March, here we come.

We're already to March and I've already decided to be better about updating.  Maybe that should have been one of my new years resolutions.....not sure how many I'll push out this year, but we'll try for more than one.

Here we are, beginning of March and I made it through year-end, the craziness of January and even the craziness of February.  So, let's start with the holidays and year-end -- I'd love the say the holidays were great for our family but the overstimulation and travel took it's toll on me and I cracked while we were in Michigan and decided to leave family Christmas to spend time in our hotel room working on my laptop and getting ahead for year-end.  And I will also say, if you don't come visit and don't know about my kids and what they like and what their interests are, you should probably stay in your lane and not tell me that my kids need gobs of toys and trinkets because it's Christmas time.

Anyway, we made it to January and Declan and Connor both had an extra week off of school due to a horrible snow storm that dropped about 9 inches of snow on us.  It made for a great time trying to work from home, do school from home and stay in due to the extremely cold temps.  By the end of the first week of January, we were all ready to be back in our "normal."  Declan started his Intro to Hockey class which was the last class required for him to join a hockey team in August.  Connor started swimming lessons again and was so excited to get back into the pool.  And since that time, we've spent our weekends at the hockey rink and swimming pool among other activities.

At the end of January, I turned 42.  The kids were awesome making it a great day for me and they celebrated me to make me feel like I was the best person in the world.  Connor made me a gooey butter cake, brownies and a Toll House pie, Declan made me a card and they both made me a Hockey Mom tote bag for hockey season.  I also got a Hockey Mom sweatshirt and apron with my initals on it.  I got some new weights so I can enhance my at home workouts from my Mom and Michael and D took me out to nice dinner at YaYa's European Bistro for babba ganoush and an amazing pasta dish.

We had a trivia night at Declan's school on the 30th and while we weren't the smartest team, we had a bunch of fun as a family and learned a few trivia tidbits.

In February, we were faced with two more snow storms and more working from home and school from home over two separate weeks.  To say I was/am looking forward to spring and summer is an understatement.  Honestly, I am on pins and needles waiting for warmer, nicer weather!  On President's Day both boys were off of school for the holiday and D and I both took the day off to do something fun with them.  We took our 2nd annual President's Day visit to the St. Louis Science Center per the boys' request.  They had so much fun throughout the museum and we ended our trip with an icee and lunch at McDonald's, which is always a special treat for them.

We also went to a St. Louis Blues-Chicago Blackhawks game at Enterprise Center and Lindenwood Lions-Alaska Fairbanks Nanoks game at the Centene Center.  The Blues were victorious against the Blackhawks in a shoot out and most of us were excited (Declan is our lone Blackhawks fan) and Alaska Fairbanks won in OT.  The boys were excited for Alaska Fairbanks to win since once of their players gave them a hockey puck.

We had STEAM night at Declan's school this past Thursday evening and we enjoyed our time doing activities and learning about science, technology, engineering, art and math.  It's really neat seeing Declan in his school environment and around friends.  His friends absolutely love him and come up and embrace him like they haven't seen him in forever, even if it's only been a few hours.  He shrugs most of it off but I know he's extremely likeable and probably a good friend to everyone he meets.

This weekend, Declan finished his last Intro to Hockey class and we have a week off before starting up some extra lessons to make sure he's ready for joining a team in August.  Connor has one more week of Daddy and me swimming lessons before he officially moves up to a class on his own the following week.  And, Connor finished his soccer lessons at preschool this week.  He's got a few weeks off from that before starting back up.  They also love their monthly woodworking classes at Home Depot with Nana and Papa and look forward to building "something" each month.  All activities that my boys absolutely love and I enjoy the fact that they both want to stay active, be athletic and learn valuable life skills.

Also this weekend, D and I have been hit with the plague that has hit nearly everyone recently. I spent most of yesterday in bed, achy and feverish.  Thankfully my mom and Michael had the boys and allowed for me to get some rest.  I'm starting to feel a bit better today but D has felt absolutely horrible today.  Thankfully, my mom and Michael again stepped in to help us out.  Michael was Connor's swimming buddy today and the boys decided to go spend some extra time at Nana and Papa's this afternoon to allow us to rest and hopefully feel better sooner rather than later.

