Fashion Fun: the grad weekend edition

Someone needs a belt.

If you don't get a dozen cinch belts delivered a few days before a graduation weekend, is anyone even graduating? 

This pic started the belt ordering panic. 

The top:  final sale ordered from the RealReal. I tried it on with the cropped pants, stepped into Curly's room and told her to text a pic to Mini. Mini promptly texted back:  WHORE. 

She was kidding. Duh. I didn't know it was a crop top when I ordered it. I contemplated sewing a strip of white at the bottom and knotting it to the side, like, a pirate? But I feared it would be A. too much work, and B. look hodge-podge. Then, I thought:  BELT. (yes, Joy Marie - this crop top can be handed off to Mini or Curly, but I do hope to wear it this weekend).

Maybe for Fri night. These aren't the jeans
 I'd wear. I have better ones. I grabbed an
armful of clothes to try on with all the things.
LOVE these new Naot shoes though. So much.

I've not even responded to the last round of comments. I apologize. May is kicking my butt. I presented 2 chapters on the last 2 Mondays to my writing group (which means I had to write those chapters). I have 3 graduates:  8th grade, high school, and college, each with their own events. I'm on new meds. Totally fine, but Curly's mom's day card may have referenced 'gas chamber' after she and I went shopping to Marhsalls to purchase her some non-sweat wardrobe items on Mom's day. I also cut three heads of hair on Mother's Day. I DID lay in the sun and read a chunk of my book and napped, but mostly BUSY. 

Fri. night contender:  I need to wear
 a cami under this top,
 but I like this outfit. The pants (just
 bought on sale at Nordstrom and my
 new fav. How did I live before
 I found them?) are
 super comfy and light and stretchy,
cropped. With a jean jacket
 if it's chilly at night. 

Anyway - in comments someone asked if wearing green is mandatory. No, not at all. I wore blue at Creighton's graduation - the school color, and so did many other moms. I would like to wear some green. Also, Jenny in WV - I thought the same thing, the red flowered sundress would be perfect for Curly's graduation. Getting ahead of myself much? 

There are 3 days/events . . . 

I tried on a bunch of options on Mother's Day night and Kay and Rae took pics and voted on their favs. 

Friday night one of Mini's friend's families is hosting a party at their house with a pizza truck. (I'm eating beforehand). This will prob be the most casual event. 

Saturday outfit:  tan belt

white belt with
 gold buckle

Saturday:  mass and maybe a party beforehand at the guys' house that are the girls' closest friends? After mass, dinner and drinks from 8 pm till midnight at a rooftop party at the Embassy across the street from campus. 

Have I told you about how we're staying at the house owned by a friend of a friend? He doesn't charge us to stay there. So amazing. I'll send him a gift card, so he can stock up on beer during tailgate season, but this is a huge savings, good thing, because this party is so pricey. Yikes. 

tan belt with gold buckle. We
think this one looked the best.

Needs to be steamed, but when I did
the fashion show, I pulled this out of a
 bag of clothes I bought last weekend.
Duh - didn't realize that this skirt's
elastic high waist is SO high, it could
work with the skirt. Hard to get a good
 image since it's so wrinkled. I do think it
looks better with the cropped pants. The
 skirt was not on sale and it was pricey. 

Sunday morning 9 am graduation followed by brunch back at the house where we're staying. I'm making brunch food in advance and loading it into my crockpots before the graduation. No waiting for reservations. Just us chilling. The house is close enough to walk to campus (but I doubt we will). 

* A friend of Rae's parents have agreed to host the girls for the weekend, and our dear friend, Rae's godfather will drive them to South Bend in time for the graduation. 

After brunch, I think there is another degree ceremony for business majors at 2:00 pm. When we discussed the itinerary, Lad was like What? How long are they gonna hold us captive? ~ says the man who wants to get home to his two dogs. I'm guessing some of the older kids will depart after brunch.  

I think this looks
better in real life.
 Bad angle - throwing
the photographer
Rae under the bus. Also
wouldn't wear these shoes.
Kay says too short for me, so
I sent her to bed. Kidding!

