Kicked While Down

I had one of those weeks feeling as though I was laying on the sidewalk and the world was trampling over me. There was not a specific, catastrophic event, but the build up of of small events that nearly threw me over the edge.

Lets just say Tuesday started with a flat bike tire on the way to Erin's school (not cool when you are pulling 70 pounds in a trailer) and ended with a wonderful husband shoeing me out the door for a RS meeting so I could have some adult time, only to watch Isaac get stung by a wasp and his little hand swell up like a golf ball. So I opted to stay home in case one of us had to take him to the ER (luckily it was localized).

So I went to bed feeling sorry for myself and woke up Wednesday ready to take on the world again.....and that lasted about an hour, which brings us to the kicked while down part of my week...

Half way to school Erin announced she forgot her bookbag. We were running late, but still had time so we ran home. I took my keys out of the bike trailer (where I always keep them when I ride), opened the house door and hastily shoved them in my pocket and jumped back on the bike. I dropped Erin off and headed right back home and as I approached LC Parkway and began to cross the four lanes of heavy morning traffic I thought “ohhh, someone lost their keys......crap those are mine!”. Realizing they had fallen out of my pocket, I dodged angry people later for work, picking up mangled pieces that moderately resembled my keys. The sicking part was I had lost both my Kia remote AND my Honda chipped transponder key (pricy!) along with my house and mail key. Honestly how many people can run over them in under five minutes? By the looks of it most of the city, I am pretty sure there was a bus or two in the lineup also).

Luckily I had left the garage door unlocked so I called Jared and told him I was going to swing by his work, see if the honda key worked and grab his set of keys so the local locksmith could get a good cut. My broken Kia key barely turned over (by the looks of it I think I could stick a coat hanger in my ignition an it would turn over) but it started. I had to stop at Hobby Lobby and I locked my doors and took in my one mangled headless key. Ike was screaming so I gave him the key to play with and within a second it was gone! I walked the isle, asked the old lady at the front almost in tears if anyone had seen a half shaved off, dented piece of metal that resembled a car key...and then asked if I could use the store phone to call my husband.

Luckily Jared was at his desk and came and hesitantly dropped of his set of keys for me. We finally made it to the lock smith, she took one look and said “that looks like a bad day” and $$ later I had a new house, mail, and Kia key. She even bent my Honda key back so it would work well enough for a while so I didn't have to shell out $150.00 for that key alone.

By noon I was ready to throw inn the towel and become a hermit. No driving, NO KEYS, no communication sounded like a great life. I walked into the house mentally drained and changed Ike before putting him down for a much needed nap. And there it was, the shiny mangled Kia key. Ike was wearing overalls and he had dropped in down the front and into his diaper in Hobby Lobby.

On the bright side the week only got better :)

First Day of Trooper School

Eliza started Trooper School last week and she is loving it! Its a preschool program through the local high school. They admit high school students who are looking to go into pediatrics and elementary ed. I think there are around 50 high school studenst that rotate in and out throughout the day and 20 preschool students.

Erin was in the program for two years and we were thrilled with it. I thought Ike would miss Eliza dearly but he is loving the free reign, at least until about noon and they he starts looking for the girls. Eliza is so proud of her backpack, I had to laugh, its almost as big as she is!

Sally Forth II

I got my replacement kayak in last week. Don't ask how they considered the major gash in the middle of the underside of my boat a "seam split" but I was completely honest and upfront about running over a possible sawed off pipe in the midst of an electrical storm being blown across Clear Lake. So needless to say I was very happy with Sevylor customer service.

Last Saturday Cami and I took it out for her first voyage, starting in Nassau Bay and paddling up through the lower part of Mud Lake, a total of six miles round trip. The morning was absolutely beautiful as we were able to port in early enough to catch sunrise.

I have felt like the past three years or so I haven't had a true hobby that I actually love (who has time AND money with three kids)?? But this may just be it. I find the solitude on the backwaters a welcomed break from suburbia and the daily grind.

Cami and I talked a lot of identity that day, and while I feel like I have a solid identity I am comfortable with (I'm a Midwest Mormon farm girl, what else is there to say?) I seem to struggle this fall with finding my place in the "school community". All at once this country girl from humble but loving circumstances has found herself in the midst of middle class suburbia, rubbing shoulders with moms who eat, sleep and breathe PTA and their little worlds revolve volunteering, their one to two children and what happened on the latest reality show.

And while I ride my bike in a t-shirt and b-ball shorts to pick up Erin, the mother next to me walks up in black heels and a skirt that is way to short for any mid-thirties mama to be wearing. A lot of it just seems plain shallow, but then maybe I am just on my high horse. I feel like the whole situation is plain weird but I just have to deal with them during morning and afternoon pick up.

And so far this is the only gator we have ran into. Hopefully it stays painted on the sign :) I took this photo just for Big E :)

Cami and I were talking about porting out of Armand Bayou next week...eek!

The Week of Food??

I was trying to remember what we did this week that was mildly interesting, but looking at the photos whatever it was, it revolved around food. Ike learned a new trick, how to crawl up on the table. At first I thought he was doing it to get to the food, but then I saw him grab a bag of goldfish out of the pantry and proceed to climb on the table to snack. He must think its a safe harbor from Eliza.

The weather is FINALLY cooling off, we are now in the mid 80's during the day and we have even slept with the windows open a few nights this week. With the nice weather we have been having dinner outside...with the skeeters.