Snow fun!

Snow fun....

It had turned into a lazy Saturday. 

We had spent the morning with family in NJ finishing our Christmas holiday festivities. As we drove home, the forecasted snow began to fall. We arrived home, unpacked, put on a new movie, and settled in for a quiet afternoon!

As we drifted in and out of sleep, the boys began to beg to go out to play. 

We were comfy, cozy, and warm cuddled under a blanket and the thought of digging out the snow pants and boots (to see if they even fit) was not a happy thought.

I had pushed them off for about an hour when finally I jumped up and gave in. I knew I needed to or "The Mommy Guilt" for this moment would never go away.

So we found everything we needed (we had it...even though the boys wore boots that were slightly smaller than their current shoe sizes! They were too excited to tell!) and we headed outside!

Domenic was going to clear the driveway and I was going to drive the boys around to sledding hill.

What followed was more fun than I've had with the boys in a long time!

There were yells of joy......     

                      loud giggles...

                                       snowflake covered eyelashes...

                                                        

                                                        and wonderful brotherly love!

 

They traded sleds!

    They took turns going 1st!
   
        They pushed each other down the hill!

            They cheered each other as they "caught air" going  
             over the jump the older kids built earlier in the day!  
   
                 They laughed together as one or the other landed 
                  into the bushes. (Sounds scary...really wasn't!)
             
                        Luke carried Nicks sled up the hill for him 
                        EVERY time!

IT WAS AWESOME! Very proud mommy moments!

After lots of sledding, we decided to pack it in and head home with the hopes of building a snowman.

Now, let me say, that in my entire adult life. I have never built a snowman! Whether it be lack of skill, motivation, or "snow type" (It's not always good "packing" snow!) I was hoping for the best but was trying to keep realistic expectations.

Well...well...well....

Look what we made!

BOOTS the Snowman was made! 

It was very difficult to tell who was more excited! Luke was thrilled but I was exstatic!

I just kept thanking them for begging us to go it! 

It was such a fun filled afternoon!

Peace...

Peace....


Hello Saturday...

Hello Christmas break..

           hot tea,

                delicious breakfast!

Hello Christmas time....

           2 Christmas trees,

               lots of presents,

                   white lights,

                       green and red candles,

                            acoustic Christmas melodies!

Hello amazing family...
            
         A "words can't quite describe how wonderful he is " 
          husband...   
               
               2 gentle, generous, loving children!

Hello simple blessings....

           Having my family happy and safe and home,
         
               Snuggling...anytime & anywhere,
                 
                   My favorite bloggers returning to their pages!
                   (I've missed them so much!)
  
                         Being able to turn off the news, 
                                pray for those in need, 
                                   and focus on what's right and good this 
                                         Christmas season!

                                Good things happening for my friends and 
                                     family in 2013
  
                                    Staying simple!

*AHHH! My writers block is gone! 

Now on to finish this crazy amount of posts I started and never finished!*

A Lesson in Silver Linings

A Lesson in Silver Linings...

I've had silver linings on my mind recently as I'm reading 
The Silver Lining Playbook. I love the book and am so excited for the movie! (More on that later!)

It all started last night....

It had been a long day at school. 
I hadn't been feeling great! 
I wasn't getting my grades into my progress reports as quickly as I had hoped to. 

Domenic, Nicholas, and I waited for Luke to get home from PREP and then we all sat down for a lovely dinner.

We ate!

We talked!

No t.v.!

I relaxed!!

and was able to breathe!

Luke read to us and did his homework while I did the dishes!

It was lovely!


And then it fell apart!

Unfortunately, the actions that followed required me to do dozens of loads of laundry and no one had the stomach virus!

The lovely things that love hair and are incredibly contagious are going around our neighborhood and schools. Before going up to start the night time routine, I combed Luke's hair. 

I found us to be very unlucky!

I panicked! I got overwhelmed! I was completely grossed out!

Last night was awful! 

I stripped every bed. Collected blankets, pillows, towels, clothing, jackets, hats, and created the worlds largest mound of laundry. I made new clean beds and took an extra hour to write my lesson plans for today! 

I didn't sleep much or well!

Today I had to take a day off...

Silver lining #1: I stayed in a bed an hour later than usual!

As I turned to look at the clock (saw it was an hour later than usual), felt the lovely cool sheets and pillows around me...I decided that I was going to attempt (attempt being the key word) to take advantage of a day at home.


Here's all the fun silver linings of the day!


~I cleaned the whole family room before 8:15! Dusted, undecorated for Autumn, vacuumed rugs, couches, pillows!

~I got to take Nicholas to school!

~Hearing his teacher call me by my first name reinforced how much she knows and cares for my little boy!

~And I remembered to print a family picture he needed for a project! I definitely would not have remembered if I weren't home for the day!

~Luke and I got a head start on Christmas shopping for Dad at the mall!

~We started with a breakfast date at Starbucks! Coffee, Water, a Cake Pop, and a Scone
(Our heads were not actually touching! I made sure of it!)

~We spent extra time at Gamestop so Luke could try out a new game he's asking Santa for! (And he didn't have to share the time with his brother!)

~We shopped a while and bought a smoothie! (And he shared with me when he had enough!)

~I got to pick Nicholas up from school! Seeing his cute face smiling, yelling "Mom-my" as he ran toward me melted my heart!

~ I got to make lunch for the boys!

~They got so silly...being such boys! Lots of belly laughs...very liitle eating! (*Silver linings) Luke said things like, "I'm not doctor but I'm pretty sure there's no such thing as as a tongue butt!" Nick: "How about a butt knuckle?" Luke: "Nope!" (seriously...where do they get this from?)

