After that last week, when I was feeling depleted, I needed to do something to get out of my funk. I don't know about you, but when I'm feeling down, helping someone or doing something nice for someone makes me feel better. On Monday, I offered up to watch a bunch of people's kids. You'd think it would be super stressful, but it wasn't bad at all. Maybe the only con is that Voss came out with a little cold. Luckily, it's already cleared up. But I was feeling guilty giving him a few breathing treatments. But seeing these worn out moms dropping off their kids really made me feel better! On Tuesday I did a Costco run and dropped off a few items for the farms girls and made a few meals for moms with new babies. Those chicken enchiladas are always a good one (for us, too). Phil did a jalapeno challenge that night. The girls earned some cash and everyone ate veggies. Yay! I got to go on a few girls nights. We did a movie night Monday for Indivisible. I should have looked it up before, I don't think I would have opted to go. But still a good movie to see- especially this week of Veterans Day. Election night was hard to watch. I'm thankful I had good wine to drink and great group texts happening. I'm proud of duval turning blue and taking over the house! Wednesday we played at the park, helped a friend pack. The afternoon was stressful. Phil went to a Friends of Stockton fundraiser while I went with the kids to the teaching mass. I ended up meeting the "TCC bad moms" out for Abby's Birthday. I was just in time for the nightcap. Thursday I was supposed to meet Kat for lunch but she bailed on me. Instead I brought a bottle of wine to April and went thrift shopping- the best retail therapy for me! I spent about $150 and got 12 dresses and 5 pairs of shoes! Don't worry, I pulled out 12 dresses to give away. Not much closet space! That night we did a girls night helping a friend put Ikea furniture together. The kids were off on Friday. Phil took off, too. We had a relaxing morning with a big breakfast. We did a family movie day to see the Nutcracker in 3D. It was so good! I loved it! We did a pizza lunch after. We were supposed to play glow in the dark golf that night but the rain ruined that plan. It finally cleared up. We sat on the back porch of TCC while the kids ran with glow sticks. Not too bad. I even walked home. Saturday Ellie had altar server training. I worked on some silhouetting. We did a family day in St. Augustine and toured the Castillo de San Marco. It was a nice afternoon. Phil and I went on a date that night to Ruth's Chris then an evening with Ira Glass. It wasn't as amazing as I was hoping but I'm still so glad we went. Sunday was mass- with Ellie altar serving! I am so proud of her! We did TCC breakfast with the Applegates then just sorta hung out all day. We ran/rode bikes to my parents to hug our favorite veteran. Marly went to a Birthday party. We ended up going to TCC with the Bentons- more running on the lawn with glow sticks. This time Memorial park did fireworks for us! Fried chicken night! Today the kids were off of school again. They all came to MOPS with me. Mae did her behavior specialist talk. It's neat how MOPS has changed her speech! We did lunch with the Smiths then an afternoon of dance, basketball practice, science project finishing touches and more silhoutetting. Trying to ease into the holidays with some peace and zen and lots of giving!

But letThis week was just hard. Maybe it's that it was basically cloudy and overcast all week. Fall is really here- the weather is perfect! But there isn't much sun and that can zap a mood quick. But 3 kids in elementary school- 3 folders to look through, 3 sets of paper, 3 balls to juggle all the time. Someone always needs me- spelling words, online homework (and logging in more than one kid on the same day in the same browser is rocket science), reading charts, who has PE today, new shoes, Birthday parties with gifts to embroider, fighting with dental insurance and holding kids down for a cleaning and still a cavity to be filled- it all just came at me this week. I went on a field trip with Ellie's class on Thursday to MOSH. It about wore me out- all the other kids! STEM day at school- 3 different students but only one time block (which was already overwhelming- how could I have actually handled all 3!) plus a lab tour. All Saints Day mass. Deep breath. And Wednesday was Halloween. I spent Tuesday making Voss's Maleficent costume. I think the family costume was a success. The girls were the fairies- Flora, Fauna and Merriweather (no one knows whom was who). Total mom win for re-using their dance costumes! I was a tired Sleeping Beauty (in my PJs- a win!) and of course, Prince Philip. Ooddles of candy and I'm the one that can't step back! On Halloween we all ate our heart's desires worth then the day after I let them each pick out 5 pieces to keep. Then, we went to Walmart and I let them each pick out a toy to trade their candy in. Brilliant! Now, I'm donating the rest to my friend Tiffany who works for Hospice. The MOPS Halloween party with a parade through the nursing home was a great way to kick off the week! Voss was a hit in his astronaut suit- he wanted to wear it all week. We did a zoo trip on Halloween. Phil and Vaughan played in a tennis tournament this weekend- the TCC member guest. It was a great tournament- awesome turn out, childcare and free beer! But let's talk about how OVER I am with tennis this weekend. The kick off was Gourmet on the Green. I wasn't good at moderation. Lots of fun but Saturday was a wash. Shame on me! The older girls went to this neat garden camp at the Garden club. The littles went on a play date to the Cutlips. I totally wasted my 2 hours of kid free time driving up and down Roosevelt and watching tennis. I took 3 kids to the Right Whale festival at the beach and saw my pal, Kelly. That's always such a neat festival. The drive about did me in, but the kids loved it. That evening was Phoebe's Birthday party. We were supposed to watch The Greatest Showman outside but there were technical difficulties. Still a fun night! Phil slept through it after playing tennis all day. This morning we did mass then Ellie and I had a quiet breakfast together while the others enjoyed the childcare. We went home to work on her science project- the effect of watching TV before bed on your sleep. Which we couldn't determine thanks to her "constant" variable going awry on Friday night. Made for a good write up, though. Just what I wanted to do during precious kid-free time. Another Birthday party, this time at the Rattigans, while Marly went to Pepper's. I love the village! Finally, an early night and getting organized! Whew! I am spent!
