Orelove Family Blog: January 2013

Pure Trouble!....but cute!

2013, full of potential and promise. While I truly believe that our daughters will flourish and our little family will move forward with its goals and dreams, this blog post will not be a cliche about a new page and a clean start to this new year. It is nice to have 2012 behind us in the larger sense of politics and recent tragedies, but our paths are not altered by the changing of calendars or a single digit.

Elton Violet

Yes, it is now closer to February than the beginning January, and I apologize for the lateness of this first post this month. It has been busy with both girls being sick and my transition back into school after a satisfying winter break. The girls are, thankfully, on the mend and seem to trade colds and fevers back and forth. Fortunately, Kim and I have remained fairly unaffected, save for late nights up with whichever daughter has the hacking cough.

Violet

On this quiet Monday, however, we find ourselves tucked into our little house, full of holiday gifts and entertainment to keep us all occupied on this bitter cold Martin Luther King Jr. holiday. The weather sprinkles sheet after sheet of fluffy snow upon our doorstep then blowing it away with chilly gusts of wind, and repeating itself again. Kim and Audrey are practicing their photography upstairs with Violet as the subject matter. The laundry spins softly next door, and Phoebe and Eliza are tucked-in on the couch snoozing contentedly, until the urge for a snack or a lick of water arises.

Splish Splash, Violet's takin' a bath!

This week is my 33rd birthday, which is a strange number. My Uncle Fred has been sending me many odd trivia questions all of which the answer is "33". I have arrived at a period in my life where the number does not signify much, rather I am fueled by my goals and accomplishments at this point in time. There was a time when a birthday meant added freedoms of choices (18, 21) but those are far in the past and this new span of life is an open vista where the landscape is simply what I make of it. I hope to improve my career, whether as a teacher or future administrator. I also want to make some decisions as far as where we want to permanently live if and when we decide to leave our current home. I want to run more marathons, including Alaska this summer and Indiana next fall, as well as the Chicago Marathon again in October. I want to train at a higher level and build off of the past two years of training and experience, and ultimately qualify for the Boston Marathon. I look forward to helping Audrey learn to read and write fluently in the next year, and encouraging Violet to exponentially grow her vocabulary. I want to help Kim continue exploring her passion for her photography and expand her talent to wherever she wants it to go. I want to see my family all around the country, and get a chance to also visit my friends. At 33, I plan on finding couple new hobbies or ways to spend my time more efficiently, and also read more than I have been these past couple years. These are my goals for the next bit of time, rather than just in my next year of life until 34.

Audrey, my beautiful girl.

So, with the snow taking a break outside, I believe it is time to get my four mile run in, as this half-marathon in March is quickly approaching ( http://www.chicagogetlucky.org/ ) and I am actually staying on top of my training schedule this year. I look forward to writing many more of these posts, and getting a chance to see you all in this next year. May 2013 be a time for you to reflect and find your goals and ambitions and refocus your efforts.

-a