Mini Vacation

We are trying to keep our spirits up and embrace the challenges that 2020 have brought us, but around the end of September both Jordan and I started to feel the weight of this year on our marriage. Nothing drastic, but we just really needed some time away from the kids and time to get out of our house and find space to breathe.

I mentioned to a friend of mine that once F turned one, I really wanted to take a weekend away with Jordan, and she said, "Why do you need to wait until he's one? Do it now!" She mentioned something that she and her husband do on occasion, which is that they surprise each other with a trip. 

She told me how she planned a weekend away with her husband and didn't tell him anything about it until it was a week or so away. Her baby had not turned one yet, but she brought her pump and said it was a minor inconvenience but really not a big deal. It was just the encouragement I needed, and I started planning a mini vacation to surprise Jordan with.

My parents watched all three kids, and we spent Friday night through Monday morning in Dallas, Texas. I booked our hotel, got aquarium tickets, made a list of restaurants to go to, and I even contacted his boss and secretly took off work for him. I told him the Friday before our trip, and he was super confused at first and didn't understand what I was talking about. But as the weekend got closer we were more and more excited. 

We had a great time and enjoyed exploring some fun spots around the Dallas area. It felt like the perfect getaway where we felt very comfortable being able to socially distance and not super far away from the kids if they needed anything. 

I brought my Spectra pump for use at the hotel, and I did wake up in the night to pump just like I feed F, and a friend let me borrow a portable pump to use during the day we were away from the hotel all day. I brought ice packs, and the milk actually stayed cold and I was able to save everything during the weekend. I had no idea when I booked it, but our hotel room ended up having a full fridge/freezer!

On Saturday we went to the Dallas farmer's market, lunch at a BBQ place called Pecan Lodge, then the Dallas aquarium, and we met my brother and sister-in-law for dinner. On Sunday we ate lunch at a place called The Londoner, which is set up to look like a British pub. They server British food, and they even had one of Jordan's favorite English beers on tap. Then we went to a town called Grapevine and walked up their main street with cute shops and the farmer's market. We ate at a local seafood restaurant for dinner and then played card games and watched The Hobbit on TV. It was super relaxing and FUN. I'm grateful it worked out, and I loved surprising Jordan with a trip and getting a few extra days off work.

My point of sharing this is mostly that you don't have to go far or go big on a little vacation. Even somewhere just a few hours away can be new and fun and low key. It was just the reset we needed in this crazy, stressful year. Now, who is amazed that it's already November?

Fall Family Outing

 

Hello, it's October! F turned 7 months old a few weeks ago, and no, I'm not okay, thank you for asking. He's still working on sitting up, and he really wants to crawl, but so far just gets up on his knees and rocks back and forth a few times before falling back down. He currently has RSV, which I would feel more stressed about, perhaps, but at this point I'm just glad it's not The Virus.

For a couple of days in September, Oklahoma decided to act like fall, but now we are back to 90 degrees, and Panera still isn't carrying my favorite seasonal treat: cranberry orange muffins. As if I needed another reason to be mad at 2020. I need my muffins, people!

Despite the heat and the lack of leaves turning brown (aka colorful death), last weekend (pre-F having any cold-like symptoms, please note) I leapt into the fall spirit with open arms. I decorated my mantle and bookshelves, and we loaded up the minivan and headed to a local farm. 

I've been wanting to check this place out for several years but never made a point to go, and I'm so glad we did! The weather was perfect, and it wasn't super crowded, so there was ample space to enjoy the activities while not getting super close to anyone. We rode a train, got some pumpkins (each kid got a tiny pumpkin for free!), pet some animals, and greatly enjoyed one of the few outings we've taken as a family of five.

The kids did awesome and seemed to have a lot of fun. They are both going to daycare, but other than that we don't get out much, so I'm really thankful we were able to at least do one fall activity this year in case we don't end up doing anything else.

