Rock N Roll

Ben enjoyed his first rock concert. He thought it was "Awesome, man!" We saw Foreigner and Bryan Adams. Both groups were great but Foreigner gave a better show. It's been a long, long time since I was at a concert.....like since college. Things are a lot calmer than I remember them being. Not that I'm complaining, but I've been trying to figure out a good reason besides the fact that we've all gotten old. Here's the list: 1. It was hot - temps in the 90's, but the humidity wasn't too bad.

2. It was outside and began in the daylight. 3. Beer was available, but smoking was not allowed. 4. Most of the concertgoers were in their 40's and had brought their children. 5. Ticket prices are so high that no one wanted to waste the experience. Whatever the reason, we all had a great time singing the old songs.

Help less...

Heather is my VT companion, and as she left town for the rest of summer she informed me that she was leaving me in care of our friends. So, what happens? I get grounded by this boot, one sister decides to move at the end of the month and needs a ride to the airport, the other sister is having surgery and needs a ride to and from the hospital, and the last sister just needs to know that someone cares. AND I CANT DRIVE! I feel very helpless with a focus on the less part.

Anyway, I'm really not as depressed as I sound. Nate took me shopping for some school clothes on Saturday and out for dinner on Friday. Church was a great outing on Sunday.

Ben's friends have been keeping him busy and I'm learning to look past the mess of the house and feel good about the few things I can keep up on.

Things I can do: dishes, laundry, family history, read, send in my food storage order, shop online, and mentally organize what projects come first when I am mobile and then change my mind incessantly. I get to be beaten by Ben in board games, get the play-by-play of whatever he is doing and be available for both Ben & Nate's conversations. Take naps, lazy around, and smell the flowers. Watch cloud formations out the window, listen to the birds chirp and notice how the light changes the paint tone during the course of a day. Second-guess my decision to stay at my school another year, worry about the upcoming year, and learn how Windows Vista works. Plan actiivity days for next year, practice my presentation, help Ben prepare the lesson for YM on Sunday, make supper, sort out those pesky boxes.

Week 1 of being benched

Warning.....this is rather boring and whiny... so skip it if you want.

Friday. Got the brace. It goes up to my knee. It's heavy. I can take it off for showers and bed. Planned configuration for year supply storage. Have to move furniture, though so its still in the drawing phase. Researched kitchen stuff online that we need/want.

Saturday. Already stir-crazy. Nate kindly drove me to Pottery Barn and Bed Bath & Beyond and grocery shopping. Went to bed early so I could take off the brace. Spent some time plotting out our square foot garden. Nate made a great greek salad, hummus and pita for supper.

Sunday. Went to Humble to visit the Bolsters and for Kristina's baby blessing. I miss them so much! Had a nice chat with their families and the Davises and their friend Alan. It was good to be with friends.

Monday. Cleaned the kitchen, did laundry and made dinner. Cabin fever. Couldn't wait for Nate to get home and take me to the library. Finally got my rolling stride with the brace - but still tire out easily. Read The Julius House.

Tuesday. Ben cleaned the bathroom and I did dishes. Watched Away From Her while folding laundry. My new vacuum cleaner arrived, but I can't use it because vacuuming is on my list of banned activities. Ordered the garden stuff and located the soils. Still need to send for the seed varieties. Read Fearless Fourteen.

Wednesday. Ben's friends came and spent the day. They were a little wild and I was not very patient. Sick of reading, sick of computer, sick of TV. Got our food storage figured out to the month and planned purchases for rest of year. Read Peace Like a River. Whined to anyone who would talk to me on the phone. Ben and Nate went to scouts and I watched Baby Borrowers. Ben and I stayed up waaaaayyy too late. (I found out later that Nate had let him have a Coke before scouts. I just had insomnia from not being mentally exhausted.)

Thursday. I spent all day on the sofa because I figured that was the same as being in bed and I didn't wear the brace very much. Plus I was tired from being up so late. Read The Bookwoman's Last Fling.

Friday. My foot is actually feeling minutely better. The tedonitis in my ankle is almost gone and I don't feel so crabby. Ben went roller skating and to a sleep over with his friend. So now I'm all alone. I should enjoy it, but I'm not sure what to do. Probably I'll read another book and shop for seeds online. Maybe Nate won't be too tired this evening and we can go out for supper on all the money I've saved by not driving.

If you've made it this far, let me brag about Ben. He has been the sweetest boy ever! He helps me alot and understands that I can't drive him places. He is always there to help me up and down steps and tells me to sit down and rest my foot. He does most of the daily household chores and helps me with nearly everything. And he does this cheerfully and willingly. What a blessing he has been!

Gimpy...

Remember March when I hurt my foot hiking and then proceeded to ignore the swelling and pain hoping it would just go away? I finally went to the doctor today and boy, I do it good. My 5th metatarsal is broken in two places (they think - evidently it is hard to see on xray), and one of the breaks is horseshoe shaped. No healing is evident at this point, so I am relegated to that boot thing that straps onto your leg and immobilizes the foot. Which is great because I am already feeling relief from the tendonitis in my ankle caused by not walking properly to avoid the pain. The bad news is there is no way I can drive in this thing and I have been properly threatened that I must wear it if I will be moving it all (I can take it off to shower). It has been 2 hours and I'm already sick of it. I'm definitely not a patient patient. I go back in 5 weeks to be rex-rayed and see if any healing is evident. If not, then I guess stronger measures will be in order. Here's to my continuing invalid experience.

Freedom...

Fourth of July is my favorite holiday. I love fireworks and I love that Americans come together and show gratitude for the gift of freedom we enjoy.

Ben and Nate got up on the 4th to do the flag ceremony at our church pancake breakfast. I stayed home and slept in. Around 1:30, we drove to Washington-on-the-Brazos, a Texas historical site for a fun-filled day. We started at the Barrington Living Farm and toured it. Ben discovered guineas in one of the barns and helped load firewood into a cart for the Pineywoods team of bulls to pull. After a couple of hours, we hopped on the shuttle bus to the museum, where Nate, Heather & Ben spent a couple more hours (Kim napped on a bench). Then outside to eat supper, and chill out. We returned to the farm where we had parked because it was the best show for fireworks and enjoyed a beautiful display. The evening cooled off and it was just beautiful!

My other celebration this year was that summer school ended on July 3rd, so the 4th was an extra dose of freedom! I have spent the past 3 days sleeping and sleeping. Today I made myself get up because I hired one of our neighbor's boys to help Ben and I begin the summer cleaning. We got the dining room and kitchen done this morning. The whole house should be done by Friday. Which is its own kind of freedom.

Lazy summer days.....this is why I changed careers! The corporate world paid lots of money, but never offered the kind of freedom I needed - to do a job that means something AND be home when Ben is and be a Mom.