Spring is here!

Spring is here, and the news is bittersweet.  Of course, there are glorious things like beautiful weather, extra daylight, azaleas, Zumba, and healthy and happy kids.  Then, there's the calendar moving steadily towards the end of my sabbatical!  My mom keeps updating her facebook status with her countdown to retirement, which is awesome for her, but kind of sucky for me.
School is going great.  I'll be done mid-May, and I've been enjoying my classes, especially the literature ones.  All this reading I've been doing has been great.  I've had the time to get so much reading done that my normal life just doesn't allow.  The next goal I'd like to achieve is to land a librarian position somewhere in the parish.  Feel free to pray about that if the mood strikes you :)
This has been a semester of reading, visiting with friends, hanging out with family, and slothfulness.  Yes, I said it.  Some days I am just downright slothful.  I seriously am going to ask for some bloodwork at my next doctor's appointment, but I also need to get more sleep at night.  I hate that I'm a nightowl though, because I don't want to go to bed, and when I do, I often can't sleep.  Then that messes up my whole next day as I'm struggling to stay awake while I get my school work done. 
I have been going to Zumba classes about 3 times a week, and I love it.  At first, I felt (and looked) like a white girl having a seisure, but I feel much more confident and capable now.  Suzi Kahn has been coming, as has Jenny Langford, and it's a blast being able to dance and act crazy with friends.
Nadia, who is finishing up her first year of school, is reading.  It amazes me to watch my little four year old patiently (well, sometimes not so patiently) sounding out words and reading them.  I am positive that I was not reading at four!  She doesn't like getting up early for school, but she loves her teacher, Mrs. Comeaux, and loves her friends.  I've heard that her school had 100% re-enrollment for next year, so she'll likely have a lot of the same kids in her class next year. (There are three pre-k classes, so hopefully they mix up the kids a little bit).
Dawson, Mr. Toddler Tantrum, is two.  He is speaking very clearly and in full sentences.  It sometimes catches me off guard to hear these big long sentences come out of that little body.  Just this morning, he overheard Nadia discussing our lunch plans.  Dawson piped in, "Momma, I want to go to eat lunch at Applebee's with you and Nadia today.  Can I go with you too?" 
Dawson also has a temper that involves much screaming when it is set off. 
Not. Fun.
What seems to work the best is that we just send him to his bed when he starts that screaming business.  (This doesn't work out so well when we're out shopping).  He goes to his bed, calms down, and comes out of his room saying, "Okay Momma, I stopped crying so I came out of my room." 
He, like Baylor, is very affectionate.  His latest thing is to come running towards me and hug my leg really tight.  Then he looks up and says, "Mom, I love you."  Oh yeah, I'm a total sucker for it.  His favorite expression these days is "really bad."  For example, "Momma, my feet hurt really bad." or "Oh, I'm cold really bad."  It is so cute.
Baylor is enjoying 6th grade about as much as middle school can be enjoyed.  He's hit the age of school drama, and comes home regularly with stories of his friends cutting themselves, fights at school, bullying, etc.  He also comes home with stories of how much fun he had in band, jokes his teachers/friends told, the rare good cafeteria meal, and an occasional test paper marked with an A or a B.  He's really growing up, and enjoys our church's youth group.  He's reading more now than he ever has in his life, which has me so very happy.  Our relationship is changing, and it's been a struggle for both of us. 
This past weekend was my church's women's retreat, and I am so glad I went.  We had a choice of 5 topic tracks we could follow, and I chose the one on parenting.  Trish gave us a lot to think about, and I'm so glad I took notes because I want to revisit the material regularly.  Basically, the thought I need to carry in my heart and my brain is this:  God specifically designed each of my children exactly the way He needed them to be.  Nothing in their personality is there by mistake, and He's going to use that for His glory.  It's my job to partner with God in shaping and molding my kids and guiding them to the right path.  Those things in them that aggrevate me are there for a reason, and I need to focus on the positive, praise readily, and enjoy them as the blessings from God that they are. 
I want to be much more intentional in my parenting.  To a large extent, I feel like I've been largely reactive, and I want to move to a more proactive approach.  The other Gretchen from church and I have agreed that we are going to hold each other accountable and check on how we are handling our children and our tempers.  So far, I feel that things have been a lot better in that area.
David's hours are still crazy.  He has joined a gym, and goes to work out at night.  I think that's a great thing.  You know the expression, "All work and no play makes David a dull boy."  :)
He enjoys working out, exercise is also a good stress reliever, and David has been mighty stressed.  We both have some more weight to lose, and the gym  and Zumba classes are going to help us make that happen!
Well, I've procrastinated long enough, and it's time for me to get back to my school work.