~I got to lay with Nick and tell him stories while he fell asleep at nap time!

~I continued to wash, dry, and fold laundry!

~I cleaned the bedrooms and the living room!

~I drew pictures with Luke to add to his illustration collection! (We started this project when he was 4! I know he's not going to do this forever! I'm basking in it now!)

~I got to lay down and close my eyes while Nick was sleeping!

~I got to talk to Domenic as soon as he left his interview! I got to hear his voice beaming! (So proud of him!)

~I got to catch up on my BLOG'S.

Then came tears....
I've written about how much I love 3 blogs that I read. I feel like these ladies that write these blogs are my friends. 

(I know in real life they are not!) 

There's still a connection! 

They inspire me everyday! 

Their stories make me laugh...and cry...and give me new ideas...and make me want to be a better person...better friend...better mom...a better me!

1 blogger, Amanda, was recently diagnosed with cancer. She hasn't been writing much as she goes through treatments. The outcome looks optimistic but I miss her daily stories.

1 blogger, MODG, is due 2 days ago and has written about how her posts will slow down once Baby #2 arrives. I get it but I will miss her hysterical posts.

My favorite blogger, Ashley, wrote today that she will be taking a break from her blog for 1 month. She has 2 boys that keep her busy and a variety of different business's. She's feeling like she's spread too thin and needs to regroup and heal and find the fun! 
(I feel like I've been in these shoes SO MANY TIMES!) 

As I read her words...

"So I’m going to take a month off from blogging.
I’m not quitting. I’m re-grouping.
I’m taking some time to find my Aha! Moment.
I’m taking some time to hopefully become a better version of myself.
To figure some things out.
To (for the very first time in my 28 years) take the necessary measures and dedicate myself to eliminating this toxicity from my life."

I cried...! I will miss her so much! 

I thought about this for a lot of the night! Searching for the silver lining! 

I'm struggling but I think I found two!

I'm hoping that maybe I will spend some additional time writing my own blog! I will still go to their pages every single night with the hopes of a post...and if there's not one, I will move on and write my own stories!

My second and more important goal is to avoid "The Busy Mom Syndrome!"

Here's to silver linings!

"Do something today

 that your future self 

will thank you for!"

I love this quote because I hope my future self will thank me for handling today the way I did! 

Making memories....
Breathing in the moment....
Acting the way I want to feel...

Finding the silver linings!

Change

Change happens so fast!

Sometimes you notice the change right away...

Other times it takes time....

19 days since my last post and so much has changed!

Hurricane Sandy hit the East Coast with devastating impacts!

I've learned to appreciate 

light bulbs, 

television, 

screens of any kind, 

hot showers, 

warm clothes out of the dryer, 

clocks, microwaves, heat, and normalcy!

Hurricane Sandy hit us Monday night...we lost power around 7:30 and the boys were excited about a little adventure.

We had the air mattress in the living room 

and we camped out for the night! 

Many memories were made. 

Snuggling under lots of blankets in lots of layers,

Everyone being assigned a flashlight,

Lighting the house up with candles,

Going outside to feel the wind

and smell the creepy salty sea air!

I taught the boys the game I grew up playing with Bernadette. I'm not sure it ever had a name but it was soothing on nights where sleep didn't come easy.

It was called...

Guess what I'm drawing on your back! 

I took turns drawing on the boys 

and they took turns drawing on me!

There were belly laughs and smiles! 

And eventually we all fell asleep!

While I slept soundly with the boys (on an air mattress)

Domenic guarded our house from the elements and the storm.

He bailed water from the basement and finally threw in the towel after making little progress...

Waiting, knowing, and being helpless 

that our basement was filling with water 

while the pump was not working was horrible!

We went to sleep listening to the howling wind and watching our trees sway was one of the most frightening experiences.

In the middle of the night, I heard boots squeaking, doors opening and closing, and men talking outside the house.

Terrified and curious I begged to know what was happening!

Domenic eventually made his way in to say our neighbor had saved the day. We had 3 inches of water slushing in the basement and our neighbor was giving us a line from his generator.

THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU!

This line got rid of the water, dried out the basement, and kept our screens charged for the 2 days that would follow! 

Which helped the boys and our sanity 

(as the adventure got very old very quickly)!

The days that followed without power were chilly, dark, and filled with cranky kids and adults!

Still...we made it through!

We lost a swing set and a shed due to a fallen tree!

Both are replaceable!

The devastation seen on our 

New Jersey Beaches is unthinkable!

Pictures just can't describe right now!

My parents just had their power restored tonight!

1 week.....7 days.....168 hours....10,080 minutes

with. no. power!

I have no idea how they did it!

(Yes they had a generator 

but my goodness they deserve some sort of medal!)

They fought gas lines that were sometimes 4 hours long.

Friends and family in Morris County, NJ waited over night and early into the mornings for gas stations to open!

They experiences gas rations with even and odd days!

It's been crazy!

Houses....families....neighborhoods...schools...beaches...

They all look completely changed...

from my memories...

and from what they looked like just days 

before Hurricane Sandy hit!

Most people will be fine!

They will recover with patience, time, 

donations, resources, love and support!

November is the time to be Thankful!

I'm thankful for my own situation!

I'm thankful the people I know and love most 

were seemingly unharmed in the storm!

I'm thankful that friends I've crossed paths with are on a road to recovery and are demonstrating motivation, persistence, and perspective to rebuild their homes and their lives!

More pictures and memories from this 

storm of the century to follow....