November 30...NaPoBloMo Ends

The end is near, the month is done...yet soon we begin another one.

I gave it my all, the NaPoBloMo fun

Hard to keep up, for the craziness won

But your comments rained and kept me sane

Throughout the month of November...and for that, I'll always remember!

Well, today is the last day of November - a day to look back and gleen all that I have accomplished and received. It has been a crazy month for me and my family as we "officially" became owners of *The Business* on November 1. The first 2 weeks of November, DH was out of town for training and the rest of the month he has been working open to close at the store; so I have had the feeling of a "single mother" trying to get everything accomplished for everyone - driving the boys to where they need to go, making sure everyone's clothing is cleaned & dried, organizing life so everything runs as smoothly as possible, making sure that Robert had what he needed before he left on his first hockey tournament solo (without DH or I), etc. I am not looking for sympathy nor am I asking to be put on a pedestal. While there are definitely days that I want to pull my hair out and scream "what about me?" or "why me?", I look at the choices I make and what I do have!

During the month of November:

1. I was able to get everyone to where they needed to be...by the time they needed to be there
2. I was able overcome my anxiety of sending Robert to a tournament without DH and I present
3. I traveled with Matthew to his hockey tournament and shared time together that we haven't had in a long time
4. I was able to send out Angela's Ornament for the Ornament Swap early in November and she received it before her Christmas Tree was set up and decorated
5. I was able to bake 4 batches of chocolate chip cookies and share them with our employees at Edible Arrangements, my co-workers at Hexcel, Matthew's teammates at a hockey practice
6. I was able to work in *The Business* with our wonderful employees and crank out over 80 arrangements
7. I was able to work in our store with DH and my sons on Thanksgiving day, when customers came and picked up their arrangements for their family gatherings; and beamed with pride when my boys walked the arrangements out to the customer's car.
8. I was able to share the evening with Matthew when he received his 4.0 acknowledgement at his 1st of many Honors Evening. I witnessed his proud smile that stretched from ear to ear!
9. I was able to sneak in some morning and evening time to stitch on my Family Sampler and an ornament; as well as time to spin on the stationary bike to maintain my health and sanity
10. I was able to share priceless moments and have wondeful conversation with my boys as I drove them to and from the hockey rink 4-5 times a week.
11. I have enjoyed and received support from the wonderful comments of blogging friends from all over the world
12. I shared a wonderful Thanksgiving meal with my family; who, for the first time in many months, all sat down at the table together to enjoy all the same foods...and had no where to go after the meal was complete. That in itself is priceless.

So no matter how crazy life seems around my household...and no matter how many times I do want to yell or feel resentment building...I do try to "stop" and take a look at what I have and put a postive spin on the situation. My crazy November was full of love, family team work, and friendship. My heart swells with gratitude that I can share this all with you. I pray that your November was as fullfilling as mine was and here is hope that December will be too!

Take care my blogging friends - thank you for visiting and all your comments you take time to write. Until next time, remember....

Live, Love, Laugh and Stitch often!

Lisa

November 28...29

November is coming to an end...and so is NaBloPoMo, something which I have failed to blog every day during the month of November. I had every intention of doing it, for I was definitely busy and there were things to write about...but it is because I was busy that I truly wasn't able to blog every single day during the month of November. I tried, hopefully I can get some brownie points for that.

Anyway, Sunday DH went to work at *The Business* (we are open from 9-2 on Sundays). There were just a few fruit bouquets to make and a couple to deliver...it seems to be the "quiet before the next storm." After some research regarding last December's business, the week before Christmas is going to be crazy! DH emailed last year's order/delivery report to me, which the boys and I tallied up all the orders/deliveries per day. This information will definitely help when creating the schedules for this month. Tallying up all the information took over 3 hours to do...that is where some of my blogging and stitching time went yesterday...oh, well, there are priorities in life, I guess.

However, once that report was handed over to DH to play around with, and after the boys had their dinner, I did find sometime to get in a little stitching. I have put aside Family Sampler for just a little bit to stitch an ornament for a stitching friend (which, for obvious reasons I cannot show you it). It will be a quick stitch and finish and then I can get back to stitching Family Sampler.

Today it is back to the normal-routine (whatever that truly is)...I go back to my job and the boys go back to school; there are evening hockey practices and after school wrestling; I get up early in the morning in order to try and get in a good spin on the bike and to bed as early as possible in order to get some rest before starting the next day. However, on Thursday Matthew and I leave for Denver, CO for he has another hockey tournament already. I have family and friends who I am making plans with, which always adds something special to these hockey travels.