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Phil's parents stayed with us for the first part of the week. It was nice to have them in town. We all went to flag raising. Phil's parents stayed home with Voss while I went to MOPS. We had a meeting on healthy eating. I was inspired to eat more veggies, take some turmeric and maybe some red wine vinegar. I'm hoping to get a one page cheat sheet soon! That afternoon we did the ballet park shuffle then I ran to book club. We had a great convo for Before I Go to Sleep. Kathleen even got it catered. I went running and had coffee with Petra's parents on Tuesday. I even got in a trip to the grocery store. I did lots of monogramming and silhouetting this week. I finished a few projects I was working on and did a bunch of gifts. One of Voss's pals had a Birthday party that afternoon. Perfect for turning 4! Wednesday my sister Katie came in town and my brother came in late that night. It was nice to have them in town! Voss and I had a play date at the Suters. We did our nails and walked to lunch. It was nice to catch up. Thursday was a fabulous day! I went running then got a massage by Sherry, the best doula ever. Katie and I kina had a spa day. We both got massages then had facials by mom's pal, Travis. That evening, we had a nice steak dinner at my parents house. My brother's friend, Skippy is part of the Blue Angels team. Voss has literally been waiting a year to see them again! It was super cool getting to meet him! Friday morning we went to the air show. He gave us a VIP tour! Then, dad hooked us up with the Rotary tent. It was such an awesome day! We went home during the rain for a quick nap for Voss. I picked up the girls from school and grabbed Phil then went back and got to actually meet the Blue Angels! Very cool! We went right from there to the first Date Night at St. Matthews. The kids did a Halloween party. Phil and I went to try some autoban racing then out to dinner. Saturday morning we did a family breakfast then a run. The girls and I went to Katie's baby shower. It was so neat to honor her. I turned a few outfits from Voss's (that used to be Erik's) and are now Henry's! So sweet! We hung out a bit after then went to the Creels to watch the GA/FL game. That was the only win for us for the weekend! I watched a creepy show later that night, The Haunting of Hill House. Oh dear. This morning we did mass then breakfast. We watched the air show a bit and then the Jags game. Then to the Nixon twins Birthday party with a Blue Angels after party. Matt brought over spaghetti for dinner after. Such a surreal family weekend! I loved it!

