Tag: gratitude

children, marriage, mommyhood

Yes, I Combed My Hair

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I have a sure-fire way to get a compliment. When dropping your child at school/camp, consistently wear old t-shirts and scruffy looking shorts. Oh, and hardly ever comb/wash your hair, too. That way when you make a tiny effort of simply putting a comb to your hair and throwing on a cute necklace, it sends shockwaves through the school/camp’s staff. They can’t help but comment on your appearance in a complimentary way.

The reason I say this is that I actually put some effort into myself before leaving the house today. I was more embarrassed than flattered at how many compliments I received at Full Speed’s camp. Makes me wonder how bedraggled I have looked up until this point.

Oh well.

Today is a big day. Full Speed has his orientation for kindergarten so I am attempting to look pulled together even if I don’t feel it (you know, first impression and all). We will see his classroom and meet his teacher. All I hope is that his teacher is a person who can appreciate high energy.

And, thank you to Mad Dog for my surprise blog-a-versary flowers yesterday. They are beautiful and I am thankful you remain my number one fan (regardless of how I look).

Love you, Mad Dog!

children, eyesight, gratitude, mommyhood, surgery

Post-Op

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Little T.Puzzle plays with his portable Thomas track from Grandma in the waiting area.
Little T.Puzzle is confounded by the dot that marks his eye prepped for surgery.
The ride home after many tears and frustration over having to wear his eye shield.
Little T.Puzzle glares at me as I yet again admonish him from removing his eye shield. Once he ate some food, he was more compliant but his anger is still bubbling just under the surface.

Little T.Puzzle’s lens removal went smoothly. His recovery, not so much. He is younger then when his big brother went through this process and therefore it is harder for him to comprehend why he has to wear that pesky eye shield. He’s really mad, too, because his glasses won’t fit over it. I think he is experiencing more pain as well. He had more stray ‘strands’ surrounding the lense that had to be removed. The good news is that the lens  removal may help center his pupils. They are slightly off-center due to his ectopia lentis.

He is a trooper and I know tomorrow will be so much better.

gratitude, happiness, kids, mommyhood

No Apparent Reason

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Sometimes when you least expect it, the heavens of good fortune rain down upon you and your in-laws offer to take your kids for the whole night.

Little T.Puzzle just got picked up by Grandma and his cousins. They are on their way to get Full Speed from his summer camp.

I am breathing in the silence.

Amazing.

My goal is to grow this opportunity for the future. First it starts with one night, then I’m going to hope for one weekend and then if I’m really, truly frazzled (which you know I am) I’m going to shoot for one whole month. Heck, why not go for a whole year?

You know I couldn’t do that. Then I’d have to change my blog’s name to ‘writes for no apparent reason’.

My life is a rollercoaster and I wouldn’t trade it for anything.

Except maybe a weekend getaway without kids.

gratitude, happiness, mommyhood

Vacation from My Vacation

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I know you all can relate. Vacations are great but sometimes it would be nice to have a few ‘recovery’ days before heading back into your normal routine. Especially if your normal routine involves the likes of T.Puzzle and Full Speed.

My sister and her family are leaving tomorrow. We have been very lucky to get to spend so much time with them. It has felt nice to reconnect with my nieces and nephews. They are a great group of kids.

Here are some of the lessons I learned on this vacation:

1. No matter how much time or distance separates you from the people you care about, the love you have for them remains constant.
2. SPF 100 does not prevent sunburn on a Florida beach in the heart of July. Ouch and ouch!
3. When you are three and five (like my boys) having your cousins around to play with is tantamount to having cookies for breakfast or watching fireworks every night (which we did our three nights at Disney last week).
4. Some of my best vacation memories will be the simple ones. Quiet conversations with my ever evolving nieces, watching my oldest nephew bond with T.Puzzle and Full Speed, marveling that my littlest nephew finally lets me hold him without tears and soaking in the chaos that is my family and loving it.

Thanks for the memories…

All the gang at Bukkets Bar and Grill oceanside JAX Beach
gratitude, happiness, mommyhood

Dinnertime

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I just enjoyed a lovely dinner on our lanai with my two handsome guys. Granted our conversation was limited to how many times Full Speed saw T.Puzzle at camp (3 times!) and the dryness level of little T.Puzzle’s underpants (a happy report of zero wetness) but it was dinner just the same. I find myself more often than not being the lone parent eating meals with my boys. I do my best to schedule sit-down dinners and even though I may crave slightly more stimulating discussion topics, I’m am so thankful that I have this time with them. It’s hard to imagine but I’m guessing once they are older, their interests will coincide more strongly with Mad Dog’s and they will be off doing something sports-related or watching something sports-related (trust me, I’ve already seen the signs of impending sportsdom in my house).

Then all I will long for is conversation about underpants and time alone with my two handsome guys.