...2013

Day 65
Goodbye 2013! What a year it was! The older I get, I feel like I pack more into one year than I ever have before. Perhaps it is because I am married with children and when I was younger I only had my own milestones to think about. All I know, is that for better or worse, 2013 was fantastic and we already have plans for 2014 that include a trip to California in March so there is a lot to look forward to. So here are a few (ha! a few!) highlights from our year.

•  After running a total of 25.2 miles over a few weeks, Mindy ran the last lap of the Mercedes Kids Marathon and won her first marathon medal.

 

•  My best friend Andrea finally headed this way for a visit.

 

• Spent our Spring Break on the Disney Dream on a cruise to the Bahamas. Before boarding, we spent the night with family in Tampa.

 

 

• Mindy played basketball, Mindy and Mason played soccer, and Mindy played softball. 

 

• Mason rode a pony for the first time.

 

• Mindy's class took field trips to Krispy Kreme in Tuscaloosa and to see "The Little Mermaid" and "Charlotte's Web" in Tuscaloosa.

 

• Mindy made her First Communion.

 

• My friend Edie and I went to Dahlonega, Georgia for our friends wedding.

 

• Mason turned 5!

 

• Mindy and Mason were both in our cousin Melissa's wedding. It was Mindy's second time as a flower girl and Mason's first time as a ring bearer.

 

• Since the wedding was in Fairhope, the Davis side of the family decided to take a beach vacation.

 

• Mindy started piano lessons during the summer and had her first recital in December.

 

• The Mitchell side of the family took a trip to Gatlinburg, Tennessee. We went to Ripley's Aquarium and Ripley's Museum. We also went to the Guiness World Record Museum. 

 

• I got a new car!

 

• Mindy started 3rd grade and Mason started Kindergarten.

 

• Mason started karate and broke his first board.

 

• I turned 34 and Danny turned 40!

 

• Mindy turned 9!

 

• I went to see fun. in concert with my sisters.

 

• Mindy was a mummy and Mason was a ninja for Halloween.

 

• Danny and I celebrated 10 years of marriage! We went on a cruise to the Bahamas!

 

• I had knee surgery right before Thanksgiving and am starting 2014 still on crutches.

 

• Mindy starred as a flower and as a tea party guest in the school's production of "Alice in Wonderland"

 

• Mason lost his first tooth. He actually had to have it removed but still got a visit from the tooth fairy so it counts.

 

• Danny coached Mindy's basketball team for the first time.

 

What a great year and I can't wait for the next one!

...My Crutches

Day 64
It's true. In the beginning, I hated my crutches. I wanted to throw them or burn them or do anything that would destroy them. However, now that we have had 5 weeks together, I have grown to tolerate them. I still don't love them but I am thankful for them because they help me get from place to place. I can also use them like chopsticks to pick things up off the floor :-) Hopefully, I only have one week left with them!

...Nature

Day 63
We live in the middle of nowhere. We live in a decent size city but our house has the feel of a country home but we are only about 2 miles from being in the middle of everything. It is the best of both worlds. The thing that I do love most about our location is the view. Our house sits up on a hill and we have a pretty big backyard that leads into our "forest". We own at least 10 acres of land. My husband could tell you the exact number of acres but I know there are at least 10. I love looking out our big windows in the back of the house and seeing all the trees. It is really beautiful when it snows. We don't get a lot of snow in Alabama but when we do it is so beautiful. The trees aren't the only thing we see though.

One morning I was up before everyone else and so I went to sit on the back porch to have some quiet time and lo and behold 2 coyotes came out of the woods! I would have gotten up to get my camera but I was a little freaked out and sat there extremely still. They didn't see me and it wasn't long before they ran off into our side woods but it was pretty cool. We have seen foxes, rabbits and we see a LOT of deer. The other day, the kids and I watched 2 deer in our backyard for at least 5 minutes.

As scary as storms are, out here they can be very beautiful too. There was storm this summer where I got some great lightening shots. And I have also gotten some pretty good pictures of a full moon. We can see these things so much better because our view is not obstructed by city lights.

I never realized how much I would love living out here but I am very thankful for it.

 

...Being In Control

Day 62
I have felt very out of sorts for the past month and I don't feel in control of anything. But tonight while we were having family movie night. I got out Mindy's pot holder maker and decided I would relive a little of my childhood by making one. I felt calmer than I have felt in the past month and I think it was because I was in control. I was so relaxed until it came time to finish the pot holder and then I screwed it up a little. But for an hour and a half, I was at peace. Crazy how something so little can mean so much!

