October

And then it was October. And October is the worst. October is the time of final assessments and report cards and conference reports and Parent-Teacher Conferences, a week of 20-minute back-to-back nonstop talking meetings. Some parents I know. Some parents I'm having the first real conversation with. Some conferences are easy, some not so much. It's just a tough, stressful time. We came back from fall break and immediately jumped into two weeks of this overwhelming stuff.

But then it was done, everyone could take a big sigh of relief and enjoy the respite for the last couple weeks. Here is the happier side of October:

My Uncle Hans and cousin Amanda came for a visit from Sweden! Amanda is studying to be a teacher and needed to do a research project. Seems like quite a distance to go for a little research, but hey! They came up our way for fika one afternoon and we spent a delightful time making fun of American Gevalia coffee ads, discussing the horror that is American politics, and eating Swedish candy. (Actually, Matt and I hoarded the candy. Even though my relatives brought the girls their own little bags of candy, we replaced it with fake Swedish candy from Ikea and kept the good stuff for ourselves!)

And everyone was smiling at the camera on the first take! Miracle!

Building a Home Depot birdhouse.

Annie rocked her first trip to the dentist!

 The other highlight of  my October was hosting my dear, dear bookclub friends. While we no longer bother pretending we actually read/discuss books, we still cherish our time together. There are two new members of our club now, and the babies were so well behaved, we have decided our next "meeting" will be a Family Book Club. We'll even invite the husbands! Oh, how I love these ladies. They have been a part of my life for the last 20 years, and you just can't manufacture bonds like that.

The triumphant return of book club!

Fall Break (or just a break)

So.... long time, no see. This is by far the longest blogging drought I've experienced since I started this little online diary. Sorry. I don't really have a good excuse. I got busy, I got behind, then I got so far behind it felt like I would never dig out and it just seemed easier to ignore the whole thing. And truth be told, I haven't felt much desire to come on here and write anyway. The only reason I've been pulled back at all is just the need to establish some type of record that these events happened at all. More for my benefit than for anyone else's (although my mom did ask the other day if I was going to update).

Anyway, let's see what happens. I'll try to throw the big life events up here that have happened in the last couple months, although I'm going to back date them so I don't feel so bad about myself... Wouldn't that be a lovely life feature. Hindsight is 20/20, but now you can actually backdate your events so your life doesn't look like quite a mess... Someone figure out how to do that.

But  back to the show. (I'm a little rusty, obviously.) Fall Break. This year we spent fall break at a lovely condo right on the beach in Ft. Walton, Florida. The place came highly recommended from Matt's  mom, who stays in this very unit each year on her annual girl's trip. We invited both sets of grandparents to join us because, the more the merrier! And honestly, the trip was perfect.

The lovely thing about our location was the easy beach access. I've never stayed quite so close to the beach before, but now I'm spoiled. We only had to climb one flight of steps to get to our unit, and the beach was reached by simply walking downstairs, past the pools, over the boardwalk, and onto the sand. The condo came with two free beach chairs and umbrella, set up for us each day. And being that close to our place meant we didn't even need to drag that much stuff down with us. Hungry? Run inside and get a snack! Tired of the beach? Walk over the pool for a bit! Forgot something inside? Have someone toss it off the balcony to you! Perfect.

The view from our boardwalk.

The girls insisted on hitting the beach the moment we arrived.

Beach babies.

Frame it.

Fall break happened to coincide with Annie's birthday, so we just hauled all the decorations, presents and cupcakes down to Florida with us. Girlfriend turned three in grand style, with her requested Minnie Mouse cupcakes. She got some kitchen stuff, a balance bike (that she promptly refused to ride so Violet happily commandeered) and other goodies. What a sweet girl.

Three!

Ready to cook!

The great thing about having so many people at the beach was that there was always someone willing to do what I wanted to do, and always plenty of people to hang back and do something else. I highly recommend traveling with a large contingency of babysitters and amusement-makers. No one ever felt like they were stuck watching the kids, and conversely, no one ever felt like they were forced to always entertain the kids. Every morning I crept downstairs to watch the sunrise with my mug of coffee and whoever felt like coming with me, and every evening there was someone to take a stroll with. One afternoon Violet and I watched a wind surfer, witnessed a wedding, and took in the sunset.

My brown-eyed girl.

The crew!

About halfway through our stay, I happened to notice a picture on instagram from my neighbor, who happened to be staying only 20 minutes away! We quickly made plans to meet up at the local mini golf place to let the kids play and have dinner after. You'd think we see enough of each other at home, but now that Amy and I teach at different schools, we see far less of each other than we're used to, so it was a lovely little "reunion". And of course, my girls adore those boys.

Ready for putt putt!

Family time!

After my morning yoga session on the balcony.

 Our last night in town, we drove over to Harbor Walk. The girls rode the little train around the plaza and we had dinner overlooking a magnificent sunset. It's funny how quickly life at the beach becomes normal. I had to keep reminding myself that we don't get sunsets like this back home.

