When in doubt, take photo of dog. It was a busy day. I am recommitting to Weight Watchers. I really need to lose about 30 pounds, which is doable. I tracked all my food today, but did not stay under my limit. I just always felt hungry. I don’t know if I just need to adjust to not overeating, or change what I’m eating so it’s more filling, or eat more frequently… maybe a combination of all those things. In any event, I’m working on that. Also had a church meeting today and took Robin to look at a potential new gym for cheerleading. It looks like a much better place than where she is now, so I think we may go for it. Onward.
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April 19
Work in progress. Lots left to do. I got some weeding done tonight, but there’s a lot more to go, then raking the leaves, then bagging it all up. I’m deciding whether to lay much when I’m done. The leaves will just fall on top of the mulch and they will be a lot harder to rake up that way. Mulch will definitely look nicer… at first, anyway. We’ll see. After this, we’ll need to fix that 4×4 so we can hang another swing. And then the backyard cleanup will more or less be done. Then I will start on the gutters, plant some flowers, put in some furniture, and then work on the front yard. Oh my goodness, what was I thinking? Can’t lie, though. I’m kind of enjoying it.
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April 18
This is not the photo I wanted to take, but it’s the photo I got, not unlike the 15 years of marriage we celebrated tonight. I don’t mean that to sound like a bad thing. Life rarely turns out the way we hope or expect. Part of living it means we roll with the punches and see what comes next. Tonight we got pork chops and mussels and bourbon and Sambuca. Tomorrow… hot dogs. Tonight I enjoyed a little bit of perfection with just the right amount of imperfection to make it worthwhile. You get what you get… and maybe that’s pretty good, after all.
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April 17
I got my activist hat out today and joined my church at the Jacksonville Nehemiah Assembly to try to raise justice issues to our city’s leaders. I have to admit that this is uncomfortable for me and I had a hard time engaging. But I was there. And for whatever little bit, it counts. Maybe next time I won’t be in such a lousy mood to start with.
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April 16
More yard work today, followed by a walk to the playground with the girls and dogs. Now cooking dinner and annoyed because a) the grill started up, but by the time I got out with the chicken, it had gone out due to an empty propane tank, b) in going with plan B of baking the chicken, I discovered that Billy put the baking sheets back in the cupboard WITHOUT WASHING THEM, and c) I had to do two days’ worth of dishes just to make counter space for cooking. I am tired and hungry and cranky. Grr.
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April 15
I spent two and a half hours in the yard today, trying to clean it up a little. I cut back allllll of those dead bougainvillea branches and got scratched about two dozen times, but it looks a lot healthier now. Then I pruned my roses and weeded the garden, and to my great surprise, found three heather plants blooming underneath all the weeds! Tomorrow I am planning to round up all the trash and broken furniture around the yard, pull up weeds in the kids’ play area, trim back the hydrangea, and get the shrimp plant under control. Then, if I can still move, I’ll try to work on the front garden. And then I will clean the gutters, especially the small tree that is growing in them above the garage. And THEN, if I have any money, I’ll replace the broken swings, buy a shit-ton of mulch, buy some flowers for the garden, and maybe even get some patio furniture and an umbrella so I can sit outside with a beer and the baseball game and actually enjoy the yard. And by then it’ll be time to start all over again.
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April 14
Christina’s on fire tonight. We went out to eat and she didn’t stop talking for two straight hours. Tonight’s Christina-ism: “I’m a tailgater because I have a tail and I’m a gator.” Comes close to a couple weeks ago when she started choking and stopped to catch her breath with her hands up just to say, “My mind is full of knowledge.” This child is destined for greatness if her public speaking skills continue at this level.
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April 13
I married Billy 15 years ago today. It has been a long road filled with babies and tremendous loss and suicide and baseball. And, ok, travel and amusement parks and homemade pasta. There have been times I didn’t think we’d see another anniversary, but here we are, celebrating 15 years for better or worse. And it could certainly be worse.
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April 12
Robin finished her state report project today. If I were her teacher, I’d give her a B. Personally, I wouldn’t be satisfied with a B, but Robin seems content with it. Christina, on the other hand, decided she wants to do her own state report. So we went to the library and took out a bunch of books and she has already started taking notes, collecting all the required information. These two are like night and day sometimes.
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April 11
There are little signs of life in the backyard, despite my neglect. I thought this desert rose was a goner after our couple of hard freezes, but there is new life growing there amid the dead stuff. I want to spend some time this weekend cleaning out all that is dead and/or broken from the yard, and then in the coming weeks I will start adding things where there is room. I’m thinking some mulch and maybe some new plants. The kids definitely need new swings. I would love a spot to sit and read in the shade with a beer or a glass of wine. I just have to do it.
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April 10
This photo is exactly what it looks like – taking a photo for no other reason than I didn’t want to miss a day. I was literally in bed with the light off when I remembered and just couldn’t find the energy to get up and try to do something even remotely creative. I was so exhausted all day long, it was actually painful.
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April 9
The last three days have been absolutely exhausting. Fun, but exhausting. I’m really glad it’s over. Back to work tomorrow. I’ll try to enjoy the small amount of downtime I’ve got left.
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April 8
I am so exhausted. We went to the NCA/NDA National Collegiate Championship in Daytona Beach as a cheer team field trip. It was so hot. According to my weather app, it never even hit 80, but it felt like 115. We sat in direct sun for over four hours. It was just a long day. We got home around 8:30, colored Easter eggs, and the kids went to bed at 9:30. Then up at 7 tomorrow (or earlier) to look at baskets and find eggs, shower, print scripts and music for tomorrow’s church service, which I am leading and also singing in, come home, bake a carrot cake, figure out how to cook a ham, set the table, and prepare for guests at 4pm. I am thinking that maybe a third of this will actually happen, and if I do more than a third of it, well, yay. And then I have to go back to work on Monday. Weekends like this are really not worth it.
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April 7
The kids had the day off from school, so at the last minute I decided to take the day off too. I took the kids to get sandwiches and we went to Walter Jones Park, where we played card games while squirrels tried their best to see what food we might have for them. Then I took the kids to the beach. It was an absolutely beautiful day to be outside and we sure did make the most of it.
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April 6
There was a mild meltdown before Christina’s dance class where she said she never wanted to go again, that she hated it… tears and tears and tears. This is a person who all season long has told me how much she loves dance and wants to join the competitive team and take four classes next year… I managed to use my mother’s finesse to finally get from her that she feels self conscious because she is by far the oldest and most capable in the class. Which makes total sense. So I counted the number of classes she has left (seven), got her to agree to survive seven more classes, and went the extra questionable step of promising her an ice cream cone for each class she goes to, and a much happier child went to class. I think she may even still be open to joining the team as long as she has some say in where she’s placed. So we’ll see. Moms really need super powers of finesse. Sometimes I’ve got it… and other times I resort to screaming in the parking lot. Yesterday was a good day.
Year in Photos 