Our Final Pinewood Derby for the @STLBSA...

Despite my blog being more St. Louis/Real Estate-centered, I have ironically received numerous emails and feedback regarding our family Pinewood Derby Cars via last year's blog post including a ton of pins on Pinterest!  Super fun.  The kind words have been truly appreciated, as we have always thoroughly enjoyed creating the cars with our boys and making their visions come to life.

This year was our final Pinewood Derby.  Reed went out in style...

Our little guy has always been more about design than speed (see the post I wrote last year with a timeline of our former cars).  Well this year, his creativity really paid off. 

While he only stole 4th in the actual race...

... he snagged the Judge's Special Award for Best Design in the entire pack for his "Dinner for 2" car!  Hooray!

Happy Webelo... 

... and the perfect way to celebrate our final year of Cub Scout fun!

Holiday check-in...

My poor blog has been the unfortunate victim of SERIOUS holiday neglect.  I apologize, friends.  

It goes without saying that holiday frenzy and my annual 4th quarter preparation for the upcoming 2013 business year is in full swing at Casa de Nenonen.  Add in a large dose of international travel for Steve, 3 active Buyers, and the boys' busy lives... it makes for a wonderfully "active" Nenonen November. ;) Regardless, I truly apologize for my post inconsistency!

Did everyone have a lovely holiday?  All was swell here in our house!  We kicked off the week with the 26th Annual Boyscout of America Scouting for Foods event.... 

This 1 day food drive, that happens to be the largest in the country, is a busy day for families of Scouts in the St. Louis Metropolitan area.  Regardless of the economy, St. Louis was super generous this year resulting in well over 2 million items that will stock over 500 local food pantries.  Scouting For Foods is an event that we are always proud to partake in as a family as it directly touches and enriches the lives of locals who need it the most at a crucial time of year.  Bravo to the Area Council!

Per the actual holiday, ours was intimate and casual this year- the perfect day.  A peek...

Yes, you can all take comfort in the fact that the family Realtor totally DOMINATED St. Louisopoly, thank you very much! ;)

The following AM, I signed us up for the annual Town & Country Turkey Trot 5K at one of our favorite local spots... 

2012 has most definitely been a year of wellness for both me and Steve.  Between the 2 of us, we have recommitted to our health, working out 5-7 days/week and cleaning up our diets quite a bit.  The icing on the cake, despite feeling great?  Collectively we have lost over the equivalent of the weight of this guy since June...

(as shocking as that is to think about) 

Anyhoo, unfortunately thanks to a serious sports injury that I have been battling (and strict doctor's orders), I was forced to cheer my guys on my the sidelines ala....

 

*sigh*.

It is what it is. 

 

Regardless, they ROCKED!  Steve finished his first 5K, no problem in under 30 minutes, and the boys persevered...

All in all, a busy yet great week. 

One can't help but be a tad sentimental and sappy this time of year, but truly, I have so much to be thankful for.  2012 has been a wonderful year for me, both personally and professionally.  I have given a lot, and in return, have received a lot.

As another set of Buyers draws to a close in this coming week, I find myself reflecting on my personal life journey.  I currently work with the most adorable couple, soon expecting their first baby and purchasing their very first home together.  There is nothing like picking the future bedroom for a baby you carry in womb.  It truly is a heartfelt, emotional purchase.  Their excitement and anticipation has been so fun to witness and experience, mostly because I have been there, done that- long ago. 

As Reed and Parker round the corner of another school year and we prepare one for High School (eek!) and the other for Middle School (ack!), I find myself wondering where the time went?!  To watch them evolve and grow has been exciting yet painful. 

The bittersweet journey of parenthood.

I can't help but look at this young couple with warmth in my heart of the incredible journey that they have before them.  In addition,  I feel blessed to be part of finding the perfect house to act as the stage for THEIR story together.

Most of us rush through daily life, business as usual.  It is when you pause and reflect time-to-time, however, that you absorb how magical it has been...

BSA- Pinewood Derby Time

Yes, it is that time of year again...

Pinewood   Derby   Time!

Parents of Cub Scouts everywhere are scrambling to sand, paint, and weight this year's Pinewood Derby car.  Some Packs see trends of more emphasis on speed.   Other Packs?  It is all about design, thus producing deliciously creative interpretations of everything from a hot dog to a sea creature.  Our Pack, #631, sees a decent mix of the two.

The not-knowing-what-to-expect aspect of Pinewood morning is my absolute FAVORITE PART!   For some parents, Pinewood is a super competitive endeavor about angles and speed tricks.  Steve and I have always viewed it as pure fun, helping the boys to create their vision.  Regardless, gathering to see their peers show off their hard work is always a treat for the kids.

Late last night as Steve and I attached wheels and put the parental finishing touches on Reed's 2012 Pinewood Derby car, I paused and couldn't believe that this is the ELEVENTH CAR we have completed between he and Parker.

My babies are growing up. =(

Sometimes you have to to stop and reflect to realize how far you have come (note our school photos and Halloween costumes).   I thought that it would be fun to take a walk through Nenonen Pinewood Derby's Past...

