December 2023

So Vicki, Chris and I went to brunch because we had planned to go to do a photo shoot at JC Penny in order to make a calendar for our husbands. Brunch was delightful. Afterwards we had 15 minutes in Goodwill to grab props for our shoot. We then headed to Superstition Springs Mall for the shoot. It was hilarious. We took 16 shots in 30 minutes and used 13 of them in the calendar that Chris produced. We just hoped the men would be as humored as we were when we presented it to them the following Sunday. Time would tell. 

Stuart had left shortly after I left for brunch. Once I was home, the kids made their gingerbread houses from Elfvis. Millie had sorted out her closet for the first time since she moved into that room nearly a year ago. She found some craft projects she got for Christmas last year and started in on those later in the day. I feel asleep around 7 pm and was dead to the world until about 11 when Millie woke me up. It was the craziest thing. Then, of course, I couldn't go back to sleep. Ugh!

Monday morning, I had forgotten to move Elfvis, our elf on the shelf. It was going to be a long month of that stupid little elf. Millie will not admit she doesn't believe in Santa any longer, which is fine, but it is getting harder to keep the magic alive. Jack barely plays along. He's a turd. The morning ran as usual, we were up and out. I actually got a planning period on Monday. The first one of the year. It's a long story, and I actually did agree to it, but it is nice to have that 30 minutes back. 

After school I took Millie to gymnastics. I came back by the grocery store and got snacks to send with Jack and the volleyball boys. I wasn't driving, but Coach Meyn was doing everyone a favor and taking the boys to practice. I felt it was the least I could do to help out.  When I picked Millie up, I got McDonald's as I actually shopped from the time I left Jack at Gavin's house until I picked her up from gym. She ate in the car, as usually, and we got home and she showered. When she was in bed, I headed to collect Jack. 

Tuesday was just more of the same. I dropped Millie at gymnastics. Jack had gone home with Gavin in order to, again, ride with the Meyns to practice. I came home and made pasta for Millie and had it when I picked her up. Jack came home to spaghetti and meatballs. 

Wednesday Millie was instructed to clean her bathroom, which she did a half ass job with, and then pack her bag for the SoCal volleyball tournament we would be going to at the weekend. She didn't really follow directions, which was irritating to say the least. Stuart got home around 7:30 so we went to Uncle Bear's for a beer and a bite to eat. The kids stayed home because they didn't want to go. 

Thursday I took Jack to school and then headed to school myself. Because Stuart was home, he got Millie up and took her to school. After school we got ready to fly to LA. Stuart found some points and booked tickets for us at the last minute. Whew! The thought of driving was a lot. We left the car at the airport. We got to LA around 10 pm and took a Uber to the hotel. We got into the room and Millie lost her shit over which bed she was going to sleep in. She was tired and hadn't taken her afternoon medicine, so that was kind of my fault. She was a nightmare and that determined that she would be staying with Grammie and Pop for the tournament in January. 

Friday was the first tournament day and it didn't end very well. They ended with a 1-2 record. That was a bummer because that meant they went down in the ranks and would not even be able to medal for the weekend. Jack was really disappointed. He was told by Coach Kendall, in front of the entire team, that he and his teammate Carter were the only two that showed they wanted to win while on the court. I told him he could only control his play and no one else. 

Saturday they won all of their matches, which was great, but no chance of medaling made it difficult for them to keep fighting. They really have to show up strong in the first day or it is a bit of a waste. We ended up going to eat as a team on Saturday evening. It was a lot of fun. When we got back to the hotel, we had a few beverages in the bar and then headed upstairs to the room. The rooms at this hotel by the convention center are so tiny, so not having Millie in January will be nice, plus, she's bored! 

Sunday they won all of their matches as well so were considered the winners of Flight 1, which basically means they are the best of the worst teams. Oh well! I feel tournaments this year will be a learning curve for these boys.  During play on Sunday, Jack's coach (Kendall, my friend Elisa's daughter in law) came up to me and asked me what Jack's GPA was. Then she proceeded to tell me Jack needed to attend a volleyball camp at Stanford this summer. What? She said one of the coaches, whom she knows, would be able to give an assessment to see if Jack had Division 1 potential. Crazy! We decided to keep this from Jack for a while. Unfortunately, he is the kid that would become fixated on Stanford if we told him this information. 

Number 6 is our man child. 

Our flight home was uneventful, but we didn't get home until nearly 1 am. This made Monday morning a dread for all of us. Stuart got up at 5:30 AM to leave for Gallup. I woke Jack up at 6:15 AM and he said he didn't feel well and didn't wanna go to school. I quickly told him that was not how this happens, and that he had already missed Friday from school. I told him I realized he was tired, but he needed to get up and take an ibuprofen, and suck it up! So as much as he kept complaining, he finally got up and I took him to school. I came back to get Millie and we headed to school. I took off another piece of paper on my paper chain, that resulted in me realizing I only had 20 weeks of school left before I retired.  Monday after school I ran Millie to gymnastics and then headed home to check in on Jack. I made him spaghetti and meatballs and then packed up some pasta and butter for Millie. I picked Millie up around 8 PM and both kids were in bed by 9:30 PM. 

Tuesday morning I got up and took Jack to school and came back to get Millie. As we were walking out the door she reminded me that she had an orthodontics appointment. That meant I could leave her at home until Grammie came to pick her up at 8:30. Once I was at school, Millie messaged me at 8:41 and asked me if Grammie was coming to get her. I then called my Mom and Dad and asked if Grammie was going to get her. Grammie had a little bit of a coughing episode the previous night and didn't wake up. So Pop jumped in the car and to the rescue, took Millie to the orthodontist and brought her back to school. During the school day I was covered so that I could go and observe another teacher. I still am not really sure why I am being asked to observe other teachers at this stage in the game, but I will do what I'm told to do. I feel like our time would be better used if we all brought some ideas to a meeting and shared them with each other.  However, I am not charge, so I do not care. 

After school, I met Sue at Discovery Park for a walk and a little bit of a catch up. She had borrowed a hiking backpack from us a while back and just wanted to return it. I then went home and made dinner for Jack. I finished up some laundry and then headed out to pick up Millie from gymnastics. 