I can swap the Saturday outfit with the Sunday dress. Assuming I'll go with a dress for Sunday, but might swap them. I bought this green, white, black plaid wrap dress on RealReal and I don't think this 'stand on the tub and take a photo in the mirror' angle is doing the dress any favors. I forgot to redo the pic during the girls' photo shoot. I think it's cute. Black bolero, if it's chilly. 

Mini didn't love it. Blame the photo? I also bought this green dress. Hmm. 

I like this one. It looks better
 when one is not balancing
 on the tub.

There may or may not be another (2) dresses coming in the next day or so. Neither are green. Have you shopped lately? There are a TON of cute dresses out there.
Check them out. 

Comfy, but meh.

Plain Jane. Didn't look
great on. You should
see the other photo. Blah.
I think there was a
 lot of 'sucking in'
in this photo. 

Love this one, but might
keep it for something
else. mbmom11 asked
 if I could wear this
to HS graduation.
 I could. but probably
won't be this dressy.
 I do not care about the
 colors for the
HS graduation.
I've been wearing
 black and gold
 to HS sporting events
since @2012.

What was I thinking? I bought this at a high end consignment shop in Oct. Sent Mini pics and she said "yes, for graduation" - then later we were like HOLY COW, TOO SHORT FOR ME. 

I plan to stay over till Monday to pack Mini's room and drive her home. 

I did also buy this one, just to have
on hand - not necessarily for graduation. 

Oh, Reg flies home on Thursday at 3:00 pm. Banking on him sending bags of stuff home with other kids from Illinois. Can't be in two places, so we won't be there to pack his room up. 

*****

OK, is there something you like the most? Something you think I should leave at home or take back if I can? I'm so looking forward to this weekend. We enjoy the other parents and Mini's friends immensely. What are you looking forward to this month?

I also did get this black ruffled
shirt. I could wear it with jeans. 

Rae was very pleased that she
 captured me wondering why
 this was modeled after a bat
. These 'sides' are a bit odd -
 almost like they could be tied
in the back, but the back already
 has ties. Rae enjoyed taking
photos of me - esp ones when
 I wasn't paying attention
 or making a funny face. 

Con't: Some posts just right themselves: the rescue when the ducks were no longer in a row

Breaking my own rules, but isn't this
the cutest? My Irish dancers circa 2012,
maybe? Came across while
looking thru pics for all the things.

I am terribly busy - think May . . . haven't even started the grad party video. We have 3 graduations:  8th grade, high school, college (but only doing a video/party for the high schooler). Started gathering the pics for the invitation to Curly's party. Altering the dress set me back. I finished a chapter last night about traveling in Europe over Christmas break the year I studied abroad. I was in Prague and my brother and his two buddies got drunk and passed out at the table in the beer hall, leaving me sitting there. I'm presenting it to my writing group Monday - second Monday in a row. 

Sneak peek:  I do love this dress,
minus the socks. But I have
 my heart set on green. I'll prob
still keep it, see 'intervention'

So many things to share:  

• met with the amazing OG doc and I'm pleased to be back with her (more later)
• I need an intervention - I've ordered and bought more clothes (most of which are green) for Mini's graduation and Why Can't I Stop? Well, for one - there are a ton of cute dresses out there right now. Are you aware? And two, who knows - it might be 30 degrees out. I'm hoping to do a fashion post next week
• I have some daycare uncertainty - will expand later
• Mother's Day is around the corner - I hope you either get pampered, so get to spend time with someone who you care about
  
• Today my dad turns 86!
• The 82 pg photo book for my sweet sitting fam arrived and I cannot wait to give it to them one night this week
• Curly's track conference meet is tonight

*****

how MY.DUCKS. (were) IN.A.ROW:  Ed came home from the city Thursday night. Worked from home Friday. Curly had no school Friday, so she and her friend split up and drove to the girls' two schools to pick them up a bit early. Ed would leave our house at 3 pm to drive the girls to the city where the campers met for a bus to WI. He'd leave the car in the city - paid for a spot hero. Then Sunday Tank would pick up the car from the spot, meet the bus, and drive the girls home where Curly would be.

