Exhaustion

I never knew was exhaustion felt like until I had Alessia. The first few months of her life I walked around like a zombie. She would wake up every few hours to feed and once I fell back to sleep, she was usually ready to get up again.

The last few weeks have felt a lot like those first few months. She takes forever to fall asleep, wakes up in the middle of the night, and even refuses naps. I know a lot of it has to do with the cooler weather. We aren't getting out in the morning on most days so she isn't able to tire herself out. But she runs around the house back and forth...goes up and down the stairs countless times...climbs everything! I'm exhausted from chasing after her. I am astonish at how little sleep Alessia requires especially coming from two people who NEED and LOVE their sleep.

Having Kevin here helps a great deal. Even though he is at work during the day, he lets me sleep in on most mornings and then entertains her at night for a few hours before bed. Sometimes I get lucky and he gets home early enough to give her a bath.

But with the hockey season, come road trips. Usually they are only a few days, but every few months we get a long one...and that long one starts this week. Ten day of Alessia and Mommy time! And hopefully ten days of ten hour sleeps and two hour naps. 

Afternoon Lesson

My friend Carol just left my house after a chat. And when I say 'my friend Carol', I really mean 'the Jehovah Witness that stops by occasionally'. And when I say 'a chat', I really mean 'a lesson'.

I knew when I heard that knock on my door today that it was most likely her. I was in the middle of doing dishes, with a load of laundry drying, and all I wanted to do was have a cup of tea and watch my DVRed episode of Guy's Grocery Games while Alessia napped. I thought about not answering and then I felt guilty.

How many times does Carol get turned away in a day? Would it really kill me to answer the door and let her give me her spiel for a few minutes? I should note that she is such a nice lady...kind of reminds me of my Grandma Mounce. So, I answered. She told me how lovely my home is, told the 'new girl, Jeanette' about how cute Alessia is, and she even took off her shoes without me asking. Who doesn't love compliments and proper etiquette?

Her and Jeanette wanted to give me a lesson and I agreed. I will admit that I only half listened because The Steve Wilkos Shows was on in the background and I really needed to see if the husband cheated. But it didn't kill me and I even learned a little something. Carol asked if she could come back and I told her 'of course'. I just can't say 'no' to sweet Carol.

Do I regret answering the door? Nope. Did her lesson make me want to be a Jehovah Witness? No. Will I read up to prepare for my next lesson? Definitely not. Will I answer the door next week when I hear that light knock? Most likely.

Purging

I find it very hard to believe that it has been ten years since I graduated college and seven years since I taught special education. Those three years of teaching were a great learning experience for me and I met some lifelong friends. But when I decided to move with Kevin and end the "long distance," I knew it meant I would have to give up teaching. I wasn't 100% sure how long I would be giving it up though...weeks, months, years. 

Since there was always that uncertainty of whether or not I would be teaching again, I held onto my stuff. For years, its home was in my parents' garage. And for the last year, it has sat in our basement collecting dust. Honestly, I had no idea what was in there. I used a few things when I was nannying, but most of it sat untouched for years.

A few weeks ago, I decided to take on the daunting task of going through it. Initially, I just wanted to see what I had kept. There were books, binders, worksheets, crayons, games, stickers...all things you would expect teachers to have. I realized some of the items could be used at the house (stapler, hole punch, tape, markers), some things Kevin would use (magnets, binders, tabs), and a majority of the items Alessia could use either now or one day. It took about a week (here and there) to go through the six bins. And after it was all said and done, I still had six bins...they were just organized a bit better.


This weekend I headed back downstairs. What was I holding onto all this for? I'm not a collector, I hate clutter, and I have always honored my motto 'if it doesn't serve me a purpose right now, then I have no need for it.' So, this morning, I purged. I now have one bin of decorations, one bin of games, and one bin of 'teacher stuff' that can be used with Alessia down the road.

The profession of teaching is changing every year. Those math and reading manuals from 2006 are out of date. The name plates that have bends in them aren't ever getting used. And I'm pretty sure no one needs documentation of my clocked minutes from seven years ago.

Growing up, I knew I wanted to be a teacher. And ten years ago, I was a teacher. Now, I don't know if I'll ever be a teacher again. My place in life might not be in the classroom. And six bins of teaching supplies have no place in my basement.

Summer Family Fun

It is hard to believe that summer is over and that fall is officially here. We couldn't have asked for a better summer though. The weather was perfect, we got some traveling in, and we took care of some things around the house.

We started things off by tagging along with Kevin to Columbus in May. We discovered downtown, enjoyed some delicious barbeque, and hit up the farmer's market.

Next up, but only for Kevin and me, was Mexico. A few days of friends, relaxing, drinking, and eating was exactly what we needed. Add a wedding to the mix and it was an vacation that we'll always remember.

 

For me, no summer is complete without a visit to Chicago...and this summer was no different. This visit was a little more tame than the usual visits though. We met up with friends, visited Shedd Aquarium, took pictures at the Bean, and ate our weight in pizza.

Since Kevin spent almost a month working in Buffalo, we met him for the 4th of July up at his family's cottages. The weather was great, Alessia got to play with her cousins, and we took our first family quad ride. 

 

While Detroit isn't far, we haven't been able to take advantage of all it has to offer. We were able to fit in a Tiger's game this summer. It was SO hot....like the hottest day of the year. Alessia lasted about 4 innings, which was a lot longer than I ever imagined she would last. 

Our visit to Springfield was cut a bit short due to Alessia getting a summer cold, but we were still able to enjoy ourselves for a few days. And we got to go to the Illinois State Fair. 

Vegas was up next. Our trip involved no gambling or drinking. Rather, it involved catching up with great friends and watching our kids play together. Kevin also had the amazing opportunity to present at the National Hockey Coaches Symposium alongside some pretty impressive coaches. 

 

 

We wrapped up the summer with a weekend trip to Minneapolis with my mom.  Kevin worked and us girls shopped, shopped, and shopped some more. There was also some eating, a trip to the hotel pool, and a few rides at Nickelodeon Universe...but mostly shopping.