Monday morning we got up and the kids went down to Grammie and Pop’s to play games. Prior to that, Millie lost her phone for the week because of her behavior. She just can’t help her mouth, or choses not to do so. Stuart and I went shopping and then had lunch out. Monday afternoon we went with some friends to a whiskey distillery. Grammie and Pop took Jack to basketball and Millie to gymnastics.
After the distillery tour, we went to get something to eat. We sat with the rest of the football fans, stunned by the events of the football game where Damar Hamlin collapsed. It was so shocking and scary for sure. When we got home, Grammie was still at our house. She claimed Millie wanted her to stay. Truth be known, she still thinks our kids are babies and need a babysitter. Bless her!
Tuesday Stuart decided, because of the weather, he would not be going to Gallup that week. We took down the Christmas decorations and got everything back to normal. We went shopping for a piece of furniture to go under our television, but couldn’t find anything. Jack and Millie went down to Grammie and Pop’s to play games again but were home when we returned from shopping. We spent the rest of the evening watching Jack Ryan, our new favorite obsession.
Wednesday Stuart brought Millie to school so I could go in early and prepare for my day. Unlike Chandler, Queen Creek doesn’t have a teacher in-service day before the kids come. We all start on the same day. After school Millie rode home with Elise and Stuart picked Jack up. I had to leave school early to go to an eye doctor appointment. I was nervous about the appointment as my eye condition has become much worse over the last month. I see either squiggly lines or very distorted objects. I liken it to looking at a characature. It is just hard to see well unless I close my left eye. During the appointment an urgent appointment was suggested so I could see a macular degeneration specialist the next day. That was concerning for sure.
Millie had gymnastics which my mom took her to. After my appointment I came home and Stuart and I went to dinner. Jack had basketball so Pop took him there. We picked Millie up after dinner and got her McDonalds. We all went home and got on with our nightly routines.
Thursday I got a call that there had been a family emergency for the eye specialist and my appointment was canceled. I was super bummed because then the next time they could get me in was February 1. That didn’t seem terribly urgent to me. I called later in the afternoon and asked the receptionist to put me on a cancelation list. I was hopeful something would come of that. After school I went to a training for Biz Town, a simulated city we would be taking our students to at the end of February. It was not terribly interesting, but because I was ‘new’ to Biz Town (even though I took students there in the inaugural year of its existence in 2001), I had to go to the training. Once the training was over I was supposed to go hang out with Heather, Lauren and Melinda. However, I had a raging headache and had to pass this time. Instead, I just went home. Millie was home and Jack had gone to the first night of open gym volleyball. Stuart and I watched some television and then he went to collect Jack. Jack was a bit discouraged by his performance. We reminded him that he wasn’t with his team and all the players were at different levels, so that could have played into it. He ended the season on such a high that I am sure he will gage his performance by his end of the season play.
Friday, students caught up on their work and the day seemed to fly by. However, I find short weeks typically seem longer than regular weeks so I was thrilled when the day was over.
Because Stuart was home and Jack was still out on vacation, they did some father/son bonding. Seems Jack quite enjoyed the shooting range.
After I got home from school, we loaded up the kids and headed to the different venues for everyone’s Friday evening. Millie went to Grammie and Pop’s, Jack went to Gavin’s as they were going to a GCU men’s volleyball match, and Stuart and I went to downtown Gilbert for dinner and an evening at the Hale Studio to see an ABBA cover band. Ken and Maytee joined us for the evening. We are at Clever Koi. The food was wonderful, but both Maytee and I started to feel a bit nauseous in the middle of dinner. We both got a Sprite and started to feel a bit better. ABBA was amazing! This is the second concert we have attended at the Hale Studio. It is the cutest little venue. We are always the youngest people in there, but it is great entertainment for sure.
Jack had a great time at the volleyball match and ended up spending the night with Gavin. Most of Jack’s team attended the game. Vicki sent us a video of the boys swaying during one of the songs that was jamming. The boys ended up on the jumbo screen. Right as the camera hit Jack, he turned around and twirked so the entire arena saw it, as did anyone watching ESPN+ that night. That’s my boy!
This is Jack’s tribe! Jack, Gavin, Carter and Owen (order from left to right).
