Time flying by....

Why is that the school year seems to go on and on and on....but the 12 weeks of summer (assuming the children aren't fighting) flies!  The thing I love most about the summer is swimming---NOT being in a swimsuit mind you, but being in the pool.  Jason loves swimming too, so it is no surprise that from the moment the temperature hits a mere 70 degrees my girls begin asking "When can we swim--is papa's pool opened?"  However, this summer it has been too hot even for swimming.  So the girls and I have done a few new things.  I have taken on Zumba---can I say I love it?  I do it at the local Recplex and on our Wii.  So fun---and it does kick my butt.  Torie saved up her money and bought herself a "tablet"--however in order to use it more than 1/2 an hour---she has to use the treadmill---we are still working on that one some.  The girls have done the library reading program.  Which I love since it encourages reading.  Lyssie is struggling with reading quite a bit, and as a paranoid/concerned mom, I am having her tutored.  I guess I will be going to the Doctor to have her checked for ADHD to get the ball rolling (if you have met her you know why---the child NEVER stops moving, won't even sit down at dinner).  I feel very uneducated in this department and find myself very impatient with her when it comes to her reading struggles.  I don't mean to be hard on her---in fact I try SOOOOO hard not to be, but it's frustrating when she doesn't recognize a word she read only two lines before.  This is unfamiliar territory for me, although Torie struggled as well, it's something I don't understand.  Reading and School always came very easy for me, and although I am glad, it gives me little comprehension of why she can't get it.  I don't mean to sound harsh or uncompassionate, it's just foreign and I just want to say---just do it.  We will see how things look in the fall, but for now I am trying to figure out this new bag of worms.  Heaven help me!  But above all, may I have the patience of Job ---because nothing makes this mom feel worse than being impatient.

So many words.....

It seems as if I have been all over the board with emotions these last few months and fearing what I might or might NOT say, I haven't blogged.  So WHAT have I been doing---?  I am not sure I could fully say. 
     We just finished soccer season---for the first time both girls did indoor AND outdoor, which all in all would not have been a problem. However, they overlapped.  Can I say that I love indoor soccer?  It starts and ends quickly and you don't have to battle the weather.  Both girls played their little hearts out, but I think we are still learning to breathe again after having practice 4 nights a week.  I was NOT meant to be a soccer mom, and yet somehow I feel like one.
     These last few months I have been able to help out in Alyssa's class once a week and read in Torie's class every now and then.  I really enjoy being able to be involved with their "school life"---I know the kids, the nice, the mean, and all the others.  Plus knowing that my Torie will be in middle school next year, I have especially cherised this time. 
     Torie turned 11!  She is such a sweet girl---I couldn't have asked for more.  Her jokes are getting funnier and I love that she really confides in me.  I know what is going on with her and only hope that stays over the upcoming school years. 
     Jason and I made a trip to Chicago to celebrate 12 years of marriage.  We left the kids with Aaron and Patti and took the train up for 4 days.  It was great---full of learning about history, which I didn't know I like, but I do.  Lots of good food too.  And just a break, and remembering that we were once without children.  

 My first quilt---and it looks great in Torie's room! 

 Lyssie getting her "H.A.W.K." award---Helping Acts of Kindness!  Yea Lou lou!

 This is what happens when you shave your dog, your kids make dog fur art!

Torie and I at her 5th grade music review---she won't smile because of her underbite---SOOO SAD!

     I am also quilting---joined a quilting group, and really am learning a lot.  I finished my first quilt a week or so ago and can't stop braggin.  It's nice to have something that's mine---oh and did I mention I LOVE LOVE LOVE ZUMBA!  Done it twice now and it's so much fun!  Finally just getting and creating a life of my own, without a child under 5 attached at the hip. 
   SO now I am planning for summer, unfortunately sometimes the financial means cannot support my BIG ideas...so it's down to figuring out what the girls really want to do.  What things does your family do for the summer?  

P.S. Sorry these pics are like in the middle randomly, but I still am technically challenged...!

    

Happy Medium

So here's the thing that I have noticed lately...Some people are waiting to be offended, while others easily say offensive things.  What does this mean?  While I hardly believe that we need to be politically correct all the time and need to sit in silence when we have an opinion, there are some people that it wouldn't hurt to curtail their tongues.  Being overly paranoid of hurting people  (literally it's on OCD thing)  I don't get why people blundtly say things that can and should be offensive.  On the other hand, I don't get why some people look for people to offend them.  I feel like I am talking in circles, but in reality there HAS got to be a happy medium.  We are teaching our children not to be bullied, but in some cases we make them hyper sensitive to comments that children just say with no mean intention.  If a kid says that they hate you and want to beat you up...YES bullying....if a kid says "you're hair is shorter than mine"  get over it.  Are we creating a generation of even more easily offended children incapable of letting things go?  As a parent often in this whole situation it's hard to know where to draw the line.  So simply put, this is my conclusion, try not to be offended unless there was intent and if it was forgive.  If you are the offender---recognize it, take accountability, work on controlling your tongue and apologies can go a long way!

What's next?

The last few months I have thought often about posting and what to say and what NOT to say...so here goes.
Many of you know that I have wanted three kids for pretty much as long as I can remember. 2 girls and 1 boy in that order. SOOOO far, so good, until about a year ago. With PCOS, well let's say the two I have in all reality are a miracle. And after much stress, and some heartache, my body and I together have more or less decided that #3 isn't going to enter this family. This isn't going to be some long post on infertility, cuz let's face it I have two and that is wonderful! Plus the two I have are pretty great and the third one could have been a screw up, so why risk it right?
The bigger issue that I am facing is being at a point in life I had in no way anticipated right now.
Yes, Lyssie went to school in the fall, and at first the idea of all day by myself was exciting, oh the places I would go and all the things I would do. But now, I am a bit of a lost soul, wondering what's next? Yes, I know the options are limitless---work, go back for more schooling, volunteer, lots of hobbies, Yada yada yada. But for real, I have come to the harsh conclusion that somewhere in the last ten years I forgot who I am without these sweet little attachments holding my hand all the time. I definately try to be more involved with them both at school, volunteering, having lunch with them, etc. Truth is I don't even know what I like....and I know I don't like cleaning the house and cooking ALLLLL the time. And apparently it must be a little lonely too, because I find myself talking to the dog far more often than one might consider normal. LOL! So all you Moms who have been there--help me out? What would be next for you?