For Jimmy - Random Thoughts

Thank you for encouraging me. It means a lot to me. 

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For some reason, when I think of Hillary Clinton these days, I think of Michelle Kwan.

MK wanted the gold SO BAD and never got it, even though she was capable and talented.

I don't think Hillary will win and she wants to SO BAD.

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I love eating so much that I'm sad when I'm not hungry.

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When I was a kid, I loved school and did NOT envy homeschoolers.

Nowadays, most of our kids' friends who are in school envy them.

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"The war on . . ." New slogan, please.

This one's like "tartlet" - the word has lost all meaning.

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I keep thinking it's no wonder everyone is busy and exhausted these days.

Ever watch those old Jane Austen movies?

They really show us how crazy it is

 how much we all squeeze into a day.

 Those ladies would take a walk, visit a neighbor,

 and then pass out on a fainting couch from sheer exhaustion.

 If they could see us women today, they'd think we're freaking superheroes.

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If we were to run our business the way some people around here run theirs

(not returning calls, making decisions for people without consulting them, etc.),

we'd be out of business so fast.

I don't know how in the world they do it. It's maddening.

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Our kids KNOW themselves.

 I didn't know myself like that as a kid.

 I felt carried by the waves of life and schedule, school and family.

 I went wherever I was told to, supposed to, had to.

 I didn't have the time and space to figure that stuff out.

 I've figured it out about myself only recently (and only somewhat).

 It's one of the most amazing things to come of our homeschool adventure.

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I haven't had a restful breakfast since we got this dog.

 It's starting off each day with anxiety.

 Also, she scratches at the door with the frenzy of a kid who's about to wet her pants,

 and then she goes outside and smells every blade of grass.

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When somebody says, "Oh, when I was a kid,

 I did (whatever) and I turned out just fine,"

 I often think, "Uhhh, have you met you?"

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Which leads me to a pet peeve.

People using the explanation "that's how we've always done it"

as a viable reason for something.

That shouldn't be the reason unless it's working!

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Speaking of pet peeves,

I have several when it comes to eating out.

Here are two.

One, do NOT ask me if I'd like a box when I am ACTIVELY shoveling food in my mouth.

I'm chewing. The fork is in my hand. I'm eating.

OMG, this drives me nuts.

Two, when I hand you the check with payment, just bring me the change.

 Do not ask me if it's all set or if I need change.

Just bring it to me and let me decide what I want to do.

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Hopefully this means I'm back. :)

Thank you, Jimmy, for the nudge.

I needed that.

And from Scout

 
And from Scout: Thank you for picking me up when I go crazy and jump around and scratch your legs. I get so excited when you get home. When I hear that you're home, I start to cry because I'm so excited to see you. I like when you hold me and tell me things. I like when you give me tummy rubs. Thank you for giving me food off of your plate. And for playing with me. And for getting me a fence so I can run around the backyard and roll around in smelly things. You're kind of a sucker, but I'm glad. I love you so much.

Happy Father's Day 2015

From me: Happy Father's Day! Thank you for being such a fabulous partner to me and wonderful father to our two beautiful children. I tell you this all the time and I mean it - there is no one else I'd rather be with to navigate this crazy ride called life. You are such a great example to our kids - you teach them responsibility and hard work, but also fun and sarcasm and laughter. They are lucky to have you for a daddy. Go me for picking a winner! :) I love you.
 
From Kate: Happy Father's Day, Daddy! Thank you for being the best dad we could possibly have. No matter how busy we get in our everyday lives, you always find the time to play a game or give us a hug or just ask us how our day's been. Anytime we have an activity to go to, you never hesitate to drop everything to drive us or get home from work as early as possible. Our midnight premiere dates for movies like "The Hunger Games" and "Divergent" are tons of fun (and I can't wait for "Mockingjay: Part 2!"). I love playing games with you, watching "Scrubs" and "Lord of the Rings," and talking about books we've both read. I love you! -Kate

From Max: I love my father! He is one of the kindest people I know. Just two weeks ago we tested for our 2nd degree black belts. He was the one making me not feel so nervous for the test. Today, I want to wish him a happy Fathers' Day! Thank you for everything you do!

These Guys

I am so proud of these two. They've been working so hard for over two years and they tested great yesterday! Mark hurt his ankle but persevered, even breaking boards with his feet! And Max broke through the concrete block with his hand! They did awesome on their forms and kicks and sparring. Kate and I took pictures and cheered them on. I felt very emotional throughout the test. So lucky to have these guys in my life. Way to go, Mark and Max!

