Busy Season

As I sat in the waiting room of the dentist office this morning I was speaking to the receptionist, who is also the dentist's wife, about the busyness that comes along with motherhood.  Her children are grown and out of the home and our conversation reminded me that the chaos of my current schedule will someday be a thing of the past.  Someday the house will be empty of kids and clutter and I won't have to run from one direction to another.  I consider myself blessed beyond measure to have all that I have.  It's not perfect and I find myself struggling more often than not but each season of life is precious and passes quickly by.  If you're a new mom, finding yourself struggling through the long, sleepless nights with fussy babies just know it will pass.  If you have a stubborn toddler throwing tantrums it will pass.  If you are in the midst of raising school aged children trying to get them to focus on better grades and cleaner rooms (I'm here now) it will pass.  Every season, the good and bad, will not last.  So, hang in there, Mama!  You got this!  

And here's a few pictures from my current season of life.  Cross country meets, marching band performances, sneaking a peak as my daughter and the rest of the ballet class learn how to sew the ribbon on their pointe shoes, and enjoying family time with shopping and ice cream.  It's been busy ... but it's been good!  

And Here We Go ...

 With back to school time and the changing of weather comes the inevitable sicknesses.  I was hoping and praying we would see relief this year but I guess that request was not granted.  My son was home from school on Monday with a sore throat and headache.  He's feeling better except for some congestion.  Today it's the daughter's turn to be home sick with a sore throat.  I'd rather they stay home when they are sick to rest and prevent it from spreading to others in school.  However, other kids obviously do not care and come to school to share with others.  It's frustrating.  One of the boys in my van has been constantly hacking, snorting and all sorts of sick noises while not understanding the importance of keeping himself at a safe space from the others.  Once I arrived home from the morning run I sprayed disinfectant inside the vehicle.    

I have my Eden's Garden Fighting Five essential oils permeating the air hoping it brings a little relief to this house.  It's a blend of lemon, cinnamon, rosemary, clove, and two types of eucalyptus.   I have no scientific proof that essential oils legitimately work but I love the scents and have a small collection.  Eden's Garden has become my favorite place to buy them.  Cheap prices and free shipping.  You can also earn rewards as you buy.  

And if this isn't a bad time to get sick, it is my daughter's first week of the dance year.  She's slowly adjusting to the new atmosphere and getting to know the other dancers.  The classes are more intense than she's used to but I know she'll get the hang of it.  My son, although sick, ran in another cross country meet yesterday.  He's been doing amazing.  Last weekend he joined a 5k Sasquatch Run that my husband's job was hosting and got 2nd place out of 212 runners.  I'm so happy that he has found something that he is thriving in and also making more friends.  

And on a more somber note, I feel the need to post on what today is.  As the years go on I'm wondering if people are drifting away from wanting to recall the events of the day.  It was listed as the 8th top story on Yahoo.com today when I feel it should be first (yes, even first to last night's debate).  September 11, 2001.  When almost 3,000 people lost their lives from a terrorist attack.  One was a man I will always remember, my sister's friend Ralph Licciardi who I only got the chance to meet a few times - once at my sister's wedding rehearsal dinner, the next day at the wedding (his wife was a bridesmaid) and another time at her house.  He was a pretty cool, down to earth guy who married his high school sweetheart and had two kids together.  I believe it was his second day on the job, which turned out to be his last day on earth.  Maybe others are slowly forgetting what the anniversary of this day means but I will never forget.  I will also not forget that in that moment seeing our country come together united in fear, solidarity, and strength. We seemed to have lost that quickly after ... I'll leave it at that.  

Take a moment today to think about your blessings while holding close to your loved ones.  God bless you, my wonderful friends and readers.  Thanks for sharing a moment of your time with me today!  I am grateful for you.  

September's Arrival

When September arrives we are reminded of the changes that are ahead.  The changing colors of the leaves, the changing schedule from a new school year, and the change in temperature.  The mornings start off with the crisp coolness and by afternoon the air becomes warmer.  This month sends me into nostalgia as I remember my own days of back to school time.  I did not like going to school so that memory is one that keeps me from enjoying the transition into fall.  Now as a mother, I'm finding myself in full stress mode when it comes to helping my own children navigate school.  So far it's been an easy start and I'm thankful for that but there's eight more months to go.  I enjoy fall but I've always been a summer girl.  Well, I guess I can be thankful in knowing that summer is not officially over, according to the calendar, for another eighteen days.  

