October 2022

I did start October 2 with my favorite activity of a Sunday, walking with Sue. As always we solved the problems of the world in that hour, just like a soap opera. We are thorough. They are still building their pool and are so close at the moment they can almost feel the splashing water. 

When I got home, Stuart and I went to the grocery store and then got gas for the Jeep. We picked up the RV and went home to plug it in and load it up. We spent most of the morning getting our lives in order to be gone for a week. I always want the house clean before I leave so that when I get back, I feel better about having left it. However, since Jennifer stays at our house while we’re gone, she always cleans it before we get back.

We went to pick up medication for the kids. We showered for our birthday party with Weston, our neighbor, who said the only thing he wanted was to go and play laser tag with the Telfords. So we did just that. Laser tag was a total of 10 minutes so we ended up bowling after our very expensive laser tag. We had food and enjoyed each other’s company for sure. 

Laser tag was fun. The parents won. 

When we got home we did some last minute things to get ready for our Rocky Point trip. Elise came over later in the evening but didn’t stay long. The kids and Stuart went to bed around 9 pm. I followed shortly after that. 

My alarm went off at 4:30 am Monday morning. My hip had started hurting the previous day so I didn’t sleep well. Getting old is not for the weak. I finished the laundry and then started putting items into the refrigerator. I was amazed that it all fit. We woke the kids up just before 6 am. Millie had an epic meltdown because she couldn’t find her AirPods. We had told both kids to get all the things they wanted to take with us and have them on the dining room table the previous night. She failed to do what we asked. So, the natural consequences were she would not have her AirPods for the entire week. First world problems for sure. She did remember, after calming down, that she had left them in my car the day before. Then she panicked they would be damaged from the heat. So I messaged Jennifer, who was straying with the dogs for the week, and asked her to check to see if they were in the car. Of course they were and Jennifer took them out and put them on the dining room table. 

We were well on our way to our beach paradise at 6 am. 

We arrived just before noon and got all our gear set up for the week. It’s a pain to set everything up but it is so relaxing once our stuff is where it belongs. 

Sun is fun!

Relaxed under the canopies. 

He is happier than he looks. We had lunch at Manny’s which is the beach bar just up from our RV site. 

We spent the afternoon on the beach. The people who set up their stuff in front of us on the beach, also set up a volleyball net. Jack asked if we could use their court, so we played (or attempted to) for a while. It was fun. 

We went back to our camp site and played Flip Uni for a bit. We had brought home pizza from Manny’s so we had that for dinner. As we always do, we probably brought more food than we needed. We were in bed by 9 pm. Beer and sun can take it out of a person. 

Stuart and I were awake by 6 am. We got up and decided to get our stuff down to the beach. We had realized the night before that we didn’t bring coffee with us. So we sent a message to Skip and Sherry to see if they could bring us some. We headed to Reggie’s to get coffee and a breakfast burrito. We were going to get ice but the place we usually get it wasn’t open yet. So we went back to the RV and went down to the beach to set our stuff up. 

We went out a bit later to get shrimp and ice. After we returned, Jack and Millie fished while Stuart and I sat in the shade. 

Close to 11 am we headed to Manny’s to meet up with Brandy, one of Stuart’s colleagues, and her family. We spent a couple of hours there. It was nice to meet someone Stuart speaks of and put a face to a name. Her family was very nice and Brandy was funny. 

When we got back to the camp, Skip, Sherry, Tom and Kathy were there. We ended up having Tom and Kathy right next to us. Skip and Sherry got their beach front spot. Once they were all set up, we sat around the camp and visited. Stuart cooked paella and shrimp linguini for dinner. It was yummy. Our water wouldn’t heat up, but Stuart finally figured out we needed the pump on in order for the water to heat up. Stuart cleaned up as well, which was totally crappy of me to let happen. I may have had a few too many and wasn’t able to focus enough to clean the greasy mess that was made. 

Wednesday morning I got up and worked for a bit. This project has to be done on October 14th, which is going to be a struggle for me. 

The banana boat is always a hit with Jack and Millie. 

And this was a perfect gift from Santa last year. 

We spent the entire day on the beach for fun. There isn’t a lot to say about that other than it’s the most relaxing and tranquil time on our holiday. 

Thursday we were awake at 5 am. I went back to sleep until a bit after 7. We had breakfast and then went to set up our stuff on the beach. We moved our things back from the water as the tide was supposed to be very high. The hurricane that had hit about a month prior has likely taken a lot of sand out to sea with it so the tide comes further up on the beach than normal. 

