Perhaps this is maudlin, but this dancing skeleton was on the window of a hearse and something about it struck me as cheerful.
Liesel came home from dance on an injured ankle in tears. She had the same injury on her other ankle just a week before and she was embarrassed because the same injury came from the same dance move. My sister Katrina had sent me this Instagram reel about how to put on Spanx and the comments were hilarious. I happened to screenshot this one and I showed it to Liesel. There was absolutely nothing to be embarrassed about with a sprained ankle from a complex dance leap when women were injuring themselves just putting on shapewear! We had a good laugh.
This braided ponytail turned out better than I imagined in my head! Gita is pretty much the only one who lets me do her hair anymore and it's fun to play a bit.
September really was a month of injuries! Ireland's wrist had been hurting and we weren't sure if she just slept on it funny or what. Then she was hit, HARD, in dodge ball and it was worse. Brent was scrambling to manage everything on his own while I was out of town and couldn't get in to have it imaged as the school nurse and CVS Minute Clinic recommended. Once I was home, Ireland and I headed to the Immediate Care. No breaks, but she got a brace to help stabilize it so it could heal.
It's fundraiser time at the elementary school! Here is Sydney's face when they were told if they sold $50 they would get a small, football squishamal. LOL!
While packing for Iowa City I didn't want Brent to give me attitude so I started calling him "farm boy." He sweetly responded to every demand with "As you wish."
Liesel was already planning to attend Homecoming with a group of friends but her closest friend wanted to make it extra special so she formally asked her.
It was the school's 100th anniversary and there were all kinds of special events that included alumni to celebrate. Normally I would have pushed for her to go to the baby blessing in Iowa City, but if Liesel was going to attend one homecoming in her entire career, this was the one to attend. The dress she ordered didn't arrive in time so she had to reach into her closet for an oldie but goody. I'm not in love with the high top shoes kids pair with formal wear these days, but I guess it makes dancing a little more comfortable.
She had an absolute blast!
Two of the high schools had a competition to see who could raise more money at a Chick-fil-a fundraiser. The winner would get an extra $500. All week the restaurant was decorated in the two school's colors.
Ireland and I took an early morning walk and came across several homes that had been tp'ed.
Saying goodbye to the Pilot was hard on everyone.
It was the first car Liesel ever drove.
Brigitta bridged from Juniors to Cadettes in Girl Scouts.
She earned her Bronze award which was a lot of work! Sisters were there to support. This troop has really been fabulous for Gita and we are so grateful to her leaders for all they do.
We bought a car last night. Our trusty 2009 Honda Pilot clocked in at 263,243 miles when the dashboard lit up like a Christmas tree. Somewhere between getting the trade-in value and the new car smell of our latest purchase, I had a complete breakdown. The metaphor of something chockablock full of incredibly memories that can no longer function properly hit me like a Mack truck.
Alzheimer's for the caretakers is like death by a thousand papercuts. Loss doesn't come all at once, it comes inch my inch and bit by bit. I'm so very exhausted from all the goodbyes as my parents decline. Mom fell in the shower on Monday. On Tuesday, Dad couldn't cook spaghetti. Wednesday Mom had an accident trying to find a restroom. It. Never. End. I wasn't just a little envious watching my husband excitedly call his parents to tell them about our new car and all the support he received in turn. I have no one to call. In a way, I am an orphan. An orphan who's been charged with the orphanage, no less, which is on fire and flooding all at once.
So all this let me to sobbing behind our old Pilot and feeling loss -again and saying goodbyes -again- and trying to tell myself eventually it will be ok -again-. And yes, greatballsoffireitsjustaCARforheavenssake!!! The logic is in my head but the heavy sadness weighs on my heart and spills out my eyes in an embarassing display of vulnerability and hopelessness.
The new car will be great. Things won't always be like this. I have faith there is a light somewhere there at the end of the looong tunnel.
When Whitney and Tim announced they were having their sweet baby blessed in Iowa, obviously we were on board. The girls were thrilled to meet their newest cousin and by thrilled I mean, I'll just let you see their reaction:
I knew the girls would be obsessed. It's really hard not to instantly fall in love with this bundle of joy! But I was definitely surprised at how Brent fell too. He's always been happy for them but not oohing and ahhing over photos or anything. The entire time we were around them, he pounced on the opportunity to hold her. Brent is a girl dad and it was fun to see him flex those muscles with an infant again.
