It's already time for February's What's Up Wednesday. As always,
I'm linking up with Shay at Mix and Match Mama and Sheaffer at Sheaffer Told Me To.
Honestly, February has been hard. I've been frustrated with winter weather and with the restrictions (no downhill skiing, no lifting, no shoveling snow) from my lung detachment in January. (You can read more about that here.) Thankfully it's almost March, we're hopefully through the worst of winter, and things are starting to look up (more Covid restrictions are being lifted -- YAY!!!).
What we're eating this week... It's winter so we've been eating lots of soups and stews. Dave and the kids made Cream of Carrot-Cheddar soup over the weekend which is one of my favourite soups. Also, on Monday night at supper, I realized we've been eating a ton of fried mushrooms lately. The kids hate mushrooms but Dave and I love them so Mom and Dad have been making fried mushrooms for brunches and random suppers. So soup and fried mushrooms is what defines our food this month! Hahaha!!!
What I'm reminiscing about... Thanks to weather and Covid restrictions, we still haven't celebrated Dave's 40th birthday, which was in mid-January. Hopefully this weekend the stars will align and we'll be able to go out for a big birthday dinner. However, I'm also remembering that my 40th birthday was not so awesome either. We had just moved across the country, we were cleaning our house because the landlords had left a dirty house, and the first person to wish me "Happy Birthday" was the telephone guy as I was trying to set up our phone line.
Me, around the days of my 40th birthday Our chaotic house -- moving boxes everywhere.
We eventually had a combined "Dave turned 30/Natasha turned 40/housewarming" party about three months later and these family pictures are from that night. Clearly Sam was in a mood!
All this is to say, we will eventually celebrate Dave's 40th in style too!
What I'm loving... We're getting small tastes of spring-like weather and I am so here for it. The other day it was above freezing and sunny. I went on two walks that day and had over 15,000 steps on my FitBit for the first time in months. Give me all the lengthening days, warmer weather, and snow melting. We're heading into my favourite time of year!!!
We had our bedroom window open almost all day yesterday for the first time in months and the big pile of snow behind Sam is starting to melt, a little.
What we've been up to... We've been up to a lot.
We've been doing puzzles...
...getting Covid boosters...
...chipping and shoveling ice...
...sorting through hand-me-downs and forgetting to water tulips...
...wearing our pajamas inside out and sleeping with spoons under our pillows
in hopes of snow days...
(It's worked too because we've had two snow days in February already!)
...and Dave and his parents introduced the kids to downhill skiing. I can't ski for this whole winter because of my lung issues from January, but Dave took the kids to our local ski hill and now they're hooked. Hopefully we can get some family downhill skiing in next winter.
What I'm dreading... Well, more and more people we know have gotten Covid in the past month so I'm dreading that soon it may be our turn. Does anyone escape from getting it? Have you seen this meme?
I'm also dreading next month a little because it is March Break, and for the past two years our kids haven't gone back to in person school after March Break. So I have this slight dread that our kids won't be back in the school again this year. It's not that I have any reason to believe it's going to happen, but it's hard to get over two years of experience.
What I'm working on... Reading through my stack of library books. Why do I always take so many out of the library?!?!?! Also, why can't my full-time job be reading!?
What I'm excited about... We're tentatively starting to plan a mini getaway for part of March Break and I am so excited about the possibility of traveling somewhere that isn't to my parents' house. We have gone to visit them three times since Covid started but we haven't gone anywhere else and the excitement level is HIGH!!!
I'm also excited because we have family haircuts booked for tomorrow night! As you can see from the pictures in this post, we're all looking a little rough. (It's been four months since we've had haircuts thanks to Omicron.)
What I'm watching/reading... We watched quite a bit of Olympics, although not as much as some years. We've also watched some really fun movies with Mom & Dad lately -- The Princess Bride (which the kids loved and which was as good as always!) and Hamilton.
