1st day

Teacher appreciation week - day 1 - ✅ 

I went to the school at 1 to cleanup, and as I was putting my keys back in the office, I saw Delaney and friend. They were waiting to interview Dr. Dennie for journalism, so I chatted with them for a bit. I actually got to see Delaney twice today, once as she was coming in and I was leaving and then in the office. I wish she’d still come to the lounge and hang out and help, but I guess big 8th graders don’t do that.   

I made progress on my family tree and did some learning for my calling and made ratatouille for dinner because Delaney likes it, only she didn’t like this recipe I tried. It’s my favorite ratatouille that I’ve had, but I’m not a fan of eggplant or ratatouille, so you win some you lose some, I guess. 

Adi seems to be getting more excited about Idaho and that is music to my ears! She’s been researching and showing more interest and I’m so so so glad. And then this made me teary - once an aviator, always an aviator! I want to go walk the halls with her and say hi to old teachers too! 🥹

Weekend love

Adi and I walked around the little spring fair at the fairgrounds Saturday morning. We checked out all their booths and shared a Philly cheesesteak and it was so sweet to spend time together. She is really feeling the growing up anxiety, so one on one time is important.

One of our thermos caps got recalled and I had to laugh at having to take a picture showing the lid in the trash. 🤷‍♀️

I baked a cake for dinner and a pound cake for special Disney dinner on Sunday and laughed at our sweet lounging Henners. 

That evening Matt and I ran dinner to Henrichsons and got groceries and Adi and Delaney met up with us at the Porters for dinner. Matt and Nate told us all about their trip and it was fun to see their friendship and chat with Amber. She was just called as RSP and I could talk for hours about RS. 

She made lasagna and I brought better than shopping cake so the food was all really good and we are outside and all the kids, even the bigs played on their zip line and play structure and it was just a lovely evening.  

Last week Elizabeth Amorino texted Grace and I and shared that the ASL Branch was becoming a ward and she and Grace decided to go and then I was like, well I really want to go, so I got a sub for me as a sub for nursery and we rode up together. That is the coolest building and it was so good to see so many old friends. They had a group picture and a linger longer after and it was wonderful to catch up with Elizabeth and Grace. 

I came home and whipped up our Disney dinner. I went easy on myself and used frozen meatballs and premade pizza dought for the garlic dog bones. 

Maybe I was hungry from fasting, but it was a top notch dinner and the easiest (by far) to make. 

We watched Lady and the Tramp and the animation is so pretty and the story was cute and none of us really remembered it so it was a fun one. 

🦴 🐕 🐶 

I really liked the movie, but after a big dinner, the relaxing was too much for these Rays and the three of us missed the last 25 minutes of it. Adi was very proud of her picture with all of us facing the same way. It is pretty funny. 

To wake us up we took a family walk. I’m reading a book about longevity called Outlive and he talks about the importance of grip strength, which, since my dreaded painting injury and subsequent thumbs surgery, I have none. He talks about being able to hold onto a bar, so I wanted to see how long I could do. Adi won with 60 seconds, Matt and I did 30, and Frankie and Delaney dropped off right around 25. It’s harder than it looks. 

During scriptures I had to laugh at Matt and Delaney sitting the same. Also, it’s been chillier than normal, hence the blankets and thick socks. I’m not hating it. 

My morning started bright and early at 5 on the nose. I picked up Wawa coffee at 5:45 and came to the school to find Ms. Marschall had made everything look so much better! The weird off center placement of the table and the tablecloths were driving me a little crazy, so I was happy she did. We have an understanding. ❤️

She took some of our decor and set up a cute little area up front too. Not sure the purpose of it, but it’s cute. 

I delivered the coffee, then picked up 80 Boone’s Bagels at 6:30. Got that all delivered and tidied and realized I needed butter and bread knives. Adi and Frankie to the rescue delivering our knives on their way to school and I ran to food Lion for spreadable butter. Came back and conferenced with Ms. Sheehan and we decided we needed a few more bagels, so I ran back to Boone’s for another 2 dozen. I’ll make one more trip this afternoon to clean up the remnants, but it was a good and busy first day of teacher appreciation week. 