So that brings us up to this week -- the first week of March and hopefully the first signs of spring, getting outside to enjoy some weather and hopefully feeling back to normal!  I'm sure ready for it all!

As usual, here is a photo dump of our last few months:

Snow day!!!

Two boys who love the snow!

Blues-Blackhawks game

Enjoying the game with mama.

My little Blackhawks fan.

So proud of his brownies.

Making gooey butter cake.

A Toll House Pie for mama.

Building at Home Depot.

More building and learing life skills.

Living room hockey!

Intro to Hockey class.

STEAM night

2024 wrapped up in one long post.

There are 11 days left in 2024 and I've had zero opportunity to create even 1 post this year up until now...

I finally have a day off and have a minute to breathe.  I got all of our Christmas presents bought, wrapped and ready for our many Christmas celebrations earlier today and now I have a little bit of time before the kids are out of school for winter break.

So where has this year gone?!?  I honestly could not tell you.  I've worked A LOT, spent time taking the boys to various practices/lessons and tried to keep my household running with two very active boys.  Declan has taken up ice skating in order to play ice hockey next fall.  We've had weekly lessons since March and just recently he completed the Little Blues Youth Hockey program.  In fact, earlier this week he graduated from Enterprise Center.  To say I'm proud is an understatement, he's improved so much from his first time on the ice and he's become serious about joining a hockey team.

Declan also started kindergarten back in August.  How is he already a kindergartener?  I just don't know...it is blowing my mind how fast he and Connor are growing up.  We've been working on reading, spelling, tying shoes and a lot of math.  He loves math quizzes (addition, subtraction, simple multiplication) when we're driving and is doing fantastic in school.

Connor is officially a preschooler at his school as of August and he's doing amazing as well.  He's also a smarty pants and is practicing counting, letters, fine motor skills and his gross motor skills.  It also looks like he's going to be a lefty like his mama.  He's been coloring and writing with his left hand because "it just feels better."  He took ice skating lessons with Dustin this fall and while he liked it, he has decided for now that swimming and soccer are more his thing.  He has soccer lessons at preschool each Friday and will be starting back with swimming lessons in January.

Both boys keep us on our toes but they are the cutest and sweetest kids I could ever ask for.

As I mentioned, work has been A LOT this year.  Sometimes I don't know how I do what I do, but I am grateful to work for an understanding company.  I officially have a week off before I go back in for the year-end craziness on the 30th and 31st.  And while it is not a week off from every obligation, I do intend to enjoy some downtime with my family.

Hope everyone has a wonderful holiday season and hopefully I'll actually update this blog a bit more often in 2025!

Here's a photo dump of our last few months.

Connor and Louie

Red and Green Day at Preschool

Thanksgiving Lunch at preschool with Mom

Declan and Barrett Jackman

Declan on the JumboTron

Christmas jammies

Breakfast with Santa

Declan and Louie

Woodworking Class at Home Depot

Thankgiving 2024

Oh life...how much crazier can you get?

 What a year it has been so far!  We're heading into the holidays and I feel like I haven't had a minute to breathe.  So we'll recap the last few months if I can even remember what happened.

Summer passed us in a blur.  In July we took a short vacation to Michigan to visit D's family and attend a family wedding.  The kids were treated to a trip to MSU and visited The Dairy Store.  On our way home we stopped in Chicago to visit AJ's auto shop and got to see a lot of cool souped up cars.  Both boys were in heaven as they absolutely love cars!

We finished the month of July by attending Ribfest in Chicago as well.  Another fun time and this year all 4 of us attended.  Declan had fun with some friends and Connor just had fun getting into everything and running around all afternoon.

August started off extremely eventful as on the 1st, I had to take Declan to the hospital for stitches right above his lip.  He was at school and fell off of a stool and hit his face on the Lego table and the cut was deep enough to warrant stitches.  So I left work in a rush, got him to the ER and he got 3 little stitches right above his lip.  He recovered like a champ.

