Double-Digits

I was chastised today.  One grandma, who will remain nameless, expressed her feelings of being tired of checking our blog and seeing the same thing for 3 weeks straight.  So I thought I’d better get something new up on the blog to stay in her good graces. 

What have we been doing?  Although I’d like to say I have been taking it easy, putting my feet up and relaxing, we have had a lot going on.  For 2 of those 3 weeks, 3 out of 8 of us had strep (including me) and 5 out of 8 had a bout of the stomach flu (including me).  In the middle of that, I promised Brooklyn a “friend” party this year and had to keep up my end of the bargain.  We also decorated for Christmas, I’ve been working on a big project for church, and I’m not only getting ready to move by organizing, purging and compartmentalizing, but I’ve been a little obsessed with how I’m going to decorate almost double the square footage we have now on a fairly small budget.  Oh, and we got family pictures, I’m putting together Christmas cards and trying to make this holiday season merry and bright with the bazillion (not sure that’s a real word) other holiday things to do besides the regular motherly daily duties (like the 10 loads of laundry which was washed, folded and put away yesterday)…  So, now that I know my kids have clean socks and underwear for at least the next 7 days, I guess I can spend the next few days catching up on the blog.

Brooklyn is ten years old.  Justin couldn’t believe it.  I’ve already experienced the trauma of my firstborn hitting double digits and almost hitting my mid-thirties, but he is just getting started.  (I’m older and wiser than him for those of you out there that aren’t aware of that fact).  Although the kids want friend parties every year, it’s a little expensive and crazy to do that with 6 kids.  After much deliberation, we finally agreed to let the kids have a “friend” party on the even years, starting at age 8, since those are the majority of the “milestone” birthdays and a family party on the odd years.  Everyone is happy with this compromise.

Brooklyn wanted a swimming party…in the middle of November.  It ended up being a hit with the kids, our whole family could go and not necessarily be a part of the “girl” party, it kept the mess and entertaining at the pool  and the kids were happy with an ice cream cone on the way home.       

 

Brooklyn and some of her best friends enjoying her swim party.