Force of nature

Due to an unfortunate act of nature yesterday, we had to make a decision about our pool.  Long story short, the pool is now moving with us.

The long story...

Yesterday, was a rainy day.  Unfortunate because I had just filled the pool (accidentally) to the brim the day before for the first time since we originally filled it for the summer.  (If you know anything about the price of water usage in Montgomery, it's a painful choice to put the hose in the pool.)  The night before, I just dumped in more chlorine to shock the pool because it rained on the weekend also & that tends to also effect the chemicals.  I had also spent most of that afternoon babysitting the pool vacuum to get the bottom clean.  So, the pool was clean, full and ready for a warm day to swim again.  Mother Nature had another plan.

Bring on heavy winds, strong enough to toss the large garbage bins over and push over our neighbors double swinging rocker.  It blew pool floaties off the deck and when the rain and lightening let up enough for me to go round them up, I headed out to the soggy yard.  I happened to glance over at the pool and was shocked to see the waterline about a foot below the rim (remember I had it filled to the top?).  I then noticed that the strips holding the liner on around the top had somehow come off and the liner had collapsed into the pool, causing water to flow over the back of the liner and out the sandy bottom of the pool.  I ran to that side only to be shocked at the water gushing out the bottom and holes at the seams of the side of the pool.  The neighbors yard was flooded (for the 2nd time by us this year...oops!) and I panicked at what to do.

I ran inside to yell for AJ to help and had to ask Ian to watch over Bella (who was ready for a nap.)  When he got out, we tried to pull up the liner in the 2 areas that were falling, but the weight of the water pulled it down and we had no option but to hold the liner above the water line until the water that went over the backside drained out.  Totally beside myself, I told AJ to give the 911 call to Jason, who was at work training in the new AD.  All we could do was hold up the liner to keep more water from flowing out the side until Jason arrived.  In the meantime, one of AJ's friends came walking down the street and luckily for him, he was wearing sandals, so I used him as another helper to stand in the soggy mess and hold up the liner while I attempted to get the hoses hooked up to drain the pool into the street and not the yard.

Jason arrived to see all of his recent hard work spilling out & we had to decide whether we would go through all the work and money to get it back up and running, only to enjoy it for a few more weeks.  Once we got things under control (as much as we could), I called the realtor and we figured that the pool neither helped nor hindered the sale of our house, so we decided that we would just take the pool out and leave a really large sandy fire pit (at least that's how we're going to market it!)

Needless to say, our workload just increased by a lot, not to mention the sports schedules and packing with a toddler, but Jason is thrilled to have the option of the pool at our new home.  I, on the other hand, am reminded at how heavy those panels are and am wondering how in the world we are going to load those things without a forklift!

So if anyone in our area needs some sand...there are 9 tons under it, and I am guessing that a fire pit doesn't need that much.

We're moving again!

And, no, I'm not pregnant! LOL!  It was not an easy decision because we have loved this place since we first visited 2 years ago, but when it comes down to it, being closer to family wins over.  After much time in prayer, we felt that either Activities Director position was a great opportunity for Jason and that God was allowing us to decide where we would go.  In the end, it simply came down to raising our kids where they could go to school with their cousins. 

We originally left Minneota because Jason discovered how much he loved being an AD & desired to do it full time and not having 1-2 other administrative jobs to do with it.  When it was apparent that he wouldn't be able to do that in a smaller town, he looked to a larger district, which took us a couple hours away.  We have certainly loved the opportunities of a larger school and community and will miss many things, especially the wonderful people we have met.  It never gets easy leaving those you grow close to, but we are so much better for having the chance to spend time with them and look forward to the next opportunities to do so.

I told Jason I am going to make him a t-shirt that says, "All roads lead to Minneota" and have a map of all the places we have moved to and from since we have been together.  I think I counted 12 in 16 years...it might be more.  Needless to say, it has been one adventure after another and we hope that this move will be the last, as we have found a home we can comfortably live in until we die.  Hahaha! 

But until that time a couple months from now, we are going to take in all that we can from this beautiful area, spending time with friends, and relaxing in our pool before we have to pack things up and head back to family and friends in Minneota!

Clean up, aisle 6!

Baby spilled cat's water dish, then I went downstairs to clean up (dried) slime in the carpet, cleaned the cat box while I was in the laundry room getting a bucket of water for the slime, then the cat pukes on the carpet in the room where we're trying to clean up slime, (notice I said TRYING), come upstairs frustrated to discover baby's got a poopy diaper. All in less than 10 minutes! Now I get to research how to remove dried slime from your carpet... 😒

Is there anybody out there?

