It was definitely not how I planned to spend my Sunday

Today we headed north to have lunch with my grandmother, mother, and sister.  We originally had planned to do this last weekend, but with sick kids we rescheduled.  We were all bringing food, and Abby was even going along with us.  I was looking forward to the afternoon.

Unfortunately, we developed van trouble on the way up to Grandma's house.  By the time we got there, there was a hot smell coming from the vehicle and I was afraid to drive it the 60 miles back to our house.  Both my mom and sister, who have extra vehicles, had a car in the shop so we couldn't borrow a vehicle from them.  My grandmother very graciously offered us the use of her car, but I hated to leave her without a vehicle.  However, Andrew pointed out that he had his lesson planning finished for the week, and it would be easy to get it back to her this evening.  So, that's what we did.  I certainly didn't plan to be in the car for 240 miles today (nearly a trip to my in-laws!), but I am grateful that for the most part things have worked out.  Now, we just wait to hear the verdict on a diagnosis and cost!

We've been watching the Olympics

As we always do, our family has been spending a lot of time watching the Olympics.  I regretted that we weren't able to share the Opening Ceremonies together, but we've been spending lots of time watching since then.  I love that Thomas is even following the Olympics on his phone and getting alerts (although he is currently grounded from his phone).  When Robert was home yesterday he was sitting and watching it with me.  It isn't nearly as exciting as the summer Olympics for the Americans, but we are enjoying it none-the-less!

My morning made me a little grumpy

I'll be honest, I started my morning on a bit of a grumpy note.  It actually started last night when I was trying to go to sleep.  I went to bed early, but couldn't sleep.  I was freezing because the temps have dropped again, but as soon as Andrew came to bed (about 45 minutes later) I was so hot in bed I was sweating.  I am having trouble regulating my temperature these days.  Anyway, about 45 minutes after Andrew came to bed, I think I had started to doze off when we heard our dog barking.  Andrew had taken her out right before he came to bed so he decided it must've been because Catherine's night light was burnt out.  I found another one, we plugged it in, and tried going back to bed.  About ten minutes later, more barking.  By this point we were both pretty annoyed.  We got up and opened Catherine's door, and Abby ran into the family room.  She really just wanted to be with Andrew it seemed, so we brought her into our bed.  She settled down shortly and slept there all night.  I didn't really notice her there during the night, but she slept predominantly on Andrew's side of the bed.  Catherine wasn't pleased that Abby didn't want to sleep with her, and Andrew and I were not thrilled either.  Hopefully it was a one time thing.

This morning, I woke up before 4:00 having had a bad dream.  In the dream, I was young and not yet married.  I had gone to Andrew's place and had let myself in with the key he had given me.  When he returned, it was evident he was cheating on me (with the woman who was with him), and accused me of breaking in because he would never have given me a key.  I was so upset by the dream that I couldn't go back to sleep (just a note...there are absolutely NO problems in our marriage...just a strange and unpleasant dream).  I had about 4-1/2 hours of sleep, which isn't really what I am going for.

Andrew also decided he wasn't really in the mood to stick to his time schedule this morning, which would've been okay, except that my getting ready and being on time is dependent on him being out of the bathroom at a certain time.  He keeps pointing out that on days he doesn't have to walk Abby he doesn't need to be in the shower at that time.  I point out that on the days he doesn't have to walk Abby, I don't have to work so it doesn't matter when I take a shower.  I was running behind and doing some scrambling, and I still needed to feed the outdoor cats.  I wasn't going to make them wait all day for their food!  It was dark so I couldn't really see what I was doing, and our back yard is an absolute swamp (we are in a heavy rain pattern where we are forecasted to receive nearly 4" of rain by Sunday morning).  I have no idea how I managed to get here without the bottom half of me covered in mud.