As shown above, I'm also trying to read all the books. Here are two non-fiction books I've read this month which I think everyone should read. They were both really good reads and sobering stories I think everyone should know.
What I'm listening to... I've been listening to a lot of Dave playing guitar. He is getting ready to do a concert with a group of musicians from church so he's been practicing a lot.
What I'm wearing... I haven't been wearing anything exciting at all -- just work clothes and pajamas. However, Rachel got glasses last week so she's been discovering the world of glasses. On the right is what she calls her "evil librarian look." Hahaha!!!
What I'm doing this weekend... Hopefully we'll finally get to go out for supper to celebrate Dave's birthday. That is, if the weather, and everyone's health, cooperates. And maybe we'll get to go to church in person for the first time in over two months!!!
What I'm looking forward to next month... March Break -- a week off work and school -- and the possibility of traveling again!!! And baseball might be back!!! (Come on MLB -- get an agreement in place. We need baseball.)
I also might get to hang laundry outside if the snow ever melts.
What else is new... If you're not a regular reader, you may not know that my parents usually live three provinces away and that they've been house sitting for our neighbours since mid-January. Sadly, they have now booked plane tickets home towards the end of March. Thus, we will be enjoying having them as neighbours for the next few weeks but, by next What's Up Wednesday, they'll be home again and we'll be missing them.
So that's what's up with us this Wednesday. Is it spring where you live or are you still in the depths of winter too? And what exciting things have you been wearing in February? I always find this question hardest to answer in this month so give me some options!
Hope you get to squeeze in all the time with your parents over the next few weeks. And by then, maybe some even more restrictions will be lifted so you guys can enjoy some warmer weather as it comes & celebrate birthdays! Have a good day!
ReplyDeleteWe have similar activities with the snow and one of us having gone skiing. Our latest snow is melted now but it's super cold outside! I hope you get to go on a fun getaway!
ReplyDeleteWe are definitely seeing teasing of spring; it has warmed up so much this week that all our snow and most of the ice has melted... but then they're predicting another 4-10 inches on Friday so I'm trying not to get too excited. I know we have a bit more to go before spring has truly sprung. I think that Radium Girls book sounds amazing!
ReplyDeleteI'm always amazed when I hear of people that still havent had COVID. I have 6 coworkers that havent had it yet either.. & I'm over here with a husband & a daughter whose had it twice- how weird is that???
ReplyDeleteSo much going on!! Hurray for boosters and skiing!
ReplyDeleteOh yeah! I really hope you get to have a fun trip- post pics! Our warm day is today- can't wait to get outside because there is a snow storm coming on Friday- BOO!
ReplyDeleteI was SO convinced that I'd get covid the month of January with how many staff were off with it and how many patients I saw with it (while wearing PPE, but still!). Stocked up on supplies. Was kind of looking forward to 10 days off of work (for healthcare workers it's still 10 days, it's only 5 days for the rest of the population). But... nothing! There's still time though I suppose...
ReplyDeleteExcited to hear about your March Break plans!
We still haven't rescheduled our trip to Costa Rica that was for our 40th birthdays (we had 4 people going who all turned 40 in 2020), and I really hope that can happen...someday! We are planning a family trip this summer to somewhere tropical, it'll be the kids first time out of the country, yay! All of our kids are going to need glasses eventually, I'm curious when it'll happen. I was 9 and Brent was 12 and I'm basically BLIND!
ReplyDeleteStill no Covid over here (knock on wood). I hadn't seen that meme, it's a good one.
ReplyDeleteYour library book stack is giving me anxiety! I can't handle having more than three library books out at a time.
I love seeing all your pictures of the snow-- how beautiful! But I also understand you being ready for warmer weather!
ReplyDeleteI have not seen that meme, but it made me shiver from the memories of the dodge ball line! THAT WAS ALWAYS ME IN THE BACK!!!!! And then - WHAM! Nothing hurts like a half dozen of those dodgeballs smacking you in unison! LOL!!
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