Lauren's Day with the Lionettes

A few weeks ago, we got an email from Lauren's dance teacher saying that any girl from her studio from age 7 and up was invited to take part in a dance clinic and pre-game performance at the PSU basketball game that was held yesterday.  Immediately Jason and I both thought it would be something that would appeal to Lauren, but would also be the kind of day out that we shoot for with all of the kids. And we knew Josh would be on board with seeing a PSU basketball game!

As it turned out, there were a total of 13 girls from Downtown Dance who decided to be a part of the clinic and performance, and Lauren was the youngest one there.  There was a special rehearsal planned for this past Friday night to give all of the girls a chance to learn some of the steps that Miss Christine expected would be part of the choreography.  She seemed to be a little worried about the pace of the routine that she was expecting based on a video of the dance that she had seen.

We arrived at the Bryce Jordan Center (our whole family plus Nana, Aunt Libby, Brooke and Hayden) and awaited the beginning of the clinic with the Lionettes.  They escorted us into the South Gym (I never knew such a thing existed) and it wasn't long before some of the Lionettes dance team came to meet the girls.  They led them in some stretches and then immediately started on the choreography which was fast and furious.  Our girls kept up pretty well, even though we knew their little heads were spinning.

In about 1 hour, we were awaiting them in the main gym where they performed like champs with their new PSU friends.  It was so much fun to watch them dance, and you could tell that they were all having a blast.  We had a section full of parents and family members who were a great cheering section, and the girls were soon back with all of us and ready to settle in and watch the game.

To say we were proud was an understatement.  It really was a special day for Lauren, and we were so happy to get to share it with her.

The Non-Gift Gift That Was Really A Gift

For the second year, we have forgone exchanging wrapped gifts with Libby and Zig's girls for Christmas and opted to give each other the gift of time together. I can't tell you how much all of us have been looking forward to the Cousins' slumber party weekend we had planned for this past weekend. After Lauren's basketball game was over, we took off (in the snow) for Lewistown with what looked like enough stuff for a month's vacation and three very excited kids. 

Libby and I left the itinerary up to the kids. They had requested that we go bowling, do crafts, have snacks, go to the movies and eat pancakes. So after some initial playing and giggling, we set out to meet all of their requests. I had found some cool coloring pages that they seemed to get a kick out of. And when you add in a whole big package of brand new Crayola markers, everyone gets excited. The coloring actually occupied them longer than I thought it would. 

We ordered party packs from the OIP for dinner- Josh's absolute favorite Lewistown food option because of their wings. So after our bellies were full of wings and pizza and ribs we packed up and headed for Lewistown Lanes for some bowling. 

It was the first time in a long time that our kids had bowled (since a Nemacolin trip when it rained and we resorted to hiding out indoors at the bowling alley there) and the first time for Brooke and Hayden. They all had a blast!  We saw quite a few strikes thanks to the gutter guards and the ramp that the little girls were using. We ran into some familiar faces (Hi, Nancy!) so that was a highlight for me. After an icy ride home with a super packed Suburban, we settled in at home for the night with some pj's and a trial run with Josh's snow cone machine that he had gotten for Christmas. That was a huge hit and will definitely make the packing list for all of our camping trips this summer. 

We had some super sleepy kids, and most of them went to sleep quickly after we settled down. Brooke and Lauren seemed to stay awake the longest- not that I knew because I had passed out promptly upon laying down on Libby and Zig's couch. It was just like all the slumber parties I had attended as a kid where I was the first one to go to sleep and ended up missing all of the shenanigans because of it. 

Sunday morning brought lots of coffee and a delicious big breakfast of bacon, eggs, pancakes and french toast. And then the kids played and played. Hayden took me to school in a game of Memory in which I decided she must have xray vision with the way every card she turned over was a match. She was awfully proud of herself and I was dumbfounded.

We enjoyed a quick visit with Nana who was still recovering from a meniscus surgery late the week prior.  I know we were all happy to see her, as well as Pap for the few minutes he was there to get Mom picked up on his way home from church. 

