We also have plans to watch Stranger Things. The new season just hit Netflix. I used to be all about binging shows after the kids went to bed. Now, the kids usually end up asleep either just before me or just after me. I have no energy to be up late to watch TV.
I spent the day at the lake today with a friend. It was a blast, aside from getting some sunburn. I should know better by now, I know. I am outside walking dogs all the time, but I always have a short-sleeved t-shirt on. Today, at Brookie's insistence, I got my bathing suit on and waded into the lake. The sun was brutal and I got burnt in the spots on my upper body that aren't already tan.
Aside from that, like I said, I had a really good time. This is a good friend of mine, someone who is a faithful reader of my blog (which, you have to understand, is rare). Our kids are similar in age and get along really well (aside from an incident last summer where are two youngest fought incessantly over a ball).
It was good to get out of the house, even better to be in the sun and passing time with a good friend. Brian's work schedule at Walmart is very wonky. Some weeks, he's home four nights in a row. Others, only one or two. My bedtime doesn't change much. This is something I've learned as I've gotten older--I need to have a consistent bedtime. It doesn't have to be rigidly so, but I need to get enough rest. So when he is *not* working, I try to go to bed even earlier to buffer for those nights when I stay up later to deal with the kids.
I also feel sometimes like I'm a permanent Debby Downer. I hate showing up to things and when people ask how I'm doing, I want to say okay but my face fights me. So I tend to avoid and cancel last-minute, which I also hate and am also worried that people are judging me for. Again, I'm continuing to learn that what people think of me is none of my business. It's a tough lesson, but it's an important one to try and master.
In any case, we had fun at the beach. We were generously gifted a twin-sized mattress, so we went and picked that up. I finally evicted the items that had been traveling with me for the last few weeks. They are now living happily at the Savers in town. I didn't make it to the food pantry to donate a few things, but there's always tomorrow for that.
We hit Costco and Aldi and headed back home. Dinner was easy-rotisserie chicken from Costco. I went for a walk, played a little Wizards Unite, then back home to eat dinner and watch the movie.
I continue to be grateful for the friends I have who are walking this path alongside me. I love their senses of humor and the way they show their support. I know that God put these people in my life specifically to help me make it through.
Busy day again tomorrow, but beyond grateful to have four beautiful kiddos who I'm able to shuttle around to their different activities.
You sound like me with TV time. Brian is always watching stuff without me - things I might like, but I just don't manage to take the time to watch. There are certain things that are non-negotiable, though (like Stranger Things).
ReplyDeleteAnd you are not a permanent Debby Downer, and you're right - other people's opinions of you don't matter nearly as much as we seemed to think when we were younger. You are doing what you can, where you are, and that's all any of us can do.