Millie was going to go to gymnastics on Saturday morning for a little while but then decided not to. Her first meet was that evening so we really were fine with her not going to gym that morning. So we got up Saturday morning and just piddled around the house for a while. I then went and picked Jack up from Gavin’s. I brought him home, and Stuart and I decided to go for lunch. The kids decided they didn’t want to go with us, so after lunch, we went to the grocery store. We got home and I did Millie’s hair and got her ready for the gymnastic meet. She was talking to a friend on FaceTime while I did her hair, so there was no yelling at me that evening. She did really well. She did not beat Mean Mallory, but she did win second place overall. And in the entire meet, her score was the fourth highest of every gymnast that competed that weekend. Grammie and Pop went with us as did Jack. The meet didn’t finish until almost 10 pm and she was starving. There was nothing really open by the time we got to our side of town so we stopped for an icy at Quik Trip. When we got home, Millie just went straight to bed as did Jack.
Sunday morning I was up and out to brunch with Sherry, Elisa, Gina, and Mary. We were celebrating Sherry‘s birthday, which is New Year’s Day. We went to have breakfast at a place in Gilbert. There were bloody Mary’s, Mamosa’s, green tea, and coffee as beverages. We had a phenomenal time just chatting and catching up. These ladies are my ride or dies for sure. We had a great time and spent a couple of hours just gabbing. We could’ve carried on the whole day, but everyone had things to do. Mary, in true form, provided eggs and citrus to all of us. Once I was home, I got Jack ready to go to the basketball game with his buddies. His Christmas present was a gift voucher for Suns tickets and he decided to share that money with his buddies. Apparently, while I was at brunch Jack flooded the downstairs toilet. Instead of reporting the clog to Stuart, Jack thought he would just flush it again. We often forget this child who is the size of an adult has a teenage brain. Our patients is being tested for sure. Stuart left at 2 pm for Gallup. It was especially hard that Sunday as he had been home almost a month. Sometimes the tasks I have to do alone each week can be overwhelming. I cried when he left. After about a half hour I settled into what lay ahead for me for the week and all was well again.
I started collecting boys around 3 pm. We drive down to the arena and went in as soon as it opened.
Everyone was in Suns gear.
Hopeful for a glimpse, autograph or picture. Anything would do!
Our seats were very close to the top.
Home for a cook off. Carter was the only boy that didn’t get to spend the night.
Jack’s creation of a grilled cheese sandwich with syrup on top. It actually didn’t taste that bad, but we decided it would have been better with bacon.
Alex’s egg and cheese burrito. This creation was devoured. Gavin’s cookies didn’t have a picture as they disappeared before I could get a snap shot. The boys stayed up until 2 am. Millie didn’t get as much sleep as she needed and neither did I. In hind site, the sleepover wasn’t the best idea. The boys didn’t have to go to school but Millie and I did.
Monday Millie and I were were up and out of the house while the boys slept. Millie and I dragged for most of the day. After school I ran Millie to gymnastics and then came home and took Jack to Owen‘s house to go to volleyball open gym. I then met Todd Daniels for dinner. We hadn’t seen each other for a while so it was good to catch up. Kyle was due to join the tutoring group the following Sunday. Todd proposed we take a weekend trip to Mexico, and I seriously contemplated it until I remembered we had committed to go to Cole’s baptism on Saturday. So we would just have to settle for getting together on Sunday while the kids were being tutored.
I picked Millie up from gymnastics and got her McDonald’s. When I brought her home, she took a shower. She was up in her room for a while and then attempted to go to sleep. Elise came over for a chat but then I had to leave to go pick up Jack.
Tuesday morning the intent was to make appointments for Millie and myself to have a pedicure. We were going to go after school and then go to dinner. This was my way of kind of making up for taking Jack and his buddies to the Suns game. In the end, I forgot to make the appointments so we just ended up going shopping and then went to dinner at Oregano’s. I was to pick Jack up from Rock Point church at 3:30, but then he decided to stay for the high school basketball games at Casteel. So I ended up picking him up around 8 PM. When I got home from our dinner, I realized that the dogs had pooped and barfed out on the travertine tile. So I ended up going to pick up poop and spraying off the tile. I recognized that our pool sweeper was not going in any direction and it was running. I picked up the sweeper and discovered there was a rock in the suction area. I was thankful that that happened so that we didn’t have to buy a new sweeper or worse, a new pump.
