January

Oh the January blahs have definitely hit. We're in that terrible every day is gray weather and that certainly isn't helping anything. But most of all we've just been busy.

All the blogs and articles and things about "You're only as busy as you want to be" and yadda yadda whatever. But truly. Our calendar has been full. Every day has a little something. Which means not as much time to get on here and write.

But, here's the good news! Everything here is good! I've taken like no pictures of anything lately but let's see what I can talk about.

I've spent a lot of time at church lately. Which has been so lovely Sitting in the silence in the presence of Jesus is so good for my soul. 

I went to book club at my friend's new house and it is the most gorgeous home I've ever been in. 

It's Catholic Schools Week! And so we had our open house on Sunday. This is M's Journal. 

Of course, there have been some fun theme days. Monday was "Wear Your Favorite Shirt" day which legit is just "Out of Uniform" so I don't know why they bothered.

Tuesday was "mismatched day." So flannel over a clashing shirt and two different socks it was. 

M got these panda leggings and wanted to wear them but didn't want to miss out on the theme. So even though it's hard to tell here, she has a pigtail on one side and a bun on the other. 

Yesterday was Hawaiian Day. They got leis at school and during the 8th grade vs teachers volleyball game, they all got pom poms too. 

And that takes us to today, which is a regular uniform day because it's All Schools Mass with the Bishop. All the schools get together for this one.

Anyway, I can't believe January is over tomorrow! How fast it's gone. And maybe, just maybe the sun will come out soon!!

A Celebration Day!

While of course, this third Monday of January is a celebration of Martin Luther King Jr. today is also a celebration of many other events and holidays.

We are celebrating that Super Bowl LIV will not include the Packers. (If my team can't be there, it can be any other team besides the Packers.)

But above all else today, this kid would like to wish you a happy Penguin Awareness Day.

It's one of his favorite days of the year as you might imagine. It is really cold here today, with an air temp of 17. I mean, right now in Antarctica it's -18 so obviously, it's colder there but it still feels like we are celebrating in spirit.

Friday's storm was every bit as messy as anticipated, and since it got so cold everything turned crusty and no fun. Luckily we got the kids out on Friday night to play before the big cold snap.

The great thing about snow is that it reflects light so well, making it easy to play in when it's dark!

No matter which penguin variety you prefer: Emperor, Gentoo, Chinstrap, Adelie, Rockhopper, Macaroni, Erect-Crested, Yellow-Eyed, Snares, King, Magellanic, Galapagos, Humboldt, African, Fairy, Royal, and Fjordland. I hope you have a great penguin day!

Oh Winter.

What a week! I am pretty darn confused about what day it is and I don't foresee it getting better anytime soon.

Last weekend's winter storm didn't do much. Which is good. I am thankful. This weekend's storm doesn't seem like it will cooperate with that plan as much, unfortunately. I have a show to go to tonight. Right now I am practicing my not worrying. We have a plan if our babysitter bails and that's all we can do right?

I am still hopeful that it will be less impactful than they say. Last year, on this exact weekend, I saw a show and drove home in blowing snow. It was doable. So I am just going to go with that.

Wednesday we got a lot of ice. And the school gave us a 2-hr late start. I kind of hate 2-hour late starts because then I have to do drop off. They're especially annoying on Wednesdays when M doesn't have school and we can just stay in and snuggle until school Mass time. BUT then school got canceled about an hour later so we didn't have to go anywhere.

Yesterday was the end of the semester so there was a 2-hr early out scheduled. Today is a teacher's in-service so there's no school. And of course no school on Monday for MLK Jr. Day.

You may remember that this same weekend last year turned into "winter break pt. 2"

Last year's calendar:

Hopefully, 2020 isn't going to end up the same way because the "adding 20 minutes to the school day" thing did not work for me. 

But anyway, that's what we know.

We'll just be over here in pajamas and loving our day off!

The Little Things

January can be pretty gloomy but there are a few things that keep my days bright.

Playing Spot It! with this little gal is definitely one of those things.

Whatever you find in your every day that makes you smile this Monday, embrace it and appreciate it my friends.

Working for the Weekend

Today I did all the things. And it feels awesome.

I dropped M off at school and headed immediately to Home Depot. Thank goodness they open early! I got 2 new shovels (one small one for our helpers and an adult one.) and a bucket for our ice melt. There's potential for a winter storm to hit tomorrow and our other shovels are getting a little worse for the wear. We bought them when we were first married so they've seen 9 winters which is pretty good for a shovel I think. They're still useable but if we do get a big storm I would love one great shovel.