In mid-August, Declan officially changed classrooms at school and became a Junior Kindergartener.  It's his last year in preschool before he heads to Kindergarten next year.  Mom took it a bit harder than he did (how is my baby getting so big?) and he loves his new class with his teachers and friends.

Labor Day weekend, D and I got to see Shinedown in concert again and the boys got to hang out with a babysitter for the first time.  Our teenage neighbor Emma watched them for the evening and they had an absolute blast with her.  They built forts and played Legos and had snacks.  Overall it was a successful night!

Shortly after Labor Day, I had to travel to Houston for work for 3 days. D held down the fort with the boys and then had to travel himself the following week.  It was go-go-go most of the rest of the month.  We also were in the midst of planning two little boys birthday parties.  

Declan wanted his first birthday party with friends so we had to figure out when and where.  We ended up hosting 10 of his class friends at a trampoline park.  They all had the best time and Declan and Connor declared it the best day ever.  After the trampoline park party, we had the family over to our house to celebrate the boys turning 5 and 2.

Right after the boys' birthdays, Connor was moved up to the 2 year old room at school.  He has the same teacher Declan had a 2 and loves his friends in his class.

Our family attended Nicole and Matt's wedding on October 28th and it was so much fun!  The boys looked adorable in their outfits.  They were really attentive and good at the ceremony.  At the reception, they spent most of the night with me out on the dance floor.

We celebrated Halloween with a party at my work on the 26th and trick-or-treating on Halloween night.  Declan was The Flash and Connor was a fire truck (although he wouldn't wear his costume for very long).  And, we have enough candy to last us until next Halloween I think!  What was really funny is that Declan got cold and wanted to come home after a few houses and Connor (who is a clone of his dad) wanted to stay out and visit all of the houses for candy.

That brings us up to November and this month we had the scare of a lifetime.  On the 7th, Declan started itching really bad.  We thought he may have gotten into something at school that caused an allergic reaction.  We gave him Benadryl and called the Children's Urgent Care hotline for some advice.  They told us to keep monitoring him and go to the pediatrician if it wasn't better the next day.  So Wednesday, D took Declan to the pediatrician and they gave him antibiotics thinking he had peri-anal strep.  On Thursday,  I worked from home and stayed with him.  He was still itchy and his rash seemed to be spreading.  We basically were waiting for the antibiotics to kick in and start working. On Friday, I had to go back to work so I took Declan to my mom's for the day.  Around 2 pm, she called me to let me know he still wasn't better and I should probably call the pediatrician again.  So I did and then raced out of work to get him into the last appointment of the day at the pediatrician's office.  While there, they noticed he had developed an ear infection on top of the rash.  She prescribed another antibiotic and advised that we get bloodwork done at the hospital.  I raced to the hospital before they closed to get the bloodwork completed so we could hopefully get some results. The pediatrician called me around 6 and told me Declan's bloodwork was fairly normal and nothing was too worrisome for her. We got the additional antibiotic at the pharmacy and went over to my mom's again so we could see Connor and so the boys could spend the night.  Saturday morning Declan's rash was getting worse and his skin was scaly and he was itching and burning everywhere. I opted to go straight to the emergency room to get this figured out.  They checked him out and advised that they think he had Staph Scalded Skin Syndrome.  SSSS stems from a staph infection and the body tries to rid itself of the toxins and over-reacts causing the rash and scaly skin.  They told us that he would need IV antibiotics to treat the infection.  They also let us know that he would be in better hands if he was transferred down to our Children's Hosptial.  So they got him stable with an IV antibiotic and we headed down to the Children's Hospital in St. Louis on Saturday afternoon.  We spent 2 days down at Children's getting antibiotics and fluids.  I didn't leave Declan's side for those 2 days and finally Monday we were released to recover at home.  Since Declan was still itchy from his skin peeling off, I kept him home on Tuesday and was hopeful everything would be going back to normal very soon.  Thankfully he was feeling much better and got to go back to school on Wednesday.  It was a stressful week and I'm so glad things are moving in the right direction.  Tomorrow we go back to the pediatrician for a 1 week follow up from the hospital and hopefully we can put all of the illness behind us for a bit.