Wednesday school was fine, and at the end of our half day, Millie went home with our neighbors and I went to a professional development class. It made me more tired than anything else. The one I chose was a small group instruction professional development. It made me realize that I really have passed my prime. I may be interested in being a principal for a few years before I retire, but I am over the whole classroom teaching thing. Grammie picked Millie up to take her to gymnastics while I was at my class. Millie’s friend Ella was turning 12 so Millie wanted to get her a gift. We had bought the gift when we went shopping on the previous day, but Millie forgot it. So when I showed up at my house after my professional development, I found my mothers car in the driveway. When I went into the house, she announced that she was getting the gift to take it back to gymnastics. I quickly said that she was not doing that, and that Millie could wait until I picked her up at 8 PM. I messaged Millie this, and she was a bit indignant for my taste. My mom and dad picked Jack up for skills training around 6:30 PM and I sat myself on our recliner and indulged in my new favorite obsession, Sister Wives! I can hardly believe how into this show I am. I went to get Millie from gym and brought her Ella’s birthday present she had left at home.
Thursday after school Millie and I went to pick up Jack. Once we were home, I corrected a formative test I had received an email about from Empower. The kids played outside for a bit. We then left to drop Jack at Gavin’s for volleyball open gym and headed to our nail appointments. The nail tech rubbed my shin so hard that he bruised it. Ouch!
Friday was Friday and I was ready for Stuart to be home. I left school just after dismissal and went to get Jack. I dropped the kids at home before heading to my wellness check. The doctor checked my heart, checked my lymph nodes and looked in my ears, only to discover i had massive earwax build up. A nurse came in and blasted water in both of my ears. The right ear finally produced something that looked a but like a roach, being a clump of earwax, obviously. She couldn’t get the clump out of the other ear so I was told to get over the counter drops and use them until it was loosened enough to come out. That should be fun! I received orders to get blood work and a mammogram. Again, fun to be had. I stopped at the grocery store on the way home to avoid having to do that over the weekend. Once I was home, I just waited for Stuart to get home. Elise came over for a chat and then Stuart got home around 7 pm. We did a lot of nothing for the rest of the evening.
Saturday morning Stuart and I took Millie to gymnastics. We went for breakfast at Henhouse Cafe and were highly disappointed. They have a Texas Benedict that I love because it is sat upon cornbread. The problem was I didn’t read the description, not even thinking the contents could have changed. But wouldn’t you know, they no longer serve cornbread. I was super irritated and Henhouse Cafe may be dead to me. I boxed it up, knowing Jack would eat it. Stuart and I collected Millie from the gym after a quick shop at Target. I bought her some shoes that she would be able to wear to the baptism. She didn’t like them and ended up wearing her Nike high tops. When we got home, we got dressed and went to Cole’s baptism. It was at the Mormon church. Afterwards we had lunch at the Hill house. We spent about an hour there. Then we all went home to change. Stuart and I sat and watched television and the kids went out to play. We went to the Hill house later in the day for dinner.
Sunday I woke up not feeling so hot. The flu shot and Covid booster I got on Friday could have been to blame. Stuart and I went shopping for lunch food because Blake, Kyle Daniels and Jack were all having tutoring so we decided to make lunch for all three families. We had a great time hanging out with the Daniels again. And in our time together we planned a ski trip to Flagstaff for the following weekend. The Hills came back over for dinner that night. We sat out back and got a bit cold, but had a great time.
Monday morning was MLK holiday. We got up and went down to my mom and dad’s to visit with my Aunt Sue who was in town because her grandson had played baseball in a tournament. We didn’t stay long because Stuart had to get back to the house and get some work done in order to leave a little bit early for Navajo Mountain. The snow had hit northern Arizona and New Mexico pretty hard, but he needed to make money so he needed to go.
Jack went to basketball on Monday earlier because there was no school. Millie went to gymnastics and I made a 100 day t-shirt.
It was the most effort I could give. I was ready to make Millie one but she wasn’t interested.
The kids had McDonalds for dinner, which happens too often, I realize. Everyone went to bed with little fuss. Once Jack was upstairs he called me up. I went up and sat on his bed with him. I could tell he was upset about something. When I finally got it out of him, he cried and said he never wanted to be without Stuart and myself. He was upset about the thought of us dying. It was so sad. I laid in bed with him for a while. That boy is really so sensitive, which is one of his most drawing qualities, if you ask me. He cares a lot for those who care for him. He is very loyal and a people person.