Wednesday Elise and I went to happy hour at TC's. When we got home, Millie was at Weston's house, and then came home and had a literal meltdown. It was terribly epic to the point where she wrote a letter to me that was an apology note, and then I wrote her a letter of apology as well. I hope this subsides soon with her new little counselor, who is so adorable.

Thursday I had happy hour with Melinda and Heather. Jack didn't have volleyball practice for the week, and I took Millie to gymnastics. I got to spend some time with Heather and Melinda. I picked Millie up from gymnastics and bought McDonald's for both her and Jack.

Friday was another day of school. Stuart got home at 5 pm. The neighbors came over and Grammie and Pop picked Millie up and brought us Panda Express. 

Saturday Millie had her gymnastic mock meet. She always gets so nervous about the mock meet because it's in front of her peers. She also is captain cranky pants when it comes to me doing her hair. So that was a good deal of fun around 11 o'clock. Then we couldn't find her bun maker. She started yelling at me telling me that I blamed her for everything. The question I asked was, where is your bun maker? She just gets so nervous and does not know how to process her feelings about everything. She had a very difficult meet. She actually got third place on the floor, but did not do very well on the other event. She cried on each of the other events after she was finished because she knew she hadn't done well. I'm hoping she got her jitters out and by her first meet in January she is back to top form. We are hoping she will be good to go. Something like this could derail her and she could decide that gymnastics is not for her anymore. We shall see.

Saturday after her meet, we went with the neighbors to Lights on Comstock in Gilbert. We then walked around Agritopia to look at the lights. We had made our own hot chocolate so that we didn't have to buy it from anyone. They came to our house afterwards for a little bit. We sat outside and watched Die Hard, Stuart's favorite Christmas movie. The kids were inside watching television.

Sunday we had Christmas with Grammie and Pop. Millie finally admitted she didn't believe in Santa. She was actually quite funny about it, and we all had a good laugh. The good part of that is I no longer have to move Elfvis, our elf on the shelf. The kids got a gift of a lifetime in a letter from 'Santa'. We were all upgraded to business class on the way out to the UK. The kids got more than they ever need! It's the same thing every year. I'm not sure my children will ever learn the value of money, and I totally blame myself. We had a delightful meal with my parents and Stuart headed to Gallup around 3:30 pm. It was a great day!

So fun!

Too much!

When I got to school Monday, I had a meeting with my principal regarding our organizational health quiz. She had asked us to fill out a survey about leadership in our school. On Saturday, Millie's best friends, who happened to be twins, messaged Millie to tell her that they were going to be moved into my classroom after the holidays. I found it rather strange that my principal hadn't let me know this piece of information. When I heard this news I texted their mother and asked her if this news was true. She said she thought I would've known first. So in my meeting I kind of waited for my principal to say something to me about it, but she never did. I got an email at 11:50 AM to tell me that the change was happening. How is one to respond to that? And did she not think that it would get out somehow? At any rate, at that point I knew I only had 19 weeks left, so I can get over it. 

Tuesday was another day. We had our class party at school, which was fun. I took Millie to gymnastics. I then drove Jack and the boys to volleyball. I went shopping at WinCo for some last minute things I needed. Stuart got home and picked Millie up from gymnastics. Gallup schools closed for the holidays on December 19th. 

Wednesday I took Jack to school. He had finals. Stuart brought Millie to school. I taught art masterpiece to my kids. I had very little to do at school. I put in comments in report cards in the morning. When I got home from school, I took kids to their med checks. Both kids were stuffy. The doctor asked about a Covid vaccine for the kids. I told her if it was going to make them feel poorly in the next day, we would need to wait until we got back from the UK. When I was home from the doctor, my friend Debi brought her yearly coffee ring for me. Ken came for a visit as well. I had dropped the kids off at my mom and dad's house to play games once they were finished at the doctor's office. This gave me time to visit with my friends. I also finished making candy for the volleyball crew (Chris and Tom, Jeremy and Christie, and Ryan and Vicki). 

Thursday was our last day of school. My staff went to Creekside Taco for a celebration. Stuart picked me up at 3:30 and we took Millie to gymnastics. We then went to pick up Jack and Carter, whom Stuart dropped at KTR earlier in the afternoon. When we dropped Carter at home, we delivered the Holmes' Christmas gift. We then took the Hurleys and the Meyns their gifts. We dropped Jack at the house and went to have dinner before collecting Millie from gym. 

Friday morning we were up and cleaning the house. We washed all of the beds and cleaned all the bathrooms. We finished packing and took my parents to breakfast. I had found a gift card to Panera for $100 in my purse earlier in the week. I have no idea where it came from, but we gladly used it. Once we were finished with breakfast, we dropped Grammie and Pop at home and went to try to find some actual pants for Jack. He only has sweats. Reluctantly, he bought two new pair. I am not sure it is the best idea to buy pants since he now measures 6'2.5" and has grown 3.5" in the last three months, no lie. 

My parents got us to the airport around 4 pm. We went to the American Airline lounge before boarding the flight and going to our seats in Business Class. Although I wasn't sure how swept the kids were with the initial giving of the gift, but when we got to our seats, their reactions nearly made me cry. 

Business class may have spoiled these kids. 

The flight was a bit bumpy initially. But the comfort surpassed the bumps. Because when you lay flat, your legs are under the seat, I felt a bit claustrophobic. It is just my weirdness. We arrived in the U.K. around noon and headed to get our rental car, which didn't have enough room for our luggage. They got us a different car that actually could hold all of our luggage and we were off to the south coast. We stopped at a service station and got the kids KFC, which they both said they haven't had since we lived in the Middle East. Ha! We arrived at Grandma and Grandpa's around 3 pm. We were all a bit weary from our travels, but unpacked and tried to stay up as late as we could. The kids were troopers for sure. 

Christmas Eve we got up and Stuart headed to Eastbourne to get his grandmother. He and Barry took her to where Stuart's grandfather is buried. Granny wanted to put a wreath on his grave. They then came to Hastings and the kids and I went with Stuart to take Granny to Dover to spend Christmas with her sisters. 