I'm a cheap date. After we ate
dinner out  in DC, we picked up
some drinks and a mini
 ice cream thing - perfect
 size, from the hotel lobby. The
 alcohol sounded great, because
I don't like seltzers, but it needed
 a kick, so I added Sprite to it. Perfect. 

switcheroo:  Ed drove to the city alone. The spot hero had already been paid for. We couldn't ask him to give up another night of his social calendar. He would've, but thankfully we figured it out.  

Curly was SO EXCITED to have the house to herself. Not the 'now I can have a party' type of kid. She basked in chilling out, and had a friend's bday dinner Sat. night. 

When Friday night at camp was cancelled:  Coach and I started texting and calling backup plan people, also known as friends. Three or four calls later (still at Panera, still dealing with the drunk guy), my long time friend, whose 3 kids lined up gender/age-wise with Mini, Reg, and Curly, agreed to drive the girls to the city Sat. morning. 

Next up:  where would they sleep. 

We drove to a pretty
 forest preserve to go
 for a short walk before
 we ate out Sat night,
\so we could say we did
something while in DC area. 

Curly:  It's fine. They can stay here. I'll watch them. 

Nope. I wasn't doing that. We tried several options. It was so last minute. Then I told Coach that they could just stay at my parents' house. My dad is clear minded, and the girls would behave perfectly there. Not like they'd eat all the cookies out of Nana's freezer, or try to hop on Da's desktop. They wouldn't do anything naughty. I knew this. 

Me:  My sisters would be so so so angry, but ya know what? I don't give a shit. These are our parents' grandkids. And if my parents are fine with it, then so be it. (I knew they'd be more than happy to help, never mind that they have a caregiver come and care for them during the day). 

The beauty of this is that if my sisters did upset - what are they gonna do about it? They can't call me. That would mean they'd have to speak to me. Plus, they already hate me - so not like they could hate me more. 

Cute little train station I
came across on my run.

Friday night reframed:  The girls hit a volleyball outside/went for a walk or a run - it was nice out and I told Curly they could get some fresh air/move their bodies. Curly fed them leftovers, and then she dropped them at my folks' house with sleeping bags, so Nana wouldn't need to change sheets. And an alarm clock so they'd be ready when my friend picked them up in the morning. 

Everything else went according to plan. Tank brought them home an hour or so before we got back. Hooray for big kids who help, elderly parents who've managed to stay out of assisted living despite my sibs' efforts, and for friends who are more likely to bend over backwards than some of my fam members. 

*****

When camp has worked:  Last year camp happened the same weekend we attended Tank's college graduation, which was nice. The festivities of a college grad weekend are not geared towards kids their age, so it was a win/win. They love camp, and we didn't have to play rock, paper, scissors to see who would stay back at the hotel with them when it was time to hit the bar scene. When we've brought the girls to tailgates, we take turns touring them around campus so they're not in the thick of things for too long. Nothing says 'uncool' like having your teen daughters with a challenging background witness college kids doing shots. 

The girls were supposed to have camp the same weekend this May, which would mean they'd be there during Mini's graduation. Well, they switched up the schedule. Mini graduates in 10 days and we still don't know who is watching them. Our ideal plan is to get them a ride to South Bend on Sunday morning, so they're there for the graduation part. My mind is frazzled trying to make this work, so they can be part of it - but not be there for the night time party parts. 

