Exhale. Big Exhale.
The past two months have been a whirlwind. April and May are always really busy in our lives. It's the start of the spring/summer and the weather is amazing. Cory usually has a bit of a travel break with work so we can work in our annual vacation and it's always the special time Dad visits for his annual trip for the Birmingham Botanical Garden Plant Sale where we brace the crowds and find great deals for my gardening habit.
This year we got the bonus visit from Aunt Clare - which was so awesome, for both of us. She well deserved a weekend away and I loved having her here for the first time in 5 years to see our home and life since the kids were born. And the bonus, some much needed sister time and SHOPPING!
We also squeezed in a visit with the Eades on a quick trip to Jekyll Island for our vacation. The boys were all about the "swamp trees" and although the pool's heater was turned off for the year so it was a bit chilly to brave, the hot tub proved a favorite spot as did Summer Waves water park. It was so wonderful to see the Eades home and get to visit with all of them. And downtown Brunswick reminded me of the unique old homes of my hometown minus the swamp trees.
In between we had April 27th...forever changing the face of the state of Alabama and honestly, although I want to devote a post in itself to that day/night, I just haven't been ready. I spent most of the rest of that week in a fog and I think I had a glimpse of what people experience with PTSD. Now, I am not so selfish as to expect sympathy for myself given that our lives did not change one red cent with the storms and in fact my memories of our personal situation that night are quite hilarious, which is what my post will likely be when I do write it. However, I could not tear myself away from the constant local media coverage, which is still a regular mainstay of the daily news, as it should be. As a result, I spent a lot of time living in the "what if" scenario that is so dangerous. To hide from my thoughts, I buried myself in work and the school annual Teacher Appreciation event and Cory graciously picked up the slack in handling the majority of the household / cooking / kid taking care of jobs. I really spent a lot of that time in a fog, I could not get motivated as much as I usually am and found myself taking a lot of respite time to just sit back and consider life. I have never been more thankful for the moments I have - including the last two days at home with the kids treating pinkeye and the stomach bug the boys have had- thank you Reckitt-Benckiser- and Cory has probably never been more thankful for me to get my butt in gear and get back to "normal".
And this past Sunday we celebrated with our 4th Annual Summer Kickoff Memorial Day Party. Again it was so wonderful to have our friends join us at our place for swimming, visiting, food and fun. We had the most incredible weather this year, 90's no humidity, perfect to get wet and the lake was up to the task the water warming up steadily throughout the month. And our best friends, Adam and Crystal Schober brought it up a notch, hooking us up with an awesome water slide that the kids really enjoyed. We had new friends and old friends join us, a few regulars that sadly couldn't make it, but once again, great memories were made. Including Jack telling everyone that we were having the party to honor the soldiers who are protecting our toys and land from "Amwar Al-Malaki" who is a bad guy and doesn't have God in his heart. I've already told Cory - no more Fox News when the kids are within earshot.
No story is better shared than with pictures. So here's the annual slide show. If you missed it, put it on the calendar next year because it's a given we'll be here. And if you made it - thanks for coming, we are so glad you did!
and if you are wondering about that day after the party...I'm still in denial.
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