Prior to getting  ill, my dad was extremely involved in the boys' Pinewood cars.  More skilled in woodworking, weighting, and aerodynamics... my dad assisted Parker in the design of his first 3 cars.  It was "their thing" and ultimately resulted in decent placement with traditional design.

During those years, he also assisted Reed, 2 years younger, in designing cars to race in the non-Scout competition.  Reed brought on an interesting trend in Casa de Nenonen as rather than a red or yellow car,  he asked for a "Bat Mobile".  The next year, he desired a "man eating alligator"- note the feet.  So began the Nenonen quest for creativity over speed...

The next year was Reed's first official year in Scouts.  Requesting a pig, my dad assisted him in designing and carving this one out of balsam wood.  Sadly, this was my dad's last Pinewood involvement, though he went out with a bang! The piggy shocked us by not only placing but becoming a crowd favorite!  Piggy invited a lot of  "oinking"  as he tore down the track. ;-) 

That year, Parker decoupaged the scan of a $100 bill, painted the side to look like a stack, and thought to ask the bank for a real money band.  Love this car!   The penny, however, was a band-aid.  During a last minute on-site weighting effort, the top was accidentally drilled through.  Ack!  Oops.

For Parker's last year, he opted to make it look like he didn't do a car at all, covering his with the Pinewood Derby Kit  box.  Steve worked closely with Reed that year and their final interpretation of Reed's requested "tree branch with a birds nest" was absolute genius in my opinion.  They utilized a real log that they retrofitted over the car.  I was not the only one charmed by this car, as Reed took Best in Pack that year.

Last year, Reed stated "I am thinking a coffin that opens maybe with a vampire in it".  If you know Reed, that is exactly the way he talks.  Go big or go home, I suppose.  Ha ha.   Ultimately, he did most of the work, lining the coffin with satin and and painting it himself.   It also became a crowd favorite as Steve managed to add sound effects.  The coffin cackled evilly when you opened it.

That brings us to this year.  Reed's vision?  Tom Sawyer's raft.  This is what he came up with after gathering sticks, painting, a trip to the hobby shop, and 6 sticks of hot glue...

Tomorrow is the race!  We'll see how it goes and then only 1 year left... =(

It's beginning to look a lot like winter...

I walked into the kitchen this AM,  peering out on to the deck to see this...

As winter sets in, so does the holiday hustle and bustle of parties and gatherings with friends, holiday decor and music, rounding up special gifts of sentiment for those whom your love, and general frenzy as kiddies complete the 1st half of the school year and head into a long-awaited winter hiatus.

Tis the season, indeed.

Personally, over the past few weeks, we hosted a lovely Thanksgiving for friends and family (Reed helped me get the table ready)....

We shared in the heartfelt nuptials of dear friends of ours.  Note their uber cool, mod cake compliments of Sugaree...

I was also SHOCKED by the wedding party caricature gift they surprised us with! Hysterical...

As a Webelo, Reed participated in another successful Scouting for Foods campaign...

I welcomed my 38th birthday, with a couple of very low-key gatherings with friends/family...

We made our annual trek to Meert's Tree Farm and chopped down a stunning Norwegian Spruce to enjoy for the holiday season...

We also snuck in a few evenings like this as a family, as the temperature plummeted...

Professionally, my busy pace continues into the 12 month of the year, and I have never felt SO humbled and thankful!   This time of  year, particularly in this market, proves to be difficult for the bulk of Realtors.  A heartfelt THANK YOU to my dear friends, family, and clients for not only allowing me the opportunity to represent them... but for passing my name along to their own friends and family! 

Over the past 2 weeks, my Buyers have written and gotten accepted contracts on #2701 Louisiana...

and a condo unit at  #14308 Conway Meadows Ct... 

I continue to work with 3 other active Buyers, still on the hunt for "the one" and have 3 Sellers who  hurriedly prepare their homes to list with me in the New Year.

In my opinion, the holidays are the ideal time to stop, reflect, and examine where you are both personally and professionally.  Time to give thanks for what worked over the past year, and make plans to change what didn't work.  The fact is, I have worked harder than I ever had this year and wholeheartedly dedicated myself to both my family and real estate as I never had in the past.  The hard work paid off.  Sitting now at the hind end of 2011, I feel that I have achieved a healthy balance in home and work.  I love them both dearly.  The juggle is not always easy, but the success feels wonderful. 

It is true, that with wrinkles comes wisdom.  My 38th year brought a lot of conviction in who I am and where I need to focus my energy to be happy and fulfilled.  My 10 year anniversary in Real Estate brings solace in the fact that I love my job, wild /wacky twists & turns and all, and could never imagine myself doing anything else.

The Arch: Now you see it, now you don't

Yesterday, my eldest spent his day downtown at the Old Courthouse earning a badge for boy scouts. He texted me this eerie photograph of the Arch. I had to share...

Way to go Greater St. Louis BSA!

Yesterday during the 26th annual St. Louis Scouting for Food campaign, the largest one day food drive in the United States, local scout troops (aided by their leaders, families, and friends) helped to feed the hungry throughout our region, collecting over 2.1 million cans of food.

Truly, TRULY something to be proud of.

My boys at their fire station site:
If the Scouts missed your bag, or if you would like to make a donation of canned goods, all Regions Bank locations will accept donations through Saturday, Nov. 27.