Mindy's Non-Adventures

Well...ahem. This is awkward. It's been awhile since I've posted anything. Here's the thing. February through April is always the hardest three months of my year. School wears me down. The weather is slightly depressing. I am buuuuuussssyyy. Between basketball, musical theater, school,  meetings for the end of the school year, meetings for planning for next  school year, well...it's exhausting. Also, we spent a chunk of that time thinking Jon was about to leave for 6 months. Then we spent another month adjusting to a new job and schedule. Also, I was writing all the dark and twisty things that can't go here and therefore had nothing left worthy of sharing. BUT. It's now May! My calendar is blissfully blank of obligations beyond the orthodontist. (Dr. Cox and I will never be separated for more than a few weeks for at least another year.) This week, my planner includes going to the pool, getting my hair done, taking Charlotte to her friend's house. Our Class...

Hello friends!     It's been about a month since I've posted anything. I told you I was slammed in January. This month has been full of basketball and birthdays. Things aren't quite ready to slow down, but I'm so close. Tomorrow is our last birthday of the month. Science fair will be done on Tuesday. Tommy's basketball will be done the weekend after Valentine's Day and Matthew's will be done at the end of February. Once Tommy has a car and can drive himself to work, I will not know what to do with all of my newfound freedom. Speaking of freeing up some time, I've made another decision that will be freeing up some time next year. I will not be directing my Challenge A class next year. This is my 3rd year tutoring this class, and I'm ready for something new. I think I'll need to be little more on top of things with the kids and homeschooling next year. I'll need to find something new to replace the income to pay for all the extra things the ...

Hello, friends. It's that time of year where we all become introspective and think over the happenings of the year. As I've thought about 2018, I came to the conclusion that I might have peaked as a person in 2017. I never came up with a solid goal for this year so I inevitably drifted. If 2017 saw me being successful in everything I attempted, 2018 was certainly a year of sloughing through the muck to make progress.  All year my church has had an emphasis on praying and then sharing when God answers those prayers. We were supposed to be specific in choosing a person/situation to pray for in anticipation of seeing God move. When God would answer that specific prayer, we had an opportunity to share. It was beautiful to see God answer prayer after prayer each week. All year I've watched videos and heard testimonies from people who have had their prayers answered in a huge way. Unfortunately, I was not in any videos nor did I have a testimony to share because my specific pra...

Hello friends!  I finally made it back to my Sunday evening Starbucks session, and let me tell you. I have lots of oversharing for you tonight.  You're reading this right now which means you already know that I am an introverted oversharer. On its surface, that might seem like a paradox, but it is not. I've always been the blunt one in my group. Well, others call it bluntness. I call it speaking my truth when I feel like it. I feel like it more than most others would prefer. Basically, I suck at meaningless chit chat. If I have something on my mind, I want to talk about it. Since I recognize that's not usually a good idea, I tend to be quiet instead. If you can't say something nice and all... (here I use the word nice to include all topics that most people don't really want to talk about when you have 5 minutes to chat with kids around. For example, US immigration, Syria, homelessness, is Baby, It's Cold Outside actually offensive or a feminist anthem, why do pe...

Okay. I have something to tell you. I've been planning something for months. I've only told a handful of people because it feels completely indulgent, and honestly, I was a little embarrassed to tell you. I've felt some guilt on multiple levels on this thing I'm about to tell you. I feel guilty leaving my family to survive on their own for a few days. I usually work out all the logistics for my family when I go do something, but this time, I'm leaving them to their own devices. I've been afraid of people's response when they find out, but now that I'm two weeks away, there's nothing to do but finally let out the excitement because in two short weeks I'm.... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . GOING TO DISNEY WORLD WITHOUT MY KIDS!!!!! You read that right. I'm going to Disney World with my friend. We have fast passes and restaurants booked. I ordered matching t-shirts because if we're going to Disney...

Before anything else, can I just say that Thanksgiving is NEXT WEEK?!?! How did this happen? How are we nearly halfway through November? I am so unprepared! I didn't lose 5-10 pounds in preparation for the holiday season! This is all Dunkin Donuts' fault with their $2 afternoon coffees and blueberry donuts. That's it. I quit them this week. I'm eating salads, roasted vegetables, and healthy proteins. You will not tempt me, Aldi, with your pain au chocolat. Get behind me drive-thrus and pizza places. Well, at least I'll try. I'm not sure how committed I am which means I'm not actually committed at all. But I want to be committed so that's something, right? Actually, I just remembered I have two Thanksgiving potlucks this week so...yeah. This isn't boding well for my non-stretchy jeans. Anyway, here's the real stuff. Last night we had dinner with some of our dearest and longest friends. They're the ones we visited in Honduras this summer. We ...