New Habit's and Beginnings

The school year is going to start again soon. For our local public schools, the teachers have started their pre-planning this week and the kids will go back on Monday. 

Luckily for me, I work at a preschool. So we will start pre-planning next Monday and then school will start the following week.

I am very excited about this year. After a rough first part of last year, I wasn't sure I wanted to do it anymore. But this year I have a wonderful assistant and I am looking forward to getting the chance to work with her again! I have already started getting my lesson plans together, and I am excited to do some of the crafts and activities I have found online (thank you to Pinterest)!

But the craziness doesn't just start next Monday. 

Today is my last day of calm before the storm. Tomorrow is a training day. Then I am getting together with the ladies in our small group to make welcome back gifts for some teachers at a local school. Thursday I am headed to a local farmers market with a friend. Which I am very excited about! I love farmers markets! Thursday night is a GNO with my fellow teachers before the year starts, which is much needed! Then Friday will be errands day!

With all this going on and the school year starting, I have had to start a new habit. 

I have started getting up with the Hub's at 6:45 in the morning. I know for some moms that may be sleeping in, but for me that is early. Normally I sleep until I hear Finley wake up between 7:30 and 8:30. I know! I get to sleep until 8:30!? Not every morning, but yes.... some mornings I do. 

But knowing the school year is quickly approaching and a schedule is going to be needed, I have started  to get one going. 

It has actually been really nice to wake up with the Hub's. I can sit and blog or pinterest or facebook in peace, at least for a little bit. I can have a cup of coffee without it being knocked over or grabbed at.

The other thing that makes me excited about the school year starting, is that means Fall is on it's way!

I can see it coming. Every morning it is a little big darker then the morning before. Being from the South, you get use to long summers. And when I say they are long..... they are looooooooooooooooooooooong! They typically start some time in April, if you're lucky it will hold off until May. Then it can last through October. But, it isn't just about being done with the heat. With fall comes football season, camping, the leaves changing color, the smell of crisp fresh air, the ability to go to the park without dyeing. I can burn pumpkin scented candles, the holidays are on their way, there will be nights of cuddles under blankets, and bonfires. I can drink hot chocolate, coffee and hot tea! There will be pj pants in the morning, jeans during the day with boots, and then pj pants again that night. I can wear my sweaters, scarfs and hats! I can dress my little in stockings and leg warmers! Yes, I have knitted leg warmers for her. My sister made them, while kind of protesting the come back of the 80's, but I got tons of compliments on them when she wore them last year :) It will be hats and jackets and scarfs for Little's too! And I can't wait! I am not a fan of summer. I can usually handle it until July  4th, but after that I am over it. Which stinks, because we will have at least 3 more months of heat and sweat.

So, so long July and welcome to you August! Let's get this school year going!

Another new habit I wanted to try and stick to is taking a picture every day. You see these "Picture a day" things on instagram and they are things like "a chair," "your breakfast," or "a toy". Which is fine, it reminds you to stop and enjoy the small things. But for me I would rather take pictures of Little's or something she is doing. So I am trying to commit to taking at least 1 picture everyday of something that has meaning to me! I will post it at the end of the month. I didn't do this in July, but I do have some pictures I took.

Happy end of the Summer and beginning of the school year to ya!

Lazy Sundays....

For most people Sundays are spent waking up slowly, drink a cup of coffee with pancakes cooking for breakfast. They spend the day being lazy and lounging around the house with no real plans for the day.

Not in my house.

Sunday are started with a 6:45 alarm that gets snoozed until 7:03. Rolling out of bed trying to make myself look halfway decent for all my fellow church members, so I don't send them running away from the nursery screaming "That lady is not watching my baby!!" It is pulling the blankets back at 7:30 off my husband and telling him to get up and get Finley ready, that I need to leave in 30 minutes! And that is when he is home, other wise it is letting her sleep until 7:45 and then rolling her out of bed, getting her dressed handing her a sippy cup with juice and grabbing a granola bar on our way out the door.

Then it is hours spent at the church directing volunteers where they are serving and parents on which room they are leaving their precious baby in today. Followed by holding a screaming baby that is hungry, but the parents have left no bottle and directions that the baby is NOT to be fed. Thanks. 

