Burr...isk

Sometimes you can see right into the soul of a child. The bounty! This guy won't leave! I woke Wednesday even before 5:30am. But somewhat out of character, I laid there still for a few minutes pondering life. I got out of bed and headed downstairs at 5:30am. I looked out the window before I began my exercise routine. The sky was clear to the west but slightly cloudy to the east. The last forecast I had seen promised a return to sunny skies but measurably cooler than Monday and Tuesday. I was OK with that. Hell, summer’s long gone. Ykraps and I returned from our walk wanting some coffee. I made a cup and took it to Mindy's bedside. Instead of sleep in, she rose promptly and began readying herself. I packed our lunches and made our breakfasts. I even shared my tuna fish with Mindy today. Everyone was up and well ahead of schedule. We ate a leisurely breakfast, and then Mindy and the kids prepared to depart. After they left I showered and dressed for work. As I left for work the sky was now sunny to the east but thick clouds were hovering just to our west. I didn’t think that was supposed to happen(?). I left for work at close to 7:45am and arrived just before 8:00am. I had a couple of morning meetings that carried through until after 1pm making for a very speedy first half. I left for my run at 1:05pm. As I dressed for my run I realized that my running shoes were still soaked from the rainy run the day before. Also, one of my socks was still completely soaked. Apparently I failed to get it in the dryer. It was cold and squishy initially, but like anything, it was a non-factor out the door. During my run the drizzle struck. That wasn't supposed to happen. I sucked it up and took it in stride. I returned from my run after 2pm and once I was back in my office I made a couple of personal calls. One was to Lindsey’s rental office to better understand the terms of her new lease. I had to leave a VM. I figured when they saw my caller ID they might not answer thinking it was a sales call. I called again later via my cell and got through. She filled me in on the details and the dangling issues that Lindsey still must address. I also talked to Ashley who filled me in on the latest with Stephen. What a dick! Ashley should close the door on this guy and move on and never look back. If not for herself then for Olivia. I told her she could call Mindy for another opinion. This was a Mindy Wednesday. The kids would be with their daddy until 7pm. But as it turned out, I was in my office talking to a peer until almost 5:30pm. When Mindy called I could tell that she wasn’t too thrilled, but that’s the nature of my job. It used to be worse. I called her back once I was in route to home. We decided we’d still go to dinner, and our choice was Barleys, which is very rare on a school night. But we had ulterior motives. We had to pick-up our football pool winnings. Mindy called Jim and asked that he keep the kids until 7:30pm allowing us enough time to relax and enjoy our dinner out. He kindly obliged. He’s leaving out of town tomorrow and won’t see the kids until Monday. To help us stay on course, Mindy took Ykraps on his walk during my travel home. Once home, I was able to complete most of my quick chores before Mindy & Ykraps returned. After a quick brush of my teeth we were ready to head out to Barleys. We arrived at Barleys by 6:15pm. Mindy collected her winnings ($116). She also ran into a handful of old High School friends who were beering it up prior to a Blue Jackets game. We ordered our meals and water – no alcoholic drinks tonight. I ordered a Cuban and cheesy fries and Mindy pulled pork – no bun, and veggies. It was very good, but not the best ever. We made quick work of our visit. We headed out a little after 7pm. We ran into Rick while we were there. We were home by 7:15pm. Before the kids arrived, I built us a fire so that we could enjoy it later. The kids arrived right at 7:30pm. As they approached the door, I grabbed the T-or-T bowl which was still on the table by the door and acted as if they were T-or-T’ers. They believed for a minute that I was confused. :) They came in as rambunctious as ever. Before getting settled for the night, they wanted to attack their Halloween candy, of course. We allowed it as long as I got my nightly cut. They headed upstairs by 7:45pm to dress for bed. They each read their early reader books, then Mindy read that Big Mouse, Lil' Mouse book again tonight. They went down fast after the tuck in process. Jacob, I think, was asleep in less than one minute after laying his big head on the pillow. I am always amazed how quickly and easily he does that. Downstairs, Mindy and I snuggled by the fire where we chatted for a good 45 minutes prior to falling asleep. Just before laying down I cranked up the heat a notch or two due to the dropping temp. The entire house was chilly. Mindy expressed her need for more intimate time which we haven’t had too much of lately. Instead, we’ve had a heavy dose of extend family visits and their issues. Eventually, it takes its toll. Bottom line, we’ve simply got to make sure we make/take/spend quality time together. We woke around 9:40pm and stumbled up to bed.