We went into town for lunch and to shop for a bit. 

The Boo Bar did not disappoint. 

Jack bought this bucket hat. 

We went back to the beach in the afternoon. We had ribs for dinner and played a game called Spinner. It’s dominoes with a twist. We went to bed around 10 pm. It was another successful day. 

I didn’t sleep so well on Thursday night. I kept having trouble catching my breath. I still believe I suffer from long term Covid. Or maybe I’m just getting old and things are starting to break on me. 

We had decided to go to Manny’s for breakfast the following morning. Then it was back to the beach for the rest of the morning. 

Millie had a bit of a nap on the beach. The waves can wear a girl out. 

The kids did an Escape Room in the afternoon. I dropped them off and went back to camp. About a half hour before I was supposed to pick them up I went to shop at a pottery place close to the Escape Room. The prices were a bit steep for me so I passed. As I was leaving, on the sidewalk was a fence that wasn’t attached, but merely sticking out towards the sidewalk. Guess who ran into it? Surprise!

That is the lower half of my right leg. Awesome! Don’t worry about me, last year I had a tetanus shot due to that kid that bit me at school. So I was good! But, oh ouch, did that hurt!

After we spent some more time on the beach Friday afternoon, we went up to the camp and Stuart started preparing dinner. We were having gyros for dinner, a Mediterranean meal at its finest. The meat was a mixture of beef and lamb. It was delightful (even the bits I dropped on our RV steps. Oops!) That was a secret Jack and I tried to keep to ourselves, but Stuart actually saw it happen. He gets so uptight when he’s making a meal for others. He wants to impress, but forgets that he always impresses so he needs to not stress over it. I can’t even cook, so I don’t ever try to impress when making chicken nuggets and fries. At any rate, everyone loved the food and no one complained of sand in their meat, thank goodness. I showered at the end of the night and went to bed shortly after that. 

I slept like crap again on Friday night. I always thought our RV mattress was pretty good but I’m questioning it this trip. At any rate, I was awake at 5 am but went back to sleep until just before 7 am. I got up and had coffee with Stuart. Then we started to get things prepared for the beach. Kathy made breakfast for all of us. We had Mountain Man breakfast, which was made in a cast iron pot over charcoal briquettes. It was delightful. Kathy and Tom have been building a house in the west valley for over a year. Therefore they have been living out of their mega motor home. As a result, they have some crafty cooking tools. 

We spent the day at the beach Saturday. All good fun had by all. Stuart and I went to the bar at the beach and met up with our friend Doug whom we had met a few days earlier. I love meeting people when we are in Mexico. Typically they are retired folks who are living their best life. 

The tide was at its highest on Saturday. Our main entertainment was watching the newbies to the beach come down and have to move their stuff several times. 

This is the highest we have known it to be. 

When they love each other and get along, it’s so lovely, and when they don’t…..it’s torture. 

Sunday was our last day at the beach. Tom, Skip’s cousin buried Millie in the sand. She loved it!

Her new friend, Brooklyn, sat and watched it all. 

He was kind enough to put her in shade. 

The rest of the day was spent learning back flips, taught by Eli’s buddy Bronson. It was so cute. 

Millie got her hair braided, as it was our last day. 

This is Manuela. She is our local vendor who we do our best to buy all our stuff from while we are in Mexico. 

Monday we were up and out of camp by 7:30 am. We got home with only one stop. Once we were home and unloaded, all the putting away and laundry began. Stuart had a dentist appointment at 3 pm to get his mouth guard fitted. I went to the grocery store for some basics and then took Millie to gymnastics. I met Stuart at Robert’s Tires as we had noticed that one of our RV tires had started separating. Thank goodness there wasn’t a blow out on our trip. We left the RV there for the repair and headed back home. 

We had taken Millie to gymnastics. Then I showered and Stuart and I took Jack to meet at the place we drop for volleyball. We went to dinner and then picked Millie up. 

Elise came over for a bit of a catch up and then I drove to get Jack. Stuart was in bed at 10 pm, as was Millie. Jack had asked me if he could take his X-Box into his room and play for a while. I just wanted to make sure it wasn’t until after Millie was in bed. It seems like I’m hiding and lying to her, but I don’t want Millie to lose it because Jack has more freedom than she does. What she doesn’t understand is that he also holds more responsibility. Stuart had gone to bed and I stayed up to make sure Jack went to bed. I woke up at 1 am and he was still in his game system. I was furious. 