I hope you are having a nice start to fall, wherever you are. Stay safe and well!

Oh, and PS. If you read my last post, MY NOSE STILL HURTS. That's all. Good day.

on midnight encounters and cheesy television

 

Hello from your occasional blogger friend. 

CAN ANYONE HEAR ME? Never mind don't answer that. I'm fine talking to myself.

I saw on Facebook someone shared a meme that said 2020 is 70% over. Can I get an amen? This year. I mean what. a. dumpster fire. J and F share my feelings (see above).

If you follow me on Instagram then you might have seen my amazingly skilled stick figure diagram of the midnight collision Jordan and I had two nights ago. And that's not a euphemism for marital times. J came into our room around 3am, and long story short both Jordan and I got out of bed and ended up knocking heads in the dark. I heard a snap and thought for sure I'd broken my nose. It hurt SO bad. I had a headache all the next day, and now it's been two days and my nose is still aching constantly. I can't smell anything, and I don't know if I've got The Virus or if it's just my bruised cartilage blocking my nasal passage.

2020 has got me not leaving my house, and now I'm thinking I probably shouldn't even leave my bed.

F is 7 months today. HOW. How. How. Did I mention how? They say the days are long and the years are short, but lately the days have been short too. I'm super busy at work, and my days are flying by. It's not necessarily a bad thing, but I'm also completely shocked when I see F rolling all over the floor and rocking up on his knees like he wants to get going somewhere. He was born yesterday and you can't tell me otherwise.

In other very important news, the show Sister, Sister was recently added to Netflix (don't nobody @ me about how I should be canceling Netflix, pleaseandthankyou). I've been rewatching Season 1, and it's bringing me baaaack. I used to love that show, and I'm actually really enjoying watching it now. 

Another surprise? Fuller House. I think the stress of 2020 has got me fondly yearning for my innocent youth. I watched the first season or two when it first came out, and I thought it was okay but super cheesy and kind of dumb. However, I recently started up again and I'm loving it. It's still super cheesy and ridiculous (and why do they think it's believable that Candace Cameron would always be wearing heels and skirts even on a Saturday morning????), but it's fun and sweet and I'm here for it.

I thought I had other things to update, but since I don't go anywhere or see anyone, I'm out of ideas. So, I'll do a quick "currently" rundown for anyone interested (i.e., my mom).

appreciating: flexibility of being able to work at home a few days a week. This is probably the best thing to come out of the pandemic for me. I do go into the office a few days a week, but I'm also at home several days, and it's so nice to not have to pack up my pumping stuff or get dressed and go all the way downtown. The kids still go to daycare (even F), but I just feel a lot less stress with working this time around, and I'm grateful.

anticipating: random, but taking R to a corn maze. Will there be corn mazes still this year? I feel like that's a pretty socially distant activity, so I hope so! For some reason R's been talking about corn mazes, and I actually do think she'd like to walk through one, so maybe we can find a few outdoor family activities this fall. It's been crazy hot all summer, and I'm ready for some cooler temperatures!

collecting: toys and random other small items constantly all over my house. We've got to get a handle on this before F starts crawling. Oye.

starting: to reread the Risen Motherhood book for an online book club I joined. I read it last year when it released, and I've been wanting to go through it again, so this is good timing! Speaking of time, I just need to find some of that to actually read the book.

finishing: my summer New Testament Bible reading list. The women's ministry at my church did a summer reading plan where you read the Bible every day June, July, and August, and by the end you read the entire New Testament. I did great in June and finished all the days. July and August both have about 75% done, but there are some lingering blank spaces and I'm plugging away at them until I finish the reading plan. Better late than never!

I guess that's a wrap for now! I'd like to say I'll "see" you back here sooner than a month from now, but clearly my track record this year isn't so great. Thanks, as always, for checking in and following along with the blog! 

Let's hope the last 30% of the year turns around for all of us somehow. Until then, be careful where you walk in the middle of the night ;)