Leap Day

I know, I know.  It's pathetic.  The blog has once again fallen to the wayside amidst the chaos of life.  Oh, if only "leap day" were truly an extra day that you could sort of check out from daily life and get some things done.  

It's not that it is not important to me because it really is.  I just have had zero time.  Here are some things keeping me occupied ...

1.  We had my auntie Diane and uncle Craig in town for a visit which was SO much fun.  We showed them all around town to give them a glimpse into our life.  What a great time!

2.  The boys are growing fast and so busy.  Tyler doesn't nap that much anymore, which decreases what little free time Matt and I had.  It's nice to get some alone time with just him though when Gavin is alseep.

3.  I am trying to wake up even earlier each day to spend time with the Lord.  I read my Bible, pray, and just ask for the Lord's wisdom and courage to face the day well.

4.  I am in round 3 of my p90X fitness program.  It is going great.  Sounds silly, but I am excited to finish it so that I can start it all over again from the beginning.  Now that I know the moves and routines, I will be able to perform at a higher intensity level next time around.  I'm really enjoying feeling very fit and strong.  One bummer, I am always STARVING.  I eat a lot these days.

5.  Gavin is starting to talk a lot more, which means I am no longer allowing him to just grunt and point or throw a fit when he wants something.  It takes a lot longer to accomplish anything because I have to ask him 5 times to repeat back to me the word for what he wants.  He's getting it though, and he's always so proud of himself when he does.  He's such a sweet boy.

6.  Tyler is learning to write his letters.  It feels like a very slow process.  I am learning more and more about sensory motor learning and trying to expose both boys to as many different tactile, audio, visual experiences I can.  We also have a lot of dance parties.  ;)  They are just SO STINKING MESSY though.  I literally can not keep up with the toys, laundry, food mess ... not that they don't try (I have them well trained to help pick up and put their clothes in the bin and stuff, but I still feel like it's just a tornado that constantly un-does whatever I try and keep tidy).  I have even lowered my standards way down, but still, I just feel in a constant state of "wiping" ... I'm always wiping up something (or organizing, or folding, or vacuuming).  Matt can testify; it's just CONSTANT.

7.  There has been a lot of heaviness surrounding work lately, both with a very troubling and public arrest of a coworker and with some really sad circumstances for some patients.  To say it has been challenging is a huge understatement.  At the same time, I have felt very much used by God to bring His light into dark places.

8.  We are still having some projects done on the house, which has taken quite a bit of coordinating.  The french doors are in and look AMAZING.  The electrical is ready for the desk and bar, which go in on Friday.  Then come the painters, the electrician to do some final things, and we need to get the granite cut and installed.  It's made for a lot of phone calls and errands, but I'm excited!

9.  Tax time (ew).  Enough said.  That always take a ton of my time.

10.  Along the same lines, we are refinancing the duplex property.  Again, this takes so much time.  I think I've scanned and emailed everything except my face lately.

11.  Jon and Kelly moved into their GORGEOUS new home a week or so ago.  What a huge blessing this has been for them and all of us to enjoy.  We helped a lot with the moving and I've been  over there a few evenings helping decorate and organize.  The pantry looks splendid :).  Hello, label maker :)

12.  Also in line with work, there are a lot of exciting things going on that I get to be a part of.  I am oncoming chair of the leadership committee for my unit as well as still taking an active role in several other commitees and task forces.  It's been very time consuming but productive.  This also calls for a lot of extra meetings, which also means extra child care needs and time away.  This week is crazy.  We pretty much never have days off together, which is really difficult.  We are blessed to not have too many needs for outside child care, but the family time has to be well utilized because it is definitely few and far between.

13.  Our small group at church is rolling along.  We truly enjoy this time with other families who are walking this path with us during this season of life.

14.  The BridgeCity Guild continuous to raise a lot of money for local charities.  Matt's quite active with their efforts.  Coming up in April is there annual guys weekend.  April already looks like quite the busy month for us with our birthdays, Matt's trip, nephew Evan's 2nd birthday, and Kelly's due date.  I'm also helping Kelly throw a small little family party for Ginny's 2nd bday since she didn't have a 1st bday party in Portland.  We have picked out some cute stuff ... let the crafting begin.

15.  Not at all that it's a bottom priority, in fact it's much closer to the top, but Matt and I are making an effort to be more intentional at the end of the day to chat about the day.  We are always so completely wiped after getting the kids down and picking up the house, it's easy to just turn on the TV and completely zone out.  We are trying to just spend some time talking about the day and engaging with each other.

That feels like just the tip of the iceberg with stuff that occupies the day.  I know that everyone else out there feels exactly the same ... I hope that you are keeping your head afloat with the responsibilities of your life.  We are sure trying.  ~ Jessica

Some sensory-motor play ... sink tubbies (why not?)

Mid-way progress on the doors ... final results below

Getting creative on a rainy day ... I took the boys up for a ride on the tram.  Here they are just sitting in the lobby after.  They had a great time.

We had one sunny week, and it was heaven!  We played outside a ton even though it was cold.

TAH-DAH!!!  Doors!  The phone pic really does no justice ... they look SOOOO good.  You would never know they didn't come with the house.  Way to go contractor Nathan!

Gavin & Ginny

One morning at 5:45 am before I went to work, Matt and I did the prep for Tyler's valentine's for school.  We cut out all the hearts so he could color them when he woke up.  Did I marry a great husband or WHAT?  I mean really; I am so lucky.  What an amazing daddy to help with crafting, not to mention before sunrise.  

This cracked me up.  The day Kelly moved, they didn't have a cat carrier.  This was the only way they could think of to move Jack the cat (fyi for cat lovers, holes poked in the box, and the drive is only 1 mile).  Still, I literally could not stop laughing at that photo.

Wine tasting when Diane & Craig were here. 

My pantry had gotten way too unorganized for my taste.  When I'm stressed, I label.  See below.

Ahhh, now that's better.

Here are E&T at the Klos' new house.  We had them each make a lasagna (sensory-motor learning + two dinners, sweet!).  We ate one that night all together and they were so proud.  We froze one for another time.  Smart mommies!!  It was worth the mess.  They had a great time.

Tyler's school had the annual carnival last Friday.  All the kiddos had a blast.  Even Gavin played the games.