1. Date Night – We don’t get to go out on dates very often anymore. Two little kids, constantly being tired, pandemic, ya know – life. I’d like to be better about committing to date nights so I picked a date, got the sitter, and made it happen! Probably one of my top 3 favorite restaurants is FoxGardin. The food is phenomenal, it’s locally owned, and my childhood friend’s brother runs the kitchen and he is an amazing chef. I get the same thing every time because it’s just that good. Filet Mignon with a delicious topping (spicy creamy crab), mashed potatoes, asparagus, and a side sald. When I don’t get myself too full I’ll add on one of their delicious cookies too. It was nice to run some shopping errands and eat just the two of us. We were able to hold a conversation without being interrupted and I never knew until having kids how special that would be.

2. His plan, His timing – It’s a daily struggle for me to remember His plan and His timing and that I am NOT in control. It seems like I’m getting constant reminders. The positive is that I do feel like I’m getting better at being aware of the moments my brain wants to shut down and think negatively. I find myself getting so upset at the things beyond my control. This is definitely one of my biggest weaknesses.

3. Baby Zoom– Our family is so blessed to be adding another sweet baby boy to the cousin mix. Last time I counted that means 14 boys under the age of 11 in our extended family…..isn’t that crazy? 2 of those are arriving in the next month or so. In 11 years we have not had a baby girl. Insanity! Also, that means these boys are so lucky to have their own baseball team of buddies to grow up with. Unfortunately due to Covid we were unable to have a baby shower the way we had wished to celebrate one of the newest. This life is crazy right now but we made the best of it with a Zoom Baby shower. It was so fun to “see” everyone, the momma to be, play some games, and catch up. I miss everyone in my big family so much but I’m glad we can all stay connected in ways like this.

4. Music Box – This week we began the office remodel which meant taking the room that collects ALL the random crap and cleaning it out so we can paint. Upon gutting it Mike ran across this thing below. It’s made out of some sort of metal and it’s a sculpture of a man playing the piano. When you spin the back of it then it plays a song from “The Sting.” I’ve always remembered this sitting on top of our piano growing up and when I moved out I took it with me since I was the one who had played the piano and also took the piano with me. I never knew the story behind it. I found out from my dad that this was a gift he bought my mom in 1975 in Nashville, Indiana. In 1973 they saw the movie “The Sting” and he purchased this as a 1st Anniversary gift. Moral of the story – Take the time to ask your parents these things. There are so many things I never got the chance to talk to my mom about so anytime I can I force my dad to tell me stories.

5. Family Time – During the spring, summer, and fall it’s very rare for us to have family time every single weeknight. Actually, it’s impossible. Daddy’s job prevents him from being home that much in the evenings. We miss him and it makes things sometimes very difficult for me. The winter, though, is a totally different story. I love how much he’s been home. Sure, he drives me nuts. Don’t all husbands at some point? The gift of all this time together is so very nice. The boys love daddy being home and it makes life easier for this momma. I say that because he was home every single night this week, except for one. Next week’s a different story…..but we’ll cross that bridge when we get there.