January's 10 on 10

10 pictures on the 10th day of the month (Friday). {Document a snapshot 

of your life; find beauty among the ordinary things in your day!}

Sometimes when we go out to the bus stop he is full of words, sometimes he doesn't say a thing. Always he has a book tucked under his arm...its how he copes on the bus with all the nonsense that surrounds him.

Tough to jazz up a day of work. I'm thankful for it though.

Work, at office #2, training new staff for the new season.

Aiden and I stopped at the library. The lady at the front desk said, Are you aware there are fines on your account?  When we walked away Aiden said, They must be SO happy that we moved to town! Indeed! The library will be able to build that addition they want with the late fees we contribute. ;)

We stopped back at the office to do a couple things and check in on my favorite receptionist. She's learning the ropes of the family business. :)

I dropped Amanda at youth group a couple hours early so she could rehearse with the worship team.

Back later to bring Avery and attend a quarterly parent meeting that the youth pastors hold in an effort to keep communication with the parents open. They let us know what's planned for the upcoming months and ask for ways they can better serve our kids. We are blessed with SUCH great leaders!

Alayna and Aiden were studying Bible quiz questions for the meet the following day.

We had such a pretty puzzle going, but it was sneakily difficult. Shaun took it as a personal challenge and was the main one who preserved through it.

Project 365, Week 3

There was a nice pace to the week, trying to fit some things in while there is still time. 

January 13

The game wasn't even close...Aiden beat me by a mile.

January 14
Every two years we have to get re-licensed by the state. Somehow we've been doing foster care for eight years now. We're not sure what it will look like going forward, given that our kids are in a much different time of life than they were when we started. All we know for sure is that we want to be doing exactly what God wants us to be doing. For now though, we've been approved for another two years. Between the Department of Children and Families and the Securities and Exchange Commission (which governs financial advisors), the government know ALL about us.

January 15
My birthday! I used to bemoan growing older, now its a joyous celebration. I'm thankful to be alive and I love being in my 40s! Shaun took me to lunch and the kids worked together to make me dinner and in between I sat on the couch and read with no guilt. It was a lovely day!

January 16

The Outback Steakhouse near us is closing later this month. Its been a special place for my family and my sister's family for many years so we decided to dine one last time together there. My nephew and I share a birthday and this year he turned 21! 

January 17
A rare treat of dinner and a movie with girlfriends. Little Women was simply divine...I loved every second of it! Its also such a treat that our spur-of-the-moment events have been working out recently.

January 18
Aiden's best friend and cousin was playing hockey near us so he and I stopped to cheer him on.

The community center was holding an open house and it was free admission to their facility. Naturally, we had to go swimming!

January 19
It snowed over night so we took some friends to the big hill at UCONN. Since they live in Oklahoma they haven't had much experience with sledding...we managed to have fun without breaking any bones. :)

Project 365, Week 2

We are without many activities this winter, so we've enjoyed a slightly slower pace this first part of January, post-holidays. Its nice to be able to tuck in for the evening.

January 6

My only picture from the day was a screenshot of Amanda talking with a friend in the Czech Republic.

January 7
This is a glimpse of what it looks like when Aiden is studying for Bible quiz. We recently got new furniture and a consideration we had while looking is if it would hold up under spilled sippy cups and Aiden studying. :)

Tough night visiting at the hospital. My simple prayer was to beg God for mercy.

January 8
A little dusting surprise to start the day. It was beautiful with the sun coming up!

January 9
We had a chore standoff for a couple days. It about made me crazy to have the dishes undone, but no one every called parenting easy.

January 10
Sweet boy.

January 11
We had a Bible Quiz meet...we've got a nice group of teen helpers who have been faithful to serve. This was Amanda's first time and it was a growing experience for her to have to deal with people she's not used to.

Avery slept at her friends house and they checked in to show off that they were working on homework...on a Saturday (always a good idea to share that kind of information with your mom ;)

Crossword puzzle collaboration.

January 12
Somehow Bible Quiz practice turned into the Limbo.

The day was so warm and beautiful out, Aiden and I walked the neighborhood. We stopped at a new construction that's going up behind our house. Aiden was crazy impressed that I was able to discern the layout of the house with only the studs up. If only he knew how many months of my life have been spent in rooms with bare studs.

Project 365, Week 1

Some years I've mulled over whether to continue with this blog and particularly the practice of Project 365 but this year I didn't even debate it. I love pictures and I love writing so this makes sense for me. Also, many times a year family from out of state will comment on how much they appreciate being able to keep up with our family in this way, and sometimes my kids will pull out my blog books and they delight in reading about themselves when they were younger. Those things are enough to keep going but also, I enjoy it.

Remarkably, unbelievably, this is my 12th year! I hope once in a while my honest ponderings and observations are interesting or inspiring to the few who read here. Happy New Year, happy week 1!

December 30

Amy, Meg and I got together last minute and prepared a bunch of different meals for a family in need. We got to make food in bulk and at the same time get some talking time in...it worked well! The kids were in and out of the kitchen, hopefully seeing what love and service look like.

December 31
I've always thought a New Year's Eve party sounds fun but I never have the heart to make it happen just a week after Christmas. But I'm happy to help the kids make it happen.

The girls played cards and games and then we watched a Rocky movie. The kids were cheering and groaning...it was very funny!

January 1
First day of 2020!!!! We had our annual family day at Shaun's grandmother's house. Its always fun to be together and the kids get to open more gifts.

Starting in on our fourth decade together! Thankful that time makes what we have sweeter.

January 2
Back to school after a nice long break. :(

January 3
It doesn't always work but I love it when I get to go out with my two guys while the girls are at youth group. A downside to not having the girls with us is that there is not an expert selfie-taker. ;)

January 4
We had a company-wide meeting and at lunch time, in walked Spidey! :)

Its that time of year again when I do lots of ironing. I used to really not like it, but how silly is that to dread something that must be done? In the words of Mary Poppins, in every job that must be done, there is an element of fun. You find the fun and...snap! the job's a game. So now I make it time to listen to a podcast or go down the mental list of things I'm thankful for.

January 5
Cards and tea on a Sunday afternoon with the family.