Theater Kid

Averson decided this year that they wanted to try theater, after an awesome experience with the Fifth Grade play. Our local parks and rec partnered with a local theater company to do a camp, where at the end the kids would perform Madagascar Jr. Averson panicked a little about the auditions, since they included both singing and dancing, but ultimately they got several smaller roles. It was perfect! It was a nice mix of group time and solo time and they ROCKED IT. The performance was this weekend and I legit teared up watching everyone sing and dance during "Move It" (which was admittedly pretty discordant but what're you going to do.) The only way I can describe it though, is that it was like watching the light come on in her. Like all of the sudden she was exactly where she was meant to be. Poised and eloquent and with IMPECCABLE comedic timing, and surrounded by all these amazing little souls who saw and appreciated each other in a really beautiful way. We're all obsessed and now I guess I'm a stage mom. Didn't see that one on the parenting bingo card...

Lew the Lemur

Shout out to siblings who take pictures on the sly. This was Candy Hammernose, the news reporter, and she was HILARIOUS. Also, may have wanted to steal the dress

Such a sweet (and chaotic) group of kids!

 

Happy Father's Day!

We had such a fun Father's Day. It was easy and low key and we spent the whole day together, which is C's happy place. We started off by finally using an escape room gift card and despite my fears, we escaped AND we still liked each other on the other side! Then we treated C to a sushi lunch (big kids are the best!) and a couple hours at the arcade. It was the perfect way to celebrate the perfect dad

 

Everyone's promoting

It's so cliche, but I guess it's cliche because it's true, but man, it goes by quick. This year we had graduates at every level and it seems like it was just yesterday that I was sending these little peanuts off with their tiny backpacks and precious little lunch boxes. 

 

Onward and Upward! Graduation is Fantastic

 He did it! 

First Day/Last Day

First Day

Last Day

This week hasn't felt at all like I thought I would. I haven't had as many "my baby!" moments of nostalgia as I thought I would, but at the same time I'm mourning all the "lasts" right along side him. Last day of Fire Tech. Last lunch at school. Last time picking up his girlfriend in the morning. I want everything to be perfect and I know that's an unreasonable expectation but this kid deserves all the greatest that life has to offer. I'm just so proud of this kid and the amazing human he is. The world is just so, so lucky that he's in it. 

Back in my day

 Sydney asked me last night, with total sincerity, “Mom. When you were a kid since you didn’t have Netflix, how did you remember what episode you were on when you were in the middle of a show?” 

I explained that you didn’t have a choice on the episode, you just watched the next one. She seemed to be tracking until I realized that she didn’t understand the concept of a programming schedule. She was AGHAST when I clarified that shows were only on at certain times, so you had to be watching at 7:00 on a Tuesday if you wanted to see what happened. She kept saying, “But! What if you weren’t home?! You just MISSED IT?!”

I cannot wait to tell her about landlines and answering machines

Friday gratitude

 

I've been in a funk and I've found that when that happens, it helps to be really explicit about the little pockets of joy in my day

These beautiful wildflowers that were growing outside of my office. They're so vibrant and gorgeous and such a stark contrast to my years spent in office buildings and prison yards. And the best fidget ever that C made me for Valentine's day :) 

Last night during my walk the trees were full of peacocks yelling at each other. It was weird and spooky and also kind of magical. Also, they're very high in the trees.

Don't sleep on these cold foam creamers. They're f-ing delightful

My high school senior. He's got less than a month left and while I have some feelings about my baby and all of that, I am just so grateful I get to see him becoming this amazing adult

My favorite traveling companions

 It is not lost on me how lucky I am that I can spend four full days in a minivan with my people and end the trip liking them even more. We went to Colorado/New Mexico in order to see family (and for Eli to wrestle, never miss a tournament!), but the getting there and back ended up being an awesome bonus vacation. Pro tip: Once your people are big, rent a van and commit to getting two rooms.  Game. Changer. 

The pictures are all out of order, so just know that I tried to load them chronologically. 