Snippets

(Totally stealing this idea from my SIL - thanks, Emily!)

Mark and me at the Jane Austen Murder Mystery Dinner

Mark:

He works hard and plays hard. His favorite thing in the world is family time and he's at his most relaxed when we're all hanging out and playing games when he's not on call. I love seeing him not have to worry about taking call on his days off. He deals with psych patients every morning, nurses all day and night, and also works in our clinic with patients and paperwork during weekday afternoons. He is testing for his 2nd degree black belt this week and I'm super proud of him. He is also awesome about running errands, doing stuff with the kids, fixing and updating electronics (never-ending), playing with Scout, spoiling me, and being my best friend. We talk A LOT and are super inefficient sometimes, and yet I feel like we also accomplish a ton. We're dichotomies. I love him so much that it sometimes feels like my heart could burst.

Stacy:

I'm always working on all kinds of things for the family, our home, our rental(s) (yes, it may come to that with the farmhouse), our dog, homeschooling, our clinic, our marketing, our social life, our friends, the community, ideas, books, games, TV, movies, writing, blogging . . . my mind is like a non-stop hamster wheel and my thoughts are like flying wood chips from the action of said wheel. I'm a visual person, can you tell? I was just talking to Jim about this yesterday - how parenting is this non-stop balancing act between keeping things simple/not overprogrammed and also making sure your kids have great opportunities. This is magnified when you homeschool. Schools sort of takes care of all that stuff, so when you home educate, much of not only the academics, but the social life and enrichment activities, are all on you. That being said, I wouldn't trade it. The kids are thriving and our family loves it. We get flexibility, freedom, and fun - pretty snazzy, if you ask me. I deal with chronic neck pain and have had pain in one part of my neck/upper shoulders for over two weeks, all because I lifted something heavy. Bleh. I've also been branching out and meeting more people in our community and it's been nice.

Our awesome kids at the Jane Austen Murder Mystery Dinner

Kate:

Looking more grown up every day, it seems. She is her own person, exudes grace and confidence, and knows who she is. She enjoys her morning tea, chatting with her Tumblr friends who all are part of the Supernatural fandom (I hear constant giggling, snorting, and laughter from her and it's almost always this!), reading, writing, geeking out, fangirling, hanging out with friends, and learning. Her favorite game right now is Geek Out. She is pretty excited to be roomies with her writing friend Peyton at writer's camp this summer. She is looking forward to having two foreign exchange students here for a few weeks - Adele from France and Antonio from Spain. She is very driven and has been querying agents and currently has a manuscript being read by an agent who requested it (squee!). She's working at the Renaissance Faire and loves, loves, loves that. She is also doing an internship at our local, indie bookstore and could not be more thrilled. She and I are watching several shows together right now including Frasier, New Girl, and Glee. She has a wicked sense of humor and quick wit. At 5'7, she is already 5 inches taller than I am.

Max:

He is also growing and I can see him not only getting taller, but getting that young man look. His eyes are beautiful and change color depending on what he's wearing - I often get distracted when we're talking and I look into his eyes. He is loving, loving, loving living in a neighborhood where the kids next door are always up for playing outside. They're on summer break now and when he hears them in the morning, he jumps out of bed, showers, gets ready, cleans up, and runs outside to play for hours. It's great. He also loves Park Days where he plays Nerf sword battles and role playing games with his friends all day long. He's frustrated that he's not old enough to work at the Ren Faire yet, but he's excited that we got season passes this year and get to go a lot. He has an active social life both in person and online and enjoys friends of all ages, making friends everywhere we go. He never ever tires of playing games and is always making up new games and new versions of games. He is super sweet, snuggly, thoughtful, funny, and fun. Just now the dog's barking was making me anxious, so he handed me a stress ball. He is also testing for his 2nd degree black belt this week and is so excited to help teach younger kids at the studio.

Scout, who thinks all laundry is hers

Scout:

I love this dog more than I ever imagined I could love a furry, little creature. She is a ton of work, super demanding, incredibly feisty, full of spunk, and often crotchety. And we love it. She has so much personality and is not a boring dog at all! She randomly comes up to us, climbs us, and wags her tail while panting and licking our earlobes - these are random "I love you"s from her to us and they make me so happy. She loves to cuddle, go for walks, go for rides, play, and eat, eat, eat. And whatever she does, she's happiest when we're all together. She is incredibly motivated by food and she adores us more than I've ever felt adored by just about anyone. I could've written voluminous books on all the reasons why I didn't want a dog, but alas, I'm smitten and so very glad we got her.