...Helpful Kids

Day 61
I seem to be focusing on my kids lately but what else would a mother do? I have had about all I can handle of a messy house. The house isn't nearly as bad as it could be. I have actually always thought of myself as a not so great housekeeper but since I have been unable to clean the house I have realized that I'm actually not that bad.

Yesterday the kids helped me with their rooms and their Christmas stuff. Today, I decided we were going to get some more stuff done. The kids took orders like champs and they helped me clean up my room and my bathroom. They also helped me do laundry again by transporting clothes to and from the laundry room and helping me put them away. I was impressed that they were still helpful after the day I put them through yesterday.

There are a lot of times when I feel like I am yelling at them to get things done and today wasn't necessarily easy but they stuck with me and for that I am thankful.

...A Clean House

Day 60
Wow. My house is a mess. I mean a total mess. My husband has done a good job at trying to keep everything afloat but several things aren't being done exactly how I would hope they would.

Laundry - I use an All pod and then some of those Downy Beads in the washing machine. The clothes smell great and I feel like they are clean. After that, I throw them in the dryer with a NEW dryer sheet and then my clothes come out fresh, clean and smelling like a rose. My husband uses the pod. That's it. Just the pod. IF he uses a dryer sheet, he uses the same one over and over. FRUSTRATING!

Flat surfaces around the house - I thought I was bad about this but wow! Every flat surface in this house is covered in stuff. He is just like the kids and he doesn't clean things up, he just moves them around. When he does decided to clean off all of the flat surfaces, he moves everything to the kitchen table. That's where it stays.

These are just two of the things that have been bugging the mess out of me. With all of the Christmas chaos we have had the house was double messy today. I rallied the kids and we cleaned both of their rooms and got most of their Christmas stuff put away. I even tried to do a couple of loads of laundry but then my husband took over and started doing it his way again. So tomorrow, I will probably have to re-wash some things :-)

I hope and pray that this knee surgery and recovery is worth it. It has really destroyed my house and I know I am getting on all three of their nerves because I am always asking for something or asking them to do something. But trust me, if I could do it myself, I would.

Today, I am thankful for the times when I can make my messy house a clean house since I obviously can't do it now.

...Christmas Tradition

Day 59
Merry Christmas! We had such a great Christmas Eve but today we go to see my family! I gotta admit, I was pretty excited about the trip because I missed Thanksgiving due to my knee surgery. Just like we have our Christmas Eve tradition, we also have our Christmas Day tradition.

On Christmas Day, the kids wake us up and we go see what Santa brought and open other presents. We rush around and get ready so we can make the 2 hour drive to Athens. In Athens, we eat lunch with everybody. Our crowd is twice the amount of people that we eat with on Christmas Eve and we do not have a table nor do we have room for a table that we can all eat at so we eat all over the house. After we eat we open presents. In my family we draw names which seems to work out for the most part. None of us can afford to buy for everyone. My parents buy gifts for everyone and me and my siblings do make some awesome stockings for my parents. We basically buy them tons of presents but put them in one of those giant stockings. They each have one.

After presents we visit and sometimes play board games and then my little family of four packs up for the 2 hour drive home. It is a long day but I look forward to it every year.

...Christmas Eve Tradition

Day 58
It's Christmas Eve! It hardly seems like Christmas to me because of the odd holiday season that I have had. I love Christmas Eve because I always know exactly what will happen. It has happened almost every year for the past 10 years at least. I am a creature of habit and I'm not fond of change so this suits me just fine.

On Christmas Eve, we wake up and anxiously await lunchtime. We eat lunch at my in-laws house and have all of the fixings. It is my little family of four, my in-laws, my sister-in-law and her hubby and in the past few years we have also had his mother over. It makes for a crowded table but we enjoy it. After lunch, we do any number of things, watch t.v., nap, etc. until it is time for Christmas Eve Mass. We always go to the children's Mass but I'm sure as the kids get older we will start going to the Midnight Mass which is my favorite. After Mass, we come back to my in-laws and open presents. My father-in-law gives the adults money every year and he loves coming up with ways to wrap it to see if we can find it. This year was no different. He had my mother-in-law make false bottoms in our gift bags and hid the money there. Once all the presents have been opened, we hang out awhile and then head home so we can leave cookies and milk for Santa. It really is a day like anyone else would have on Christmas Eve but we never stray from the plan and I am thankful for that.

