Merry Christmas!

 We have been done with Christmas for a few days but being on Holiday break I haven't gotten a blog post up! 

The boys had Christmas with me on the morning of the 25th and then we headed SW to Lakin for the Stiles Christmas. For Christmas Daryl got the basketball shoes he wanted, some football player cards to open, new clothes and a squishmallow! Alex got a Nintendo Switch, clothes, a switch game and a squishmallow for himself. I was surprised how excited they were for the squishmallows that are animal shaped pillows. They are very comfy! 

In Lakin they got to hang out with almost all of their cousins. They went bowling, played video games and stayed up way past bedtime! They are pros about the five hour drive to Aunt Sofia's house. They have learned to just take a nap! 

I hope everyone had a happy and healthy holiday. Time to ring in the new year! (almost) 

Grandma Hugs are the best! 

Henry is a very good bowler! 

I kinda love the mess after everything has been opened. 

The boys got me a great sign!

He has been waiting on a "game system" for my house for awhile. 

The dark horse of Christmas gifts. The Squishmallows were a hit. 

The 2022 Christmas Card!

 Most of our holiday cards are probably at their destination, so I'm super excited to show our holiday photos! Ken Doll did them for us this year, and I wanted to get dressy with the boys. I think they turned out great! 

I wanted to get professional photos done this year anyway because it is Daryl's last year of middle school. I don't know if anyone else still does this, but when I was growing up we had 8th grade graduation pictures and senior graduation pictures. Of course, the high school graduation pictures were more extensive. But we had a professional do both. 

So, enjoy our "Meerpohl Classy Christmas," card. LOL The boys were really good sports and got dressed up with no complaint. And Alex has already worn his outfit again for his band concert. :-) 

All dressed up, just for fun! 

Aren't they handsome! 

Daryl's 8th grade portrait. 

Alex's 5th grade! His eyes are now more gray than anything else. 

This year's card rivals one of my favorites. 2013
when "Daryl" hung Alex on the wall!

Alex's First Band Concert!

 Last night was Alex's first band concert. At the start of 5th grade he selected the Trumpet and he is doing really well with it! We were treated to such hits as Hot Cross Buns and Mary Had a Little Lamb. Their music teacher also had some of the youth teach us about their instruments and Alex got to have a speaking part. 

He did so good, I couldn't stop smiling. It was hard to see him on the 3rd row, so I was that annoying parent that stood up off to the side so I could get a good video of my Al! 

Way to go buddy! 

Trip Details/Get You A Travel Agent

 I have been home for almost a week and I am ready to go back to the all inclusive resort lifestyle! Having someone come in every afternoon and make my bed and clean my bathroom, that isn't happening at Meerpohl Manor. 

Here are some details for those of you that would like to do a friends trip without the hassle of being the travel agent. Get you a travel agent! I used Nicole from Fun First Travel  and she was great. It was perfect to have her set up the trip because she collected all the information for flights and travel from everyone, including payment. That way none of us was left holding the balance and she was keeping us on track before the trip. 

She started with a short phone call asking me what type of trip I was looking for and my budget and sent me 4 resorts that matched what I wanted. She said if none of those worked she would find some more. We chose Cancun Breathless Resort and it was a relaxing place to stay. One thing I noticed was a lot of other guests were in time share meetings and being escorted by resort staff to different things. I talked to one of these couples in the elevator and they didn't want a time share but they booked online themselves and somewhere they selected they would do this for some free spa credits. They asked me about my stay and I said I wasn't doing any of that and that I used a travel agent to book.  

Another great part about booking this way is flights, resort and travel insurance were all included in our price. We paid around $1,400 for a five day vacation. On top of that I did one excursion to Chichen Itza to see the Mayan ruins and swim in a senote. Then I just had to pay for whatever souvenirs I wanted and tips for drivers and servers. All our food and drinks at the resort were included. 

So gather your friends and family and go on a vacation. But if you don't want the headache of doing all the planning, get a travel agent. I recommend mine highly! (She does cruises too, and I curse my motion sickness because they look great!) 

I want one of these ladies for my  porch! I loved her!

My birthday cake delivered by room service, the paper
was not edible! LOL 

My daily breakfast crepe! Bananas and Nutella for the win. 
The pineapple was also wonderful, ate it many times a day!

Sofia glowing after a massage and facial at the resort spa!

We spent 2.5 days at the resort just doing all there activities including kayaking, sailing, exercise classes, games, and a nightly theme party. There was also lots of time just relaxing by the pool! 

November Goal Update

 November was a great month! Any month that ends with a week in Mexico at an all inclusive resort is going to be a good one. Made progress on my goals. Work had a lot going on, but it all got done. So yay for that! 