Tuesday Millie had a hard time getting up for school and I ended up leaving her at home. I told her she could figure out how to get to school. She did. I had messaged Elise to let her know Millie might be contacting her for a ride. Sure enough, Elise messaged me to tell me Millie was on her driveway when Elise lifted her garage door to take her boys to school. After school we went to pick Jack up and I started dinner. We had a chilled evening and Millie and I ended up watching Dancing with the Stars. Asking me to watch with her is her way of apologizing for being a jerk.
Wednesday Millie had difficulty getting up again. She actually got ready and when I got back, she was dressed and fed. But she couldn’t get out of the house because she couldn’t decide what she wanted for lunch. I nearly left her again. It just starts my day out so badly, and hers as well. She did end up coming to school with me and all was right with the world again, kind of. After school we picked Jack up and then went to drop Millie at gymnastics. Jack had basketball later so he and I went home and he got something to eat. I returned to the gym to get Millie and then it was business as usual for the evening.
Thursday was easier with Millie leaving the house. Her teacher gave her homework. Her homework was to get up and not give me grief. She did just that. So it is totally doable. She just chooses, for whatever reason, not to comply. I got home from school and made enchiladas. I didn’t plan my time well at all. I was bringing the enchiladas to Flagstaff for the weekend, but failed to remember I had Millie’s gym meet that evening. From the time I got home at 3:30 pm until I started doing Millie’s hair at 4:30 pm, I made enchiladas, packed the ski gear, loaded the car with the ski gear, and started our last load of laundry. Jack had gone home with Gavin from school because they had their last open gym for volleyball before tryouts the following Tuesday. That made things a bit easier for me. Millie and I picked up Grammie and Aunt Sue around 5 o’clock and headed to Arizona Grand Resort.
My friend, Sam, from school came to support Millie as well. Millie had an amazing meet. She got 1st all around and was very pleased with herself.
Aunt Sue and Grammie cheered her on.
That little goofball on the #1 is mine. She isn’t supposed to do that. Ugh!
I thought Friday would be a hard get up. Because we were really late getting home from the meet, I really thought I would have a battle with Millie. But she didn’t give me a fuss at all. When the kids got up, they finished packing for Flagstaff. I put all of our things, except for the enchiladas, in the car. When I got to school, I attended a meeting with that mother that thought she knew more than me in December. Initially the mom said she wouldn’t meet with me and the principal. However, my principal told her that wasn’t going to happen. So she came and endured my presence, accusing me of not helping her daughter. I tried to tell her that I was here to help her daughter. She got nasty and my principal told me I could leave. My principal was being supportive and I knew me being in that meeting was useless. This woman’s issues are much deeper than me ‘not helping’ her daughter. I walked out and began crying. It really got to me. Ironically enough, because I sit at the back table and work with her daughter every day on math, she had two scores on work that raised her grade tremendously that day. I know the mom is going to think it had something to do with her bullying behavior, when in fact it had to do with me actually helping her daughter. It is maddening and not worth being a teacher anymore. Bring on July 2024.
I left school as soon as I could. Pop had picked Jack up and brought him home. I had asked Jack to pick up dog poop so we could leave as soon as I got home. Although he did collect a great amount, he also missed a great amount. So I picked up dog poop, finished loading the car and we left for Flagstaff. We were going to stay at Todd and Mary’s airbnb. We were taking the kids skiing.
When we got to Flag there was about two feet of snow and although it was dark, the kids had to go play in the snow. Stuart had arrived a few hours before us because he was coming from Gallup. Mary, Todd and Kyle arrived about 30 minutes after we did. We spent the evening in the basement, after eating amazing enchiladas, playing darts and listening to music. The kids had fun making tiktoks that were quite clever.
Saturday morning we took the kids to get their ski rental equipment. Millie was in a priceless mood because they went to bed well after midnight the previous night. Once the kids had their gear, Stuart took off towards the mountain and Todd and I headed to breakfast.
The first place Todd and I went we ended up leaving. The service wasn’t only bad, there was none. It was crazy. The place we ended up was just a greasy dinner and it was amazing.
