March-Grief and Spring Break

 In true MN fashion, March teased us into thinking Spring was coming.  We actually had a break from Hockey and experienced nights of the week with NO activities! We got to see Dean's first school music performance (thanks Covid) and the whole family loved it.

St. Patrick's day I did my favorite and bought the boys matching shirts :) The boys had fun looking for leprechaun coins, loved the green toilets and green milk. They also decided to do their hair the same, and since Dean hasn't stopped wearing his "man bun". 

Even though the weather wasn't great, I continued with my goal of walking every day. Got some good walks in with Gordie because he was sick as well as Julie at work. I also did a lot of reflecting as feelings about grief/anxiety came at me hard this month. Grief surprised me this month. I had been feeling “back to myself” and then the wave came crashing in. I knew Spring Break was coming and we had planned on spending that with Paul, so that coupled with the anniversary of the loss of my baby, and my first birthday without Paul, I was definitely not feeling myself.

Luckily, like always a trip away was just what I needed. Galveston, TX brought Family time, the ocean, sun and sand; just what I needed to help me grieve my brother, spend quality time with family, and celebrate another year around the sun. PLUS we missed 8+ inches of snow, so that was a bonus too :)

January 2023- Rainbow

 Every year I pick a word for the year. This year I have chosen rainbow. I've picked it for so many reasons: hope, reminder of the last time I visited my brother, outdoor wonders, LGBTQ awareness and support, new life, pot of gold at the end... I could go on and on. The word feels right and January has started with so much hope and outdoor wonder. 

To start, as I promised in my 23, for 2023, Blogging once a month. I hope I can keep this up. It feels so much more sustainable than once or twice a year. We had a snow day the first week back to school (and most of January never had a 5 day week!) It was a GORGEOUS snow and to quote Dean "HOW DO WE NOT HAVE A SNOW DAY TODAY!?" It was clear the day was warranted. The boys had a blast playing outside and I enjoyed a walk in it myself. 

The weekend brought the hockey Jamboree  which was so fun to watch the boys.... fun and FRIGID! By the end Gordie was in tears and begging to go home. But it's fun to see how far Benny has come, and as always watch Dean shine in a game. 

The next week we were surprised with ANOTHER snow day. This was an e-learning day, but a fun opportunity to be home together (and Gordie got to go to school!) I made some yummy dessert, Gordie continued to love school, and we got to see Benny play between periods at the Eagan HS hockey game!

The next two weeks brought more hockey, start of swimming, a date night for Mark and I to celebrate his birthday, hockey parties, and fun at daycare. 

I ended the month with a mom's get away to LOS ANGELES. It was so much fun. I went with our family friend, and Mark's hs friend, Georgia. We explore everything, did the touristy things, did the local things, went to as many areas of LA as we could in our limited time there, and appreciated the "Cold" 58 and "cloudy" weather. I can't wait to go back! We saw the WB studio tour, hiked to the hollywood sign, saw our favorite actor's stars, ate delicious vegan and GF food and of course enjoyed the beach.