Feeling Thankful

Last week at school, J's teacher's asked him what he's thankful for. Now, most kids replied that they were thankful for their houses, their moms or even their toys, my little guy replied: carrots from the garden. And then tonight at dinner he expanded and included all vegetables. Riley replied that she's thankful for health and food. Guess next time we should ask the kids after dinner!

And now what am I thankful for? Glad you asked.

*My family. Hands down, my family is the most important thing to me. Whether they're living in my house or halfway around the world, every one of them means something important to me. Although sometimes family drives me crazy, at the end of the day, I thank God for each one. My parents have taught me so much during my 30+ years, and keeping family as the most important thing in your life is something I hope to pass on to my kids.

*My friends. At times, I'm not a very good friend. I let days pass without returning phone calls. I sometimes take them for granted. But those few who I've kept close enough to communicate with on a constant basis are my lifeline. They're the ones who get me through the difficult days I sometimes have. They're the ones I boast to about the kids' accomplishments. They're the ones I can vent to. I love them all.

*My house/neighborhood. When we moved to our neighborhood 5 years ago, I had no idea the lasting friendships that would form and the friends that my kids would make. My parents still live in my childhood home, and I envied the neighbors that they have. The people that would wave whenever you made eye contact outside. But now, we have that in our neighborhood, and I couldn't be happier. The only downside is not seeing everyone as often as we did when the weather was nicer and the sunlight made the days longer. Thankfully we get together every so often for neighbor night, where the adults get to mingle and the kids get to play.

*My job. I love the freedom I have with my job. I'm blessed to have two lucrative freelancing gigs right now that give me the flexibility to work from home yet not stress myself out too much by putting in too many hours. I love that we're able to afford me staying at home and not having to send the kids to daycare/after school care. I love that I can get Riley off the bus every day. I love that I can help out at her school.

Other random things that I'm thankful for:

*Apple cider donuts
*Electric blankets
*Being the first patron to read a newly released library book
*Eating dessert after the kids are in bed
*Reading the newspaper in the morning
*Playing Uno with Jeremy while watching hockey highlights
*Listening to Riley read
*Watching Riley curl her tongue when she's concentrating on homework
*Seeing Jeremy twirl his hair when he's tired
*The husband making me popcorn
*Said husband allowing me to put my constantly cold hands on his arm/back/stomach/face
*Walking outside in the summer without socks or shoes on
*Harvesting food from our garden and eating it fresh
*Hockey. Plain and simple
*Instant messaging with family members
*My cat who constantly curls up with me while I work
*Hackney's onion rings, Luke's french fries and DQ Blizzards

What are you thankful for?

Fall Festival

We did take the kids to a fall festival this year at the local market. I love that it's so close to our house. We went during the week when it was so empty, it was cheaper and the weather was beautiful! The kids had so much fun playing and running around, and Phil and I had a great time watching them. All of us even participated in the corn maze, which we completed successfully. And this was the first year that some little boy didn't insist on being carried!

The kids.

The kids and Mom.

J and Bob the Builder.

J driving Dad.

I'm thinking of making this the Christmas card. :)

J riding the tractor. He loved this part.

Soccer Star

While searching for photos of Riley, I forgot to mention that she played soccer this fall. She really enjoyed playing in the spring, and we desperately hoped that she would have the same coach in the fall. Boy, we were sadly mistaken!

Riley is in the middle.

The after-game handshake.

Her team this year was not that good. And as a former athlete, it sometimes pained me to see how poor the team played. What was worse was that the coach did not want any help. Nothing. I certainly didn't want to run the practice, but when you have 10+ 6-7 year olds, sometimes you might need help keeping them involved and focused. One practice the coach was running late, so I thought I would help out and start practice with some stretches. He arrived and didn't even thank me.

It was definitely trying for Riley, too. The team, like I said, was not good. She's still playing co-ed, and it's for first and second graders. Some of the boys can be a little rough, which is hard for Riley, but she held her own. I'd say she was one of the better kids on the team, not shying away from the ball. There was one kid on the team who was hands-down the best. He scored all the goals for the team this year. Every one. And it got to Riley a few times, as she'd come off the field crying when they lost. Competitive much?! And nevermind the one game where she thought she heard thunder and wouldn't calm down. I was embarrassed, but what can you do? I think there's a reason why I don't have many pictures of Riley playing soccer, as I was embarrassed for her team!

At least J had fun at most games, playing with other kids.

I hope this year hasn't deterred her from playing in the spring. I don't want to push her to play, but I don't want this one bad season to prevent her from playing again if she really likes it. The coach mentioned that we can request to have him for a coach in the spring as well. Um, I think we'll pass!

Number 7

My little girl turned 7 today. I know I say this ever year, but where did the time go? Where is my little child who had such a hard time nursing that her dad had to feed her with a syringe? Where is the little child who carefully walked while holding my hand? Where is my little girl who was wide-eyed when her brother entered the world and insisted on holding him every chance she got?

She's still here, but now she's reassuring us that she can do things herself. She tells us -- sometimes while rolling her eyes -- that she can take care of herself and doesn't need our help. And as much as it pains us as her parents sometimes, it's true. Our little girl has become an independent child. And now she's 7.

