Holy Week

When Holy Week falls on the same week as Evan’s birthday AND we are playing a Spring sport with 1-3 games a week….things get interesting around the Asbell house.

But we voluntarily signed up for everything we are involved in, so you won’t hear me complaining. Holy Week and Easter for our family really revolve around Maundy Thursday. This is The Stirring’s big Easter service. Months of prep, agonizing, worrying and planning go into this service and every year it is worth it. This year was no exception. It was a beautiful service with a deep message and I am honored to be a part of it.

  

We had a big neighborhood Easter Egg Hunt. We are so lucky to live in a family friendly neighborhood, and it's still growing!! Evan and Luke had a blast and it was good to see everyone after the hibernation of winter.

 

Easter Sunday we like to spend with our family eating and hunting and enjoying each other. The boys woke up early and found their baskets. They immediately each brought their toy into our room begging us to open it. We could barely open our eyes being that is was 6:00am, let alone open a toy. I muttered something about scissors and ever eager Evan ran to get them. Six yearold…running with scissors. Should I start preparing my Mom of the Year speech?? They did hold off on the egg hunt though, patient little nuggets. As soon as John and I emerged they were off and ready. Evan is too fast while hunting for the me catch him on camera. Luke on the other hand is the perfect speed. I mean, I don’t think I can have enough pictures of their little hands picking up the eggs! GAH! Cuteness!

We then got to spend part of our Easter morning eating brunch with John’s mom. Her and Charlie always make a delicious spread for us! The boys had yet another hunt in her backyard. The weather was perfect and the company was even better.

 

 

Six times around the sun

Such a big boy. I don’t even know what to say. I blinked and he went from the chubbiest little dimpled baby to this boy. He’s definitely a little boy…my boy.

Evan facts:

Reading like a champ!

Still is the pickiest eater in the family

Adores his brother

Sings and dances like he owns the place

Puts others first

Loves Skylanders and Beyblades

Can smash a baseball

Has one wiggly tooth

Still has 2 deep dimples that get him way more than he deserves!

Evan is really into Skylanders…I mean really.  Birthday party theme was an easy choice this year. He picked to celebrate with his friends at Pump It Up. If you don’t have a Pump It Up around you, it is basically a large room with multiple inflatables. ie – wear these kids out!

Everyone had a blast bouncing. The octagon of death (my name, not theirs) probably had to most action. I don’t know what it is about little boys and wrestling, but man, I was nervous. I did good and just stood right outside of it making sure things didn’t get out of hand. I did have to refereeing some, but mostly the boys did great.

 

We were very lucky to be joined by a lot of friends and family! 

 

After all the jumping we celebrated with pizza and cake in a room all Skylanders! We had Skylanders masks, Skylanders banners, Skylanders cake, Skylanders plates, napkins, cups...you get the drift.

Evan had a Skylander’s cake. After scouring Pinterest, I decided to take the easy route and use the actual Skylanders for decorations. Evan picked out exactly which ones he wanted and how he wanted the scene to look. It won’t win any cake contest or be repinned on Pinterest, but he loved it. And that is what matters to me.

We celebrated with family later that day and the day after. I love when birthdays last a while! More cake for momma!

 

Enjoy Them #SB2014

"Enjoy them!"

This is what my pediatrician says upon exit of every visit. Every. single. visit. Those first two years I really need to be reminded of that. The stress of being a new mother was daunting. Then transitioning from one to two children...wow! It was nice to sometimes be reminded to just .... enjoy.

And that is what I have done this week of Spring Break 2014. I have chosen to enjoy my kids. No, we didn't go on vacation. No, there went any big trips booked. Believe it or not, I let my Type A personality take a back seat and didn't even plan any outings. No, John didn't even get to take a day off work. I just went with the flow. No plan, no schedule. For me...this was a stretch, but I LOVED it.

The boys and I had an amazing time. Just me and them. I get this privilege each time school is closed, but this was a whole week. I was stoked! Sleeping in (7am for me), staying in PJs, playgrounds, tickle fights, more playgrounds, friends, ice cream and just getting to know my kids better.

Sweet brother moment - sharing a ladybug.

I know that sounds funny. I birthed them. I am raising them. But in all honesty, I only get to see my kids from 5-8 each week night. We have the morning, but things are so rushed, I don't count that as quality time. Even on school nights once we get home at 5 or 5:30, I am unpacking three lunches, repacking three lunches, unpacking backpacks, repacking backpacks, helping Evan with homework and getting three different dinners made for the four people in our family (yes...yes...I know this is my own fault). Our 'family' time doesn't usually start until we sit down for dinner after 6. By 7:30 we are starting our bedtime routine. So an hour and a half. Sad, isn't it?

Sometimes when I really stop and think about it, I do get sad. But then I know this is how God designed our family and I have two choices. Pout or choose to enjoy. This why I chose to go 'hands free' between 5-8. So I can enjoy them. That's why I chose to exercise after they go to bed. So I can enjoy them.

So I was stoked about a whole week with the boys. But let's be real. There have been Spring Breaks when they were younger that I cried over having them all to myself week. Luke was too young to do much and Evan was too old to be cooped up in the house. It was hard. Very hard. But now, while it isn't easy, it's FUN!

We had impromptu playdates with friends from school. We had outings with friends to KidsPlay. We had a movie and PJ day. We read book after book after book. We went to playgrounds. We got ice cream in the afternoon. We played board games. We had so many tickle fights. We wrestled on the bed. We hugged on the couch. We just enjoyed each other.

Was is DisneyWorld? Was it the beach? Was it skiing? No. But was it perfect for me? Yes. And it's my choice to enjoy them everyday.

Pilates Class Now Online!

