Minefield

(11/1) We had a Halloween-themed Zumba class today and people came in costume. That was a fun way to kick off the weekend! It's Toffee's fifth birthday and Cass celebrates his twelfth gotcha day with us tomorrow so we celebrated with cookies!

(11/2) Unlike yesterday, it was dry out this morning so Sarah and I walked to class. Back at home, Dad made up a big breakfast for the herd and I came home to leftovers. Yum! I had a few errands to run this afternoon, but other than that, it was a peaceful day.

(11/3) I worked in the office today. It's that lovely time of year when it's dark when I leave and dark when I head home. Depressing! The boys have today and tomorrow off for conferences. Lucky ducks!

(11/4) Shew, whenever we switch times, it always feels like jet lag. No matter which way we go. Yaaaawn. And to make matters worse, they took the coffee machine out before I got my fix. I got a boost when we took work's donations to the food bank. I'm just gutted for all the people missing benefits right now. The election news had me hope-scrolling a bit this evening though.

(11/5) Dad and I had the day off today. We got a call that D's appointment to get his cast removed was bumped to tomorrow, and he was so upset. He had a crappy day because of it and it threw his whole day off. It was still Wednesday though, so I took the boys to WinCo to do our shop, and we had a good convo at the end of the day.

(11/6) Today was an absolute fluster cluck. I ended up picking up both boys early from school. It was J's turn to have a terrible day so I grabbed him to have eyes on him. It turned out to be a fortunate thing because D's rescheduled appointment at 2:30p ran so long that they ended up wrapping his arm back up in the same splint/cast we came in with (without the padding this time!) and tried to schedule us to come back in an hour to get a new one. We ran out the door and were a little late for J's 4p appointment, which went through the end of the day, and we never did get D back in. It was pouring down rain, nobody had coats, and there was drama about keeping the cast dry. Just a super fun time all the way around. We ended our disaster of the day at DQ, which I held up as a carrot to get them through a hectic afternoon.

(11/7) Today was much smoother! I worked from home, Dad worked at work, and the boys had school. After school, I took J to D&D at the library, which he absolutely loves.

(11/8) After class this morning, I came home and got all of Halloween put away and put up our lights. I usually start with white lights and change them to multi-colored once we're past Thanksgiving.

(11/9) Sarah and I walked to the gym this morning. What a beautiful day! The sun was hitting just right and I told Cass what a majestic boi he was. And then this one got in front of the camera:

(11/10) I worked in the building today and Dad had the boys. He took D to finally get his cast off for real. They gave him a removable splint and he is much happier!

(11/11) Happy Veterans Day! I usually take the day off, but it was a Tuesday and I usually have all my meetings, so postponed it to next week. Dad and the boys had the day off though. C had money burning a hole in his wallet so he and Dad went truck hunting. They drove all over the place and finally landed on a Mazda. The tradition in our house is to buy donuts when a new car comes home. I told C he would get so much farther with flowers. Waiting on the table for me was an orchid. Good man!

(11/12) Dad and I were off together. I took D to hand therapy this morning. That was a sensory minefield for someone that a) doesn't like being touched and b) will refuse to do an exercise unless he sees the point. He got through it though! It was Wednesday, so we did the WinCo run this afternoon. We had C's girlfriend's mom over for dinner and Dad made lasagna rolls, which were delicious. J decided to make up some ramen in the middle of our dinner and neglected to put water in it. I looked over and the microwave was belching smoke. Way to clear the house, kid!

(11/13) It was a work and school day for all of us. Fortunately we just had J's appointment this week and this Thursday was far less chaotic than last! 

(11/14) I worked from home today and Dad worked at work. I ended up giving the boys rides to and from school since we're in monsoon season here. Our Christmas bell arrived and D unboxed it and rang it. We'll get the collection out soon.

(11/15) I went to the gym this morning and on my way home, I got a call from Nanan that her TV was out again. I went up and plugged her router back in (sigh), but was still having connectivity issues. After trekking to the store for a new ethernet cable and calling the cable company, I got irritated and factory reset the modem. That did the trick! It took way longer than it should've and we decided to go out for dinner before I headed home.

(11/16) Sarah and I met at the gym this morning. I didn't have anywhere else to be so enjoyed a quiet afternoon at home with the twins.