Back to the house we went to watch some television and just gabbed. We took a walk around their neighborhood and almost got hit by a UPS truck. It was frightful, mainly because all I did was bury my head in Mary’s shoulder. I only had the instinct to hide, not move out of the way. After our walk Todd and I went to the grocery store. We didn’t walk around the entire store, much to Todd’s dismay, but just got what we needed and left. We got back to the house in time to watch the Chiefs game. Once Stuart and the kids were back, we fed the kids leftovers and mac and cheese. The adults went to eat a delicious curry meal. Mary was going to drive but we convinced her to drink wine instead. So we got an Uber there and back. The Uber driver who took us to the restaurant, we believe, was either drunk or high. It was a bit concerning to say the least. After our lovely meal, the same Uber driver picked us up to take us back to the house. What are the chances that would happen? We got home, safely, might I add, just before 9 pm. Again, we stayed up chatting and playing darts.
Sunday the kids were up and on the slopes. I went up to hang out in the lodge so that whenever anyone wanted a rest they could come and hang out with me. It was nice just to sit and people watch. When we first arrived, Jack realized he had left his ski jacket at the house about 30 minutes away. His lift pass was in there as well. He is scattered on a good day. I was so irritated with him. Fortunately, I had a ski jacket and getting the lift pass replaced was quite easy. Modern technology is the best. The kids pooped out a bit earlier this day. We went back to the house around 2:30, dropping the rental equipment off on the way. The kids had wanted to go sledding just up from the house. Millie had an epic meltdown as nothing I did was right. She didn’t want to wear gloves, but then when she got out to sled she realized she needed gloves. All her exhaustion was surfacing. We just try to leave her alone in these situations. Mary and Todd are the best people to be with when Millie melts down as they have had these experiences with their daughter. I so appreciated their understanding and advice about ways that worked for them.
Once the kids were finished sledding, we loaded up and headed down the mountain toward home. We ended up leaving around 4:45 pm. It snowed a bit on the way down the mountain. We got home at 7:30 pm, in time fir me to do a few loads of laundry. The kids showered and went to bed very easily. They had two very late nights, so it made sense.
I discovered on Monday morning that I had dried two sweatshirts with a chapstick. Need I say more? I left Millie at home on Monday morning because she just couldn’t get it together. She got a lift to school, though. She is so fortunate our neighbor is so nice. After school, Millie and I picked Jack up from Rock Point. We dropped Millie at gymnastics and then Jack and I came home. I continued laundry after fixing Jack some food. Stuart called me to tell me he was dropping some if his days at work in order to be home a bit more. I like it when he is able to sort out what I need from him without me blatantly telling him. I graded some papers before heading up to take a shower. When I had showered, it was time to go back and get Millie. She didn’t manage her time well, therefore that was my fault. She had a fit about going to bed. I did not yell one bit. I was quite proud of myself. Elise was over during this episode and told me she would have lost her mind on her son. I have found that Millie usually just fizzles out if I leave her alone.
Tuesday Millie was up and ready to roll by the time I got back from dropping Jack at school. After school we went home and discovered that Moose had chewed a whole in our leather bench where we keep the kids’ shoes. Seems he is teething. After the mess was cleared up, we all loaded in the car to drop Jack at Gavin’s, then Millie and I headed to the orthodontist as Millie had broken a bracket over the weekend eating chicken nuggets. Crazy!
Wednesday Millie was up and ready with no fuss. School was fine, but I do always look forward to the next day off. We picked Jack up and I expressed my irritation by his horrible Algebra quiz score. That boy has no clue how to study. I dropped Jack at home and then took Millie to gymnastics. On the way back from taking Millie, I stopped for gas and then decided to hit Skippy’s for a beer before heading home. Once I was home I did some house work. Jack went to skills training with Pop and I went to pick Millie up. She wasn’t happy with the rice I brought her in her hot pot. She ate it, but was grumbling the entire time. Elise came over and I was complaining about my ear hurting. She knew I had a doctor appointment the previous and that my left ear hadn’t produced the chuck of ear wax the doctor saw. She volunteered to dig in my ear and retrieve the wax. I do realize this surpasses the responsibilities if a friend, but she did extract a great deal of the offending wax.