In the afternoon, we loaded up our shuttle bus to take the kids to the movies to see "Sing", which was super cute. Very little has changed at the Miller Cinema since I was in high school which was a little mind blowing for me. The man taking money was a familiar face and the concession stand lady literally looked to me like she had been standing there since the 90's. Strange as it may seem, there is something so comforting about being home...where so many things have stayed the same.  It's always surreal.

I could try to explain the fun we had, but I think this picture says it all. Libby sent me this picture of Brooke's journal entry from school. It just made my heart so happy. Mission accomplished if her sweet little heart is full of cousin love and happy memories of the time we gave each other. 

Fancy, Fabulous and Five

I find it hard to believe that I am writing a post about Mara, my baby, the caboose of our troop, turning five years old.  That's partially because I have been fairly certain that either she or I would not survive to see age 5...and also because somehow time has moved at lightning speed since she has come to join our family.  Maybe that's the pace of life with three kids, or maybe it's me getting older, or maybe it's just what happens in this season of mothering my people, but whatever the cause, I find it difficult to wrap my head around the fact that she is five.

Mara's birthday fell on Thursday of last week, dreaded Thursday, the day of the week when I think I cannot put one foot in front of the other any more.  We desperately tried to make it special for her, but I think even she knew that she had drawn the short straw with a Thursday birthday.  She took some yummy cupcakes to school to share with her class and proudly wore her purple crown that Mrs. Deitrick had given to her.  And she made sure to point out to her dance teacher that it was her birthday that day when we went to ballet class.  And she got some extra snuggles before bed time.  But she was most looking forward to celebrating her birthday with her party on Saturday.

She had requested a "fancy" birthday, citing rationale that she loves to be fancy, and wear jewelry and have nice outfits.  I wasn't exactly sure where to go with that idea for a party theme, but I set about my research with the help of Google and Amazon and the Target dollar section.  I have to say, I about half impressed myself with what we managed to pull together.  I found her a shirt on Etsy that said, "Fancy, Fabulous and Five".  And so, with perfection like that, we were off to the races.  There was a lot of pretend jewelry, because there is not a piece of jewelry that our girl does not love.  She has no limits of acceptable numbers of accessories that one should wear at one time, and also does not subscribe to any theories about accessories needing to match anything else that she is wearing.  The more the better seems to be her motto.  So she seemed to have some fun with the rings and clip on earrings and necklaces that were around.  At one point, she was even dressing up Pap in some fancy dangly earrings.  I missed the picture, and because of that, may have retained my place in the family.  So we'll call that a win.

Our guest list was a little slim.  When we set the date for this party, it happened to hit the same day as  Emily's family's make-up Christmas party and so that knocked out our 5 favorite Mowry's and the best Happy Birthday singers we know.  Mara was definitely bummed when she realized that Kinley wasn't coming to her party.  And I'll say that Josh was none too thrilled either when he found out that Cooper wasn't going to be on hand to kick his behind in PlayStation basketball.  And it goes without saying that I was upset not to have an afternoon to spend with all of them!  But both sets of grandparents as well as Jason's sister and her husband and his son, Gage, were here.  Libby had to change her plans at the last minute due to a mysterious illness that Brooke was dealing with.  But we made sure to deliver some cake and goodies home for the girls when Nana and Pap returned to Lewistown that afternoon.  We sure did miss them.

Her cake had a fancy crown, and filled the requirements of being chocolate and fancy and pink.  I am a Mama baker who aims to hit all of the criteria on which I am being judged.  We tried a new chocolate cake recipe that was wonderful, even though I had some reservations about serving a cake to the kids that contained coffee, which this one did.  There were no children bouncing off of walls, so that was good news.  Also, my Mom, who abhors coffee (the smell, the taste, the potential cross contamination of a mug) said she couldn't taste it at all, which we were grateful for.  We'll definitely use that recipe again-- it was a winner for sure.

What kind of fancy party would it be without a little bubbly?  The kids all got a kick out of the "fancy" party glasses I found for them and loved the sparkling apple/grape juice that they got to drink from them.  I had underestimated what fun they would have with that.

