Goodbye Summer, hello Fall.

Hello blog world. I've had an insane itch to blog these past few months. I've started a few posts here and there, but they've stayed in my draft folder.  This morning, the stars leaves aligned and with a hot cup of coffee nearby and my littlest one playing with his trains, I find my fingers flying across the keyboard, creating a post that WILL be published.

The summer flew by - as it always does. Autumn is here and the days have slowed down a bit - they seem to be getting longer now that it's cooler out (funny how that always seems to happen). Lots of indoor activity has happened since the temps dropped. Cleaning and organizing and making lists, lots of lists. Birthday season is upon us. Peter's birthday came and went, with his mom and nephew's on the horizon. One of the great things about the last few months of the year is getting together with family for birthday parties and holidays. I love living so close and enjoy the company of my in-laws and little nieces and nephews.

Simon started school last month (a month today!). He LOVES school!  Not a day has gone by where he hasn't been excited about going to school. In fact, he no longer enjoys the weekends, because that means he doesn't get to go to school.  My worst fear was making him go to school. I had it in my mind that the first week would go great, but by the following Monday the magic would have worn off and I would be dragging him to the bus stop.  Not so. It's actually the other way around. ;)  He's going on his first field trip on Friday. He's beyond excited. He's also making lots of friends and adores his teacher.  This transition couldn't have gone better. And I'm SO grateful.  His Sunday School at church started up a couple of weeks ago too and now he's even happier (he's starting to like the weekends again).  His happy place is surrounded with lots of happy kids and adults, learning and having fun. I love that about him.  Some of his favorite things about school are: homework (I know! We've actually had to create extra homework for him because he just enjoys it so much. Question: how long will this last? Haha!), riding the bus, math, gym and recess (of course).

Miles is transitioning well to not having big brother around. In all honesty, I think he rather enjoys having all of the toys (and his mommy) to himself. He's a happier boy and has turned into a complete chatterbox. He and I are bonding more too! It's been a rough couple of years for us and I never felt as close with him as I did with Simon. That's changing now, little by little. Having this one-on-one time with him has really drawn us closer together. It makes sense now that I think about it. It was just Simon and me for 3.5 years. Miles has always had to share that time with his big brother.  I'm glad for this time with just Miles. His favorite things are playing with his trains, dinosaurs, watching Caillou (oh, the horror!), singing Hallelujah and My God is So Big.  Random tidbits about him: He calls his brother "Why-ya", his dad "poppa" and me "mommy".  He likes to recite everyone's names (including the extended family). He's really into colors right now and will point at people and say the color they're wearing. It gets awkward sometimes. When asked what his favorite colors are, his reply is "Pink!" and Purple (much to his big brother's chagrin).  When we cough or sneeze, he asks with mock concern if we're okay. And then proceeds to fake cough/sneeze to get us to ask him if he's okay.  He's slowly but surely becoming a polite child, saying please and thank you at the appropriate times and even saying "sorry mommy/poppa" when he makes a mess or gets scolded. His softer side is starting to show. ;) He still has quite the throwing arm and even causes strangers to stop and mention his amazing ability.  

Peter is doing well and just celebrated his 31st birthday. For the next 2 months, he is older than me. ;) He's already busy with year-end stuff at work. He's excited about soup season and happy that the temperature is dropping. He's healthy! I still have people ask me about his health. It's hard to believe that it's been a whole year since we first discovered that illusive lump on his neck. I still look back on that time and wonder if it all really happened. I know it did, because I still see the scar on his neck. I still tear up hearing certain songs and I still get flashbacks of how very close we felt to the throne of God during those dark and uncertain days. My heart still swells when I think about all of the people who prayed over us as a family and over my husband as he struggled through the worst pain and fears of his life. So even though at times it doesn't feel real, there are moments when it feels like it just happened. I'll never get over that awed feeling of our Healer placing His mighty hand on my husband and bringing him back to complete health.

And me. What's up with me? Where do I even begin...? For starters, I started watching my little nephew about a month and a half ago. He's only with me a few hours a day. I love hanging out with him. The timing couldn't be better. Miles goes down for his nap and L arrives. L goes down for his nap and Simon gets home from school. L leaves for his home and I start on dinner and Miles wakes up. It's a lot of trading off, and hardly any overlapping. I'm so glad we live close enough that I can watch him. He's a fun little guy.

I'm also in the middle of getting things sorted out to start selling on a consignment-based setting in a cute little shop that's opening up nearby in our neighborhood. I'm excited and NERVOUS about venturing out into unknown territory. My etsy shop has become my comfort zone. Although, I can see a freedom of selling in a shop and not having the stress of having to take pictures, write up descriptions, ship and have the exact items in stock to match the said pictures. Selling in a live shop will be a lot less behind the scenes work. Starting out will be the hardest I think. Making labels, setting up my table, pricing, not knowing what the inventory will need to look like... Yep, freaking out a bit. I've only talked to the owner on the phone once, but from our short conversation, I feel really good about working with her. I'm excited about this new adventure. If all goes well, the shop will be open late October, just in time for the holiday season. :D

I'm enjoying life and have high hopes for this winter...yes, this is still me writing.  I really do think this winter will be easier for me. Having Simon in school and Miles being older both help I think. I thrive being on a schedule and that's where Simon being in school comes in handy. Having things to look forward to, even if they are mundane things, like drop-offs and pickups from the bus stop (I'm already shivering thinking about walking down the street in below zero temps and thigh-high snow drifts), and watching my nephew will help get me moving.  An entire year in toddlerhood is huge too. Miles is a lot easier at 2.5 than 18 months. The closer he gets to 3, the better in my book. ;)

So that's us in a nutshell.  I would have loved for the summer to have lasted longer, but in reality, I'm really enjoying this (chillier) season. It was time for a change. And so I'll leave it at that. My coffee needs to be reheated and lunch needs to be made for my littlest one. I shall sign off with hopes of another blog post in the near future. Thanks for reading, my faithful friends.

State Fair, August 30th, 2014