Quarantine Chronicles - Part 1

Many times in the last few months, I have thought about blogging to share stuff that has been going on over here.  Then, I would stop myself and think....who cares about what is going on in my world....besides me?!?

I have not changed my mind about that, but I still feel compelled to commit a few things to paper (you know what I mean) even if it is just for my own sake and to help me remember.

We had a few birthdays.

We had FANTASTIC trip to Minnesota in February.  The girls and I went and played tourist because I had come to the realization that only A-girl and L-girl had vague memories of Minnesota.  And really, their memories were scattered and mostly things like remembering when we had to go shovel the end of the driveway so Rainman could get home from work....only to have the snowplow go by and us having to do it all over again.  Not exactly stellar, heartfelt memories of my home state.

We stayed with my mom, but we tried to do different vacation-type things most days.  I had to laugh because when we got to Minnesota, we grabbed a bite to eat  at  Pannekoeken Huis and then headed to the famous Minneapolis Sculpture Garden.  We got out of the car and one of the girls said, "Man, I was hoping for some real cold weather while we were here."  I would say about 5 minutes or less....later....she turned to me and said, "Nevermind.  I take it back.  This kind of hurts."  LOL  Yup.  Even I, who have lived through many a year with wind chills in the negatives had become a bit of a pansy.  It was like -11 wind chill that day.  My face hurt.  My lips didn't really want to work and form words.  But, underneath it all, it was kind of refreshing.  I do have a lot of Norwegian blood running through my veins.  LOL

We went to a live taping of a local T.V. show, we went to Benihana, we did this super cool Game Show Battle Thingie.  It was just fun.  Stress free.  I even remembered how to drive in snow and ice - yay me!

Then we came home and the world began to change.

Public school kids came home....and my extra little bonus buddy got to stay home with his mom (special ed. teacher) and not hang out with us. I miss him.

College girl came home.

College boy worked at the dorm - so he quarantined by himself when he wasn't working shifts while everyone moved out of the dorms.

Then, college boy came home (and brought home a dog that he had fostered during the quarantine so he wouldn't be alone.)

Eventually, even Rainman was working from home.

I now have a full house with 9 humans, 4 dogs, and 1 cat living here full-time....and I don't hate it.

I have been cooking and baking.  We sit down to eat dinner together almost every night - because nobody has to run out the door to work, sports, church, etc.

I would say the majority of us LOVE the new routine of eating together.

A-man looked at me one night when I called him to dinner and said, "Mom!  Are we eating together in the dining room again?!?  Ugh....Why?  Nobody really does that anymore.  It is weird."

LOL!  Yes, we force that poor teenage boy to dine with us.  We are just those kinds of tyrants.

There really is a lot that I have loved from this weird time in our lives.

I love the unhurried days.

I love the togetherness.....it feels like our lives when I homeschooled all of the kids.

I love having time to feed my family.

I love our on-line exercise classes.

I love our bonfires or the nights we all just sit around on the deck and visit and joke around.

Daily life has not really changed for those of us that were already home-schooling....other than there are a lot more siblings around to help (or distract) us during the day.

What do I miss?

Going out to eat and going to church (which is also where I was able to see my friends).  That is pretty much it.

It is funny (or not) how different Rainman and I are.  I am hoping to retain most of our new normal once the quarantine rules expire.  He wants to jump back into our old lives of running around, sports, lessons, etc.  He is ready to take off as soon as the restrictions are lifted.  Opposites certainly attract (and eventually annoy).

I am going to try to post more and at least document this time of our lives for myself.  I am also planning a post on what "our" typical homeschool day looks like - just in case anyone happens to be interested.

In the meantime, stay safe.  Wash your hands.

My Birthday

I turned 52 this year and now that I am finally doing better with keeping my expectations low for how much hoopla there will be on my behalf, Rainman and the kids managed to do a pretty decent job of making me feel special this year.  Go figure.

