Our awesome weekend

The weekend was absolutely amazing. I wish I could find a stronger word to describe it because that doesn’t even do it justice. On Friday night, my sister had a bon fire. We went over after dinner our jammies. She had a lot of other kids and friends there too. We ate so many s’mores.  It was ridiculous. We had a great time and stayed over there until 9pm, which is late for us, especially on a Friday night after being at work and school all day. Emerson was extremely sleeping, so we went home. He fell asleep in the car, so I plopped him right into bed-chocolate face and all!

On Saturday, Emerson slept FOREVER. I swear, it was pushing 8am and the dude was still in bed. It was nice for me though. We didn’t really have plans for the day at that point either, so there was no set wake-up time. When he did wake up, I made breakfast (peanut butter and banana stuffed French toast), then I was able to work out, while he played. It was nice being able to do that. I’ve never tried before. He thought it was HILARIOUS watching me jump around though. We lounged around for most of the day. Finally, we made plans with my sister and nephew to take the kids to the Bic mac Museum, then an indoor jungle gym place afterwards. The Big Mac Museum is just a glorified McDonalds with an awesome play place The kids ate and played for about an hour, then we headed up to Seabase. They had a blast! I had a panic attack at one point though. Emerson climbed up into some tubes and I lost him for about 10 min. These tubes intertwine all around and it becomes extremely difficult to track, or see where the heck your kid is. I had to recruit my nephew to climb up to find him. Luckily, he was able to spot him pretty quickly. After that happened, I didn’t allow him to explore without my nephew trailing behind. I wouldn’t have been that concerned, but some of the tubes drop into slides that allow the kiddos to exit the entire play area. For all I knew, he was running around freely. Major mom moment there! After Seabase, we went home and relaxed for the remainder of the night. I let Emerson stay up until well after 8pm. Why not?

On Sunday, he slept until after 8am again. This was perfect for me. We had a big day planned at Kennywood (amusement park), so I knew he wouldn’t get a nap in at all. I got our bags packed (extra clothes, shoes, snacks, umbrella, etc), then got myself all ready. By the time he woke up, I had everything organized. It didn’t take me as long as it sounds, I swear. We had breakfast (eggs, bacon, fruit, and blueberry pancakes), then hung around the house until it was time to leave. The weather was on the chilly side with a major threat of rain, so we dressed accordingly. After a quick stop at K-mart, we headed over to pick my sister and nephew up. Everyone was so excited! We headed out to the park for a day of fun.

The lines were so short because the rain held a lot of people off. The park was closed to the public for my work picnic, so that made it even better. I was able to walk right up to a ride and put Emerson right on. We only had to wait for a few rides, and he did very well! No major meltdowns at all, which is what I feared. He isn’t the most patient kid around. The rain never came! It sputtered a few times on and off, but we never even had to break out our umbrellas. It was perfect. Emerson’s face was pure joy every time I put him on any ride. It was so cute! I’ll post a few pictures and videos for you all to see. My sister and nephew had a great time too. We did have a slight moment of panic when Emerson lost one of his brand-new shoes. I was not happy about this. We searched all over for it, then finally found it on top of a fence post. Someone must have seen it and put it up. Thank God! I just bought these shoes last week! Anyway, we had extra just in case because the rides do indicate that riders need to have shoes. I’m not sure how strict they are on that rule, but we didn’t want to find out either. We stayed for 5 hours and were completely worn out by the time we left. It was a great time and I am glad we went. Emerson conked out on the way home for a small bit, but I woke him up for a snack, bath, then bed-time.

My parents didn’t come with us to Kennywood though they were supposed to. My mom’s sister is in the hospital and in very bad shape. I honestly don’t know that she will make it through this time, but I am remaining optimistic. She has congestive heart failure from smoking. She came down with pneumonia and bronchitis, but didn’t go to the doctor. She waited so long, that she almost died at home. Anyway, she is in the hospital now on a ventilator. They are trying to slowly bring her off of it with no such luck. My mom will be down there again today, so I’m sure she will provide an update at some point. I really wish my mom would stop smoking. This has killed my gram (her mom), my aunt’s husband (the one who is in the hospital now), and now it has my aunt. I don’t know why people continue to smoke. I HATE it. My mom will not listen to me though. I told her she is going to make us go through this with her one day. Why would she want to do that to us?! I am hoping after the dust settles with my aunt, I can really discuss it with her. It isn’t appropriate right now to continue harping on her while her sister is sick. I’ll wait, but I am really just over watching her continue to have a general disregard for herself and her family. Say some extra prayers for my aunt, please. She always seems to find a way to turn these things around. She beat cancer before and has been down and out several other times too. She is far too young to lose her life and I know it would absolutely wreck my mother and my aunt’s children. (she has 7 kids and dozens upon dozens of grandchildren and great grandchildren). My mom’s sister was basically her mother growing up, so I know it feels like my mom is losing another mom. I feel so bad. I am absolutely awful with these situations though. My sister is better with the emotional stuff than I am. My mind darts to the logistics, planning, next steps, being there as support etc. I can’t help it. That is just the way that I cope with things. I am not overly showy with how I feel, especially in these instances. It’s unfortunate too because I know I come off as being insensitive when I’m not bawling my eyes out, when I am just super uncomfortable.  I usually am a good shoulder though, so I try to be the strong one, so others can mourn/deal with the situation. I like being that person because it allows me to be able to disguise how I feel to put other’s feelings at the forefront. That sounds terrible, but if being the strong one and rock is the worst thing, then I’ll take it.

