Photo of the day.... (LOVE IT!)

Zoe reads to Mimi.... (While Mimi 'rests' her eyes!)

Cookies

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I know this is going to be a surprise BUT it snowed again today! It wasn’t supposed to start until 1pm however by 10:00am, it was coming down. It couldn’t have been at a worse time. Zoe was scheduled to sell Girl Scout cookies at the local hardware store from 11-1pm – OUTSIDE! – IN THE SNOW! Shelli, Zoe, and I grabbed a quick breakfast sandwich before heading over to the cookie sales. 

 

It was freezing and I felt so bad for the girls. They made it about 45 minutes before we had to go into the hardware store and buy hand/feet warmers for them. My feet were frozen too and I couldn’t feel my toes. At the end of their ‘shift’ they sold about 40 boxes, which isn’t bad considering the weather. One of the dads had his work truck with him and he let the girls take turns sitting in the truck to warm up.

At 12:59pm, we were ready to get outta there. When we got home, we were ready to warm up in front of the fireplace but Zoe wanted to play in the snow. What? Absolutely not! I let her stay outside while Shelli did a little shoveling then she came in and took a little nap. I could of easily fell asleep too but we had people coming in and out of the house picking up cookies that they ordered. It was a full day of cookie activity!

Another Snow Day

After watching the news and listening to the forecasters, we were pretty sure today would be a snow day. Last night we got 8” of snow. It’s been a heck of a winter. These are the days I’m extremely thankful I work for the school district.

With Zoe being home two days in a row and it being way to cold to be outside we had to do fun things inside. It was -12 today! This morning we made peanut butter dog biscuits with my new dog biscuit maker I got for Christmas. The dogs loved them and we even gave a few to the neighborhood dogs too!

 

After lunch we pulled Mimi away from her desk for an hour and had a little paint session. The theme was “cupcakes”. We will display them proudly in the basement. 

We sure hope the worst of this winter is over!

Winter hiking

Morning hike..... It was cold but the frozen lake was beautiful!

Housewarming Party

What a night! We had our official housewarming party Saturday and it was a huge hit. We invited all our friends, old neighbors, and new neighbors. The house was packed and as crazy as it was, it felt really good to be surrounded by good friends, old and new. We had about 50 people at the house (kids and adults). 

 The kids took over the basement and played air hockey, legos, watched movies, played with nerf guns, and just went completely wild down there. Hey, that’s what a basement is for, right? The adults were upstairs hanging out, where the adult beverages and food was! 

 By the end of the night, everyone was exhausted, however, that didn’t stop the new neighbors from pranking us.  We got the ‘official’ welcoming to the neighborhood.   There is an old neighborhood tradition of breaking in the newbies by having the new home host a 4ft lighted Santa for 7 days. Believe me, this Santa has been around the block; so to say.  He’s not only for newbies, but for any unsuspecting neighbor.  The rules are the Santa has to stay where you find it for a week, then it’s up to you where he ends up. In other words you can wake up and he could be in someone’s basketball hoop, roof, or anywhere else on the property, but be assured, wherever Santa is, he will be visible to all passing traffic! We heard lots of good stories last night about good ‘ol Santa. I don’t think we could have picked a better neighborhood to move into.  We fit right in with this bunch! 

So, Santa will be sitting on the garbage can for the next week until we can move him on to the next victims.  All I can say is that I’m glad we got Santa in January, I think it would of looked really silly if it was June – ha!

It finally feels like we’ve planted some roots and I’m looking forward to living here for many years and cultivating some wonderful new friendships.  We really have been blessed with so many great friends here. 

Girl Scout Cookies

We are in full Girl Scout cookie mode. Zoe has been going door to door and will also be selling next weekend at the local hardware store up the street with some of her other Brownie friends. Who doesn’t love Girl Scout cookies?

She has sold almost 70 boxes of cookies! Go Zoe!!!

Times Tables

The schedule around here is still a little hectic. I've been at the new job now for 2 weeks and we still don't have it running totally smooth – yet!