Rainman attempted to take me out for a relaxing breakfast on my birthday.  It was a Saturday.  He had to work at noon (which means leaving our house by about 11:15 to make sure he gets in on time).  He kept puttering around the house and I kept pacing saying things like, "Shouldn't we get going?"  "Maybe we should drive separately so we won't be a in a rush."  He pooh-poohed me and assured me that it wouldn't be rushed.  (I am just like my mom in that regard - I can remember the rare times when we went out to eat after church to Mel-O-Lane.  Dad and us kids would wolf down our meals - chug the Mountain Dew (the only time we got to have pop!) - and be ready to hit the road.  There would be my mom sitting back in her chair just calmly sipping her cup of coffee and disgustedly saying to us, "Don't rush me.  I am enjoying my coffee.").  My point is, when I get to go out to eat, I am just like my mom.  I like to take my time, enjoy being waited on, and just relax. 

Remember these bottles?

When we got to my number one choice of locations, there was a line out the door (Luckily, I had kind of figured this would happen since it was now mid to late Saturday morning, so I had a back up place in mind.)  Off we went to my back up option number two....and...yup.....line of waiting customers outside.  So, yes, my birthday breakfast ended up being at Chick-Fil-A.  Good thing I really like Chick-Fil-A!

Unfortunately, between home and the three restaurant stops, Rainman and I had gotten into a tiff, so by the time we sat down to eat, he took my birthday card  out of his pocket and shoved it across the table to me with a semi-snotty "Happy Birthday!"

Anyone that has been married for any length of time, knows exactly what I am talking about, right?

It was a very sweet gift, but at the time, I felt like it was something unnecessary and way too expensive.  Notice I said "at the time".  But, more on that later!

The kids gave me sweet gifts this year.  S-girl and V-girl gave me small, thoughtful gifts - things I needed or would really use - a new hair brush - a bath bomb.  L-girl got new family pictures printed for our wall.  D-man and A-girl, broke college students, both said that they wanted to take me out to eat.  A-man is 14 and just sort of huddled around everybody else as my gifts were open.  I did get a hug and an "I love you" from him though.  I will take it.

I got Chinese take-out for my birthday meal and a foot massage and pedicure by my girls.  It was a good birthday.

Now back to Rainman's gift.....which was.....a night alone at a bed and breakfast.

Let me tell you about my life now that the kids are getting bigger.  When it is not sports season, I spend a lot of evenings alone....in my bed....reading....or taking a bath....whilst reading.  When I say "a lot", I really mean pretty much every night.  I have given up watching t.v. - with an occasional Netflix show here and there.  So, my evenings are very quiet and solitary - since everyone else still wants to watch t.v. or is just doing their own thing.  Every now and again, the kids and I will play some games, but pretty much, I think they feel they have spent all day with me and are done with me by the end of the day.

As I opened his gift in the middle of Chick-Fil-A, he said things like....I made sure it had a nice bath tub....and you can read on the private balcony, etc.

Sweet.

But, I thought....I do that for free every night at my own house!

He had actually looked at the family calendar (a rarity) and reserved my room so I wouldn't put it off (which I totally would have).

This is where he sent me.

www.sugarmagnoliabb.com

It was actually great.

Here is what I realized....I do spend a lot of time alone either reading or working, but I am also interrupted a lot by questions, having to referee disagreements, or having to use my Solomon type wisdom to decide what is fair in their quest for more computer time.  I see (or hear) the kitchen getting dirty and people not cleaning up after themselves, so even if I go to bed early to read, I know there will be a mountain of dishes in the kitchen just waiting for me when I get up in the morning.  When I awake, there are also just random piles of shoes and socks spread throughout the house - even an occasional pair of undies that have been  mysteriously abandoned by their owners.  

You moms will get the idea, I think.  While I read, there is almost constant chaotic background noise (music, t.v., laughter, fighting, cheering for sports, impromptu wrestling matches).  

Mental chaos.  

I almost always awake to...a messy house.  

Physical chaos.

At the B&B, I was truly alone.  Literally.  I was the only guest and the innkeeper doesn't stay on site.  So, I locked myself in and rattled around in that big old house by myself.  I did have a bit of work to do to meet a deadline, but I sat on my balcony and typed away.  The only interruptions were from me watching people walk or bike by in front of the house.  There were also occasional tourist stops in front of the house.  I felt a bit like a minor celebrity as I would stop my work to wave at them from my perch on the balcony.

When I finished my work and sent it off to my boss, I read.  