All aboard!

Dinner with a view.

Last sunrise.

Goodbye, Fields of Gold

My parents had to head home a day early, but on our last morning we finally remembered to take a family picture by accosting some poor soul who was trying to enjoy his morning coffee on the beach and talking him into snapping a few for us. It was such a great, relaxing trip. And of course, now I'm totally spoiled and will be insisting on spending every fall break this way. Hope the grandparents are up for it!

Best Vacation Ever.

These Days

These days I feel like I'm constantly running behind. I just cannot dig myself out of this hole. It's partly the beginning of the year rush, plus the whole new school factor, with some random stuff thrown in (it's curriculum night week, both girls just started tumbling classes, we're joining a new small group with a significantly longer commute, my alarm goes off at 5:30 every morning...)

And it's partly that I refuse to press pause on this crazy little thing called life just because I'm a bit over-extended. There are things I want to get out and enjoy, gosh darn it!

Toad the Wet Sprocket at Suwanee Towne Center!

With my handsome date.

I mean, when your brother pops the question to a beautiful woman who is about to become your amazing sister-in-law, you gotta drop everything to celebrate, right? A recent Saturday had two huge life events occurring for two very important people in my life - one of my oldest friends was giving birth to her first child and my brother was proposing to Virginia, and neither one of these people was giving me regular updates! Lukas was hiding somewhere in a lighthouse with a diamond ring, my friend was pushing to become a mama for the first time, and I was sitting at tumbling practice refreshing my phone every two seconds! Ah, but how sweet it was to finally hear about both beautiful new beginnings.

I'm so lucky! I mean, he's lucky too. But seriously, we're all hitting the jackpot with this one.

Back on the home front, Violet started tumbling with her pal Taylor. Since they are at different schools this year, I was so glad we could get them signed up for the same class. I spent a lot of time explaining to Annie why she could not go as well. Then lo and behold, I found out there was a 3-4 year old class happening at the exact same time! Annie's not quite three yet, but hey, she's always been big for her age... I signed her up for a trial class the next week and apparently it went well enough that she can come back! Watching her, I was actually impressed by her ability to follow directions. I was markedly less impressed by her ability to perform a somersault, so I guess I know what our homework is. Thanks Olympics, you're as inspiring as always!

The newest gymnast.

And I must admit, getting up at such an ungodly hour every morning does lend itself to quite a Godly view...

How Great Thou Art

O Lord, my God, when I in awesome wonder

Consider all the worlds Thy Hands have made

Back to School!

We did it! We started school again. This will be my seventh year in first grade. It will be Violet's first (and hopefully only!) year in first grade.

She still wants to be a teacher. 

First Grade with Mrs. Lockett!

It has been strange starting the year at a new school. I've only taught in one place, so many things we did I just assumed were county policy. Apparently not, because things are definitely different here. Many things are just small differences, but it is enough to make me do a double-take, or wonder why. Fortunately, even though she doesn't know anyone in her class, Violet knows her teacher already, which helped to make the first day go smoothly. I remember having to pry her off of me in kindergarten. Now she marched down the hall (we are as far apart as you can get on the first grade hallway - probably a good thing). We do get recess together, though, which is a sweet little treat at the end of the day.

I've had to break up with my last school. That's how it feels, anyway. Almost like going through an actual break up, I've been mentally boxing up all our shared mementoes, avoiding places I associated with my ex-school, burning old photographs while listening to sad love songs... okay, perhaps it hasn't been quite that dramatic. We met up with the old team after Open House to catch up and it was great to see everyone. And it's hard to completely escape, considering my former teammate lives next door. But I have needed to make a mental separation in order to embrace my new school fully. I'm still getting whiplash on a daily basis as I continue to learn how things are done, but I'm happy to be there. I think greater things are yet to come, greater things are still to be done... and I'm thrilled to get to be a part of that.

Truth be told, after the past three weeks of getting the room ready, attending trainings, five days of pre-planning, it was a relief when the kids finally came through the door on Thursday. As much anxiety as you have before it starts, once that bell rings (or rather, doesn't ring at this school, weird) and the kids flood the halls, your teacher training kicks in, the show starts and you're rolling with it. Your muscle memory takes over and we're doing what we do.

My kids! This was the picture I sent to all the parents halfway through our first day.

By the way, shameless plug below to try and get a classroom iPad for this crew:

I want to make sure my students have the materials they need to succeed. So I've created a classroom project request at DonorsChoose.org, an award-winning charity. 

I'm asking for donations of any size to help my kids. For the next 4 days, any donation you make to my project will be doubled (up to $100). If you know anyone who is passionate about education, please pass this along. Your donation will brighten my students' school year, and you'll get photos and thank yous from our class. 

Here's my classroom request: 

Explorers: Columbus had a Compass, We Need an iPad! 

One last picture, because I can't help it.

Getting Ready

The listening center by the window with the ladybug chairs in my favorite, although I love how the library turned out too.