Stuart's grandmother is 93 years old and still going strong. 

We stayed in Dover and visited with Stuart's great aunts. We then drove around the town so Stuart could show us where he went to boarding school. The kids finally realized that he is our version of Harry Potter. His school was like Hogwarts without the magic. 

This is where Stuart went to boarding school from the age of 13. 

When we got home, the kids made mince pies with Grandma. 

We played games in the evening after a dinner of fish pie. 

Christmas morning was a bit sad as no one was up early. In fact, we all slept until nearly 9 am. Jack woke up just after 9 and then woke Millie up. We had breakfast just before 11. Then Grandma went to get dressed. We opened presents around noon and then just chilled. Stuart and his mum continued to prep for our Christmas dinner. It was a good day. I missed a call with my family, but would catch up with them at some stage. 

The kids seem thrilled, don't they?

Boxing Day we were up around 8 am and headed to the supermarket for some items needed for our meal. Barnes, Anna and the kids were coming for lunch. Barnes is Stuart's step brother. They got there around 1 pm. We had some delicious leftovers and bubble and squeak. We then got our wellies on and took a walk into the woods. 

Eliza (8), Bella (14), Sophia (12), Millie (12), Jack (15), cousin time is their favorite time. 

Wednesday we were up early to head to Eastbourne to a place called Ninja Warrior, which is like our version of Elevate. Barnes, Anna and the girls met us there so the cousins managed one more activity together. Once we had finished at the bounce place we headed to Grandma and Granddad's house in Maresfield. We were due to be with them until Friday morning. Once we arrived we unloaded the car, had a bite to eat and played a game of Scattagories. We walked for about 2 and a half miles. 

We woke up Thursday morning and had breakfast around 10:30 am. We went for a walk in the village. It was obvious that Granddad was slowing down. It is hard to see the grandparents once in a while because it makes it more obvious when they start to age and become less mobile.

When we got home, we all sat around on our devices. Then the kids, Stuart and grandparents played another game, while I watched some latest episodes of one of my Netflix loves, Virgin River. We had dinner around 4 pm because we were due to go to an escape room at 6:30 pm. 

We didn't escape the room, but we had fun trying. These grandparents are really good about buying experiences for the kids. As you can see, the theme was a plane ride. 

Friday morning we got up and headed to Lullingstone Country Park to meet up with Kayleigh, Claire, Cathy and Claire's boyfriend, Rowan. 

We spent about an hour walking and on our way back it started to rain. It was our sign to head to a pub. After a nice lunch, we headed toward Stowmarket to spend a few days with Clare, Scott, Henry and May, friends we knew in the UAE. We arrived at their house just after 5 pm and had a catch up with Clare. Henry was home for just a bit and then off to a football match. May was at friends for a games night and Scott was still at work. We were just glad to be at their house. 

On Saturday we woke up and waited for Henry and May to get back from work and swim practice, respectively. We then headed to Bury St. Edmond's, a village up the road from Stowmarket. 

We walked around the village and through the gardens. There were ruins of an Abbey that we walked through as well. 

Ruins always amaze me. 

Of course there was a lit package where the kids needed to take a picture. 

We walked around the village for a while, trying to find a pub for lunch. We ended up having a burger at a burger joint. It was delicious! We shopped a bit and Jack bought his girlfriend a necklace with a rose gold stone. We had a nice day and ended it by having a shop at Tesco, the UK version of Target, kind of. We then headed back to the Richardson's house for the evening. The kids were happy to play a kick game with the balloons and the adults watched quiz shows on in the sitting room. For dinner we just snacked, which seems to please everyone. We called it a night just before 11 pm. We have another week in the UK. I am sure excitement is ahead. 

November 2023

The last few days of October were sure to be full, with one of them being Halloween. 

This was a post one of my former athletes put up for Jack. She runs a business that helps promote athletes for colleges to see. 

Sunday Stuart and I did some Christmas shopping as well as shopping at Wal Mart. After he and I got home I took Millie to Sephora. When we got home I cleaned the house and tidied up. Ken and Maytee came over and we went to Creek Side Taco for lunch. When we got home from Creek Side Taco, Jack went to a movie with his buddies. Mitch and Elise came over for a while and we sat on the back porch. 

Monday Stuart was out of the house at 5 am. We didn't have the greatest of weekends, so that makes for a long week. After school I took Millie to gymnastics. This week at the gym was spirit week. This particular day was neon day. 

I was in charge of carpool Monday night so I took the boys to volleyball and worked on editing lesson plans. I picked up Millie after I dropped the boys back home. I stopped and got food at McDonalds for the kids. Once we were home, Elise came over for a little bit. 

Elise bought me slippers like hers for backyard fire pit nights. 

Tuesday Millie didn't go to gymnastics as it was Halloween and the gym was sensibly closed. 

Millie was Weston's banana. Ha!

Elise and I were Chewbacca and R2D2. We have decided this is our 'thing'. We didn't have a lot of trick or treaters. I ended up having about 3 bags of candy left. But we had fun sitting outside our houses and chatting. 

Wednesday was our regular half day at school. Our afternoons are generally for meetings and planning. After I got home from school, I loaded up my car with snack and drove the boys to volleyball again. I needed to make up for the weeks we were in Australia. The bummer about that night was the time had been changed from 7-9 at Brophy instead of 5-7. It makes for a very late night and Millie doesn't ever want to go, so she is home and puts herself to bed. I am not crazy about that piece, but hate to intrude on my parents. Millie doesn't mind staying on her own. In fact, I think she likes the independence. 

Thursday was one day closer to the weekend, thank goodness. Millie had gymnastics but Jack was home. I did some shopping after dropping her off at the gym. I then just went home and chilled until it was time to collect her from the gym. 

Friday Stuart was home by 3:30. We went to the Coyote Fest at my school. We didn't stay the entire time. We did stay long enough to get the Millie food, though. Once we were home, we sat out in the back yard and had a fire pit evening. I love this time of year. 