I woke up before 5 am to see Stuart off to Gallup. The kids and I still had the rest of the week off. I took the chord from Jack’s X-box as he was not going to be allowed to play that day. He was clearly bored for the day. We really just spent the day relaxing and doing a whole lot of nothing, at least that’s what the kids did. I continued to wash all our stuff from camping. I did take Millie to  get her 11 year old shots. That’s fun on your fall break. I also took Jack to apply for a job at Safeway. It’s a long shot and he would only be available to work on Sundays, but he wanted to apply. 

He’s in the purple shirt. Of course I had to get a picture of him talking to customer service. 

In the afternoon I went with my dad to his heart doctor appointment. It was relatively uneventful, but I’m glad I went. It’s hard watching your parents get older and sometimes not knowing how to advocate for themselves. When I got home I worked on the Kindergarten writing project. The deadline for completion was Friday, October 14. I would be lucky to finish. I was definitely working hard. I hate missing a deadline. In fact, during this project I have not missed one. That evening Elise and the boys came over. I made quesadillas with the leftover tortillas we had from Mexico. It was perfect. 

Wednesday I was up by 6 am working on the project. We hung around the house most of the morning. I went grocery shopping just before noon. Stuart called before then to tell me there had been a Covid outbreak on Navajo Mountain so he would be coming home. He would have tried to pick up the other two days from his Gallup schools but they were on fall break the next two days. So home he came. I was thrilled. 

I took Millie to gymnastics and then went shopping for a bit. I went to hang out with Melinda for a bit and Stuart came home, surprising Jack, as I hadn’t told the kids he was coming home. I picked Millie up and she was thrilled when we got home and she saw Stuart’s car. My parents had been over to watch the Suns game, but went home at halftime, before Millie and I got home, as my dad was tired. 

Wednesday when Jack went to bed, he came down shortly after and said, ‘Mom, you are going to be so mad at me. I was adjusting my retainer and it cracked.’ I didn’t say a word. My silence said it all. 

Thursday morning I was up just after Stuart. He was writing his reports and I was writing lesson plans. We took a break to really clean the pool. Seems our pool boy does a half ass job most weeks. His name is Jack!!!! Our son is a lot of things, but patient enough to give the pool a really good clean is not one of them. The good thing was the weather was cool enough that no sweating took place. We then stayed out to have a cup of coffee. This is my favorite time of year in Arizona, when the weather is cool in the mornings and still nice and warm during the day. 

Millie and I went for a pedicure. Stuart and I went to pick up the RV and take it back to storage. That was a $600 trip as we had two tires replaced and an oil change. 

I took Jack to his follow-up appointment for his retainers and he had to get a new top retainer. It will be $250. It doesn’t matter how much we tell him to be careful, he just isn’t. It’s so frustrating. They have insurance, but was that told to me? Not until I asked if there was a heartier material we could make him wear. They then volunteered that they have an insurance that I could buy. You would’ve thought that would’ve been something that was told to me when he got his retainer. They said the insurance would be $650 and then after the insurance was paid up the retainer would be $40 to replace one. However they did say that because I didn’t buy it within the first 10 days of him having the retainer that it would be $750. I am going to argue that I was never told about the insurance and hopefully get to pay the insurance now, and only pay $40 for the upper retainer. 

When Jack and I got back home, he had just enough time to grab a bite to eat. We had stopped at Panda Express to get him some food. We then loaded up and headed to pick up the boys and continued on to Brophy. I did my best to finish up quarter three of the kindergarten writing plans for Gallup. I had all but four plans finished by the end of the evening. I was super excited. I had packed snacks for the way home for the boys.  I ended up taking all the boys to their house since we didn’t have school the following day was really no big deal. When I got home I had a shower and went to bed.

Stuart and I got up on Friday morning and did some work around the house. We took the dogs to the vet. It takes both of us to take them to the vet because they’re manic. However I was proved a bit wrong. Since we returned from Mexico and we’re given advice from our friends, we have used their training collars daily and try to take them out to the front porch and force them to stay on the front porch. So when we went into Petsmart, they were both pretty well behaved. I had that clicker right by my side so they knew what would happen if they misbehaved. There’s something about having those colors on that keeps them in line. So we were kind of excited thinking that maybe we might be able to take them to Mexico again without much stress. 