Due to a non-communication on my part, we actually went to the wrong Sacrament Meeting! My home ward happened to be having their Primary Program and seeing all those people who have been with me as I've grown up and those little kids trying so hard to sing and share their testimonies was exactly what we needed. Right after that was the actual Sacrament Meeting we were supposed to attend- haha!
Gita and Sydney comparing fist sizes. She's so little!!!
I had a blast catching up with my siblings!
Especially this guy. We are both so busy and Mom and Dad need so much help I've often been in town and not been able to see him. He works so hard and has done so much with his life. I'm continuously impressed with his work ethic and his kindness. When girls dream of having a big brother, this is who they dream of and I love him so much!
Even Gita gets how awesome Logan is!
Babies can take a lot of attention so the girls made sure Tim didn't feel too neglected.
We managed to slip in time for our hotel pool and some incredible shopping! Everyone is constantly sneaking clothes from Liesel's closet and we came across some incredible sales to stock her right back up. Due to Homecoming, she unfortunately couldn't join us but we came home with lots of good stuff to cheer her up!
The drive home was stunning. With fall the fields have turned golden and the sky was perfectly blue. It was like something out of The Wizard of Oz!
I'm so glad we were able to share this special occasion with family!
Ever since that sweet baby has been born I have been dying to cuddle her and sniff the top of her head. I basically lived on those pheromones the entire week and oh my gosh I am so totally in love with her! Ahhh it's so good to have an infant back in the family and I should have done a better job of cooking and cleaning and helping with the dogs more but I just wanted to snuggle this little one with all my might! Tim and Whitney are such natural parents and it's been quite the journey to get to where they are. It's not often that you can hold a miracle made up of thousands of prayers in your hands!
Whitney is an incredible hostess as well. My room had fresh roses and a sweet package of Madeleine's. Those roses just exploded with beauty and I enjoyed them all week long!
A new baby is an adjustment and that's just as true for the fur babies of the family.
If I wasn't holding the baby, this one was immediately by/on me looking for a little love. He didn't want to sit on my lap so much as merge his soul with mine.
Going through the drive-thru in the Mustang with the top down and two golden retrievers in the back was so fun. The dogs got way more attention than the car! We tried out the Chick-fil-a Tik Tok hack of a spicy chicken sandwich covered in Polynesian sauce, with macaroni & cheese and buffalo sauce dribbled on top. It's dense, but it is indeed delicious!
Oh we had some fun with that car!
Whitney introduced me to vanilla scones from Trader Joe's that ended up becoming a bit of an addiction. We talked and talked, shopped at ate at Chopt (several times). I need to buy stock in that place because especially when traveling, I crave a crispy salad with tasty dressing and Chopt fit the bill. This sign in the bathroom made me smile:
When the streaming release of the Barbie movie was pushed back a week, encouraged Whitney to see it in the theater. She'd been concerned a baby would disturb other people in the theater but found one with completely open seating. When we arrived, there was one other mother there with her 8-month old and she was visibly relieved we had a baby in tow as well. I've seen this movie several times now but this scene where America Ferrera talks about how impossible it is to be a woman hit home as I watched those two mothers working so hard to soothe their little ones.
I happened to be holding that sweet, sleeping baby when this iconic line was delivered:
With that miracle in my arms, and thinking of the journey of motherhood ahead for my sister, I cried and cried at the truth of that statement. I'm so glad I got to experience that with Whitney!
Whitney analyzed my coloring and turns out I have a lot more warm tones than I thought I did.
I have a whole host of shades I'm going to be looking for when I'm out shopping. For now, I'm going to try out these eye shadows:
Whitney and Tim are also amazing to my kids and were there to offer love and support as I caught up with them on phone calls and video chat. The girls listen to them in a different way than they listen to me and I'm so grateful to have them in my village... because it takes a village! Speaking of villages, Birmingham is such a cool place! I loved the walks and drives we took and how kind everyone is. My first full day someone smoked me out as being from "up north" and guessed Wisconsin. She said it was something in the way I say my "ig"s.
After a lovely visit, duty and home called. Check out this lush wall at the Birmingham airport:
The flight home was dreamy- flying through some of the fluffiest clouds I've ever seen!
It's always good to come home, but it's especially good to come home to Chicago. I love O'Hare and aside from the hall of flags, there's a piano right where the terminals split and I was treated to lovely music as I headed toward baggage claim.
Also spied this lady and now I have new life goals. I hope when I'm old, this is how I travel because she is clearly completely comfortable in her skin and living her best life!
My time in Alabama was such a great visit- made even better by the fact I was going to be seeing everyone again in a couple of weeks for the baby blessing!
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