Hosting Houseguests, Hobbies & Headbands

May started off with the 5^th annual Triple B’s beach trip to Topsail Island. The weather was extremely windy and very cold, so we kept indoors most of the time watching movies (playing some creative games), eating delicious food, and just enjoying some quality girl time together. It was an awesome trip, but next year we’ve pushed it later in May in hopes of warmer weather. Trent turned 39 this month and handled it much better than his 29^th birthday (which he spent huddled in a closet, dreading the big 3-0). I took in a play, co-hosted a baby shower for my friend, Susan, and Trent took the girls to Owen’s 5^th birthday party. We enjoyed a great date night out with our new neighbors, followed by a slightly dramatic Mother’s Day lunch (thanks to the bonehead at the Crepe Cellar…Cabo Fish Taco, you had our backs! HOLLA!), and lastly a wonderful dinner at Abby’s that evening.

My cousin, Thomas, got married and we were lucky enough to host the Schaffer and Byers families with all the kids. One afternoon, the 12 of us ventured on a walk to lunch and then some geo-caching, where we all got educated on exactly what that was. It was pretty neat and the kids had a blast. For Memorial Day, we headed to DC to spend time with Trent’s parents, and took the kids to the Udvar-Hazy air and space museum (it was our 3^rd time there, but it’s still just as cool to see all the neat plans and space shuttle). Brayden’s last few weeks of kindergarten wound down with a field day and lunches with both Trent and I, and an afterschool program talent show. At first, Brayden was only going to tell jokes, but she then ended up also singing “Party in the USA” with her good friend, Cora, and a few other girls (see the video). They were quite the performers and did a great job with some of their choreographed moves (minimal, but cute). We were proud that she was brave enough to stand in front of a gymnasium full of people with cameras and perform. That takes a lot of guts! The last weekend, Joe and Les came to visit, so we had a date night out, went to bed way too late, and paid for it all the next day. We miss them so much, but it was great to see them!

This was the first month of Trent completely working from home now that the Charlotte division was sold off to another company. Honestly, I was pretty fearful of how this was going to work out with both of us working from home, but it has been a pleasant surprise. We both have so many meetings throughout the day and are in completely separate areas of the house that it really is no different than before. We may see each other during the day when we are eating lunch, and it’s great because we can go up or downstairs if we need to ask the other person a question really quick. In Trent’s spare time, he has been building a quad-copter from scratch and I have to say, I am very impressed with his skills. It actually flies! He has really picked it up as a serious hobby and is adhering cameras to it, hooking a video monitor up in the garage so he can have a birds-eye view, and tweaking it continuously for optimum performance. While there have been a few minor crashes, he fixes it instantaneously and is right back at it. It’s pretty cool to watch him tinkering with it. Brayden lost her 2^nd tooth at Uncle John’s office (the dental hygienist pulled it out because it was hanging by a nerve), so the tooth fairy paid her another visit.

When raising girls, there is never a dull moment and drama can easily fill the air at the drop of a hat, for what seemingly are such trivial topics…but not when you are six and two. For example, this month it was headband drama. Brayden hasn’t worn headbands in a very long time. However, Hanleigh has started rummaging through Brayden’s headband bin, which instantly made Brayden interested in wearing the exact same headband Hanleigh had on. After a couple of mornings with lots of tears, we instituted a new rule: you must ask if you want to borrow the other person’s accessories and they have the right to say ‘no’. That afternoon, I took Hanleigh to buy her own headbands, so she didn’t have to borrow Brayden’s. The next thing I know, Brayden is interested in Hanleigh’s headbands and now they share them perfectly. Whew…who would’ve known. There’s always something. I know in a few years, all of us will look back and laugh at fact that piddly things like this were the root of such frustration, but when you are in the throes of things, it’s sometimes hard to see the light. I know patience is a virtue and one that I lack a great deal of. But, when you step back (even in the midst of the chaos), sometimes the easiest solution is right at the tip of your nose. Reminding yourself that is the case the majority of the time, and keeping calm when all else seems insane is often the hardest part. I’m sure there are Buddhist monks that haven’t even figured out how to do that yet…but if you happen to be one reading this, show me the way, oh wise ones.

Brayden-ism

• While watching the winners at the Billboard awards: “If I were there, I would not want to win an award because you have to make up what you are going to say when you get up there on stage. I’m serious.”

Hanleigh-ism

• We take a lot of walks around the neighborhood and instead of going to the bathroom at home before we leave, she says, “No, I’ll just pee on the trail.”

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