Tuesday, September 11, 2012

Summer in Bullets

I'm trying very hard to motivate myself to come back here. I absolutely love blogging and there is plenty to tell but the lull in the summer (due to a lack of a computer to blog at) really left a huge crater.

My options are to pick up where we left off, albeit with a summarized version of the summer; jump over that crater and start from here and now; just kind of peter out the blog.

Obviously, the third option is not really an option. More of my inner laziness poking its head out. Don't mind me as I swat that idea out of my face!

How about a bullet list of summer highlights and then we can move on with life! Challenge accepted!!

Summer of 2012 in Kansas City, KS, in bulleted format (not specifically in chronological order):

*Benny went to CGI for four weeks. Best four weeks of everyone's summer.
*Shuky went out of town on two separate occasions. I became a hermit with the kids on those two occasions.
*We made a TON of awesome friends.
*We were extremely tight on money, having two apartments to pay for.
*Having a social life was also expensive. But worth every penny.
*We went to Chicago for a weekend for my grandparents' surprise 60th anniversary party. Had an amazing weekend. Got a gorgeous family picture.
*Also took advantage of the photographer at the party to reinact an awesome picture we have from when me and my siblings (minus Rochel) were younger (21 years ago). We are awesome and mature folks.
*Despite having no money, we managed to see quite a bit of Kansas City!
*We loved both shuls we got involved with and the communities that came with them! 
*In true Shuky & Chani Meyer, we packed our two bedroom apartment in about two days. And left our apartment sparkling clean.
*Last summer bullet: We absolutely loved our summer experience and are happy to put Kansas City high on our list of possibilities for after graduation!

Alright, summer is done. Time to move on. Because I'm a moron and put too much on my plate, about a week after getting home from KC, I went with the kids to California for a visit and relaxation. We got the visit part covered! Unfortunately, Bella was sick almost the entire time so the relaxation was not quite what I was looking for. I was able to go out almost every night but I was worried about her and actually came rushing home a few nights. I ended up taking her to the hospital (to my amazing cousin who had us in and out of the ER within 15 minutes. I know.) to find out she had horrible infections in her ears and throat. After two days on the medication, she was back to her awesome self and I had a couple great nights out til the wee morning hours with friends!!! 
At least I got some sun while there! 
No big deal but I am planning a real getaway. In my head for now. We shall see if it actually happens.

Now we face the High Holidays and I find myself dreading things, as I have unfortunately come to do since moving to the middle of nowhere. The constant traveling and being in other peoples' homes. The packing and unpacking. The difficulty of keeping up the kids' routines. We pull it off every year but I am truly looking forward to having a real place to call home, with a community that comes along with that. 

Schoolwise, Shuky is almost done with his first month back. This is his third year at ISU. :)

Benny is back at UCC, but he has moved to a different classroom this year. Last year he was a Dancing Dragon. This year he is a Tumbling Tiger. The kids are a little older and the program is free. I am super happy! We lost one day a week by putting him in the free program but it totally works for us. There is a small mommy and me program in Des Moines, called Torah Tots, that we will now get to be a part of. And Bella gets to be a part of that as well. 

Speaking of which, Bella is home with me this year. I didn't find work so Bella and I are joined at the hip. If something comes up, we will use a babysitter instead of the school. One big change with her is she is now sleeping on a twin bed in her room. No more unused crib. No more sleeping in our room. So far so good!!

And that, my friends, is where we stand. We are officially up to date with each other. I can breath again!