Embracing Reality

Today, I'm having one of these days:

Coming back from vacation (hoping to do a post on that soon) is always hard for me.  The hours of relaxation always inspire me to come back and take my game to the next level.  I used to spend our car rides making lists of all the amazing things I would accomplish once I got home, refreshed and renewed.  I learned years ago that I was never able to follow through so I've quit making lists, but I still can't get away from the idea that once I get home things will be better. More productive. I will finish ALL the projects.  You know how it is.  

Then, reality sets in.

I need a vacation from the vacation.  Things get off to a slow start, but my mind is still dreaming of that new level I'm going to achieve.

For fun, let's take a look at how this plays out in my head, shall we?

I imagine our garden will look like this:

Reality:

I'll finally hang some artwork:

 Reality:

I'll finish repainting Kip's dresser:

Reality:

I will follow through on my commitment to keeping my laundry room neat:

Reality:

The front porch will be an oasis:

Reality:

Everything from the suitcases will magically get put away in beautiful, organized bins:

Reality:

We'll finish the home office we've been working on:

Reality: 

My children will be beautiful angels who cherish one another at all times:

 Reality:

This one teases... 

until this one cries.

 But then....

Sometimes I find beauty where I did not plan for it or work to make it grow.  Pure grace.  Not through any effort of mine.  Free gifts, if I will take the time to look for them and enjoy them.

Reality:

Pretend

I love it when my kids come up with their own "pretend" activities.  Today they are playing doctor-

complete with a diagnostic sheet:

 washing station:

 medicine cabinet:

 and a pet, for extra comfort.

I was their first patient (bee sting), and they both have a really nice bedside manner!

Cabo!

I

It's been 9 years, two kids, and two houses, but we finally made it back to Cabo San Lucas.  We are trying to relax and unplug, so for now this is all you get!

Long overdue

It's been more than a month since we slipped away for a family vacation to the mountains of Va, and I'm just now getting around to posting some pictures.  Kinda tells you how busy we are at the moment!

We had a really wonderful, relaxing time.

We did some hiking....

A lot of swimming...

Some family gaming....

Spent a morning at the Children's Museum....

But in the end, the highlight for the kids might have been taking baths in the jacuzzi tub!

This is the face of pure, relaxation bliss, don't you think?

Our Garden Is Growing...

Scott has been hard at work expanding our garden this Spring.  So far, he's built 3 new raised beds, begun a fence and built me a bluebird house to go with two others I inherited from Mom and Dad. 

 Isn't it gorgeous?!  Buh-bye groundhogs!

Getting Rid of the Last of the Boxes

We've been in our house for almost 4 months now, and I've decided it's really time to get rid of the boxes we still have lying around-which are mainly books.  Scott and I are both book hoarders.

So, the other day, I built a makeshift bookcase.  If you can believe it, the kids "sort of" played board games the whole time I worked on it.  I say that because Gus built a castle out of Quirkle tiles, Uno cards and marbles and Kip made a fun design across the rug with the same supplies.  

It's really fun for me to make something useful out of our leftover renovation materials, plus they are free!  I used bricks from the huge stack we have left from when Scott pulled down the chimneys and boards we saved from the old porch/laundry room. Recycling at its finest! 

A Little Paint

I spent my afternoon in therapy: painting therapy.  This is a real thing, I promise.  I love projects with instant results, having spent most of my patience on my children.  I also do not care for projects with any sort of prep work.  I want to get on with it and see a result ASAP.  

So today I painted the $1 (you read that right!) table and chairs Scott found for us at a yard sale last year.  

Tada!  Instant front porch living.  

Just ignore the wood boards and other construction type materials you can see in the background.  Those are for other projects which involve prep and lots more time....I'm leaving those to my handy husband.  Sorry, buddy....