Next week I am going to start offering my pilates class at 4pm on Monday and Thursday ONLINE! The “in real life” class will still be occurring at St. George’s, but if you can’t leave your house, you can join us via Google Hangouts. Here are the following things you need:

• A google account (or gmail account)
• Paypal Account
• $4
• 60 minutes of your day

Let me back up. As most of you know, I have fallen in love with yoga. I take ‘yoga classes’ online 4-5 times a week via yogaglo.com. I pay a monthly subscription and have access to some of the best yoga teachers in the world whenever I want. On my time. In my house. Where I can fall and no one sees me (except my family and they love me so they can’t laugh. Who am I kidding? They laugh.) Where I can pause and put the kids back in bed for the third time. Where I can rewind and watch/listen to the instructions again. I am in LOVE with this way of exercising. Would I like to join a yoga studio? Absolutely? Does it work at this time in my life? No. So I do what I can when I can.

When a friend and pilates client talked to me about offering my class on Google Hangout I was hesitant at first. Would this decrease my ‘in real life’ class size? Would people stop coming? I wouldn’t be able to correct people’s alignment if I couldn’t see them. I like have IRL classes so I can see clients reaction to the exercise. Are they bored? Is it too hard? Too easy?

But then it hit me. I can reach more people this way. This was the whole reason I started teaching pilates. When I found pilates it changed my view of exercise. My body responded so differently than it did with the normal ‘cardio’. I wanted to offer this form of exercise to people at a reasonable time of day at a reasonable price. I didn’t want to make it my full time job. I just wanted it to cover my childcare expenses for that hour. If it changed me, my body, my mood, etc, there might be another person out there it could help as well.

When I remembered that, I thought, this is a GREAT idea! More people can see if pilates is for them (because I am a realist - I know this form of exercise isn’t for everyone.) So I decided to jump in.

Now for the details:

Step One - Beginner Video

If you have NEVER taken pilates before I ask you to go through a beginner video I made. I have made it private on YouTube and Google Drive but will offer anyone the link who wants to try it. This video is about 50 minutes long explains postural alignment during the exercises. When doing pilates, it is very important to understand postural alignment. This video breaks it down completely for you. You must email me for this link. No text is even needed! Just put "pilates video" in the subject and I'll know what you mean.

Step Two - Signing a Waiver

If you would like to join a class virtually, I have to have a waiver on file. Click here to download the waiver. You'll need a witness when you sign the waiver, so grab your significant other, neighbor, work friend, etc. You and the witness sign the waiver and either scan it or take a picture of the document and email it back to me.

Step Three - Google Account

If you do not have a Google account (or gmail) you will need to sign up for a free google account. Once you sign up, please email me from that account. I will add you on Google Plus and be able to invite you to a hangout.

Step Four - PayPal Account

Classes are $4. Yup, you read that right. 4 bucks. You can pay one of two ways. 
1. You can buy a ‘punch card’ that gives you 10 classes for $40. I will keep up with your card and give you a punch for each class you virtually attend. The cards don’t expire. As long as I am teaching, you have the card. 
2. You can pay for each class individually. $4 each time you can attend.
If you see me during the week you don't have to use Paypal. This is just for those people who don't work at SG, live near me, or go to church with me. If you feel more comfortable using snail mail, let me know.

Step Five - Contact Me

Here is the only small minor problem with my plan. Google Hangouts only allows 15 people to ‘hangout’ together. You can reserve your spot with payment and and an email. If you buy a card you can have a standing invitation for 10 classes (unless more than 15 people buy a card. If that happens, I'll go to plan B). If you can’t make a class one day, just email me and tell me you can’t make it. If you want to pay for each individual class, you will need to email me and submit your payment by 3pm to reserve your spot.

Lastly, I will be recording each class. If you attend the class virtually or in real life you can have access to the video link. If 4pm doesn’t work with your schedule - don’t fret! I have a plan for you as well!

You still follow Steps 1-4. You can also buy a card that will give you 10 video links to practice at your own leisure. You will receive that week’s link the day after class. Uploading an hour long video has to happen overnight! If you would like to receive the video links one at a time, you can email me at any point, pay, and receive the latest class link.

I hope that makes everything clear! Please don’t hesitate to email me this week with any questions. I will start the virtual class on Monday, March 17.

Eat dessert first

“Life is too short. Eat dessert first,” was one of the many one-liners I remember my dad saying.

10 years. Sometimes it feels like one and other times it feels like 100.

How do you describe someone who meant the world to you to two small boys who will never meet him? Sometimes I feel it is impossible to bring forth a happy memory because those last couple years were so bad. Sometimes I feel it impossible to release regret over not seeing him as much, not calling as often, being a bratty teenager. Sometimes I feel it impossible to believe he is not here for me to ask a question.

But then I remember, this is my normal. Nothing about his passing is getting easier. I sincerely believe it will never get easier. But it is becoming more normal.

More normal he isn’t here.

More normal that he’ll never meet his grandchildren.

More normal I’ll never get another hug.

More normal I’ll never hear him laugh.

My new normal.

Do I like this version of normal for me? Not particularly, but I don’t really have a choice. And that is the funny thing about choices. Sometimes in life I have a choice and sometimes I don’t. It’s what I do with those choices that matter.

I choose to remember his happy moments.

I choose to remember him healthy.

I choose to delight in my memories.

I choose to tell his stories.

I choose to live my life in a way he would be proud.

Evan and Luke – while you will never know my dad, I hope and pray that his joy, his humor, his wonderful, big, full laugh will live through me the rest of your life. If anything, learn to love your life because it IS too short.

So on this day I choose to celebrate his LIFE. Join me. If you knew him well, remember him faintly or never crossed his path, I would love for all of you to raise you dessert forks, spoons or glass in honor of my dad and eat dessert FIRST!