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May is such a crazy month, y’all. And by crazy, I don’t just mean busy, but it’s just… wild. Not only do we have to prep all the things for the end of the school year and attend nine million different events, but we’re also preparing for summer break, planning and purchasing things we need for various trips, AND we’re already starting to plan and prep for next school year (which is mind-blowing) – registering for various activities, purchasing school supplies, scheduling events, and booking vendors for the upcoming year. It’s funny planning events for next school year when we haven’t even gotten closure from the current one.
And in addition to all that, we can’t forget all the emotions that come with closing out another school year – I am reeeeally struggling with the fact that Jacob only has three years left on this campus. And we have a nephew who’s graduating, too?! Whew. This month is just all the things! We’re busy, excited, exhausted, emotional, hopeful, SO ready for a break, and already looking forward to next school year. All. The. Things.
Anyway, here’s a look at last week… it was actually not terribly busy, but that’s because these next two weeks are going to be insane. So, we we’ll call this week I’m recapping today the calm before the crazy. As you’re reading this, I’m probably running around the school volunteering for something and wishing I was at home taking a nap. Haha.
Let’s goooo!
Monday, April 27
Monday, I took the kids to school, and I noticed that my SUV was shuddering when I accelerated. It had been doing some mild shuddering the previous week, but it was only when I was stopped at streetlights and stop signs, so I didn’t think much of it. But on Monday, the shuddering became very unsettling, especially when accelerating, and by the time I got home, the engine light had turned on. Sigh.
I already had an appointment for the car to be serviced on May 8, so I called the dealership to see if they could move it up. Unfortunately, the soonest they could get me in was at my current appointment time on May 8, so they told me that I could either wait until then or I could have it towed to the dealership and they would try to squeeze it in and see what was going on with it. They did tell me that I shouldn’t drive it anymore since it was shuddering while accelerating because it could do damage to the engine.
Brian and I considered get it towed because it would be too much of a hassle to have just one vehicle for the next two weeks (because – MAY and ALL THE THINGS), but before I called the towing company, I decided to search online to see if I could find any info on why it might be happening. I found several threads online where people were having the same issue that I was, and it turned out that the vehicle just needed oil.
Mid-morning, Brian went out to check the oil after his meeting, and sure enough, THERE WAS NO OIL IN THE CAR AT ALL. Like, none. Why the oil light didn’t come on, I have no clue, but I’ll definitely be mentioning it when I take the car in later this week for service.
Brian went out to pick up some Valvoline Restore & Protect as that’s the oil that was recommended over and over in all the threads I read, and I helped him put it in the car when he got home. We got in to take it for a spin around the neighborhood, and sure enough – no more shuddering. All it needed was oil, thank goodness. The engine light ended up turning off the next day, too, so the oil did its job and hopefully that means that no permanent damage was done to the engine. Fingers crossed anyway.
Note to all Kia Telluride owners – make sure you check your oil every now and then, because apparently some Tellurides burn through oil when they start to get older. This was the first time it has ever happened to me, and I’ve been driving mine for 5.5 years, but it did just hit 100,000 miles, so it has more miles on it than average. Other than this oil issue, I’ve loved every single thing about my Telluride, though, and I would definitely buy another one (assuming my current continues to hold up for several more years).
Aside from car troubles, I finished my blog post for Tuesday, and I did three loads of laundry, so I did end up getting everything done that I needed to get done.
When the kids and I got home from school, they played video games because they had no homework and we had nowhere to be. We love our slow Mondays! It’s so nice to be able to ease into the week.
While they did that, I did my Bible study, put the laundry away, and watered the indoor plants, and then the kids put together all their teacher appreciation cards. I bought these cards and then they wrote sentiments in each of them, stuffed them with Chick-Fil-A gift cards, and then put cute little thank you stickers on the envelopes to seal them. They’ll be taking them to their teachers this week for Teacher Appreciation Week. And if you need any ideas for gifts that will deliver quickly, check out this post.
After the kids went to bed, Brian and I watched another episode of Rooster, and then we went to bed.
Tuesday, April 28
Tuesday, I dropped the kids at school and then I headed home to get a few things done before I had to go back to the school to attend Mass with Olivia. She read during Mass, so she asked me if I would come watch her. She now attends school Mass with 6th graders – 12th graders, so I was extra proud of her for getting up in front of all the older kids to do that.