Thursday I took the day off so that I could take both of the older dogs to the vet. They both were do rabies shots, or so I thought. It turns out their second rabies shot is good for two more years. In addition to the fun, and expensive, vet appointments, I also had dentist appointments for the kids and myself for a cleaning. I went to get blood drawn as well. It was just a day of fun things to do.
Thursday evening Jack had club volleyball tryouts. It was quite interesting because there were 20 kids that showed up and instead of making two different teams, the coach decided to keep them all together, and make teams as the tournaments arose. So the original team that was together, last fall were quite disappointed. They felt as if their efforts from last fall had not been rewarded by naming them as the first team. The parents were a bit disappointed too, I must admit. In the end, we told them just to wait and see how things turned out, and we assured them that the coach knew what he was doing. However, I am not sure that all of us were convinced. I suppose club sports are just this way sometimes. The fun part of this season for him is Kendall, Elisa’s daughter in law is one of his coaches.
Friday Stuart ended up getting home just after we got home from school. He had decided to do some of his work over the weekend so was able to come home early. Jack had basketball practice, so he was off with Pop. Millie just hung around the house and played with some neighbors outside. Stuart and I didn’t do much of anything.it was a nice and relaxing evening.
Saturday Millie has gymnastics. She then had a birthday party at 3 PM, but because Jack had a basketball game at 2:40 PM, her friend Brinley’s mom ended up coming to pick Millie up for the birthday party. Jack played really well, but ended up getting kneed in the thigh and having his shin stepped on, so his play was hindered a bit. He did play aggressive because the other team was playing so rough. It really fired him up. His team did actually win. After Millie’s birthday party we had a call asking if Millie could spend the night at Brinley‘s house. We half expected this to happen. So we said it was fine. Jack’s team won their game on Saturday, so he was happy, but exhausted as they only have 5 players for the entire game. When we got home from the game we hung out with the Hills. Mitch was actually visiting his dad so it was just Elise and the kids. We ended up playing rummy and then Stuart taught Elise how to play poker. I discovered I was quite the keen poker player.
Sunday morning we went over to Elise’s house for breakfast. When we got back to the house, Stuart started cooking lunch. We invited my mom and dad to come down to eat as well. We had roasted chicken, vegetables, and roasted potatoes. My parents stayed and watch the Eagles and 49ers game for a little bit, but then went home to finish the game at their house. I think they’re more comfortable at their house. There are always three dogs at our house bugging them. We did end up watching both of the football games and we’re elated that the Chiefs we’re heading to the Super Bowl.
Monday Stuart had his interview at the Queen Creek district office. He was applying for a principal position. Unfortunately, he wasn’t called back for the afternoon round of interview. We knew it was a bit of a long shot, but I am glad he put his name out there. Hopefully, something will transpire next year. He decided to go back to Gallup after he stopped by to see me at lunchtime. I then decided that maybe his five days in Gallup were actually okay. His extra time
home, although nice for me, really doesn’t help me with all the running around I need to do. So sleeping at home another night really didn’t make a difference. Grammie picked Millie up from gym as I had thought Stuart was going to be there to help out that night so I booked myself to take the boys to volleyball practice. I am so thankful my parents are in town to help me as much as they do.
Tuesday was our chill day. We so enjoy our Tuesdays. We do a whole lot of nothing. School was as usual and Jack and Millie were very cooperative.
School went quickly on Wednesday. This was the day I went to see the retina specialist. It was about a two hour appointment, and once again I was the youngest person in the office. It was confirmed that I did, in fact, have macular degeneration and that I would start treatment of shots in my eye every six weeks. Ick! Grammie had taken Millie to gymnastics and Pop was taking Jack to skills practice. I got home just before 5 pm and fixed Jack some food before he left for basketball. I then sat down and watched some television. My eyes had been dilated so I was kind of seeing bright starbursts. I went to pick Millie up from gymnastics and got her chicken strips from Whataburger, her new favorite. All children were home and in bed by 10 pm.
