What have we been up to?

What have we been up to lately?  My goodness, I'm not sure where to start!

1. Sports - Henry started playing 5U baseball in August.  It's been a lot of fun to watch him as he gets more excited and into the game each week. His coach told us that he loves it when Henry comes up to bat as he always has the biggest grin on his face.  Hitting is definitely his favorite and he's hit nothing but coach pitches (we don't need no stinkin' tee!) the last few games.  The outfield isn't as exciting and admittedly, I started bribing him with quarters for every ball he catches.  Yep, that was the perfect motivation and I was out a whole buck the very first game.  Little stinker loves his "coins" but at least he's having more fun and actually participating while standing out in the dirt.  I'm bummed the last game is this week, but definitely looking forward to next season.  His coaches, teammates and their parents have been a lot of fun to be around.  We've had lots of laughs and I hope we get paired together again next season.

 

 Something funny I want to remember - he always runs up to the plate and gets "baseball ready," long before the coach is even ready to pitch.  Cracks us up, he's ready to go! 

 

2. School -  This school year, Henry is in Jr. Kindergarten (Pre-K) and it's been an interesting adjustment.  He was split up from a few of his friends and only has one teacher now instead of two.  They have curriculum, he's learning to write and read letters and numbers.  The days are a little tougher for Henry and he's gotten in trouble a couple of times for talking during table time.  The teacher has reassured us that this is very normal as kids get acclimated to more structure and routine. Oh and he's also learning Bible verses and has a weekly memory quiz.  I love when he recites these as not only is he growing up in the Word, he's got a pretty good little memory on him.

A few nights ago he was saying the Pledge of Allegiance - we loved it! 

3. Fun stuff - Yesterday was our city's annual Fire Department Open House.  We had a good time checking out all the cool equipment.  We have our favorite firefighter (Mr. Jeremy), but we are thankful for all of the men and women that keep our city safe.

 He loved climbing around on the fire rescue boat

 
4. Glasses - A few weeks ago, we noticed that Henry was squinting when trying to see things at a distance. Sure enough after an appointment with his eye doctor, it's time for glasses.  I can't wait to see how he likes them; I'm sure he will love being able to see so much better.  I remember getting glasses when I was in first grade and I loved being able to finally see.

5. Foster family - Our foster care certifications, classes and reference checks are complete.  We still have to turn in the last half of our paperwork packet before we get the home study started, but we we've been busy buttoning up a couple things around the house first.  We are also going to have new flooring put in our living room and dining room, hallways and the kitchen.  We are pretty excited, but still trying to make the big decisions as to what we want to look at, walk on, for the next however many years.  This is the first big reno in the house so I'm a little anxious to make the right decisions.
   
6. Health - My sister has been a great mentor to me in the entire world of essential oils.  If you follow me on Pinterest, you've probably seen countless pins I've pinned on how to use which oil for all kinds of things.  It's helped our family out with allergies, sleep deprivation, energy, Henry's skin issues, colds, weight loss and even stress and anxiety.  Initially I thought the stuff was hooey, but it's impacted us in such great ways that I'm a huge proponent for it now.  I love being able to care for myself and my family without using harsh chemicals and toxins and I look forward to learning more about it as well as helping others along the way. 

7.  Work it - I started a new job last month; still in marketing but now I'm working for a restaurant instead of retail. I'm really enjoying the new work environment, processes and the people that I work with.  Each day is something new, keeps my brain busy.  I'm learning a lot about menu layouts and production which is intriguing. Funny how 3 years ago I didn't know what I wanted to be when I grew up, but now I feel like I'm on the right path.  I get excited over email statistics and consumer surveys and feedback, so I guess it's a step in the right direction.

8. The Man - Mike is doing good, busy at work but still has time to enjoy watching football and dirt track racing.  He even gets to play golf later this month, on a work day at that.  Hopefully the weather is nice, he deserves a fun trip.  He's a hard worker, does so much for our family, it's nice to see him getting away for a bit. 

9. Holidays - I guess the craziness of Halloween and the holidays are creeping up on us.  I'm trying very hard to keep what's important the main focus this year and to not let things (i.e. my own neurotic things have to be this way or it's not perfect) get crazy.  We made a budget for gifting and we have a couple of traditions that we will keep this year, but maybe this will be the year that's filled with happy memories, not ones of Mama breaking down because Christmas cards are going out the week of Christmas (For shame!) 

Well thanks for checking in on us. I hope to have more posts over the next several weeks as life picks up and moves full steam ahead.   Take care.