Home stretch (almost)

I take my next-to-last final exam today.

After this, I am off of school for the month of December.

When I go back in January, it will be my last quarter.

(Can you hear the Hallelujah chorus, 'cause I sure can?!)

After today, I will officially let myself focus on the Christmas season.  And my family.  And my home.

I can't wait for tomorrow!

Kids live here

My refrigerator is covered with pictures, lunch menus, homework assignments and magnets made in Sunday School.

There are Legos in every single room of the house, I'm certain.  I've stepped on them more times than I can count.

Alongside of the books on the living room bookcase are stacks of videogames and DVDs, such as Hot Wheels and Home Alone and Twilight.

As soon as my kids walk in the door after school, at least three more kids are sure to be ringing the doorbell, wanting to play.

There is toothpaste smeared on the bathroom counter.  In two of our bathrooms.  I didn't do it.  (I'm pretty sure Joe didn't, either.)

The television is most often tuned to Sportscenter (Elijah), Cartoon Network (Gabe), or Say Yes to the Dress (Isabel).  I have to DVR my shows and watch them after the kids are in bed.

For people who don't have kids, this post may sound horrible.

But I wouldn't have it any other way.

When you walk into my house (and step over the shoes/coats/backpacks strewn on the floor), you know instantly that kids live here.

And that's the way I like it.

winner winner chicken dinner

and the winner of the Christmas cards giveaway is:

comment number 8

E.  from It's a Small World!

E, let me know what type of cards you want (religious, santa-fied, assorted) and I'll mail them to you soon!

Thanks for playing everyone!  Michelle, you know you'll have a chance at our Christmas party!

Christmas card sneak peek, or...

what I've been doing while holed up in my craft room these past few weeks (you know, in between work and school and kids and cooking and cleaning and doing laundry.  A girl has GOT to have some craft time, I tell you!)

I love coming up with new creations for Christmas cards.  I get inspiration from idea books, splitcoaststampers.com and even Pinterest (another new obsession...oh my word, the ideas!).

I usually only make six or eight cards of any one design; the fun for me is coming up with a new card, not making fifty copies of the same one.  Here are just a few of the cards I've made:

Any favorites?  Do you still mail Christmas cards?  Want to win a set of Christmas cards from me?  Leave a comment and I'll pick one at random sometime between now and Sunday...good luck!

Did I Ever Tell You About the Time I...

got a big surprise for my birthday and dared to do something I never dreamed in a thousand years I'd have the guts to do?

Photos courtesy of Hocking Hills Canopy Tours

Yup, Joe planned a zipline tour for the four of us for my birthday, and we did it!  (I may or may not have screamed.  I may or may not have peed in my pants just a little.  I may or may not do this again with my kids when they're old enough.)

Seriously, it was awesome.  Unbelievable that I actually did it, lived to tell about it, and am willing and excited to do it again.

Have you ever ziplined?  Would you ever?  What's the most exciting gift you've ever received for your birthday?

Spoiled rotten

I've mentioned before that I am the "baby" of my family.

My older sisters may or may not have called me a spoiled brat back in the day, but time has passed, and we are now the best of friends.

We don't talk on the phone every day, we don't see each other nearly as often as we would like, but we know that, if needed, we would be there for each other, no questions asked.

I'm so grateful for a sister who will take time out of her own weekend to drive north and spend the afternoon photographing my little family, then act modest when the developer asks if the professional photographer has given me permission to print these pictures on my own...

Thanks, Michelle.

 I'm also grateful that this same sister loves to scrapbook with me, and will go away on weekend retreats, or spend hours at weekend crops at Archivers, or in my craft room making Christmas cards.  She makes me feel like a million bucks when she raves over my latest creation, and fusses over how cute the cards are this year.  She loves my babies like her own, and since her babies are almost grown, she offers lots of sage advice for how to survive the teenage years :)

And since God decided that I needed an adventurous sister to go along with my crafty one, he blessed me with Rhonda.  Rhonda rides roller coasters and spends the day at King's Island with me, on the front seat of the Beast, in the dark.  She goes to Halloween Haunts with me, and doesn't laugh too hard when I pee my pants in fright.  She helps plan surprise birthday getaways to Hocking Hills and has the courage to get on the zipline with me (although we both would've backed out if they had offered a refund).

She points out double rainbows that God sent just for me to celebrate turning 38...

Two different sisters, two different personalities, one great love I have for both of them.