I get up first, get in the shower, then I wake up Zoe and Shelli. Since Shelli has been in town, she has been making us breakfast and getting Zoe ready to get on the bus – ON TIME! I on the other hand float around the house getting dressed, putting on my make-up, losing my coffee, packing my lunch, finding my coffee, looking for my shoes, and making sure I have all my paperwork in hand for the day. On a good day, I get the car warmed up before leaving the house. At this point, we are over winter and are counting the days, hours, seconds until Spring is here and we are back outdoors hiking and camping!

Zoe is in full swing at school and they are knee deep into times tables. Every morning Shelli and Zoe sit at the table and go over them while eating breakfast. I love to hear Zoe shout out the answers. She gets so excited. Below is a picture I took this morning (while looking for my coffee!)

 Bring on the weekend!

Mimi's Home

Shelli got home late Friday night. Zoe & I stayed up and waited up for her. Every car that went by Z thought it was Mimi. Zoe gets so excited when she knows Shelli has landed, off the parking shuttle, and is in the car heading home. Shelli wasn't in the door 10 seconds before Zoe was hanging on her telling her how much she missed her. It's so sweet and it's always nice to have Mimi home safe and sound.

This weekend was pretty low key. We didn't do anything and enjoyed every second of it. I don't think we got out of our pj's today. Between sleeping in, making our BIG Sunday breakfast, and doing odds and ends around the house, we really just wanted to enjoy quality time together.

First Week

I made it through my first full week of work, it was a LONG week but I made it! Shelli was in Miami all week, which made it a little difficult however Zoe and I made it through. After working from home for so long it’s going to take a while to get back in the swing of things. I went from working in my pj’s to making lunches, getting dressed, doing my hair, and getting out the door on time.

There are many times I wish Shelli had a different job, a job where she didn’t have to travel at all.  It often becomes overwhelming not to have family around to help when we are in a pinch and I’m so thankful for the friends we do have because they have saved us on many occasions. This week, the next-door neighbor let Zoe come over every morning to catch the bus because I leave before the bus comes. Those are the things that come in very handy when Shelli is out of town.

My week was interesting to say the least. I don’t think anything can prepare you for working with high school kids. I remember being in high school but times are much different now. I honestly spend most of the day telling the kids to watch their language or to get off their cell phones. Things are so different now and I can’t help to think what it’s going to be like when Zoe gets to high school. Yikes! I’m sure it will take me forever to remember all their names. The school has 1500 kids so it may take me a little time. Unless I have them in one of my study halls, I will probably never meet them all!

I’m really excited about this new adventure, and I very much enjoy being around the high school kids, but most of all, I love the schedule. I will be off all the same days with Zoe and that is priceless. I was in bed by 8:30 most of the week. We are anxiously awaiting Mimi to get home for the weekend.

Snow Day - No School

 I think a snow blower is going to be our next BIG purchase! 

 Bring on Spring!

New Year, New Job

New Year’s Eve in the Petsch house was very quiet. Everyone was asleep before midnight; we just aren’t the party type. Maybe next year we will all nap so we can stay up long enough to watch the ball drop.

Tomorrow, winter vacation is over and everyone goes back to work/school. Zoe has been off three weeks because we went down to Florida and pulled her out a week early. I’m sure getting her back in the routine isn’t going to be easy.  I’m glad we only have two days before the weekend!

For a while now, I’ve wanted to find a different job, one that wasn’t in the house. Don’t get me wrong, working from home has had its perks however, Shelli also works from home too so, we really don’t get a ‘break’ from one another and it takes its toll on the relationship. I also really miss interacting with co-workers. Anyway, I interviewed at the local High School before leaving for Florida. The day I was packing and getting ready to leave for our trip I got a call from the principal saying I got the job, I was ecstatic! There is no better way to start a vacation than giving a 2-week notice on an old job and looking forward to the new job. It was the best Christmas gift ever! My new work schedule will be exactly like Zoe’s, including snow days! I’m very excited to start this new journey. My background is in Early Childhood Education, so I’m sure it’ll be a little different working in a high school, but I’m really looking forward to the challenge.  Zoe is looking forward to going to all the football games and basketball games at school. That was her first request.

Tonight before bed, Z and I made our lunches together. It was so fun! I can’t remember the last time I had to ‘pack lunch’ for myself. (Another perk of working from home!)

I think 2014 is going to be a good year. Last year was rough so we are looking forward to a fresh start. Happy New Year!