We spent the rest of the day cleaning out the house. Jack sorted out all of the clothes in his room and his dresser in his closet as well as one in bedroom. We filled a box full of garage sale items. Millie sorted out some of her toys, but not all of them. She can only do things in little spurts as she gets very exhausted. She’s so dramatic! We went to pick the dogs up around 4 o’clock. It seems that both dogs were in pretty good health. Chloe has a broken tooth. The doctor said there was no urgency in getting it repaired unless we just wanted to. He said most likely it will just fall out at some stage. So we were fine with that. When we got them home we decided to go over to my mom‘s house. My niece, Morgan, her husband and her baby Hallie were all there. They were just going to be there for less than 48 hours. My mom made dinner and we sat around for a while and talked. The kids then got restless and wanted to go home. So we all went home.

Saturday morning Jack was picked up by Owen‘s mom to go to Legacy sports complex. That was where their tournament would be played on Saturday. Stuart and I took Millie to gymnastics and then came back to the house. We decided to drive both of our cars. We went to pick up my mom and dad, Morgan and Donovan and Hallie. Morgan had woken up late so wasn’t ready. But I rushed them along and helped her get Hallie dressed. They came and watched Jack’s first two matches of volleyball, so he was thrilled. 

His team was a little flat on Saturday, but they did win three of their four matches. He didn’t play as well as he had hoped he would. However, Stuart and I didn’t feel like any of them played as well as they could have. He still just loves volleyball. That makes us happy. I left volleyball around 3 pm. I went home and Millie‘s friend Brinley’s came over for a sleepover. My mom and dad had picked Millie up from gymnastics earlier, and it seems that it was torrential rains. My mom was driving and felt like she was going to have to pull over to be safe. So that was a little bit scary. But they all made it home in one piece. When Brinley got to our house the girls went down to the park. They came back around 5 PM because I texted them to tell them I needed to go pick up the Chinese food that I had ordered. They were running because it started raining. It was raining very hard. It rained off and on all evening long and our pool nearly overflowed. It was definitely a storm. The whole family came over for dinner and we watched a baseball game. Jack was easily bored and wanted to go upstairs and play video games with his friends. I forced him to stay down for about two hours which was more than he cared for. He’s at that age where he is just into his friends and wants nothing to do with us unless we can provide the money and the food. 

Everyone left around 8:30 PM. I was having a horrible pain in my back and my hip. I suspect it was sciatica, but I wasn’t sure. I was having difficulty sitting and being comfortable. This had been going on for almost 2 days. I ended up messaging Sue and telling her that I just didn’t feel like I was going to be able to walk on Sunday morning. It turns out it probably would’ve been flooded at Discovery Park anyway, so I’m assuming that we would’ve had to cancel. I did lay on a pillow on my left butt cheek for the entire night and that seem to loosen up and relax my muscles. So I was able to pop my back and I feel like I actually fixed myself. However, I did agree that I would go and see a chiropractor during the week. 

We were up around 7 AM on Sunday morning. Brinley and Millie got up around 8 AM and Brinley’s mom picked her up around 9 AM to go to the grocery store with her. We then forced the kids out of the house to go to Lowe’s to purchase a new garage refrigerator. The previous night while my parents and my niece were at our house we discovered that our outdoor refrigerator had quit. The lights were on but nobody was home.  Literally, the lights were on and no motor was running. So we threw away a bunch of stuff because that’s what happens when the freezer stops freezing. We unloaded that refrigerator and took some of it down to my mom’s. So, on Sunday morning we headed to Lowe’s to buy a new refrigerator. We then took the kids to lunch at the Thirsty Lion. After lunch we came home and Stuart got ready to leave. It’s the worst part of my week. He could leave as late as 4 pm on Sundays, but then it gets him into Gallup around 9:30 pm. And sometimes it’s just easier for him to go than to hang around and delay the inevitable. 

The rest of the afternoon I had very little to do. I was finished with the third quarter of the project and hadn’t been given any other directions to continue, so I would just have to wait. The kids played outside and watched tv. Millie and I decided to start watching Dancing With The Stars, from Morgan’s recommendation. We watched the first episode. It was really good. Elise came over for a bit and then it was time to get back to reality. Millie and I were to start back to school the next day, while Jack still had another day off. 

Millie and I were up and out before Jack was up. Who knows what he did all day. He didn’t brush the pool like I asked him to, that was for sure. He was there when the fridge arrived, though. That was good. I was a bit disheartened when I got home and saw that they had left all the tape on the fridge. It was weird. I guess I assumed they would completely set it up. So I went to work on the fridge when I got home from taking Millie to the gym. It had already started to get cold, which was encouraging. I put some items in it and took Jack to the drop off for volleyball. 