(11/17) Today was a really hard day. I learned about the sudden & unexpected passing of our CEO. I happened to have a doctor's appointment and I'm like check all the things! So shocking and sad. D had a rough day and was sent home from school and will be home through tomorrow. He had hand therapy this afternoon and I wondered if he would even get through the door with the kind of day he was having.

(11/18) I went into the office and we all were in to lean on each other. I still expect our boss to pop out of his office at any moment and I was glad I wasn't there by myself today.

(11/19) Dad and I had the day off and the kiddos had school. D had hand therapy bright and early and the office has been most accommodating. They had a spot over by the window for him and have continuously strategized new activities that he will actually do. After I dropped him off at school, I headed up to take care of some things at Nanan's. C brought his new truck up and we did the inaugural dump run. He and I went for lunch and omg that sushi! Delish! D and I did the WinCo run as soon as we were home and then we settled in for the evening.

(11/20) I worked from home, Dad worked at work, and the boys had school. I had conflicting reminders about J's appointment this afternoon. One said it was at 4p and the other said it was cancelled. We went and sure enough the office was dark, but I still took him out for dinner since that's our thing.

(11/21) I worked from home again and Dad and the boys had work and school. My work peeps and I had a somber morning meeting. We're all still feeling shell shocked. I did some brainless work and was grateful when 5p rolled around.

(11/22) Sarah and I walked to the gym for a class this morning. I brought home OJ and cough syrup for the sickies in my house. I'm really hoping nobody else gets it.

(11/23) I wrenched my back somehow and saw every hour on the clock last night. On top of that, I'm all stuffed up now too. Blah. I took it easy and got out our decorations and put up the Christmas bells and the kids' turkey projects from years ago. D called and gave Grandma a virtual tour. He loves this time of year!

(11/24) I worked from home, the kiddos had school, and Dad had the day off. Dad managed to make it out of Costco with just one item. Sorcery!

(11/25) J has also caught the creeping crud and sounded terrible last night. D was crushed that everyone is sick and that we had to cancel our plans with the grands and the cousins for Thanksgiving.

(11/26) We had planned to head to the grands'  today, but J is still sick so we rescheduled to next week. Grandma met me to drop off a little bit of cheer to a very disappointed D. She also sent snowman cookies, which J deemed healing and by the end of the day he wasn't barking anymore. Yay!

(11/27) Happy Thanksgiving! C went up and grabbed Nanan and brought her here for dinner. I did up all the favorites and Dad made it home in time to join us. C had dinner with F's family and they came back here to have dessert with us. It was all very low key and easy. Perfect!

(11/28) We had C's truck out doing truck stuff today and picked up a tree. The twins helped me decorate and I think it looks great!

(11/29) I hit the gym this morning and then headed up to meet C & F at Nanan's to do some work. We made a sizeable dent in the garage and got Nanan all set with groceries. We were cold and hungry by the end of the day so went to one of our favorites on the island.

(11/30) I caught up on my podcasts over coffee this morning. It was such a beautiful day that I skipped the gym and went for a long walk instead. I can't believe it's the last day of November and my roses still have blooms!

FourteenS!

(10/1) C and I went up to Nanan's to do some clean-up. We got done just as it started pouring and were treated to a rainbow on the way home.

(10/2) I ran J in and then came to the office to work for a few hours before parent group. I've been attending a DBT caregivers group and it's been helpful to understand the mechanics behind a behavior and what to do next. The fam missed pizza night earlier this week so I picked some up tonight and we feasted for dinner.

(10/3) I worked in the office again while J was at his program. He had a rough day yesterday and I was glad I was able to talk through some strategies.

(10/4) Ahh, weekend. Sarah and I walked to the gym for class this morning. I got some yard work done this afternoon. My roses are still going!

(10/5) We had a quiet day. C had his girlfriend over to watch their shows and the twins and I all played on our own devices.

(10/6) I took the day off so I could take Nanan to a doctor's appointment and we went out to breakfast before I took her home. Dad took my car and got it some new shoes so it's all set for the winter.

(10/7) I worked from home today and Dad ran the kiddos around.

