Kelly

I can’t believe I haven’t posted on this blog since January.  I’ve had posting intentions, but, well, we all know how those intentions sometimes go and now here I am several months later. So, I’ll just go with the “better late than never” mantra for the blog for now.

We are on the approach to summer break and I am so looking forward to it. The girls’ last day of school is Thursday, May 23.  After today, we have three more Mondays and the last few half-days of school before the big break. It is surreal to think that our sweet girls are finishing up fourth and first grades. It almost seems like the first day of school was just last week. But, here we are nearing the end of another great school year and I already have summer fever. Yes, I’m the mom and I don’t work full-time at the school, but I am READY for summer.  Why, you ask? Well, let me tell you.

• Summer break means a break from the normal routine. Now, don’t get me wrong, I’m a girl that loves structure and routine most of the time. We get lots of that during the school year. So, during the summer, it’s nice to turn off the alarm clocks and ease up the early bedtimes. I’m sure that by sometime in July, I’ll get the itch to reinstate routine, but I plan to savor many non-structured moments right up until then.
• Summer brings pool time, random adventures, Vacation Bible School and camps. Such great memories are waiting to be made during the summer. I still recall awesome times that I had as a kid playing and hanging out with friends, going to VBS and, of course, at camps.
• Summer brings vacation time. Now, I know that vacations aren’t limited to summer, but since we have a beach trip in the making for this summer, we have a lot of reason to look forward to a fun summer vacation.
• Summer clothes are cuter. I am SO not a cold weather girl. I wear sweaters when it’s cold, but only out of necessity. I try hard not to wear coats as I really don’t like them. Boots and scarves are the only winter accessories I can really get on board with, honestly. So, when it starts getting warmer, I’m a happy lady. I love flip-flops, cute sleeveless tops, sundresses — summer attire is the best! (Let’s not talk about bathing suits though – I don’t know if that will ever fit into my “happy place” frame of mind.)
• Summer means farmers markets are bustling. I grew up in the country and came up eating fresh fruits and vegetables. I don’t have a garden these days, but I still love fresh produce the best.

See, there is a lot to love about summer. Sure, it’ll be hot, but that’s okay by me. I agree with what I was told once – hot is uncomfortable, but cold hurts. I’m good with hot weather. If it gets too hot, stay inside or hit the pool. Give me summer over winter any day. Ahhhhhhhh…come on, summer!

Kelly

It’s been almost a week since I posted. I haven’t meant to be neglectful of the blog. I’ve just been spending time with family and friends and staying a bit busy. I’ve also been rather introspective lately, to say the least. But, I do hope everyone’s year is off to a nice start. As I said on FB on the first day of this year year, if I learned anything at all in 2012, it was to embrace the good times, share the burden of hard times and love all the time. May 2013 be kind to us all. I am thankful for my wonderful family and friends and pray God be near us all.

Rather than make resolutions, I’ve decided to set five goals for myself for this year. In random order, they are:

• Get better about laundry upkeep. I am seriously the world’s worst when it comes to laundry. For one, I get behind on washing and drying clothes, so then once I get started on that, at long last, I get behind on sorting/folding/ironing/putting away and, well, one set of piles leads to another. In recent weeks, I have made an effort to do better and it’s been working. So, I’d like to keep that up and keep a handle on our laundry.
• Keep a prayer journal. Admittedly, I am not super keen on sitting and writing in a journal even though it sounds like a very cool thing to do and to have for keepsakes. I know that’s not going to happen. However, I can and should write in a prayer journal regularly. I can jot down people and things I’m praying for and Scriptures to go with them when they are on my heart. That is doable.
• Take a family adventure trip. We love family vacations and enjoy traveling, so this year I’d like to see us take the girls to some place totally new, at least once.
• Get into a manageable and effective fitness routine. I was working out regularly and even enjoying it last year, but then I injured my back and was out of commission for awhile as far as any type of exercise. Now that I’m feeling better, I want to find an exercise routine that I can manage that will give me good results too.
• More date nights. Mickey and I enjoy our date nights, so I’d like to see us get more of those this year. Even carving out time once a month would be good.

I set 12 goals last year and, honestly, I didn’t meet all of them, but I’m not beating myself up about it either. Some things from last year that I’d like to see continue this year are:

• Keep nice nails. I broke a 30+ year habit and did not bite my nails all of last year. And, they are still in great shape!! YAY!!
• Family thankful time. Each evening at dinner, before Mickey says the blessing, we each talk about what we are thankful for about that day. I love that time and the reminder that even in the roughest of times, we can find something to be thankful for every day.
• Keep up this blog. This poor blog grew virtual cobwebs most of the year, but I’ve been good about posting the last couple of months. Even if I only post once a week, something is better than nothing and I’d like to keep it up better.

So, those are my goals for this year. I think they are reasonable and attainable, so hopefully when I look back on them in about a year, I’ll be happy at what has been accomplished.

Here’s to the hope of a blessed year year…
Kelly

When I typed the title for this blog post, I thought of those old song lyrics by The Carpenters that rainy days and Mondays always get me down. I have to say, that’s really not the case for me. Mostly. Today, it’s definitely not the case. We are getting some much needed rain today and although I wish I had planned grocery shopping better, I can’t complain about the rain itself. We need it, so…let it rain. And, I’ll hit the grocery store another day.

I was actually out shopping today when the downpour started, so THAT little tidbit wasn’t awesome, but at least I got a cute new polka-dotted umbrella out of the deal. I won’t even talk about how much more shopping I did while waiting for the heavy rain to pass. Let’s just say, impulse purchases will look super cute in Christmas paper under the tree for the girls.

I tend to like rainy days. I like having the windows open at home when the rain is falling gently, so that we can hear the rain. That is seriously soothing. Rainy days are good take a nap days, or, at the very least, throw on some comfy clothes and pile up under blankets and veg days. And, rainy evenings are great for comfort suppers like chili or chicken & dumplings or, what we are having tonight, breakfast for dinner. Something about gray days inspires comfort food cravings, doesn’t it? So, I think it’s great indulge those once in awhile.

To me, rainy days are good reminders of several things. One, that we NEED rain – it’s a very basic need to everything, really. Two, rainy days have a way of making us slow down even in the most busy of times. And, three, rainy days can remind us to be grateful in all situations because if you listen, you’ll hear birds singing in the rain and, hey, if they can sing while getting rained on, I can find something to be happy about on a rainy day. So, I’m taking opportunities on this rainy day to slow down, get comfy and relax. Ahhh!

Rainy or not, I hope you all have a great Monday.

Blessings,
Kelly