Mass was beautiful as always – the school Masses will forever be my favorite – and this one was bittersweet because it was the seniors’ last Mass with the rest of the middle and high schoolers. At the end, they always sing the school song, and the seniors all put their arms around each other and swayed back and forth while they sang, and I teared up. Their school song is my old school song, so I sang along, and gosh, I got all in my feels. My senior year of high school was one of my favorite years of my whole life, and I’ll cherish those memories always. I still hang out with the same group of friends that I had back then, so it’s lovely that we can reminisce together. Sometimes when we get together, we pull out old yearbooks and it’s so much fun.
When I got home, I threw the last load of laundry in the washer and dryer, and then I snuggled up to work. It was rainy and chilly all day Tuesday, so it was definitely a day to stay indoors. I also got a message from my girl and it made me smile so big! I just love her.
Brian came home early to pick up Jacob because they both wanted to attend our nephew’s senior night at his baseball game, but with the yucky weather, they ended up postponing it until Wednesday night. (But unfortunately, we couldn’t attend because Jacob had his own awards ceremony that evening.)
I took Olivia to dance, and then I headed home to put away the last little bit of laundry, and then I did a mixed cardio workout along with some arms exercises. It was still raining, so I couldn’t walk as I’d originally planned, but I was still feeling drained of energy, so my workout was halfhearted.
After that, I started on dinner – sheet pan sausage, sweet potatoes, yellow potatoes, broccoli, and onions – and then I cleaned out a couple more of the kitchen cabinets while it baked.
When Brian and Olivia got home from dance, we all sat down to eat together, and then after the kitchen was clean and everyone was ready for the next day, we watched a few more minutes of The Day After Tomorrow.
After the kids went to bed, Brian and I watched another episode of Big Mistakes and then we went to bed.
Wednesday, April 29
Wednesday morning, I dropped the kids at school and headed home. It rained all morning yet again, and that made for a dreary morning. We are in a bad drought here, though, so we have been welcoming the rain with open arms!
When I got home, I started and finished my blog post for Friday, and then I napped for an hour because I felt awful on Wednesday. My retainer has been killing me every single day since I got it, but in recent weeks, it’s gotten really bad. Wednesday the strain and muscle issues I was having with my tongue and throat were just ridiculous, so I decided to check out and go to sleep.
When I woke up, I didn’t feel any better, but I went ahead and started and finished my blog post for the following Monday and I started catching up on blog reading before it was time to pick up the kids from school.
When we got home, I did the dishes and my devotional, and I prepped everything for Thursday because we had a busy night ahead. I also called the orthodontist to make an appointment because I couldn’t take the retainer issues anymore. I stuck it out as long as I did because I was convinced that my mouth would eventually adapt to all the changes, but when it started getting worse every single day, I knew it was time to take action.
I dropped Olivia at dance, and Brian picked up Chick-Fil-A on his way home because we had an awards ceremony at the school for Jacob. When I got home from dropping Olivia off, I scarfed down my meal, and then we piled in the car and headed back to the school.
Jacob received the award for Principal’s List because he’s had straight A’s all school year and his GPA exceeds a 4.4. He has most definitely had a successful first year of high school in all aspects – his grades are great, he has enjoyed all the extracurricular activities he did, he tried some new things, he did lots of volunteer work, and he’s had a great time with his friends this year. He’s such a well-rounded kid and we couldn’t be prouder of him. I’m just so happy that our kids are both happy.
The ceremony ended at 7 PM, and we hightailed it home so I could squeeze in a walk before it got dark. The sky was looking ominous yet again, but thankfully, I was able to do my entire route rain-free. I also had more energy Wednesday night (I mean, I should since I took a nap, right? Haha), so the walk was really invigorating rather than exhausting like it was earlier in the week.
Brian and Olivia got home around 8:30 PM with recital costumes in hand and Olivia was dying to open them, so I pulled all of them out while she ate a snack. Her recital is in just a couple of weeks, so it’s almost tiiiime!
After Olivia showered, the kids got in bed, and then Brian and I settled in to watch another episode of Big Mistakes with a Manhattan in hand for me and a hot toddy for him because he was coming down with a cold. Boooo.
Thursday, April 30
Thursday morning, I dropped the kids at school and then I headed straight to Target to return a couple of things and grab a graduation card for one of our friend’s kids.
