Books and Winning

Over the past several weeks I have won a few books after signing up on other blogs and websites. So, I am going to add more about the books I'm reading to my blog as well. It may help my chances of winning and may open up opportunities to receive more books! I will let you know what we are currently reading and what I thought of that particular book. I am hoping with the boys back in school I will have more time to read and get through that HUGE "to read" pile. If you have a book you think I would like, let me know! The books that I have won so far include, A Vintage Murder by Michele Scott, Song Yet Sung by James McBride, The Ten Year Nap by Meg Wolitzer, And Sometimes Why by Rebecca Johnson, and Comfort Food, by Kate Jacobs. I just love opening my email to find that I have won a book and it is on its way. Thanks for letting me share my love of reading with you!

School has begun!

The boys are officially 2nd and 3rd graders! They were very excited to be headed off to school today. For the first time they will be in separate schools in separate towns. Patrick is looking forward to learning cursive writing! Bennett is looking forward to being "top dog" in his school as the 2nd graders are the oldest. He is also excited about eating breakfast at school since he goes early so Patrick can catch the bus! They were excited to pick out their "first day of school outift". I remember laying everything out on my bed and deciding which was going to be that first day outfit and then of course the next day and so on. I remember catching up with all my friends about our summers. Since I lived in the country, I didn't have many opportunities to see my classmates over the summer. I remember the excitement of playing outside for recess while the weather was still beautiful, the girls jumping rope and the boys playing football. I have noticed that not much has changed in the last 25+ years. We look forward to picking the boys up and hearing about all those happenings on their first day of school.

Summer is over

Tomorrow is our last day of summer as the kids go back to school on Thursday. As I look back at our summer I marvel at how fast it went and all we were able to squeeze in to do. I am breathing that "back to school" sigh of relief. The boys are bored with each other, Reagan is tired of sharing my time with them, and I can't believe they are going to 2nd and 3rd grade! I can congratulate myself on surviving another summer full of fun, sibling squabbles, neighborhood impromptu playdates (with wine for the moms), neighborhood "porch Fridays/Wednesdays/Thursdays (frankly any day of the week) with MORE wine, late nights, late mornings, an awesome vacation to Tennessee, a trip to the Omaha zoo, and many great family gatherings! Did I mention the wine??? Anyway, I love summer and the chance to experience new things with the kids. Of course we don't get everything accomplished that I had hoped, but the point is to make memories and have fun and that I can definately cross off my list. As excited as I am for them to go back to school and for all of us to get back to our regular routine, I know that by winter, that sigh of relief will turn into a twinge of regret and I will be missing them and hoping for summer to get here soon!

Baby Alexa LeAnn

On Friday I met my newest Great Niece, Alexa LeAnn. She was born July 24, 2008. I am posting some photos of her for Alex and Amy so that others can see how beautiful she is! Cousin Reagan is quite smitten with her! Welcome to the world, Alexa!

Questions?

This past weekend my husband's siblings and families all got together to honor his now deceased parents wedding anniversary. He thought it would be neat for all of us to get together and make his moms favorite foods that she used to make. So, all of us got together Saturday evening with Potato Salad, Spanish Rice, Maidrites, Goulash, Zucchini Bread, and Chocolate Cake. While we were preparing for the gathering we were searching through recipe boxes and cookbooks for the recipes for all these dishes. Some were found and some had to be guessed at. We discussed how it would be so nice to just be able to call up "mom" and ask her how much onion flakes to put in the potato salad, or which chocolate cake recipe did you always use, or how do I make your peanut butter frosting. But, of course, we can't do that. So, we did our best and had a great display of food, lots of laughter, and memories that were made.

So, from this, I am even more determined to ask those questions of my parents before they are gone. I want to be sure I know how all those favorite dishes of mine are prepared, I want to know how my parents met and what their dating life was like, my birth story, etc. So, this is my nudge to you...ask those questions, get those recipes, listen to those stories now before life takes that chance away from you. No one know how long we have here on earth, but live each day to the fullest, tell those closest to you that you love them, and ask those questions you want to know and you will have no regrets!

Friends are the family you choose!

"The ornament of a house is the friends who frequent it."--Ralph Waldo Emerson

I had a great conversation with a cousin of mine today. We don't live close together but try to keep in touch and I truly enjoy our conversations when we get the chance to have them. We were talking about how grateful we were for our friends. Both of us talked about a great group of "grown up" friends that we rely on and think of as a family. I am truly grateful to my girlfriends and hope that they know how much they are appreciated. I have seen a poem traveling around on emails that talks about all the different kinds of friends a person needs and I think the gals in my circle fit the bill for me. I just hope I do for them. Make sure your friends know how much you appreciate them today!

VACATION!

Here are some photos from our recent family vacation to Tennessee. My husband's sister and her family also went on the trip. We spent time in Nashville and the Gaylord Opryland Hotel and downtown Nashville. We rocked out to a new and upcoming band, "American Bang" on July 4th. We then traveled on to Sevierville/Pidgeon Forge to a cabin/house in the mountains. We spent time seeing the sights in Gatlinburg as well. We even hiked a 5 mile round trip trail in the mountains to see the waterfall pictured above. That was definately a day filled with memories. We also enjoyed a surprise drop in visit from my brother-in-law who was also in the area traveling. We had lots of laughs and memories were definately made for our children. We were grateful there were no injuries, car troubles or weather problems. We had a fabulous time and many laughs were had (thank goodness for text messaging to break up the long drive!) and we hope many memories were made for our children.