Saturday we ran errands and put the tree up. We cleaned out the garage and organized it a bit. We went to lunch for our weekly date, and then to dinner with the Hills at Creekside Taco. 

Sunday the spring busted on our garage door. The noise was unbelievable. We really didn't know what happened until I went to open the garage door. In the afternoon, we went to lunch with my mom and dad. They had promised to take the kids out for dinner for their birthday once they were back in Arizona. This was the first available day we had since their return in October. When we got home Stuart left for Gallup. 

Monday a guy came in the afternoon and fixed our garage door. It seems the builder was cheap and instead of installing two springs in the door, they installed just one. We are lucky it lasted so long.  It was gym for Millie and volleyball for Jack. He got mad at me because he had lost his water bottle and I got on to him about it. The 15 year old brain continues to baffle me. Ugh! 

Tuesday was gym as well for Millie. I went to have dinner with Melinda and Heather. I hadn't see them in quite some time so it was good to catch up. Melinda and I actually stayed until it was time for me to pick Millie up at 8 pm. 

Wednesday was a half day and Jack was brought home by Pop. Someone came and bought our weight bench and the foosball table. Our hope is to make our loft a true loft again instead of the space for the kids' crap. 

I took apart the foosball table and then had an intake meeting with a new counselor for Millie. I took Jack to volleyball and Millie and I went to 5 and Below, even though she hadn't done what I had asked her to do after her half day. She can be quite unmotivated. 

Thursday Millie and I were off to the Hoover Dam. This was our 6th grade field trip. 

The trip was a lot of fun. We floated down the river and were told some history of the river. We had lunch on the boat. We then headed home and had pizza on the bus. We got home around 9:30 pm. 

I got home, showered and was in bed by 10:30 for a 2:45 am wake up to fly to Chicago. The alarm rang and I certainly did not want to get up, but I did anyway. 

The flight was uneventful. When I arrived I jumped on the L and met Mitch at a station not far from his apartment. We hung out all day. We shopped some and I saw his warehouse. We went downtown to dinner and met up with the gang. Mitch was able to meet the volleyball parents. After dinner, Mitch went back to his apartment and we met up with some of the coaches for drinks at the Marriott. 

I got up Saturday morning and sang the national anthem to kick off the tournament. We hung around for the morning wave even though our team didn't play until the afternoon. They were supposed to start at 2:30 pm, but the morning wave ran late so that didn't happen. 

The moms represented with their bracelets. 

The team didn't fair well on Saturday. They lost all of their matches. Because of their record, they were placed in the highest division. This proved to be an ass whipping for them. However, I suppose they had better get their butts handed to them at some stage to learn what it is like to have to really work harder for what they want. 

Sunday we had breakfast with Mitch and David at the bar on the corner by our hotel. David is a friend of Mitch's whom I have become friends with over the years. It was good to see him and catch up. David and Mitch left and we stayed and watched some football. Jeremy joined us for some breakfast. We then went to the gym to watch some volleyball. The day went better for Jack's team. They got put into a pool of other teams that got the crap beat out of them the previous day. I didn't get to see their last set as I had to fly home. I stupidly didn't book my flight to stay for the entire tournament because we had the Friday off for Veterans Day and that is frowned upon. Oh well. So I flew home on Sunday evening. I had parked my car at the airport which made it easier to get home at at 1:30 am. Boo! 

Monday I was exhausted at school. I went to the grocery store after school and got some stuff for our Mexico trip. I then came home and waited around until Stuart and the kids got home. Around 8 pm my dad messaged to say he could no longer get Live tv on our Hulu account. I went down and tried to sort that out, but had no luck. Jeremy brought Stuart and the kids home from the airport. When they got home, they showered, had a bite to eat and went to bed. 

Tuesday I didn't set my alarm for the right time and I woke up at about 6:30 AM. Fortunately Stuart was home and was able to get Millie up and take her to school, while I took Jack to school and took myself to school. Stuart left for Gallup about mid day. 

I was surprised and one of my students brought me lunch. She had a broken tooth and I sent her to the nurse to have her mom pick her up and take her to the dentist. She insisted on coming back to school and bringing me lunch. So that was a nice little treat.  After school I took Millie to gymnastics. My dad had picked up Jack from school and delivered him home. I then went to meet Sue for an early dinner at Blue 32 in Gilbert. She was doing really well with her shoulder, but from what she told me about her recovery, I knew she had worked really hard to get her arm to the point it was then. Ouch, is all I could think. We had a great little catch up as we always do. 

When I got home, Elise came over for about an hour and a half to catch up. I then went to get Millie from the gym. She had messaged me earlier and told me that she fell on her tail bone while doing a back tuck. I asked her if I needed to come to get her but her coach and I decided we would just leave her at practice.

Wednesday Jack went home with Gavin and went to volleyball practice with him. Millie was at home and I had an appointment with Maytee to get my hair cut. And boy did I get it cut!

The old hair. 

The new hair, 9 inches off. After my hairs were all cut, I went to eat dinner with Ken and Maytee. I paid for dinner because Maytee cut my hair for free. I think I got off on the cheaper end. 

Thursday once I had delivered Millie to gymnastics, I went to dinner with Debi for her birthday. It was the week for catching up with friends. Stuart came home Thursday evening because he decided to not work on Friday. . 

Friday Stuart spent the day working on the RV. He was prepping it to reseal the roof. The check engine light on the Jeep came on, so that had to be sorted as well. After school Grammie took Millie to gymnastics. My teammate Merkel and her husband came over and we had dinner in the RV. I thought I had invited them for a drink, but it turned out to be the entire evening. It was actually quite a bit of fun for an impromptu evening. Grammie and Pop picked Millie up since our guests were still at the house at 8 pm. It was a good evening. 

Saturday we got up and I took Millie to her new counselor. She was so resistant and angry with me. The therapist was so sweet and quite young and I was sure Millie would love her. When we got into the room, Millie wasn't able to tell her why we were there. I started to explain and Millie dug her head into my lap. She started crying and then I started crying. I just want her to be able to deal with her big emotions in a more productive way. It turns out that Millie loved Aimee! Yahoo! We booked four future appointments. 