A busy week of fall fun! We had a boys play date at Faith's on Monday. That's still such a new thing for me! I'm enjoying that fun group for me and Voss. The afternoons are always busy with dance and park hopping. The weather warmed back up so more sweating, but at least there was a breeze. I didn't have any fun plans on my mornings off so I just ran, listened to my book, Crazy Rich Asians and did stuff around the house. It's amazing how that time flies! I took Voss to Conner's Amazing Acres on Wednesday. Just the two of us. It was a good trip. My brother came back in town for a bit to take a break but he didn't last long and went back to the chaos of Panama City. He says it's like a 3rd world country there. I'm praying the rebuilding process happens quickly for all of them. Thursday was the fall festival at Stockton. I'm room mom for Marly's class so it's been tough getting people to help, but the shark tank booth was a success! I also had to volunteer for Ellie and Abby's classes, too. What a crazy, sugar-filled afternoon! We came home with 2 cakes from the cake walk! Phil's parents came in town. We went to dinner at Trents. Yum! The next morning we packed up and headed to Savannah. We lucked out with a late lunch at Fox and Fig, which was amazing! We checked out Forsyth park then raced to the hotel to quickly check in then Phil and I dipped out to Andrew and Zoe's wedding. It was so beautiful! I loved seeing my old pal, Kelly again. We danced the night away then kept going in downtown Savannah. The next morning came quickly with a hotel b-fast then sightseeing. We did a super neat trolley tour then lunch at the Pirate House. It was so cool that Kelly, Jon and the family ended up at the table next to us! We did the water taxi loop then headed back to Jacksonville. Later that night, I went with Regan to the Camp's super Halloween party. They really go all out. I should have taken more pictures! I didn't dress up and am regretting it. I'll have to make up for it next year. Sunday we went to a later mass because Phil and I were Godparents for the Hershorin boys. It was a great ceremony with our pal, Fr. Luke. The after party was the church fall festival with yet another cake walk! Check out the chocolate cake Ellie won! I was happy this festival had a pub! I spent 2 hours in the blood mobile. They went nuts over my O-! Luckily the Bentons gave me a ride home. Afternoon haircuts then a dinner date at Chophouse with the Applegates. Excellent end to a fabulous fall week!

Monday we had a MOPS meeting- a marriage wisdom panel. Bunny and Wyndam are always so good. My old employer, Mrs. Trammel gave some words of wisdom for the single-ish moms. The 3rd couple had only been married 8 years, but I could agree with much of what they said. Nonetheless, it was all so good to absorb. Busy afternoon shuttling children around town and playing at parks. Tuesday I met my friend, Renee for lunch and saw another friend, Lindsay there. It's a whole other world without children in tow! The rain and the wind came as Hurricane Michael approached the panhandle. My brother, Matt evacuated here. It was nice to spend some time with him, although he was worried. Other than a tree on his garage, I think his place is okay. He got lucky. But we are still waiting to hear for sure. I went to a friend's divorce party. Complete with a cake and temp tats. It's a good thing, don't worry. I went to Kate's to watch her do some vinyl cutting, had lunch with Phil and worked on some monogramming. I got to go to a fun girls night decorating for Halloween at the new Sulzbacher Village, then drinks at a fun brewery. Friday was more of a lazy day. I dropped the ball on planning something fun to do. So we walked around at a pumpkin patch, got my oil changed and new breaks then met Phil for lunch again. That afternoon Phil and I headed to Marywood for another Engaged Encounter weekend. We had 13 couples complete the weekend. It's so inspirational watching them with their young love, work on their relationships. It just makes me feel good about the world. It also allows us to tune up our marriage. We did some writing as well. Lots of laughs, feel good moments and relaxation. The weather was perfect, too. We carved and baked some pumpkin yesterday. The Smiths came over for chili and to watch the Jags loose. If only the temp would go back down those few degrees so we can keep playing "fall"!

I finally got to go to my first MOPS meeting of my last year in MOPS. I missed the official first meeting because I was in LA. So, this was really the 2nd meeting. Cindy Trainer was the speaker and gave a great talk on women's health. It was very informative and inspirational- as MOPS tends to do. One thing I loved was just remembering that we're all going through pretty much the same sort of things; that's comforting. That evening we had book club, an awesome discussion for Rupi Kaur's The Sun and her Flowers. We even had an after party! I'm trying to convince Phil to go to one of her poetry readings with me! We had such an awesome discussion about women. Tuesday was my Dad's 71st Birthday. After a run and a grocery store trip, I got to have lunch with my parents and my brother. Matt was in town this week for eye surgery. So, we got to visit with him a bunch. I had a brunch and bubbly gathering with some mom friends using my china and crystal. It was so nice. Sherry even came to do some massages. We watched the Kavanaugh & Ford debacle. Lots of great conversations! You know I love that kina stuff! But, the sad thing has been some nasty knock-down drag outs I've seen on Facebook. It's been rough. I wish we could all just come together and support each other. Friday, Voss and I helped pull weeds at school, got a haircut, hit the park then had lunch at school with the girls. That evening we did a family tennis party at TCC. It was really neat! Saturday morning we took it easy. Phil made breakfast. We did a girls run. My wonderful neighbors took the older girls to lunch and a movie. Phil took the younger two to Ikea. I went to a baby shower for my pal, Katie Hoggatt. I even got in an afternoon nap! That afternoon we went back to TCC for the low country boil. The kids got to go a spy camp thing. That was cool. I was picturing newspaper with the low country boil dumped on it. Oh no, they went all out! There was even a raw bar! You know how I love those raw oysters! Live music, gorgeous (even if it was hot!) night, cold beer, fab food, awesome conversation (another smart table of women)- it was a great night! I came home, put the kids in bed and wasted some time watching The Walking Dead (season 8)- when did it become so horrible?! This morning we did mass and breakfast then headed out for a family day at the beach. It was total bliss! I love swimming in the ocean when it's rough and being reminded of how small I am compared to the Atlantic ocean. What an amazing feeling! We took showers, had dinner, said the rosary on the way home and put the kids in bed. So much to smile about!