I turned 40 on Wednesday, and it was a good day. Aging doesn't bother me, I lost my dad when he was 44 so I take every year I can get. My kids are healthy, my dog loves me, my home is not that messy and the people that love me and I love are a phone call/text away. I don't say blessed because that implies my life is an accident.  I have stayed focused and worked hard to build this life that I'm enjoying. I do have the privilege of where I was born. That is the accident part, I guess. So, I don't know what that is called but that is what I am. :-) 

Thank you to all who took the time to say Happy Birthday to me. I enjoyed remembering how everyone has come into my life. I got a lot of laughs in the airport thinking of you all! 

Now for the year goals. We only got one month left! 

Read 21 Books: 18/21

I finished two books on vacation! Granted one was 3/4 of the way done but I started and finished a second. That is the type of vacation I like, lots of reading time! When I take the boys I don't usually get that. LOL 

The first book I read this month was a thriller! The Butcher and the Wren was a book I learned about from the Morbid podcast. It was really well written and a page turner. Exactly what I look for in a fiction read. If you don't like murder, don't read this book. Got it from the library, check it out! 

The second book I read was the sequel to It Ends With Us, that I read last month. It's title is It Begins with Us. It's a love story. It will give you unrealistic expectations about how romantic a man can be. LOL But it was a good beach read. Which is handy because I read it on the beach! If you like sappy romance, read both of these books. :-) 

Run 720 Miles: 673/720

I got 58 miles this month. I made it to the gym when it got cold so I'm proud of myself for that. I really should make the running goal this year. That is exciting because I missed the mark last year. 

Money Goals: Got the Mortg principle down by my yearly goal and then some! 

Add 2K to Savings, Done Feb 2022 

Pay Mortg. principle down 5K, Done Nov. 2022

New Living Room Furniture (Home), Done Feb 2022

Replace Some Windows (Home) 

Replace Window Blinds (Home) 

Create Backyard Oasis (Home) 

Trips: 3/3 Done Nov. 2022 

Took the 3rd trip this month. Went to Mexico to celebrate my 40th birthday in warmer weather. It was amazing! I will post about that trip next with details of what we did and where we stayed. 

Got my three trips for the year: Vegas/Zion National Park, Washington DC and Mexico!! 

Days I hit all of my Daily Habits: 12

I did really good until the week of Thanksgiving. Then I just stopped. I will start again today! Yesterday was sunk with trying to recover from vacation. I'm changing my low sugar goal to don't shop for myself goal. It's the holidays and I want cookies. Lol

This picture is payback for the video my sister posted. Lol

Not my morning view anymore. LOL 

How I prefer to read! 

Mexico Birthday!

 Blogging by phone, please ignore the typos. I talked five other ladies into leaving their families the day after Thanksgiving to spend 5 days in Cancun. We had so much fun soaking in the sun and warmer weather. I heard it was 17° in Topeka today. Getting out of the airport in a few hours will not be fun!

When my sister's boss asked her why she was going to Mexico she said, my baby sister is a little extra on her birthday. You bet I am, and she had a great time too! 

I'll post more later when I'm at my computer. But I knew this would be a two picture post!! 

Middle School Soccer!

 Last year Daryl played soccer just to be with his football buddies. At the start of this year he told me he wasn't going to play soccer this year. So imagine my surprise when a day before practice starts he decides he is going to play.

I think he has had four games, because of a class I've been teaching on Wednesdays I have made it to two and we have had a couple of cancellations. I did see a win this Monday! Had to sit in the cold and rain, but they were playing the best I've ever seen them play. That made it worth it. 

I can't wait for Basketball season, it is temperature controlled! PS-It is officially cold here, and I don't like it! 

Soccer in the rain, fun times...

Fall Chores

 The way this seems to be going, I will be in the market for a gutter guard in 8 years. My current gutter cleaners are very affordable. They just want Freddy's for dinner! Got them back at 4 today, with the time change, I didn't want it to be too dark for our task. All I do is move the ladder. They take care of the rest! 

I stole them away on Saturday night too for 4-H Achievement night. I loved sitting in the crowd and enjoying the program. The fact that Daryl or Alex wanted to talk almost the entire was a little annoying. Some people's kids! 

I hope everyone had a good weekend, now we get to go to work in the dark and come home in the dark, Yay us. (sarcasm) 

October Goal Update

 October was a month of focus for me. I took my daily habits seriously and it felt great to fill in so many blocks. My running mileage is creeping back up and I love the sense of accomplishment I get after a long run. I need to sign up for a race soon to keep my motivation up! 

