What a weekend!

For starting the weekend feeling seriously bummed that I couldn't make the yearly bike trip with Dad to southern Ohio, it ended up being a great couple of days off!  Of course I missed spending time with Dad and his buddy Dave, so I called throughout the weekend to check on them, so I was at least able to talk with him a bit.  Mr. FixIt and I took some nice rides on the bike, mostly enjoyable because I could soak up SUN, ride and THINK uninterrupted. 100 miles on the back of a bike offers plenty opportunity for thinking...my future, the kids, his financial 'things', ways to step up my business, etc.  Funny that as I'm finally getting my mind straight what/need to do with my future, I've had this odd calm that's been missing for wayyyy too many years. Seems the situation with Mr. FixIt is no longer stressing me- I may have found the ladder to climb up from the bottom of that dark, muddy barrel. Caught a glimpse of my old happy self and haven't looked back.  Why did it take me so long?? That muddy barrel is pretty cramped, nasty place...finding a way out shouldn't be that difficult. Apparently I'd missed a rescue rope or two- whoops! 

So onto the weekend... I had a wonderfully lazy Saturday- Monster Man was itching to get another big catfish so Mr. Fixit took him for most of the day. B and I fiddled around the house. Sunday, we made pies and pasta salad to take to a friend's cookout with their family & friends. Awesome food and a fun evening!  Some cornhole games in the yard and washer toss that Steph and I decided we really needed catcher's gear for!! Someone could get knocked out or lose an eye in that game!! :-D  Finished the evening with a roaring campfire, hot dogs and s'mores until late.   Arrived home just before midnight, expecting Lyla to come bounding out of the garage as we'd left her out and Lucy in the house. Figured poor Lucy's eyeballs were floating we'd been gone so long, she'd REALLY need let out!  Opened the garage all the way. No doggies.  Oh crap. Not cool. I jump out of the truck ahead of Mr. FixIt  and run to the garage- both dogs jumping and yipping AT the door from INSIDE the house!! Oh no. Visions of my furniture in shreds flash through my head. The last time Lyla was left inside (a few months ago) she used two dining room chairs as chew toys. This may not be pretty. Open the door, both mutts come bounding out, excited to see us after 9 hours, like we'd been gone a month!  Mr. FixIt and I split up surveying inside- chairs intact, couches appear untouched, nothing bothered on the counters, shoes still look like shoes...wow. Really?? Lyla didn't destroy ANYthing?? No potty messes either??  Lucy has a 10-hr bladder, she could make it, but Lyla, not so much.  Mr. F said our bed looked like they'd be on it, but laundry still in basket, not upturned, nothing out of place. Kids room ok. Hmmm. Then I noticed the back door....WIDE OPEN.  oh nice. Checked to make sure the door wasn't actually knocked out...no. Just open.  Hmmm. Well at least with the huge, noisy beasts I don't have to worry about someone having been in the house. :-D  Still not sure if one of us left the screen door open or of the dogs managed to wedge it a crack and push the rest of the way.  Oh well, at least the house wasn't destroyed! YAY!

Monday we had a blast with the neighbors out at West Branch on their boat and jet skiis.  Was kind of a chilly start, especially on a ski when you've left capris on because the sun is hiding and you're on the verge of a cold anyway. The first major misjudged wave, ski nose dive into the water I was soaked and then REALLY freezing!!  WHEEEE!!! Sun came out later in the afternoon, thankfully, then we had a blast with the kids taking turns on the skis and riding around on the boat making waves for the guys to romp on. Beautiful ending to the long weekend!!

Hope your weekend was exciting!

