Good morning! I was up before the sun as usual yesterday and as I was sitting with Chip in my lap, I thought I would do a day in the life post. It's been ages since I've done one, and I love reading posts like this, so if I like it, everyone does, right?! If not, you may want to leave my blog now.
This was my (not so typical) Monday.
Before I start, let me say that Chip used to wake me up at four thirty every single morning. That is no longer the case, but nobody ever let my brain know that little detail, and four thirty is my new normal almost every day. Yesterday, I actually slept until five. It felt a little scandalous.
I wake up and then I come downstairs. I let the dogs out, and while I do that, I start the coffee for my husband and for Graham and Drew, I start the dryer to freshen the clothes inside, I turn on the mantle lights and the television, then I let the dogs back in. I basically pretend I didn't wake up with the dogs to keep it dark and they fall back to sleep. I do too, sometimes, but that wasn't the case Monday. I always watch the news (mainly for the weather) and Chip is almost always in my lap. He loves to cuddle.
Coffee pots number one and number two. I didn't start on the first pot's coffee until six thirty. I drink my coffee out of the Keurig because I like the coffee in the cups better than what I buy by the pound.
I always come and sit back down and check emails and look at social media and my Timehop app.
First and favorite cup of the day. I only drink two each morning. Twinkles is asleep in my chair over there, can you see her? I finish that cup and let the dogs out again, then start my second cup, let the dogs back in and come sit at the computer desk.
They love watching for squirrels. This was right before I let them out.
On this day, I had to finish planning for our high school community groups to meet over the summer and had correspondence with a few different people, then I sent out emails pertaining to that, and finally, I started on this blog post. (I don't always schedule my posts after writing them beforehand, but that's what I've done the past couple of times I've written.)
While I write, I'm listening to one of my favorite podcasts.
Please excuse the horrible picture. Before I start writing, I read all my favorite blogs that I've read for years. Some of them I've been reading for a decade, like these two ladies (Sophie Hudson and Melanie Shankle) and the Pioneer Woman, Ree Drummond.
Then I write my post and start on the laundry, usually. On Monday and Tuesday of this week, Jonah has a detailing job for a friend of ours, though, and I have to get ready to drive him to Oakland. I was able to fold a load of clothes and start on a new load, then I left with him at eight thirty to drop him off.
It took him longer than five minutes to unload his stuff back behind this portico thing. His first car is a Mustang, so he was pretty pumped. ;) He has a cart loaded down with stuff. I packed him a lunch full of snacky protein loaded things to help him stay strong all day. It was hotter than Hades here yesterday and he was there until almost four o'clock. He had a giant Coleman cooler full of ice water to stay hydrated. I told him if worse came to worse, he could wet his head down with the hose to cool off fast, but thankfully he was in the shade as he worked.
I went one way to drop him off, and drove back home through the country roads. That'll be the way I go from here on out, because it's a lot prettier of a drive. I stopped at the stop sign to take this picture, since there were no other cars around.
I grew up in this area, and I love the looks of this old building. When I came home, I started on the mountains of laundry I have today. I didn't do a thing on Mother's day, including laundry, so I was way behind.
Right after this, Drew came downstairs and we talked for about ten minutes, about the weekend and what was going on that night and when we would need to leave. My friend Kristy called me asking for a favor from my boys, so I woke Noah up and he and Drew threw on clothes and ran up to our church to help out for a while. They weren't gone very long, and the church bought them their lunch for helping.
I have to stop here and say that Drew's truck broke down yesterday and while the fix is (somewhat) easy, we are short his vehicle and we all have a million things to do. I prayed and asked God to work out this issue for us, with all that we have going on, and with timing and such, and He keeps doing exactly that. So while I feel a little crazy with all these details rattling around in my brain, I am so thankful that the Lord hears my pleas and helps me out with all the things. He truly is so, so good to me.
The boys left, and I did some laundry.
Yes, the table is still pushed back and decorated from Drew's party Saturday night, and it will stay like that until who knows when. I don't have time to deal with it today. I get so behind on laundry on the weekends, because I usually don't have time on Sunday to do any. This week was no different. In fact, here is where I was the majority of the afternoon on Sunday.
On my bed napping, or trying to, or watching Gilmore Girls on Netflix. #storyofmylife
Anyway, back to Monday. Funny story about all those towels. Saturday night, one of the guests we had here for the party knocked over a pitcher of grape kool-aid, and my mom-in-love spilled a cup of coffee. So my floor, counters, cabinets, and tabletop got a great cleaning while we had a ton of people in the house. It was hilarious. It was a young girl who spilled the kool-aid, and her parents felt terrible, but we assured them that it was no big deal, did they know we had a house full of boys? I don't fret over spilled things anymore. (I said anymore. I used to.)
