Yesterday I was feverishly working on the computer trying to sell furniture and house hunt while nursing Hazel when the girls clomped in. Eden had on my high heeled boots and Kait was wearing some open toe black high heels. They stood proudly in front of me and in a flash I was a little girl in my moms bathroom staring at her shoe organizer hanging over her closet door. In my mind I struggled to choose between the shiny gold strappy cork heels or the espadrilles with the knotted sandal top. It connected me to them. I felt a poof of fresh air pumped into me and I smiled and told them they are finally to the age that I remember as a child and it is so fun to see them do things I remember doing. Kait got a crafty look and said "did you wear your moms makeup too?" I said yes and they scampered into my bathroom. I visualized the clear plastic makeup organizer in my mom's medicine cabinet and all of the colorful makeup begging me to wear it, especially a circular compact of bright creme blush that she never wore herself. Sometimes I feel so tired, so taxed, so burdened that I miss the beauty of childhood. It really is beautiful. It's here with me to give me the lift I need to make it through the moment when I feel like a complete failure. Tonight was hard but I made it through and I think it was because I had been spending the last several days telling myself that I just HAD to blog some beautiful things.
First of all, spring break was just a magical week.
On Monday Jenny T. and I decided to meet at Chataqua and take the kids hiking. Just a quick recap, that's one 12 year old, two 9 year olds, one 6 year old, one 4 year old and a 5 month old. Don't ask me why we thought that was a reasonable plan but for some reason it worked out. It was fantastical (in the words of Ramona) and completely perfect. As Jenny and I huffed along behind the excited kids scampering up the shady trail with the sun peeking through the leaves and a gentle wind at our backs, we talked about life. It was better therapy than anything I can think of. At one point the kids wanted to go higher so I sat on a rock and nursed Hazy while Jenny took the big kids higher. They stopped for a giant marshmallow snack and came back down, then we made it back to the car with Kait and Nick just starting to whine. Perfect timing. We headed to DQ for a lunch of ice-cream and then went home.
On Tuesday I had to run grab a buffet for Bart but I had bragged about Monday so much that Jody just couldn't stand to go to work so he took the big kids to the bike park at Valmont and they had a great time aside from Eden having and epic crash. Her road rash is still healing. So thankful for bike helmets!
On Wednesday Jody took Kait skiing and my Aunt Gail came through Colorado and stopped by to visit and have dinner. We had a great visit and I think it was a pretty special time for Jody and Kait to have alone.
On Thursday Jody took Eden skiing with Cody and his boys and I took the other three to Jenny's house for a brunch. We had so much fun and laughed and relaxed and sipped mimosas. I know most people think I do that like all of the time but I don't! After this second therapy session I felt like I had been healed of some indescribable malady that had made me feel beaten and frustrated to no end in the two weeks before spring break.
That afternoon Jody's mom and Jerry arrived and we launched into another fantastical visit with them like always. The grandparents took the girls shopping and all of the kids to a movie. We had a great breakfast at The Huckleberry in Louisville, looked at model homes, relaxed and watched some netflix movies together.
It was such a great week that I just didn't want it to end.
Then on Wednesday we had a late start. At 7:30 I heard someone in the kitchen and was convinced it was Kait because she is my early riser. I was surprised to find Eden in the kitchen, dressed and finished making her lunch. I asked if she wanted to make scones and she did so we had some scrumptious raspberry scones and then sat down and played a game of scrabble. It was exactly how I wish summer could be. Just living together and doing things together without the nonstop tv/internet struggle.
My Kaity Kat came in the kitchen with a furrowed brow and a notebook in hand yesterday. I asked her what was up and she told me she wanted to write some songs because she was planning to have two concerts later but she wanted them to be like Taylor Swift but she said "Svift" and it was so cute to watch the way she held her mouth. I had no idea what to tell her and she wandered off and she and Eden focused on making a stage. Later we attended the concert only to discover that there wasn't going to be a concert because she hadn't written any songs yet but she would be happy to tell us a three part story about a duck. So she told us part 1 and there was much ado about the duck liked to have "qwackers" in his soup and then Eden would just double over in peals of laughter and giggles.
She wrote a book at school and it was requested that I write an "About the Author" blurb for her and this is what I came up with.
Kaitlyn Belle Allen was born in Littleton, Colorado. She currently lives in Erie, Colorado with her father, mother and three siblings. She graduated kindergarten with honors and is currently pursuing a high school diploma. Born a storyteller, Kaitlyn naturally turned to writing and found quick success with her first book. Although all of her characters are fictional, much of her writing is inspired by her time living in Minnesota and visits to a family farm in Arkansas as well as an uncle who was deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan in the Army.
Kaitlyn enjoys spending time with her two dogs Kearney and Journey and playing in the cul de sac with her neighbors and friends. She is an all around Colorado girl and is an avid hiking, skiing and biking enthusiast.
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