This week was full of some momming so hard moments. Yes, there are times when I slack. Phil caught me eating chips and watching TV one afternoon- looking all lazy. But then there are times when I am killing it at mom-ing. On Monday, Voss and I went to the zoo on a boys play date. It's always a great place to be. The new ape exhibit was awesome! I got out of making dinner that night thanks to spirit night at Metro diner. I got to go to lunch with a bunch of fun women to celebrate Stephanie and Molly's Birthdays. Tracy and Tabby came over for a play date on Wednesday. It was so fun to catch up! I've been doing great getting 10K steps every day. A few times I had to walk around the house before bed to knock it out. You should have seen me reading my book on my phone while doing laps in the St. Matt's parking lot during the girls religion class. But, I got the steps in! Thursday was the day I was killing in. I ran, weeded and re-mulched the flower beds in the front of the house and put together the new couch we got! I even made a pot roast for dinner (but it took 9 solid hours in the crock pot since it was extra-frozen). It was still a win for the day. The bonus is that the kids love playing in the boxes that the couch came in. They have been entertained all weekend with those things! Wait til you see the new living room in the pictures below. I just love it! I know having a white couch is nuts (and it already needs to be cleaned), but I can just unzip and throw in the washing machine. Let's hope it's that easy! And we won't talk about how disgusting those old couches were! Friday I hosted a boy play date. That night was a Married People night out. Phil and I got an awesome date of golf and dinner at TCC. Saturday was a lazy morning. The girls had friends over and played in the boxes. We did demo day at TCC and Phil got some new clubs. That afternoon we did a progressive dinner party with some TCC friends. We got picked up and started at the Creels with fried gator. Then we came here for shrimp and grits and some of Matt's fish I traded. We ended at the Kuders to watch their football game and celebrate Marlen's Birthday. It was a fun night! A late night waiting for Claire to get back from MomCon and pick up her husband and Wayne. I think his truck is still parked at our house! My brother Matt is in town for eye surgery. He came with us to mass on Sunday morning. We headed over to the Smiths for a bit of tailgating then headed to the stadium for the Jags game. I was so excited to sit in the terrace suites- I'd never been in there before! It was so hot- Definitely a great place to watch the game! Just a bummer that we lost. Last night we helped prepare a dinner to celebrate my Dad's 71st Birthday. I fried okra. Matt did the surf and turf. Suzanne got pralines from Savannah. It was nice to have a family dinner. We did a night cap on the dock after, which was so neat. So much to celebrate!

Just when I was trying to get back into the swing of things...
Jet lag is a thing- I pretended like I was still vacationing drinking wine at night, staying up too late, forgetting to parent, binge watching Homeland- oh man what a week! I lucked out with a Tuesday to ease into everything. After dropping off all the kids at school I went on a run and came back to find Phil had come home from work with a stomach bug. Voss was sick on Monday, but I totally missed it since my fabulous pal, Laurie took care of him. So, Phil was out for a few days. I tried to nurse him but mostly I was mean and unsupportive. Voss and I went to Sherry's splash park for a play date on Wednesday. I was snoozing on the couch when the school called- I totally forgot about early release day #momfail. That night was the first religion class. Trying to work on the scheduling for that. Voss and I ended up playing in the parking lot. I finished reading Girl, Wash Your Face. There wasn't much I didn't already know- but it was nice hearing it all again in a funny, uplifting read. That night Abby was up throwing up, but seemed to puke and rally and was fine after that. My parents have some friends in town evacuating Hurricane Florence. Glad we dodged a bullet this time, but my heart goes out to all of them. It was just a year ago that Irma flipped us upside down! On Friday I went to Anne's for a play date. It was so nice catching up with her. We even got in a little walk. I've been trying for the 10K steps a day. I've gotta get back into that! After I picked up the girls from school, we headed out to Kassie's farm. Two cows just had babies so we went to visit, help with chores and look for "dinosaur" bones. It's always so neat going out there! I started feeling a little queezy on my way back. We met some friends for dinner at Lillians- perfect since we came right from the farm! Half-way through dinner, I realized the stomach bug hit me, too. No fun. The next 24 hours was total payback for me not being more supportive when Phil was sick. It was miserable. I'm not sure I'm back to 100% tonight, but I'm on the way. And it really gives me an appreciation for feeling good again! I canceled our sitter for Saturday night and Phil headed out with fun friends for a Birthday dinner. They were sweet sending texts and pictures missing me, but man did I have some FOMO! We went to mass on Sunday then headed out for a day at the beach. It was a gorgeous day. We saw the Bentons and Dearings out there, too. So right when our kids were about the loose it, they started having fun all over again. It was nice. A rain storm got us out of the pool and we showered off and came home. We watched the end of the Jags game (beat the Patriots!) and said the rosary together. Not my most fun weekend, but like I said it made me appreciate the good times even more.