*****

• Would you be interested in seeing a photo of me modeling a pricey/final sale blouse that I ordered on The Real Real, not realizing it was a crop top? Like I said, intervention. 
• Did I also have a teenage girl give me hell last night and this morning? Do we now need to attend a fam therapy session Friday on my day off? Yep. 
• Did Mini text me today and ask me to send her baby/tot pics of her for a t-shirt for a senior bar crawl? Sure did. 
• What are you up to?

file under: part 1 of another installment of posts that write themselves & UPDATES with prom pics

Jimmy update:  He was supposed to go home Tuesday last week, but they kept him until Friday because of a bloodwork issue. He was bummed. It sounds like he's doing well. Happy to be home. His speech and walking are improving, but that's taking time and making him feel a little 'off.' His meds need to be adjusted because his platelet count is so low. It would be dangerous if he bleeds. He starts outpatient rehab this week for speech and strength/endurance. 

I sincerely appreciate all of your prayers and positive thoughts. 

The underside.
It ain't pretty, but she said it
worked and she was happy
 to be able to dance.

*****

On a lighter note:

Prom dress update:  I added a French bustle to Curly's dress. Sewing through 2 layers of fabric (outer layer and like a slip?  I'm not referring to the extra train piece) was difficult, because it sometimes caused a gathered/bunched up issue. When that happened, I redid it. All credit to the YouTube videos and to my perfectionistic

Not perfect, but it worked and once
 the dancing started,  the
 dress' 'look' didn't matter

1st bustle attempt. Too long
- back to the drawing board. 

My work station, where
 I spent Thursday
 evening and my
day off Friday -
next to my diaper
 changing area.

tendency. Funny how I'm not a perfectionist when it comes to housework. 

I sewed 5 buttons inside the back of the dress not quite halfway up - the outer buttons not quite as high, because the sides weren't as long. Then I sewed 6 strips of fabric with a slit cut into it- a very basic button hole. Curly came home at lunch Friday, and tried it on. The dang thing was still dragging on the floor. I moved three of the buttons up higher. Bingo. 

I also removed the extra train piece, but added Velcro - best of both worlds. She left it on for photos and then I took the strip away piece with me when I left pictures, so it wasn't in her way at the dance. 

She had a great time, which I'm thrilled about. I also wonder HOW?  Her class is one of the worst, cliquish groups chock full of

It was so cold. In the mid 50s, but it was
 a pretty day. Her class met at the golf
course where she caddies, and she got a
 chuckle out of seeing the grounds
 keeper pacing, looking less
than thrilled. Her friend's
bustle, that was put on by the
 fancy place where she bought it, broke. 

mean, petty girls and clueless boys. A mom I used to sit for teaches there and she told me that she's shocked at what a horrid group they are.

Graduation cannot come soon enough.

Ta-da, compliments of velcro. 

*****

Friday April 17th, Coach flew to DC to teach a PT class. Kay and Rae had camp that same weekend. So, I decided to join Coach in the burbs of DC. 

Delilah:  Oh, great timing. You can see the cherry blossoms.  

Me:  (chuckling) Nope. We'll arrive at Reagan National. Drive to German Town, MD. Stay in a hotel that may or may not have a decent strip mall nearby, but will hopefully have a great workout room. I won't have a car while he's at his course. It doesn't matter - looking forward to getting away. 

Of course Coach teaches all day Sat. and half of Sunday, so not all relaxation for him. 

Friday:  We landed, got our rental car, and drove 40 min to the hotel. We checked in, put my fridge food in the full size fridge (does anyone love a full size kitchen in a hotel room as much as me?), then drove to Panera for lunch. 

We sat on Panera's patio. Coach hovering in the shade, and me enjoying the sun's rays and my Fuji Apple salad - esp because I allowed myself to eat non-low FODMAP foods, and drink a few drinks with alcohol - (hello, sugar) for the weekend. (I wasn't drinking alcohol at Panera, but apparently not everyone shared that plan).

An intoxicated man was hanging around the patio area, as one does at 3:15 pm in the burbs of DC. I laughed when he started singing the Juice WRLD lyrics:  "I don't need no molly to be savage, uh / But when I'm on the molly, I feel savage" This is a song that the girl's basketball team often played while warming up Mini's senior year. IYKYK. And if
you don't know, please raise your hand, because I think it's so funny, we should prob 'splain it. Seriously, what were the chances? Drunk guy hadn't been inside to hear our name called when Coach grabbed our salads. It was wild. 

