posted on facebook today that I'm ready for summer. I got a lot of "likes" and a few comments. People agree with me.

In August, when I say I'm ready for hats and mittens, chili and homemade bread, will the same people agree? Possibly. Probably.

I'm becoming more and more content in so many areas of my life. Praying for God's help to be happy with the "now".

Don't know if that applies to the weather though... ;o/

Day #52 - Holding Pattern

The past couple of days, more than once, I have lifted Madeline up... right under her armpits... about 3 inches off the ground and told her to run. She goes bananas, moving her legs as fast as she can. I yell, FASTER! FASTER! And she just continues running, running as quickly as possible, laughing the entire time. It's a funny game - and usually Lauren wants to be next. She's a little more difficult, because she's bigger. And when her little legs get going, she's harder to hold onto. But we manage.

 

Running in place.

Spinning their wheels.

Going no where fast.

 

There was a time, not too long ago, that I was on fire. On fire for new friendships. On fire for the future. On fire for the Lord.

  

Lately.

I'm running in place.

 

I'm trying to get plugged in. And I know it's not instantaneous. Heck, it took me quite awhile when we moved away. But I guess I assumed it'd be quite a bit easier when we came "home". At this point, I'm feeling like I'm in another holding pattern.

But I'm not sure who is holding me under my armpits.

Or why.
Cuz I'm not laughing. This isn't funny or fun.

And I know there's a lesson in this somewhere. I'm just real anxious to find out/figure out what it is.

Contentedness? Patience? Dependence?

I hear ya God. I hear ya.

I mighta just worked that all out in one little blog post...


Day #51 - Guess Who's Back?!?

Back again! Steph is back! Tell a friend... Guess Who's Back. Guess Who's Back. (that's my pathetic attempt at humor since it's been sooooo long!!! - Slim Shady I am not... heck, I'm not even slim!)

Ridiculous right?!? September?? It's February! Wowsa! I can't believe I haven't posted in 4 months. We actually just got internet last week. We moved back at the end of August and I've only stayed connected with my phone since. And it's a little pathetic difficult to type an entire blog on my little phone.

I do have some things on my mind to blog about... about I feel like I should get people caught up with what's been going on in our little house... That is if there is still anyone out there reading/checking up on us... I'm sure hoping there is... Because the future might hold some interesting things...

Where do I start???
We're in St Johns.
Michael has now switched jobs. He's soooo much happier where he's working now. I'm so proud of him and his dedication. It's almost like he's an entirely different person. I mean, who can say they LOVE their job? He does. He's actually out of town now, left this morning. There is a big farm show in Louisville, Kentucky this week. He's there thru Friday. I'm hoping he has a nice time, makes some good contacts, and really enjoys himself. It's work related, but let's be honest, he's there to have some fun.
Kate is really loving kindergarten. She's doing a great job. We had a few rough patches to start, but I think it's safe to say that is all behind us. She's 5, close to 6, going on 13.
Lauren just turned 4, and is growing like a weed. She is nearly as tall as her older sister. She's still adjusting to being the big sister while Kate is at school every day, but she's making strides. Being the middle child has it's challenges.
Madeline, aka MJ or Bob, is full of it. She's learning so much from her sisters... really coming into her own. Still a toe-head... Blonde hair, blue eyes.... She's gonna be trouble.
I am still working on making our house a home. I've not really been attending the women's bible study at church. I finished out the Daniel study before Christmas and haven't attended since. The new book really isn't up my alley and the time/day doesn't work very well for me (long story). I did go to a different study on a Monday at church - but I only went once. Between sick kids, and sick me, and the Pastor having to cancel it, I haven't been able to attend since. But I do plan on going back for that one.
What else?
We joined Farm Bureau. We're hoping to make some contacts there. We actually have a conference next weekend. It's Friday thru Sunday in Dearborn. I'm excited to get away with Michael (even if it is farm related). It's all paid for, hotel, food, entertainment. Should be fun!!!
Oh, jeez!!! DUH!!!! We sold our house in Osseo!!! I can't believe I left that out! We listed the house on February 15, 2012 and closed on it February 1, 2013. It was an emotional roller coaster, especially in the end, but it's behind us now. Thank goodness. So now that we've eliminated that payment from our lives, we can hopefully get some things going on this house. I look around at times and just wish I could snap my fingers and get things done! We've decided roof and windows are first, and then we'll decide if the kitchen or the bathroom is more of a desperate situation. The list is kinda endless.
Oh, and another big thing! Vacation in March. At Christmas time, we decided that instead of buying a bunch of toys that our children really don't need/won't play with, we'd head to Florida. So March 1st we'll leave our house headed to Georgia first. We'll visit Michael's sister Nicole (her husband and kids), then over to Florida to see his other sister Heather (her boyfriend) and Mickey Mouse!!! Awe yea!!! We're going to Disney World!!! After a couple of days in Orlando, we'll head down to Grandma Boettger's. She's close to the beach and we plan on taking advantage of that. It'll be a whirlwind of a week, but we're definitely looking forward to it!!!
I think that's it for now... I don't want to bore you... But I may be back. Michael's gone, remember? 8pm until around midnight tends to be a bit lonely...