It's a crazy existence right now in the Cundick Family. Christmas break ended and in these first weeks back to school, we've taken on deadlines for posters, research papers, science fair, and I'm sure we've forgotten a dozen other things. Turns out, we could have used our break a bit more effectively. Oh well. Soon we'll get the Christmas bins up in the garage and little by little we'll find ways to be a bit more organized around here.
I've awakened into a new decade of life with this new year. The big 4-0 as of last Saturday. We celebrated with a family ski trip up to Solitude, though we didn't ever ski all together. It remains one of my favorite things to do with my kids, once we do the work to get up there.
Ted arranged for the kids to go stay with his parents that night. It was a surprise and the kids got a kick out of telling me the plan: "Happy Birthday, mom! You get to get rid of us!" Ted and I went to a fancy restaurant for dinner and then checked into a nice, quiet, just-the-two-of-us "Hotel Cundick." It was a great time together. The night before, we had joined some friends for a ballroom dancing class, and had a great time, so a kid-free evening together was truly a surprise and a wonderful bonus.
It's been a while since I've recorded the comings and goings of our family. I'm not sure how the best way to stay afloat with all that is these days. Our most significant change over the past few months is that we moved to a new house. A family in our ward was moving and we decided to make an offer on their house and put our home on the market. In a remarkably smooth stretch of a few weeks, things came together, and here we are living at 3114 S Gregson Court. Our home is on a cul-de-sac on the very southern edge of our ward. The yard actually backs into our church parking lot, which is perhaps the biggest win of the whole deal. We have absolutely no good reason to drive to church anymore. Or to the school, for that manner. I'm wondering if we've actually saved money moving to this house, considering the number of times I'm NOT needing to drive to this or that (kidding). We are all very happy here. Not that we weren't happy before, or even actively looking for a change. But there are many blessings we are enjoying, living in our new home.
Rachel is doing well in Junior High. Only a few times have we needed to worry about whether things are getting done for school (and that's been the past two weeks along with all the other craziness). She's a responsible girl and she seems to thrive in this new world of multiple classes, teachers, etc. She auditioned for the school play (Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamboat), and is enjoying being a part of that. She babysits pretty regularly, and is pretty diligent in being in touch with her friends. I'm grateful she has good friends. We are lucky.
Other kids are doing great as well. I wrote about Thomas most recently. He is still doing great as a fifth grader. He just completed his first science fair project and did a great job. It was nice to have a project that didn't involve kitchen mess or permission forms. He seemed to think he was getting away with something by choosing a topic that had more to do with math/statistics than "science." And other than the down-to-the-wire parts of it because we didn't get enough done over Christmas break, I really enjoyed helping him where I could. Thomas seems to be pretty motivated on the piano lately, as well. I'm happy about that.
Sarah and Callie are consistent "frenemies" these days, as well as roommates. The two of them come up with all sorts of imaginative play in our new space. We currently have a congregation of stuffed animals sitting patiently on shoe racks (that hopefully will eventually be returned to their closets), waiting for some kind of "wedding" they have planned. In our old house, this sort of activity would have taken over our main living space, so I am grateful to have a few spots that are a bit more out-of-sight.
Martin is my daytime buddy. He goes where I go, unless it's Tuesday when Grandma comes, or Tumbling or Kindermusik days. He likes spending time on the computer a bit too much, I'm afraid. I try to get him together with friends when I can, just so he can have a change of pace. He is a fun kid, smart, very particular about many things. When I have energy to do so, I convince him to eat something other than "cheese triangles" for lunch, or succeed in getting him to the car to leave without involving some sort of game/race. Most days, though, he is what he is. My mom says he reminds her a lot of "Grandpa" (my dad).
Ted and I stay afloat best we can; we even enjoy some "smooth sailing" days. It's a wonderful feeling to have someone else in the canoe, keeping things from tipping over. I know I don't acknowledge it nearly enough.
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