My orthodontist appointment was at 8:20 AM, so I went there after Target, and I explained everything that was going on to my orthodontist. He told me that the next option is to put in a permanent retainer across the top, so that’s what they’re going to do. He said there shouldn’t be any side effects from it, so I’m praying that I won’t be a weirdo that has some weird side effect from mine – haha. The only downside to a permanent retainer is that they’re harder to care for since you have to floss and brush differently, + they can break/fall off if you bite wrong on something. Neither of those things matter to me whatsoever. I’m SO happy to put in the extra work for caring for it because that is a very small price to pay to *hopefully* stop having all the issues with my jaw, tongue, face, etc.
He said some people aren’t candidates for upper permanent retainers, but thankfully, he said I’m an excellent candidate for one, so I’m praying nonstop that this is the final piece in my orthodontics puzzle. It has been SUCH a journey and I am tiiiired. I know my orthodontist is tired of me, too. Haha.
They had to scan my upper teeth to have the upper retainer made, and I will be having it put in this Thursday. In the meantime, I’ve been having to wear my traditional retainer to ensure my teeth don’t move, and I can’t wait to kick it to the curb when all this is over!!!!
When I got home, I grabbed a snack and sat down at my desk to type up this entire post to present, and then I started working on my sixth and final Disney World post. I also caught up on emails, cleaned off my desk and filed some papers, got a couple of cards ready for upcoming events, prepped a couple of things for Olivia’s recital, finished catching up on blog reading, fixed some blog typos, did a load of laundry, and I updated a few more album covers so I could cross that off the list for April.
On the way to pick up the kids, I swung by the library to pick up two books that had become available, I put some gas in my car, and then I started one of the books in the car line. I have had eight books on hold for the last few months and five of them ended up becoming available within just three days of each other which means I only have two weeks to read all five of them or I’ll have to return them and get on the waiting list again. Why oh why do all my books always become available at the same time?! Haha.
The kids had music after school, and I sat in with Olivia last week. She decided to table All Too Well for now because she wants to learn Die on This Hill by Sienna Spiro, and she was so excited to find that there are only a few chords in that whole song. She was able to get the whole song down minus the bridge, so this one should be fairly easy to master.
Jacob started learning a new Minecraft song in his lesson, and I’m excited to sit in with him later this week to watch him develop this new one.
When we got home, I did my devotional and a Bible study, and then I spent about 15 minutes reading. We had nowhere to be and the kids didn’t have any homework since Friday was Field Day, so Jacob worked on his Minecraft world and Olivia started knitting a carrying case for her water bottle. Jacob is building our entire church and school campus in his Minecraft world and his attention to detail is just incredible. It looks just like our campus!
Olivia tried on costumes after that, and y'all know I love this one because it's rainbow-y!
Brian and I watched another episode of Big Mistakes before bed, and Brian made himself a hot toddy since he had a full-blown cold, although, it was mild. And I made myself a Manhattan with the hope of killing any germs that could be lurking in my system. My Mama Cass has always sworn by whiskey for sore throats/congestion, and that’s good enough for me! Haha.
Friday, May 1
Friday morning, I dropped the kids at school sans backpacks because it was Field Day, and they had lots of fun on deck! I had to help set up for Teacher’s Appreciation Week the following week, so I drove around to the office and met some other ladies there to sort all the items that we’d collected and to set up the tables for Monday.
Set up and prep took much less time than anticipated, so I was out of there a little after nine and I had a bunch of errands to run before I had to be back to pick up the kids for their noon dismissal. In the past, I would have hung around to assist with Field Day, but now that we have a high schooler and a middle schooler, they don’t require assistance.
As I was leaving, I asked a couple of people at the school if they needed anything since I had some extra time to burn, and our resource officer asked me if I’d grab him some Chapstick while I was out because he couldn’t find his. Sounds like something Brian would ask me to do... he can’t go an hour without his Chapstick. Lol.
I ran to Publix first to grab his Chapstick, and then I hit up Starbucks to grab a coffee for me and one for our resource officer as well since he was running lower on sleep after patrolling the night before. I took the coffee and the Chapstick back to the school and dropped it off, and then I ran to UPS to drop an Amazon return. I needed to go to the library next, but they didn’t open until 10:00 AM, so I had some more time to burn, so I popped into TJ Maxx since it was right there in the parking lot with the UPS Store.