I captured a short video of the drunkard's song to send the kids in the group chat before the management asked him to leave. (He came back 2 minutes later). 

(18 second video)

I was still laughing when my phone rang. Then - I stopped laughing. It was the girls' camp director. 

Me:  Well, this can't be good. 

It wasn't. There were tornados expected in the camp's location, so they were cancelling camp Friday night. They were still hoping to start camp Saturday morning. 

Not gonna lie. I wept. We were in DC. Our plans hinged on the girls being at camp. Will we never be able to relax again? 

I'll share how that all shook out in my next post. 

*****

Do you get why the Juice Wrld song was so funny and totally random? If you eat at Panera, what's your go to order? Have you altered anything recently? 

 

I'll be brief: prom dress train: should it stay or should it go? and non-fashion fails

Thank you for your prayers for Jimmy. 

*****

A Tuesday post from me? Weird, but true. I have 4 babies napping and 3 littles playing, so diving right in:

Curly's prom dress has a train. She wants me to remove it. I think I can. Biggest issue is probably threading the needle with my old-lady eyes. 

Back view without the train,
plus sticker charts for potty training
kids and two athlete of the
 week photos on the wall.

Coach and I wish she'd leave it. I showed pics to my hair dresser (also Curly's hair dresser) and to her math teacher, who's a mom I used to babysit for. Math Mom and I met for drinks Sat. night. 

The two ladies:  DON'T LET HER CUT OFF THE TRAIN. IT ADDS SO MUCH TO THE DRESS.

Curly thinks it'll be in her way. The dress is longer in the back anyway, so I don't think it'll give her any additional issue. I've offered to sew a little band at the corner of the train, so she can wear the band on her wrist.

the back with the train

pic of front of dress, plus
 3 high chairs in background.
Welcome to my life.

It's her day/ her dress. I paid for it and I hate the thought of hacking a chunk of it off because I think that's why it cost what it cost, ya know? But, ultimately I'll do whatever. She says her friends have all said 'get rid of it' - so she's not interested in the grown up angle. 

Poof:  summer up for grabs:  The 2nd semester summer school classes I'd signed Kay up for were cancelled . . . low enrollment. 

Translation:  the 6 weeks of free intervention summer school with free bus there and back from 8-1:00 Mon-Thurs is now only 3 weeks. I was like FINE, I'LL PUT HER IN FEE BASED CLASSES. There aren't any for incoming freshman (she's not going to high school there, but we're in district). 

There are youth academy classes through our junior college. Pricey and a hike - will need to be driven. I'll enroll her there. Next summer she'll presumably mature enough to caddy. Deep breaths. 

Sleepless Mini:  I woke up this morning to missed calls/ texts from Mini. She didn't want to tell me, but her anxiety ramped up recently - ie:  finals, projects, plus job search. 

Me:  You have the rest of her life to work. You can chauffeur Kay around / relax all summer. 

The RX and exercises haven't helped. She called a few minutes ago after sleeping 2 hours ALL NIGHT. Heartbreaking. Hoping the anxiety therapist can call her. I reminded her that fresh air, a short walk to get the blood pumping, and regular bedtime routines might help. She's got a sore throat/cold which isn't helping. Damn it. 

*****

Prom dress:  make like Elsa and let it go? (cut off the train as requested?) Or do you have another approach?  Anyone else's summer plans not panning out? I did teach Kay how to cook Pizza Casserole the other night for dinner. Good connection opportunity, and she likes to be helpful. I just really have my hops set on writing for hours each morning without interruption. 

scary situation

Before I share another installment of how some posts just write themselves regarding  our recent DC weekend away, I'm gonna ask for prayers for my cousin, T's son. 

8 cousins. As a person of Irish decent, only having 8 cousins is unusual. Unfortunately five of my cousins are already deceased, all died fairly young. 

