Friday, January 12, 2024

Life Updates

When I catch up with people, my response is always 'same old, same old' and overall that remains true {for which I am SO thankful - happy marriage, good health, happy & healthy kids, stable jobs, etc.}. However, there have been a handful of small changes that in total need a blog post!

MTHFR

Some of my {small} number of readers have been reading for long enough to remember when we tested Trent and me for MTHFR thinking it would be linked to Trent's behavior challenges and my anxiety. We never tested the girls, but Drew has been dealing with some anxiety for awhile and Brent said 'Do you think we should test the girls for MTHFR?' and I responded 'DUH! Why didn't I think of that!?!' So we tested both girls...and they both have at least 1 MTHFR mutation.

Drew - 1 copy of the C677T mutation {the more severe mutation, same as Trent}
Paige - 1 copy each of the C677T and A1298C mutation {same as me}

The girls have their well-checks next week, so I'll talk to their doctor about it, but for now, we've started them both on 1 of the over-the-counter supplements Trent takes.

Brent is curious about his own potential for mutations, but knowing him, he won't have any haha.

Gateway

Trent and Drew changed schools at the start of the year {Trent 'graduated' from our beloved Montessori school so he had to move schools, but Drew asked to move when he did even though she could have stayed at Goodwater for 4 more years}. I applied for all 3 of them to get in {it's a charter school that always has a long waitlist} and none of them got in initially. Trent ended up getting accepted 6 days before school started and Drew just 3 days!

Having the big 2 enrolled jumped Paige up a lot...but she remained on the waitlist...until the week before Thanksgiving! I panicked when I got her acceptance email because she was super happy in her classroom and I didn't want to switch her so far into the school year. Brent {the level-headed man that he is} suggested seeing what Paige thought and how she felt about it. I just knew she would want to stay at Goodwater, but she surprised me and was super excited to move to Gateway with her Bubba and Sissy! {Don't ask me about the amount of time I spent panicking, spiraling, and crying over this ha.}

So she started right after the Thanksgiving break and has LOVED it! She has 2 friends in the classroom across the hall {she has recess and PE with them} and a girl from her Girl Scouts troop is in her class and we didn't know it! Gateway is a much more traditional school, but Paige has settled in really nicely - she loves having homework {which takes her about 3 minutes to complete} and having a cafeteria, gym, music room, etc. It's been nice for me having all 3 kids at the same school again and on the same calendar {although their start and end times are different which is annoying ha}.


Sawyer

The final member of #theSwopeseven got a name and I never shared it! We haven't been able to see the baby since his arrival because their pediatrician has suggested staying close to home, but we should get to see him very soon! My girls are chomping at the bits!!

George 'Sawyer' Patnode!!
{George is a family name on David's side}




Girl Scouts Troop Leader

I've been a relatively active parent in both girls' Girl Scouts troops but especially in Drew's as she likes for me to come to events. Well, there have been some leadership changes...and I took the plunge and became a troop leader this year, eek. I'm one of 3 mom leaders, and one was a leader last year, so we aren't a group of newbies thankfully! It's been a lot of fun so far, and I'm excited to go to GS camp this spring {both girls will be there at the same time and it'll be each of their first times}!

So like I said - nothing earth-shattering but all together some decent changes/new information in our family!!


Thursday, January 11, 2024

Monthly Musings: Ringing in the New Year

 Why start 2024 by being on-time to the Monthly Musings link-up? Let's just continue in my perpetual lateness, shall we? {grin}


1. How do you ring in the New Year?

For at least 5 years we have hung out with our neighborhood peeps and just rotated houses. It is low-key, easy, and the best fun!

New Year's Eve 2020

2. Any special New Year's Eve or New Year's Day traditions?

No real traditions past hanging with our crew on New Year's Eve. New Year's Day is really just a lazy day for us as we wind down from all the celebrations AND gear-up to celebrate Drew the next day!

3. Favorite New Year's Eve memories?

New Year's Eve in Ruidoso was a wonderful memory with our forever friends.

4. Show us some New Year's Eve outfits.

I've gotten really into themed clothes in the last handful of years. I've been about Christmas clothes for a LONG time but have added clothing for a lot more holidays. 

Bought this sweatshirt a few weeks ago {how cute is it?!}
AND how perfectly do my GG sneakers match it?!

New Years Eve 2021 - in a fun t-shirt and champagne earrings!

5. What are you most looking forward to in 2024?

More of the same! I love the little life my family has created here in our little corner of the world {most of the time ha!}, and I'm looking forward to traveling together - Brent and I already have 1 trip planned whoop!, job stability, parenting this crazy trio we have, just normal life. We do have a few things we're discussing that would be big events, so I'll share once we make some decisions!

One thing we've started on is...a living room and playroom makeover! We've been talking about this for over a year, and we bought a new sectional this past weekend. We're working with a designer and a friend who is a lover of all things organization to help us create 2 new spaces. Our goal is just a refresh for the living room {our current sectional is 18 years old} and a layout that fits our house a little better and to have a more functional playroom space for all of the kids - so it needs to be a space for teens, tweens, and elementary school kiddos - a tall ask but one we're excited about.

Color of the new sectional sitting on the old sectional!
Really excited for the direction we are taking in the living room, eek!

6. Asleep by 10pm or ring in the New Year?

Ring it in baby! We have never {in my memory} not rung in the New Year. We've done big parties in the past and those were fun too, but I really love our neighborhood party.

2006 NYE fun at a hotel party!

7. Do you have a word or goals for 2024?

I'm marinating on it currently. A word came to me while in therapy on Friday last week, and I got super excited about it...but need to think about it more ha.

I don't go into the year with a requirement for goals or a word, and if I come up with something, I go with it, and if not, I don't! I am constantly striving to make little changes - usually around organization - to better myself and make life smoother for our family regardless of whether I have 'official' goals.

8. Best self care tips to share in the New Year?

Finding what you love and making it a priority! Self care is different for everybody. So whether it's reading, exercising, massages, whatever... no one will make it a priority for you.

9. Paper planner? Electronic planner? None? Share your favorite brands or apps please.

None! We do have a whiteboard calendar in our kitchen and I use a fun notebook to keep notes for myself but not an official planner. I also use my calendar in Outlook for A LOT.

My trifecta of keeping my life somewhat together...

Brent and I have been toying with the idea of an electronic family calendar but haven't pulled the trigger yet, so we will see!

10. Black-eyed peas on New Year's Day-Yea or Nay?

While we always did this growing up, I think it would be safe to say I haven't had a black-eyed pea in my 20 New Year's Eves with Brent!


Cheers to a great 2024!