While waiting on sheets to dry, I brought some stuff in here to my desk to work on.
Quiet time (I still hadn't had it at this point, and it was eleven o'clock) and pens for list making. Also, I remembered that the cat loves to eat flowers, so I had to bring them in here with me so I could keep an eye on her with them. I can't make this stuff up, y'all. She eats everything and throws it up afterward. We will never have another cat after this one passes on.
#reallife
Aren't these beautiful? Jonah bought them for me!
Right after this I came back my desk and started on this post, because truthfully, if I hadn't done that, I would have forgotten the majority of all this. I ended up getting side tracked, though, and stopped to read a passage in Luke 12. The verses about the cure for anxiety, verses 22-34.
I was going to make a post on FB, and these verses were some of what I was going to say, but I ended up deleting the whole thing. But these verses are so good! I love the thought that even more than the Lord clothes the birds of the air and the flowers in the field, He cares so much more for you, for ME. He is so good to me.
After this, it was almost lunch time, so I got up to eat. I ate my favorite lunch, which is a bagel with cream cheese. It's not healthy, I know, but I do splurge every once in a while and cave in to eat this old favorite.
If I don't sit at the table to eat, I watch an episode of whatever I'm currently watching on Netflix.
Right after this, I grabbed more laundry (I told you I had a lot) and went upstairs to wash my hair. We had another senior event last night and the process of my hair drying takes forever.
These products help.
I use the mousse for hold instead of hairspray.
Also, it is almost impossible for me to get dressed with something coming out of that bluetooth speaker you see. Usually it's praise and worship music, sometimes it's a podcast.
Also, I bought this lotion at Homegoods last week, and it is amazing!
I have ridiculously dry skin, and this takes care of that. This big bottle was about $6 and who doesn't love the smell of summer in a bottle (coconut anything)?!
I came back downstairs to paint my fingernails once my hair was dry.
...and then sat and watched something else on Netflix so that they would dry, and texted with someone about a hurtful situation we went through months and months ago.
Thought for the day: when you go through something with someone that is hurtful and it's all done over text, just say your apologies and move on. We all mess up and we all do things that warrant us saying sorry. We have to say that, though, because chances are the other person will not, or if they do, it will not be genuine. And then maybe acknowledge that certain people have to be let go of, pray for them and ask God to guard your heart against bitterness and unforgiveness and then MOVE ON with your life. That is really hard to say, but God gives people to us as friends, and He removes people from us as friends. There is reasoning behind it all, and we have to obey His plan if we want to live our lives for Him. This whole ordeal took a solid hour out of my day yesterday, and I had to pray for God to give me the words to say, and before anyone asks, it is nobody anyone close to me knows.
Moving on. These two things are the best for painting your nails. Seche Vite is a topcoat and this rapidry spray by OPI sets them immediately once you're done with all the coats. I do a clear coat, two coats of color, one coat of Seche Vite, and then I spray them all at the end. People always think I get my nails done and I don't. I do them myself. Good polishes help.
Drew had gone to do some yardwork for a friend helping him out with his fundraising, and when he got back home, he offered to pick up Jonah for me. Right after they got home, we all got dressed and Todd, Drew, and I left for his senior banquet. Graham, Rachel, Jonah, and Noah went somewhere to eat. There was much drama with that, but I will save that for another post, because sometimes the boys drive me CRAZY with their bickering. I am still upset with one of them this morning. #reallife
The banquet was so nice! We ate dinner, and my friend Abbey shared for the girls, and the guys' bible fellowship teacher Ken shared for them. Then our pastor got up and gave a brief charge to them all. There was a video slideshow of them, and then it was all over and we got up to take pictures.
These guys are such great friends.
Once again, all the grandparents came and supported him with us.
And I got the picture Drew requested.
Major drove off with a golf cart and they all jumped on. #scandalous
And then when they saw some staff people looking for it, they all jumped off and Major drove it back.
My beautiful friends, Abbey and Kristy.
And the mamas and the sons. Excuse my red face. I was burning up! It felt like it was a hundred degrees to me once we stepped out from under the covered tent we ate in. There were fans blowing on us, so when we went outside afterward, I was immediately hot.
We came home after this, and I posted all these pictures to Instagram, and then shortly after that, I hit the bed. It was a really great day, and I am so thankful for how our staff at CFBC loves on our students. I felt so honored as I sat there listening to all that they charged them with, especially the message that Pastor Chuck gave them. He spoke on influence and living their lives for Jesus.
This is our pastor. I had tears in my eyes the entire time he spoke. So before I laid my head down last night, I had a lot to thank God for, this man being one of them. Our parents are another. And the sweet gift of friendship.
If you made it this far, congrats to you, this was not a short post. Thanks for reading.
Love to all.