Lifelines

60 degrees in January.

WEIRD.

And before I even knew the temperature, I had woken up to a very swollen and very UNFROZEN creek out my bedroom window.

WEIRD.

But you know what?
I love it!!
I’m not complaining about these freaky little balmy days because you know why?

Because January is almost over.

Which leaves us with cold old February and psychotic new March.

And then it’s SPRING!

And though we’re a ways away still, my kids thoroughly enjoyed the hint of what’s to come…

(This was the first time I picked up my camera in weeks and I was reminded too just how much I love photographing these special moments at home.)

What a weird, warm January we’ve had!
I’m certainly not complaining, I like weird and I like warm and if it sortens my winter sentence by several weeks, then so be it I say!

My kids were so excited to see this weekend’s snow though.

Me, ah, not so much—I’m sure glad that we will be able to use our ski passes this week but with that snow has come the frigid cold and THAT I can definitely do without.
FOREVER!!!

My kids were begging to go outside and play in the snow and after a long catch-up day of schoolwork, I finally let them and I made sure to bring my camera along!

(I’ll tell you, I paid dearly for that decision too because I could not wear gloves AND manipulate my camera at the same time. Camera won. Fingers froze. By the time I went back in, I thought they were going to fall off and I think for a little while I would have preferred that.)

There’s way more fun to come for these kids, a whole season long bit of winter wonderlandy play!
(Yay.)
(Hopefully my “enthusiasm” isn’t catching ;))

Wow, it’s been awhile, huh?
An unprecedented slice of bloggery silence.
My excuses run the gamut…I’m busy, I’m still recovering from Christmas, blah, blah, blah but ultimately, I just wasn’t feeling it.

Weird, right?

Honestly, I blame Pinterest and Words with Friends (though the second is far worse right now) for sucking up any available time I have.
Which is practically none as it is.
And even now, I should be doing about thirteen other things but I’m not.

Hopefully I’ll get my groove back but I wanted to say to those of you who did, thanks for checking in on me! If one (or three) of the kids had tied me up and left me for dead in the basement, I’m happy to know that eventually, my friends will come looking for me.

First one there gets my Tiffany’s bracelet! :)

Today was Creux’s first day back at preschool and when he came home, he was bearing a very special gift…for the BIRDS!

He was so excited to hang it for them so we wasted no time.

I know this is kind of an awkward shot—that boy was HEAVY—but together, we got it up there.

And tomorrow, we’re hoping for nothing but a string!

I always forget how hard it is to return to “life” after a nice long break.
Inside my soul, I feel ready to giddy-up and go and so I do and expect that things will just snap back into place flawlessly.
And you’d think I’d learn by now that the first week back after any time off, despite my own motivation, is rough going.
You’d think that I’d be smart enough to draw a line from this (husband home) to this (his help & my relaxation) to this (me feeling ready) to this (Ka-BOOM! No one else is!).

But sometimes I’m dense, distracted, and far too optimistic for my own good.
Just because the calendar flips and I face some new numbers, that doesn’t mean my kids have gotten the “brand new year, fresh start!” memo.

What they’ve gotten, is used to a really unstructured “anything goes!” kind of temporary lifestyle and after two weeks of living it, it’s tough to drag them back to my work, work, work schedule.

I start the new year ready to roll because I’ve had two weeks worth of help and a near constant supply of extra hands here at home which makes my life VERY easy.
Days are still work to get through…dirty dishes still pile up, meals still need to be made, messes still need cleaned, squabbles still need to be broken up.
But there are TWO of us here working together and THAT is the difference, THAT is how I’m able to come off of a vacation or a break and feel like…”Yes! I’m ready! BRING IT!”

And that’s also why I get my arse kicked right as I get back on the horse.

It’s simply because I’m not taking into account how hard it will be to jump back into my life ALONE.
Motivation, I’ve got in spades.
What I don’t have though is the second “me” that’s been bustling around the house here and there, picking up disasters, changing two out of the five incredibly disgusting diapers I face in a day, making meals and snacks, running errands here and there, just all and all making life NICER.

And boy, oh boy, does it make and boy, oh boy, do I realize it right away!

While the wind has slackened in my sail, I’m not dead in the water.
I’ve just got to plaster on a new game face, get to bed earlier, get up earlier, firm up my organizational systems, cling to my calendar like glue, and start drinking by 4:30 on the dot every evening.

My word for this first part of 2012?
RALLY.

Luxe is really growing and changing fast these days; it seems that with each week that passes, she gains new words and conquers new feats and giggles at new sillies.

She’s cutting some big teeth right now in the back of her mouth and it’s making her grouchy.

She loves to dance and can boogie like you would never believe.

She just started saying, “Stop!” except it comes out at “BOP!” but she does yell it, just like she should.

She is wildly funny.

She loves to pull extra clothing on and wear it around her neck like a necklace. Even undies that she’s confiscated from the dirty bins. (shudder)

She’s starting to talk in sentences, most consisting of asking where somebody beloved went. I noticed it last week when Greer walked out the door and, after bursting into tears, she asked me woefully, “Greer doe?”
Chas told me she did the same in regards to me today when she woke up from her nap and found that I was gone.

She has now been fully weaned. And while I was okay with it last week, I am very sad now. I nursed her the longest by about two months. She didn’t seem to notice right away but has asked me twice in the last couple of days and now my heart carries a small dose of regret.
It was our morning thing, you know?

But now it seems we have a new morning thing and it’s “breakfast”, in that cup, and in that chair. I typically give her small crackers and whatnot in little mugs so she can hold them easily and today she climbed right on up into her dad’s empty seat across from me, and smiled, her wee face barely clearing the table.

Sweet.

A glass of wine, a jar of gems, and Words with Friends.
That pretty much sums up this Monday-feeling Tuesday night for me.

Though there wasn’t more than a dusting of snow this morning, Greer was dressed and out the door right after breakfast and Playdoh cakes.

After a missed tubing opportunity due to the warm temps and sheer lack of snow, my whole crew is excited to see this white stuff.
Good thing too because we’re going to put what’s on the ground to use later this week in a BIG way!