The One Where You Thought I Ditched You

Did you feel that little lurch last week? It was the world stopping on its axis. You see, I unintentionally took a week off from blogging (cue Home Alone scream). The Professor had a week off from both jobs and we had waaaaaay too much fun! We started off with a bang: We all got sick. Thankfully, all of my immune-boosting activities for the children* paid off, and we were back to normal our normal selves soon enough.

Here area few lessons from my blogging vacation:

1. A movie featuring the Easter bunny, Santa, the tooth fairy, Sandman and Jack Frost can surprisingly offer some meaningful talking points with the kiddos. Rise of the Guardians had little to offer our children. Did I mention we don't do the whole Santa-Easter bunny-tooth fairy ballyhoo? You take that away from the plot and you're pretty much left with diddly-squat. However, we had plenty to talk about, and it didn't sound like this: "You see children, that is why Santa isn't real. And remember Jesus trumps the Easter Bunny. Repeat after me. Tooth fairies are ridiculous and imaginary. Tooth fairies are ridiculous and imaginary. Good girls."**

2. It's important to communicate the day's order of events to my husband so as to not drive 30 minutes on the wrong freeway. 

3. It doesn't matter how many times I go to Ikea, I will never be able to push their stupid carts and I will always feel like a rat in a giant Swedish showroom maze. 

4. Watching my daughter engage a little boy in an impromptu spitting contest was both comical and disturbing.***

5. It's important to take the fishing licenses with you when at the lake.

6. Fishing can be rewarding without a single nibble.

7. The safest way to fish with a toddler is to remove the hook and just let them cast a weighted line in the water. She was none the wiser and everyone on the fishing dock breathed a little easier. 

8. I'd never used a computerized children's check-in program for a church service, and I'm in no hurry to do it again. On the bright side, I now have a receipt that says those kids are mine. 

9. Not informing one of your children that their Poppa is a police officer can cause alarm upon seeing him in uniform.****

10. Mimosa trees are charming and planting one is a classy way to honor a much-loved and dearly-missed woman of God.

Find some time to enjoy the changing weather, watch a movie, plant some flowers. Go live a little!

Take A Load Off,

Cynthia

*Eating dirt at the park and licking public water fountains. Works like a charm.

**FYI: I'm not getting paid to yack about this movie. Isn't that shame? 

***NOT in Ikea.

****Nothing a little therapy can't undo.