Overall though, it is a good day.  We have all made it to school safely, and there is only one more day left in this week.  We don't have a terribly busy weekend happening, and next week should be fairly uneventful as well.  And just in case you didn't know, today is National Margarita Day!  Ours are frozen in our freezer! 😁😁

A sick kid at home

Yesterday afternoon Robert texted me that he was running a fever.  It was nearly the end of his school day so I told him to just gut it out...there was less than an hour left and since I was working, it was probably going to take me an hour to get there.  The nurse called 45 minutes later to tell me it had spiked.  We think that was a mistake because by the time he got off the bus it was back down to the first number, and shortly after dinner it was completely normal.  However, he was coughing a great deal and I decided I wouldn't take any jobs today until this morning, if he didn't go to school.   I told Andrew I really thought it was a good idea that he stay home no matter what, because I am already working tomorrow, and Friday I have to spend the day driving Thomas around for his job shadowing requirement.  When my alarm went off this morning, Robert agreed it was a good idea to stay home.  We both acknowledge he probably could've gone today, but given everything I truly think it is best that he stayed home today.

I missed out on taking a job I like, but it meant I was able to get a little bit of extra sleep, and I've been able to get a lot done around the house right now.  It is early release day so Catherine and Thomas will be home early, and I need to run to the church office and take care of some band errands.  I am so grateful for the flexibility of my job, and the support of my husband who completely agrees with these choices!

Having a foot in two different worlds

As a parent who has children with 4-1/2 years between the oldest and the youngest, I often felt as though we sometimes lived in different worlds.  It isn't quite so bad right now with all of them being teens, but the year Robert was in high school and Thomas was still in elementary it was very tough.  When they were very little I often felt Robert didn't always get to do things some of his peers might have been doing because we still had a little one around, and with Thomas I often felt he was exposed to things sooner than I would've liked since he was the youngest.  It is a fact of life with parenting though.

Right now though, I am watching Thomas live with feet in both worlds.  It suddenly dawned on me the other day how long it had been since any of his stuffed dogs had come off his bed and out into our living room to "visit" with us.  It wasn't that long ago that the first question he used to ask when getting in the door at the end of the day was "How are the puppies?"  When I realized this the other day, my eyes began to tear up.  I know that some of is has to do with the fact that we now have our sweet Abby, and a real dog is so much better than one that isn't.  I also know though, that he is growing up and those just aren't going to be the part of his life that they used to be.  I know that is a good thing, but oh it breaks my heart a little.

I mentioned it to him this weekend that I hadn't seen the dogs lately.  It was so cute because when he got up Sunday morning, he decided he needed to bring one out to me.  Thomas had a friend spend the night Sunday evening and there was a lot of "boy" things they did, but they aren't little boys anymore...they are definitely teens on their way to becoming young men.  I am so grateful for the people my kids are becoming, and I'm grateful to get to experience each phase, but I sure do miss my chubby cheek little boy, and his young siblings!

It turned out to be a very relaxing weekend

Our four day weekend turned out to be full of much relaxation.  I don't love having sick kids, but I did appreciate how it freed our weekend.  The only morning we had to set an alarm was Sunday, and even that was extremely reasonable.  It was so fabulous to feel so rested, and I enjoyed spending time together as a family.  We mostly just hung out and watched the Olympics.  Our family loves sports!

Four such fabulous days does make today's "back to reality" a bit of a slap in the face though.  I was so well rested I had some troubles falling asleep, and the extremely warm temps (today is in the 70's) we are currently experiencing don't help either.  It was too warm to sleep on our fleece sheets, but I am not changing them for just two nights.  By Thursday morning it could be snowing again.  And of course my husband sure can snore.  It was especially loud last evening.  He made the comment to me this morning that he hadn't slept well, and I kind of wanted to punch him!

This week is a rather light week though, and I'm grateful for that.  I am especially looking forward to family dinners!

It just hits too close to home

I really just can't stop thinking about this week's school shooting.  Fourteen teenagers, all between the ages of 14 (same age as Thomas) and 18 (same age as Robert) lost their lives.  Honestly, just typing that sentence makes me want to vomit.

And three adults were also killed.  One was a football coach, just like Andrew.  One was a a social studies teacher (just like Andrew) and he was also the cross country coach.  He died because he unlocked his door to let some students in who had been stranded in the hallway.  I know with absolutely no doubt that Andrew would have done exactly the same thing.  Again, sick to my stomach.

While I love the students at our school, I am not so naive as to think it can't happen here.  Two years ago, it happened at a school in our county, although gratefully no one was killed.  I know that the chances are so very slim, but they aren't zero.

I just don't even know how to put all of my thoughts into words.  I have so many things to write about this, but that will have to happen another time.