The party's over...

…and I can’t say I’m sorry!  The kids are off to school, back into the routine (with a helpful new aspect in the case of Girlie’s schedule), to the comfortable, dependable rut.  This week will bring the return to piano and ballet for Boyo and social skills classes for Girlie, which she has been out of since the beginning of fall since our schedule gets crazy around The Nutcracker season.

Girlie got a bead weaving loom for Christmas and seems to be enjoying learning a new craft.  This is encouraging, because she doesn’t tend to be interested in doing much, other than reading, coloring, or playing video games.  I’m hoping this might develop into an expandable creative outlet, and we enjoyed looking at beads online and ordering a couple more assortments.  Boyo received more drawing pens and a Zentangle book, which has been holding his attention for several minutes at a time.

Dearest and I are thinking about his upcoming vacation bid and considering what worked and what didn’t, as far as the time off that was scheduled in 2011.  We’re also thinking about arranging for a long-overdue night away from the kids sometime later this winter or in the spring, and I have embraced the notion of going back to work on a part-time basis – most likely in a volunteer capacity, considering the current shortage of available jobs. 

Later this month I’ll be going on a special ‘Seattle to Portland Yarn Train’ trip with my oldest daughter, a few friends, and well over a hundred other like-minded individuals.  It’s a real stretch of my comfort zone but it sounds so inclusive and fun: knitting and visiting with friends on the train, shopping a few great yarn stores in Portland, and a visit to Powell’s Books!

Dearest finally got a heater for his garage and has been going out most evenings to work on restoring a Honda Trail 90; something he has wanted to do for over a year.  The fact that he and I both feel comfortable with the thought of him going out to the garage in the evening is an indication of how stable things are in the house.

All is well, all is well.  We’re feeling pretty grateful right about now.