The One With Senior Night Number Two

January 24 - 26, 2020

Going back a few extra nights, because, WRESTLING!  (That night, we had to RUSH from Jake's 7th grade basketball game at the junior high to the wrestling dual at the high school to make sure we were in line on time for the festivities!)  The winter sports season is wrapping up super quickly it seems, and Senior Night was this last Tuesday.  Jake was told he could join us on the mat, but he chose to sit in the stands with Nana and Grandpa.  Finn wanted to be down in the middle of the action.  Justin joined us on the mat as well.  Shout out to Lara's head trainer, Aaron Harmon for capturing some pictures for us!

It was also an extra special night because after Stillwater DOMINATED the dual, there was also a retirement party for Coach Chesbro after 30 years with Stillwater High School wrestling!  What a legacy he leaves.  We were so glad to be a small part of it!

The rest of the weekend was dominated by basketball.  Emma and her Lady Panthers were in Coyle for a tournament most of the weekend.  Finn had a game early Saturday morning, and Jake (on his 13th birthday) was in Norman for a tournament as well for his Buddy Buckets team!  WHEW!  Saturday, Lara worked at the bakery and Emma came in for a few hours that afternoon after basketball.  That night, Emma and Lara went to the movies in Stillwater together to see "Bad Boys For Life" with Will Smith and Martin Lawrence.  Emma ended up staying the night in Stillwater as well.  Sunday, the girls hung out with Finn since Mom and Dad were in Norman again for Jake's games.

Sunday, the world lost a basketball icon.  Our family took this one pretty hard.  Kobe Bryant, and his 13-year old basketball prodigy daughter Gianna, died in a helicopter crash outside f Los Angeles in the Calabasas area.  They were flying to a basketball game in Thousand Oaks where the Mamba basketball academy was hosting a tournament.  Nine people on the helicopter died including Giananna's teammates, their families, and coaches.  So very sad.  A tragic way to end a weekend,  We will always remember #kobe. 

#MambaForever

The One With the Knife and a Movie

January 17-January 20, 2020 (MLK weekend)

This one is one we won't forget soon.  Everything was happening all at once, and none of it was easy on Friday!  Finn had been sick for 3 days, so Britt had decided it was time to take him to the Dr. before the weekend.  In the meantime, Emma calls from Meridian Tech and says "I just hurt myself really bad.  I am ion my way to the nurse's office.  Brooke is at work and my Dad is in Wichita, so if I need you to come and get me, can you?"  I don't drive a car to campus, so I am not the best option, but at that moment, Britt was taking Finn to the Dr.  So, I asked a coworker if she could help.  Emma calls back from the nurse's office, and the nurse says she needs stitches.  Fast Forward an hour, we are at the urgent care clinic, they can't stitch her thumb with she sliced with a very sharp pocket know if to the width of the gash (no "gue" either), so we have to wrap it tightly, and "let it heal."  OH!  And, she needs a Tetanus Booster Shot.  By the time all of this is done, she has missed the bus back to Orlando for High Shcool and missed her only high school class of the day, Spanish.  I drove her to Orlando, made sure she got the work she missed in school, then came back to work.  She got caught up at school, packed for the weekend, and she came to Stillwater for the weekend.  I was glad I got to keep her close and nurse her thumb.  It bled for a LONG time!

Saturday, the girls were up and at 'em early to head to the donut shop.  They took separate cars in case Emma was not feeling too well.  She said that her thumb didn't hurt too bad, but her arm sure did from the shot!  She made it to early afternoon, then called to say she was coming home.  We were on our way to Edmond for Jake's basketball game, so we picked her up and Guthrie and she came along.  This is the first time she got to watch jake play school ball!

Sunday morning, we got up early and headed to church.  Finn was still not feeling 100%.  He had missed 3 days of school, then went on an played his basketball game early Saturday morning.  So, my 3 big kids and I loaded up the car, and headed to church!  We looked a little rough, but it was so worth it!

Sunday afternoon, I fulfilled a promise to my little women by taking them to the movies to see the 2019 version of the Littel Women Move.

Lara and I both really enjoyed it.  We laughed, we cried, we ooohed and ahhed!  Emma watched the movie and made fun of us for crying.  LOL!  She also enjoyed the movie, but she had not read the book(s), so she was not quite as invested!

And because this weekend would never end, we had the 2020 Pioneer Football awards and end of season banquet Sunday night.  Lots of treats, trophies, and tears.  I know Lara can't believe it is over...

Next week is Senior Night for Pioneer Wrestling.  And more basketball games.  And their little brother turns 13.  It never ends!  And we only have 17 weekends left...

The One With The First Snow of 2020

January 10-12, 2019

There was a lot of time this weekend spend in basketball gyms!  'Tis the season, I suppose.

This week was the annual Mulhall-Orlando basketball tournament.  We go to go see Emma cheer one night, and the next night we got to see her play ball.  Her teams did not come out victorious, but it is always a fun atmosphere at the Mulhall school and to see everyone all decked out in Black and Gold with Panther Pride.  They have a wonderful concession stand too; I can still smell all the unique smells.  Oh - and this was the first time this season Jake got to see Emma play!

We woke up on Saturday to a blanket of snow here in Stillwater.  Most of the surrounding areas didn't have as much as we did!  Finn's season opener basketball game was canceled, Lara called into work because we didn't want her driving on the slick roads, and we hoped it cleared up soon because Jake had a tournament in the city that started late in the afternoon.  Luckily for him, the sun came out and melted everything so we got to play.  Lara stayed back with Finn and helped out in that way.