I sat in the massage chair downstairs for a LOOOOOOOONG time.  I took a bath.  I shaved all my bits and bobs.  I exfoliated.  I moisturized.  I read some more.  I used Door Dash for the first time and wasn't murdered. (My son, D-man recommended it because he works in a dorm on his campus and said they get deliveries from Door Dash all the time and he said  the guys seem nice and normal.  That didn't stop me from texting him messages like, "I did it.  I am awaiting my very expensive cheesesteak and fries...and possibly my murderer.  Just know that I love you....."   After my food was delivered, I texted him, "I am alive and unsullied". LOL  I crack myself up.)  

Really, the Door Dash thing was a bit expensive, but when you don't want to go out and get your own food/can't get your own food - it is pretty awesome.  I did it all from my phone.  I ordered.  I paid/left a tip.  They sent me a text that they had gotten my order.  They sent me a text when my order was picked up by the "Dasher", and literally sent me a text when my "Dasher" parked his car and was walking up to the door!  This is the kind of thing that makes me feel old and realize how good this younger generation has it with these kinds of things.  In my day, you had to drive in the snow, up hill both ways....to get yourself food. 😉  

Breakfast at the B&B was wonderful and unrushed and I could just take my time over my coffee with no pressure.  The innkeeper did pop in and chat with me a few times as people tend to do when they find out you have 6 kids....and homeschool.  It was definitely a splurge, but, great job, Rainman!

I am a teeny tiny bit ashamed that I did spend almost the whole time reading. Almost.  I was also able to spend time thinking and praying.  Again, something I "think" that I do at home, but in retrospect, I don't do it as often as I should and even when I do ends up rushed and....thoughtless.  It was nice to go a little deeper.

One thought that kept rearing its head was Rainman and I becoming foster parents....to babies.  My parents were foster parents for 25 or 30 years.  But, I have been reluctant to be a foster parent, especially for babies, because I remember how attached my mom would get and how she would cry when they would leave.  I didn't want to do that to myself, but, that is kind of selfish, isn't it?

Rainman and I are still mulling over the realities of bringing in extra tiny people to our family, so we shall see.  (Yes, we have been bringing extra little people into our family for years - but most of them go home at the end of the day)  I was thinking of the practical things like - we already have most of the "baby stuff" - we have a lot of love here - we all love babies - babies are portable so they could easily go with us to sports/school events/church with us.  We will see....we are very early in the thought process.  But, pray for us, will you?  Age is factoring into our thought process a bit.  I am a bit leery of losing sleep again.

I completely get that I am getting older.  But, I still forget.  Kind of like I sometimes forget that I am overweight and then I see a picture of myself....and think, "Oh yeah....that is right....I am fat."

Here is a recent example:  V-girl and S-girl decided that they wanted to paint their bedroom because it was too little girlie for them and too "Neopolitan" looking (like the ice cream - and it was....brown on the bottom, white chair rail and pink on top).

Anyway, the girls picked out a color and I got to work...thinking I would knock it out in a day.   This is where the "Oh yeah....I am old now" snuck up on me.  I did manage to get it done in 2 days (with the girls doing the little touch up spots for me because the thought of climbing up that stupid ladder one more time or even sitting on the folding chair and bending over to get the spots near the baseboards had me in a tizzy.  They also got paint on the ceiling and I just looked at it and said, "Meh....who will be looking at your ceiling, right girls?"  I was not climbing up that stupid thing one more time!)

It looks great, but seriously, I was sore from my finger tips to the tips of my toes.  I think the only part of my anatomy that was not sore was my head.  That is it.  Sad.

So, then I think, what am I  even thinking by considering taking in extra little people that I will have to get up in the night with?  But, then I think about those poor little babies and think, if not me...then who?  Will it end up being someone that doesn't love babies the way my family loves babies?  I love how V-girl has gotten to be a psuedo-big sister to the extra kids we have watched for the past 5 years.  You don't really realize the natural life skills that are taught when there is a younger sibling around.  Even the simple ones, like being aware of someone else's needs or having to wait for the baby to stop crying or get their diaper changed before you can ask your mom a question.  Little things that are actually quite big.

