• About
  • Speaking
  • Consulting
  • Amber Hinds

  • Journal
  • Press
  • Contact

Amber Hinds

Housewife Challenges, Nantucket Island
/
March 6, 2011

Report Card

I love Sundays, I really do.  But then, it’s hard not to love a day that starts out with Chris letting me sleep in.Saturdays and Sundays, Chris gets up early with Nora and I get to enjoy a bed to myself for a few hours.  He has to put a baby gate at the bottom of the stairs to keep her from coming up to find me, but I am able to sleep uninterrupted past 7am.  This morning when I got out of bed around 9, Nora was running around the living room munching on a waffle and wearing her bathing suit cover up.He said that she picked it out all by herself – she kept saying no to the clothes he got out until he held this up and she said, “Uh-huh, uh-huh!”  It was pretty cute and some how appropriate since it was 50F out today!  I know my friends and family in Texas are probably laughing that I’m excited by 50 degrees, but it really felt like spring.  In fact, it was perfect for a long walk in only a sweatshirt and light jacket.

After Chris went to work, we met my friend Logan and Mr. T for a long walk.  She led the way and I was excited to discover something new.  We ended up walking nearly 8 miles down to Surfside beach.  My legs are super tired now, but it was worth it.  Sometimes I forget just how small our island is; I usually stay in town, at most walking along the harbor.  But today I got to see a little bit of a different shore.  We walked through some new neighborhoods, down Land Bank trails, and across previously undiscovered dunes,almost, but not quite, to the ocean.  I couldn’t help but think that I couldn’t be doing this if I were still in New York…or Texas…or Iowa.This place is so amazing.  This life is just so amazing.

One of the things I’ve been loving lately is Toddler Time at the ECC.  Where we do fun things like make “slime” and arts & crafts, and sing songs and play with other toddlers.

We also went to our very first story time at the library this week, which she loved.I feel so lucky to be able to do these things with Nora.  Most family activities (like these) take place on weekday mornings, and if I had to work, we wouldn’t get to do them together.  I love knowing that I’m the one exposing her to new things, not a babysitter or daycare provider.

That thought was important one for me to hold on to this week, as Chris and I sat down for our bi-monthly review of the budget.  It can be so easy to fall into the “more money” trap: thinking how life would be better, easier with more.  When we pulled up the list of our debt (all student loans and the car, nothing else) we both thought, if I was working we could pay that debt off in two years.  We could easily have decided for me to keep working for another year or two, and it certainly would have put us in a better place financially, but at what cost?  And, after experiencing life with two incomes, it would be that much harder for us to just live off of Chris’ income; right know we only know what we’re missing conceptually.  And in two or three years, I’d have missed out on this:

 

And this:Not to mention, countless hours with Chris on weekday mornings before he goes into work.  So we shelved that thought, and just squeezed our budget tighter to make the most of what we have.  Hopefully someday we can rely on the store, too.  In the meantime, we are scrimping to be able to save for the store and to make an attempt at Dave Ramsey’s Debt Snowball.

And that’s okay, because it feels like we’re accomplishing something.  I may not be doing yoga, and I may only have a mostly clean house, but I am mastering the grocery bill!  And next week I’ll take on something new.

 

 

⇗ Open full size image
0 of 0
TAGS:Report Cards
0 Comments
Share

Leave a Comment Cancel Comment

Recipe Rating




Previous Post
Back to Normal
Next Post
Talking About Birth

Life Right Now

aucoeur

View

Jul 16

9 1
Open
Z was Raja in an Aladdin production through her dance studio @pasgeorgetown this evening and she did such a great job. I loved watching her. She took a year off dance and is getting back into it and you'd barely know she took any time off, plus she had a big smile on her face the whole time - I could tell she was having a ton of fun. ♥️

aucoeur

View

May 29

15 0
Open
What happens when you go on a long weekend trip with only your husband, no kids, and no agenda? 

Lots of walking, cocktails in the middle of the day, singing at a piano bar, and time to write a blog post for the first time in nearly two years. Which I did! 

😮 For real. LOL 😊

Read it at https://amberhinds.com/2022/05/celebrating-15-years/

aucoeur

View

May 28

29 4
Open
Today Chris and I have been married for 15 years. We're celebrating with our first weekend away from children while my mom watches all four girls. We rented an old Victorian from the 1800s near the coast in Galveston, Texas and spent the day at a spa, eating delicious food, walking the beach under the stars, and finished the night with a bottle of bourbon saved from when we lived on Nantucket. I'm not sure I could have asked for a much better day. I even had an oppotunity to get out the lightship basket purse Chris gave me for our 5th anniversary. ♥️

aucoeur

View

Apr 2

6 0
Open
Multitasking between performances at this weekend's dance competition.

Image Alt: open laptop showing the Equalize Digital Accessibility Checker website in the foreground and an empty stage in a crowded auditorium.

aucoeur

View

Mar 13

12 1
Open
We had a cold snap and yesterday we had to get all bundled up for Zara's soccer game. It was 30 degrees and, despite these pictures, Vivi's patience for being out there did not last long. Tomorrow it's supposed to be 80 degrees and we're really looking forward to warmth again.

By the way, my awesome gaiter came from our client @isacattostudio. Isa paints patterns and makes really beautiful textiles and notebooks with her patterns. ♥️ her work and team.
  • Start Reading
  • Explore Topics
  • Get in Touch
  • Subscribe

COPYRIGHT © 2020 AMBER HINDS. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. Site Powered by Pix & Hue.