It might be wishful thinking to expect that anyone still checks my blog after my 7-month hiatus from posting.  Not to mention that I have racked up a whopping 4 posts the entire year of 2017.  Instead of boring you with the long list of reasons why I haven't kept up, here are some new pictures to tie you over and a few updates on what's all going on in our lives, (which will give you insight to why I don't get to sit at the computer as often.)

Yes! Noah is now 6 and enjoying kindergarten, at home, with Mom as his teacher, because the very thought of being in a classroom with others at this point terrifies him.

Bella is now 1 and keeps busy with all things that learning toddlers do.  (Actually, I have been interrupted several times during this post to redirect her curiosity to a baby-friendly activity.)  But she is a total gift to our family & she makes us all smile often on a daily basis.

This crew!  (I think Ian's expression sums it up)

AJ is now a 15-year old 9th grader who is working at lots of stuff: football & now basketball, pep/concert/marching band, drivers ed & a part-time job!  He has been given the gift of a room to himself, even though he's here the least amount of time, but sharing a room with a 10 year-old was getting to be a battle, and let's be realistic, the 2 younger boys together makes more sense right now.  (If I would have had that revelation when we first moved in, it would have saved us a bunch of time & energy!  Preggo brain!)

Laney is 14 (8th grade) and busy in her special artistic way: concert/jazz/honor band (playing 3 instruments), piano lessons, lots of art (including starting up a blog for her drawings), and helping out a bunch by watching the youngsters while I play bus driver for the others.  She absolutely loves SuzyCat & the feeling is reciprocal, especially when they have "lazy days" together & just spend time loafing. 

Faith is 12 and is on the brink of teenage-isms.  Ah, the hormones in 6th grade!  School days certainly become more challenging, don't they?!  She loves sports also, and was busy with volleyball & now basketball.  JO volleyball has also come into the mix & will soon fill the rest of her time as she gets used to the idea of daily practice that awaits her next year.  She is also in band & student council & is a raging slime-making maniac.  (The collection keeps growing!)

Ian is 10 & has enough energy to be a 3-sport athlete in one season, if we would let him.  But for the sake of my sanity (and our checking account), this 3rd grader has been limited to occasional, more convenient options of burning off energy.  We are eagerly anticipating the start of basketball for him & are also considering a session of Tae Kwon Do to help him manage his actions, because Lord help me, I can't keep up with him!

My hubby...I am so blessed that he works so hard to make it possible for one of us to be home to raise our babies.  I honestly don't know how he does it, but I do know that he loves being a filled-to-the-brim full-time Activities Director, (like 50-60 hr weeks) and still manages to Deacon at least one weekend a month, as well as teach religious ed to 2nd graders every Weds night (his one normal night off a week).  I get tired just thinking about it.

Oh wait!  I'm already exhausted, so it doesn't take much to make me tired, haha!  As you can imagine, if you take all of these active family members with their happenings and the trail of laundry, dishes, paperwork, appointments/meetings, emails, "get me here, pick me up there" communications, throw in a desire to cultivate a loving, God-willing family made up of individuals who will try to make a positive difference in the world, then you will find me, (sometimes curled up in a corner throwing my own pity party), but for the most part, getting it together as I realize this is our reality.  This is our now.  This is our family growing up way too fast and I am constantly praying to know God's will and to follow it so that I can hopefully teach these little gifts how to do it better than I can.  In the meantime, I will squeeze them as much as I can so they will know they are loved, and teach them as much as I can so that when they go out into the world, reality doesn't punch them in the face.

I can't make any promises about getting out Christmas cards in time, (some of you know I tend to make them more like "Easter cards"), so hopefully this will get you updated on the Myhre crew, so you know that we are still alive and kicking...some days more (or less) than others.

Sacraments week

We had the pleasure of watching AJ & Ian receive God's graces through the Sacraments of First Communion and Confirmation last week.  Ian has been eagerly awaiting the day when he could actually receive the Body and Blood of Jesus in the Eucharist.  It was something he "practiced" as he played Mass as a toddler, and now is finally able to partake in it fully with the Church. 

 AJ was confirmed into the fullness of the faith by the divine power of the Holy Spirit that same week.  Although he has a long way to go, as we all do in our faith journeys, he is now considered an "adult" in the Church as he continues to move forward in his Catholic faith.  He has had grown so much this past year and has embraced his greater responsibilities within his academics, athletics, the Church and even at home.  We are very proud of the young man he is becoming and look forward to watching him move on to high school next year.