We had a really nice day celebrating Mara Kate-- the child who challenges me more than any other, but who also melts my heart into a puddle.  I can't even explain her other than to say that she is a gift (sometimes one of humility and sometimes one of utter joy).  She is as stubborn as she is sensitive, obstinate as she is adorable, challenging as much as she is caring, particular as she is perfect.  Although I don't find anything at all easy about parenting any of the three of our children, I find Mara to be the biggest source of head scratching.  Things that worked with the others don't work with her, and she requires more love, more effort, more time and more patience than I sometimes think I have within me.  But she's taught me a lot in the past 5 years--- a lot about my limits, about the size of my love, and about the kind of mother I want and need to be for her.  So grateful for the way God rounded out our family, and so grateful for the opportunity to be Mara's mom.

Back at it...

Christmas break was such a welcome departure from the rat race that was the first half of the school year. We had a whole week of all the things that bring me joy-- non-rushed mornings (several where the kids slept in long enough that I got to enjoy a cup of coffee all by myself), no homeowrk to do and NO LUNCHES TO PACK!  Add to that the family time and a whole lot fewer round trips to Meadowbrook, and I was a happy Mama with happy kids. After a few days, everyone settled in to "sleeping in"- which for Joshua means 6:45, Mara at 7:00 and Lauren around 8. But it sure beats the chorus of alarm clocks that normally ring for the other 4 in my tribe at 6:15 each morning. 

After a few days, the kids were ready for some activity and luckily there was a scheduled basketball clinic at the school that I could sign Lauren and Josh both up for. It was the perfect chance to get them out of the house, spare an ounce of Grandma's sanity and let them blow off some stink. 

And now, just as we have forgotten how to hustle through the morning routine, and have sunken into the glory of a 5 am workout instead of 4, our break is over. Yeayerday was like a cold bucket of wat poured onto all of us as we managed by the skin of our teeth to get out of the house before 7:35.  This morning was a little better yet. Hopefully we can get all of our morning household systems back on track again soon!

Me in 2017

I usually use this blog as a place to talk about the kids and about motherhood and the stories of our family. I love that it is a place where I can store our memories, and it has been such a gift to have recorded little day to day moments and stories that would otherwise get lost in the big story.  But as I get ready to embrace 2017 and the newness of it, I'm writing today about me, and what I want to be able to say is true at the end of this year.

I love new things- I get it from my mother.  Not large materialistic things like new cars (they scare me, as do their payments) or new houses.  But small new things bring me great joy.  The first words written in a new tablet, a brand new pen, new soap in the shower.  So maybe that's why I love the clean slate of the first day of the new year.  In business, I am on that day, ranked exactly even with every other Agent in our company.  No one has done more than I have on that day.  In everything, it is the opportunity to do well, the chance to make changes and see progress in things that the previous year had worn me out on.

For the past two years, really, I have been focused on personal goals of losing weight-- the baby weight from three pregnancies that had just hung on for way too long.  In 2015, I dropped about 40 pounds.  It was a struggle, but it worked.  In 2016, I still was looking at about 20 more I would have liked to have lost, and so I made an investment in a treadmill and a Fitbit and committed to using them almost daily.  I don't know how many days I worked out, but I know it was far more than I didn't.  My early morning workout routine became my favorite part of the day.  It was also the time that I focused on my spiritual health, watching podcasts and listening to talks that challenged my mind and my heart while I was working my body.  I'd like to tell you that the 20 pounds I hoped to lose had fallen off along those miles that I walked.  Instead, I ended 2016 about 5 pounds lighter than I started it.  That's a frustrating admission because for all of those miles I put on my sneakers (I actually wore a pair out for the first time in my life) I surely should have dropped the 20 pounds and then some.  But I had gotten into my own way...again.  All of those very solid healthy eating changes I had made in 2015 that led to my successes had been ignored and justified by the "treadmill excuse". 

And so, in 2017, I am vowing to stop beating myself.  I won't let me beat me.  And I certainly won't waste all of those early morning, pre-dawn hours when I would love to be snoozing away by putting things into my mouth without counting them and planning for them.  I know I won't be perfect, but I can be better than I was last year.  I am really hoping that, by the time 2017 ends, I will be able to say that I have reached and maintained my goal weight.

I am hoping for MORE of a lot of things-- more writing, more time studying the Bible, more connection with the friends who fill my soul.  More family time, more presence with the people I love the most in those little moments, and more cups of tea.  Mint tea, to be exact.  More water, more walking, more sleep, more date nights with my husband. 

