We’ll Be Home for Christmas [and New Years!]

It’s 7 am in Spain, and I’m up with the intention of getting in some type of exercise/movement before sitting in a plane for 11.5 hours, though at this point I’m still enjoying my coffee on the couch. Oops!

We still need to pack our carry-on and make a  couple of last minute purchases just before we leave for the airport, but other than that we’re ready and so excited!

We can’t wait to meet our new niece and nephew (Clara & Carver), to welcome another sweet niece into the world (any day now Miss Molly!) and to soak up all the family time and Americanism that we can. I’ll be back here in 2013 (given the Mayans were wrong and really just got tired of calendar making or simply ran out of room on the rock they were carving.) Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Playing House

The house.

The car.


The kids.

In early September, my sister, Meg, and her hubby, Jeff, found an awesome flight deal to San Francisco and couldn't pass up the opportunity for a long weekend sans kiddos. Since I wasn't working and wanted to make sure that they'd take advantage of this opportunity, I quickly volunteered to play Mommy while they were gone. So about a month ago, Luke and I packed a few bags and headed over to the Peck house for Sunday through Tuesday.

Since Shelby is in 1st grade, Coleman in pre-school, both kids involved in sports, and Tuesday was picture day for Shelby, we had a busy couple of days. Our mornings started by waking both kids up around 6:30. We had a quick breakfast, dressed and grabbed our backpacks before heading out the door. I was surprised by how non-chaotic the mornings were. (However, if I also had to get myself ready too, it probably would have been much more difficult. All I had to do was throw on some workout clothes and pull my hair back into a messy ponytail before heading to the carpool line.) Both kids woke easily and knew exactly how the morning routine would go. The first morning when I went to wake Coleman up, he had this huge smile on his face. I thought he was just super happy to be awake but turns out he was still sleeping and in the middle of a really good dream (probably involving ninjas or swords.) It was one of the sweetest little faces I've seen.

After dropping both kids off at their respective schools, I did what any good stay-at-home mom would do and went to the gym. Following my workout, I prepped dinner, ran errands, etc until it was time to pick Shelby up at 3:20. My mom laughed at me when I told her that the days went by so quickly. I seriously don't know exactly what I did, but before I knew it, it was time to pick up Shelb, and I felt like I hadn't sat down all day! Haha. Both days I picked up Shelby first and then we went together to get Coleman. Back at the house, Shelby and I did her reading homework before starting our other evening activities. (BTW, she is becoming quite the little reader these days!) Monday evening, the kids and I walked down the street to watch Richland High School's (my alma mater) homecoming parade. The parade wasn't all that impressive, but it was a nice evening to be outside and the kids enjoyed seeing the band, football players and cheerleaders. Tuesday evening, we went to Coleman's baseball game and then met Nonny, Poppy, Luke, Mimi, Jack and Randy for dinner. Our days went by so quickly, and it was a nice little preview of what family life might be like for us one day!

During our time together, the kids said such funny things, and I'm kicking myself for not writing them down. I do remember one little story that I'll share. On the first day in the car pool line at Shelby's school, I couldn't figure out how to unlock the door. So this woman is standing outside of the car ready to help Shelby out, and I can't get the door unlocked! When I finally figured it out and the lady opened the door, she said, "Your mommy just wanted to keep you today!" Then as Coleman and I pulled away, he said, "But you're not really her mommy." He said it in such a sweet little voice, and I think I suspected just a hint of questioning in his voice. Like, please tell me that my mom is coming home, and you're not taking over! Luckily for us all, Meg and Jeff got home safe and sound on Tuesday night. Thanks for trusting us to take care of your family, Meg. We love them so much!