While I was there, I saw that they had Stanley tumblers (I had no clue they carried those) and they happened to have one of the Cabana Gloss tumblers that I’ve been wanting since last summer, but they only had it in the dark green and white stripes. That got me thinking that maybe, just maybe, if this location had them, that maybe the other location (and Marshall’s and maybe even HomeGoods) might have the pink and white striped one I’ve been looking for?
So, I hightailed it across the street to the library to pick up my book, and then I booked it to the other side of town to hit up all three stores (HomeGoods, Marshall’s, and the other TJ Maxx location) and sadly, none of them had what I was looking for. I’ve been searching high and low on Poshmark and eBay and nobody is selling them for less than $80 which is just crazy. The Stanley website in Europe still has them in stock and they’re on clearance, but they won’t ship them to the U.S. Waaaahhhh. One of these days I’m gonna get my hands on one, though! Ha!
I was in the car line by 11:15 AM, and I read my book until the kids came out, and we were home by 12:15 PM. All the way home, the kids told me about their day, and they both had a lot of fun. They both had gourmet ice from the food truck that the school had booked, and the high schoolers got to play on giant blowups all day. Olivia’s class had played kickball and done some other random fun things in the hallways, and both kids also received their yearbooks.
When we got home, we all had lunch together, and then the kids tidied the whole house before spending the afternoon playing video games. It was drizzly and chilly all day Friday, so it was better spent indoors. Olivia also finished crocheting her water bottle bag, and y'all, just look at it! I am SO impressed with her skills!
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Tidied my office
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Caught up on emails
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Started my blog post for May 8
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Caught up on my planner organization
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Researched Bible engravers in our area (that took
foreverrrr because we no longer have any Christian bookstores in town and
Barnes & Noble and other local bookshops don’t offer engraving. I finally found a local print shop that will
do it thanks to the employee at Barnes & Noble who gave me the tip!)
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Texted my girlfriends to get their opinions on name
placement for said Bible engraving
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Tied up some loose ends for a few other random
things
Olivia had dance Friday evening again, so I made her a big snack to have
before she left, and then I drove her over there. On the way home, I swung by Publix to grab
some eggs, spinach, bananas, and several other perishable items that needed
replenishing, and then I got it all put away when I got home.
After that, Jacob and I got him signed up for Teen Advisors for next school year, and then I tackled a few annoying, non-urgent tasks that made a big difference to have off my plate. I headed downstairs to make cocktails for Brian and me once all that was done and he went to pick up dinner for the three of us.
Brian and I got pizza from our favorite local place, and since Dominos is right around the corner from it, he got that for the kids since they’re crazy and don’t care for the pizza that Brian and I love.
The boys and I ate dinner together when he got home, and then we cleaned up the kitchen. Since Olivia was gone, the boys finished watching Dune that they’d started the previous week, and I really wanted to go for a walk, but it didn’t stop raining the entire evening. Instead, I got in my pajamas, and I took my time doing my skin routine, even trying out my new lymphatic draining brush for the first time.
I spent the rest of the evening reading, and then I also lay on my back with my legs vertically up the wall (just trying new things to see if I can get all the water retention to leave my body since I’ve been struggling with swelling), and then Brian picked up Olivia from dance when she got out.
They got home around 8 PM, and I reheated Olivia’s pizza and sat with her while she ate. She showered after that, and I meditated, and then all four of us sat down to start the OG Willy Wonka movie. Olivia’s dance production is Willy Wonka themed this year, and neither kid has ever seen it (and neither has Brian), so they wanted to see it before the recital. I cannot stand that movie (LOL), so I drifted off and took a very short nap and then we stopped the movie about an hour in because it was getting late.
The kids got in bed, Brian and I made toasted marshmallow Old Fashioneds for dessert, and then we watched the newest episode of The Testaments before going to bed.
Saturday, May 2
Saturday morning, we all slept in, I made waffles, and then the kids tackled their laundry and deep cleaned their bathroom, and then Olivia Facetimed with her friends to prep for the sleepover they were all having Saturday night for her BFFs birthday.
I worked on a couple of things in my office and then tackled a few things around the house:
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Caught up on emails (again)
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Placed a Bath & Body Works soap order since the
whole website was 40% off
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Went through Olivia’s recital stuff to see what else
we needed
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Ordered Olivia’s dance shoes for the recital. She has to have tan jazz shoes and
black jazz shoes this year + pink ballet shoes and tan ballet
shoes. Usually, it’s just one color or
the other and we just spray her current shoes whatever color they need to be,
but this year she has to have two different colors for two of the different
shoes since she’s playing so many roles.