...Kids That Behave

Day 57
My husband has been up since 5:30am making caramel pies (his specialty) so when the rest of us were waking up he was raring to go. I told him he needed to calm down and let the rest of us catch up to him but in the end I sent him on his way because I knew he would just annoy the rest of us. He set off on his errands and he has a lot of them. He has been doing most of the Christmas shopping and he isn't used to doing it at all. I will save that for another thankful post. Anyway, after he left I looked at the time and wondered if he would remember to be back in time for me to go to physical therapy. There was no way he would be back in time so I broke the news to the kids and they reluctantly got ready.

I always worry when I have to take them somewhere that isn't really child friendly. It isn't fair to them. We packed Mindy's kindle and made sure my phone was charged and headed out. The kids have been to physical therapy with me before. I was going about 2-3 times a week this summer and they were there every time so I had an idea of how they would behave. They were angels. I was a little surprised because since Mindy got her kindle they are constantly fighting over it. She has been very good about trying to share and thankfully my husband got Mason his own for Christmas so we only have one more day of those arguments. I was so glad they were quiet and got along. One of the best compliments a mother can get is a comment about how well their children behave. Several of the other patients and the employees all commented on that today and I was so proud!

The kids can drive me crazy and there are MANY times that I grit my teeth and give them the death stare but today I really needed a good day and thankfully, they were perfect.

in Gatlinburg this summer

...Holiday Doughnuts

Day 56
Today I am thankful for these because, well, who wouldn't be?

...Great Teachers

Day 55
We have some great teachers at our school and I have been completely satisfied every year with the education that my kids receive. Some teachers are very special though. Mrs. Thompson is one of those teachers. She taught both of my children in PK4 and she was fantastic. Unfortunately, Thursday was her last day at Holy Spirit. Her husband got a job in Maryland and they are moving on Monday. We are going to miss her terribly and whoever gets to hire her as a teacher is going to be very lucky.

the kids with Mrs. Thompson

...Christmas Vacation

Day 54
Today is the first day of Christmas vacation for us! One of the advantages of working at the school that my kids attend is that I get the same vacations that they do. I'm sure after about a week of being at home we will be tired of each other and ready for a change but for now we are thankful for our vacation time!

...Fleece Pajama Pants

Day 53
I love pajama pants and I have quite a collection. Today, I received a pair of fleece pajama pants for a Christmas gift. I couldn't wait to get home and put them on and now that I have them on, I don't know if I ever want to take them off! I am so thankful for things like fleece pajama pants that can make me so comfortable and relaxed.

my new pajama pants!!!!

...The Sing Off

Day 52
Have you seen this show? The Sing Off is a competition show for accapella musicians. I am a sucker for that kind of music. This show is amazing. I am in awe of their talent and how they make music just using their voices. Everytime I watch this show I get chill bumps because of how fantastic the music sounds. I was having a not so great day but that show came on and I was so thankful :-)

...My Friend Edie

Day 51
My friend Edie rocks! I have been getting completely frustrated about Christmas shopping. Most of it I have done online but there are just some things you can't do online. So in your times of need, who do you call? I called on my friend Edie. She loves to shop so I knew she would be the one to call. She used a few hours of her day today to take me Christmas shopping. These were hours that she probably needed to use to shop for her family and friends but she helped me by being my shopping caddy. She carried my bags, dropped me off at the door of stores, shopped with me and then would pull the car around to pick me back up. All friendships have their ups and downs. Edie definitely gets a gold star today! We always have such a good time when we are together. I hope that one day I will be able to return the favor to her!Here are a few pictures of some of our fun times!

sometimes she steals my camera or phone and i will find these gems

out on the town

winery in georgia

shopping last Christmas

on our 3-day, 60-mile walk - another time when
she was super helpful

...Pictures - Part 2

Day 50
Here are 10 more pictures that I am thankful for. Pictures are such an important thing to me. I love to have everything documented and I think we do a pretty good job of doing it!

rainbow

Mason bowling

Ripley's Aquarium

the whole family in the largest chair

my soccer star

that time it started raining while we were playing putt putt and we kept on playing

the watermelon they grew themselves

Mindy in front of a snow drift in Michigan

in Holland, Michigan, she did this on her own

one day these three will laugh about doing the worm at the
Father Daughter Dance