We’ve made it. We’ve finished the first semester of school and we’re officially on holidays. No more rushing to do two (sometimes three!) drop-offs for the next two weeks. No more packed lunches or rushing to get everyone’s hair done.
I really enjoy the slower pace of mornings when there is no school or kindy.
The last few weeks have been busy with work and events. I’ve been trying to be intentional about slowing down. It hasn’t quite worked. But at least I’m working on it and intentionally thinking about it.
Jacob and I got to have random date night out by going to the theatre. I have to admit by the second half it was hard keeping my eyes open. Not because the play was bad – it was really funny, but I find the theatre can go so late at night, and sitting in the dark just makes me want to fall asleep. I now understand how people fall asleep in the cinema! Or in church. Haha. Does that make me old?
Lately, it’s the same old stresses I’ve been dealing with. Like choosing to stop and do something I like, like watching Outlander. But the moment I stop, I lose momentum and get stressed about not spending the time I did have wisely. Those kid-free hours are so far and few between.
I’ve been resorting to a bit of TV or iPad Babysitting just so I can keep up. As my dad says, it’s the season I’m in. Just take one day at a time.
And lately that’s what I’ve been doing. Taking one day at a time. And sometimes one moment at a time.
I’m wanting more hugs from Phoebe lately. I look at her and think how can she be three in a couple of weeks?! Wasn’t she a baby? Where has my baby gone?
I then look at Maggie and see how much she’s grown too. She has so much sass and attitude. She’s not afraid to tell me what she thinks about everything and anything. I often look at her and think how life would be less joyful without her in it. It would be a little bit quieter too. In 6 months she starts school. SIX MONTHS.
And then my Esther. My firstborn blows me away with how she just gets in and does her work. Her report card was awesome. She’s worked so hard this year and it’s paid off. I was so proud to see her get her Principal’s Award a couple of weeks ago.
Sometimes Jacob and I look at each other and think how did we get these awesome girls? Do you ever do that with your partner? Just look at your family and think how amazing they are? I might be chanting a different tale towards the end of the school holidays.
We’ve got some exciting things planned these school holidays. One project we’ll be tackling is Esther’s bedroom. For her Birthday, we’ve decided to give her room a makeover. A new quilt, a new desk and a complete cull of toys and stuff she no longer plays with or needs. Her room has been the only room we haven’t painted, so it will be good to give it a refresh. I’ll share what we do in a blog post.
I’ve got an event to attend to on the Gold Coast in the second week of the holidays. We’ve decided to turn it into a night away. I’m looking forward to spending some time away from the computer for one night at least. Of course, all the events will be blogged about. It’s part of the reason why I’m going away.
This week’s plan of attack is to declutter. Wish me luck on that one with three kiddos at home.
Maybe they can help me?
In happy/sad news, we sold our cot. Phoebe has been in a bed for a couple of months or so now. The cot has been sitting in my office, unassembled. Last week I finally listed the cot on Ebay. The couple that bought it had only sold all their baby stuff 6 months ago on Gumtree. They thought they had finished having children but found out they were unexpectedly pregnant again. I’m happy the cot is going to someone who really needs it, but sad it was the end of an era in our family life.
Of course it reminded me of when our little Phoebe came along and disrupted our plans for the better. Sometimes a disruption can lead you to another place you couldn’t have expected. God’s the author of redirections and his plans are always so much better than the ones we lay out for ourselves. Well that’s what I’ve found with my life.
In amongst all that has been going on with family and work life, I’ve had a few interesting plumbing problems that I’ve been able to help with. I will blog about these in the next few weeks as well. It’s always good using my plumbing knowledge to help someone out. It’s also reminded me I know more than I think.
How have you been going? Have you got plans for school holidays? Are you hooked on a TV series like Outlander?
Disclosure: I was gifted tickets to see Noises Off in exchange for a review on their site.
