my idea of a lovely september afternoon

Sunny and 70 degrees.

Friday.

Boys playing in the backyard.

Girls playing upstairs.

Lovely.

twenty years...

How is it possible that one person can be both my rock and my soft place to fall? Happy anniversary to my very best friend. So thankful for you!

first day of school!

big day...

Today is a very big day. It is Kelly's birthday. (Happy birthday Aunt Kelly!) It is Kevin's birthday. (Happy birthday Uncle Kevin!) It is Grandparents Day. (Happy Grandparents Day Grandma, Grandpa, Nana, Papa, Grandma Audrey and GG!!) It is the last day of our summer vacation as school begins tomorrow. And it is the last day of Daddy's two-week vacation. These past two weeks have been wonderful. The first week was spent in San Jose. And the second week was a busy/fun staycation week. It included:

• A neighborhood BBQ
• The beginning of volleyball, football, and soccer seasons for the kids
• A trip to Fort Casey and Fort Ebey
• A trip to the Museum of Flight
• Lots of family art painting (our new favorite hobby!)
• A co-op BBQ

So it was fun, busy and full. And I, for one, am ready to get back to a normal routine tomorrow. Vacation is exhausting! :-)

11 years ago today...

...we moved into this house. Just the two of us.

 

 

A whole lot has changed since then. But we continue to be very grateful for this place we call home.



san jose 2013

My parents took us to San Jose last week and we had a wonderful time. We thoroughly enjoyed our visit with our family that lives there, including my 96yo grandmother, Audrey. The kids did great in the car, on the train, on the plane, in the hotel - it's so easy to travel these days! Thanks Mom and Dad for investing time and money into keeping us close with our extended family. Love them all so much!

The kids with Grandma Audrey.

 

My cousin Antonia and her beautiful family.

 

Our day at Happy Hollow Park and Zoo.

 

The Beverly Hillbillies making their way through the airport.

 

Girls luncheon!

 

In and Out Burgers - always a favorite.

grieving the 'no'

I read in a book recently that when we say 'yes' to one thing in life - we are automatically saying 'no' to something else. This seems obvious, I know, but I've never thought about it like this. The author went on to say that we need to give ourselves permission to grieve the things we've said 'no' to.

This explained a lot for me. I've always thought that I experienced regret after making major decisions in life. But perhaps I wasn't feeling regret at all - maybe what I was feeling was grief. Like when I cried so much on my wedding day. Although I was confident in my decision to say 'yes' to marriage, I was also saying 'no' that day to single life - and I was grieving. And even though my first pregnancy was planned and eagerly anticipated - I was a little sad when those two blue lines appeared. This joyful 'yes' in my life also meant saying 'no' to my pre-baby life.

My sweet girl is a bit sad today. Tomorrow all of her friends will start school and she's feeling lonely and left out. We went on a little date this afternoon and I was able to share with her that it's ok to be sad about this. Our 'yes' to homeschooling means we have to say 'no' to other things. Good things. And it's okay to grieve the 'no' that comes along with that decision. It doesn't mean we've made a bad decision, or even that we're feeling regret --- we're just sad about the 'no' - and that's ok.