Saturday afternoon we went to Elise's brother's celebration of life. Her family dynamics are quite a story, so I know that day was very stressful. We spent the rest of the afternoon putting stuff in the RV and getting that ready for Stuart and Millie to leave for Rocky Point. In the evening the boys had signed up for a sand volleyball tournament. So we headed to Casteel for the evening. 

Sunday morning Stuart and Millie left for Rocky Point. Jack and I cleaned the house and then relaxed. We really did nothing all day. 

Monday was school. As I was on my own, I got to school really early. After school I went shopping for things we had forgotten to put in the RV before Stuart left. 

Tuesday I picked Jack up from school and we went home to get Moose and headed to Rocky Point. The  drive was fine until it turned dark. I hate driving in the dark. The roads to Rocky Point are not lit. They are also a bit more narrow. We stopped twice to let Moose pee. He was riding freely in the back seat, which was not ideal. We arrived at our RV park around 8:30 pm. It was good to finally be there for 5 days of rest and relaxation. We unpacked the car and blew up Jacks air bed. Stuart and I had a brew and called it an early evening. 

Wednesday we got up and sat up our stuff on the beach. Todd, Mary and Kyle showed up just after noon. We tried to go to lunch with them, but it seems places in Rocky Point are closed on Wednesdays. We finally landed at a place called Candy Cake. The food was amazing. Stuart and I shared an omelet that was so delicious. Todd paid for the meal. His argument was that we would be supplying other meals and beer for him. We let him pay. We came back to the RV park and played on the beach. Todd, Mary and Kyle went to check into their resort but couldn't. So they came down to the beach. While we were all sitting on the beach, Lucy FaceTimed them. She is in basic training in Texas at the moment. She has decided she wants to go to Korea. She graduated high school one year early and was ready to get out on her own. It sounds as if she is learning some very good life lessons. They put her on speaker and she sounded so excited about her experience. It was good to know she was satisfied with what she is now doing. We spent the rest of the evening at our RV. We ended up blowing up another air bed and Kyle stayed in Jack's tent with him that evening. 

Thursday we tried to go to the resort where Mary and Todd were staying. They wouldn't let us in. So we came back to the RV park, ate Lucas chicken we had purchased for lunch, and went to the bar for a bit. We then set up down in the beach. We played volleyball once Jack had finished his nap.  I threw my back out. I am so out of shape. Ugh! Todd, Mary and Kyle came over for dinner. We made shrimp on the barbie. We had gotten the shrimp at Jessy's earlier in the day. 

Friday it was really windy out, so we decided a beach day was likely out of the question. We went to a local Mexican restaurant with the Daniels. Todd knows the cheapest, most delicious places to eat. They then took Jack to their resort. They tried to get us to sneak in, but we are not wired like Todd! Jack had his hair cut at a Mexican barber, which he loved. When they got back to the RV we decided just to have a hodge podge of food. We had a number of leftovers and some random snacks bits. It was easy and tasty. 

On Saturday we had lunch at Birria, another local favorite, and the birds pooped on us. Someone said it was good luck, but I am not buying it. 

We decided to leave Saturday afternoon instead of Sunday. On our way out of town a group of four dogs ran out into the road. Unfortunately, one of them ran under our front wheel and up the side of our RV. Millie asked what happened and when I told her she started crying. We had dog poop all the way up the side of the RV. Millie cried, and I did too. It was totally unavoidable. Millie was upset we left early in the first place. When we got cut off on the road into Sonoita by an RV towing a vehicle, Millie made the statement that if we would have just stayed and not come home early these things wouldn't have happened.

Once we were home, the real work started. We unloaded the RV and I started the laundry. We decided to leave the cleaning of the RV until the following morning. It was cold and we were tired. We showered and called it a night. 

Sunday we finished cleaning out the RV and returned it to storage. Millie went to a birthday party and Jack started coughing. Sickness was in his near future, I could tell. His buddies were all sick after the Chicago tournament, so it was inevitable he would get sick. While Jack was getting sick, Stuart and I put up outside lights. Stuart headed back to Gallup  around 3:45 pm. 

The lights were great and we didn't feel like outcasts of the neighborhood. Our entire street is lit up. 

As the night grew on, Jack developed a fever. Oh dear, here we go! I felt sure he would be down and out for several days. And sure enough, Monday he woke up and was feverish and miserable. He stayed home. I came home at lunch time to check on him and get meds in him. He wasn't better at all. After school I took Millie to gymnastics and then came home to care for Jack. I made pasta for Jack, and took some to Millie when I picked her up from gymnastics. 

Tuesday Jack was still not well, so stayed home again. I knew he really was miserable as he knew if he didn't go to school he wouldn't be able to go to volleyball practice that evening. Millie had an orthodontist appointment before she went to gymnastics. I went home to make food for Jack. He seemed to be a bit better in the evening. I picked up Millie and fed her. 

Wednesday Jack actually went to school. He worked hard to get the things done he had missed the last two days. After school we had nothing going on. It was nice not having to go anywhere. Around 8:30 pm, Jack had a nose bleed.What a mess that was. I told him, after his nose stopped bleeding, to just go take a shower. He came out of him room, which is downstairs now and I was in the kitchen. He peeked around his door and announced he didn't  have a towel. I turned around so his naked body could go to the bathroom and take a shower. Having your baby grow up is just flat out weird!

Tuesday of this week Stuart was sick as well and didn't go to work. Then, Thursday it was snowing in Gallup and they canceled school. So in order to not get stuck in Gallup for the weekend, he decided to drive home on Thursday. We had a lot going on over the weekend so I was glad he made the decision that he did. When he got home, we drove the boys to volleyball at Brophy and he and I went to eat sushi. My mom picked Millie up from gymnastics as we were not going to be home from volleyball until after she was finished. She took her home and fed her. When we got home from Brophy, Grammie was still at our house. Millie then went to bed. Jack showered and also went to bed. Stuart and I sat up and talked for a while and then also turned in for the night. 

