So....yeah....um....

I'm not exactly sure where the month of February went.

Actually, that's not true at all.  I knew where February was all along.  She was repeatedly sucker punching me and messing with my head.  She came and went, and being the bitch of a month that she is.....well, let's suffice it to say that this year, February just

Kicked.
My.
Trash. 

There was no one big problems.  No tragedies.  No major drama.  Just a series of little things that piled up on each other until it seemed like I went from one thing to another with no time to breath in between. 

Chicken Pox.
Homework.
Laundry.
Church obligations.
Work deadlines.
Valentines Day.
Paper writing. 
Guest speaking.
Conferences. 
And on.
And on.
And on.

Most nights I fell into bed as soon as I put Riley down and slept like a rock until it was time to get up and do it all again.  One thing I do know is that putting rest above most other things kept me sane and kept my patience in check.  Early bedtimes and me...we're BFF's. 


Since today is leap day, I've decided to consider it my reset button day.  It's not really a 'real' day, so it's perfect to serve as the bridge between the intensity of February and what I have decided will be a beautiful, spring-filled month of March (Don't let me down, March, please.)

And since I didn't show up here for most of the month, I thought I'd leave you with a few visuals of what February looked like to me.

Valentine Day parties with a bunch of goofy 8-11 year old girls.

The chicken pox wore the Girl right out.  More than once, she got out of the bathtub and fell right asleep on my bed, too exhausted to even get dressed.

Some time spent at the Bountiful Temple helped center me in the midst of the craziness.

Valentine tulips from my Girl.  She picked them out, I paid for them.  A fair trade, I think.

Now that Riley can write her own name, she puts it everywhere.  It makes me smile so much.  She's growing up so fast.

So here's to a new month- hopefully a kinder, gentler month. 
But I'm keeping my new BFF around, just in case. 

Tonight, I'm:

 

Wide Awake,  thanks to an unplanned, but much-needed,  3 hour after-work nap. 

Relieved that the last three weeks are over.  They were full of very urgent deadlines, important meetings and lots of responsibilities.

Happy that everything went well and there relatively few fires to put out. 

Giving my house some much needed TLC. It's born the brunt of my limited time these past weeks, and man - it's shows.

Enjoying the time at home, by myself, with NPR podcasts for company.  

Missing my daughter, who is spending the night at her Dad's.

Thankful that those last two activities can peacefully co-exist, without guilt or concern. 

Canning homemade pizza sauce.  Riley discovered we were out and reacted as if this were an earth shattering crisis.  I guess, in her mind, it probably is. 

Considering buying a serger.  Who knew the sewing bug would bite me so fast and hard? 

Grateful for evenings like this, where solitude recharges and I'm able to find my way back to sanity.