around here: week 27 2020

  

 

 

My mom's collection of Bosson heads

Enjoying... a visit from my mom!  She brought her dog Juno, who is a Pomsky (Pomeranian/Husky mix) and we had so much fun.  Grady and Juno are best friends, which is the greatest, and Carly adores Juno.  We did a fire one night and enjoyed smores.  The next day we got lunch out and ate it a park. The first park my kids have been to since last fall! While we were there I was yelling at Wyatt to share and the only other little boy there walked over to me and said, "That's my name, too. Wyatt.  That's my name, too." haha! I felt bad for yelling at Wyatt then, thinking maybe I terrified the poor kid.  

After lunch at the park we took the kids to the store for the first time since the pandemic started so we could get all three boys swim trunks for our new pool.  Also while she was here, mom watched the little kids while I took the twins to the eye doctor and all the kids while I went to the dentist.  Basically, it was a very busy trip, but we squeezed in as much fun as possible. 

Enduring... pain after my dentist appointment and worrying that it would put off my trip to Vancouver, but after talking with my dentist after hours (thank you Dr. Collette!) and waiting it out over night, it went away!! Hallelujah!

Setting out... on my kid-free adventure for three days as Josh liberated me to go see my parents and my high school bestie Brittany.  He's seriously the best, and it was the loveliest break. Ever. 

Even the drive was amazing.  It was so quiet and I got to listen to my audio books and music, alternating, and even sing along if I wanted without anyone groaning with embarrassment.  (#middleschoolmom) 

Relishing... every minute of free time at my parents house.  I took a nap the day I got there and ended up sleeping from 3:30 until 7:30!!! I watched way too many episodes of Grey's Anatomy (I.am.hooked!) and journaled in their gorgeous, green backyard.  I love my dad's yards because they always have lots of variety, and the plants are like home to me.  The climate is so different where I live now that being among the trees and rhododendrons and ferns brings me back to my childhood.  Also, he has this bush in the front yard that smells so good, it's ridiculous. I legit stopped to smell it every single time I passed. 

I enjoyed dinner with my parents both nights (they ordered in chinese food one night, and Red Lobster the next. Yum!) and had lots of fun visiting with my little brother and his girlfriend when they stopped by. (Will I ever not call him my little brother? He's nearly 30. Hah!) 

Shopping... at Goodwill with masks with mom and having so much fun.  Shopping sans children is simply the BEST.  I got to peruse all the books (my personal favorite) and also found some fun drinking glasses (the kids like fancy ones, but I will only buy them from Goodwill so that when they break, I do not care) and some cute ice cream sundae dishes.  It was all mom's treat (thanks mom!) so I felt super spoiled! 

Flipping through... the calendar my sister makes every year for my mom and loving the Carly & Wyatt pages.  I can see so clearly how big Carly has grown, and just how brave Wyatt has become.  The kid who used to cry for me to leave him in first grade now rides his own 4 wheeler; did fantastic on a baseball team; jumped off the high dive at the pool; and rode some of the scariest rides at Silverwood. They just grow so fast. And it's both the best and worst thing. 

Visiting... with my high school bestie Brittany and her sweet husband Justin for hours on Friday.  And honestly, we could have kept talking.  We are all raising middle school/high school boys plus a little girl, have dogs, want to do things right and are just trying our best to raise decent humans.  It was so refreshing to talk to them about the challenges of parenting and family and marriage.  Something her husband said to me (he's a fire fighter and EMT) really stuck with me.  I asked about how he handles going into emergencies and he said one of his mentors told him, "This isn't YOUR emergency.  You've been invited to THEIR emergency." So Justin takes a minute, takes a breath, assesses the scene, then does what he can to help.  I think that is very helpful advice.  

I love you, Evans'! I hope I get to see you again soon!!!

Planning... to re-read all my old journals now that they are out on my bookshelf thanks to my sister.  (She helped me finally unpack them, after 10 months in boxes.) I think it will make for good self growth and also help me to see how far I've come. 

Loving... my husband for not only letting me escape for a much needed break, but for always coming inside to tell me when he sees a rainbow (or taking a picture when I'm not with him) and for letting me skip our evening walks without making me feel guilty when I'm not up for it.  He's just such a good guy.  I don't know what ever did to deserve him. 

Reading... Clap When You Land and Such a Fun Age, both on audio, as I drove to Vancouver and back.  It's about a 4.5 hour drive each way, so I can get in a lot of reading time, which I love.  Clap When You Land was awesome. Such A Fun Age was not what I thought it was going to be, and while I liked parts of it, I didn't like that the characters were so one dimensional. (good guy/bad guy)

Driving... back home and tearing up when I saw four or five tractors working together to harvest.  Something about the community feeling of those farmers working together always makes me verklempt.  

Arriving... home to a POOL in my backyard. A HUGE pool.  It is incredible, and we're so grateful to my parents.  What a gift.  

Josh and Samuel worked tirelessly to set it up, along with Julie and Makayla (and maybe some other people, I'm not sure since I wasn't here) and it looks amazing.  The kids got to take their first swim on the fourth of July and they were in heaven. 

Suffering... a bad headache on the fourth of July. Luckily I was able to take a nap, but I still felt kind of yucky all day. It made me extra grateful for our pool. It kept the kids satisfied and entertained despite an uneventful day.  

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Whenever my kids are acting like buttheads I call my sister and she reminds me that that usually means I need to spend time with them. Ugh. (hah!)

This was a great reminder of how simple that time can be and how to best make that time meaningful. I'm not perfect, but I'm working on it. Especially with Wyatt as I have discovered that 3rd/4th graders are hard for me.  They are a little LESS innocent & cute, and little MORE sassy & opinionated. Not my favorite. 

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