Lovely Lucid Life March 2023

March. Ugh. You’re cold. You’re dirty. You aren’t my favorite.

I strongly dislike the month of March in New England. It flat out gaslights you. One day it’s 50, the snow has almost melted and you can see your lawn again! Yay, spring is here. NOPE. The next day it’s below freezing and we are having another nor’easter with 6-12 inches of snow. I do love a March snow though…but then that snow melts and everything is just brown, muddy and kind of gross.

I’ve decided this year I’m going to focus on things I’m excited about and stop complaining about how much I dislike March (well besides that above rant, which was perfectly acceptable to set the vibe for this blog post 😂).

My dad is one year cancer free

June of 2021 my father was given a devastating cancer diagnosis with a predicted year to live. 

My father defied all odds and successfully made it through chemo, radiation and major surgery. All CT Scans and bloodwork are looking great. He has recovered well from all his treatments and surgery. He has been cancer free for over a year now.

His diagnosis changed his life, as well as mine. Things like this shake you and wake you up.

Growing up a frequent phrase out of my fathers mouth was, “Come here Nikki, let me teach you something.” I didn’t realize how precious and filled with love those words were until there was a chance he wouldn’t be here to speak them anymore, not only to me but also my children. 

My dad is thriving now, recovering well from his treatments and surgery. He spends his time in the Maine woods around his house and I frequently get texts with videos from him, teaching me something and each one is beautiful. 

Settling into Homeschool

As we approach our last quarter of our first year of homeschool my confidence has improved and we have settled into a comfortable rhythm. I’m loving the fact that I can customize Anika’s math for her and use some fantastic programs like Rightstart Math, Exploring Creation with Mathematics, Life with Fred books and other math resources I stumble upon along the way. I love picking a topic of interest with my kids and doing a deep dive into it, tying various subjects in as we go. This unit study concept has been such a good fit for us. After a trip to the ocean last month and a slight obsession with Sponge Bob Square Pants they developed from watching the hotel TV, we’ve been learning about Marine Biology this month. Yes, I am making Sponge Bob Square Pants educational. It’s possible.

I love this quote by Sarah Therese that I recently heard in A Farmhouse on Boone podcast.

“Homeschooling is tailoring a curriculum to your child instead of tailoring your
child to a curriculum. That is where I have really seen my kids thrive.”
Perfectly sums up my experience with homeschool this year.

Sarah Therese

My Husband’s Youtube Channel

Something I’ve never mentioned on this blog is we own several rental properties. We recently purchased another property and I encouraged my husband to document the renovation of this one, since it’s always so incredible to see the results. If you’d like to see a bit about life beyond what I normally talk about on this blog or if this is something you’ve been curious about taking on in your life, here’s where you can find the videos. I might be biased, but he is pretty funny, even if you have zero interest in renovating an old house.

My son’s birthday

Jacob turns six this March. 😭 I have all the feels. UGH. I made the unwise decision to stumble down the rabbit hole of old photos recently and found this gem of a video. I have watched it repeatedly since. He was barely two at the time of this video, but it 100 percent captures this guys personality still today. Always the negotiator. 🤪

Planning our Next Vacation

Since our South Carolina trip my husband and I were reminded how much we value these travel experience with our kids. Especially now since it’s become so easy to travel with them and we’ve figured out we only need one backpack a piece. We’ve budgeted a set amount of money to spend for the rest of the 2023 year and are brainstorming our next trip, well I am, he’s busy renovating an apartment building 🤣. Any suggestions on great places to travel in the United States with two kids? I’d love to hear them!

Planning for summer and camping 2023!

I’m looking forward to the summer and spending time with family and friends. We are going to have a brand new area to camp in also. I’m already booking our campsites and can’t wait to head out on our first trip of the year with River Taco.

These are some things I’m thinking about this month, that are keeping me grounded and happy as we transition out of March and hopefully soon will be enjoying some beautiful spring weather, green grass and flowers.