As a child and young adult I would hear "I learned something new today." As I get older, I find myself still using that expression. Some days, that lesson is something small. Other days it is a massive item I am filing away for future use.
I have learned, for example, that everyone has good intentions for completing tasks. Some people are fantastic with their follow through, others not-so-much. I have also learned that "busy" is all relative and that when someone says they are "busy" you never really know if they are actually busy or just using it as an excuse.
I have also learned that time is relative. The 40 minutes I spend in my yoga class are not nearly enough, but the 40 minutes I spend in spinning (a class where you ride a stationary bike) seem to drag on forever. The 10 minute drive in the car with a hungry toddler go on FOOOORRRRREEEEVVVEEERRR. But the 5 minutes of cuddle time I get before bed never seems to last long enough. Multiple months between blog posts- ugh - way too long -yet it doesn't feel like it has been that long since my last post.
All that being said - here are my good intentions and excuses for why I haven't been blogging like I want to -and also a few lessons I have learned since my last post. Let us start with the lessons learned. :)
1. Kids sports are worth ever penny. Let's start with JO volleyball. JO volleyball is a fantastic program - but after a while, it gets to be a lot. Bailley has had 2 practices a week since early January and 1 tournament or "play date" every weekend or every other weekend in the same time frame. We traveled to Monticello, twice, the cities more times that I would care to count, St. Cloud and Fergus Falls. Her last traveling tournament was April 7th. It is really hard to believe her season is over. Bailley then started a 6 week non-traveling league - she just cannot get enough volleyball! She LOVES the sport and Jason and I have decided as long as she wants to participate we won't tell her no. That means plenty of single parenting weekends but it also means good bonding time. This summer came (and went) with MORE volleyball, baseball and softball. Preston loved his baseball team and the experience. As did we. I enjoyed watching the kids grow and learn new things through their sporting activities. As seasons came and went, I realized this is JUST the beginning...
2. It absolutely boggles my mind how fast kids grow. I'm not just talking about Harvey. That is a whole different kind of thing. Preston's feet grew 3 whole sizes from August to January! No wonder his tennis shoes were so beat up - he was literally walking right out of them! Bailley is in the same boat - although she has slowed down, but I still think she has one more growth spurt in her. Both kids grew an inch and a half over the last year. I swear I need to put rocks in their pockets to slow them down.
2a. The physical growth is one thing but the social and personality growth is amazing as well. I've been blessed to watch both kids start to blossom into *gulp* young adults. They are becoming more social; wanting to spend more time with friends than their boring parents some weeks. I realize this too is just the beginning. I am very grateful that so far their choice in friends has been amazing.
3. I never realized what a caffeine addict I was until I gave up coffee for lent. I actually found myself drinking pop before noon some days! Now that lent is well past me - I still find my self taking a cup or two of coffee in the morning and some days taking on a pop in the afternoon. I figure some day I will try to cut back but why start now?
4. There is never enough time when it comes to visiting family. It is so much fun to go there and spend time, but that drive home sucks. Whether its a short trip to Brandon or a 2 1/2 hr ride to North Dakota or the cities- the trip home is always long. However, the time spent there was worth every minute.
All that being said - let us start with the excuses. Well...um...we've been "busy". :p The last month of summer I found my self saying "I can't wait for school to start, life can get back into a routine." Sometime I need to just be quite and not wish for things. After the first few weeks of school we have a routine and its a chaotic one. I swear my friends at work with younger children look at me like my hair is on fire when I talk about our weekly schedule. Honestly, I don't think we would want it any other way. I'm proud of the kids for trying new things and sticking with the things they know and love. Bailley is playing volleyball at school and loves it. She continue to participate in band and from what I can tell he still really enjoys her clarinet. Preston has started tackle football...and loves it. He has also surprised me with a budding musical interest. He decided in the spring that he wanted to join the orchestra! Now, he has also joined the 5th/6th grade choir! I keep telling him he doesn't have to go out for stuff, but he just smiles and says "I know but I think it will be fun."
Well - I suppose I should look at a clock and get some sleep. For some reason I just can't seem to get enough of it these days. But in the immortal words of Bon Jovi "I'll sleep when I'm dead." :) Hugs and kisses to you all from the Peterson family. I would normally remind you to check our Shutterfly site, but that too is behind. Maybe I can get that updated this weekend during the Vikings game. :)
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