No Turning Back

The papers have arrived.

The check has been cashed.

Nope...didn't buy a house.

And these are not postcards that I am sending to future students.

This is for my student.

It came in the mail today.

She's going.  In 9 days.  On her birthday.

She could not have wished for a better birthday gift.  She is so excited, she doesn't even know what to do with herself.  After getting the postcard today, she has been running all over the house saying, 'I love you, Mrs. 'X' (her teacher), I can't wait to meet you!'

Am I happy for her excitement?  For sure.  Especially considering child #2 is going to be the extreme opposite.  Gotta live it up while I'm can.  I am thrilled for her...for the new friends she is going to make, the knowledge she is going to gain, the fun she is going to have, and all the awesome experiences she is about to embrace.

But am I sad as ever?  Absolutely.  I have left her before.  I worked for the first 18 months of her life.  But it was me leaving her.  Having her leave me is different.  I'm still going to be here at home, but without her.  It won't be the same.  I am going to miss her (and here come the tears!) and the abundance of joy she brings to my days.  She, Kater-tot and I have been together everyday for the past 2 years and it's just weird to think about what it will be like to have just one little girl at home. 

But switching over to the positives again...it will be so great for Kater-tot to have her own time.  She has been Bug's shadow all this time and now she gets her chance.  I am excited for her.  And as much as she is going to miss her sister while she's gone, I'm pretty sure she's going to love 'her' time.

So, lots to look forward too.

It's going to be good.

For all of us.



41 Hours

The car ride:  8 hours
Estimated days of trip:  3
People involved:  12
Beds:  0
Cows crossing the road in which we had to stop for:  35
Signs warning us 'Welcome to Black Bear Country' :  5
Times I woke up thinking I was being attacked: 15-20
Hours of torrential downpour:  8
Actual time I lasted:  41 hours

This is where our adventure took us.  We ventured to the woods...let's be real-the DEEP woods...with children in tow for the first time.  No campers to sleep in, no electricity, no cell phone service.  We're talking a fire and some tents.  We have done the whole camping thing many times before, but taking the girls was new and I had no clue how things were going to go down.  But TOH's family are avid campers who have all done it since as far back as they can remember, and we have missed out on the annual trip since having the girls, so we finally decided to give it a shot.  To give you an idea of how serious they are...there's a coffee percolator involved.  And along with the morning joe comes scrambled eggs and sausage.  Told ya.

We boated, water and jet-skied, got a little too burnt, told lots of good stories, and I read an entire magazine from front to back without interruption all by myself with a glass of wine in hand.  For you moms out there, you know why something as simple as that is so fabulous.

This is what we woke up to...it was amazing.

A closer look at 'home'

The girls?  Loved every minute. 

aka 'Rose'

Their favorite spot



Luckily they didn't hear the noises I did throughout the night, or see the mysterious 'creature' tracks all over my car, or mind that we had to press a button to get 2 1/2 minutes of hot water for a shower...and they loved sleeping together in their tent and making s'mores and literally everything about it.  It was their mom who threw in the towel after the rain came down hard for 8 straight hours our second morning there.  I'm all for camping, but I'll admit, when things get a little wet...I'm out.  So, we made it two out of three days...guess that's not too bad for the first shot. 

It was a great trip...lots of memories were made and I can happily say we will do it again-hopefully soon!  To top  the whole thing off, the girls went to bed last night (our first night home) at 7pm and got up this morning at 9:30!!  We'll be in the woods every weekend if that's the guaranteed end result!

All the Fingers Are Crossed

We're trying something new in the coming days. 
A first for us.

I'm a little nervous.
I'm a lot excited.
It's going to be interesting.
It's going to be a blast.
There are going to be adventures.
There are going to be great stories.

Stay close for the follow-up post!