Last weekend the weather was beautiful so the boys and I hiked Burnet's Mound. We got a little turned around coming back but it was fun!

Going to try and keep my focus this month and be better about having the boys do their reading time too. I've been too lax recently with them. We will get back at it in November!

Read 21 Books: 16/21

This month I read the fiction books It End With Us and Home Before Dark. It Ends With Us has been on the best seller list for awhile and I was finally able to get it from the library. It was really good and a quick read to boot. I think i finished it in a week. 

Home Before Dark was a scary book and i didn't like reading it alone at night! It jumped between two timelines, and when that is done well I love it. Between the two I would probably recommend this one more because of the twists and turns all the way to the last page!

Run 720 Miles: 615/720

My goal this month was 60 miles and I got 71! Those 6-7 mile long runs really make the difference. I'm going to keep slowly increasing while my hip feels good. 

Money Goals: blinds purchased, now im just waiting for help to install them. 

Add 2K to Savings, Done Feb 2022 

Pay Mortg. principle down 5K

New Living Room Furniture (Home), Done Feb 2022

Replace Some Windows (Home) 

Replace Window Blinds (Home) 

Create Backyard Oasis (Home) 

Trips: 2/3

Holding pattern here. 

Days I hit all of my Daily Habits: 20!

I hit all my goals for 20 days! My water goal was what sunk me more than my low sugar goal. Proud of my progress and I'm going to go from 9,000 steps a day to 9,100. Slowly creeping to 10,000.

New Daily Goals: 9,100 steps, 8 cups of water, read 15 minutes, 10 min tidy up and low sugar. 

For Halloween the boys were Naruto and scary clown

It's already Oct. 27th, What?!

This month has FLOWN by. I don't think we have had our typical October, but we have had a full month! Daryl had a middle school dance, Alex has been killing it at school and I have had many work events including Annual Conference in Manhattan. 

This felt like a "normal" conference and I really enjoyed seeing my friends from all over the state. There are a lot of new faces in Extension but I'm excited that they are here! This year I got my 10 year recognition, but that's only because they don't count my year and a half as office professional. So I was a little surprised, I was celebrating 10 years last year! 

Since I haven't posted in a month random fire updates; Daryl decided he is playing soccer, We took family pictures and I'm anxiously awaiting the results, had a wonderful Fall KC Beer crawl last weekend, I've bought blinds but not hung them and I'm killing my daily goals! 

We didn't decorate this year, but bring on Halloween anyway! 

Enjoying all he good weather we can get! 

This flight was from Casual Animal 

Don't get me wrong, the KC Bier Co beer was good,
but this Brawt was the star of the day! 

September Goal Update

Had really nice weekend with the boys, it was the right mix of activity and relax time. On Friday night we went to a movie on the lawn at Daryl's school. Hocus Pocus 2 was the movie and since I don't have Disney streaming I told the boys, we are going, no option. LOL! 

On Saturday I took a car full of trading card enthusiasts to Ottawa for a card show. Daryl and his friend were after sports cards and Alex was hunting Pokemon cards. They enjoyed it! 

KU also won another football game and it is also looking good for the Chiefs! We will call this weekend a win. 

Read 21 Books: 14 /21

This month I read the fiction book Rich People Problems by Kevin Kwan. It read like reality television so....I was a fan! He wrote Crazy Rich Asians so he knows how to be entertaining and keep people reading. There was so much drama going on, I enjoyed every chapter! 

Run 720 Miles: 550/720

I'm feeling much better and the weather is perfect for running! I was able to get 60 miles this month and I did slack off last week. Cool weather is great for running but it is also great for sleeping in! The struggle is real. The goal is right on track. 

Money Goals: Made another interest only payment. I also saved the money to get the blinds but have yet to purchase or install. Maybe I can get that done in Spooky month! 

Add 2K to Savings, Done Feb 2022 

Pay Mortg. principle down 5K

New Living Room Furniture (Home), Done Feb 2022

Replace Some Windows (Home) 

Replace Window Blinds (Home) 

Create Backyard Oasis (Home) 

Trips: 2/3

Holding pattern here. 

Days I hit all of my Daily Habits: 15

I was happy with how I did with my goals. More often the not the one I didn't get was 10 min. tidy up. Being out of town for a week for work didn't help that goal. But it's a new month and I'm going to challenge myself a little more. See if I can still hit 15 ;-) 

New Daily Goals: 9,000 steps, 8 cups of water, read 15 minutes, 10 min tidy up and low sugar. Wish me luck! 

Not terrible...

Had the boys build a pyramid at the movie!

Purl doesn't believe she is getting enough exposure on the blog