Our Weekend Away

September 2020

When I got word that my best friend was turning 40 and they were having a surprise birthday party for her, I knew I had to go. And I told my husband that it was going to be a weekend away for us, no kiddos. Which in the long run, is tough for us. But we did it, we made the hotel reservation and we were ready to go. 

So leading up to this weekend was super tough. I mean I talk to my best friend every day, sometimes twice a day. I even talked to her the day of and I was good, never said a word. She even called me when we were almost to our exit on the high way and the GPS was talking, but she never heard it. 🤣

It was a beautiful, but chilly weekend. And we headed out on Friday afternoon. I thought we would drive my car, but we actually drove the Mustang. Love that car! We got into Port Huron around 9pm and checked into the hotel. We went and got dinner, our first time in a restaurant since everything started. It was definitely a different atmosphere, but good food. On Saturday, we got up and went to breakfast. Afterwards we decided to do a little sightseeing. Had to go and check out the lighthouse and the river. Super pretty and it was nice to just be the two of us. Saturday night was the party and it was a blast! So happy I was there for my best friend and the look on her face was great. 

She was surprised too!

On Sunday we got up, took a little drive and then headed over to her house for a little bit. I wanted to visit some more as we do live 3 hours from each other. It was a great weekend away. So happy went went and had the time together.

I cannot wait to plan our next weekend away.

This is Me...

This is Me...

I am doing the best that I can with everything that has been thrown at me. 

I am taking one day at a time and really taking in every moment that I can. 

Not everything is perfect, but everything is ok. 

I sometimes wonder what life would look like if things didn’t drastically change 11 months ago. 

What would we be doing? 

How busy would our lives be? 

Would we have time to do fun things?

I look at this picture and see someone that looks fun, loving and loves to smile. 

I don’t see that she may be trying to hold it together to make sure everything goes the way it should at home. 

She is doing ok. She is loving her life even more right now. 

And she is strong. 

She has a family that is supporting her and cheering her on. 

I also have God on my side. He loves me unconditionally and will never leave my side. He is my biggest fan and will always guide me in the right direction.

This is me...

 

Joy

How true is this? 

This popped up in my Facebook memories from one year ago. How were we to know what would happen just one month later? 

I had to find the joy in my life when I felt defeated. I couldn’t let it hold me down. Yes, I was upset..but the Lord knew what was going on and he placed me exactly where I needed to be. Finding Joy with my kiddos. Seeing the smiles on their faces every day. And making so many new memories that we can talk about for years to come. 

Image credit: Finding Joy/Facebook

 

Where has the time gone?

 Here we are, almost to the end of February. We made it thru 2020, just like we knew we would. 

Things may not be the same as they were a year ago, but we are all still here and together. Life if moving forward, but not as fast. We have all slowed down and we are all cherishing the moments that we have together. 

This past year has been a learning curve for all of us. For me, I was learning my new normal..my new role as a stay-at-home-mom. This was something that I always wanted, just never thought that I would get to experience it. 

When I got word that my job was not going to be opening back up once we were able too, I was sad. I cried....a lot...but I prayed. I prayed a prayer of "Lord, what am I supposed to do now? What is your plan for me?" And by that evening, the weight was lifted off of my shoulders and I knew that I was in the right place. That I was supposed to be at home with my kiddos and being the mom I always wanted to be. Having fun with the kids is something that we love doing, but we were always limited on what we could do with our work schedules. This past summer was awesome. We made so many memories with them and cannot wait to make more. 

Just to touch on a few things:

 ~ We played outside in the pool on every hot day there was, I saw Donny be a 'kid' again (you know those teens have a hard time having fun). I saw Makayla and Donny both grow over a short time and couldn't believe that I missed so much. 

 ~ We started going racing in July down in Indiana. This was awesome, as Donny and I both raced. Now we are ready to continue this journey this coming summer. And we are both wanting to learn more so that we are better at the sport. Plus, we had a blast staying in a hotel for the weekends that we went down there. And having everyone know us at the hotel...highly recommend the Holiday Inn in Kokomo, Indiana. Great place, clean and always friendly. 

 ~ I have seen my kids grow physically and mentally in these last 11 months. Donny is now taller than me and Makayla just keeps growing. And they are both learning a lot with virtual school. We have both had our moments with school and getting behind, but I think that has to be expected with being virtual. But we have been on it and the work is getting done. Donny is getting better with reaching out to teachers and asking for help, unlike at the beginning of the year. 

 ~We have been able to enjoy our breaks from school. No running and just being home. I have noticed that my kids like being homebodies, but they also like to travel. To the point that they want to travel more. But we are trying to be so careful. Trying to not go where there are a bunch of people. So summer vacation could be interesting. 

But back to the point of this post. We were always so busy, that we just rolled with the punches. We just kept going. We only stopped to sleep. Now we have slowed down...now we are able to enjoy life a little bit more. And sometimes, it is the craziest things that make you slow down. Things that just happen unexpectedly. But we have to know that everything is going to be alright. That we are ok. And we need to think positive about everything. I know that is tough for some, but we will get thru this together and someday we will all be back together again.