Alright, guys. I hope you all have a great week.

Glow Party Success!!

The glow-in-the-dark party on Friday night turned out AMAZING! I am still in shock at how amazing our set up turned out. Before it was even completely dark outside, the entire house was glowing. I thought we didn’t have enough black lights when I was setting up. Boy, was I wrong! I never thought it would glow as much as it did. Our teeth were actually glowing. I’m so glad it turned out well. The kids were so hyped up. They had a blast though and it was very well organized. My sister did a great job preparing everything. I thought I did a pretty good job of setting everything up. We make one heck of a team. Emerson loved it though. He was conked out before I put the key in the front door. I sprayed his hair hot pink too. He looked adorable. Luckily, it washed out pretty easily. I also decorated shirts for us to wear too.  All of the kids decorated shirts when they were there before the parted started. It gave them something to do, while we waited for it to darken a bit outside and for all the guests to arrive.  I put some pics below for you guys to check out!

On Saturday, Emerson and I did nothing all day. It was pretty awesome. We lazed around until it was time to go to my sister’s house for my nephew’s birthday dinner. She made lasagna. It was pretty darn good. We stayed over there for a long time. Emerson ended up sleeping in until about 830am that morning, so he napped until almost 5pm that evening. I let him stay up until about 845pm once we got home from my sister’s house. He ended up sleeping in until about 830am on Sunday morning too. we lazed around most of the day. I made him take an early nap around 1pm. Luckily, he went down without too much trouble, then we went grocery shopping. My entire family went to a baseball game, so we were left to fend for ourselves yesterday. I let Emerson swim in his pool. It was so hot outside in between all of the thunderstorms. He had a great time and swam for a few hours. The dog even jumped in with him. We had pierogi casserole for dinner. It was delicious. That was my farewell meal considering I am back on the grind today. I have 25 days until my 33rd birthday. I refuse to feel like crap turning another year older. Back on the band wagon for me!

I hope we have some better weather this week. I bought Emerson a quad. Let’s not even talk about what a pain it was to build. They shorted me a bolt, so I have to go to the hardware store tonight to get one, so that I can attach the last wheel. I have it all charged and ready to go though. He is so anxious to ride it. He’s been staring at it for three days. Hopefully the rain holds off after work and he can ride for a bit before dinner. We have muffins with mom at daycare on Friday. I’m working from home, so I can participate. This upcoming weekend is mother’s day, which means Emerson and I need to figure out what we’re getting my sister and mom. I am definitely going to make gifts. There is no reason to go over the top. Whatever I make will be nice, but I definitely am not buying some outrageous gifts. Dad is taking us to brunch though. I’m trying to save a couple extra calories every day this week, so that I don’t have to worry so much on Sunday. Let’s hope that pans out in my favor.

Alright, that’s all I have. Have a great week, guys J

That was short lived

Well, I ended things after 6 whole days. It just wasn’t the right situation for myself, or Emerson. There were some deal breakers that I thought I could look past, but I couldn’t. I think he is a wonderful person and I hope he finds the person who accepts him for who he is and makes him happy. Unfortunately, that isn’t me, but it’s okay. We didn’t end on bad terms, or anything like that and I think we can still maintain a friendship, which is great. I couldn’t ask for a better ending to be honest. It’s still a little sad though. Over the last 6 weeks, I had grown accustomed to talking to someone every day and having them in my life.  I am just appreciative that we were able to discuss everything like adults and without any kind of hostility. Look how much I’ve grown! Honestly though, Emerson is my main concern and every decision I make revolves around him. He’s my main squeeze, so I have to keep an eye out.

In other news, Emerson has been waking up so early this week before I get him out of bed. It is driving me nuts. This morning, I went into his room to wake him like normal at 5:35am. His light was on! He must have woken up, stood up on his bed, and hit the switch. I guess he fell back to sleep at some point. He never cried. He was standing on his bed when I walked in. I don’t get it. I think I might need to rearrange though, so he can’t turn his light on. Yesterday morning, he woke up about 5 minutes before I usually get him up. He was crying though for me to come and let him out of his room. I have a door knob cover on his door, so he can’t escape. I just wonder if I am now putting him to bed too early and he doesn’t need that much sleep. He’s getting about 9.5 hours. I would think that’s under what he really needs. I’ll see how it goes the rest of the week and over the weekend. His fan has been in the window though. Maybe it’s just too cold in the mornings, which makes him wake up. I’ll take the fan out of his window before bed tonight and see how that goes too. Kids!

