{a weird week}

I have been sitting here trying to think of a better title for this post, but this week has just been weird. Some good things have happened, some bad things have happened.  Some happy things have happened and some worrisome things have happened. It's been a busy and stressful week, but we had enough fun things sprinkled in to prevent it from being a bad week. Forgive my rambling- I am tired.

The not-so-good/ worrisome parts of our week:

• Ben's dad is in the hospital. We are worried about him and feel helpless because we are so far away. He is in our thoughts constantly.
• Ben had his wisdom teeth removed today and is currently on the couch completely doped up on pain medication. I think we have a quiet weekend in store.
• A good friend had emergency surgery on Tuesday and was then put on hospital bedrest. She has been on my mind a lot today.
• Luke's teacher, who he just loves, fractured her ankle over the weekend and was out this week.
• We were confined to the house for most of the week because of icy roads. Similarly, a playdate that Luke was really, really looking forward to was cancelled on our iciest day. He was so disappointed and I was sad for him.
• My Tuesday morning was supposed to be my chance to finish our Christmas shopping as all three kids were at school or Mother's Day Out, but everything was cancelled due to weather. I feel really behind and wonder if I will get another child-free moment before we leave for Illinois. I have four days until Santa visits us here in Knoxville and LOTS to get done before that point.

The better parts of our week:

• The kids only had school two days this week. Knoxville had three snow/ice days! We had really nice days full of crafts, playtime, reading, cartoons, and games.
• The classroom holiday parties were this morning and Gracie and Luke both had a wonderful time.
• Santa drove through our neighborhood on a fire truck last night. There are not words to describe Drew's reaction.
• The kids were almost shaking with excitement to receive letters from Santa in the mail on Thursday.
• Gracie got her first badge in Brownies on Tuesday night.

Next week looks to be even busier, so I am thankful that this weekend will be pretty laid-back. I'm predicting lots of Jello, Gatorade, and napping for Ben and lots of present wrapping, time in the playroom, and last-minute shopping for the kids and me.

Happy Friday!