Mother's Day

Today was my sixteenth mother's day and I'm not sure how that is possible.  Insert lamentation about time tick tocking by here.  I told everyone here that I didn't want a present because I bought myself a cakepan that can make numbers and letters last week (yes, it's unbelievably wild and crazy at our house) but that I would like a card.  Thanks to Glenn, they obliged.  

Sweet note from Will and he even used markers!  

Reina knows (and shares) my obsession with Wordle and made me this little gem.  So creative!  

 

So this is happening

Will got his driver's permit a few weeks ago.  Yes, it looks like a mugshot.  Yes, you might want to stay off the sidewalks for a little while until he gets the hang of it.  Honestly, he's doing great.  His favorite parent/driving teacher depends on the day.  I was too encouraging when I drove with him.  He did not need/appreciate all of my "good job buddies."  Glenn accidentally instructed him to go through the roundabout and 'wasn't explaining things very well.'   But so far, so good.  

Spring Break

We've been back from Spring Break for a few weeks but it feels a lot longer than that.  The kiddos and I zipped down to Cabo for a few days with my sister and family and my parents.  Glenn stayed home to hold down the fort and save up his vacation days with his new job.  We missed him and we'll make sure he goes with us next time!  We arrived in Mexico on a Monday and flew home Saturday but we packed in a lot during our time there.  

Reina left her mark on the wall of a restaurant where we celebrated (early) my parents' 50th wedding anniversary!  An amazing accomplishment!  And this is a weird way to acknowledge it but I'll make sure to dedicate a whole post around their actual anniversary.  

This cat showed up at our resort every night around dinnertime and sauntered through the outside dining area to see what was happening.  We may have shared a tiny bite of cheeseburger.  

Down at the marina, tourists pay these guys for the opportunity to feed a sea lion.  It's a pretty sweet deal for salesperson and sea lion if you ask me.  The pelicans don't seem to mind either.  I just observed even though I was tempted to fork over a few bucks.  That sea lion is definitely not starving.  

These four cousins.  Time feels like it's flying by when all of these kiddos just keep growing year after year.  They had a fun time swimming with each other 

A letter to the birthday boy

"Hey Will, let me take your picture with your cake." 

"Okay, but smile this time." 

Pretending to spit on the cake so that no one else will want to eat it.  

Look at that handsome smile.  

Dear Will:  Today you are 15. FIFTEEN! Don't ask me how that's possible.  (I can hear you answering this question with the perfect blend of sarcasm and science, "Well mom, that's how time works.") I just know it's moving all so fast.  You can read this blog whenever you want now so I won't go into embarrassing details about how cute you are when you are snuggling one of the pets or how your sense of humor is both delightful and exasperating, usually in the same thirty seconds.  You probably won't want me to mention that you were  on the honor roll for your first semester of high school.  You also don't love it that we think you are so handsome.  Daily, I'm reminded that you are taller than me by several inches now and I think your dad's next.  Your voice is so low that a few days ago I heard Glenn talking to someone in the kitchen and I thought that a neighbor had stopped by.  Nope, just my kid.  

Will, I hate that I can't find out about any breaking sports news before you do because your phone beats me to it and I only get a hard start when you are either still asleep or sitting in class without your phone handy.  The day the Broncos signed Russell Wilson.... well let's just say that I don't think a lot of studying was happening during your school day.  You are a knowledgeable sports fan and while you don't always have the "hope springs eternal" view of some of your favorite teams, you are always happy when they do well.  

You discovered Wordle a few weeks ago and you like to send me your screenshots of a successful game and you get mad if I give you too many hints.  You've been preparing for next Fall's football season since the last one ended and you have a new baseball season starting up soon.  Your love of all things sport and competition give your dad and I a lot of joy (and heartache sometimes but mostly joy).  We just love to watch you play.  

Happy fifteenth birthday big kid.  

The last month

Yikes it's been a while since I posted last. I had a few weeks of pain medicine induced fog after my surgery and then another few weeks of regular family busy-ness and all of the sudden it's March. What have we been up to? Glenn started a new job on February 14 with the federal government so that's been the biggest change. He's working from home so we've completed some cleaning and decluttering to create an office space for him that doesn't look like a messy guest room. The pets are delighted to have him home during the day and while I miss sending him IMs from work, it's nice having him home when I come home for lunch. This new job is a great opportunity for him and he's enjoying the new atmosphere. The kids are doing well. Will made the honor roll for his first semester and we are proud of him for working hard in high school. Reina made the honor roll for her first semester of junior high and we are very proud of her as well. Both kids have adjusted to the rigors of their new schools and their hard work is showing. I help with homework in the evenings but lately google hasn't been enough to help me help Will with his math but I guess it's been quite a while since I had to figure out f(x)=blahblahblah. I'm just about fully recovered from my "knee" surgery. I've been back at work for a few weeks. I'm pretty tired at night and not able to jog yet but other than that, things are back to normal. This is quickly becoming one of the more boring updates I've ever posted. Well Glenn's news was pretty exciting! We are all well and counting down the days until spring.

A letter to the birthday girl

 Dear Reina: 

Today you are 13.  THIRTEEN.  (We have two teens in the house but that's a post for another day.) You were sad last night that you weren't going to be twelve anymore but I reminded you that you've been sad about that just about every other year of your life - "but I don't want to be eight!"  You woke us up early and you unwrapped presents before school - just like every other year.  This year, you asked for and received art supplies, clothes and money for clothes. 

Reina, you are such a cool girl.  I'm sure I say that every year too but it's the truth.  You are making your way through your first year of junior high. You wouldn't say it's been fun but you are making some friends and finding new classes that you enjoy.  You are also taking a bunch of dance classes at night and your schedule is busy.  But you still find time to play your computer games and read books in your free time.  

You have a delightful sense of humor that's getting more um... adult every year.  You love to watch old Saturday Night Live clips on Youtube and cackle at Will Ferrell movies.  You still love a good chick flick.  Your favorite book genre is what I call YA Gothic but I don't know if that's really a category. But you love a good story about a house that's haunted by a disgruntled ghost and the tween/teen has to figure out why.  

You are still our social justice warrior and you have a champion of the underdog.  You are a good friend and you are doing your best to get through this tough time in life (COVID, jr high, social unrest, etc. etc. etc.).  We love you kiddo.  Happiest of birthdays and we can't wait to see what the next year brings you.   

Birthday outfit 

Grandma H's birthday card to you, Queenie.  

"Knee" surgery

Last week, I went in for a hysterectomy.  It's a surgery that I've been wanting to get done so it was elective and not an emergency situation.  And this is probably more detail than most readers of this blog want anyway.  I'm a week out and I'm feeling decent.  Still pretty tired and relying on pain pills but I'm feeling better everyday.  This point of this post though is to memorialize a little story about Will.  He wasn't comfortable referring to my surgery by it's correct name so he decided just to tell anyone who asked that I had knee surgery.  Knees...uterus....potato....potahto.