Preplanning officially starts this Thursday, but I've been unofficially on the clock for the last two weeks. New school means new curriculum to get trained on, new room to unpack and figure out, just lots of new that I wouldn't ordinarily be encountering my seventh year in this business. So as much as it pained me to head into the building early, I know it's a special case that won't have to be repeated every year.

I've been dropping by the building for the last two weeks now. At first I would take Annie on my way home from dropping Violet off at camp, and we would only stay an hour, long enough for me to move furniture or unpack my desk, little things. Last week, I took the girls to Camp Mimi and Camp Grandma and I worked all day every day. It stinks to not get paid for all the work I've put in, but the payoff is that the room is done and I'll be ready to focus on the new school year (open house paperwork, daily schedule, all those other things) once preplanning starts.

By far the most complex Ikea undertaking so far.

It was also great to have a week without the distraction of the girls. After their Ikea dresser got recalled, we decided to take the opportunity of a full refund to go ahead and upgrade them to something they could both share. They seem fairly committed to sharing the same room, so it's probably time to migrate Annie's clothes in there as well. Even though our house is pretty much 80 percent Ikea, it was still daunting when all the pieces spilled out. We had to take a break halfway through to nourish ourselves (we decided to only eat at places we would never want to take the girls) with some excellent sushi. But all's well that ends well. We also went to the movies, a nice Italian restaurant, shopped at Avalon, met a friend for drinks... you know, all those adult-y things we never do anymore. It was nice to have the one-on-one time with Matt to reconnect, since once school starts we won't see much of each other. Seriously, with a 7 a.m. start time, I'll be lucky if I see 9 p.m. anymore.

I made all the drawers.

On a Boat!

As one of our fun farewell to summer (sniff sniff) activities, we were invited by some lovely friends to come out on their boat! After Annie's last experience on a boat (see Maine events) I was crossing my fingers that the waters would be calm, and she did great. Both girls immediately took to jumping into the water and paddling around.

Made for the water.

After lunch on the boat and several swim breaks, we headed back to camp where everyone relaxed, let a little rain blow over, and then cooked out for dinner. It was such a break from routine, something so new for the girls to try, and a great way to cap off the summer. I know summer's not quite over yet (although it will be on Thursday) but already things are getting busy and it was fun to give the girls a new experience. 

Our view for dinner.

This beautiful rainbow followed us home.

Maine Lobstah!

Don't let go!

Friday was our last full day in Maine. It was too cold to "beach" but we still walked down and decided to try our hand at kite flying. Lauren had a bright blue octopus kite with eight waving tentacles that the girls had fun holding on to. The tenacity of Mainers (or perhaps it was the dumb tourists, who knows!) was astonishing. There were kids in bathing suits, families with beach gear, and look how we are dressed! Pants, jackets, layers... I guess if this is your yearly beach vacation, or this is your (short) summer season, you make the most of it regardless of weather! I remember having a picnic in Sweden one summer under very similar circumstances. Hey, if it's summer, you take advantage.

Our flying octopus!

After naptime we decided to take the kids to a mini golf place we had spotted earlier. It was your typical vacation town putt putt place, complete with giant waterfall in the middle of it. Violet had only played once before, but she was too young to recall. And Annie was a novice. Of course, beginners luck meant that on the second hole, Matt showed Violet how to line up, then she took over and got a hole in one! Annie quickly figured out the best spot to start her shot was about an inch from the hole, allowing her to make her own hole in one (or hole in nine, whatever). It was actually pretty fun. The nice thing about family places like this is that they are, well, full of families. Families who totally get it if your kid wanders onto their green or cheats their way through the course or has more fun playing with the waterfall than playing putt putt. That put us at ease and everyone had a really great time.

Getting ready to play.

Attempting some instruction.

Our last Maine event was dinner with a view. We headed back to York for dinner at a restaurant definitely nicer than somewhere I would normally take my kids. The staff was great through, and still very family friendly. I mean, when Fluffernutter sandwiches are on the kids menu, you know everyone will survive the night.

Spotted on the cliff walk before dinner.

The girls ordered spaghetti. When we eat pasta at home, I always make Annie take her shirt off. Things are bound to get messy, after all, and why make more laundry for myself? Well, no sooner had we placed our order than Annie starts trying to strip her clothes off! "But I eat spaghetti!" she kept insisting, unable to figure out why tonight should be any different! I died. Fortunately, giant lobster bibs were procured in short order, saving the day.

One big, happy, messy family!

Matt ordered the whole lobstah! It was totally intimidating but apparently amazing. I spent my dinner tag-teaming with Grandma and Grandpa, getting the kids out of the dining room and letting them run around in the courtyard overlooking the sea. Then we headed back home to get ready for our return journey the next morning. The flights home were easy, the kids did great even though we weren't back in our own beds until 11 p.m. Thank goodness for airports with play areas (or moving sidewalks that might as well be play areas). It was an awesome trip! Cross one off the bucket list!

When in Maine...