Fall Break

I knew we had to spend a day shopping when Ty emerged from his room ready for pajama day at school last Friday in what could be confused as a crop top and capri pants. All of his pajamas were drastically too small. His feet are busting out of his three month old gym shoes and his pants are barely covering his ankles. How this is happening while the boy eats only snacks is beyond me. But I managed most of his needs online and only tackled shoes in person. He is not the most enjoyable shopping partner. Anne and I spent a different morning wandering around more relaxing stores together before grabbing lunch at a new to us restaurant. Discovering it has been almost two years since we last had a day out together was shocking. I need to work on priorities. Friendships need to reflect their higher value on my schedule. 

I painted. A lot. We live like savages according to the baseboards and front door. I didn't have it in me to also tackle the walls. They will last until Spring, my achy arms decided. As I finished each area, Layla made herself comfortable laying against recently dried trim work. The dog exhausts me. This bothers her exactly zero percent. But the boy got a long overdue update to his walls with a simple exchange of red for his favorite, blue. Despite the Baughman brainwashing, the boy doesn't care much for sports, much less the Buckeyes. Greg is demanding a DNA test. 

Makenna and I both voted this week. I am grateful my role is over. However I anticipate a very long season before this election is settled. 

A friend wrapped both radiation and chemo this week. Her goal is to gain both weight and strength before upcoming scans in November. We are praying for positive news. Another friend managed to persevere through her young son's open heart surgery. His recovery has been remarkable. We are all so relieved. My mom heart just broke for my friend as she shared her fears. Mighty Max will be once again conquering the world in no time. A doorstep delivery of wine, flowers, and charcuterie board was the socially distant hug another friend and I decided to share. We added some cookies for our little heart warrior. The need to DO something was significant.

Day at the zoo or plotting a heist? Also related: am I the only one ironing cotton masks or is this further proof of my insanity?

A gorgeous day was spent at the zoo with friends. What animals were on display were fairly active. We were disappointed though by the number of exhibits closed due to covid restrictions. Seeing the carousel was available at the end of the route was frustrating. The on-going inconsistencies in this pandemic exhaust me.

That night, Kate and Ty decided to pitch the tent in the backyard for a sleepover. Sometimes they get along. Briefly. 

But the tent was Kate's idea as a compromise when Ty declared he was sleeping outside in his box. Honestly, I worry the neighbors may have us investigated some day. "But officer, I swear he WANTS to live in the box!"

Layla got a new bowl and she is not happy. It is designed to slow her down as she eats and potentially eliminate some of her upset stomach issues. She is so pouty about meals now and keeps escorting me back to her old bowl in hope of persuading me to concede. She is a pitiful sight but is now chewing her food so we are calling this a win.

Kate and I spend a ridiculous amount of time styling the bookcases together. Using only what we had but wanting a refresh was challenging. We are satisfied with the result but have ordered updated photo plaques to replace the nine year old black and white images. My brain does not understand how nine years have passed since I took those photographs of the kids. Time flies.

But we noted we were both wearing Halloween socks, black sweats and white tee shirts so we had to take a silly photo together. Ty, our short photographer, was upset I didn't shed my sweater so we really matched. 

Friday I painted the front door after grocery shopping and before a photoshoot. It was supposed to be a dark gray......

The jury is still out. Greg doesn't like our purple door. It's growing on me. Mostly because I am tired of painting.

Fall break was productive. I miss the part where I read, visit my grandson and relax. It appears that second week of break is needed to cover all of the items on my lengthy to-do list. 

Balls

A desk was moved in front of his window for better lighting when recording, a glowing character report from his fifth grade teacher, and he is now officially on fall break. 

Asthma and allergies flared, classes wrapped for the quarter with a test score worth celebrating, and a virtual day was spent with a friend for a necessary change of scenery. 

Our Superman speculates he could walk away from being hit by a car. As a pedestrian. Fifty is the new twenty, it seems.

A few weeks ago I read an applicable illustration about keeping all the proverbial balls in the air. Some are glass and others are rubber. The trick is identifying which kind of ball you are juggling in the moment. Let go of the rubber balls and balance only the glass. Pay attention though because those balls tend to change in different seasons. Yesterday's fragile may bounce today.

Then last week I read a far more applicable story about a child in a ball pit who refused to let go of the balls she was desperately clutching even though her father was pleading for her to let go so she wouldn't sink under. The child was adamant they were hers and barely kept her head above the pit because she wouldn't release her grip. I felt deeper conviction during church Sunday while quietly confessing how overwhelmed I have felt. It appears my Father has been encouraging me to drop the balls as well.

By Wednesday, I decided the balls aren't being juggled at all. We are all in an endless and aggressive game of dodge ball. I don't like dodge ball.

The week was wild, stressful and long. Did I mention we are now on fall break? I miss the second week already. 

For Fun Friday they consumed their traditional ice cream while acknowledging awards given to Ty for reasons he cannot recall. Kate was beyond delighted to have scored Marvel toys at McDonald's. I don't have to understand the fascination, just love the kid exuding joy.

Family Dates

Family and Senior photo season has arrived in full force. I have booked myself at least two sessions every weekend and that requires I be intentional about spending time with the kids. Ty elected an early morning skate park date Saturday. We were there by eight and had the place to ourselves. I shot some photos and enjoyed a cup of tea while he rode his heart out. He loved it until he wrecked. I think we dodged an emergency room visit by the skin of our teeth. Watching him fly over his handle bars dropped my stomach. In the end, he had some pretty gnarly bruises but walked away. Praise God. Now I just need to replace broken bike parts and convince him we are doing it again soon so he doesn't grow too afraid to risk it in the future. 

Saturday afternoon was gorgeous so we spent a great deal of time on the porch and deck once the house was cleaned. Kate decided to add Pip to the mix. He kept walking right up to Layla so after a few moments, we let Layla check him out......

Neither was all that impressed by the other.

Sunday, my Senior session lasted a full forty-five minutes before the client declared we were finished. Delighted by the sudden availability in my schedule, Greg and I slipped away for a drive and a salad together. We scouted a few new photography locations and spoke in complete sentences. It was a lovely change of pace.

Monday our new appliances were delivered and the kids got an awesome box. Sometimes I worry the boy aspires to be homeless. He begs to sleep in the box, fights showers and deodorant, wants to hold a 24 hour challenge in the box and only dreams of being a youtuber (which he can do from inside the box). It's not just this box. He gets excited about every box and I feel like a mean mom when I declare, "no, you cannot sleep in the box on school nights. Wait for the weekend." Parenting is weird.

Monday, Kate seeking to reduce her prison sentence, emailed her school counselor requesting additional courses on her schedule next semester. We haven't completed our first quarter and she has decided she is graduating a year early. Things are going well; said with all the sarcasm you can imagine.

Wednesday I once again experienced a not so healthy dose of mom guilt while working our virtual day so I took Kate out to run errands. We made a quick Target run where she picked up a new buddy. She named him David Bones, Dave for short. We grabbed an ice cream and some groceries. Our date wasn't exciting but we needed it, none the less. 

Thursday I accused my friend at work of shopping at Target without me recently. We plan to remedy that over fall break. But showing up in the same sweater neither of us knew the other owned was comical. In our defense, it was purple day in kindergarten.

Only the bravest ask a room full of kindergarten students to guess your age. To their credit, the average was only 41.5. Thank goodness for all those little cuties who had me in my twenties to help balance the stinkers who guessed in the eighties! But if you want to feel pretty special on your birthday, hang out with five year olds. They know how to celebrate. 

Tonight, dinner on the patio with some of our favorites. It was a beautiful ending to a delightful day.