Another student was added to my school van so I've been out the door earlier than usual.  The sun is rising as I'm driving, making the view in front of me beautiful.  I wish I could take a picture of the sun beginning to move it's way up the mountain filled horizon as the vibrant colors paint a peaceful picture in the sky but I'm not allowed to be on my phone while driving, obviously for good reason.  So I just enjoy the moment of capturing God's gorgeous design with my own eyes.  After I drop the three boys off at their school seven miles away I come home to a quiet, empty house.  Rob is at work and the kids are in school.  I turn on a podcast or music and begin to clean the house.  The clutter in this house builds up fast and does not seem to go away regardless of how much I get through.  Messes are a big cause of anxiety and that explains why I'm always stressed but I'm also learning to take it for what it is.  We have a lot of stuff and not a big space to put it.  Also, when I do put things into place no one seems to know how to put it all back where it goes.  Other moms please help me!  Repeating myself constantly and sounding like a broken record is not working.  I've already gotten rid of so much and I've threatened to go through with a garbage bag again.  As I'm dealing with the feelings of stress at home my husband has been feeling stressed from work.  Pray for us!  Still, life is good and we are thankfully working through it.  

My husband's friend's wife gave us a butterfly bush and it's been filling with little butterflies, which is hard to see in this photo.  I need to get my better camera out.  

We invited my parents over for a Labor Day barbecue.  We don't see my parents often but I try to squeeze time in with them as much as I can.  They live twenty-seven miles away and with busy schedules it's hard to see them and I feel bad because my father could use the company.  Taking care of my mother puts a toll on him, especially with lack of sleep added to it.  My siblings are over two hundred miles away so the time they get with them is few and far between.  I'm all they have here in Pennsylvania and it's a tough one for me.  

My daughter was excited to come home from our town's carnival with a goldfish she won.  I was in a bit of a shock since we were not prepared.  Luckily we had a small fish bowl stuffed in the garage so we washed it and filled it with water.  The next day she went with her dad for pebbles and goldfish food.  Unfortunately, little Goldie did not make it and received a very quick funeral down the toilet.  She was upset but also understanding.  We were not properly prepared on taking on a goldfish in the moment but made a promise to buy her some new fish soon.  Rest in peace, Goldie.  

And here is my little princess this morning, with her hair curled wearing a new shirt from Old Navy.  She was reluctant on letting me snap a picture but I could not resist.  Later this evening I will be watching my son in his first cross-country meet.  I'm grateful for a good start of the school year. 

So Much To Do ...

It's 9 o'clock in the morning and I've already managed to get some things done and before I continue on with a day of housecleaning and running this one here and that one there I thought I'd take a moment to pause.  While my husband and kids are working their butts off in work and school I feel guilty when I sit mine down to blog.  There is so much to get done around the house from laundry, to sweeping and dusting, to grocery shopping and meal planning, yard work, reorganizing, decluttering and so much more and yet here I am just soaking in a few moments of peace.  I miss my family when they are gone but I also enjoy the quietness.  I spend an hour in the morning driving students to school and then I'm back at it for another hour in the afternoon.  Even with this part-time job it still feels like I'm a full-time housewife.  It still counts, right?  While I'm alone I will either put on some music, or listen to my Bible app or a podcast/YouTube video while getting the cleaning done.  But taking these moments to write either on the blog or something on Word feels therapeutic.  Writing has always been my escape.  

My kids seem to be off to a good start with school.  At least, they aren't doing any complaining.  Matthew has been staying after for cross country practice and last Friday was the first time he got to perform with the marching band during the season opening football game.  It felt like a full circle moment as I remembered my time with the high school marching band in the 1990s, although I was in the colorguard.  He plays trumpet.  

We were supposed to meet my niece and her family who were camping in Gettysburg last weekend but they were all sick.  So, we spent the evening in Gettysburg anyway.  We did not visit the battlefield this time but we did enjoy a little shopping and dinner at a buffet.  It was disheartening to find out General Pickett Buffet had closed down, we enjoyed many meals there over the years.  We did find another one a few miles down the road that we did not even know existed.  It was located on the bottom floor of a hotel that looks like a barn.  

I don't have many pictures taken from the weekend.  I'm trying to just soak in the moments by being in the moment but sometimes I need to remind myself that it's great to have those pictures to document for memory sake.  Any time I take a picture my kids will ask, "Are you going to put that on Instagram?" Last night when I asked my husband for the picture of the restaurant he asked, "Is this for the blog?"  Ha ha!  Okay, yes then!  

Now it's time to get my butt into gear as I try to figure out how to get it all done.  Being a housewife and mother is filled with chaos but, nevertheless, I'm grateful for it all.  I'm thankful for this life.