Last night and this morning felt like we were answering the infamous Shakespearean question, "To be, or not to be..." Awake? Asleep? Happy? Grumpy?
We thought we'd just let the evening flow and see where it took us. Putting kids to bed before they're tired is just plain lunacy. They eventually all dropped like flies within 30 minutes of each other and all mid-activity. Mairyn was practicing creative somersaults into a pile of pillows and, well, who wouldn't fall asleep in a pile of pillows? Jacqui was the next to succumb to sleeping bliss; she had draped herself over the footstool and face-planted right into Dr. Seuss. Grant was in the act of changing into p.j.'s; got his shirt on but sat down on the bed to begin the pants and just flopped over. We did lead Eliza in the direction of bed with the pretense that she could read in bed until she felt sleepy. I went to dig out her latest novel and when I got back, she too, was asleep.
We all slept ALL night. We ALL slept until 10:30 am. (went to bed at 9:30-10pm) Except for Spencer. The kids & I seem to be on the same flow, but Spence is off. Even though the first day back, we all did the same thing; didn't nap the first evening, bed at the same time, get up at the same time, but yesterday afternoon, Spencer did take an afternoon nap while none of us indulged. Spence was up at 3am & left for work around 7am. How interesting.
Today was a struggle just to function. A perfect day for vegging on the couch and watching movies, reading or playing games.
Grant at Harris Beach in Oregon. Can't wait to put up pics of the a-mazing family vacation we had.
Well, shave my head and call me Sinead; I'm blogging two days in a row. It feels *so* nice to be back in my own home. A place for everything and everything in it's place. My bed. My desk. My pots & pans. My car. Mine mine mine, it's all mine!
We all slept through the night; but that's not too surprising. The first night back is usually like that. What was amazing was that nobody took a nap today and nobody turned all Oscar the Grouch! All are bathed, fed and starting a game of hide & go seek. I'm not sure the last activity is very evening approved, so let me go throw some water on that fire.
Ok, I'm back & wrapping this bad boy up. We're going to play a new game on the PS3 called 'Portal 2'. It's awesome. I'll have to extoll the virtues of this game at a later date. Here is my current favorite YouTube video.
"And though you say your heart isn't drifting, drifting ... " Harry Connick Jr. (I've had this song stuck in my head all day.)
Well, we're back. What exactly is the protocol on how to feel when you return to your house after being gone for 3 1/2 months? Especially when you weren't planning on being gone in the first place. It's not like going away for the summer, that's for sure.
When you pack your bags, you usually have a date of when you'll be returning. That wasn't the case when we left the day before St. Patrick's.
I'm feeling a bit sheepish for forgetting things like my phone number (home & mobile); the password on my desktop pc (which I have now, obviously, remembered). It is a strange mix of discovery & familiarity. Kind of like Alice through the Looking Glass. It's the same, but it's not.
Jacqueline already fell asleep in her eggs tonight. They all declared starvation at about 9:30 pm, so we made a modge podge of breakfast stuff-for-dinner; eggs, toast, cereal, pancakes. (i'll share my secret for fast pancakes soon). Her head was on the table before her egg was done. They all managed to get some nutrients into their bellies and are now snoozing soundly. It's a false sense of security, though. The first night is the easiest and sometimes you can power through & maintain some normalcy on the 2nd night, but the 3rd night, whoa, watch out. We'll be falling asleep at 4pm and ready to party at 1am! Pancakes and eggs anyone?
It's all about timing. What a time to try and jump back on the blogging wagon. I tell ya, I had visions of grandeur. But living in a hotel for two and a half months does nothing for one's motivational feelings. We've moved out, btw. Spencer is back. (as of Sunday) Families are headed back to Bahrain. We're starting our R&R right now, Bahrain is prepping for our return at the end of June. Wonderful time to arrive! They're ordering some hot, muggy summer weather for us.
Another thing about timing; right when I find the time to be online, we're going to be *very* disconnected. We are embarking on The Great Western Adventure 2011; loading up our rental vehicle, a 15 passenger MAV (mormon assault vehicle), with camping gear, suitcases and 4 kids. The 2011 GWA will loop through Oregon, Washington, Montana and end up where we started in Idaho. Between the good graces of friends & family, camping & the occasional hotel, we will journey through the wonderful & amazing Northwestern Pacific. I'm looking forward to introducing my children to the joys of camping and the singular beauty of this geographic area.
I'm also looking forward to typing with both hands. I've got two of five fingers out of commission. Do you know how long it took me to type this out? Too long.
Pointer finger: Shard of glass, sliced right through the fingertip pad; ring finger: slice on the same place as pointer man, a day earlier on a windowsill.
I will update whenever I come into contact with a WiFi signal.
There are plenty of quotes about what a home is; "Home is where the heart is." or "Home is where you drop your bags." or "Home is where they deliver the household goods."
And then there's the "go get 'em" urgings; the "it's not the situation, it's your attitude about the situation." or "bloom where you are planted". Believe me; I've been planted plenty and those blooms came .... eventually.
I am *so* done making a pseudo-apartment 'home'.
I have written & erased countless paragraphs for this post.
Bottom line?
I want to go home to a decorated, organized home. (it's not. we got boxes 3 1/2 months before the evacuation. most is out of boxes, but not everything has a place.)
Can someone follow me around with a camera & capture some of my children's childhood with me in it? And I'd like to be photogenic-looking in them, please.
I really miss my KitchenAid, food processor, and kitchen. Period. Not that I always make great use of them, but the fact that I *could use* them if I wanted to.
I *would* like to post pictures of the WW2 monument we went to in D.C.
I *would* like to show you pictures of a chance meeting we had while in D.C. We went to the WW2 monument on a whim and happened to run into friends from Cairo that we hadn't seen in 2 years!
I *would* like to show you pictures of my unbearably cute and very pregnant sister-in-law.
But I can't.
My camera is gone.
I don't know where I lost track of it. I may be scatterbrained about a lot of things, but I'm not all loosey-goosey about my camera. It's not a huge, professional contraption. But it's the best I've got & I know it. It's not new. I don't like to accuse, but the only plausible explanation is that it was either stolen out of the car (yes, they chose the camera over the gps?) or our hotel room (chosen over two laptops & assorted electronics). I am as baffled as all get out. But I guess I was in denial because the reality of being camera-less hit me right after I passed security in Baltimore. I was shoving my shoes on and hefting my bag over my shoulder when this random thought bubble popped into my cerebral cortex, "Yeah, you really have lost your camera."
Bright side? I get a new camera.
Slightly less bright side? Not as soon as I'd like.
The dullest side? The pictures I lost.
But the best side? At least I didn't lose the laptops or the pictures on them. It's just one weekend of pictures. Some pretty great pictures, but just a weekend.
We are boring. Since we didn't have children with us, we took a weekend road trip. We drove to Colonial Williamsburg, then over to Roanoke. Sunday morning, we struck out on one of 'America's Byways': The Blue Ridge Parkway. This highway goes along the spine of western Virginia's Blue Ridge mountains. A beautiful, leisurely road trip. It was a great Mother's Day.