This week, we're also preparing for Thanksgiving.  Thanksgiving is on Thursday and this year we're doing something a bit different and traveling to Chicago to celebrate with D's side of the family.  Chicago is more centralized for us and saves us from driving 8 hours to Michigan.  GG, Aunt Ashley and her family are meeting us at AJ and UP's house for a family Thanksgiving.  John and Amanda are coming in from Utah and Colorado.  Nana and Papa are also going to make the trip to Chicago from here so we'll have a houseful to celebrate.  

It's so hard to believe the end of the year is upon us.  We've got quite a bit left to do before Christmas but the kids were ahead of the game and we do have our Christmas tree up and are in the midst of shopping.  Hopefully I'll be able to post one more update before 2024 but you just never know....my intentions are always good but life just gets crazy sometimes!

Welcome to June!

 Oh what a week it has been!

I'm happy to say that I'm recovering pretty well from my gallbladder surgery and am pretty much back to normal after an eventful time about 10 days ago.  My incisions aren't completely healed yet but the soreness has worn off.  I got to get back to the gym today for the first time in about 2 weeks and it felt good.  Now, if I could just keep this momentum up!  I go back to the surgeon for my 2 week follow up appointment on Tuesday and fully expect for a good report from the appointment.

We had a pretty busy week this week.  Getting back to the office after being out for a week was really chaotic.  Sure, I worked from home the 3 days after I was discharged from the hospital and I put in full days even though I was recovering but there was so much more to take care of being back onsite.  Plus it was month-end, which always makes things quite a bit busier.  I put a lot of time in the office this week and then tried to spend the rest of the time with my kiddos in the early mornings and late evenings.

I was lucky enough to get some Lindsay time last weekend though.  On Sunday, I got to spend the afternoon with my oldest friend from childhood, Shell.  After coming back to STL to visit family and friends from her home in New Zealand, we got to go out for lunch and a few drinks at Shortleaf and catch up for a few hours.  It was exactly what I needed.  I realize I go go go all the time and take care of so much for everyone else and sometimes I just need a bit of time for me.  It was great to get to catch up too after not seeing each other for 4+ years.

On Monday, we barbequed and had Mom and Michael over for Memorial Day.  The kids absolutely loved getting to have a picnic outside and playing in their Cozy Coupe and John Deere Tractor.  We also played dominoes where Declan kicked butt and beat all 3 adults.  He practiced his numbers and math skills too and I'm just in awe at what he already knows at 4.  Connor had a blast running around and eating popsicles.

As I mentioned earlier, this week was quite busy and thankfully my mom was able to help get the kids after school.  She had a big tree cut down at her house and offered to pick up the boys so that they could watch the guys take it down.  Both boys absolutely love construction and large machines and had a blast with the trucks, wood chipper and all the tools used to take down the hollowed out tree.  Declan told me all about it when I picked him up on Thursday and even told me the guys were showing off and doing tricks for them.  Listening to him telling the stories of their adventures was the cutest.

As far as this weekend, we're not up to anything too crazy.  Recovering from the week, meal prepping and getting ready for the week ahead.  Declan has a birthday party for one of his school friends tomorrow and we're going to enjoy a bit of downtime. (Really though as if there is any downtime with a 1.5 and 4.5 year old!)

Anyway, here are a few pics of our Memorial Day weekend:

Oh, May!

Usually on a Saturday morning at 8 am, I'd be at the gym trying to decompress after a long week at work.  Today, I'm propped up on the couch recovering from emergency gallbladder surgery on Monday evening.  Thankfully I'm feeling quite a bit better, just a bit sore from surgery but I still thought I needed a day or two more of taking it easy before trying to get back to real life.

So let's recap the week and I'll try to explain how I got to this spot....

