Around Here Week 42: 10/15-21

 A glimpse into what it is like to be in our family just this moment. 

5 years coaching these girlies!

photo cred: Onara C

Intentional Outdoor Hours: 654+ hours (of 1000)
It is peak autumn leaf peeping season over here in western PA. Absolute beauty everywhere we look is just awe and wonder over the vibrance of color bursting from all things nature. I honestly put up with the rain and cold most of the year just to exist in a world of autumn for a few weeks. LOL forever, but also worth it. We got hit with some very chilly days this week that reminds us winter is up next, but I'm soaking in all this fall time gorgeousness for as long as I can! 

Reading and finishing Wool by Hugh Howey. I really liked it (got a little bored in the beginning-ish then picked up, then boring again, then picked up). The series is on AppleTV but I think I'll prefer the idea I had in my mind and probably won't ever watch the show. I started What Alice Forgot by Liane Moriarty (suggested to me by my Karpy!)

Life Milestone! I got my first mammogram since I'm 40 now! I mean was it super fun, obviously no - but also I breastfed six kids, so not the most painful thing my breasts have ever endured either (LOL, tmi but for real). Hooray, my results were all clear and good - but if you needed a reminder to schedule yours, get to it ladies! 

Doing an interview with Fox 8 News Now about Studerbabies. We both took half a day off of work which meant we got a fun afternoon just B and I. I went to my milestone appointment (above) and then we had a chance to grab lunch (sushi!). After our interview (thank you for having us Joe and KC!), B and I just sat in his warm truck in the parking lot chatting for a little while before we got back to our normal wild life raising six kiddos and working full time jobs. A big thank you to Aunt Uch who kept the two babies for us that afternoon (xxox!)

Celebrating our 15th wedding anniversary. I put together an instagram reel and like the true elderly I am, it took entirely too long and was too taxing on my brain and photo album organization (hahaha, GRANDMOTHEREST). It did turn out really cute, but how people are cranking them out on the Reg - I do not understand. Besides the reel, we also toasted to champagne at dinner (I made homemade pizza with our favorite toppings: banana peppers, onions, and pineapple!) and B had an obnoxiously huge and gorgeous bouquet of flowers delivered to school for me. We kissed a little extra and were so grateful for all the messages we received from everyone..but also, we are in the THICK of parenting six kids right now, so mostly the show must go on like normal, ya know?

Tying all the loose ends for the half day early dismissal at the kids' school this week. Thank goodness for school friends  you save the day. Grey stayed home from school since was totally worn out from weeks of football and a late game the night before. Gem headed to the Lasures house before the football game (thank you!) and Rusty and Violet spent the afternoon at the Cables house right off the bus (thank you, life savers!) I swear half my brain power is spent connecting dots to figure out who is where and with who and for how long. hah.

Getting a little heartbroken over Gemma's last youth league cheer game. I've been coaching her (and 12 of her cheermates) since they were in first grade!! I watched these darlings grow up and seen their personalities all blossom and how they've always been able to come back to each other as friends at cheer season if they spend the rest of the year with different friends and teammates. Grateful to have been their coach all these years and I feel so proud of them all - especially my Roie. (love you girls and all your mommas! xxox)

My most favorite person had his birthday this week too. Brandon celebrated his 39th birthday on Saturday and it was spent just like mine was this year in this season of our life - on the football field! Both girls cheered at the championship youth games and we were huddled up for warmth while the rain and cold drizzled down on us. Best thing I ever did was pair up with this handsome fellow and I am so endlessly grateful that my love is mine all mine (Mitski)

Hosting our sweet nephews for an overnight on Saturday while my sisters ran the annual You In Flood City Zombie Crawl downtown (they had over 300 zombies visit 10 local establishments all night for food, drinks, and merriment. It is such a great event - I am so proud of my baby sisters!!) Wells and Heath played, danced, read books, and were so sweet and funny with all the kids. It is so darling to see Red, Olive, Wells, and Heath together and build their funny little relationships. We are probably in big big trouble when they are all teenagers and thick as thieves ready to lie, steal, and cheat for one another. Maybe big trouble or the luckiest - I don't know which one yet. 

Teaching weather & seasons in Spanish 1 with their first "presentations" aloud in front of the room (they did great!) Spanish 2 read El Silbón de Venezuela Chapters 1-4, and Spanish 3 & 4 read La Llorona de Maztálan chapters 8-10 and are really getting into it. I love when we were reading this week and they were ooohing and awwwing at the storyline because they were understanding the drama of the love triangle in Spanish. Those aha! moments are always some of the best for teachers' nerdy hearts. 

Sporting with a basketball and cheer practice back to back (thank you to the Maurers for taking her to both!), she had a try-out for her travel soccer team, and she cheered at the championship game for the Minors football team on Saturday in the cold rain. Gemma had her last (!!) youth cheer practice, 1 basketball practice (thank you Purdys for taking her!), and cheered at her last 2 Majors football games where our team won the championship! Grey had 3 football practices, 2 baseball practices, and a football game at Cambria Heights on Thursday evening (still undefeated!!). Brandon had team dinner & film, four football practices, a homecoming bonfire and pep rally (at our Co-op's home school), and a Friday night Hoco game at Shade (our Co-op school). 

Making apricot porkchops over rice, chicken parm over spaghetti, homemade pizza (pineapple & banana peppers for our anniversary!) we had some rose moscato too to celebrate! I made pumpkin chocolate chip gobs to celebrate Brandon's birthday and we ordered in chicken wings and french fries for dinner that night!