• My dad's brother, Mike's two children took their own lives 33 years apart. Still hard to wrap my brain around. Incredibly devastating. 
• I had three cousins in Portland. Their dad, my mom's brother, divorced whey they were very young - between the divorce and the distance, we didn't see them much. The brother died of a heart attack about 5 years ago, when he was in his 50s and his older sister died after a short illness a few years ago when she was in her early 60s. So sad.
• My mom's sister and her husband raised their three kids in the city of Chicago. Their dad was a Chicago police office. These were the 3 cousins we saw all the time. They lined up with the 5 of us in age too. The sister was killed in a car accident two weeks before Christmas when she was 36. Her 3 kids in the backseat were unharmed. I was 8 mos pregnant with Reg. A tragic and heartbreaking loss. Her two brothers 'T' and 'D' live in the western burbs of Chicago, as does their mom. Their dad passed away a few years before the daughter. He had a heart transplant when I was in college, and was diagnosed with cancer about 10 years later. This family has had so many challenging losses. 

On Wednesday morning, my brother Pat forwarded me a text. It most likely was sent to him by my oldest sister, Ann. He probably got the info Monday or Tuesday. Since my sisters refuse to include me in family communication, I'm at the mercy of whenever my brothers realize I've been left out of the loop. 

T's son, Jimmy, is a sophomore in college. He called his folks Sunday, saying he didn't feel right. He was slurring his words. They told him to go to the ER. At the hospital, the neurologist was on vacation so they airlifted him to another hospital. (in the year 2o26 do we not have neurologists covering vacation time?). 

He had suffered a few mini strokes due to an aneurysm. He's 20 years old. He was struggling with swallowing and speech. After a few days in the ICU with therapy, they were seeing some improvements. Friday he underwent surgery to remove the aneurysm. The doctors anticipated a good outcome, but the aneurysm was in a tough spot. They planned to go in through a vein (I think), and hoped to not have to open his brain. 

Surgery went well, but they did have to put in a stint. He's very tired, but they already see improvement in his speech and they don't believe that he suffered any additional mini strokes. He has a long recovery ahead, but we do hope and pray that the worst is behind him. 

This could've ended very badly, and we are so grateful that Jimmy's guardian angel was looking out for him and that he called his folks when he didn't feel right. 

My aunt texted me that she's been a wet noodle. So emotional. Not at all surprising after all that she's been through. She's a very strong person. 

When we adopted the girls, we told them that all of our kids were given a name with ties to our family members, and we wanted to do the same for them. We chose Aunt's name as Rae's middle name, because they both share a similar strength and a great sense of humor. Rae embraced the connection. Aunt was touched when I told her our reason behind giving Rae her middle name. (Aunt's name is also my middle name).

Prayers for Jimmy and his family are much appreciated. 

*****

Woot woot! The 82 page
photo book that I made
for the family that graduated from
 daycare in '24 is done and ordered. 

Get excited for the latest version of:  posts that write themselves. Plus, I still oweyou the story of Tank handling a 'situation' while in Florida. Then hopefully my new dress will have arrived from ThredUp and I will do a fashion post as I prepare for ND's graduation. Think green. One never knows what to expect with the weather in May. If we continue on this current trend, I'll be wearing a parka. Folks in the Midwest, can I get an amen?

Great White: Will she stay or will she go (sob)? & where my time is spent

GW almost died on a 67 degree day end of March. It was a few hours before I was heading to the airport with Curly to visit USCA. I took the tots to the park. I wasn't worried- GW had died a few times in severe cold - and usually when backing up. 

After the park,  I loaded up the 5 tots. Backed out of my space, pulled onto the road, drove 20 yards and started to lose power. NO! I was flooring the gas while searching for the hazards button. Almost at a complete stop - then BAM it took off. Close call. My afternoon of getting home from the park and leaving an hour later from the airport flashed before my eyes. What if . . . ? 

I haven't driven the tots since. Too unreliable. 

It breaks down so infrequently that it's hard to recreate it. The mechanic can't pinpoint the issue. Sunday evening we dropped her off to be assessed again. GW's on its best behavior at the shop. 