I stayed out until it was time to pick Millie up from gymnastics. I brought her home and she took a shower. She had a bite to eat and then was off to bed. I went to pick Jack up from volleyball. They got out a bit early because their head coach wasn’t at practice that evening. He took a shower when he got home and had a bite to eat. He went to bed around 10 PM and I followed shortly after that. 

Tuesday morning everybody was up and around and ready to go to school quite early actually. The school day passed quickly. I was still not terribly organized for the quarter, but I felt better by the end of the day. Millie and I left school to pick up Jack. It was his first day of second quarter. He had to wait at Rock Point because he gets out of school much earlier than I do. However, as long as he makes the basketball team it won’t be much of an issue. I do, however, feel this quarter might be more hectic than last, if that’s possible. At least last quarter he had Carter with him at football and volleyball. This quarter he has no one at basketball that also plays volleyball. We shall see how this pans out. 

Once we were home, I had decided it was time for me to see a chiropractor to help my back issues. I went to a place called The Joint. It seems it is a chain. The first appointment was $29, then there was a membership I had to sign up for. It was only required for two months and then I could quit. However, considering I got 7 sessions the first month and 4 every month after that for $79, I decided it was worth it. My back is almost always a mess. Elise went with me as well. When we were pulling into our street after the appointment, I noticed our Jeep was being backed out of the driveway. Yep, Jack had decided he wanted to shoot baskets and also decided it was okay for him to move the car. I lost it! 

He shot baskets for a while and then came inside. This boy is going to kill me. Both kids ate and Jack showered. The three of us sat down to watch the second episode of Dancing with the Stars. Millie fell asleep on the sofa before the episode was over, so we stopped it so we could all watch it together on Sunday evening. Sundays and Tuesdays are the only nights we are all three home. 

Wednesday school was fine. We had a half day as we always do. Millie went home with the neighbors and I got home just after 3 pm. I took her to gymnastics and then headed to get Jack from basketball tryouts. He had been told by one of the players trying out that he probably wouldn't make the team. I told him to ignore that kid. 

Thursday I took the boys to Brophy and started working on the 4th quarter Kindergarten plans. I wasn’t exactly clear on what needed to be done, but i knew enough to start putting the basics together. 

Friday school flew by. We always have a number of formative tests and they seem to drag on. It was also the last day of basketball tryouts. 

This boy was worn out. He napped for about an hour while I fixed dinner. I made baked fish with broccoli. It was delightful. Stuart got home just after 7 pm. Our neighbor Mitch came over for a while. 

Saturday we were up and Stuart and I took Millie to gym. When we got back, Stuart went shopping and I took Jack to his orthodontist appointment in order to get his new retainer. I had a talk with the office to say I had never been offered the insurance for the retainers. They relented and allowed me to pay for the insurance, thus only paying $40 for the retainer. Jack was let off the hook. I did make him pay for the $40 replacement, though. He was relieved that I had argued my case and saved him $210 dollars. 

Stuart and I went to lunch on Saturday, as we had gotten off to a bit of a cranky start to the weekend. We had to reset. After a good conversation and lunch, we went to the grocery store for some shopping for some puppy gear. It seems that a neighbor was selling 9 week old chocolate labs and we went and got one a few hours earlier. We left the boy puppy at home for Jack to watch. It was a total surprise to all of us. When you have two dogs, what’s one more?

Introducing Moose!

Jack was so shocked and surprised. 

It’s tough to be a puppy. 

Once we were home with Millie from gym, and she cried tears of joy, we went to get a dog crate. Our house is already a mess, so what’s one more beast to add to the mix? We have lost our minds. 

Ken and Maytee came him over for dinner. My back was still kind of bothering me, so I decided to take another week off from walking with Sue. However, I do miss hanging with her. It seems like it’s such a short time that we are together, but it is valuable time walking and talking.  Jack had his buddies over for a sleepover. They went to Buffalo Wild Wings for dinner, by themselves. The took in a movie and then i met them at Target around 9 pm to bring them home. Saturday evening I stayed up all night with the puppy. He’s so needy. He did just get ripped away from 9 other puppies so I kind of get it. 