We spent dinnertime yesterday reminiscing about what we were doing 7 years ago. We were at the hospital, and, depending upon the time, Phil was either watching the Packers/Bucs game or The Wizard of Oz. I said that Uncle Kevin and Aunt Mandy were there, as were Papa and Nana. They all left about 9 that night, since it looked like our little child would wait until the next day to make an entrance.

And she did, which surprised the heck out of me that the child I had was a girl. And of course Phil was over the moon because he knew that I was having a girl. We told Riley this, and then we asked her who was the first family member other than Mom or Dad to hold her. She gave the right answer: Uncle D. He was working at the hospital at the time and came to give me my meds (he was a pharmacy tech).

Our little girl is 7. We celebrated over the weekend with a little party for her friends, and then today Phil took 1/2 day so we could celebrate as a family. Both sets of grandparents called as did Uncle Kevin and family. She even received a package from Uncle D and Casey. We went out for ice cream to celebrate the special day, and capped it off with both Mom and Dad tucking her into bed.

Seven years old seems like a lot. I cannot wait to see what changes will happen to her this year. As hard as it is sometimes to see her grow up and miss what she used to be, it's just as exciting to see what she will become. We love you, Riley. Happy birthday, sweetheart.

7 years ago yesterday:



7 years ago today:



6 years ago today:

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3 years ago:

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Last year:

This year:

Meeting a Blackhawk

I wish his eyes were open, but what can you do!

Last Thursday Jeremy met his first-ever Blackhawk. And honestly, I don't know who was more excited: him or me!

Phil actually heard on the radio that Patrick Sharp was going to be in my hometown on Thursday, and he thought I might want to take Jeremy and meet Sharpie. Heck yeah! So I gave my dad a call to see if we could stop by on Thursday since we'd be in town. To make a long story short, Dad said he'd go to the Wallgreens (where Sharpie was signing) and wait in line for us. Well, when J and I got there, I couldn't find Dad. And of course Dad "forgot" his cell phone. J and I walked up and down the line, which was a few hundred people thick. I even put J on my shoulders in hopes of finding my dad. Nope.

I ended up calling the house and getting ahold of my mom, who just returned from work. She walked (yes, walked) over to the Walgreens and held my place in line so I could find my Dad. Turns out he was actually inside the store--I didn't know the line began inside! So crisis averted. Mom walked back home, and Dad really wanted to leave, but he had the wristband, which we were not able to remove without cutting it off. Dad was stuck. But he brought a folding chair...since he was there at 3 for a 6 pm signing! Special thanks to Dad!

We were about 60 people from the front of the line--the first person was there at noon! It was Veterans' Day, so some kids didn't have school. Plus, come on, it's Sharpie! He actually came in to the store right by where we were standing, which was pretty exciting. And despite Dad having a wristband and J and I not having one, we were able to get two items signed by the time we got up to the front (only about 40 minutes once Sharp began signing).

Jeremy got to Sharp, and I walked up there with him. He put the plastic stick down in front of Sharp, who told J, "Nice stick!."

I said, "Tell Sharp that you were named after a Blackhawk. What's your name?"

J said, "Jeremy."

Me: "Tell him who you were named after."

J: "Jeremy Roenick"

Sharp: "That's cool."

Me: "Tell him who your favorite Blackhawk is."

J turns to look at Sharp and says, "You."

Good answer, boy. Then we got a picture of J and Sharpie, which I'll have to upload. We walked back to Papa's car, who drove us to our car, since we had to park rather far away. We went back to Mom and Dad's for a quick dinner and then headed home. Riley was a tad jealous that she didn't get to go, and I did feel bad, but she got to spend plenty of time with Dad. Who knows, maybe she'll get to join us the next time we meet a Blackhawk!

The signed stick and puck.

School Pictures

Jeremy's preschool pic.

Lucky boy had two poses.

Riley's first grade picture.

Where did my babies go?

Halloween!

Posing for the camera.

Riley was a hippie girl and Jeremy was Buz Lightyear.

Halloween was on a Sunday this year, which worked out well for the kids. Seeing as our town's trick-or-treat hours were 2-8 (is it just me, or is that a bit much?), we started out for gathering candy around 3. We traveled around the neighborhood with some great neighbor friends. We've done ToT with them for the last two years, so this was somewhat of a tradition. The girls had so much fun, but the boys got tired quickly. We opted not to bring the wagon this year, simply because the boys, we thought, were old enough to walk the whole way through.

Obligatory photo with Mom.

Sadly, this was NOT Phil's Halloween costume!

Yeah, they were tired before we got to the end of the block!

Our ToT friends. She was Pebbles,
and he was Marvin the Martian.

The three neighbor girls. We actually borrowed
Riley's costume from the little girl on the left.

We even had to figure whose turn it was to ring the doorbell. The poor boys had a hard time keeping up with the girls. We made it around the block, and then headed home. I dropped off Jeremy with Phil (who had stayed behind to hand out candy), and Riley wanted to go out more. I had to carry her candy bucket, because it broke due to all the candy!

Overall, ToT was a rousing success. And what's even better that the kids share with mom and dad. It's really a win-win.