The Luckiest No Matter What!

As I was scrolling the other day, I saw someone writing down things they wanted to remember from this pandemic time. It's obvious this time in our history will be wrote about profusely. I can't predict the future, but I have a feeling this time in my life will be monumental... something that will have definitely shaped who I become. I decided I wanted to take some time to write down some thoughts about this time in my life. To tell my own story.  What I Will Remember About the Last Two Years: The Earliest Days I remember first learning of the pandemic. It became a topic of conversation with anyone you came in contact with. I never thought it would even come to the USA. If it did, I thought it was going to be no big deal. Maybe my naïveté was a positive so that I didn't go directly to freaking out and losing my mind.... that took a few months to come.  Another big moment from the earliest days was when my kids went to school on Friday March 13th, 2020. I knew it was their la...

Nolan, Judah, Carter, and Preston had their half birthdays back in early November. I always have the best intention to give a little update on what's going on in their lives at that time, but here I am in January doing this. Always better to do than not.  The biggest thing for all four of them lately-ish is the pretend return to normalcy that we are all experiencing. I will continue to call it pretend because the precautions my family are continuing to take are still a lot and if you step foot into a school around here for a few minutes, you will know that things are very much NOT back to normal. The transition back to school full time for N & J, the actual real starting of elementary school for C, and the starting of daycare for P has been a MAJOR shift around here. In other news... Nolan: 8.5 Although online school was not for anyone in my house, Nolan did really enjoy being able to do things at his own pace. He always had an amazing attitude about doing work. The most challe...

HAPPY 2022! I'm entering slowly, taking small steps with caution.  My family is keeping this weekend low key: trying to squeeze in last moments together before the hustle and bustle of real life starts Monday again. This winter break has been one of the best- a lot of togetherness, and an excellent balance of work and play. It has all felt so good for my soul and I can tell it was just what #hundtboysx4 needed too. It's time for my #oneword of 2022: PLAYFUL! PLAYFUL: The Why Throughout 2021, I continued to feel as though my sons were needing something more from me than I have been able to give them. Was it my time? Energy? Patience? Kindness? Yes to all (duh). What these things all have in common is the desire of connection. What my boys want more than anything, is me. But a better version of me than I've been showcasing. After a challenging day of supporting my boys through online school or, lately, a day full of learning for them and teaching for me, I don't have much...

2021 is almost over. I will remember this year as the one where my kids were in virtual school about as much as they were in person. I went back into the classroom in 2021. It was the year I pulled myself out of the breakdown I had towards the end of 2020. 2021 was when I did a ton of work on myself, said goodbye to my parent's cottage in Canada and our beloved Primrose the Cat. I saw Saint Augustine, Florida more than I ever had and explored the wilderness of Virginia. I visited our nation's capital. Josh, my three biggest boys, and I got vaccinated and witnessed so much change with the pandemic and also so much stay the same. Finally, I watched #hundtboysx4 learn, grow, and change a lot in 2021.  2021 was also the year I picked the best #oneword I ever could: small . I could feel that it was a winner way back in January, but I didn't know how much that word was exactly what I needed to focus on. Here are some of the awesome things that small little word has done for me t...

I'm sitting at the desk in my classroom... it's 4:43pm. My students have left and I am alone here, preparing for tomorrow, reflecting on today. Teachers are always looking forward and looking back. It's the little dance we do on a daily basis- did they get what I was trying to teach today? Do I need to give more time tomorrow? How does my storyline of yesterday help me know how to move forward today? There is always so much on the mind of a teacher as they take care of minds and hearts simultaneously all day long. But, as I sit here in my thoughts, I cannot shake the school shooting at Oxford that happened yesterday. 'Teaching the Days After' Teaching on the days after is a term so many educators use when you have to scrap what you planned because another big event has happened that you need to make space for in your classroom community. There have been way too many 'Teaching the Days After' kind of days in the last several years. Students need to process th...

The school year has begun. This particular year has, yet again, brought quite a few changes into our house. Last year, we were heading into our basement school to start online learning. Carter was starting kindergarten. This year, I have three boys in school full time. After not having that for over a year, it's been a B.I.G. adjustment. Preston is starting daycare. We've never done that before. I'm back to work- still teaching part time, but going in five days a week instead of two. How's it all been going, you ask? Everything has been A LOT. A lot of feelings, worries, nervousness, and work. Daycare and Back to School for P Preston's transition to daycare has been very difficult. He's refusing to eat there, isn't sleeping much, and has had epic cry sessions and breakdowns at drop off. I have walked away from him grabbing for me and crying. It doesn't help that the daycare is next to my school. I have exactly one minute to pull myself together before ne...

Have you ever booked at last-minuteish adventure?! Because Josh and I are both planners, we rarely do this. Way back in the winter, we began to think about our summer. Usually, we spend a lot of it at my parent's cottage in Canada on Lake Huron; it's my most favorite place in the entire world. However, with Covid, the border has been closed and has remained closed. It was important to us to have a trip planned somewhere in the summer just in case we were not able to go to Canada this summer. It was clear based on how little inventory there was that a lot of people were adventuring this summer, which makes complete sense. After a lot of research (of course), we had landed on a stay in Northern North Carolina by the ocean in August and were so excited about it! After making the decision to go back to classroom, I realized this trip was going to back up to when my school was starting and that made me a bit queasy. Could I really enjoy this trip to North Carolina with a new school ...