Twins, Dog Sitting & Celebrating a Decade

Little stuff first... Tori has a new friend named Kelly and she is an answer to prayer. She had previously managed to find the most religiously diverse group of friends humanly possible...literally Mormon, Jewish, Catholic, atheist...you name it. And I LOVE that. I love that she has gotten all these perspectives on belief systems that are not ours. But I also prayed that God would give her a friend at school that also believed what she believed. And then our church got a new pastor. And he had a daughter. And she lives close by, attends the same school, even rides the same bus. Her name is Kelly. And they have been inseparable...constantly sleeping over at one house or the other, going to football games together, the beach, etc. And shopping. Apparently "matching/coordinating" is still cool in 7th grade. After a visit to the new H & M at a local mall they came home with these (please excuse the disheveled Tori)!

My parents got a dog. And I like dogs so I think this is great. Her name is Macy and she is the female version of the dog we grew up with, in fact I have mistakenly called her Chipper multiple times. Oops! Anyway she came to stay with us a week...and Max, who is crazy, was so excited. I mean way too excited. My little 8 lb psychodog scared sweet Macy to death when she first got here but within hours they were friends. And Tori had a new friend too as Macy spent most of her weekend with us on Tori's bed or at her heels.

So amidst the baseball and school projects and work schedules and general juggling we hit a major milestone...my boy turned 10. I repeat, my baby is a decade old. And he is turning into the neatest little guy. He is witty and funny. He is sweet and gentle. He is generous and helpful. He is athletic and intelligent. He is creative and artistic. And he has the best laugh. Its been a good decade. I can't wait to see what the next decade brings.

On the Pinke side of our family we celebrate decades with a all boys/all girls trip...a tradition that started with my mom's 50th. So when Tori turned 10 the girls went to St.Augustine. In discussing where Tristan would go the boys opted to stay close to home but do some "guy" things. So Tristan's weekend of fun included Firehouse Subs (his favorite), shooting various guns at a range in Lakeland, Wing House, cleaning guns at my brother's house where they spent the night (after kicking Taylor out - sorry Taylor), and a day long fishing trip. The fishing trip was a bit of a bust since the fish weren't biting much but they did come home with a few grouper filets and some grunt, all frozen for a future fish fry. And yes, the picture below of Tristan, is with an assault rifle that appears bigger than him. My brother built it and Tristan was REALLY excited to use it.

Racing Thoughts

It's been awhile since I wrote but it has be BUSY. I feel like I barely have time to catch my breath these days much less write a legible post with pictures.

So pictures and a real post to come...soon...here's the racing thought version of what's happening here:

Coworker out of town, covering both our cases, baseball/softball 4 nights this week, company the 5th, gotta pick up the dog we are watching, crap I should consider meals, clean uniforms?, working on it, clean scrubs would be good too, you're working late TONIGHT?, oy, where did I put that permission slip, my baby is 10!!, new carpet looks great now if I could just finish the bathroom, deliver those gifts, coffee please, out? what?, I REALLY need to get to the grocery store, you need your uniform clean again? didnt i just wash it? did someone feed the dog, you have five minutes to be out the door, is this game ever going to end, toris catching, nerves frying, tristans pitching, eek, oh my gosh its 11 already, good lord my bed is comfy.

This weekend on the other hand is the first in awhile that is slow. So pics of current baseball/softball season, birthday boy and home improvements are on their way!

Worship Team

There are moments in life that are etched across our mind, never to be forgotten. Often they are large moments, milestones, in which we remember every detail - the sights, the smells, the company we were keeping at the moment. We all have them - the feeling of a diploma or degree in your hand for the first time, the moment you saw your soon to be spouse only an aisle's walk away from the rest of your life, the second your children looked you in the eyes for the very first time....

But sometimes the moments are less big. And no one else around you even knows it's a moment. Those might be the best kind.

Tori is part of the worship team at church for the first time this year. And honestly I was kind of annoyed by it at first. It meant weekly practices, one more thing on an already overly busy calendar and more songs to hear on repeat in my house.

But then I went to watch her. And she was so....I want to say present. In that moment I saw this young woman who is being deeply influenced by strong Christian women around her, who is embracing her faith as a way of life, and who was worshiping with her whole heart this God she clearly loves deeply.

Sometimes as a mom, and one with OCD tendencies, I get caught up in the day to day. The packing lunches, doing laundry, getting kids delivered to various activities, etc routine. And I recognize my kids achievements and I love on them no matter who they are or what they did that day. But sometimes I miss the big stuff. I miss that beyond that little girl who cares what others think about her and is constantly bickering with her little brother, there is this amazing young woman blossoming and growing and trying to find her way.

I am thankful. Thankful that I have amazing kids. That God is using them. That God is constantly reminding me to see the big picture. That he is working in my children's lives and spirits and molding them - both through Todd and I but also in spite of Todd and I. I am truly blessed.

Thirty Two.

For those following along I challenged myself to run 31 miles before turning 32. Well I didn't make it. I was doing really well...was at 25 miles with 5 days to go...and then work happened. My boss went on vacation, the kids went back to school, and I was trying to juggle a 50 hr work week with a new back to school routine and it just didn't happen. So I am going to set a new goal...35 miles in September. When plan A and B and C fails...well just keep swimming :-)

In all honesty my 32nd birthday was a rough day. Long day at work and bad house news (for those of you that dont know we had a leaky water pipe, had to drill through the cement slab and tile in Tristan's room to fix, repaired pipe but tile needs to be fixed still, not fun!).

I did go out for a lovely dinner with friends (Thanks West Family and Super Angelle who took 3 kids to dinner on her own!!!). And on Saturday we celebrated with family.

And that was a blast. The Rays lost and the game was fairly dull until the very last inning but it was still good times. And the weather was PERFECT (compliments of our friend TS Isaac) for the tailgating we did before hand!

This is my brother, he turned 29 as I turned 32. And he looks mature here with his beautiful wife. And he has a good job. And he has a folder for everything under the sun, most organized person I have ever met, he got it from our mom.



But mere moments later I am reminded he really is going to be a 9 year old boy trapped in an aging body for the rest of his life. And how do I know this? You know how nasty wet willies are? Well imagine a Rice Krispie treat (that has been outside for hours) willy? Yep. He did it. Thankfully Tristan was sitting closest. And he really is a 9 year old boy. So he thought it was gross but funny.



29 years we have celebrated together now. It was a lovely family day!

Another year begins!

7th Grade:
     - Classes: Language Arts, Algebra I, Science, Spanish, Robotics, Civics, and Office Aide
     - Friends she Hangs Out with Often: Kelly, Dabney, Tori, Caroline, Rebecca, Leoni and Savannah
     - New things: braces, singing on the youth worship team, entering a robotics team competition
     - What she wants to be when she Grows Up: Architect...or Artist....or Chef....or so many cool jobs.



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4th Grade:
     -Teacher: Mrs. Hickman and Mrs. Ianello
     -Friends he hangs out with Often: Isaac, Caleb, Calvin and Anna (neighbor)
     -New things: Chorus this year, Kids Krew leadership team at church
     -What he wants to be when he Grows Up: a baseball player or a computer guy 
     

Slime - check. Sponge bombs - check.

Almost done?

With summer! The list on the other hand...still chugging along!

Super Hero Rescue - done.
Living Room Camp In - done.
Sand Sculpting - done.