Friday morning I took Jack to school and then went to school myself. Stuart brought Millie to school because he was home. He took my car to get new tires and then started working on his Bronco. He actually had a very productive day. I took Millie to gymnastics after school and then came home. Stuart and I got dressed and headed to a birthday dinner for Jeremy at High Tide. We had a fantastic night. The girls exchanged their 'favorites' for each other. The men did not participate in this process, but we all still had a great time. 

Saturday morning we got up and Stuart made bacon baps (sandwiches) to take to Jack's volleyball regional tournament. It was the final tournament of the fall season. We were at Legacy for the entire day, from 8am until 6:15 pm. It was a long day. Jack didn't play as much as we thought he would, but we can only assume the coach was saving him for the final matches. He had not taped his shoulder like he has been told to for the last several months and therefore he tweaked his shoulder in the first set of the day. I wanted to throttle him! We chastised him and then tried to fix him with Motrin and tape. His shoulder got better through the day. They made it to the end of the tournament and the final match. They were beat in two sets by their nemesis. The team they played in the finals were last year and remain to be absolute jerks. It's a shame because the volleyball culture is not a place for teams like this one. They fought hard, but just couldn't pull it off. So they took second place for the region. I was so proud of the team for keeping it classy and not falling into the trap of the classless opponents they played in the last match. 

Once we left the tournament, we came home and started to talk through our brunch with the Meyns and Hurleys for the next day. What a weekend!

October 2023

The first of October was our last full day on Hamilton Island. I got up and finished the blog so I could post it. We then waited around for our chartered boat for the day. 

The ride out to the reef was very calm and beautiful. The weather turned a bit, but we were still able to snorkel, which was fun. 

Millie was not keen once we were out in the water. She did sit in the dingy and looked through the view finder to see marine life, but she didn't get in the water. The water wasn't as clear as it would have been had the sun been out, but we were still able to see some big fish. 

The kids had fun, as did the adults. 

The best days are typically had with the Telfords. 

A dingy took the boys and kids to a sandbar that gets exposed as the tide comes in and out. 

The kids went on the second trip. 

They played cricket for a bit. We dropped the kids off at the Marina and picked up some others for a sunset cruise. It was beautiful. 

Monday morning we were up and tidying the place. We got packed and sat around the villa until 10 am. We flew to Sydney, got our rental car and drove to Lou and James'. We couldn't crack the code to their house to get in the house. Finally, we found a key to the side door. We got in the house and started laundry. Stuart and I went to get some groceries. Trying to get up James and Lou's drive was a scary experience. Their driveway is almost 45 degrees. It is frightening for sure. 

Lou and the kids got home around 8 pm. Stuart had barbecued chicken and we had roasted potatoes with some tomatoes and avocados. It was delightful. We sat around and chatted for a while and then we're off to bed at a reasonable time. 

I was up on Tuesday morning around 8 am. Stuart was up earlier. The kids were up and around as well. We had coffee and then the kids headed off to the Howard's for a swim. This is the family who traveled with Louise this summer when we were all in California. The kids were so excited. Zoe was off to a play date. So Lou, Stuart and I went to lunch. Matt met us at the pub and we played the pokies for a bit. Lou won a great deal of money, but the rest of us lost. 

When we left the sailing club, we stopped at the grocery store and got some food for the evening. Giles and Barnes, Stuart's step brothers were supposed to have flown back to Sydney on Monday as well, but got bumped off of their flight. So James stayed with them on Hamilton Island and they were all due to come back to Sydney on Tuesday evening. I napped and Lou went and got the kids. She and Stuart made dinner and I cleaned up. Then we all waited for the brothers to come home. 

Millie and Zoe made sat on the dock, made tick toks, jumped on the trampoline, and did tricks on Zoe's bar, while the boys went on a Pokémon event. 

Wednesday we did a walk from Coogee Beach to Bondi Beach, had a snack at Bondi Beach, then got an Uber back to Coogee Beach for a later lunch. 

This was when everyone was still in good spirits, before the stairs. 

She was faking a smile here because she was complaining about all the flies.  She wasn't wrong, there were a million flies. 

Finally we made it to Bondi beach. Whew!

The best seafood I have ever had is in Australia, so I always order seafood when I am here. At Coogee Beach I got a tuna poke bowl, which was delightful! We shopped a bit so Barnes could get his girls some Aussie treats. We then came back to Lou and James' for the evening. Barnes showered and was off for the UK. James made us pizza and then we had some time in their spa. It rained, but was delightful. Lou's lower back was giving her trouble, so she really needed the spa. 

Thursday morning we packed up and went to Hunter Valley, which is Australia's version of Napa Valley. The car we had rented continued to struggle to get up the driveway. This time it was particularly bad and Stuart ended up reversing it up, which was still a struggle, but worked. It was declared that we would walk down the drive from that moment forward, and the car would stay up on the road. 

We stopped to eat lunch at a lovely winery. We arrived at the Airbnb around 2:30 pm. 

There were about 12 kangaroo just outside our back garden. 

Look at this little jewel! Sweet little joey eating while it's mama ate as well. 

A game of chess for the young ones. Grandpa was coaching both of them. We had dinner of spaghetti bolognese and called it a night. 

Friday morning we were up and off to aqua golf. 

There were buckets with prizes. If you hit the bucket, you got a prize. The kids loved it. 

We left the kids and had a beautiful lunch at another winery. We were happy we hadn't taken the kids as it was definitely a place of solace. 

Afterwards we went for a wine tasting. 

This place we ate was called Circa 1876. 

The scenery around the winery was stunning. 

Dinner and dancing was the evening event. This was a pub in the middle of town. 

Saturday morning we went to the go kart track. I just watched, but the others enjoyed their time in the cars. 

Stuart, Nicole, Matt and Jack ready to race. 

Millie was loving it!

Jack was raring to go, as competitive as ever. 

In the afternoon we went wine tasting at Brokenwood. We had dinner at Nineteen, a pub just up from our Airbnb connected to the golf club. There was a guy playing his guitar and singing. It was delightful. 

Another wine tasting Sunday morning at Piggs Peake before we left to go back to Sydney. 