We got up Sunday morning and Mitch came over to fix my car. My car had started rattling and making noise. Stuart thought it was a head gasket. Turns out it was just a fan that Mitch replaced for $250. He saved us at least $1000. It pays to have a neighbor who is handy. After the car was fixed, Stuart and I decided to take the kids to lunch but they didn’t want to go, so we went on our own. Ha! We went to Blue 32. Their sandwiches are amazing. We had a great lunch. Our dates with each other are so intention now that he only has a limited time at home each week. When we got home Stuart finished getting ready to leave for Gallup. Boy how I have grown to dread Sundays. I think I’ve mentioned this. Once he had left, I went with one of my teammates to visit Sam, one of our 6th grade teachers. She had emergency gall bladder surgery a few days prior. We made her laugh, which was against the rules. We were just glad she was getting better. When I got home I fed the kids and settled in for the evening. 

Monday I had a visit from a district coach. We had split one of the 5th grade classes. She ended up emailing me and telling me she had no idea I had extra kids until i asked them to go into their class to get their laptops. She was so very complimentary to me. It was nice to hear. After school I took Millie to gymnastics. I picked up Jack from basketball practice, took him home and fed him, then dropped him at Gavin’s so I could go to the basketball parent meeting that was mandatory. Seems he did make the team after all. After that meeting I went to pick Millie up from gymnastics. We came home and she ate. She then showered and got ready for bed. Once she was in bed, I went to get Jack from the drop off Starbucks. Once he was home I fed him. He showered and hung out on the sofa. I showered as well and then watched television. He went to bed and I tried to figure out a schedule for this little puppy. I decided to move his crate up to our bedroom. What a great time that was!!!!

Nothing monumental happened at school on Tuesday. We had a night at home. I made salmon, potatoes and broccoli. Ken came over for a bit of a chat. We did some good catching up for sure. Elise came over after that and we sat and talked for a couple of hours. It was a night full of friend catch ups. 

Wednesday we were up and out the door. I had an organizational health similar at the district office for the second half of the day. Millie had gymnastics after school. I then picked up Jack from basketball practice and we headed home. I decided to take Moose with me to pick Millie up from the gym. She was so excited. We got Dairy Queen after I picked her up. We got home around 8:30 pm and Millie showered. She was in bed around 9:30 pm. Jack followed and I stayed up a bit longer, hoping Moose would pee another time so I wouldn’t have to get up at 2:30 am. No such luck! He’s a puppy who drinks a lot of water. I am doomed. He was up at 2:46 am and then again at 4:45 am. At least he didn’t pee in his crate. 

Thursday was another day of training at the district office. I took Millie to school and she rode home with the Hills. I picked Jack up from basketball practice. We got home and Jack ate, got ready for volleyball and we were off. I worked on the Kindergarten project but then realized I had no further guidance, so decided to pause on it for the time being. Stuart actually got home around 7 pm so Millie was able to stay at home. He had a wellness visit at the doctor on Friday so needed to come home early this week. I love it when this happens. When I returned from volleyball, Jack took a shower, as did I. Millie had spent most of the evening with a bellyache. Both kids went to bed and Stuart and I followed shortly after.

Friday we were all up and I took Jack to school while Stuart got Millie ready for school. He brought her while I was on duty. It was kind of funny. My class had their Halloween party on Friday, which was awesome! I had two moms helping with a couple of crafts and passing out food. The kids had fun for sure. Once the day was over, Millie and I headed home. Friday evening Jack went to a junior high dance where he kissed a girl, staged a photo and told his sister. Epic mistake on his part. Damn that kid! Once he was home, we headed to a haunted house. It was put on by the Queen Creek Performing Arts club and it was really amazing! 

Ken and Lexi joined us, as did the Hills!

Saturday morning all people were awake by 6:30 am. Millie was off to the gym after we dropped Jack at Owen’s to catch a ride to the volleyball facility. Stuart and I were only able to watch one match and then we were off to see Patsy Cline and Loretta Lynn impersonators at the Hale theater. We went to pick Millie up from gymnastics before we had to go to the theater. Once she was home, we showered, and then my mom and dad came to stay with her. The show was so amazing. We had dinner afterwards at the Clever Koi. We had a lovely date night.

This was in front of one of the murals in downtown Gilbert.

We got home just before 8 PM. That is mainly because we are party animals! My mom and dad had taken Millie to the park for a fall festival event. Jack had actually messaged us to ask if he could have a sleepover with Owen. So he was at a sleepover, Millie was at a fall festival, and we were home alone with three dogs. My parents finally returned with Millie and stayed around and talked for a bit. Then we had Millie take a shower and lay on the sofa and try to fall asleep. It was a great night, and wonderful month. We shall see what November holds.