We went to an escape room today and we missed it by about THREE MINUTES. We had even figured out the clue but just kept typing in the answer wrong. We are so bummed! We did a lot better than the last time, and honestly that made it more fun. It also helped that we didn’t have to share the game with people we didn’t know. I so want to go and do another one and manage to escape. We were just so close! It was a good time and nice to go out and do something together. We’ll have to go again.
Tag: family
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September 1
I’m a little sad after our trip. I wish I felt closer to Rob and his family. I felt comfortable with them all weekend, more than I expected, but since coming home, all I can think of is them talking about me and how fucked up my kids and I are. I can’t help comparing myself to him and feeling like I don’t measure up. He has money and a beautiful wife and happy children and the passion to follow an impossible dream with unending confidence. I don’t know what it is that I think I have to prove to him or anyone, or why I should feel ashamed of my Jimi Hendrix muscle shirt or the fucking fact that I wear glasses. (Seriously, this is something I felt was a defect he’d judge.) It comes from an old hurt I’ve felt for many, many years. I never felt I compared to Rob. He always had friends and made funnier movies than me and told better stories. People always just liked him better. But I love this picture, and I love him whether he appreciates it or not. I backed away from Mom out of fear and I live with that regret every day. I do not want the same regrets with Rob. I guess he’s stuck with me and my Hendrix shirt and my kids who won’t talk to him and my couch with three legs and the Maltese who shits in the house. He could do worse.
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June 14
We scratched off another adventure card and found ourselves on a private flight tour over Jacksonville. It’s something I didn’t even know you could do, and it was awesome! The pilot took us over our house, but I had a hard time getting oriented from the sky, so I couldn’t find it. Billy saw it, though! It was cool seeing landmarks from above, but it was also cool to hear the conversations the pilot had with flight control. At one point they were telling the pilots to steer clear of the “humans falling from the sky.” Apparently there were skydivers in the area. It was one of those once-in-a-lifetime things that I feel so lucky and privileged to have had the opportunity to do with my family. And that we are. I have to remember to pay some of that back into the universe.
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May 25
We cracked open the Florida adventures cards I got for Mother’s Day and had our first adventure at a splatter room in Gainesville. I still think we came out looking way too clean, but it is thoroughly satisfying to throw paint around a room for an hour. I will not say we left with works of art, but we did leave in a good mood.
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February 23
We attempted an escape room today. Billy and the girls had never done it before and I thought it’d be fun. It turns out we are not all that good at puzzles. It took us almost 20 minutes to solve the first one, which didn’t leave much time for anything else. But I think everyone had fun and now we HAVE to try again.
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December 31
We finished the year strong with a Penn State football playoff win, deli sandwiches for dinner, a challenging game of Mind the Gap, and party hats. More importantly, we finished – and started – the year together.
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November 26
Lazy day today. Highlights include: Running the wrong training program on the treadmill, knitting for hours, everyone but me playing Portal Knights, booking hotels for dance and a campsite for spring break, and writing one paragraph in the sermon I may never deliver but feel compelled to write anyway. It hasn’t been the most exciting week off, but I’ve gotten things done. I dedicate the rest of the week to… me.
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September 8
I finally got to use the gift certificate Rosina gave me for my birthday. We did some paint pouring! Robin and Christina were less than thrilled about going, but there’s something about splashing paint around that lifts one’s spirits. They’ll never admit it, but they had fun.
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February 25
The team behind the team. Envy came in third today, missing second place by a hair. Every competition they get a little bit better and a little bit closer. They really held their own against some very good teams this weekend. I hope they are as proud as I am.
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August 14
Today was the first day of school. It seemed to go pretty well. No one came home miserable, at least. Robin had a panic attack at cheer. She is feeling enormous pressure to do well on her team, which is both in her head and not in her head. I’m trying to help her build up more self confidence so that she can feel the pressure as a form of encouragement rather than criticism. I don’t want her to give up what she loves because she doesn’t feel she’s good enough. Of course she’s good enough. Now to get her to believe it.
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June 24
The trip is underway. We were delayed a few hours because our a/c stopped working last night. The technician came by this morning and luckily it was a quick, easy fix. And then on the road! We couldn’t agree on where to go for dinner once we arrived in Virginia, and Robin and Christina weren’t thrilled about where we ended up, but turns out the food was great and they had something for everyone. I even got a BLT, which I had been craving in the car but never thought in a million years I’d find on any menu anywhere on our way. We hit traffic as we crossed into South Carolina for about 50 miles, but otherwise was smooth sailing. Tomorrow we head through Washington, DC, Baltimore, and NYC… headed through the Bronx at the end of a Yankees game… so I am not expecting great things, traffic-wise. I made a great 60’s playlist (I mean, truly great), and it is 19 hours of music, so it should get us to New Haven, no problem. I sang almost the whole way today. I’m sure I drove Billy crazy, but OH FUCKING WELL.
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June 12
My brain isn’t quite functioning at full capacity, but on the flip side, I am covered in living, loving creatures.
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May 28
We had Billy’s family over to celebrate Memorial Day. The dinner spread was pretty impressive. Burgers with three kinds of cheese, bacon, lettuce, tomato, onion, and avocado, hot dogs, homemade coleslaw, fruit salad, beer, soda… And the weather was absolutely perfect. It was 79 degrees and sunny. Put some 70s classics on the speaker and you could not have asked for a better barbecue.
Year in Photos 