This was Nic's favorite winery, so since we hadn't bought them a wedding gift, we bought her the signature winery wine glasses. They were beautiful. 

We got back to Sydney and unloaded some things and then had a late pub lunch with pokies! I won $150, but I can only assume I will lose it before we leave! Ha!

On Monday we took our kids and Zoe to Symbio Wildlife Park on Monday. Billie had to go to school, but Zoe wasn't due back to school until Tuesday. 

The koalas were out and more active than I have ever seen. 

Millie was so pleased that this little guy was holding her hand as she fed him. 

The kids enjoyed feeding the kangaroos, emus and farm animals. 

Tuesday we went to Miranda, which is a shopping center not far from James and Louise's. We shopped for a bit. Jack got his hair cut. Stuart took the kids home while I continued to shop. Lou and I took her mom to her house then went to pick up Zoe. 

The evening came and we had a bbq at James and Lou's. Their friends, who have kind of become our friends, came over for a while. It was lovely. There were about 20 people there. 

Wednesday morning we were up, packing and cleaning the bedroom, getting it ready for Karen and Barry, who would use it for the rest of their stay in Australia. We left around 9 am to head to Matt's for a night. We went to Castle Towers to shop and eat lunch. 

Jack ordered octopus and calamari. He wasn't too sure about the octopus. I think he thought it would be fried. We got back to Matt and Nic's. We decided to have a gin party and then got in the hot tub. We had burgers for dinner and then were off for sleep. 

Thursday morning we walked to a cafe for breakfast. Nic came by for a few minutes, and then we all went back to the house to pack up and go into the city. Karen and Barry came with us. Louise had gotten a special at The Crown, the most luxurious hotel in Sydney, so we decided that was where we would end our Australia stay. We were there and checked in just before noon. Stuart turned in our rental car early as we felt it would be easier and cheaper to do so. 

This was our room view. It doesn't get much better than being able to stare at the Sydney Opera House and the Sydney Harbour Bridge from your hotel window. 

We spent the afternoon at the pool. 

Striking a pose. 

We had dinner at 5:45 and then went to see Miss Saigon at the Sydney Opera House. 

What a life we are living! We were back in the room by 10:30 pm and cracked open our free bottle of champagne. We sat up and talked for a bit, and were in bed by midnight. 

Lou and I got up and had a bit of time in the spa around 6:30 am. It was chilly outside but toasty in the spa. We ordered some coffees and James brought a robe down for me because I am not used to fancy pants hotels and forgot I could bring the plush robe down with me. 

Once we were out of the spa, we headed to breakfast. We then took the kids to Luna Park.

We spent a few hours there and then headed back to the hotel so the boys could play tennis. I went shopping for some cheap Australia stuff for our friends and then met the boys at the pub for a drink and the pokies! We had dinner at the steak restaurant and then said our goodbyes in case no one wanted to get up the following morning. 

Saturday morning we were up and said goodbyes again. It turns out everyone wanted to get up. The flight to LA seemed quick even though it was 14 hours. We rushed to the domestic flight because it only took us 30 minutes from the time our flight from Sydney landed to the time we went through customs and got our bags. We put my name and Jack's name on a standby list for the 8:10 am flight, hoping he could be picked up and taken to his volleyball tournament. Grammie and Pop were going to pick us up. Well, it turned out that only Jack got on the flight, so this was a big boy step for sure, flying on his own. Grammie and Pop met him at the curb and took him to Legacy. 

Saturday evening we just chilled. I didn't go to bed until 1 am and woke up on Sunday at 11 am. Wow! I got up and finished up the laundry. Stuart and I went shopping. Stuart then made dinner for us and my mom and dad. Stuart decided to stay until early Monday morning. 

Stuart went to bed at 9 o'clock and came down again at 11 PM to let me know that he could not sleep. He ended up not sleeping at all. But he also ended up not leaving until 5 AM to go back to Gallup.  I didn't sleep much either, but that's because I had the equivalent of two nights sleep the night before. Because we all know I don't sleep more than five or six hours a night anyway.

I got up Monday morning and Millie got straight up and we went to school a little bit early. Jack stayed at home because Chandler kids weren't starting until the next day. I came home at lunch to get Jack out of bed because he had some science work to do and had to go to volleyball practice at 3:30. When I got home, I discovered that Moose had diarrhea in his cage. So I had to clean that out before I went back to school. After school I took Millie to gymnastics after picking Jack up from the house and delivering him to Owen's house for a lift to volleyball practice. I went home to chill and catch up on my trash television. I returned to collect Jack at Starbucks, bringing him our left over chicken from Sunday afternoon. I brought him home and went right back out to get Millie. I had made her a Pbj at her request. The kids showered and were off to bed at their regular bedtime. I think we were all a bit jet lagged still. 

Tuesday morning I went down to wake Jack up and discovered that Moose had pooped in his cage again. I can't afford for this dog to be sick. Ugh! I cleaned that up and then went back upstairs to wake up Millie. Why on earth do my kids not wake up to Alexa? She is set to wake them up, but they tell her 'off' as soon as they hear her. We were off to school. I took Millie to gymnastics after school. We were supposed to pick up Jack, but since Grammie and Pop are back in town, he messaged Grammie to see if she could pick him up. So I didn't have to make that trip on Tuesday. I went to the grocery store to get some needed items for our science experiment the following day. When I got home I made dinner for Jack and Millie. I put Millie's in a hot pot so I could take it with me when I picked her up from the gym. Jack came out of his cave long enough to eat. He had asked earlier in the day if he could start playing his X-Box during the week. We told him as long as he had straight A's, he could, but the second his grades went below A's it would not be an option until he got his grades up. We shall see how this goes. 

Wednesday was business as usual. Moose seemed like he was feeling better. I had given a Valium to Chloe the previous night because she was going to the vet this day. Last time I took her to the vet I thought she was going to attack the vet. She is a total pain, and I always thought she was the docile one. 

