The Chaotic Season and Brainstorming Ways to Stay Sane...

It is the busiest time of year at our house, Lent.  Jason has two sermons to prepare each week plus all of his usual Pastoral duties.  We still keep mostly to the same routine as far as Preston goes, except now I have to take him to two services a week instead of just service on Sunday.  We have our St. Patrick's Corned Beef and Cabbage Youth Group dinner tonight that I am involved in preparing and making sure it goes as smoothly as possible, along with another adult.

Along with church activities, I still take Preston to MOPS the 1st and 3rd Thursdays of the month and we have recently started having weekly play dates with a new family in town with a boy Preston's age, on Wednesdays.  On top of all this, we occasionally have my in-laws staying with us when my mother-in-law Sharon has early morning chemo treatments in Great Falls.  It's been an exhausting March so far and there is still a week and a day left.

There have been some really great things going on this month too though.  One I got to participate in and the other, I unfortunately was unable to attend.  It sucks living in a place that doesn't have decently priced and convenient transportation options.  Two of my favorite people in my life got married this month.  Karen was married on March 1st and I was one of her bridesmaids.  Veronica was married on March 14th and I was there in spirit.

Despite all of the ups and downs, the most emotionally, physically and mentally draining part of March has been the weather.  It gets warm, but with the warmth comes the blustering winds so we can't even go outside and enjoy the nice weather.  When it is not warm and windy, it is cold and windy, sometimes with snow too.  I'm just done with this winter.  Onto Spring and Summer please. :P

So two church services a week, play dates, weekly laundry, continuing to slowly work on my creative space, crocheting projects, reading, blogging, texting, skyping and calling friends and family have kept me sane so far during this Lenten season.  All I can say is that I've never looked forward to heading to Chico Hot Springs after Easter that I am this year.

Surviving Winter in a Small Town

So this winter has been off the charts crazy here in small town Montana.  One week we are in the single digits and below zero, the next week we have 40 degree temps with 60+ mph winds.  That's what we are facing here today in Fairfield, MT.  The air temperature is warm, but we can't go outside and enjoy it or we'll get blown away in the wind.

This winter has been especially hard because I have a now 17 month old to try and keep entertained daily.  I often find myself praying that he takes a long afternoon nap, so I can brainstorm ideas of how to keep him entertained in the evenings when my husband is busy at church with meetings, Confirmation or Bible study.  I've figured it out so far and way too much tv and netflix streaming is involved, but it's worked.  I started reading Preston the first Harry Potter book, mostly for my own entertainment, but he's actually starting to pay attention when I'm reading too which is fun to see.

As far as outside the home activities:  Preston goes over to the office with day most days in the morning so he has a larger space to play and run around.  I continue to take him to MOPS the 1st and 3rd Thursdays of the month, except if the weather is really really bad.  I belong to a book club which meets monthly that I love and participate in an evening Bible study which I also love.  The rest of the month, I find things to do as I long for spring and warmer weather to come.

For my own entertainment during this craptastical winter, I am reading a lot, brainstorming ideas for my creative space that I'm making for myself down in the basement, once the new carpet is put in, watching movies, and working on getting physically and emotionally healthier.  I've taken up crocheting again while Preston is napping and I marathon episodes of Ugly Betty on netflix.  Yup, I'm surviving, but I'll tell you this:  I am so looking forward to the warmer part of spring, a nice warm summer and a lovely autumn.  F*&% this winter!  We'll all make it through, just like every year and be grateful for warmer weather when it comes.