Indoors Out

We have not been having very summer-like weather. Those April showers keep making strong appearances every now and then. Last night was no exception. We had a nice hot summer day. It was in the mid-80’s and pleasant. After dinner, the kids slipped into the pool and I slipped into my mowing sneakers. They swam and had fun. I pushed and mowed the front lawn. It needed it. Rainy days followed by sunny, warm days helps the grass grow. It is very green and lush. So this year, we mow between rain drops. We mow when the weather permits. Sometimes it feels like a marathon. Drop what you are doing and get outside to mow.

We are feeling the effects of having too many sticks in the fire this year. We started with the kitchen remodeling project. With a list of things that still need to be done before we can stand back and say FINISHED, we added to the family. Our puppy, Ruddie, joined us. This meant no more restful nights. The Big Guy has to get up and take the whining pup outside when nature calls. Some nights Ruddie does sleep all night long. The last two nights have been good nights. I had to adjust my morning routine. I am still adjusting to it. Now I get up 30 minutes earlier. So at 4:30 a.m. I get out of bed, shower and then pack the Big Guys lunch. He leaves and I am officially on puppy duty. Puppy duty at 5:10 a.m. That just means watching the little guy and making multiple trips outside so we can keep the house pee-free. He has lifted his leg once on my new cabinets. That was not a good morning but he is learning quick and usually goes to the door and whines.

New puppy means we need to build a kennel area for him to stay during the day. All the post holes have been dug, 4x4’s have been set in cement and fencing needs to be purchased and installed. We have so much to do once we get home. We are doing what needs to be done and we work hard every weekend trying to shorten the to-do list I have safely tucked into a drawer for reference. Last night the plug on the island was finished. Excitedly I went for the list to cross one more thing off it and was disappointed to find that I forgot to put that on the list!

Did I mention we have a tent in our family room? Well, with summer here (really?) and the chance of rain always seems to be in the forecast, the kids asked if they could sleep out. On a week night. On a week night? Well, since I have to camp out with them as well, I said not on a weeknight. They must have brainstormed because they asked if they could set the tent up in the family room and sleep out. Yes! Great idea. So while water boiled, I set the tent up and left them.

They were happy running around looking for sleeping bags, pillows, stuffed animals and books. At the rate they we going, they’d need a separate tent for just their “things”. Glad they were not carting all of their necessities outside (because I am usually the one that ends up carting it all back inside). All this occurred on Monday night. Well, one Little Big Guy was over-tired and he could not fall asleep in the tent. It was hot. It was late. I was tired. I told the campers to find their beds and go to sleep.

Second camping attempt was last night. They pulled out their DVD players, watched movies and were good. After brushing their teeth, I tucked them in. Again a late night but they had to watch the end of their movies. After tuck-in kisses, hugs and prayers, I heard them calling me from the deep, dark family room.


They had to say good-night again. Making the most of it and having fun!


It’s a good thing we have a large family room!

What’s going on in your home?