will the ladybug ever get her groove back?

i just can't seem to find my blogging groove after this summer's long hiatus ... the habit of coming here and sitting down to 'journal' my days seems to have left me and i'm not really sure why ... is it because i can't find the time?  yes.  is it because there's really nothing all that interesting to say?  yes.  is it because i'm in that school-routine rut that dogs me several times a year?  yes.

but that's actually about to change.  like this weekend.  i'll have nothing but news starting next week!  this weekend is one of those monster weekends that we've been anticipating for quite some time.  initially, the date was circled because saturday will mark my big ladybug's very first bar mitzvah.  a black-tie evening bar mitzvah with an all-night dinner/dancing party at a country club afterwards.  without her parents with her.  pick up isn't until midnight (gasp!).  this will be the first formal event she's attended as a 'big girl' - and she absolutely. can't. wait.  the dress.  the hair.  the makeup.  the tiny kitten heels.  what a big day for her - i see the anticipation in her eyes, in her giggly conversations with her girlfriends, in her focus ... and i'm so happy for her.  of course, as you read in my previous post about letting go, this will be a bittersweet night for me - i'll just have to swallow the lump in my throat and beam with pride over my beautiful budding teenager ... because truly, i really am so so happy for her!

this saturday also marks the official start of the skating season for us - and although i dread all those saturday morning hours freezing my butt off at the rink, this season should be a great one ... at the very end of last season, little ladybug advanced into the much-coveted 2nd hour of group lessons.  the hour where the big kids skate (intermediate to advanced, mostly teenagers and nearly all compete in the new england circuit).  she's just ten and she's thrilled to be joining her sister and all of the older kids in that 2nd hour - it's a big deal to have left the cozy nest of the 1st hour (tots through early intermediate, mostly kids who simply learn how to skate and then leave the program).  but what does it all mean for me?  no more crowded 8:30 skating hour!  wahoo - saturdays can be all about sleeping in and hot breakfasts again!!  a double win if you ask me ;-)

this weekend is also parent-teacher conferences, which means no school for the girls either friday or monday - a four-day weekend!  do you see how it's all adding up to make a highly anticipated weekend for the ladybugs?  well, just you buckle up now ... there's also one more huge reason for the ladybugs to celebrate ... a furry, black, 7-week old, adorable, 2-pound reason ...

image via pinterest

yes, this weekend has indeed turned into the perfect storm for the ladybugs ... a four-day weekend, skating resumes, a first bar mitzvah ... and a PUPPY?!?!

it's true ... yikes!

just hope i'll still be a functional enough 'new mom' on monday to retell the stories ...