Relationships

Thursday was a lovely day. I met up with the Women of Light crew (minus Chantelle) at the temple and we had a beautiful session and shared beautiful insights in the celestial room. 

These girls, I swear. I was reflecting on our journey together and the ups and downs. There were times as we served together that I could have gotten discouraged and put up walls or quit. They are all from DC South (Virginia) and I’m just a little country mouse down here, and that actually makes quite a difference with the women we serve with and their needs. There were times I was the lone disagreer and times I felt like my offering wasn’t good enough. And I bet they had times like that too. But we pushed through the hard and have found lifelong friendships on the other end. 

The kind of friends that start talking and bop around a million subjects because there’s so much we want to know and share. We went to the cutest little cafe for lunch and it was just wonderful. And as we were prepping for a group selfie a cute lady walked past us, then turned around and offered to take a picture. And then she did a good job! 🎉 

I got home to a hug from my Matt! Nate dropped him off on their way home from the airport at noon. Since I didn’t get home till 4, we had all the evening running around, so I just got snippets from his trip, but didn’t get all the details until today. 

Unrelated from Matt’s trip, but related to the picture, I have a lot of aches and pains. I thought everyone did, but when I talked to Amy she said that she, in fact, did not. She said she was a zero on the pain scale that day. I usually hang out around a 1 or 2, sometimes 3 or 4 on a pain scale to 10, so that surprised me. I guess that’s why I’m always looking for things to help with the achies, like this early Mother’s Day gift. It’s an acupressure mat with magical little spikes.

One morning I had a terrible headache. I had taken 3 ibuprofens, drank a ton of water, and a coke, and it still was terrible. So I had Matt rub out a few knots in my back and then laid down with bare skin for the first time on my mat (you first lay on it in a thin shirt to prepare your skin) and after 10 minutes my headache was gone. Could be a placebo, but I’m a believer. 

Bubba sent this little ditty. 😳

And then fessed up that it was just AI. 🤣🤣🤣

This morning Matt and I went for a long walk between his meetings and he told me all about his Warrior Heart man camp. About a month ago Nate texted and asked if he’d like to go to Arizona with him to a men’s retreat. Matt is a big poopoo’er of lots of things and he was like, yeah no. I told him he should go! I’ve heard about those from a podcaster I used to listen to a lot and I love encouraging vulnerability for men and women. Anyway, he decided to go for it and he loved it! I’m so so so happy. He has so many stories and we had the best conversation and I’m so proud of him.

At noon I met up with 3 pta helpers to decorate the staff room and this is what we walked into. 🤣 I had let Ms. Marschall know we’d be there at 12 and she brought a gaggle of little helpers for us. It was great because I gave them all the supplies and was able to go organize all my donations for each day and see better what I still need and they got a lot done. 

Was everything done exactly how I would have done it? No. Did some of it look a little wonky? Yes. Is it fine? Also yes. 

Even with all our little helpers it still took 3 hours. But it’s all good because this is my last time. 🎉🎉🎉

And it does look really cute!

I wasn’t sure how much decor to get, so I made my best guess and parents bought all of this as donations and I love it. 

Tonight Frankie finished drivers ed (hallelujah!), I made Henrichsons and us enchiladas, Adi and I watched movies and addressed her graduation cards, Matt mowed his grass (Nate Evans complimented Matt and asked for lawn help because our yard is so nice and Matt’s been walking on air and loving his grass even more than usual) and Delaney danced her little heart out. And Ruby found the camera in her room and hammed.it.up. ❤️❤️❤️

 

No rain clouds here

It was a lovely cloudy day. I wish it had rained more, but there were several bouts of  sprinkles. I did all the regulars, including sorting out an ez pay toll that they sent me that was not a car we own. That fun task took 2 calls to EZ Pass and one to the MVA but supposedly it’s been handled. 

