Adam comes home tonight, not because his internship is done, but because we can't go much longer without him and decided to move up to NY for his last month there! Words can't describe how happy I am (and the kids too)! Now that I look back over the last 8 weeks of single-mom-land, I realize how much I have learned. After a while I started to feel like I was on the CheyAnn Show, not because I'm super amazing and I deserve a reality show, but because I felt that I was "on" for about 15 hours a day (plus the middle of the night) and I was exhausted. I was center of attention at all times to two little people, and everyday after bedtime I would sit on the sofa and would do one of three things: One, I would laugh to myself (the awkward I-can't-believe-I-survived-today laugh) and/or two, cry (light sobs of will-this-ever-end and I'm-so-tired-that's-why-I'm-crying kind of crying) or three, I would stare blankly at the wall because my brain was so fried to have any kind of emotion (this became the most common reaction towards the end). But now I get to put this all behind me and cherish what I have learned and rejoice in being married once again.
I have learned that no matter how tired I am, I cannot put that on my kids. Everyday I tried to get out and do something fun, and just because I wanted to crawl back in bed for the day, I still needed to have a fun summer and enjoy each day, and so we did (most of the time). I also learned that singing solves problems. One particular fussy time before bed (they usually seemed to all blend together) I decided to playfully sing how I was feeling - please for a moment picture an opera singer who can't sing but needed a stage - then I would sing "Why is everyone crying, please let's all be happy!" Solana and Boston both stopped crying and looked at me like I was crazy (probably because I was borderline) and then Solana started laughing and so did I. We continued this for the evening and it really helped the mood and I have since done this and it makes her laugh every time. I have also learned that no matter what goes on in the middle of night, i.e. Solana waking up at 2:30 and 3:30 AM thirsty, and Boston at 4:30 AM hungry, that I have the power to still be in a good mood, and I control how my day goes.
I have learned that when you want to cry, just laugh, that a messy house will get clean eventually, that talking to another adult during the day does make it all better, and that laying in the sun for even 5 minutes can make you feel like you're on a tropical vacation. I have learned what great friends and visiting teachers I have (okay I already knew this one) who look out for me in every way and what a thoughtful mom I have who calls me daily to check in on me and make sure that I survived another day.
My heart and sympathy goes all out to all spouses who have ever done months apart from one another with kids at home, and especially to single moms and dads, they are my new-found heroes.
Well my show is ending and I hope this was the one and only season, (maybe I'm taking this analogy too far, haha) but I am grateful for the learning opportunities and most importantly I'm so grateful to Adam and all his hard work, being away from us and living on a bunk bed in a shared apartment with a bunch of single dudes in the city was no vacation either, but we have both survived! Him coming home is the best birthday present, and I'm excited for another mini-adventure in New York to finish out the summer. Everything is better when Adam is around.
Now here are the highlights, and when I look at these I smile and I'm happy we had some fun times with just the 3 of us.
Thank goodness for the pool. She loves swimming, and Boston loves sleeping in his stroller, it's a win win situation.
I came into the dining room and found Boston oh so happy. Solana looks at me and says "He wanted to be a cowboy" yes actually it looks like he does. Oh that girl makes me laugh. I'm dreading her putting a dress on him and saying "Look, he wanted to be a girl!"
Dressing up like a princess is a must everyday, and she has insisted I dress up like one too. Sometimes we get decked out, other days we just sport crowns and heels.
Movie night before bedtime, I love how into it they get.
Can his eyes get any bluer? Love my little Bostie (Solana's nickname for him).
I am the luckiest lady around.
7 am tea party in the closet....sure thing!
One of the many nights I gave into her request to sleep in our bed. She always takes the liberty to sprawl out as much as she can!
Scraped knees always feel better with chocolate ice cream. I'm teaching her stellar emotional eating habits, yay me.
A little poolside action
10 hours without power is not so fun, and this photo reminds me of a long and hot night without power or air conditioning, courtesy of Williamsburg's colonial-era power grid. grrr...
Popsicles on the porch are an afternoon daily ritual around here (especially while B takes his long afternoon nap).
This is how she wanted to watch her movies for a while, and I was happy to keep her entertained.
Cuddles right before bed, Boston loves laying in Solana's bed. I think he is a mattress snob :)
This photo is kind of sad. Solana made Adam a tie for Fathers Day in nursery, and after church all the dads were wearing them, and then I see Solana struttin' her dad's tie in the hallway. We sent this photo to Adam so he could feel loved. We spent both Mother's and Father's day apart, but we still made it special.
So proud of her. She got her teeth cleaned and her chipped tooth filed down. While the spinning brush was moving fast, she kept saying "that tickles, this is fun" and after we got home she told me she wanted to go back to see Dr. Bobby. But I'm just glad she loves the dentist, because he also told us that orthodontics is in our future (which we already knew).
We finished up ballet and tap class. She said she loves ballet the most and I can usually hear her around the house practicing her positions. It's pretty cute.
This was taken on my last Sunday alone at church. I was pretty excited for this day, and I can tell Boston was excited to be sportin such a sweet tie!
Well those are the highlights of our 8 weeks without Adam. We have missed him more then he will ever know, and can't wait to get back to our "normal" lives again, and even if our new, temporary normal is living for a month in the heart of New York City, we'll be together!