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Tried to rehang Olivia’s bow holder only to find
that the new Command Strips I’d bought from TJ Maxx were dried out. Guess I’ll be taking those back! And instead, Olivia just decided to trash the
bow holder because it’s cracked and splintered and several of the hooks are
damaged. I was sad to see it go (I made
it when she was a newborn and it was also one of my early blog posts), but it served
us well for 12 years.
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Dug out a basket for her to store what few bows she
has left + all her claw clips
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Which led to me tidying up our storage closet
because it was a mess
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Deep cleaned Jacob’s humidifier since he’d been
using it for a couple of weeks with his congestion
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Prepped for Olivia’s field trip this week
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Wrapped her friend’s gift (her friend just wanted
money, which is easy, of course, but we wanted to wrap it in a meaningful way,
so we rolled the money up, slid it inside a balloon, blew up the balloon and
tied it, and then we put ribbon all around the base of the balloon to spruce it
up a bit. We then stuffed the balloon in
a gift bag and put tissue paper in it, so it looked like a regular gift. Then her friend got to pop the balloon to get
the money. So fun, right?)
I got Olivia registered for Velocity next year and then I worked on this blog post to get it up to date.
By that time, I’d had enough of being productive, so I went for a walk because the sun was finally out after a rainy morning. When I got back, I read my devotional and did a Bible study, and then I read my book for a bit to relax.
We had to drop Olivia off at her friend, Maren’s, house before Mass and she was so thrilled to be there… she’d been counting down the hours all day. They had hired a company to set up the sleep area for the girls, and everything was just DARLING. I had to snap a picture before I left because it was so precious. And the girls’ art teacher at school had also done a banner for her party that they’d hung over the kitchen table. How sweet is this?!
The boys and I headed to Mass after that, and then we went to our usual Mexican place for dinner with my parents, my littlest brother, Mama Cass, my Aunt Joy and Uncle Greg, my Aunt Becky, my Uncle Billy, and his girlfriend. We had a big group Saturday night because we were celebrating Greg’s and Becky’s birthdays. And on the way out, Mama Cass and I had to take pictures with the Cinco de Mayo props they’d put out! Hahahaha.
Jacob went to bed a little after 10 and then Brian and I watched the last two episodes of Big Mistakes before heading to bed. We finished season one in a flash and we really enjoyed it. I’m hoping they’ll pick it up for season two!
Sunday, May 3
Sunday morning, we slept in and had cinnamon rolls for breakfast, and then I headed to my office to get organized for the week ahead and transfer pictures from my phone to my computer. Brian picked up Olivia at 10 AM and she’d had the best time. She burst into my office the second they got home to give me all the details (and the tea!) and I spent the next 20 minutes talking to her and hearing all about it. I love love LOVE that she wants to tell me every single little detail about every single thing. I pray that she stays that open with me forever and ever.
Late in the morning, I showered and got ready, and then we headed to my in-law’s for Sunday lunch. We hadn’t seen them in a couple of weeks, so we got caught up with them. My nephew graduates high school in a couple of weeks, so we heard all about how his last days are going at school. Gosh, it’s so bittersweet. I’m going to be a basket case when our kids graduate.
After lunch was over, we all went outside for a bit to soak up the sunshine. It was 48 degrees Sunday morning when we woke up which is unheard of for MAY in GEORGIA and it was cool all day Sunday. I cannot believe this spring that we’ve had… it has been so much cooler than usual. I’ve barely been able to wear shorts.
When we got home, I organized my photos that I’d transferred earlier in the day, and then I got this blog post nearly done, all while I watched The Wedding Planner. Is anyone surprised? ;o)
We had dinner at my parents’ house and Momma made a new dish called white spinach artichoke lasagna that was soooo delicious. We had that along with green beans, a salad, some fresh watermelon, and bread + a strawberry cheesecake dessert that she makes often.
We got to catch up with Mama Cass and hear more about her trip to Colorado to visit my cousins while we were at dinner, too. Thankfully, she’d had a great flight there and back, and we’re so happy to have her home safely. She’s such a BOSS flying across the country at 97!
When we got home, we all got ready for bed, and then we finished our viewing of Willy Wonka. Aaaand every single one of us thought it was weird. Hahahaha.
Happy Tuesday, y’all!