On Sunday afternoon, D wasn't feeling the best.  For lunch, he had made a quesadilla with some questionable cheese and I made a grilled cheese with the same questionable cheese.  I felt fine but he had a small stomach bug going on later in the day.  By dinner time, we were having tamales for dinner.  I had two and felt super full and a bit uneasy after dinner.  I thought it may have just been the cheese on my sandwich from lunch now taking a toll on me.

We all went to bed Sunday evening and I woke up Monday morning still with some tummy trouble, but I got ready for work and got the kids ready for their day at school, spending a good amount of time in the bathroom during all of our morning prep.  I drove to work and continued having to go to the restroom every few minutes.  I somehow got through my 8 am department meeting with my team and as soon as it was over, all hell broke loose!  Besides the vomiting, I started to get chills and was doubled over in pain.  I kept thinking, I have nothing left in me, I have to start feeling better soon....boy, was I wrong!  Around 9:45 am and 50 bathroom trips, I walked into my boss and told him I wasn't feeling well and was going to go home to get better.  I NEVER go home from work sick, but I had to admit to myself I wasn't doing any good in the office.  I sent a quick email to my team and told them I was going home to get rid of my stomach bug.

The drive home from work was the worse.  I could barely drive as I was doubled over in pain and every bump made it that much worse.  I called D and let him know I was coming home.  He called my mom and asked her to come check on me once I got home.  I was not much better when I got home.  I could barely move and no matter how I moved, I was in excruciating pain.  My mom came over about 30 minutes after I got home and tried to take care of me.  She suggested I try to go to the doctor and I declined thinking it was just a 24 hour bug that I needed to sleep off.  The only problem was that I couldn't sleep and was hurting more and more by the minute.  I decided to make an urgent care appointment for that afternoon and then about an hour after making that urgent care appointment, I decided to cancel it and just go to the ER.

Because I was hurting everywhere and the pain was shooting up through my chest, as soon as I got to the ER, they took me back for a EKG and X-ray of my chest.  Thankfully both were normal but that didn't explain why I felt so bad.  They ordered bloodwork and urinalysis and an ultrasound of my abdomen.  In between the testing, I was in the waiting room barely able to move.  Finally in the late afternoon, I got moved into a room in the ER and was waiting on a CT scan.  The tests confirmed my gallstone had gotten bigger and was most likely the cause of all of my pain and suffering.  The ER doctor was leaning towards surgery to have my gallbladder removed (considering I have had multiple episodes of gallbladder attacks over the years) but was waiting for the surgeon's 2nd opinion.

By 4:30 pm, they all decided I was going to have gallbladder surgery and by 5 pm, I was wheeled off from the ER to surgery prep and by 6 pm, I was under the knife having my gallbladder removed.  It was such a crazy turn of events.  I started my day thinking I had food poisoning and by the evening I was having emergency surgery.  After surgery and a bit of time in the recovery room waking up from anesthesia, D was there and waiting for me.  He had switched places with my mom who came to my house to take care of Declan and Connor with my step-dad.

I got to Face-time my boys once I was in my room and both were so adorable.  Declan asked why I couldn't come home to see him and Connor was just his joyful self running around without a care in the world.  D left shortly after and sent a message to my boss and team letting them know I would be out of commission for a bit but would check in as soon as I could.

I woke up Tuesday feeling sore but so much better than I felt the day before.  The surgeon came in early and told me my surgery went well and there were no complications and he was discharging me.  I still needed to wait for the hospitalist to release me but I was almost free to come home and recover.  I was excited to get to come home and around noon, I was officially released to get back on my feet in the comfort of my own house.

One thing I failed to realize after I was discharged was that I was on IV pain meds in the hospital.  At home, I'd be on Motrin only.  I was feeling good when I left because I still had the pain meds in my system.  A few hours later, I was so sore and I decided the couch was going to be my best friend for the rest of the day and night!