Last night, I made the signs for my nephew’s Glow-in-the-Dark party. They came out pretty good. Nothing spectacular, but I got the job done. I can’t wait to see it all come together. My sister worked on the Glow-in-the-Dark twister last night. It looks pretty neat. I am working from home on Friday, so that I can shave off time commuting in the afternoon since the party starts at 630. This way, I don’t have to rush after I pick Emerson up from daycare. We can go home, get ready, and let the dog out before we head to the party.  His gift arrived yesterday. I didn’t even have a chance to open up the box yet to see what the mini fridge looks like. I’ll do that tonight.

I don’t have much else to discuss. Outside of Birthday plans this weekend, we don’t have much going on. I think we have a play date on Sunday if it doesn’t rain. 70% chance is being reported now, so that isn’t looking too promising.  We’ll see though. These things change daily it seems. Alright, I hope everyone has a super day! Happy Hump Day!

Adulting sucks

I don’t even know where to begin, so I’ll just start with this weekend. On Saturday, the early intervention girl came over to give me information and have me sign all of the initial paperwork before we set up Emerson’s evaluation. The evaluation will take place within the next two weeks.   We decided to go with occupational therapy for sensory issues, speech therapy, and just general therapy  for social and cognitive issues from an intervention specialist. His fine and gross motor skills are fine, so we left out the physical therapy. He might not qualify at all. I mean, his speech is picking up A LOT. He still has a very difficult time sitting still though and with climbing regardless of being told “No”, so I believe they feel they can work on that type of behavior.  It isn’t like Emerson will realize anything is going on either. It’s more of them just playing with toys and gathering information they need. The evaluation is 3 hours though, which sucks. We scheduled it for 9am, so I can work from home when I am done.  I will follow-up to let you guys know how it is afterwards and what results we get.

On Saturday night, Dave came over to have dinner with us, then we had a fire in the yard. It was nice. I didn’t write about this earlier, but we made it “official” last week. I am still not entirely comfortable with this. I’ve been on my own for such a long time that being “with” someone else is strangely uncomfortable. I am trying to not get inside of my own head because that makes me want to dart the other way.  I am trying to just let these feelings settle though. I don’t want to self-sabotage for no reason. There are things that I have noticed that I don’t necessarily like though, but I intend on talking about it before I make a hasty decision. We will see. It’s nice having someone to spend time with and talk to. Emerson is really fond of him, but Emerson is usually REALLY fond of anyone. I haven’t brought a person around that he doesn’t like. I think what I like is that it appears that Dave is fond of Emerson and doesn’t mind being around him and interacting together. It’s extremely nice that we can spend time together without my having to get a babysitter too. I don’t want to be with someone out of convenience though. I just need to sort through how I feel and see where to go from here.

This weekend, my nephew turns 12! I cannot believe he will be 12! Time has flown by so quickly. We’re throwing an insanely amazing Glow-in-the-Dark party for him. The décor is ridiculous. My sister was playing with some of the lights last night. Her house looked like a club! I know the kids are going to have a blast. She has white t-shirts for everyone to decorate before the party starts too. That’ll give them something to do, while we’re waiting for the sun to set and for it to get dark, so everything glows even more. I’m going to make some decorations for her this week. I cannot wait. I found the idea on Pinterest and thought it would be a good 12 year old party theme. Turns out, he loves the idea and all of his friends are super excited too.  We throw some great parties! The best part is we can re-use all of these expensive black lights for a pretty sick Halloween party this fall. At least we can try to get her money’s worth.  The birthday party is on Friday night. His actual birthday is on Saturday. My sister is having all of us over for dinner, so that’ll be nice. Emerson and I bought him a mini fridge for his birthday. It’s nothing huge, but big enough for some drinks and snacks. He has pretty much everything he could ever want, so buying him gifts is hard. I thought this would be a neat thing to have in his room considering he always has friends there. If I was 12 with a mini fridge in my room, I’d feel like a boss! I’ll post pictures afterwards, so you guys can see how cool it all looked!

That’s about all we have going on right now. I hope this week is super boring. I don’t need any excitement at all. The same old routine is good for me. I’m running today. I ran 3 times outside last week, once inside, and then I lifted another day. I upped my cardio in hopes that I can slim down a little quicker before my birthday. The diet is going okay. I wouldn’t even call it a diet. You guys know how I feel about that. Clean eating is going well. It could be better though. I threw caution to the wind on Saturday and Sunday this week. Sometimes, you just have to! I’ll try to clean it up this week though before all of the festivities this weekend. I plan on running 3 days this week and lifting 3 days this week. That sounds fair and like a better balance than last week. We will see! I don’t feel like I am making any progress though. I’m doing enough to just stay the same. That is crappy. I know what I NEED to do. I just want to wait to do it until the beginning of next month.

Alright. I am outta here.

Have a great week

-Ash