kids tucked in, I have wine, Eric is at (sob) work...

So you know what that means?  TIme to get my blog on.

Dear Diary.  I mean... um... Dear Blog. Sometimes, I feel like I am writing to my diary.

Did you have a diary growing up?  I did.  I don't anymore.  I just have a blog.  A nice public blog.  I still have one of my diaries from the 8th grade.  It says on the cover, "Even if I die, PLEASE just throw away!"  And then inside it says things like, "I saw (enter boys name here) today, he was sooooo cute..."  Ha!  Oh the secrets I had back in the day.  More like, the obsessive crushes.
I digress.  Now I'm married (to my crush), and I am an adult with two children.  I've moved on.

Our 30 day sabbatical is over.  I could cry.  I thought I would cry.  But I'm not!  It was an AWESOME 30 days no doubt!  It was amazing!  But, there is this reality that comes with the American Dream... and that is this thing called work.  So, Eric has returned to work, and that is our reality, and I am very grateful for our 30 days, but also accepting of his return to work.  He has said that he will return to work with more Balance in mind.  I hope so!

It was a whirlwind of a 30 days.  Started of with Eric and I going to Dallas for his partner conference.  It was our 5th conference, and so maybe we weren't as totally jazzed about it as we have been in the past, plus, it was a sort of juxtaposition of work and relaxation, as these conferences are intended to build up the partners, get them all motivated to WORK MORE - and we were starting out a month of NOT WORKING AT ALL.  Oh well. We can't deny it was a great getaway for the two of us... filled with parties and delicious food, free drinks, and Zac Brown Band too!

Then came our Florida getaway.  Ahhhh!... More on that to come.  I realized though, shortly after getting home from Dallas, that our month was not going to be all relaxation.  In fact, it wasn't but an hour after being home, that Eric started packing the car for Florida.  The boy doesn't know "rest".  He was ready to get this vacation started.  We left early, and we stopped for nothing.  Except poopie diapers and Macie potty breaks.  10 minutes after checking into our Orlando hotel, we were at Disney.  Disney means being up early and out late.  Maps marked, Fast Passes planned, and coolers packed.  Naps?  There will be no naps in Disney.
We spent 3 full days in Disney (Magic Kingdom, Typhoon Lagoon, and Animal Kingdom) and we were SPENT.  We crammed enough into those days to last us another 5 years. It was magical, and we left content.  Filled to the brim with magic.
Then 5 days on the beach, beautiful Emerald waters of Destin Florida.  The water GORGEOUS and way cheaper than the Caribbean.  We stayed in a condo right at the beach, and naps happened.  So did jellyfish stings (to Eric).

Then home.  And that's when home improvement projects began.  Was the car unpacked before Eric whipped out a can of paint for the kitchen?  I can't be sure.  I'm telling you, the guy has relentless energy.  I contemplated slipping a benedryl into his gatorade.  This month we got a new roof, new window, new siding and new gutters compliments of the scariest storm ever and Farmers insurance.  Then, we decided it was a good time to replace our countertops with granite.  The counters are pretty... but then we needed new paint on the walls to match.  Then, we needed to clean up the trim.  The halls didn't match anymore, so they needed to be painted...you can only imagine how this went on.

In the midst of house being painted, yard being fertilized, things being replaced, lightbulbs replaced, etc.. Eric wants to start his own cookbook.  His goal was to bust out 50 recipes in 30 days, but we ended up getting about 25.  In order to put a recipe down on paper, he actually had to make it.  And they were ALL delicious.  It's going to be an awesome cookbook, a healthy, meat-eaters guide to delicious dishes.  I am still so full....

All the while, life is still happening with Honey Badger and Macie. They are always attention demanding... and all tasks take twice as long.  And that is A-OK.  They are first priority.

Lastly, on April 28, Eric completed his first half marathon.  I signed him up for this in December so he would have plenty of time to train.  He managed to squeeze in two (yes, 2) four mile training runs before race day.  Already he wasn't very excited for this race.  When I told him it was $100 to register for the run, he was not excited, and also a little disappointed.  Then, when I told him we had to leave the house for the race at 4:45 am, he was perturbed.  And then after running 13.1 hilly and HOT miles, he was downright pissed.  HA!  Props though- he finished in 1:51.  Killed it!  Imagine if he would have trained!  I trained..and did not nearly as well as him.

So, there it is in a nutshell, but our most special moments are not even captured here.  Our most special times were when we were crammed on the couch watching tv, or eating cereal in our pj's as a family, or sitting on a patio somewhere music was playing.  They were quiet times and loud times.  Silly times and boring times... it was truly all that was in between the big moments that contributed to what left us feeling like a super tight family. 30 days together was an amazing gift.  A blessing.  Unforgettable.  I am Truly Grateful.