Mama of 2 P's in a Pod

I love July. Even though it means August is around the corner, meaning school starts in the blink of an eye. But I still love July. I love the heat, the celebrations surrounding holidays, little P's birthday and our anniversary. I love the softball World Series. I love the long days and hot nights. I love July. This year, July is closer to our going home date. Which we still don't have. BUT we do have walls!! It has been a summer like no other. We have truly gotten closer as a family. Kris is not working his part time jobs, only spending his 24 hours shifts at the fire department. It is an adjustment, I am used to a lot more just me and the P's time, which we don't get as much of now that we are not at home. But it has been fun. We spend a lot of time just laughing and being silly. But most importantly, we are getting to know each other better. I guess there are blessings hidden in all of this. We are definitely a much stronger family unit now. For the ...

16 weeks tomorrow. I know I may seem a little crazy by counting the weeks, but our lives have changed. We are not home and sometimes the counting keeps me from going insane, well kind of. There is progress. Cabinets and countertops ordered, sheet rock is going up later this week and we have begun the process of ordering appliances and furniture. So things are moving after a small standstill. The time has been quick but it also feels like time has been standing still. It has been nice getting to know Kris' parents and the girls getting to know their grandparents, but we are all ready to go home. Thankfully our girls are busy, which may seem a little too busy to some, but its the life we know and better to busy and out of the way. Plus, I think it helps the girls keep their minds off the fire. I've noticed when we have some down time, they start to think about what was lost. I know the transition into the house will be bittersweet. Just looking at pictures from directly after th...

Summer is in full swing. Given, the first actual day of summer isn't until this Saturday, but we are in the midst of enjoying it. Lots of ball games, lots of activities and lots of busyness. The girls are enjoying their ball season. And after a totally out of our element soccer tryout debacle, they have landed on a new team, together. What a strange experience. I will leave it at that. So far, the new coach and families seem great. Not as competitive and more understanding of other activities, which is what we wanted to begin with. Little P had her dance recital this past weekend. She took just one class at a new studio and loved it. I think rather than hip hop next year, she has her eyes set on tap. Big P is hinting at joining her. I like the idea of rounding out their activities. May have to get a second job to make that happen. Kidding. Well, maybe. Kris has a big interview tomorrow for an investigator spot. I think it would be a great fit for him. He has the desire to ...

It's been almost 3 months. And while I try to act like that time doesn't consume my thoughts, it does creep in during the quiet moments. Thankfully, we are in the middle of softball season, which has been tournament after tournament. But little reminders do pop up. Like getting what clothes they could salvage from the fire. They're sitting in stacks in the front room here at Kris' parent's home, still in plastic and screaming at me to sort them. So many of the girls items are outgrown. So many of the items from my own closet, hardly worn. So I will sort through, and save what we love and can't live without, the rest we will pay forward. But the task is a little overwhelming. And a reminder of what we did lose. Not each other, no thank heavens. But more than we could even remember on most days. Today, I felt the need to run my fingers across Higbee's ears. Last night I was told that big P feels she should have been able to save him, while little P keeps dream...

Progress is progress, even if it's slower than you would like. I am repeating that almost every day when it pertains to our home. I am waking up with a more positive attitude, remembering to count my blessings instead of worrying over the many things I can not control. Sometimes this process is a little exhausting. But its the new me. The old me would be stewing over all of it, picking it apart, piece by piece and trying to figure out how to "fix" it all. But I have learned how to be patient, somewhat, since March 12. I am really trying at least. The insurance company has finally backed off the remodeler some, and they have begun the tedious work of getting the house cleared out and working to restore the wood and floors so they can begin the rebuilding. We have new windows. Front of the house, Little P's bedroom windows. I just hope the windows deter the lovely people who broke into our home not once, but twice. I don't want any broken NEW windows. But...

It's been over a month since our house fire. We have been sitting idle for awhile, waiting on our insurance company and Frigidaire to come together to take the refrigerator apart and determine the exact cause of our fire. Sitting idle is hard to do. Very. And adding those lovely break ins into the mix made it hard. But today is the day. I'm home with a sick kiddo so I was able to go with my father in law to let the engineers into the home. Having them react to the house and the kitchen was a good experience. We know it is bad, but having them confirm it helps reassure me some. In a weird, totally unexplainable kind of way. Hopefully after today, the rebuilding can begin. There are quite a few steps before that can happen but all of those steps mean progress. It has been a good experience living with Kris' parents, they have been more than accommodating, but I know we are all ready to go home. We continue to feel the love from the community as well. Orange Leaf nigh...

What is normal? I'm trying to find a new normal for our family. But it's harder than it looks. You don't realize how normal life is by going to your own place every night. By crawling into your own bed and pulling up your own covers. These are some of the things the girls have wished they could do. I have too, I would give anything to spread out on my sippy cup stained couch and enjoy the P's giggling and playing while having my pup at my feet. But this is our life now. And while I know it was just a couch, I think of when my Oma took me shopping for it and the matching chair when I was 6 months  pregnant with Little P and how that was the only thing I could sleep on. I think of sleepless nights with a sick kiddo on that couch or a recovering Kris resting his newly fixed back or Achilles on that couch. I am trying hard to be patient and to be a rock for my family, some days though, I feel more like silly putty.