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.
Tag: robin
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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.
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May 27
Christina went to a friend’s birthday party at Main Event and they were so generous to extend an invitation to Robin, too. It was a fun party other than the fact that I go into sensory overload the instant I walk in that place and also that the party went on for almost 3 1/2 hours. Robin and I kind of went off on our own at the end and played this one game where you have to hit the lights as they light up. We cheated a little and ended up getting the day’s high score. Yay for the cheaters.
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May 25
Robin made the elite cheer team at her new gym. So proud of her! I think this season is going to be VERY different from the last couple of years. Not necessarily better or worse, but definitely different. The whole approach is different. I’m kind of excited to see how it goes.
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May 5
It was another tough day, so I took everyone out to eat, trying to get myself out of my head. Christina was in top form. She wriggled and danced and was absolutely silly the entire time. Good for taking my mind off things. Also I had pizza.
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April 30
After a pretty good performance on Saturday, the girls had a drop on Sunday that landed them last place. Expectations for this competition were pretty low, so it wasn’t a big surprise, but it was still a disappointment. This photo is probably my favorite of the whole year so far because it shows that despite all their struggles over the years, Billy and Robin really do love each other. It was a very hard weekend, but we came out of it together, and that’s what matters.
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April 26
Billy removed the tree that was growing in our gutter above the garage today. That ALMOST makes up for leaving me with a week’s worth of dirty dishes to wash. Guess he lives to see another day.
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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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March 28
Doing my best not to take this too personally. I’m not too popular today in general. I guess I’m setting the bar too high for the people around me and they don’t like it. Also today: struggling in general. The last few days have been tough. Talk about setting the bar too high. I’ll never be good enough. Which is a whole can of worms I think I’ll just throw right into the lake.
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March 26
Robin borrowed a book about cupcakes from the library and chose a recipe. It went about 65% well. She added a tablespoon of baking soda instead of a teaspoon. I managed to scoop out some unknown amount of it, but they all look like collapsed volcanoes. We also needed unsweetened chocolate baking chips and I only had 60% bittersweet chocolate chips. We’ll see what that leads to. Our frosting is a little pasty, plus we only had enough ingredients for a half recipe. They’re probably worthy of being on Nailed It, honestly. But it was a learning experience for Robin and she really did 95% of it without my help. Plus I haven’t tasted them. What’s lost in looks might be made up in taste.
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March 4
The girls did amazing at their first day or competition. They scored 83.6, which really isn’t that impressive on its own, but when you consider that two months ago their score was 61.3, it’s huge. Every competition they have added a few more points to their score, and maybe… they can get into the 90s before the season is over. I have such a perfection complex, this sport is not for me, but I am so proud nonetheless. And look at this happy face.
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January 13
Salt and pepper shaker wars at the hotel Cracker Barrel in beautiful Ocala, FL. The drive from Jacksonville goes through miles and miles of nothing and sure enough, Christina had to go to the bathroom in the middle of nowhere. We didn’t quite make it to the gas station before it was too late. But here we are, two bickering girls and me at the Hampton Inn.
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January 1
I took the kids and dogs on my traditional New Year’s Day hike, this year to the Julington-Durbin Creek Preserve, and oh, the drama. I knew the girls wouldn’t want to go on a long hike, so I took them down a side trail to cut off the longer loop. It was a little grown over and Christina cried the whole way, saying we were lost, that we’d never find our way out, that we would be eaten by bears and Daddy would have to live alone, that she wanted to go back and take the long way, who cares about her feet? Then there were some briars on the trail and I had to pull a couple out of Jackson’s paws and that sealed it for Christina. She says she’ll never go on another hike with me again, even though we were never lost. And that’s how we’re kicking off 2023. 🎉
Year in Photos 