February 2026 Recap

February…. did February actually happen?? I feel unsure. Ha. It went by so fast and in such a blur!!

I hesitated to even do this recap, because as I mentioned in another recent post, my month can basically be summed up by:

Need I say more? Well, yes, I always need to say more. 😆

Really, swimming totally dominated this month, though. The State meet is over now and Asher’s season finally came to a close on Sunday. Truth be told, I am READY for a break from swimming now! Even though I truly love swim season.

There are 3 weekends between now and our spring break and I am delighted to say I have no real plans on any of them. Which is good, because I need some time to catch up some things I’ve been neglecting. (AND some things I need to do/ want to do before spring break! The boys definitely I think need a few updated warm-weather wardrobe items, I’d really like to maybe snag a new sundress or two, etc.)

February was a month where I’d say I “treaded water” a bit in terms of goals and habits. I did okay, all things considered. I’d say I kept the wheels spinning in forward momentum overall. Big progress on many things “extra”- no.

I’ll admit it was a bit of a downer coming off my Very Productive January. I think I was thinking I could maintain that pace! Yeah, no. Haha. But that’s okay. I should know better, anyway!

February’s focus was primarily Asher and the peak of swim season. That’s where my attention needed to lie, and that’s where it did. 🙂

Accomplish List:

• helped both boys figure out their course selections for next year, including a lovely “dinner date” with Ethan to discuss options
• babysat my niece and nephew one afternoon
• an on-site work meeting
• FINALLY got a new laptop and 2nd monitor set up!!! This has been game changer. I cannot believe I waited this long.
• helped host 3 swim team breakfasts on 3 consecutive Saturdays (including cooking 30 eggs one week)
• made 2 Valentine’s Day desserts to take to a Super Bowl party
• dealt with a big work challenge + prepped/ led 2 big quarterly meetings mid-month
• attended a swim board meeting
• took Ivan to the airport at 5 am one day, and picked him up at 10:50 pm another day
• went to a physical with a new PCP
• cleaned the house
• went on a full day “college tour day” with Ethan to UWM and Marquette University
• worked four 10 hour days one week (to allow for the Monday college tour day off…)
• attended a pre-season golf meeting with Asher
• worked late with a colleague and submitted a project abstract for consideration for 2 different conferences
• Ethan took the ACT exam
• went to swim meets every weekend: Conference (Middleton), Sectionals (Verona), high school State (Waukesha), club Regionals (McFarland) AND FINALLY, club State for 3 nights in Milwaukee. Whew.
• volunteered as a Timer at Regionals
• did a massive email clean out
• attended Asher’s swim banquet on a Tuesday night
• decluttered our main pantry cabinet and another cabinet
• signed Ethan up for tennis, did the golf paperwork/ uniform order for Asher
• scheduled a haircut before spring break! (thanks to my Q1 planning for putting that reminder on my calendar back in January…)
• did a bunch of travel planning, researching, and booking of various things
• took Asher shopping for a new swimsuit and some golf shorts

Happy/ Gratitude List:

• an empty grocery store on an early morning grocery run!
• some warmer weather + more enjoyable walks
• post- volleyball drinks at a new bar/restaurant
• that my gym is SO close to home
• some great swims from Asher all month, qualifying for both high school and club State
• the Olympics!! Such a highlight this month. I really watched a lot.
• the feeling of getting a couple Virgin Islands excursions booked and crossing that off the list. Also, I’m excited about what I booked.
• hot tub soaks
• my Valentine’s Day desserts were cute!
• being DONE with this round of these quarterly work meetings. Relief.
• I liked my new NP
• Chipotle dinner with Asher and chatting while Ivan was away in Mexico
• a night with an early bedtime
• fun time at the swim team party + Old Fashioneds
• meeting up with my parents x2 for dinner when in the area for swim meets
• Ivan home safe and sound from Mexico
• that our family in Mexico was all safe with the recent chaos and violence there
• Asher’s new State sweatshirt looks cool! He loves it.
• fun and exciting Olympic victories for some amazing U.S. athletes
• Asher getting the club State cut in the 50 fly in a time trial!
• my baggy navy blue Nike sweatpants which are just soooo comfy
• the swim banquet was so well done. The athlete and coach speeches were so touching.
• no snow/weather issues with all the driving around for swim meets!
• my job being flexible enough that I could flex my hours Friday to unexpectedly attend a Friday morning swim meet session
• team meals + socializing with parents at the State meet
• a RELAXING weekend at the hotel with ample alone time/ down time which I felt like I really needed
• we trialed Charlie at Ivan’s cousin’s house overnight as a possible dog sitter and it went great! If we can skip boarding and send him there, it will be an incredible $$ saver for us- and I think Charlie will be happier, too. (They have 3 dogs (and with their varied work schedules, a human is often home), so he fits right in! Ivan’s cousin is the most chill and generous guy ever and they were like, SERIOUSLY, do not pay to board him- let us watch him!!)