(10/8) Dad and I had the day off together. Once the boys were home from school, we did the WinCo run, and then Dad and I went up to Mount Vernon to see Titus! Dad missed out the last time he was in town and I was so happy to find a mid-week show. Titus was great and had really changed up his show since we'd seen him last. It was great to get out and laugh!

(10/9) I worked in the office for a few hours between when I dropped J off and parent group.

(10/10) Today was a teacher work-day, and D had the day off. J got to celebrate his birthday early at his program and I picked him up early to try out a D&D group that's meeting at our local library. He LOVED it and was working on his character sheet for several hours after he got home.

(10/11) Happy birthday, twinsies! 14 today! We had the grandparents over for lunch and ice cream and otherwise had a day of video games by request. C missed the festivities due to work, but he got to go to a Kraken game tonight with a friend.

(10/12) I did a whole lot of not much today, which was lovely. I hunted around for recipes and ended up making sweet & spicy delicata squash with apples. Everyone else turned their nose up at it, but I thought it was tasty.

(10/13) I worked from home today, the boys had school, and Dad had the day off. He ran J around for most of the day and I took him to his final orthodontist appointment this afternoon. It has been a loooong road to the end of braces!

(10/14) The twins requested a meal out this evening. D chose Jersey Mike's after I was off work and J chose Wendy's on the way home with Dad.

(10/15) I ran J in and met with his therapist to discuss whether he was ready to return to school and what that will look like. I picked up breakfast burritos on the way home for Dad and me and then crashed for a few hours. Apparently I was tired!

(10/16) I worked in the building today in between dropping J off and parent group. I was the only one in group today and got to ask all my questions.

(10/17) Busy day today! J graduated from his program and will return to school next week. Eep! He went to another session of D&D at the library this afternoon and loved it! Around bedtime, D texted me to come up because he was suddenly in crippling pain. He's not sure what he did but managed to injure his pinky finger. We iced it and buddy taped it for the night and will see how it looks in the morning.

(10/18) D's pinky was still swollen this morning so I ran him to urgent care. Sure enough, he broke it! We think by just getting into bed?! Talented. We stopped for some healing hot chocolate on the way home. After getting it splinted, he was feeling okay enough to go play video games. I hit the No Kings protest and got a boost from just being out there with the community.

(10/19) We had a pretty low-key day compared to yesterday! J and I ran to the store and stocked the twins up on some goodies before I headed up to Nanan's to take care of a few things. We had a nice visit and then I came on home to make dinner.

(10/20) I went into the office today and Dad got the boys off to school. J had an okay day even though it wasn't the smoothest of starts.

(10/21) J, who is not a morning critter, was up and ready to go early enough to earn some Family Guy time before school today. Who is this kid and what did he do with J?! I worked in the office again and had a busy day of meetings.

(10/22) D had an appointment for his hand this morning and they put him in a full cast. He is quite unimpressed and is going to have to learn how to use his mouse left-handed. We're looking at two weeks in the cast and then he'll have hand therapy.

(10/23) I worked at home, Dad worked at work, and the twins had school. I picked them up a little early for their dentist appointments. We promptly ruined great dental appointments with Blizzards from DQ.

(10/24) TGIF! J had a doctor's appointment this morning and I worked from home afterward. I ended up picking the twins from school because it was absolutely dumping and they both left without coats this morning. J had a great time at D&D again this afternoon. I love that he's so caught up in the campaign!

(10/25) My gym buddy was out of town this weekend so I was a total bum and couch potatoing was the order of the day.

(10/26) The twins and I had a quiet Sunday while Dad and C worked. It was gross out, so I caught up on my shows and read a book. The pooches made sure I didn't float away.

(10/27) And we're back to it. I worked in the office today and Dad made sure the kiddos got out the door. 

(10/28) I worked in the office again and Dad wrangled the twinadoes today. 

(10/29) Dad & I had a rare day off together and got to go to breakfast! I only made a small dent in that monstrosity ~ it sure was good!

(10/30) It was a work from home kind of day for me. I made some banana bread with chocolate chips and the corg was miffed that I didn't share any of the bananas.

(10/31) Happy Halloween! I worked from home, Dad worked at work, and the twins had school. Lucky me also had a dentist appointment. We didn't get many kids tonight due to the rain, but D helped me hand out goodies while J "supervised."