Finally around 1:00 we are home, eating lunch and followed by nap times for everyone.

But not this Sunday... this Sunday was spent waking up slowly and a cup of coffee. Letting Finley sleep until 8:30. Then spending the morning watching Tangled and Lala Loopsy, coloring and reading books. I did laundry and dishes. It has been a day of getting back into the swing of things and starting to feel normal again.

I'm glad my house is getting back to normal.

I'm also glad I took 2 weeks off from the nursery. 

It has been a welcome break!

Now we are off to celebrate Baby Logan's arrival with some wonderful friends!

Happy lazy Sunday!

Less then a day

I am now less then 24 hours until my surgery tomorrow! By this time tomorrow I should be in recovery waking up and getting ready to come home!

So yesterday was suppose to be a day spent running errands, cleaning the house, doing laundry and making a meal for some friends that recently had a baby. Then around 9:30 am I got a phone call from a friend asking if I would like to do to the zoo. Who can say no to the zoo!? So I jumped on the chance! Finley LOVES animals and has only been to the zoo one other time, and that was shortly after she turned 1. So I threw my to-do to the wind, packed some lunch and water and we were off!

Finley loved to ride the lions!

She also wanted to give the birds hugs and kisses.

We had a wonderful time with our friends! I am so glad we were blessed to be able to go, especially since we wont be very active for a little while. This was a great way to spend some time together before I am off limits.

Last night we finally got some rain! We have had an awful heat wave for the last few weeks, and it seems like it has rained everywhere but where we live. For the last few nights we have seen the rain clouds and have even had some thunder and lightning, but it has never actually rained. Then last night we got some relief. The temperature outside this morning feels much more bearable. Although, now I have to do everything I meant to do yesterday and today, today while it rains! Oh well... that is the price you pay for fun!

Busy but Chill... is that possible?

Can you be busy and chill at the same time? I don't know... but that is how this weekend seemed to go. We had a friend down Saturday so the Hubby could help him with his car, but we didn't go anywhere or do anything. I played with Finley and cleaned the house a bit. I was FINALLY able to wash and dry clothes, so laundry that has been piling up for a week got done. We went to church on Saturday night as a family. Which is kind of rare, since Matthew is usually gone at some point during the weekend and I serve in the nursery on Sunday mornings. Sunday was spent taking care of some lovely babies. So much for a drop in numbers during the summer! We have actually had an increase in babies. Which is awesome, but kind of stressful when I'm not sure I will have enough volunteers. I was able to attend a meeting for our winter mission trips. I have been thinking about going to India on a medical mission trip in February. I think it will be a lot of fun, but a lot of work. My biggest worry is being away from Finley for 10 days over seas. I know she will be taken care of wonderfully by our family that would be more then willing to help. But I worry about being that far away from her for that long. That is the only thing holding me back from jumping in feet first. It's amazing how your perspective changes once you have a child. I use to have thoughts like, "What if the plane crashes?" And just the thought of the plane crashing would freak me out. Now I have thoughts like, "What if the plane crashes and I die? Now my daughter will not have a mother and I wont get to see and help her grow up!" Which will send me into a full panic attack. (Yes, I am that crazy... and that is mild thought.... they get much worse and more detailed then that.) But I guess that is the point of this trip, to step out on faith and trust that God  has a plan that is better then my unfounded nightmares. So, much prayer is happening and needed for my decision, which needs to happen soon! The application deadline in the 1st of August! 

While I was at the church, Matthew and Finley got to spend some daddy-daughter time together. They went for a little walk along a local river in the morning, then headed over to the in-laws for some family time. They went out to see Matthew's great uncle who lives in a nursing home for his birthday. Matthew said she had a great time and was really sweet to everyone. I was able to spend the rest of the afternoon at home in some peace and quiet. I was able to get some planning done and am getting ready for the school year to start! Also, there was some relaxing. Days without the baby are rare, and although I should be cleaning, I typically end up sitting down and reading a book or watching TV. :) 

I have 4 days until the mommy makeover! I have errands to run and things to do this week! 

Here is to a safe surgery and a quick recovery!

July 4th

Happy 4th of July!

We had an amazing 4th! We weren't able to spend time in our home because the AC decided to break at 5 pm on Tuesday and no one could make it out until Thursday. So we spent most of the afternoon at the pool and then that evening we went to downtown Newnan for the parade.