I left school a bit early to pick up a prescription and Stuart's laundry. I also got my flu shot, my Covid shot, and my shingles shot. Millie had gone home with the Hills for the half day and then went down and saw Grammie and Pop for a while. When I got home, I discovered my mom had bought me a really pretty fall plant. I actually discovered this fact before I went home as I could see her on our Ring!

I was so sore on Wednesday night from my vaccinations and woke up Thursday morning with a low-grade fever and could hardly move my left arm. May be a stupid idea to get three vaccines in the middle of the week. I ended up having to ask the math coach to come and teach my six graders on Thursday. During that time, I went into my teammates classroom and took a nap on her sofa. I spent the rest of the day just sitting at my desk, trying to tolerate the pain and the fever. I would've taken a day off, but I had to have a procedure the following Tuesday and I didn't have any sick days.

Friday was much different. The fever broke in the middle of the night Thursday, and all was well on Friday. 

I took Millie to gymnastics on Friday and went to meet up with an old teammate for dinner. Stuart got home around 6 pm from Gallup. When I got home we went to have a beer and then to get Millie. We then sat out back and put the fire pit on. The first fire of the season, finally!

Saturday morning we were up and at the RV storage. We had to replace the battery, but it was free. Battery companies lose their shirts with Arizona residents. We spent the rest of the day running errands. We had lunch after we took Millie to her friend's house for a sleepover. Jack had a sleepover at Owen's the previous night. We went to the Meyn house around 4:30 for the D-back game. Jack came with the Hurleys, so he was back in our care. Sadly, the Dbacks lost that game. Vicki was happy though, because she is a Philly fan. 

Sunday Stuart was home all day. We took the Bronco out after getting home from collecting Millie and eating lunch at Creek Side Taco! We also booked tickets to go to the UK for Christmas. We need to see Hope and Stuart's grandmother. So, I guess we won't be here for Christmas. Sunday evening the Hills came over for dinner. It was a nice evening with a few too many beverages. 

Monday school was as usual. My students were good as gold, as usual. I watched the Dback game after I dropped both kids at their respective places. It was a great game. 

Tuesday I had to take the day off for an endoscopy. It seems that my little incident a few months ago was of concern for my doctor so she thought it would be best if I was checked out. I may have stressed over this procedure more than any other one I have ever had. It was the weirdest thing. My mom came and picked me up and my dad made sure they kids got to school. The procedure was so short and easy. There was really nothing to worry about. My mom drove me to her house to have coffee with her and my dad. I then went home to rest, although I felt fine. In the afternoon I went with my mom to Ross and got my 10% off for the first time because I am now 55 years old. My mom bought me some things as well. It was actually a really good day. 

Tuesday afternoon, Jack and Blake attempted to put on the tires for the golf cart. It turns out they couldn't do it, but I did ask Jack to break down the boxes the tires came in. Below you will see his version of breaking down a box.

 It isn't exactly what I wanted, as you would guess. 

Oh, of course I had to get the scissors in order to cut all the tape off and break down the boxes properly.

Wednesday I went to school and it was a half day. My kids were great the previous day. The was a bit of a kerfuffle with the six grade classes, so the regular six grade classes were required to sit on the wall during their lunch recess and write out reasons why they should be kind and how they could be kind. My 6th graders were spared this task. 

Thursday I got up and went to school. It was a normal day. After school I took Millie to gymnastics and Jack stayed at school for some girls' volleyball matches. I ended up going to Susan's house for a happy hour with my old bunco gang. That was a great time. I then picked Millie up from gymnastics and got her McDonald's and we came home. Jack was brought home by another parent. Once we were all home and showered, it was bed time.  I had been going to bed around 10:30 the last few evenings as I have been so tired. This is very out of the norm for me, as anyone would know. 

On Friday morning I got up and got to school. I was called into the principal's office to talk about the game that was being played at our school by the sixth graders. She asked me what I knew about it. I told her that I actually did know and I had intended to tell her on Monday, but that it slipped my mind because I was preoccupied with having to have an endoscopy on Tuesday. She said that the word had gotten back to her that I was questioning her integrity by allowing  this game to be played. I love the fact that she takes the rumor mill and allows it to be truth. I told her there was no way that I had questioned her authority or her integrity, and whoever said that to her misinterpreted or misunderstood anything that I said. I have come to realize that I talk to two people on my campus and one of them is a rat fink. So I have stopped sharing information with her or even taking to her.  

After school on Friday, Millie and I had to stop at the house because I forgot to refill medication for Millie. Jack was discouraged because he made less on his Geometry test than he thought he would. It was still a B, but he was not happy with it. 

Friday evening we went to Santan Flat to eat dinner with my mom and dad, as well as some friends that my parents used to know from Missouri. They actually lived on the same street as we did. I played with their youngest son. But I haven't seen them in almost 45 years. So, I went just because my mom and dad asked me to. Jack went because I made him. We picked Millie up after gymnastics and headed home. We dropped Jack and I took Millie down to meet Ken and Jan. We only stayed for about 30 minutes. When we got home, Millie and Jack took a shower. Jack got ready for his tournament that would be in Prescott the next morning. Millie laid on the sofa and watched television. Elise came over and we sat out by the fire pit in the back. Once she left, I got all the things I needed to get ready for the tournament. 

Saturday Jack had a tournament in Prescott. The fact that his normal volleyball venue has gone bankrupt has really put a wrench in the tournaments as they have to rent out whatever gyms they can. Unluckily, we got stuck with Prescott that Saturday. Jack had a great day and his team came in second, so would move up a division. Chris, Vicki, myself and our boys rode in the same car, which made it easier. However, we didn't get home until around 10 pm. That was a bummer. 

Stuart had worked in Gallup all day and let me know he was on his way home around 2:30 pm. Millie was home all day by herself, with my neighbor being available should Millie need her. The neighborhood had a fall festival in the evening and Weston, our neighbor, and Millie went as a gorilla and banana. Elise sent me this photo. They are so cute! They got to trick or treat and Millie said she had a great time. 

When Jack and I got home, Jack took a shower and I sat and talked with Stuart for a while. The kids went to bed and so did Stuart. I was still a bit wound from the day so sat down and watched some television before calling it a night. On to another month of adventures.