But I'm also committing to LESS of a few things.  Less wasted time sucked up by my phone and whatever rabbit trail I get onto scrolling social media looking at people's lives that aren't mine.  The more I think about how to find time for the "more", I realize that I need to figure out where my time is going-- and mornings and evening time spent with my phone in my hand are the biggest culprits.  And so I'm trying desperately to be mindful of that. The goal is for less distraction.  Less stress.  Less rushing.  I'm not so naïve as to think that I can keep the stress from coming, but I do believe that I can minimize some of it, and I'm going to do my very best.

2017 is going to be a good year.  I can just feel it.  I'm sure it won't be perfect, but I love how it has started.  Tonight, I am tucked in at home with my people, all of us decked in our PSU gear watching our Nittany Lions capping off a fantastic dream of a season.  Although I wish we were cheering loudly with our friends tonight like we did for the Big 10 Championship, I guess we'll count our blessings that we have one more night to be together before the crazed school night schedule begins again tomorrow.

Ringing In 2017

New Year's Eve...also known as the night each year when I realize how much I am NOT a party animal, nor a socialite.  And while the idea of getting all gussied up to go out on the town (some other town besides Turbotville, of course)  (because, Turbotville) sounds nice, so does the idea of staying home with my people and wearing sweats.  It won't be hard to guess which one won out.

Jason had an officer's meeting for the Fire Department and was gone all day, so the kids and I had grand designs on getting some things crossed off our list.  We had a relatively quiet morning at home, and the kids gave me a great late Christmas gift by not killing each other long enough for me to get a workout in on the treadmill and also take a shower.  And then we headed off to the mall for some quick returns and to Target and about 50 other stores for little things I had been hoping for a minute to do and just hadn't found it until then.  We didn't return home until after 3, and then set about making a huge (and I mean huge) pot of chicken noodle soup with corn, or chicken corn soup with noodles as was the debate around our supper table last evening.  I write that down here not because it will mean anything to anyone else, but mostly because I want to remember how long we laughed about it when we were eating. 

After supper I managed to stay awake by doing laundry.  (It's a glamorous life, I'm telling you.)  Around 8:30, I was done with my piles and all of the things had been put away where they belonged and I sat down on the couch with Jason to watch football.  It's always fun when Ohio State loses, and so we had quite a nice time watching Clemson beat them.  Before long, Mara had climbed up into my lap and brought a blanket with her, and so we snuggled.  And snoozed.  (Warm blanket + couch + snuggly little person + sitting = instant sleep.)  Soon Lauren joined in.  And we slept some more.  Around 10 we woke up and seriously contemplated the value in staying up to usher in the new year, reasoning that it would still come and go even if we were asleep dreaming of all of the great things 2017 is going to hold.  But we rallied.  Jason, Lauren and Mara continued to sleep, but Josh and I did our best to stay awake.  Just to prove how exciting this whole event was, I was tickled to find this photo evidence of our New Year's Eve celebration on Joshua's ipod this morning. 

That's 4/5 of the Dugan family asleep, with only Joshua awake and raring to go.  A wilder party you have never seen.  I also wonder how Mara doesn't have a horribly sore neck after sleeping that way between Jason and me, because ouch. 

Josh, Jason and I ended up going up to bed around 11:30 and we let Josh lay in our bed with us to try to stay awake for the official ball drop.  We managed to catch Mariah Carey's train wreck of a performance which led to a whole lot of justification about how she used to be really good and was an icon of my childhood music listening.  But Josh wasn't buying it because she stunk it up really badly.  She wasn't even trying to cover up the lip syncing that was going on.  And I'm not sure what in the world she was thinking when she picked her outfit.  Because a sparkly gymnastics leotard on a 46 year old body (yes, I looked that up) is never ever ever a good idea.  The good news, after that painful experience was over, was that all three of us saw the ball drop and said Happy New Year to each other and then went to bed.  We were all asleep by approximately 12:02.  And so, one very exciting New Year's Eve celebration came to a close.

I'll post more about my plans for 2017 in the next few days.  Let's just say that one of the things I am hoping against all hope to be able to accomplish is to write more frequently.  And that will please at least three people.  Plus me, so that's 4.

Happy New Year, everyone!