Well that is it from my household. I hope that you and yours are all doing well. Take care and remember...

Live, Love, Laugh and Stitch often!

Lisa

November 17...November 18...I am loosing track

Boy, blogging everyday is hard - expecially trying to remember to do it. There are days that I think that I sat down and typed out a post, but when I check my blog the post was done for the day before. Oh, well...let's just say that I am trying and leave it at that.

Yesterday my oldest son left for Canada - the first time that he is travelling without DH or I for the whole hockey weekend. It feels a little strange to "let him go". I know that he is capable of handling a weekend without either of us...and I know the 6 parent chaperones going on the trip and the 2 coaches...so he is in good hands. As my mother pointed out, this will be a good experience for him as well as a great exercise for me to "let him go" and "let him grow up"; for he will be 15 in January and probably the only one on his hockey team who hasn't had the experience of being away from mom and dad a whole weekend.  He did call last night when the plane landed in Calgary; and while I haven't heard from him today, one of the parent chaperones emailed me that everything is going just fine. I am not sure that this was with regards to Robert, or to let me know that the hotel accomodations I arranged for last night for the whole team, but I appreciated the email this morning.

Tonight will be my turn to prepare for travel. Matthew and I leave tomorrow afternoon for Phoenix for his hockey tournament. It has been a long time since he and I travelled together for one of these weekend. I am definitely looking forward to it!

Aside from all of that, I was able to get in a few stitches last night on Family Sampler at the rink while Matthew was on the ice...but not enough for a status photo. I am sure that with a 2 hour plane ride tomorrow, I will be able to get more done!

In light of Thanksgiving being a week away (in the US), I came across some readings and thought that I would share with you all. Have a good day my friends in blogland and remember...

Live, Love, Laugh and Stitch often - Lisa

Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life.

It turns what we have into enough, and more.

It turns denial into acceptance, choas to order, confusion to clarity.

It can turn a meal into a feast - a house into a home, a stranger into a friend.

Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today and creates a vision for tomorrow.

~Melody Beattie

Gratitude helps you grow and expand;

gratitude brings joy and lughter into your life and into the lives of those around you.

~ Eileen Caddy

These are the gifts I ask

Of Thee, Spirit serene:

Strength for the daily task,

Courage to face the road,

Good cheer to help me bear the traveler's load,

And, for the hours of rest that come between,

An inward joy of all things heard and seen.

~Henry Van Dyke

November 2

Thank you for the comments and the well wishes left yesterday. One post-Halloween memory I want to share with you, which surfaced as I read Natasha's comment about walking around the neighborhood looking at Halloween decor...before we lived in California, we lived in Minnesota. DH and I worked for my family's company, which was a competitor of Party City. My position was Public Relations/Marketing/Advertising...and I was the Party Planner Expert who would be interviewed on the local tv talk shows explaining and showing how to throw a party with a budget. One of the things that I would have fun doing is decorating my house up for Halloween...complete with the gravestones in the front yard, the skeltons dancing around a caldron, ghosts in the trees and the fog machine going. Several times one of the local tv crews would come to my house a week before halloween and we would do several segment from there (yes, I did that remote reporting from my house with the ear piece in my ear, answering questions from the reporters who were back at the studio). It was definitely a fun chapter of my life...doesn't life seem to have chapters like that? Anyway...thank you Natasha, for allowing that memory escape from the depths of my mind! :)

Yesterday morning, before the boys even got up, I went over to *The Business*. It was fun to use the key and let myself in, for now it is feeling a little more like it is really ours. I didn't stay very long, for with the boys off of school there were things that I wanted to do with them, but I did stay long enough to meet the remaining employees (the ones who weren't there on Saturday when DH and I went over to introduce ourselves). The previous owner took me through some of his daily routines, basically prepping for when the 1st shift came in to do the prepping and creating of the fruit bouquets. When the staff came in, watching them prep the fruit was like watching a well choregraphed dance. Within an hour fruit was cut, fruit was dipped, and baskets were ready to be assembled. I was able to see the magic of how one was created before I had to leave to take Robert to his ortho appointment. We are very fortunate to be taking over a very well run business!

The ortho was quick, so as we made our way home we got a few mundane errands ran - gas for the car and groceries for the house (boy do we go through milk in this house hold...I just purchased 4 gallons on Friday and we were down to our last one on Sunday evening-maybe we should have bought a dairy farm). For the rest of the day, I just hung with the boys at home until it was time to drive down to the rink.