Lad and Coach followed me in case they needed to push her. Lad had somewhere to be - so he drove separate. There I was, patting the dashboard - sweet talking with, "C'mon. You can do it." I called Coach and asked if he thought it was dumb to hop on the expressway. He thought I should probably take the expressway so I could drive fast. Me? Drive fast? C'mon. 

People, I cannot wrap my brain around not having GW. I've driven her for 18 years this month. #strongattachment

We made it without issue, but I had to laugh at our double escort in my rearview mirror. * this is my elevated view from what I fear is my last time driving GW. 

A few days later, Tim, the mechanic's office manager called. 

Tim:  I've been driving it around, so has Max. So far, we haven't had any problems.

photo from TMZ

Me:  I have to tell you -I picture the scene from 'Ferris Bueller' when the valet races Cameron's dad's sports car through the streets of Chicago, because I'm assuming you're probably doing something similar. 

I'm begging Coach to replace GW if she can't be fixed. we need I need another van to drive the tots/babies around. Plus, we're talking about going to Yellowstone next summer. Maybe I'll babysit grandkids when I retire (Maybe wrap this gig up when my current families graduate to school? 4 more yrs?). Is it wrong to hope for a van full of grand babies in the near future? 

I peeked at FB marketplace for other vans. (Shh, don't tell GW). I found a gray one. Um, slightly younger/slightly less mileage than GW. It's done it's not a former airport shuttle. It's a funeral home shuttle, complete with the name of the funeral home is on the side. What could be wrong with that? 

******

Recently Coach suggested that the reason I don't have enough time to write is because I answer the phone too often when our kids call. 

My brain:  Tell me you don't know what I do without telling me.

I've started texting him what I'm up to, what I'm working on, and how many more things remain on my list. He's been confused by this sharing of info. Why you telling me this?  

Last night, I swore I was gonna write this post and finish the photo book that I started a year ago for one of my most-loved babysitting families. Their son started as a newborn and graduated to kindergarten. His little sister was also here, but with the mom's work location and his aftercare - she couldn't be at both pickups so their last day was May of '24. The photo book is over 80 pages (5 years of pics!) and I'M SO CLOSE TO BEING DONE . . . it's a labor of love. 

But, Kae needed a bday gift for her friend who is moving to MI. I suggested stationary. Her bday was today. Hmm. Kae didn't know what stationary was. I put the photo thing on hold and we created the girl's name with flowers in the background, saved it as a picture - sent it to Walgreens and they printed 20 notecards with envelopes. Kay and Rae were over the moon this morning when they saw the gift. (I stayed up late and ran to pick it up). So cute. 

Then tonight, I was gonna FINISH THE PHOTO BOOK, possibly buy some of the things I've been stalking on ThredUp (my latest addiction), and WRITE THIS POST. 

not the version we
ordered but you get the idea

Then we realized that the merch from Curly's school never arrived and tomorrow is signing day. So, I hopped on the internet, designed a t-shirt, (I called the Maker Studio at the library but I couldn't use the machine) and ordered it at
design.samedaycustom.com that swears they're gonna deliver to her high school by 11:30 am, and yes, I paid out the ass for this t-shirt to be mega-rushed. But full ride gives me a unique I DON'T CARE perspective. 

*****

What keeps you busy that your spouse or family doesn't seem to grasp? Have you ever shopped at ThredUp? (she asks as she plans to sneak into her walk in closet and now wake Coach while trying on her own items to see if they will work and thus making part of her ThredUp shopping distraction unnecessary). Any car attachment people out there?  Have you dream of driving a 12 seater van? When the photo book is ordered, I'll be better about responding to comments/blog posts. Promise.

Great news after the 'Can you talk?' text & Kay: confused and found, hotel edition, tales of the Florida trip

Great news:  I never shared the fear here, but after Dad was released from the hospital last month, his follow up chest x-rays weren't clear. When I landed at O'Hare after the recruiting visit to SC with Curly, my brother Pat texted me:  Can I call you? 

