A Road Trip

     I am sitting in the passenger seat of our van playing a game on my tablet and signing softly along with an 80's song that is coming over the radio.  The kids are in the back seat watching a movie on the DVD player.  My husband is in the driver's seat.  We are on our way north.  Our destination is about 4.5 hours from home.

     I actually love times like these.  We don't have to be going anywhere exotic.  We don't even have to be going anywhere to stay overnight.  Our destination is not necessarily important.  It's that we are together.  It's that we are creating memories as a family.

     Last summer, my daughter came home from girl scout camp with all these plans for the next few summers that include her being gone for increasingly amount of time each year.  She will be starting high school in August.  These two things have been a huge twist in my gut.  It has made me realize exactly how limited our time is with our children.

     I have always tried to make sure my children have plenty of smiling moments in time that they will hopefully be able to look back at their childhood with fondness.  I want them to be able to have tons of things to reminisce about and talk about when they are older.  Those, remember when we... moments.  Moments they want to share with their own children.

     As I sit in the moving car I breathe in the contentment that surrounds me and cloak myself with love we all share. I glance at the man I am lucky enough to share all of this with and it makes me smile as my chest balloons.  He is the reason all of these family times work so well.  Because he is a daddy and a husband, not just a man with a family.

     Our road trip may cause us to sit in the car for a long period of time.  It may be we sleep in not the greatest hotel.  We may end up playing a waiting game most of the weekend.  But, we are all doing it together.  Our children are learning to support each other in their interests and our family is building a foundation that, hopefully will be strong enough to embrace grandchildren and great-grandchildren and beyond.

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A Creeper at a Board Meeting

   

     Picture me sitting in the middle of the Swim Team Parent Board meeting.  I am listening and trying to take notes on the progress of everything we have/had planned over the past few months and the next couple months.  We are moving through the agenda pretty quickly for which I am thankful.  I notice a couple of the other board members giving each other sideways glances and have a passing thought wondering about what they're communicating about.

     The member holding the meeting notices something a few moments later.  Then, one of the board members that starts to sink in her chair as she's looking out the tall skinny window of the door to the room we are occupying and declares that there is a "creepy guy sitting out there staring at me."

Of course we all turn around and look out the window.  

The minute I see him, I call out, "That's my brother!"

At which point I went out to tell him I'd forgotten to bring his Girl Scout cookies to the Y with me with peals of laughter behind me as I shut the door.  So, before I could tell him about the Girl Scout Cookies I had to admonish him not to creep out the other swim team board members anymore.

Come enjoy some more funny stuff!  Linkin' up with Weekend Funnies over at My Half Assed Life!

An Unusual Friday Night

   It's Friday night and I am at home with no intention of leaving.  I have been in my pj's since 6:30 p.m.  This is very rare for me.  We are usually off and running somewhere with something to do.  

   Actually, most weekends we are constantly on the go.  But, this weekend we have only two actual planned things.  A baseball practice that my son and husband have to go to and the dogs have a grooming appointment.  

   It's so nice to know we don't have to rush from one thing to another.  I have been looking forward to this all week.  I had visions of sitting with my computer composing blog post after blog post and scheduling them to be published at various times.

   Well, here I sit with two unfinished blog posts in my files and no idea how I am going to finish either.  Actually, one I've got a vague idea of how I want it to go, but I just don't have the stamina or energy to put into it what is needed.  I really hope I do sometime this weekend.  

   Then, I sat and let the cursor blink for half and hour while I watched this week's episode of Big Bang Theory.  I love that show.  My daughter and I watch it together.  Now, we've got Hoarders on and my brain just seems to keep floating away.  

   I guess knowing that I don't have a swim meet or basketball tournament to go to this weekend has made my brain decide to really take some time off.  It doesn't get to do that very often.  And, next weekend we'll be off to Dekalb, IL (about a 4.5 hour drive) for the last swim meet of the regular swim season.  No more swim meets until summer time.

   Everyone in this house seems to just be wilted, including the dogs.  My husband is lounging on the bed in the bedroom.  My daughter is curled up on the couch under MY blanket.  My son is downstairs on his Xbox.  One dog is stretched across a pillow on the floor.  The other dog is stretched across the part of the blanket my daughter is not using.  And, my eyes keep straying to the clock to see if it's any closer to bed time.  

   So, that's how I'm spending this Friday night.  How about you?

It's the weekend, so it's time to hangout with the weekenders at Yeah Write!