sunday brought a decision on which club team to choose. grace got offers from the two we tried out for and sarah got one offer and one alternate. by lunch time, after church it was made... we'd be going back to where we started. both girls are thrilled. we were headed into commitment week as i like to call it. it's THE week we commit ourselves into a crazy schedule of practices and games/tournaments, a commitment to long nights - staying up late to finish homework, commitment to eating out more than i like, commitment to hard core scheduling and note taking to keep myself sane. why do we do this to ourselves? Oh yeah, these two...
they love the game and it has so many benefits to their self esteem. of course we have to do it! #lovenysvolleyballers
monday was halloween.
halloween should be on a friday night, every year, seriously. that's alot of work for a monday!
this year the dressing up was a breeze which this momma appreciated. grace went as a volleyball player and sarah as a greek goddess (her sisters costume from last year). they literally threw things on that night which was easy.
each girl had their own friend over to t or t. this is how you do it. it used to be art and i with the girls but now, friends. it was actually great, we all had fun. we parked ourselves at the end of the driveway with our fire pit, roasted hot dogs, ate chips, cookies, drank lemonade - talked about how much candy was in store for us. this is our first halloween in the neighborhood so we weren't sure what to expect. we headed out once it got dark and were not disappointed. our neighbor, her daughter and friend agreed to show us the ropes on merlin drive and i learned some new things.
what did i learn about my new neighborhood you ask?
- my alderman lives two 4 doors down - he's very nice, introduced himself to me with a handshake and an offer for a candy bar.
- orlando pace lived in my neighborhood, we trick or treated at his house.
- there is a very old grave site, three to be exact, fenced off in a culdesac. it's so old, you can't read the stone. me thinks i will look into this
- our neighbors go all out at halloween with elaborate decorations, full size candy bars, drink stations at homes with every bottled drink imaginable. my kids were spoiled and their friends said they would be back next year! ha!
it was fun and i got 15K steps. a win-win!
got a text from church, late night which is usually not good. one of our little two year olds was taken to the hospital. she was inconsolable and not moving her head/neck. many tests and the threat of meningitis brought the conclusion of an abscess on her neck and surgery was done. i visited this little girl in the hospital where we had taken grace when she had her seizures. it brought back many memories, scary moments. i understood what this mother was going through but i knew her daughter was in good hands at this children's hospital. i had a few sleepless nights over this little girl, she's a sweety. she is home now, after surgery and recovering. God is good. it made me come home and love on my girls a little longer, scares like this make you reflect. while i'm not sure what His plan was for grace and for this little girl, i do know he is perfect in all His ways and he was there for me and this other momma.
art's birthday is next week, coming up fast. other than a new coffee mug i got nothing! absolutely nothing! art's not the easiest guy to buy for (he says the same about me). i've asked for ideas because the girls want to get him something but nothing as of yet. he traveled this week which means i don't rest well. house seems very big when he's gone. sarah ended up sleeping with me. she of course loves when he travels :). truman has spent alot of time on our bed which is a no no while art's at home. he brings warmth and comfort that dog of mine.
sarah's class won the candy contest. they collected the most candy for the schools trunk or treat. they won a cinnamon donut and apple cider party. her teacher contacted me at the beginning of the week to see what she could have. i have donuts and would send one. that was wedensday when she asked, i wrote it on my planner and guess what friends?!? i forgot!!! epic fail not only for my girl but for her teacher! darn my absent minded brain, especially since i had written myself a note! i made up for it though, i brought the teacher 6 plastic bins for operation christmas child shoe boxes. no i wasn't trying to make up for my mistake. in my defense i had purchased the bins before realizing i had forgotten the donut! i made it up to sarah as well. i delivered that forgotten donut to her for an after school snack. all is well now.
but my brain people! if i don't write it down it gets lost in space (apparently even when i do write it down it's lost). my system has failed me or maybe i've failed it. either way i gotta get serious and get my head in the game. it's times like this i think i'm headed down the dementia road already!!
back to donuts... i have officially sworn in hump day as our official, family donut day! there's a donut shop not even two miles from our home. it's also on our way to school (yikes for my waistline). we could bike there and feel less guilty about indulging right?!? good donuts are my weakness!!! everything in moderation...
all this talk of donuts, now i'm hungry.
until next week...
