Random Happy Thoughts
The weather is perfect right now. Today we saw a high of 73. It's supposed to get warm/hot again by the end of the week, but even still, the cool evenings make 90 degree days worth it.
The kids were surprised and grateful for our family trip to California. I packed for them the night before and then told them we had an emergency meeting in Tucson so they'd have to take their blankies and some books for the drive. It wasn't until we turned off onto I8 that they got wise to us. The looks on their faces and squeals of delight when we came clean were priceless. And then, near the end of our time while we were at Balboa Park, I got the sweetest, most sincere thank you from W (whose upcoming birthday was the reason for our trip).
Legoland is the most fabulous amusement park in the world for our kids' ages. H had hours of fun in the toddler area, running around the play houses, sliding down the slides, riding the train. The bigger kids can go on all the rides now (and go by themselves)! There are newer areas we had not seen before, so it was fresh for us all.
We may never take another summer southern California trip again. The weather in October was gorgeous, just gorgeous. The hotel rates were cheaper, as were gas prices. There were no lines at Legoland or the new Sealife Aquarium. The hotel pool was heated, so even though the evening air was a tad chilly, we still got our water time in. We got our beach time in too, chasing the waves and looking for rocks and shells while being careful not to get too wet since it was dusk. Of course W got freaked out by a tangle of kelp and fell over running away from it. Sploosh.
The kids have always dressed up in a family theme for Halloween (Thing One, Thing Two, & Cat in the Hat; Three Blind Mice; Teletubbies; Fairies (before boys!); Three Little Pigs and the Big Bad Parents; Three Little Kittens who Lost their Mittens; Wizard of Oz; Characters from the Lion, Witch & the Wardrobe; Superheroes; Characters from Harry Potter) . Each year since they have been old enough to care, I have told them they can dress up in whatever they want, they don't have to do a theme. But every year they have come up with something new. I won't spoil this year's choice, but I'll post photos as soon as we get all the costume components.
I have tried three great recipes in the past month that have all been winners with the family. Two were courtesy of my culinary-gifted sister -- chicken tortilla soup and chicken and dumplings. Yummo. The third was a super easy random recipe-of-the-day from my Google home page -- pork chops and apple sauce. (Insert Brady Bunch reminiscence here.) You season 6 chops with kosher salt and fresh pepper, & brown them in oil. Then you put a sliced sweet onion in the bottom of a crock pot, layer on the chops, and cover with a can of apple pie apples. Cook on low for 6 hours and viola! Tender chops with a savory oniony-apple "gravy." I served them with mashed potatoes, fresh green beans, and cinnamon apples. It was a clean-plate club night.
Jonathan and I have been going through what seems like concurrent mid-life crises. (No, not that kind!) But we have both been questioning what we want out of life, where we want to be, what we want to do, where we fit in. It's been a hard couple of years for us in these respects. But things are working out. Maybe it's just a matter of (finally) finding the blessings where we are instead of falling into the "I'll be happier when ____ " trap. We are not in perfect circumstances, but I think making the best of what we've got has allowed us to prioritize our lives and let go of things that are lower down on that list.
Our friend just lost his mother suddenly. That's not a Happy Thought; however, the fact that his children had a relationship with this grandma, that they knew her well enough that she will be missed, that his wife has funny underwear-shopping stories to tell; that the in-laws postponed a trip to attend the memorial; that his grief was not watered down by physical or emotional distance -- these are things that make our own decision to stay in the valley near my mother worth it. Because those are things -- the multi-generational relationship, the stories, the day-to-day being there -- those are things that are important to me. And, at this point, if it means letting go of things lower on the list, that's okay.
The kids were surprised and grateful for our family trip to California. I packed for them the night before and then told them we had an emergency meeting in Tucson so they'd have to take their blankies and some books for the drive. It wasn't until we turned off onto I8 that they got wise to us. The looks on their faces and squeals of delight when we came clean were priceless. And then, near the end of our time while we were at Balboa Park, I got the sweetest, most sincere thank you from W (whose upcoming birthday was the reason for our trip).
Legoland is the most fabulous amusement park in the world for our kids' ages. H had hours of fun in the toddler area, running around the play houses, sliding down the slides, riding the train. The bigger kids can go on all the rides now (and go by themselves)! There are newer areas we had not seen before, so it was fresh for us all.
We may never take another summer southern California trip again. The weather in October was gorgeous, just gorgeous. The hotel rates were cheaper, as were gas prices. There were no lines at Legoland or the new Sealife Aquarium. The hotel pool was heated, so even though the evening air was a tad chilly, we still got our water time in. We got our beach time in too, chasing the waves and looking for rocks and shells while being careful not to get too wet since it was dusk. Of course W got freaked out by a tangle of kelp and fell over running away from it. Sploosh.
The kids have always dressed up in a family theme for Halloween (Thing One, Thing Two, & Cat in the Hat; Three Blind Mice; Teletubbies; Fairies (before boys!); Three Little Pigs and the Big Bad Parents; Three Little Kittens who Lost their Mittens; Wizard of Oz; Characters from the Lion, Witch & the Wardrobe; Superheroes; Characters from Harry Potter) . Each year since they have been old enough to care, I have told them they can dress up in whatever they want, they don't have to do a theme. But every year they have come up with something new. I won't spoil this year's choice, but I'll post photos as soon as we get all the costume components.
I have tried three great recipes in the past month that have all been winners with the family. Two were courtesy of my culinary-gifted sister -- chicken tortilla soup and chicken and dumplings. Yummo. The third was a super easy random recipe-of-the-day from my Google home page -- pork chops and apple sauce. (Insert Brady Bunch reminiscence here.) You season 6 chops with kosher salt and fresh pepper, & brown them in oil. Then you put a sliced sweet onion in the bottom of a crock pot, layer on the chops, and cover with a can of apple pie apples. Cook on low for 6 hours and viola! Tender chops with a savory oniony-apple "gravy." I served them with mashed potatoes, fresh green beans, and cinnamon apples. It was a clean-plate club night.
Jonathan and I have been going through what seems like concurrent mid-life crises. (No, not that kind!) But we have both been questioning what we want out of life, where we want to be, what we want to do, where we fit in. It's been a hard couple of years for us in these respects. But things are working out. Maybe it's just a matter of (finally) finding the blessings where we are instead of falling into the "I'll be happier when ____ " trap. We are not in perfect circumstances, but I think making the best of what we've got has allowed us to prioritize our lives and let go of things that are lower down on that list.
Our friend just lost his mother suddenly. That's not a Happy Thought; however, the fact that his children had a relationship with this grandma, that they knew her well enough that she will be missed, that his wife has funny underwear-shopping stories to tell; that the in-laws postponed a trip to attend the memorial; that his grief was not watered down by physical or emotional distance -- these are things that make our own decision to stay in the valley near my mother worth it. Because those are things -- the multi-generational relationship, the stories, the day-to-day being there -- those are things that are important to me. And, at this point, if it means letting go of things lower on the list, that's okay.