Bummer List

• *unbloggables…. 🙃
• work stress re: redoing a bunch of work at the last minute
• feeling very busy
• missing several days of workouts mid-month- just sort of dropped off on everything for a bit. Fortunately, I righted the ship relatively quickly.
• TOTALLY missing my “non-negotiable goal” of hitting 8,000 steps every single day in February… I was actually terrible about keeping my watch charged! Try again for March?!
• I burned some rice!!
• reading life has been super weak. (I have been kind of slogging through “The Case Against Sugar” by Gary Taubes, which I started in January in an effort to motivate myself to keep reducing my soda intake. It’s interesting, but it’s not particularly… engaging. It’s rather dry/ academic-like. I hate to DNF books… but it’s taking me forever… (February had fewer-than-typical morning reading sessions, too, for various reasons, which is when I typically read a few pages of non-fiction).
• more unbloggable things re: 1 of the kids/ a complicated “situation”
• a few nights of very poor sleep
• did basically nothing at all to celebrate Valentine’s Day (Ivan was in Mexico) besides little gifts for the kids. (Not actually a huge bummer- I don’t really care.)
• feeling like we’re hemorrhaging $$ this month 😫. Just every time I turn around, there’s some big expense, something extra, a big bill, extra kid/ sports expenses, etc etc……
• more unbloggable things… 🙂
• Asher DQed on his 100 fly, after a great race at State!
• Asher not thrilled about the rest of his swims at State. Not unexpected after so many consecutive weeks of racing, really, but he just felt flat and wasn’t super happy.

Habits/Intentions:

Days I read a book= 8 (womp womp….)

Books I completed= 1! Remarkably Bright Creatures! Old news, I know, but I finally read it. Loved it!

Times I read my Bible = 1 (womp womp again….)

Times I went to church= 1……..

Days I walked outside= 23! yay, not bad.

Days I flossed teeth/ did skin care= 28!!! YAY!!

Strength trained= 8 times (NOT at goal… but not terrible. (Goal = 3x/week, I guess I averaged twice.)

Cardio= 8 (also not at goal, same as strength)

Yoga/ stretch= 1 (very weak)

Days I had sufficient protein at all 3 meals/ day= ??? Not sure. Kind of fell off tracking this exactly. I DEFINITELY still prioritized protein on the whole, just not quite as good about tracking it as in January. Overall, feeling fine about my diet at the moment.

Times I cleaned out my email inbox = 3

Times I did a Monarch Money update= 2 (*Currently BEHIND on managing and updating this- which does not feel great; see above Bummer about “hemorrhaging money!” Need to catch this all up this weekend. Feels a little fuzzy and unclear right now and I don’t like that!)

Upcoming in March!

Shockingly, when I look back at the long list of “Upcoming in February” things (from last recap post), I basically did ALL OF THEM! Wow. Minus the kitchen declutter + getting to a Lenten service (-> VB games have been in the way Wednesday nights).

Looking ahead to March (from today on), we really only have 3 weeks until we leave for spring break (St. Thomas + St. John!). I have a feeling March will go pretty fast, too.

Thankfully, there’s not a ton of big events on the calendar between now and then. (But it will be plenty!)

🔷 a haircut appt.

🔷 order Ivan’s birthday gift (I know what I’m getting! Just need to sit down and order. VERY SOON.)

🔷spring break prep! (Clothing inventory must happen. Do kids need shorts? Do I need shorts?? 🤔Anyone need sandals? I want a pedicure before we go, too.)

🔷 attending a fancy Living Donor Kidney gala next week for work on Thursday night (the color theme is orange, for the Donate Life color. Thankfully, I just happen to own a burnt orange cocktail dress that I wore to a wedding a couple summers ago! Score.)

🔷Ivan’s 45th birthday on March 11th!

🔷 do taxes

🔷St. Patrick’s Day?? (We do not usually celebrate. But you know what, I own a shamrock scarf. We went to Ireland this year. Maybe I should wear it and we should plan to go out for a beer?)

🔷A BUNCH of work stuff. (Work = stressing me out a bit right now. I have a million things to do before our trip, and some big things coming up right after our trip… gah. 😫)

🔷Daylight savings time, more daylight, and just the general feel that SPRING IS ON THE HORIZON! hurray!!!!

🔷my bone mineral density test ✅(actually done today already. Very curious to know the results…)

🔷A nice, long spring break in the Virgin Islands!!!!!!!! yesssssssssssssssss. 🏝️☀️🍹Can. not. wait.

Do you celebrate St. Patrick’s Day? Are you going anywhere for spring break??

Daily Gratitude:

I am grateful for various signs of spring!! I put up my spring wreath the other day and declared it officially spring at our house. Haha.