Selfishly, again, I think of the fact that I am finally getting back to my singing and am enjoying being in 2 bands.  I have time to write and have gotten some articles published with  more possibilities looming.   Will those things go away if we take on part-time/temporary care for babies?  I don't know.  Should I even consider those things as part of my decision?   

Anyway, happy birthday to my rambling self.

  

Summer Recap

Summer, here in Georgia doesn't end on Labor Day with temperatures still in the 90s....summer will still be here awhile.

But, here are some highlights from our summer, thus far.  Lots of good stuff...and a few not so good things sprinkled in the mix.

We didn't take any family vacations although about half of us made it up to Indiana for Rainman's family reunion.  We did a lot of hanging out and chatting on the back deck, swimming in the pool, and sitting inside in the air conditioning when it was too hot.  Boring to some, but not to me.  I was in heaven with all 6 kids home again (although, don't tell anybody, but sometimes it did get too loud and wild for me...sometimes they get along a little too well.  ).

D-man got a summer internship in our county, so we got to see a lot of him.

Sometimes he even got to surprise us and come home for lunch in his spiffy big boy clothes!

He is starting his senior year in college and is planning to take the LSAT this fall because he is thinking law school year near.

A-girl got a summer job literally the day after she moved home from college and didn't look back.  She worked the whole summer.

We still got to see a lot of her this summer (and discovered one of the best thrift stores we have found down here in Georgia.  They have 10 cent days!!!).  She is starting her sophomore year in college and managed to get more scholarships this year than she did her freshman year!

L-girl went to tennis camp, went on a few mission trips, worked as a nanny this summer and sprinkled in a few odd jobs here and there. She was busy.  We didn't see a whole lot of her!  She just started her senior year in high school.

A-man is a freshman in public high school this year.  He had a bit of an adventure this summer at a youth group pool party.  He and one of his friends were playing catch with a baseball and A-man jumped for a ball over his head and caught it.  When he came down, he found himself, impaled through his shoulder on a wrought iron fence post (in through his armpit - out through the top of his shoulder)  Yes.  Yuck!  It was a first (and hopefully last) ambulance ride for him....and for me....I got there just as they were getting ready to pull away.  Here is the miracle though - which a few of the doctors even acknowledged - no major arteries were struck - no major nerves - no bones.  His surgeon said it was almost like everything important just moved out of the way as the fence post went in (like Moses parting the Red Sea).  He had a few of the doctors look deeply into his eyes and say that they hoped he realized how amazing it was that his injuries were not much, much worse.  It really is amazing.  The medical bills have started arriving, so that is fun too.  I just have to keep reminding myself that A-man is here and doing great.

S-girl was part of the church youth group this year so she finally got to go to the summer fun events and the mission trips.  Seems odd that she is old enough for all that stuff, but she is.  She even sent in an audition tape to be on a local kids cooking competition show.  She wasn't selected, but if you know her at all, it was huge that she had the courage to put it together and send it.  Huge.  She just started 7th grade and is still at home (yay!).  If things keep going the way they have with the older kids, I will only have her at home for one more year after this one.  She is already a fantastic golfer, so I am thinking she will be off to play high school golf.  I cannot believe that.

Poor V-girl was stuck at home with us all summer.  She so wants to be one of the big kids.  It really chaps her hide that she is too young for some stuff.  She started 5th grade this year. I am so happy that I will have a few more years with her at home full-time.  The adventures she and I will have...but, I think we will both be a little bit lonely!

Three of my extra kids left me and moved to Texas.  I am equal parts sad and excited.  Their dad had moved there for a new job and mom/kids stayed here for awhile while they sold their house and he got settled out there.  I was so happy when the time came that they could go join him in Texas and be together again - but, man it hurts too.  I have been watching the girls since they were about 3 months old (and the same with their little brother). It is hard to let go of being part of their everyday life.

I still have one of my extra kids left, but he will be heading to full-time school at his mom's school next year.  Everyone is leaving me.  (sigh)

We did manage to do a few things with all 8 of us this summer - which made me very happy.  I know those are going to get harder to come by as my people keep heading out into the world to become their own people.

So that is our summer update.  I am so ready for sweater weather, bonfires, hot chocolate, and boots....but it is still supposed to be in the 90s here all week.  And, let's be honest, it is barely sweater weather here in January - but a girl can dream.