Being the baby sister is still the best; I am spoiled rotten by both Michelle and Rhonda, and I love every minute of it!

Spelling Bee and a Sweet Sis

Early in October, my sister and I loaded up our kids and drove east to "Old West Fest" in Williamsburg, Ohio.  It was a cute little town all done up in Western themed attire, complete with a shoot out in the street, a jail for the "bad guys", a medicine show, a magic show, and an old-fashioned spelling bee in the one-room schoolhouse/church.

My nieces were too shy to enter the spelling bee, but Isabel and Gabe clambered onto that platform and gave it their best shot.  Gabe got out on the first word (he was off by one letter, poor guy), but Isabel hung in til the end.

She won with the word "medicine".  (I've taught her well, eh?)

The "teacher" presented Isabel with the choice of two prizes:  a girlie pair of boot spurs or a cool rifle that made sounds when the trigger was pulled.  She chose the rifle.

Then walked right down those steps and handed it to Gabe, without a second thought.

He was so excited, she was glad to make him happy, and I had tears in my eyes at her generosity and innate kindness.

I don't know how I deserve to be this blessed, but I am.  My daughter is beautiful, inside and out, and I love watching the amazing woman she is going to be unfold before my very eyes.

The Hike

It was a gorgeous autumn evening in October.  Cool enough to wear a jacket and jeans.  Perfect weather for a hike.

Joe and I loaded the somewhat reluctant kids of ours into the van and drove over to the YMCA, where they have a perfect wooded trail filled with deer, owls, rabbits and other bits of wildlife.

I say "somewhat reluctant", because while Elijah and Isabel were not crazy about the idea of a family hike, Gabe was in his glory.  He filled his backpack up with binoculars, magnifying glass, a flashlight and a snack, donned his safari hat, and was ready to explore!  This picture says it all:

Just before we started out on the trail, Elijah looked at the clouds in the horizon and predicted rain.

"Not gonna rain til tonight", I said.

We found giant mushrooms, deer tracks, a group of deer, two rabbits, a gorgeous owl and gobs of acorns and walnuts before the first drops fell on our faces.

The sky grew dark, we started to walk faster, the wind picked up, we picked up our pace, the storm moved in and we broke into a run.  Gabe was convinced that we were in the middle of a tornado.  By the time we found our way back to the van, we were completely drenched.

What started out as the "best hike ever" quickly became "the WORST idea, Mom!".

It was a pretty memorable hike, though, one they're never gonna let me forget :)

Career vs Home

It's a tough decision to make.  

As a young teenager deciding on a college and a career path, girls don't often look down the road at how well their chosen job will coincide with a family life.  Once that stick turns pink and a baby is in the picture, however, thoughts of staying-at-home vs working-and-child-care quickly come to the surface.

Fortunately, I had older sisters and great mentors who encouraged me to think of these issues when deciding on a career.  Being a mom was the most important thing to me, even at the age of eighteen.  My babies were only a figment of my imagination at the time, but finding a job that would be flexible with good pay while allowing me to be a mom the majority of the time was my goal.  I knew a few nurses who raved about how well their jobs fit that bill, so I signed up for nursing school.  It was the best thing I've ever done.  Not only do I love my job (most of the time), but I love that I only have to work two nights a week, leaving me five nights to be what I most wanted to be:  a good mom.

Now that Elijah and Isabel are older, I am no longer called to volunteer as often as I used to be...but I still have Gabe, and I am having a great time volunteering in his class and for various school events.  It's so much fun to see him with his many (girl) friends:

and getting to have lunch with the first grade crew is always an experience (and reminds to be glad that I am not one of the crabby lunchladies...they need you, Aunt Chelle!):

Getting to go to events like Vehicle Day, where different careers are displayed along with their various vehicles (police, Army, truck drivers, farmers, hot air balloonists, and more!)...this is what I love about the choice I made for my own career over 20 years ago.

There are plenty of careers other than nursing that allow for moms to blend family life and work successfully.  I am finally at the point where I am not envious of stay-at-home moms; it was hard when my kids were little, and I felt like I was being pulled in so many different directions every time I left the house to work my shift at the hospital.  They would cry when I put on my scrubs, and I would feel like crying from sadness and fatigue.  Now that they're older, they appreciate that I am working for our family, and I try to make the most of our time together.

Do you have a career that meshes well with motherhood?  If not, what is your dream job?  And would you ever want to be a lunchlady for a room full of 1st and 2nd graders?!