Going home means that suddenly we're related to EVERYONE. One of C's cousins happened to be on the floor at the tournament so Eli ended up with TWO enthusiastic supporters in his corner. He said, "It's interesting to get coached by someone who's never seen you wrestle before"

Averson and I at the Grand Canyon. I just love her little soul. 

Awe :) 

Petrified Forest National Park

Weigh ins. Eli JUST made it (OMG). Also, I took him to the gym to run on the treadmill and someone thought I was his pregnant girlfriend. So that was mortifying for all of us.

C's all time favorite restaurant. He was SO excited. And it was after weigh ins (hence the smile on Eli's face)

Gramma! I love that they all matched

Grandparents, Parents, and Grandkids. Herding cats. 

Cousins 

We stopped at the Four Corners on the way home. I hadn't been in probably 30 years. The kids loved it!

They kept saying, "It's so much bigger than I imagined!"

The lady who took this kept yelling at her dad (in the red) "DAD! You're in their picture!" I love it so much. Reminds me of my own dad and how he would be so 100% in his own world

Can you even?

Eli was so excited when we stayed at a hotel on Route 66. AND THEN! We woke up in the morning and discovered that next door was a Route 66 museum with a Cars car outside! 

They took so many of these as the sun set. I just love them an awful lot. 

Kitchen Ennui

 I don't know that I've ever had a better reason to use the word "ennui" than I do now. I believe that maybe we each have a certain number of meals we are capable of spontaneously planning and creating and if so, that perhaps I have reached my limit. I just CANNOT with any of it. I don't have any inspiration to plan meals, shop for meals, cook meals, eat the meals. Thank God C hasn't expended all of his allotted meals or my kids would absolutely be subsisting on air fried chicken nuggets, apples, and crystal lite drink mix. 

But seriously. How are we supposed to keep doing this? Do I just stick to the "spaghetti, tacos, grilled cheese, chicken wrap" rotation for the rest of my f-ing life? I feel like this might be indicative of something deeper because I literally cannot muster even the energy to consider meals. I even thought about going back on the HelloFresh/Every Plate thing but... eh. I'm doing this nutrition challenge at my gym, so maybe that will help? I mean, Averson's 11. I still have at least 7 more years of social responsibility and a need to ensure she doesn't get scurvy. 

Am I alone in this or is this one of those "Everyone has it and no one talks about it" things? 

Here's what I've planned this week:

Chicken wraps (with the above mentioned chicken nuggets). That's it. We had them yesterday. Tomorrow's a mystery. Today is (shrug)

My little artist

 It is just so fun to see my kids be good at the things they love. And it's so fun to see them finding the things that they love. Averson has been sketching for a while, but her skill has grown SO MUCH lately. She just popped this one out while she was trying to avoid going to bed

I exist!

 OH EM GEE. This whole time I thought I'd posted at the beginning of the month, only to look and see that I have been MIA since the end of January! I'm here. We're all good. Everyone's busy but in really fun ways. I'm going to update a bunch of posts (like Averson's birthday, SMH) but in the meantime, here's some pictures of the gallon of paint I spilled in the garage at 10:00 at night (but that miraculously did not hit a single vehicle). Then, because it was past my bedtime, I thought I'd use cat litter to clean it up. Chaos ensued. 

This is the after :/

Eleven

I'm sneakily late posting Averson's birthday, but my awesome, odd little duck turned eleven and it was such a fun day! She recently got a Greenlight debit card so for her birthday, we let her do a "shopping spree" at the mall. She flipped a coin for her spending limit, and then she and a friend spent the morning running amok. I love this age because she was equally excited about t-shirts at Hot Topic and building a Taylor Swift Build-A-Bear. 

Apparently she's eaten the same donut every birthday? I love that an awful lot.

This girl is so fun and we're loving to get to know who she is. Her art is remarkable and she's a voracious reader. She recently did an Improv class and I think that acting might be her "thing." She's got such a fun, quirky vibe and it's been a blast to see her come into her own