=Not a good sign. The doctor had said the day before at the follow up, that maybe it wasn't pneumonia - maybe it was cancer. Remember Dad had 20 inches of his large intestines removed in July? He couldn't tolerate the cancer meds afterward. So, now the doc wondered if the cancer had spread to his lungs. 

He had another x-ray that Wednesday. Pat texted me on Friday while we were driving to Florida. NOT CANCER. The pneumonia took a long time to clear. Phew. Nana will be lost without Dad, so this was a relief on so many levels. That was a great way to start our trip. 

We ended our trip on a different note. 

Coach insisted we stop at a Comfort Inn south of Louisville. I was annoyed. I'd hoped that since we left at 6 am, we might be able to push through and get home that night. We'd driven for like 14 hours. What was 5 more? Plus we had Curly and Tank, who were both willing to drive a shift. 

Tensions were a tad elevated for various reasons. 

Coach left this on our bathroom
 counter top a few days
 later. Hello, PTSD.

After we checked into the hotel, I decided to take a walk. The room (note:  not plural- Coach chose one room for all 6 of us, I was not consulted) was really warm, but I saw Coach mess with the thermostat before I left to walk. It was dark out, but after sitting for so long, and after Coach grabbed the dashboard every time I made a lane change, well - I was happy to walk off my frustrations. 

When I crept back into the room, Rae was asleep on the pullout and Kay was asleep on a stack of couch cushions. Were they asleep, or were they suffering from a heat induced coma? Because the room was still SWELTERING. 

Coach and Tank were sharing a bed. Tank was awake, lying in a pool of sweat. Coach was asleep until I announced that there was not a chance in hell (and by the feel of things, we were maybe in HELL) that I was gonna sleep in a room with broken AC. I tried to mess with the thermos in the dark. Curly, who was wide awake in the bed she and I were gonna share, mouthed the words WHY'S IT SO HOT IN HERE?

I went downstairs to the front desk, explained the sauna room. The guy told me to give it 2o minutes. 

Me:  Well, we checked in almost 2 hours ago, what's 20 min gonna do?

Photo from my fired up walk.

When I got back to the room, Coach was getting dressed. By the time I finished brushing my teeth, Coach returned:  WE HAVE 10 MINUTES TO MOVE OUR STUFF TO 317. (from 205)

He woke up Kay and Rae. I started gathering chargers and bags and food from the fridge. It was still a scramble. Curly noticed that Kay was lingering. Rae had followed Coach out of the room. 

Curly:  Go, Kay. Room 317. What are you waiting for?

Coach, who'd popped back in the room to grab another load:  Where's Kay?

Tank and I stared at him:  She left a few minutes ago.

Great, now we'd lost a child in the Comfort Inn that was anything but comfortable. By the way, the hallways were like 55 degrees. I considered sleeping out there.

Coach raced up to 317 using the stairwell. He wasn't sure where his phone was, so I had no contact with him. I took the elevator to the lobby. Tank took the stairs to the lobby. When she wasn't in the lobby, Tank ran back up to room 205. He called my cell as I was waiting for the elevator to go back up. 

Tank:  Got 'er.

Turns out, she'd gotten dressed, or at least put a shirt on with her pj bottoms, and grabbed her toiletry bag. Then she went to the lobby, thinking it was morning. When no one was eating breakfast, she went back up to room 205. Tank found her staring at the door to 205, head tilted to one side. He escorted her up to our new room and eventually everyone fell asleep, compliments of blasting AC. 

We made it home late afternoon, and we shared the story of confused Kay several times that weekend. 

*****

Ever stayed in a room with broken heat or air? We had no AC in August in Boston the year we visited before dropping Lad off at college in New York. We suffered through. Ever have a kid become confused and wander a hotel half asleep? Ever walk 3.5 miles outside of a hotel room to cool your jets?  Do you agree about where to stop on a long drive, or how many rooms to secure? Does your spouse critique your driving with nonverbal cues? Tell me I'm not alone.