Both boys had practice tonight down in San Jose...but due to the timing of their practices it was a late night. Robert's practice started at 5:30/ended at 6:45 and was at the HP Pavilion, which is where the NHL Sharks place. Since our club has an affiliation with the organization, each of the Jr. Shark teams get some ice time there to practice on during the season with the BIG Sharks are traveling.

Robert (the orange jersey in the middle) leading stretching exercises

While Robert was on the ice, Matthew and I sat in the stands to watch. Matthew ate his dinner, which we packed up from home, while I got in some cross stitching. It was just enough time to get the roof finished on the house of Family Sampler...

From a far, the roof looks good...but if you were to look close up, not all of the X's are laying straight, especially the lighter brownish color of the roof. On one hand it give the roof a texture look, but then there is a part of me that feels disappointed. I was too lazy to get out my laying tool, but tried a few techniques to keep it smooth...but I guess it just doesn't look "perfect". I know, I know, perfect is in the eye of the beholder and I should just let it go and move on...which is what I will be doing.

Anyway...after Robert got off the ice, Matthew & I packed up our stuff - we left HP Pavilion as soon as Robert came out of the dressing room and headed down to the SharksIce facility where the boys normally practice - and where Matthew had his team practice from 7:45-9pm. While he was on the ice, Robert and I worked out in the fitness room that overlooks the particular rink that Matthew's team was practicing on. You couldn't ask for a better set up...doing a 60 minute walk/jog on the treadmill while watching your kid's hockey practice! It made the rest of the evening go pretty fast and before you knew it we were pulling into our garage around 10pm...and after a quick unpaking of the hockey bags and showering the boys and I were in bed by 10:45pm.

It was a good day - and DH sounded like he had a good day down in SoCal at his in-store training...but I think that he might have been jealous that I was the first one in "our" store and not him. But as soon as he returns from training, with all of his skills and knowledge of *The Business*, he will be in that store a lot!

Today...the agenda says: "Back to school for the boys and back to work for me, with hockey practice in the evening for Matthew only". So, until tomorrow...

Take care and remember...
Live, Love, Laugh and Stitch Often!

Lisa

November 1...welcome November

Wow, it is hard to believe that November 1st has arrived. That means:

1. there are only 2 months left of this year - yikes!
2. that means that the holiday season is upon us; although I think that Michaels and Target have had Christmas stuff out well before the Halloween was put out.
3. that means my 2 year blog-o-versity is coming up (that is what the little number on the left handside of my blog represents) at the end of the month
4. that means my 43rd birthday the beginning of the month (Nov. 3rd to be exact). It also means that my father's birthday is also coming up - for I was born on his 25th birthday.
5. it means that I need to finish planning for Robert's team's trip to Medicine Hat, Canada for the upcoming tournament and my own planning for Matthew's & my travel to Phoenix, AZ for his tournament
6. it means that I definitely need to package up Angela's ornament and get it in the mail
7. it means that we are now "officially" owners of *The Business* (which is an Edible Arrangements franchise, but will be referred to as *The Business*)

DH left last night for SoCal (Southern California) for a week of in-store training. Before he took off, we did go into the store over the weekend to meet the some of the employees as well as do a walk-through with the previous owner, signing off on the inventory he and his employees took. While DH is at training, the previous owner will be working in the store to make sure that business continues; however I will be stopping by periodically so that I can learn some of what he does during the day in his/our store - learning what a "daily routine is". Today, since the boys don't have school because of a teacher's work day and I took the day off, I am going over there early this morning to work with the previous owner to get accounts and systems transferred over to us. Hopefully that process doesn't take too long, for I do have to get Robert over to an Ortho appointment mid-morning.

Last night, Halloween night, the boys and I fired up the grill and cooked some burgers & sausages (they enjoyed those while I had a salad)...and then we basically hung out at the house - vegging out. The boys opened the door and passed out candy to the few trick-or-treaters that we get (some local real estate ladies host a costume parade and party at a park up the hill from us, so when it comes time to trick-or-treat many of the kids/parents stay on the hill and go around to those houses - thus, we don't see too many people at the bottom of the hill). We turned on Forrest Gump to watch - while I stitched on the Family Sampler and the boys played a computer game. Nice and quiet evening.

Well, that is about all for now. I am hoping to have the roof of the Family Sampler complete so that I can post a photo of it tomorrow.

Take care and remember...

Live, Love, Laugh and Stitch often!

Lisa