To say the least, life has been a blur the last 2 months. RTVRD carried us into 3 birthdays, our 5 year anniversary, a week of rehearsals, and 6 dance recitals. The week following, myself and 2 boys made a trip to Texas for my baby sisters grad. Not really a baby anymore. We came home a few days ago, and I was, to say the least exhausted. Solo parenting is definitely a different rhythm than having your spouse around to be there for the kids, your sanity, and those long nights ( of which baby G had several while at his grandma’s) All in all though, the boys did amazingly well considering.
Of course there were those little surprises, like our flight to Texas being cancelled due to evacuations at DFW because of tornadoes. We were re-scheduled for a flight that was constantly delayed, but did get on a plane 12hrs later. Thankfully we were at my sisters (the airport is 1.25hrs from where we live. I don’t know what we would have done if I had to wait at the airport all day, chasing one delay to the next.) My babe had a few tumbles down my moms stairs (theres only 2 which seemed to instill in him a sense of false confidence to walk right off the edge) which resulted in a bruise on his head, that later got a second bonk and turned into a goose egg. However, I would have to say that on the list of G’s injuries that week, the scorpion sting takes the cake. That was pitiful.
I also can not forget my 3 year olds amazing bodily functions. While on our way to the airport for the return (after having to wait for the vehicle that my sister took, with both carseats in tow) E announced his tummy was hurting. “mommy, I think I have to poop.” Now it is certainly less than ideal to have to pull off the highway during major traffic while you are also running a bit late… but, we did. Crisis averted! right? The *moment* we pulled into the airport, E looked at me, very calmly, and then said “Mamma. I have to barf.” He then proceeded to throw up more content than I knew any 3 year old could hold. I am not sure what my mom fed him for breakfast… but, I did catch a glimpse of mango. So there we were, at the airport, running a bit late, and my son had just barfed all over himself, my mom’s Lexus, and his seat. (thankfully it was a loner and we didn’t have to bring it on the plane- sorry Kristin!) I ran in with G, checked us in, explained the situation, while my mom cleaned E up. We made it through unscathed, and the boys even napped for a bit inflight.
Unfortunately, the airport was busy that day… I have never seen such a long line at customs. My boys were DONE travelling, and so was I. I was thankful for a sweet older Texan couple, who helped me with my bags and cart. Sometimes there are not enough arms on my body. It was a sweet moment of relief when I saw my hubby through the glass doors- flowers in hand. And I *almost* cried. I love him. He was a bit frazzled though, because I was an hour later than expected- and the day was not yet done!!
You see, a friend had been ever so generous to gift us with floor tickets to the U2 concert! YEAH! So, we were on a tight schedule to drop our kids off (1.5hrs away) and begin the drive of unknown duration (it seems everyone in Central Alberta was heading to the concert, afterall the stadium held 70,000 people) to make our way to the the LRT station- to then head to the stadium. We made out okay with a 15 minute turn around time once home- E lamented that daddy was leaving, because he had not seen him in a whole week- but, our parents reported they did fine and were both in bed by 8:30 (amen!) We arrived at the stadium about 3 hrs after our departure.
The concert was sweet. I know I would have enjoyed it a bit more, had I been better rested, and not surrounded by a cloud of pot fumes. We were on the floor, which meant standing room only… which meant my back began to cry out in lament. But it was worth it. U2 was amazing, their stage was CRAZY. I did fall asleep on the LRT ride back to our car… did I mention everyone had the same idea to take public transit? We wondered where all those people would go… slowly but surely they trickled onto the busses and trains… We walked to the stop before the stadium(which took about 20 minutes) and probably saved us at least an hour of waiting. AT least.
What would life be, if you didn’t have to just jump in with both feet? Thursday morning we were back to the responsibilites of life, and I was happy to be back in our little home. On Saturday we decided to rip out our old tub, and disgusting tile… more to come on that later! Happy to announce, the plumbing is done, and the tub is in. Now mounting, tiling/grouting remain.
Here are a few shots that document our time at my moms… the warmth was nice, and the pool was great!