To the weekend,

Why do you run by so quickly?? I'm always looking forward to your arrival, anxious of the extra time you will give me to catch up on work, the hours I will get to myself while Mr. FixIt deals with kiddos, the things I will clean, sort, make, etc. My view outside the office window is turning dark, and the crickets and frogs are belting out songs. Oh no! You completely passed me by! Wait!! None of my "to do" list has been checked off...or even STARTED for that matter! What did I do to you, my wonderful weekend?? You can't be leaving me already?! Once in a while you are needed to be, well just a weekend: a couple days off to sleep in, be lazy and catch up on snuggling, but mostly I need you to provide time that I can't seem to find through the week. You can't be done, I'm not finished with you yet!! Monday morning is already sneering at me with an evil laugh!
Ok- well if you ~have~ to go.
I promise I'll be more attentive to you next time around, really. I will! I promise!

Until next time,
A

The book is sooooo much better

Why do I do this?? Why do I torture myself with printed material?? I have a kid-free weekend thanks to Mr. FixIt taking the kids to my sister's so he and BIL can play with building supplies and power tools, I have work out my ears to be done, taxes that I started 3 weeks ago...still unfinished, and my office looks like a Sears Tower size paper shredder took a dump all over it, but with all that to tackle and no kids or DH in sight to distract me, I wound up in Border's yesterday after running my kid-free errands (thanks Queen B, my sister) and bought "Divine Secrets of Ya Ya Sisterhood" in paperback for $2. Came home, made myself some shrimp and pasta with yummy Alfredo sauce and started reading about 8 oclock. I finished it about 3 am. Yes, I read the whole damn book and boohoo'd my flippin' head off through most of it. Why?? I know the story, I've seen the movie many, many times. I still cry when I see the movie so why torture myself with the actual written version?? I filled two trash cans full of Kleenex in the process and at 3 am realized I have no work to show for the evening, hadn't even TOUCHED my work computer, and now I have a blistering headache and probably throw myself into a sinus infection...oh yeah and it's 3 am. So much for sleep, crap! So I took some Tylenol and Sudafed and crashed in the bed at 3:30 propped up on 3 pillows so I hopefully wouldn't suffocate from or drown in my self-induced clogged head. I woke up at 7:30 with the dog whining downstairs he had to GO, like NOW! So I let him out and scared myself on the way past the bathroom. My head looks like I've been pummeled by Sugar Ray Leonard, eyes so puffy I can hardly see and breathing through my nose is not an option. Nice. So I went back to sleep propped on the couch. Back to the why question, which I guess should be why do I beat myself up for doing something I want? I don't sit down to actually read a book very often, because 1- I love to read and 2 - I know because of #1 once I start I can't stop. The last book I read, a couple months ago, "I Walked the Line" by Vivian Cash I read in about a day and a half. Before that, Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum series #3 (I think it was early summer) and I read that in about 4 or 5 hours. Like I know I need to read "just a little more..ok, another 30 minutes... oh another hour and I'll put it down...hmm, not much more now, I'll just finish it. I guess it's the back of my brain telling me if I stop, I know I'll never get back to it. Mr. FixIt has often said, "you are entitled to a night off you know. You are allowed to have some time for yourself." Yeah, yeah, but when I do, I only get mad at myself for wasting time that I could have been doing other things that need done. How screwed up is that?? Is this a mom thing that you have to lash the whip at yourself and get 100 things done a day to feel "worth it" and accomplished? Or is this a unique foul up in my thinking? I probably will never know but I really wish I could take a night/day off without feeling utter guilt and worthlessness.
So now that I have beat myself up about my prior evening and spewed the details out for y'all, I am going to get some work done. Yesterday is over and I can't pity party about it any more. T minus 6 hours before Mr. FixIt and the offspring return so I have to kick some serious a$$ this afternoon.

Oh, for those of you who DO enjoy reading w/o burden of guilt, "Divine Secrets" was awesome! (I'm as late on reading books as I am in watching movies. I know it's been out forever, lol) It was amazing. Of course the book has much more "meat" in it than the movie; so many more adventures of the Ya-Yas, troubles of Vivi and in-depth info on her mother Buggy. The order of events are a little different and several memories from Sidda's point of view. The movie would have been 8 hours long if they'd have stuck to the book, no lie. I was blown away by just the first couple chapters, mostly not mentioned in the movie. Just round up a Kleenex box and some decongestant before you start...you'll need it!