Sunday Lara stayed home due to the early departure needed for Jake's tournament.  So she was in charge of laundry and Evie.  That second one didn't work out so well for her.  We got a text as we were driving in from Edmond from a neighbor asking if our dog was out?  In Lara's watch, Evie dug under the fence!!!  Lara was able to apprehend her pretty quickly, and when we returned home, she had been in her crate for an hour as punishment. Thankful for good neighbors!

We ended Sunday night with a family meeting and some TV time.  It was another busy weekend, but finishing it with the family all on one couch was definitely the cherry on top.  Since everyone is back in school and the spring semester is humming along with basketball on the downhill slide, spring sports around the corner, it was nice to have a moment of calm.

On to the next weekend!  18 to go!

The One That Started a New Decade

December 31, 2019 - January 5, 2020

Well, this one has to go back to Monday of this week to tell the whole story.  On Monday morning, December 30, 2019, about 8:25am Emma and Lara's Great-Grandmother, Beverly Pelnar, passed away.  While she had been battling heart failure and dementia for years, it was still a tough blow to the family.  We quickly planned a graveside service for Thursday, January 2nd at 2:00pm at the Sunset Gardens Memorial.  Family and friends joined us to say their final goodbyes.

We played "When We All Get to Heaven" by Casting Crowns and Chester Wiswell said a few words.  After the brief service, several family members gathered at Nana's house in Perkins for fellowship  We took a couple of pictures, too (not pictured, Bex Boyd).

Grandma's Biggest Fans

Add the Weavers to a picture and it gets crowded...

But before there was a funeral, there was a celebration as a new year and a new decade dawned.  The girls went in different directions, but the pictures tell a story of friends and laughter.

Lara and her "YEatles" - Annah, Lara, Erika, Kendall

Emma went to a party at the Hatfields

Emma and Sarah

She took Jake with her, too!

Party People!

Emma stayed in Stillwater with us off and on this week, and the girls finished out the week looking forward to their final semester in high school and getting ready for their new classes.  Hanging out with friends, card games with family, and general relaxing with TV and iPhones.  Saturday, they both worked at the Donut shop in Guthrie.  And Sunday was another family day.  So grateful they will go shopping together, take Jake and/or Finn with them occasionally, and generally brighten our days!

2020 is here.  And it is going to be a doozy!  So glad I have this project to keep me moving forward!  Here's to a GREAT semester!

New Year, New WORD 2020

As we embark on a new year, another trip around the sun, the time has come for me to find my ONE WORD.  One word to guide my course for the year.  One word to help me focus, to remind me who I am and WHOSE I am.  One word to ground me, center me, and keep me from spiraling out of control when life gets crazy.  And although I struggled with "finding" my one word for 2020 when God finally revealed it to me yesterday, I knew it was RIGHT and I was excited to start praying over it, researching it, and finding my focus verse to go along with it.

My word for 2019 was Listen.  I wanted to be slower to speak.  To really hear what people were saying to me instead of waiting for my turn to talk.  I did not perfect my craft, but I did make great strides.  I can now remind myself to listen when I need to, and I don't have to remind myself as often as I did 12 months ago.  I still want to work on this skill, but I also want to grow in another area this year.

My ONE WORD for 2020 is BREATHE.  In all senses of the word.  First, to breathe, slow down, and calm down when life gets crazy.  The past 4-5 months have been very intense with 4 kids in 7 schools and all their activities, my full-time job which is constantly in flux it seems, the responsibilities and pressure of being a Graduate Student, and trying to be an excellent wife to my amazing husband, sometimes I forget to breathe,  So much so, that I have been to the doctor and added a new medication to my regime to help combat the panic attacks and general anxiety. 

But also, to breathe in what's happening around me.  My 2 oldest kids are graduating high school and starting college this year.  All the while I will still have 2 more kids who need my attention as well as continuing my own studies.  Being present, in the moment, means so much to my children, and I need to breathe that in.  More "In Real Life" and less "Fear Of Missing Out."

Breathe in God's peace and presence.  I always feel the most at ease during worship at church on the weekends.  I feel God's comfort in that space while singing words of praise to Him.  I want to breathe in that peace, and then remember it, replicate it, and revel in it throughout the busy weeks.  I pray that being cognizant of this will help it become a reality.

And to actually, physically, breathe.  Fill my lungs, exchange oxygen for carbon dioxide.  Inhale, Exhale (Jane the Virgin, anyone?).  It is amazing the GOOD a deep breathe can do for you.  It calms, focuses, and centers you.  It just feels good.  Doing this more, and keeping the spirals at bay, will help me be productive and meet all the goals I need to this year.

Sing Praises to the Lord

I am a daughter of the One True King.  I am beautiful because I am fearfully and wonderfully made (Psalm 139:14).  I am blessed because I believe the Lord will fulfill His promises to me (Luke 1:45), He restores my soul (Psalm 23:3).  And because He gives me breath, I will sing PRAISES to the Lord (Psalm 150:6).

I think it is important to see where I have come on this ONE WORD journey, so here is my list of words since I started this endeavor:

2019 - listen
2018 - welcome
2017 - closer  (I was anxious, and blog-averse, as we opened 2017, so it's a short FB post)
2016 - greater
2015 - brave
2014 - joyful
2013 - resolution

Welcome to 2020!  I new chapter, a new year, a new DECADE!  So much will be changing in my life over the next 12-24 months.  And while I cannot wait, I also know my anxiety will be high.  I am working hard this year to stay in front of it.  Medication, prayer, and just breathing.