This was Finley's first year going to the parade. 

She had a great time saying hi and waving to everyone that came by.

We got to sit in a firetruck. Finley wanted to sit in the big carseat.

When we got home from the parade it was 90 degrees in our house, so we went over to Matt's parents house to spend the rest of the evening until it started to cool down.

We decided not to go see fireworks this year. We weren't really sure how Finley would do with the sounds of the fireworks. But on our way home we were able to see fireworks all over the sky. So we still got a little bit of fireworks.

This morning I got word that Finley and her friend Kylie made the front page of the local paper!

I love living in a small town. When we first moved down here almost 6 years ago, it was defiantly a culture shock for me. I grew up in a large suburb on the north side of Atlanta, so moving to an area where you see livestock on your 15 minute drive to the highway was a major change! But this small town has really grown on me. Although it has grown up a lot since we moved down here, it has held onto its small town feel. You get to experience local parades on the 4th of July and Christmas. They do Pickin' on the Square every other Saturday in downtown, where you get to hear a local bluegrass band. The first Saturday of the month they do a Market Day, which offers all local and handmade crafts. At Christmas they offer a candle light tour of the historic homes and pictures with Santa on the square. Finally, every few months they do Taste of Newnan. You can't go to the grocery store without running into someone you know! So you better make sure you aren't wearing your pj's out around town!

This is a wonderful town that has stolen a large part of my heart.   

About to take a break

My little rockstar!

It has taken 2 years, but my porch swing has finally been put up! I have been asking my hubby to do it since we moved into this house, but it has just never happened. So finally I said something to my father-in-law and he said it would get put up before the 4th of July. Last weekend he was over hanging out and I asked if they could get it put up. I am extremely excited that it got done! Too bad we have had 100+ degree days for the last week and have not been able to enjoy it. At least it got put up before the deadline.

 My FIL learned a lesson that weekend. It was never to give me a deadline, because I will hold him to it. He has talked about building Finley her big girl bed for when she is ready to move from her toddler bed to a real bed. He has mentioned this before, but we haven't really sat down and worked out the details. He said he didn't want to give me a timeline because I would hold him to it :) (Just an FYI he built our swing as our first Christmas gift as a married couple and the bed in our guest room. Which my hubby slept in until we were married and got our own bedroom set.) 

Saturday I took Finley to her first story time. She really enjoyed it, although it was cut short. 

Tomorrow if the 4th of July. I am very excited to take Finley to the parade in downtown and then fireworks that night. This will be the first year we take her. Last year we spent 4th of July weekend at the beach. Which was the beach trip from hell. Lesson learned that weekend: don't take a 14 month old that just learned to walk to the beach on the most crowded weekend of the season and without other family there to help you. This year, we will be hanging around our house and the pool. 

I will be taking a break for a little while, for about a week or so. Next Friday I will be going under the knife for my Mommy Make Over! I am very excited and nervous about it. This is something we have talked about doing for a long time, but decided we would wait until we were done having kids. And although I'm not sure I am done, my hubby thinks he is. This was a big question I had when considering to have the surgery. But after talking to the doctor, if we decided to have another child later I should be fine to nurse them. I am very excited to be within 2 weeks of the procedure. It feels like it has taken forever to get here, but at the same time it feels like we just set up the appointment. I have a lot to do to get the house ready for me to be down. I have cleaning to do. Which was made a little harder, since our dryer broke this weekend.

 So we are going old school and drying our clothes on a clothes line.

 I have errands to run and grocery shopping that needs to get done. 

There is meal planning that has to happen. 

Then cooking and freezing meals.

I will have one of my sister-in-laws here to help. Which will be wonderful, since I wont be able to do much with Finley. I would really like to have everything set for her and Matthew for that week. They both keep telling me they can cook dinner, which is true. But I am the one that does the shopping, so I know what is in the pantry and freezer. If I just handed them the reins, I am worried that they wouldn't know what to make. I am sure we would get fed, but I am a bit of a control freak. So in my head there would be things that didn't get used and things that did that shouldn't have and then my pantry and freezer would be crazy! 

Well here is to some time off! Have a Happy 4th of July!