I decided to work from home the rest of the week and overdid it a bit by trying to sit at my computer for extended lengths of time but I made it through the week.  Probably the hardest part of my recovery is actually taking it easy.  I'm used to going from the time I wake up until the time I fall asleep each day.  I pack my day with as much as I possibly can as I have so many people counting on me.  I'm still trying to figure out how to take it slow and take it easy and break these mental barriers that tell me I need to do it all.  But, one positive note from this entire saga is that I no longer have to worry about another gallbladder attack taking me out unexpectedly.

As luck would have it this week, Connor also had an incident and my parents had to take him to urgent care on Wednesday night.  He apparently picked up pink eye from school.  Of all weeks to get pink eye, it was the week that I was out of commission.  He had to stay home from school with me Thursday and Friday to ward off giving it to anyone else in his class (although I'm sure he got it from someone else there first!).  Keeping him occupied while I was trying to recover, rest and work was quite the experience, but again my mom stepped in to help out as she could and it was a huge blessing.

Last night the kids went to spend the night with my parents.  It's their Friday routine and after 2 weeks of being home with us on Friday nights due to other committments, the boys were excited to go to Nana and Papa's.  In fact, last night we asked if we could all do dinner together since both parents had spent yesterday at our house and Declan responded, "You and Daddy need to do dinner on your own.  We're going to Nana and Papa's for dinner and the hot tub!"  So in case you're wondering, my 4 year old needed a break from home and needed some fun at Nana and Papa's. 

The rest of the weekend, we're planning on enjoying the time off and I'm hoping to be back to 100% by the time I go back to work next week. 

And of course, I can publish a new post without some pics so here are a few of our week.

My hospital visit.

Declan taking care of emails for me.

My little nature lover.

My two little loves.

Hope everyone has a great Memorial Day weekend.

Checking in for 2023

 This blog is dusty and I realize check-ins are near impossible, but it won't stop me from thinking the best and hoping I can still pop in occassionally and post an update on our lives.

So in the 6 months since I last posted, let's see if I can recap our lives!  We made it through the holidays -- two special little boys' birthdays, Halloween, Thanksgiving, D's birthday, Christmas, New Years, my 40th birthday, Valentine's Day and St. Patrick's Day!

Declan and Connor have grown up so much and I'm sitting here in awe at how well adjusted they are, how smart they are and how much I enjoy being their mama in spite of all of the craziness life brings us each day.  They make me smile each day and really are the brightness of my days.

Connor started walking shortly after his first birthday in October and at nearly 18 months, runs everywhere.  He doesn't slow down and is my dare devil. He'll look at you with the sweetest smile on his face and do exactly what he is not supposed to.  He's my charmer and my love bug too. He loves giving hugs, blowing kisses and will cuddle on his terms.  His vocabulary is growing by the day and I know very soon he's going to be talking just as much as Declan does.  Right now, I think we're up to about 12-15 words.  His favorite being "hi Papa", "ball" and "Dec" and "dada".

Declan is my intellectual that loves facts and research and learning in general. He's excelling in Preschool and when we took him to the school district for his 4 year old assessment, they told us he's ready for Kindergarten....he's got a full year plus to go before we even get to that point (darn October birthday!).  His interests include learning more about shipwrecks (documentaries about Titanic and Edmund Fitzgerald are his favorites), building, learning about every type of car and truck imaginable (he's going to be my motorhead) and hot-tubbing at Nana's.  I'm amazed every day by his vocabulary and problem solving skills and think that he's going to be smarter than me in no time at all.

In January, I celebrated my 40th birthday.  I was a bit anxious about turning 40.  It felt like a good portion of my life and youth was long gone.  I reminisced about my 20s and 30s and wondered how those years passed so fast and worried that the next 10 years of my life would pass in an absolute blur. I didn't want to do much for my birthday but D suprised me by having my immediate family over for a small party.  And honestly, it was exactly what I needed on my 40th birthday.  My team at work also threw me a small party with catered lunch and memories of my younger days, which was appreciated.

