Life as a Lewis

Shockingly, it's already the final day of November, and the holiday season is in full swing. We're pressing pause on the busyness tonight to put up the Christmas tree, wrap a few presents, make our annual batch of chex mix and watch a cheesy Christmas movie (special occasion alert because holiday movies are not really my thing). Tomorrow kicks off 3 straight weekends chock full of school and church holiday events. I'm keeping my eyes firmly set on December 17 - my last day of work for the year - in front of me. ***** A quick recap of the last 2-3 weeks: A surprise birthday celebration (#43 for me) went awry when my mom took a bad fall and tore her rotator cuff (she's in surgery as I write this). A girl's night out turned into a family event after mom's injury and Liz's knee surgery. Dinner at Grilled Cheeserie and The Little Mermaid at Nashville Children's Theater made for a sweet time together. Work took me to Orlando the we...

1. In the space of 4 days, Rsleepwalked twice. The first night she came down to our bedroom and knocked on the door to let us know it was time to go to school (it wasn't even 10:00 p.m.). The second night she actually got up, showered, and began getting ready for school only to realize that it was 10:30ish and everyone was still in bed for a reason. Should I be concerned? 2. Cross country is finally over and Rory ended the season running in the district tournament with the Varsity team. She held her own and finished in 9th place.  Pre-season soccer conditioning overlapped for a couple of weeks but she's currently free from extra-curriculars. 3. Basketball, however, is in full force. Last Friday was the unofficial tip-off, but tonight is the first game of the season. It's so strange to see Camden on the court as the veteran 9th grader. Not only is he the tallest on the team, but there are only a couple of other players with any previous experience (two of which are curre...

August - October are the craziest months of the year. Until the holidays roll around in November and December, that is. So basically, the second half of every year is just busyness on top of busyness. I'm in the process of having my computer fixed (it's been down since April) and, despite the busyness, I'm feeling the desire to jump back into my camera and photographing our life. It's a hobby that I have let go over the past years as I went back into the workforce, endured 18 months of chemo, and began parenting teenagers. Maybe I'm ready to balance it all? We made a quick family visit to St. Louis during fall break. We met up with Becky and the boys, Liz and Addison along with many St. Louis cousins that we haven't seen in years . Unfortunately, the trip was a mere 48 hours long and there wasn't nearly enough time to catch up. But it was a fun 48 hours and it was good to touch base with so many family members. Salt and Smoke was amazing. ...