On Sunday I gave my talk about the youth program in sacrament. I was an anxious mess that morning. Every time that I tried to practice my talk I felt out of breath and was struggling just to say a sentence. I had Tyler give me a blessing and said many prayers myself. Tyler at one point said to me, don't you trust in the blessing you were promised? And when I thought about it, he was right. I needed to trust in that blessing and that helped. When I got up there the Holy Ghost did it's magic and I was able to speak up, speak clearly and deliver my talk without any hiccups---just a shaking knee. I felt grateful for that blessing and grateful to be done. Lots of people said nice things to me afterwards and then our special speaker in our fifth Sunday lesson even quoted me. Made me feel good.
Monday was the kids last day of summer and their request was to have screen time all day. So lame. Before I fulfilled their request though, Ben had an orthodontist appointment. I was worried about this appointment because I tend to feel pushed into doing things I don't want to but I managed to be very forward and I told them we really didn't want to pay for a second round of braces and that we sort of regretted doing the first one. The lady didn't appreciate that but when she came back with the orthodontist, the orthodontist was pretty cool about it. She tried to convince me that we did the right thing with the first round of braces (which I remain on the fence about) and then she told me that Ben still had 9 more teeth to lose so he didn't need another round of braces...yet.
After the appointment the kids literally had screen time the rest of the day. It makes me anxious to see their brains rotting away but I did manage to get some things done around the house. And it gave me time to rework my seminary lesson for the next day since Tyler had went off plan that morning. We are still trying to figure out how to teach with each other. Especially when he goes off plan or interrupts my lesson with a long comment :|
Tuesday the kids started their first day at Renaissance Academy. They were both nervous and super excited to finally be meeting new people. My kids might be too social for homeschooling. We were in between printers so I had printed my s"first day" signs through Costco but they didn't come in time so I had them hold my tablet for the first day and then they got to hold the real signs on their second day of school.
We got to the school super early but the kids didn't mind because they are listening to a story they really enjoy- "Wings of Fire" which is actually a bit more violent than I like but...I also enjoy it. Then they were off and it was so weird because they haven't been in person at school for a year and a half. The house was so quiet. I did a workout with weights which I haven't done for ages. I took a looong shower with no one to interrupt me. I ordered groceries, folded laundry and did everything at a leisurely pace. It was really nice. And before I knew it, it was time to pick them up.
They were all real chatty in the car and the girls had already made best friends and the boys had met friends and they all had a lot of positive things to say. Ben was the only bummer who was complaining that they gave him too much work and that he couldn't find his labtop during class. But he does have anxiety like me. That night I thought it would be fun to go out to dinner to celebrate the first day of school. We went to Chili's. I think all my kids have forgotten how to behave in public. They were pretty rowdy, kept getting up and then there was Ben burping and making weird sounds. Not the most fun experience.
Wednesday the girls had no work to do but the boys had plenty. They worked and annoyed each other (and me) all morning. They are not meant to do school work in the same room. Last year Ben was in one living room and Steven in the other. Wednesday they thought it would be a good idea to both work at the kitchen table. Nope. They were constantly bickering which made the work take longer. But they were doing the work without much help from me and that was a much appreciated change.
At lunch time we went to back to school picnic at Heritage Park. I do not like things like that, lots of people and not one person that I know. Steven didn't like it either. He basically just hung out with me. But the girls found their best friends (who are sisters too) and Ben hung out with some friends he had made. Near the end someone came up to me and said hello and that kind of helped me break out and so I finally went over and met the mom of the girls' new best friends. Also Penny got her face painted while there, super fun.
Thursday was a long day. Seminary in the morning. Getting groceries and cleaning house while the kids were at school and packing. And then after dinner I caught a flight to Arizona. So basically I was up from 5am Thurs to 1am Friday. My poor eyes were so tired and ready for bed by the time I got to my parent's house. Besides being tired, the flight went smoothly. I was forced to gate check my bag which was probably a good thing and I was almost the last person in the plane since I had a row closer to the front but that was also not a bad thing. I ended up next to two teenage boys whose parents were behind them. They didn't bother me excpet to "show me" how to look at the movies (which I already knew)- do I look old?
Friday was the drive to New Mexico and we all piled into the car- me, my mom, my dad, Mike, Emaline, Lillian and Oliver. It was pretty uneventful besides me becoming Emaline's best friend. I'm pretty sure I am in the running for best Aunt. I also discovered that Emmy really likes to experience her food with her hands, even ice cream. It was super cute and super messy.
Saturday I woke up feeling miserable. I had had some drainage the night before and a bit of a sore throat from that but all that escalated and by Saturday morning I felt super congested and had a really awful headache. As I got ready the congestion turned into a runny nose that just wouldn't quit. I hated being sick and then taking my diseased self to a funeral with lots of people. I feel bad about spreading my germs. But my Aunt Ragena's service was really well done. The talks did such justice to her and there was a beautiful song sung. My brother gave a good talk and I got a little misty but when the Bishop spoke at the end he made me cry. I think it was just the fact that someone I didn't know had captured her giving and loving nature so perfectly. Which just went to show that she was truly this person always- not just for family.
After the service there was a little luncheon and I saw some relatives I hadn't seen for awhile. And I tried my best to not feel too socially awkward (especially with my red, runny nose). After the luncheon, Mike had promised his kids he'd take them to a museum so we went to the Tinkertown Museum. It was probably a poor choice on my end to go. I was feeling super funky and my nose was still super runny and there were lots of people and that made it feel extra warm and it just wasn't the best because of that. Maybe sometime when I don't have a super fun head cold I should go back and visit.
After Tinkertown Museum we went to the Nuclear Museum but since I had been there back in April and wasn't feeling well, I decided to stay in the car. Mike didn't leave the a/c on for me so it was a bit warm but it was still better than walking around a museum and pulling down my mask constantly to wipe my drippy nose. I listened to a message from a friend and responded and may have fell asleep for a minute or two.
When they finished at the museum we went to Target to kill some time before we met up with family for dinner. Poppy was astonished by how fancy the Target was since it had covered parking and an escalator to take up to it. I got some Sudafed and the kids wandered the toy aisles and soon enough it was time for dinner. It was a big group- us, Aunt Irene & Uncle Charlie, Chris, Fred& Fred's boyfriend Ivin, Victor & Jolene, and their son Vander. We started out at one restaurant and then ended up at Applebee's because of the wait. Only Applebee's ended up making us wait over an hour for food so not ideal when you're feeling sick but I did still have a good time chatting (even if I was a sniffling mess) and it turns out my cousin's wife Jolene grew up with my friend Melissa so that was a fun connection. Jolene is pretty crafty and showed me a picture of this giant nutcracker that she made that I totally want.
Sunday we drove back to Arizona. I woke up feeling less headachey but my ears and nose were still stuffed up. Thankfully less nose running. And thankfully another smooth drive home. But being sick while out of town is not fun and I feel ready to get back home tomorrow. And I am hoping the flight doesn't kill my already aching ears.
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