A few weeks back, at the beginning of March, we suffered our first loss in a long time in the Roberts' family and while I don't like dwelling on the sad stuff, I want to mention it as he was one of the most influential and special people I've had the pleasure of knowing for 10 years.  Grandpa Roberts, the pillar of our Roberts' family passed away from post-polio syndrome.  He was 87 years old and had been on a decline since Christmas but it was definitely hard for our family.  D and I made the trip to Michigan to be there for the family and attend his funeral and I can say, we were both emotional wrecks.  Grandpa was one of the first people that truly accepted me and welcomed me into the family.  I could and would sit and talk to him for hours when we visited. His stories of the Upper Pennisula, his time at Oldsmobile and GM, snowmobiling and life in general were interesting and inspiring.  He loved hearing my stories about trucking and accounting life.  For D, growing up, Grandpa was the one to take him to his hockey games and practice and help him with his homework.  We both know he's in a better place with his declining health, but it hit us hard and still does at times.

And finally, I guess for the last of the updates for today, our family is gearing up for a mini Spring Break to Branson with my brother and his family and my dad and step-mom.  We're taking 4 days at Easter and are renting a cabin close to Silver Dollar City for a few days of family fun.  The trip includes a visit to the Titantic Museum (at Declan's request), Silver Dollar City and other family friendly attractions for our crew.  Declan asks week after week if it's time for our vacation yet.  He's beyond excited to spend time with his cousins, uncle Ryan, aunt Kahla, maw-maw Debbie and papa Tank. 

I think that's about all for now.  I'll (again!) continue to try to better myself by checking in more often.  I love looking back on these posts and reminiscing about everything what I had going on at certain times in my life.  If I just had a few extra hours in my days and weeks....

3/4 of a year update

 It's already September and haven't posted since I went back to work in January.  It's been that insane that finding just a few minutes to update my blog has been the last thing on my mind -- actually anything to do with a computer when I get home from work is not a top priority.

So, how could I possibly update today...the day after a long Labor Day weekend?  Simple, it's the first day off I've taken with really nothing major planned since going back to work at the beginning of the year.  Ok, so we do have carpet cleaners and air duct technicians coming by today, but my kiddos are at school and I'm sitting here avoiding my work computer and all other chores to post an update.

So let's see...what has happened since January?  My kids are growing like weeds and in one short month we'll be celebrating Declan turning 4 and Connor turning 1.  The year has absolutely flown by and each day passes in a blur.

We've had a few bouts of quarantine for each kid with school due to COVID exposure and in February at Connor's 4 month checkup, he tested positive himself.  Talk about feeling like a bad mom -- he had no symptoms besides a runny nose and when I happened to take him to the pediatrician they asked if he was coughing and dumb me says "no."  He let out the slightest of coughs when they rolled him from his back to his belly and sure enough, he tested positive.  The rest of us didn't seem to get it -- so either we had it previously and didn't realize it or Connor had a false positive.  It seems like both boys were in and out of school for weeks until finally things started to slow down in June.

We celebrated Easter, Mother's Day and Father's Day with small celebrations at home.  Nothing too crazy as trying to wrangle up two kids has proven tougher than I thought.

In the beginning of July we decided to take a family vacation.  I was unsure about a 13 hour drive to D's family cabin in the Upper Pennisula so we settled on something much closer.  It was still about a 4 hour drive, but Branson seemed to be exactly what we needed to get away for a week.  Thankfully my mom and Michael came with us and were a huge help.  We rode the Branson Scenic Railway, visited Silver Dollar City, splashed around at White Water and took a tour of the fish hatchery. It was a fun time and allowed us to get away from home.  4 hours seemed to be our limit for a road trip as well as both kids were done with the car by the time we arrived.

After Branson, Declan got to experience a Brazilian steakhouse when we went to dinner with my dad, step-mom and my brother and his family. He was all about using the tongs to pick up everything.

In mid-August Declan officially started the preschool program at his school.  It's more structure with less kids, which will hopefully help prepare him for Kindergarten.  His teacher is from Peru and she's teaching the class in both English and Spanish. Declan has started coming home and giving us pointers of words in Spanish.  I absolutely love it as it's allowed me to brush up on my Spanish too!