Tuesday and Wednesday flew right by. i had a meeting with Fr. Jose and some other church friends to work on details for our new Date Night ministry at St. Matts. We park hopped during Ellie's acro class. It's so hot still! Wednesday was a MOPS open house- nice to feel like MOPS is back even if I missed a fab girls night and the first meeting of the year. I packed up and organized life and on Thursday morning, Matt picked up me (a little late thanks to me missing my alarm) and Suzanne and we drove to Orlando to take a direct flight to LAX. A Fab Five trip in the books! We Lyfted with my pal, Meghan to an AirB&B house Katie and Steve hooked us up with. It was fabulous! I somehow got to sleep in the master suite- my own king sized bed. There was a pool and jacoozie for night caps. I mean this was amazing! They even did the grocery shopping! Meanwhile, on the home front there were a few snafus- Abby left at school, two people picking up Marly and Ellie maybe getting left at a grandmother's house. But the village rallied and all my people were taken care of lovingly! The first night, Erik's pal hooked us up with entrance into the Magic Castle, this mansion of mystery. I am not into that stuff, but I was really impressed. I even adopted the "make your own confetti" gig. The next day, thanks to EST I was ready for a trail run bright and early. SQ and Matt came with. Matt made his eggs ranchero after for breakfast. Soon after, Erik and Kelley arrived and we went out for our first adventure. We hiked the Solstice canyon then went to El Matador Beach in Malibu then drove along the Pacific Coast Highway to Venice Beach for an awesome lunch at ChaCha Chicken. We rented bikes and headed to Venice beach. It reminded me of South Beach, not my jam but super cool to see. I got a flight at a local bar and loved some of those local beers (especially Cali Creamin'). After a long drive in traffic back to the house "Uncle" Steve cooked us an awesome chicken piccata for dinner. We weren't able to rally for a night out. The next morning we went out to breakfast and then saw Erik's studio. We found the secret stairs and got a great view of the Hollywood sign. We went to the Griffith Observatory for some awesome views. I would love to go back there at night and check out that telescope! We did tacos and ice cream for lunch. Katie and Steve went back for a breather, the rest of us (minus SQ on her phone) checked out Echo park and then this cool 70's bar that we had to enter via a refrigerator. The weather was perfect! Nice and sunny, but no humidity! We headed back for some pool time before a night out. Matt's friend came to join the party. We saw Erik's improv show at 2nd City. I may be biased, but I think he's the best. I was happy to sit front and center to see him. After the show we had Mexican for dinner then did some bar hopping- a tiki bar, a keg bar and then my fav, the Firefly. I even got some clubbing in! We had a fabulous walk back to the house and I was the last one in the hot tub. Sunday we went to mass. Wow, the music was like a show I would pay for! Amazing! Total LA style with a lecture in yoga pants and altar servers in skate shoes. But, I loved it. This guy nailed the homily, too. I loved sitting with my bloody mary by the pool after mass just chatting with my siblings- that might be one of my snap shot favs. We did an escape room that afternoon. We were so close to escaping! It was harder than I thought it was going to be. But totally inspired me to work on a scavenger hunt for Christmas! We went to Angel brewery after that. I loved it! Live music gets me every time, but this chick is really fabulous. We did korean BBQ for dinner. It was different, yet tasty! Monday morning consisted of flying back across the country. Matt hooked us up with his VIP treatment while we waited for our flight. A little bumpy then some rain on the drive home. All in all it was a wonderful trip. I feel so much closer to my siblings and loved getting to see some of the west coast. I'm thankful for Phil for being so supportive and an amazing dad so I could dip out. And all the friends helping move children from place to place and even my pal, Laurie for cleaning up some Voss throw-up! What a team! I really am a lucky gal!