We are blessed that as a Deacon, Jason was able to also participate in both celebrations of the Mass with the boys.  The local parishes, as well as the Archdiocese, have been very welcoming of him and include him in whatever he has time for.  It is a blessing to watch him do God's work, even though there are times when I miss sitting with him, but it is a compromise we knew would have when he became a servant of the Church.

 Laney had her piano recital for the end of the year, and played 2 beautiful songs.  I am still working on figuring out how to get the video from my phone to my computer, so that will hopefully be coming soon.  She is enjoying her arts and is also excelling at an amazing level and we are so proud of what she has accomplished in this past year.

Faith finished up a short stint of 3-on-3 basketball and we enjoyed the pace of the game and the skills that she took away from it.  She definitely has the gift of aggressiveness when it comes to sports and she loves to win, but she is also learning how to lose graciously and just enjoy the time with her friends and playing the sports that she loves.

Speaking of sports, we are into Jason's favorite season, baseball season!  With that, comes 2 boys that are thrilled to be playing some competitive baseball.  They are getting their workouts with pitching and playing infield positions...yes, both of them.  AJ will be finishing up with school ball & will move right into traveling team, and as you can see, Ian is happy to put on his baseball gear for the year.

Noah has enjoyed his time with me at home & I have come to terms that he is not attending preschool with his friends. I have learned to embrace this time with him at this cute age & let him enjoy some bonding time with his baby sister.  We are thankful that his teacher invites us to come and visit anytime and also on a couple of fun field trips.  I am hoping that it will help him transition into kindergarten next year, but he has already expressed to me, "I not going to kinde-ga-den!"  We'll see, little one, we'll see...

Baby Bella continues to be a source of gratefulness of the gift of such a beautiful, content little girl.  She is more than patient with our busy schedules, and puts up with being hauled here and there, but also enjoys our snuggle time at home when we get the chance.  She is growing way too fast, so we squeeze her as much as we can to enjoy every moment of her babyness.

I am getting used to our schedule, although there are some expected days of overwhelmingness.  Jason has many long days, which means the same for me, but we are happy to be blessed with all that God has provided for us.  I have stepped away from the "Martha role" that I so comfortably embraced for many years, and have learned to sit at the feet of Jesus in the "Mary role" and just let Him love me.  There are days when I struggle with, "what should I be doing?", and I am encouraged by Jason & God that I AM doing something very important...raising 6 kids and supporting a busy husband by saving all that I can by carefully managing our time and money so we can survive on one income.

We know these years are going by fast with our kids, so I have learned to slow down and embrace every moment while trying to create lasting ones;  trying to raise good & faithful servants of the Church & well-balanced individuals that desire to make a difference in the world.  But I am happy to say they've already done that by making a difference in mine.

The Lone Ranger

I was flipping through the channels & a picture icon comes up for the show for that channel.  Noah saw the one for the Lone Ranger & said, "Cowboy Batman?!?"

P.S. Yes I know it's been almost 2 months since I promised pictures...here are some to hold you over until I get more downloaded to my computer...

I know! 6 months already!! No way!

In a nutshell...

Here's what we've been busy with the last 3 months...

Noah turned 5 and "dropped out" of preschool for now.  Long story short, he needs more time to adjust, a usual occurrence for him, from the day he was born.  Remember, I prayed for patience...

Band concerts in December (each of the older kids in their own classes.  Big classes!)

Bella grew...a lot!  Pictures to follow...

Basketball, basketball, basketball, a couple wrestling matches, more basketball

Laney started a blog for her drawings....very cool, but she doesn't like when I talk about it

Catholic School here turned 130 years, so I was busy putting together a slideshow that would do justice & wouldn't show that I have no history here.  

Ian turned 8 and we finally had a day free, so we took the kids to the Science Museum, went out for sushi at the Mall of America & of course, had to let them hit the candy store (with Father Jeremy - thanks for saving me from going in there) and then ride the roller coasters.  Noah just watched & as kids rode by screaming, he would say, "They don't wike it."

All in all, we are busy (and who isn't with 6 kids), but we are enjoying life, adjusting well, and thankful for all that God has done for us.  We are looking forward to a "slower" sports season and weather that makes Noah excited to be outside, but for now, we just take it day to day & enjoy our blessings.