Connor has started transitioning to the I/T 2 classroom at school too.  This is a room between the infants (or young babies) and the toddlers (kids over one).  This class is a bit more active than the infant room and is preparing him for his move to the toddler class.  In order to be moved to the toddler class, Connor has to be eating people food (not purees) and down to one nap a day.  We've just started people food as he has been a rebel and has refused to try it until just this past week.  And, as far as naps are concerned, he's a rebel with those as well but a complete trainwreck when he doesn't have enough sleep.  My guess is that he'll move into the toddler class at around 13 or 14 months, like Declan did.  He has started cruising around our house, holding onto furniture and wants to be on the go all the time!

Perhaps one of the most exciting part of this update (or at least most, me-centric) is that I actually got to go out last night and enjoy a kid-free night of music and fun.  For Mother's Day, D and the kids bought me tickets to see Shinedown perform here in STL and the concert was last night.  The last concert (Nickelback) I had tickets for was cancelled in 2020 and I hadn't made a push to want to see anyone too badly since then.  That all changed when I heard Shinedown was coming to town and I really wanted to go.  I had debated about buying tickets myself and Mother's Day just so happened to be around the corner that D thought it would be a great gift.  Thankfully D also planned for my mom and Michael to watch the kids.  And until I was sitting in my seats last night, I didn't realize how much I needed the night out.  Shinedown's music helped me get through so much in my 20s and now as I approach 40, their music still helps fuel me.

I guess the last thing I should mention is work.  My role as Controller is ever-changing and growing. I spend a good portion of my time advising, mentoring and fixing problems.  The rest of my time is finding ways to manage and report the financials of four trucking companies and the other companies that are part of our network.  On top of my normal workload, we're preparing to move our Corporate Headquarters at the end of the year and I've been involved with the decision-making process for our new building as well.  Somedays (or most days), I don't know if I'm coming or going. I've realized this year that I'm aging when it comes to work -- partially due to the huge responsibilty I have, but also trying to balance my family, my workload and just life going on around me.

Happy New Year!

Happy 2022!  

We're a week into the New Year and I'm not much better at keeping up with the blog than I was in 2021.  There has been a lot going on and I'll tell you it's not easy to keep up with it all with 2 little ones but we're getting by.

The holidays passed in a blur but our boys enjoyed themselves and we got to catch up with family and introduce Connor to everyone.  We made the trek to Michigan before Christmas and then got to spend the holidays at home.  Declan asked for a remote control Dodge Ram and Santa graciously brought it for him and Connor got the diapers he (or Declan did on his behalf) asked for.

After the holiday, we all spent a few days together before getting ready for the New Year and ultimately for our new routine.  And this past Monday, our new routine started.  Connor started school and mom went back to work!  It was a bittersweet day for sure.  I was so happy to get back into the office but I did miss being with my Connor.  12 weeks passed by in a blink of an eye!

First Day Pic

Connor did great at school his first few days and then we got word that a teacher in his class tested positive for Covid so he was sent home early Friday morning.  So now, he's stuck in quarantine at home for the next 10 days.  So much for our new routine....

Thankfully Connor doesn't seem to have any symptoms and Declan appears to be doing fine also but we're watching both of them closely and keeping to ourselves....so pretty much what we've been doing throughout the pandemic.

I went back to the office on Monday, excited to be back with my team and back in the saddle.  I was glad to have the time off with Connor and to get to spend extra time with Declan but I missed work as well.  Work apparently missed me as well and I've been swamped since coming back but I thrive on the craziness.  With going back to the office, I received some exciting news -- I've been promoted to Controller!  I wasn't expecting it at all but I'm ready for the opportunity.  Our company has grown tremendously since I originally started back in 2005 and I'm extremely grateful for the faith they have in the work that I do and for allowing me to lead the Accounting and Billing teams at all 4 of the trucking companies and the other companies under our owner's umbrella.  

It's been an eventful 2022 so far one week in. I don't know what the rest of this year holds for us but I'm sure we will have a bunch going on.