Thursday we were up and out the door. School was so boring. We have been reviewing material for our second benchmark. I am so against teaching to the test. However, since my scores from the first benchmark were not that great, primarily because I didn’t do a great deal of review, this time I wasn’t having that situation. After school, Millie and I picked Jack up from Rock Point and then stopped at Circle K for a slushie. I took Jack to Gavin’s in order to go to volleyball practice. When I got home from delivering him, Millie and I went down to Grammie and Pop’s to see Morgan, Donivan and Hallie. They were heading to California the following day for a wedding so would only be at Grammie and Pop’s until noon the following day. After we ate dinner and sat and chatted for a while, Morgan went with Millie and me to get Jack. She came back to our house to gossip for a while. She and I have become very food friends over the last few years. I just love the relationship we have. I took her back to Grammie and Pop’s just before midnight, came back home and went to bed.
I had told Millie she could skip school on Friday in order to spend some time with Morgan and her family. I didn’t realize Jack would want to stay home as well. It is a huge effort when he misses school. It seems the assignments they do when he is gone are detrimental to his grades. But when I woke him up he asked if he could stay home to spend time with Morgan, Donivan and Hallie and I decided that would be okay. Quality time with family is worth a crappy grade on an assignment. I ended up having to come back to the house because I had Millie’s electric bike in my backseat. I had brought it home from Grammie’s the night before. They rode down to Grammie and Pop’s just after 8:30 am. Then around 10 o’clock I started getting messages from Jack and Millie about going home. I was livid. I finally told Jack that if he said one more word about it, he would never get an opportunity to have a ditch day again. I thought that I let them stay home to spend time with Morgan and her family, and then they decided they just wanted to go home. The while situation infuriated me. I had messaged them on our family group whatsapp. Although Stuart was still in Gallup, he chimed in with his two cents by saying, ‘ Spend as much time with your grandparents as you can. It is an honor to be a grandparent and they love spending time with their grandkids. They will not be around forever guys and you will regret blowing off a couple of hours with then when you are older because you were bored’. Well said, Stuart. He also added in, because Jack claimed he had homework to do, ‘Jack, if you have that much work to finish, you should have gone to school. Don’t use it as an excuse to go home. Ask Pop or Grammie is they can help you with it or do it there if it is so important’. Jack NEVER has homework, so we both knew it was an invalid reason. They ended up staying until 2 pm, which was fine by me.
After school I went to Happy Hour with some teachers from school. We went to Creekside Taco, which is just around the corner from our house. I was home by about 6 pm. Pop had taken Jack to basketball practice and then to Owen’s for a sleepover.
The sleepover.
Elise cane over once I was home and Stuart got home around 7 pm. We sat out on tue back patio for the evening and chatted. I finally checked emails from school and realized I had an appointment to see my principal on Monday. It was called an ‘opportunity’ meeting. I assume this means I will be asked to move grade levels next year. Oh well, I will do what is asked of me.
Saturday morning Stuart woke up in a panic at 6 am saying we needed to get Millie up for gymnastics. He was about 45 minutes early and messed up my sleep at that point. I tried to go back to sleep but couldn’t. When my alarm went off at 6:45, I got up and got dressed. Our plan was to hit Starbucks after dropping Millie at gymnastics. Then I needed to get my Vitamin D prescription, prescribed after my blood work came back from my annual exam, and do a bit of grocery shopping. We picked Jack up around 9:30 am and headed home to do our taxes. That was fun! We went to Fat Willy’s for a bite to eat and the collected Millie. Once we were home we went to Costco for a couple of things. It is the first time in my life thag I have been to Costco and bought only what was on mu list, AND it was the first time I have ever come out of Costco having spent under $200! Our bill was $39! There was a birthday present Millie was supposed to go with us to lick out, but she decided against it. So we had go swing by Walmart for that. Once we were home we both got ready to go to Heather Tawney’s retirement party. Prior to the party, Jack had a basketball game. He played rather well, but got kneed in the thigh for the second week in a row. After the game I thought he was going to cry. We got in the car and told him when we got home he needed to go up and take a bath, then put ice in his leg. We then went to Heather’s. It was a nice event in her back yard. They had a band and everything. It was catered by a taco food truck. It was a very nice evening. We came home just before 9 pm, which I think disappointed our kids. They look forward to these late nights without us around. Once home, it was discovered that Jack had put the ice bag on the counter, and surprisingly it had melted, causing water to run down the cabinet and onto the floor. Did he clean it up? Nope! So after the clean up of the mess they had both made in the house, Stuart and I sat down for a beer. It was actually an early night for us, which is not terribly common for our weekends.
