The Last Day of the Tree

 It is a grey, rainy morning.  Kim is starting the morning in her office, returning to her work schedule.  I am thankful I still have a few more days of break remaining, but my subconscious is starting to nag at me, reminding me of all the things I will need to do before returning to teaching.  I really do look forward to seeing my students, but there is also some anxiety and stress building as the realities of "normal life" begin to set-in again.

Winter break has been a good one, although very quiet.  We have not done very much, which seems to be what was needed.  I have thoroughly enjoyed exercising and dog walking every day, as well as the regular rounds of cleaning and just spending time with my children.  It makes me wish there was no work and we could just go on, being a family and spending time together...but alas we must make the most of the time that is given.

Today is the last day with the Christmas tree up.  Tomorrow the children will help deconstruct it.  It is a sad thing to me, as it has always been beacon of light and happiness during the dark winter times.  However, I also recognize that we must move forward and that taking it down is another step towards warmer days and longer periods of light.  

So for today we enjoy its light and then away it goes until next November after Thanksgiving.  Time is a strange and funny thing, and we cannot control it...but we can mark its passing and keep those things that bring us joy sacred as the years pass.  I hear footsteps of a certain 6 year old slowly tromping their way down the stairs...time to go and enjoy the moments that will become today.

-a

A New Year...Why Not?

 And just like that it is a new year.  Like all fresh starts, it is beyond tempting to throw hopes and goals out into the winds of uncertainty and see where they land...if at all!  We sit around the house during break because colds and flu have not given us a large window of social availability....so I am even further driven into the imaginative possibilities that this next year holds.  So what are some goals and dreams and experiences at the top of my list?  Here are a few:

1.  Get better at communicating with my family and in general.  I still put-off things too long and make them a bigger deal in my mind than they really are.

2.  See friends that I haven't seen for a while (both in Indiana and Alaska, specifically).

3.  Read more in general.  I play the "I work and have kids" card too much on this one.  I miss being caught-up in a good story that is just for me.  This includes spending more time reading with my children.

4.  Loose weight (I know...cliche)

5.  Run in 2-3 half marathons this year, and possibly prepare for a return to a full next year!  I'm already signed-up for Grandma's again...so now just time to find at least one more!

6.  Go back to Alaska.  Either Visiting friends in Anchorage and Fairbanks...or some more time in Juneau.  

7.  Move into realistic planning stages of buying a place in Juneau to spend summer at.  While we might not be all the way there, I really miss my hometown and would like to spend summers there!  Again, dreaming big here.  

8.  Seriously write a children's book.  I have ideas...I really do.  I have outlines...I really do....so what else do I need to do besides get my fingers moving and find someone to illustrate!  

9.  Find more time to go on dates and have experiences with my wife.  We both work so much that we have sacrificed a lot..or all of our time that we used to have for US!  

10.  A new tattoo, possibly if I travel to Alaska again!  

While it is not a goal, I have been attempting to type more into this blog and return to my more prolific days.  Hopefully 2023 will bring more photographs and small moments to report back about.

So there are some small and big dreams.  Here's to the winds of fate.  

-a