It looks like I took short break from blogging. I haven't really. I just wasn't blogging here. I have a thing about stressing about who might be reading what I write. And this blog was stressful in that regard because it's about my family. And my family went through some evolution over the last few years. I felt like all eyes were on me and some are... judgy. So I took a break. I didn't break from all blogging, however. I have several others. I tend to keep them separate because there might be different audiences. I think that is optimistic.
All is well at our house! I don't know how to catch everyone up. So I'll just mention what is happening in our world now.
Not a ton. Nothing that is completely out of the ordinary.
Nate is a sophomore. He is thriving. He has a handful of honors classes, Chinese, jazz band, wind ensemble. He brought home rewards for honors and attendance this week. It's really fun to watch him liking school so much. He has a regular job. He's a camp counselor for summer camp. They have called him to work for winter and spring camps as well. And he has done some volunteering with the city parks department. He has his drivers permit, but has been slow to take the wheel. He lost a good friend, in an accident this winter, and that has put a damper on his confidence, so we are taking it slowly. He has a steady girlfriend. They've been buddies since they were in camp together when they were 8. They've been a couple for over a year now. Both of them are counselors at the same camp where they met. She's a sweetie and they are very cute together.
Xander is an 8th grader. He has grown more than 8 inches in the last year, which causes terrible pain in one of his knees, but he is powering through. He's in track again this spring, competing in the 400 meter and the long jump. He has really found himself this year. He has buckled down in school and brought home his best report card ever, even making the honor roll! This is a great relief to me because his 7th grade year was filled with emotions, temper, hormones, and was generally pretty rough. He'd like to be working, as he has a list of things he wants to buy. But is still a little young to get a job. I've advised him to try to lawn care this summer and see what he can earn. He likes the green stuff, so he might. He had an OK football season. His knee pain got in his way a lot. He's considering doing freshman ball in the fall, so he must have good memories about football.
I'm just plugging along as normal. I've signed up for an Olympic Weightlifting Competition. I'm super excited about it. Last year I did a Spartan Sprint and this year I'm lifting weights. I'm trying to be at least one step in the circle that exists outside my comfort zone. I gave a talk at a conference this spring. That was the first time I've done that and it was a great success. People took photos of my slides and my views went up on LinkedIn. That's pretty exciting.
I'm going to try to keep this blog a little fresher. I don't know if there are any people out there who haven't given up on it! If you're still there, thank you and I love you!