It's hard to believe yesterday was 50 degrees (though very windy) and we had the playground to ourselves!

After I came home and got the ice melt into the bucket, I washed my hands and headed back out to Aldi. I waited in the car until they opened the doors at 9, grabbed a cart and got all my shopping done quickly. I had meal planned and they only didn't have 3 things I needed. Which is pretty good actually.

I went home, unloaded the groceries and then geared up for the next round of errands. I got gas at Costco and then went in. A fun fact: they open at 10:00 but you can often get in a little early, so I did! 9:56 I walked into Costco and at 10:04 I walked out with the toilet paper, Goldfish crackers and peanut butter I went in for. (Peanut Butter was on sale so I got 2 two-packs. We go through a lot of peanut butter so I try to stock up when it is on sale.) I have to tell you it was incredibly satisfying to walk out of Costco just a few minutes after they opened officially.

Then I went to the big grocery store for the 4 items I couldn't get at Aldi. (The 3 things they didn't have and Busch's Baked Beans because that is one of the things that we much prefer the name brand of.) Everyone and their brother were out shopping getting things before the storm and our store is currently under construction. I was very thankful I just needed a few items and could get out of there quickly.

I had time then, before picking up M, to bop into the church and sit with Jesus for a few minutes. Our dear friends lost their son Everett David in utero at 22 weeks and their whole family has been hard on my heart because of it. Please say a prayer for their family, they are so very heartbroken.

I feel fully prepared for the storm whether it brings ice, snow or both. After we get C we have no plans that involve leaving the house until Mass on Sunday. We will be cheering on the Vikings, who I thought didn't stand a chance last week. As a realistic Vikings fan, I am cautiously hopeful.

This little girl finished her Christmas present panda pillow craft. I think it's pretty cute!

Have a wonderful and safe weekend!

Coming At January Like...

We are ready for you January!

Yesterday we got back into our routine. It feels good to have school started up again. We factored in the long Christmas break into our meal plan this week so we won't have any pouty children come dinner time.

My kids are picky eaters. They're getting better but they still have very strong opinions on what they do and don't like. And most of the time I don't cater to that but this week when they're bound to be a little extra exhausted and crabby, nah. I just don't feel like fighting that fight this week. They need food in the bellies and that's what's important. Both of my kids are very good about eating their vegetables but man I'd love to get them to eat a sauce!

Anyway, last night after a fighting free dinner we snuggled on the couch together to watch out friend fill in as meteorologist. 9 years ago that was his job and Husband and I remember him from back in the day. Anyway, our local station needed a fill-in for a few days. My kids think it's the most fun thing in the world that their friend's dad is on TV.

We followed up the news with Wheel of Fortune which we love. We do not love political ads. Man are the caucuses over yet? It's hard to explain political hate ads to children.

Today the sun is shining and even though it's chilly I just love the sunshine so that's great. Happy Tuesday!

2020 is Here!

Today is Thursday.

I feel like that's a great place to start today because I for sure have thought it was Monday all day. I even reminded Husband he needed to take the garbage out last night. But it is NOT Monday. It's Thursday.

Husband is at work without a planned vacation day in sight. The kids are on a playdate. And while I should be working and getting some stuff done since it's the first bit of alone time I've had since December 17... instead I am blogging because I have my priorities in check.

We rang in the new year super low key. We had a big ham dinner at 3:00. Which was truthfully just the perfect time. Then we went to Mass and came home for a little party. We had cookies, popcorn, chips, cheese, and slushies. All while watching 101 Dalmatians (the animated one.)

It looked like that. Party animals. But seriously it was super wonderful. We toasted with our Welches sparkling juice at 8:00 and then sent everyone under the age of 8 off to bed. (That was, in fact, staying up late for them.) The adults watched The Holiday, which may be one of my favorite Christmas movies. We saved it since it was still Christmas and ends on New Year's Eve.

After it ended it was like 11:15. And we decided it would silly to go to sleep that close to midnight. So we sat around and waited AND then went to sleep.

Yesterday was spent cleaning and organizing our playroom and living room. We cleaned out cupboards and drawers and it was deeply satisfying. It sounds way lamer than it is I swear.

I am living my best life making all the Dad jokes. "We haven't had pizza this whole decade!" "No one has cleaned their room since last year!"

I hope the start to 2020 has been wonderful for you!