6 months today

Today marks 6 months that my Dad has been gone.  The pain is still there and feels just as strong as it did 6 months ago.  I think of him everyday.  It is especially hard when I am at work (we talked over email during the day often) or driving home from work (which is when I called him) or on cold days.  Every time the temperature drops or I hear about potential snow, I expect him to call to rub in how warm it is in Florida.  When I realize that isn't going to happen, my heart breaks all over.  I'm writing this a few days in advance as today, I'm actually in Florida with my in-laws.  If I haven't mentioned it in a while, my mother in law also has stage 4 cancer (unknown primary) and has been doing chemo since January. 

This was taken one year ago in Disney.  My Dad, my Stepmom

Anne and I at Mickey's Christmas party

I'm so glad he felt up to going with us!   

Despite missing my Dad, I have so much to be Thankful for this week.  I'm thankful that I was blessed with 2 loving parents and that I have a wonderful mother in law who is doing great with her treatment.  I'm thankful for an awesome husband who totally gets me and all my craziness and is a great dad.  I'm thankful for my kids, who just amaze me every day.  I'm also thankful for my stepmom and sisters.  We haven't always seen eye to eye, but we have been a support system for each other this year and I'm thankful that losing my Dad brought us closer. 
I hope you have lots to be thankful for this year as well.

Disney on Ice

We love all things Disney....including Disney on Ice.  This year, the theme was Frozen and the kids LOVED it.  Ok....I loved it too :).
We started the day with ice skating lessons.  Both kids are doing great and Mia really seems to love it!  This week, we practiced skating backwards.

 

After ice skating, we hung out in Annapolis before heading to Baltimore for the show.  We had great seats.  This is Mia before the show.

 

If you are on the fence about going, I highly recommend it! 

Fun times at a birthday party

Our friend Leo turned 5 this year and had his birthday party at another local pumpkin patch.  It was awesome!  The kids had a great time.  Mia was happy to see her preschool friends again and Paxton loved playing with the kids in his class. 

Halloween

Better late than never I guess...  Last week, for Halloween we went to the Fall Festival at our church.  It was fantastic.  They had games, prizes, moon bounce, big slide, and a hayride.  The kids loved it and I loved that they gave prizes (in addition or instead of candy) since Paxton does not eat candy.  What a great idea! 
All year, Mia said she wanted to be Elsa for Halloween and Paxton wanted to be Spider-man ...then...on Halloween, they both changed their mind. 

Mia decided that she wanted to be a cat and Paxton wanted to wear his airplane costume from last year.  We improvised on the cat costume.  Thankfully, we already had the headband, dress, and shoes.  Here are some pictures from the fall festival:

Bean bag toss

Oh...he wasn't just an airplane...he was a superhero airplane. 

Whack a mole game

Bounce house

 

We had a great time and I'm definitely looking forward to doing the same thing next year.

 

Florida - Packing the Garage

So, last week, we went to Florida to help go through my Dad's garage.  It was an emotional weekend, but all in all...we had a great time and I loved seeing my family again.  I realized that although life has changed since my Dad passed (he was the glue that held us together), I still have family there.  I still have my stepmom and sisters.  That will not change. 

 

We worked hard on Saturday and got almost everything done.  This is my husband with my youngest sister, Kate.

I took this picture on the last night at my Dad's house.  Our next visit will be to pick up the rest of our stuff---and the house will be completely empty.  The movers come the day before.  It will be a hard and emotional day I'm sure.

 

This was taken on the way to the airport.  I am so fortunate that our kids love each other and play well together. 

 

This was on the way home.  We were all exhausted.  This picture is special to me as Mia bought my Dad that stuff dog a few years ago for Father's Day.  Now...it is hers and she really does love it.

 

 

Old Pics of ME

While in Florida, I found some really old pictures of me.  I have to say, I was surprised that my Dad had all of these (and so many more).  It meant so much to me to find old cards and projects that I had made for him.  It was just a reminder that he loved me so much.

Blame my mother for the boy haircut.  Ugh...

Not sure what I was doing here...

 

Sorry it's upside down...

I think I kept this cut through 4th grade.  Not sure what I was wearing here either.

 

This picture is my favorite...  My Dad was so handsome and I love how he was holding me. 

 

It was so sweet to find these and was the highlight of my trip.

Mia's 1st Field Trip

Mia had her first kindergarten field trip last week.  Her class went to Bowles Farm in Southern MD.  It was great.  They had a 3 corn mazes, a hay maze, a hay pit, petting zoo/area, and slides.  It was an awesome day.  The best part was meeting Mia's friends.

 

It was such a fun day and I'm so glad I got to spend it with my sweet girl. 

Paxton's pumpkin patch field trip

Paxton had his first pre-k field trip this year.  They went to the Montpilier Farms pumpkin patch in Southern MD.  I have to say, I was not impressed, but...the kids had fun so I guess that is all that matters.

The kids were all so cute.  They loved seeing the animals and they loved the hay maze.  It was a fun but windy day.