St. Nick's Day

Happy St. Nicholas Day!  This was a day that always snuck up on me as a kid and teenager.  I'd be surprised one morning to find that St. Nick had arrived overnight.  I was actually kind of worried that, as a Mom, I'd fail at it...that all of a sudden, it would be noon on Dec. 6 and I'd realize I never did anything about St. Nick.  Now, we are only 2 years in, but I'm not worried about it anymore...I've been so excited to plan the gifts that SweetHeart was getting from St. Nick, I couldn't possibly have forgotten.

St. Nick brings our SweetHeart a few things every year to help her get into the Spirit of Christmas.  Last year, she got her stocking, a board book of Bible stories, and a board book that told the story of Christmas.  This year, she got her very own Nativity Set (by Little People) and the book that goes with it.

I think my hope that having her own Nativity will keep her away from mine is probably a little unrealistic, but hopefully it will help!

You may notice that we have shoes out instead of stockings.  In the area of the country that we live in, stockings are the usual way and DH thinks it's weird that my family has always used shoes, but that's the old German tradition and I want to continue to pass it on.  We save our stockings for Christmas!

My Family

SweetHeart helping her Dada
wipe down our kitchen chairs.

The thing that defines me the most is my family...so it makes sense that my 2nd post should be about them!

My husband and I met in 2011 and have been married since July 2013.  He is handy, active, and a hard worker.  To be honest...sometimes too hard of a worker...we have to try pretty hard to achieve balance.  He is a loving husband and a wonderful and doting father.

Our daughter (I'll call her SweetHeart) was born May 2015, exactly two weeks early and has brought so much joy and love into our lives, we can't even contain it all!  You will hear lots about her, I'm sure!

Both of our immediate families live in town, which is wonderful 99% of the time and a challenge occasionally (like when we are trying to do all of the things on the holidays...just wait for the post when I give you our Christmas Eve/Christmas Day schedule...I get tired just thinking about it!)

About Me

Perhaps the best way to begin this blog would be to write just a bit about myself.

The first flower SweetHeart
picked for me.😍

I am a wife.
I am a mother.
I am a teacher.
I am a daughter, sister, and friend.
I am a Christian in the Roman Catholic tradition.
I am a beloved child of God.

I am all of that and so much more...(for better or worse).

This blog is to be about all of those things.

I occasionally read other "Mommy Blogs," but rarely found any that completely represent me.  Most of them seem to take one aspect of their lives and write from the "extreme" point of view.  There are the stay at home, homeschooling, everything organic and homemade from scratch moms on one side and on the other extreme, there are the moms who regularly refer to their kids as "a**holes" and seem to celebrate the moments of motherhood that most of us wish we could do over.  I'm not intending to shame either group...I just don't completely fit in either category and so struggle to find a blog I can relate to.

I can't be the only one.

Sometimes I am more on one side of the fence than the other, sometimes it fluctuates wildly day by day; sometimes I'm one one end of the spectrum for a longer stretch.  I'm not perfect...there are many moments I wish I could do over and I want this blog to be "real."  However, I believe in balance, grace, forgiveness, and trying to do better tomorrow.

This blog is to be about all of those things.

I am a believer in the expression "all things in moderation." (Do I have to include the caviat, that "all things" is really "many things," with obvious exceptions like illegal drugs, etc.?)  TV and screen time, processed food, parental assistance, independence...all of those things that many people seem to believe have to be all or nothing...

This blog is to be about all of those things.

Additionally, I frequently scour the internet for reviews and experiences people have had with a variety of products and services.  Sometimes I find a lot of information, sometimes I don't.  I'm going to include in this blog reviews of many things that I have found wonderful and helpful in my life.

This blog is to be about all of those things.

So, welcome to my blog!  I'm glad you found me...are you like me?  Or are you looking for another perspective beside your own?  Either way, let's explore All Things together!