We FaceTimed the crew and I just saw this cute screenshot Adi grabbed. Two lazy cousins who refuse to walk.🤣

Also in the mail today. #rude

Frankie is 80% done with drivers ed and we have less than 30 days of school and I finally got some Pta helpers for Friday and Matt comes home tomorrow. Going to bed feeling good. 

A new gal

Alecia came over this this morning and we worked on planning the girls graduation party. Then we went to Inklings which is always wonderful. Love love love talking spiritual truths with sister saints. Then Alecia and I walked and caught up. Then ministering with Kathy at Carols. The post office and home. I made pork chops and potato’s and got thumbs up from everyone, then Frankie to drivers ed (70% done!) then Delaney to get a haircut.

It’s so cute and fresh and ready for summer!

The mall

Last night I loaded all my teacher appreciation supplies into the space car. I meant to leave at this morning at 9:00, but gave myself a 30 minute window. So after my run I checked the time and was like, sweet I’m doing great. And then when I went to leave it was 10:15. I lost an hour somewhere. 🤦‍♀️ 

I was supposed to meet Ehlyvia in Annapolis at noon, but I wasn’t about to unload 10 cases of drinks or drive to Annapolis with all that extra weight. So I had to push back Ehlyvia an hour so I could drop my load. Whoops.

E and I grabbed lunch at the food court at the mall and found a cute graduation dress and belt for her and we made good choices at The Container Store and didn’t buy anything we didn’t need. 

I made it home just as D was heading out to ballet and finished laundry just in time to go pick her up. 

Senior Prom

Matt and I found coconut cream Dr Pepper which is my fav version! I sent this pic to the marrieds.

Jeanne sent me this one back.  🩵🥥🩵 

We had our Disney lunch Saturday at 12 sharp. We’ve been each pulled different directions lately, so it was very scheduled this week.. 

We watched Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, and I gotta say, probably my least favorite so far. I think the business of the day contributed to that, but that movie dragged on and on. 

The Brie bites were surprisingly good, but the apple juice mocktail was v meh, and so were the apple hand pies. Some weeks be that way. 

I got my most generous pta donation in all my many years of pta’ing Saturday afternoon. This is over $200! I was so impressed and I’m always so grateful for every donation - small or large. 

Delaney has been complaining of not feeling well. She missed school Friday and tried to miss church today. She is congested, but really? I don’t know. She dances a lot and wakes up early, and I know she stays up reading sometimes. We had a little chat today about better health choices. Anyways, she mostly relaxed all day Saturday. I kind of love finding my kids in cozy little nests reading, but within reason. 

Saturday was Adi’s senior prom. Ahhhh!

So glad the rain held off so we could take pictures. 

Lily found this cute park that we had to ourselves and also had some poses ready. 

We loved that they each had different vibrant dress colors. 

They were such easy models, just went along with all our suggestions. 

Even when I made them prance to look like they were walking. 

I mean, sort of. 🤷‍♀️

This girl. ❤️

Too cool.

They went to Cracker Barrel for dinner and then stayed till prom ended, even though they played a ton of rap. 

They petitioned for a sleepover and really they are such good girls that we let them. 

So this morning we met up at Darrow’s at 10:30 for a brunch. 

She’s making fun of me here because I asked her to be a little more straight and just less… curvy?

Back to brunch - Alecia made waffles and stuffed French toast and i made a sausage egg bake and fruit and it was a nice little gathering. 

I checked in with my nursery friends and primary looked covered, so I went to RS for the first time since I got released in February. Amber was called as the new RSP (called it!) and Brenda was there, so it was a lovely time. 

#crazies 👇🏻 

Matt and Nate left for the airport right after church. Nate invited Matt to a men’s retreat called A Warriors Heart in Arizona and I encouraged him to say yes, so that is his birthday present. Amber and I are so excited for them and I keep teasing him that he’s going to come home with a warriors heart, but for reals I hope this is a learning and bonding and healing experience for them. 

The girls and I played some jackbox and read and had a really good Come Follow Me sesh. We love Matt but also girl time is so fun too.