Be Mine, Yours, and Somebody elses

I slept pretty well through the night and got up Sunday morning around 730am. I quietly made my way downstairs and started a pot of coffee before finding my way to my PC. Because it was Sunday, I wouldn’t be doing any push-ups or sit-ups. It still feels awkward skipping a day each week, but the benefit is undeniable. I read the Olympic headlines first. The USA won the women’s mogul competition. Cool! I saw that another snow storm is taking aim on central Ohio and expected to hit sometime Monday lasting into Tuesday. While enjoying coffee, I wrote Thursday’s blog entry and published a couple others in waiting. On most Sunday’s I don’t wake Mindy with coffee, choosing instead to let her sleep uninterrupted, but since it was Valentine’s Day, I thought she might appreciate the gesture. However, she seemed more interested in sleep than she was about the coffee, but it’s the thought - right? At the same time, I gathered my running clothes from the closet and toted them downstairs. I stretched on the familyroom floor before leaving for my run. That felt terrific after yesterday’s ski marathon (9 hours). Because it was Sunday, I kept my run to three miles. It went well. Mindy & the kids were up and in the kitchen when I returned. And judging from their appearance, I’m guessing they’d just gotten up. Mindy was just starting on her grocery list and the kids were having breakfast. Mindy asked if I still wanted to do the grandkids later in the afternoon. Yes. We agreed on 2pm. She’d reach out to Shelly shortly. I’d made loose arrangements with Ashley the night before during our drive home from MRM. Mindy asked about inviting Dad over too. We also discussed dinner and agreed on Wal-Mart’s fried chicken. We like it better than KFC. Late morning and the early afternoon were a blur. I didn’t do much. In fact, I became overwhelmed with a case of the sleepies just before Mindy left for the grocery store. She asked me if I’d unloaded the Honda yet. I hadn’t. In fact, I hadn’t even thought about it. Because I was tired, I was even a little frustrated that she asked. I got up and headed out to take care of it with her help. After getting all the ski gear inside, I got out the square landscape shovel and took aim on some of the matted down ice still remaining on the driveway. The brilliant sunshine was providing an excellent opportunity to get it removed. I waited for Mindy to pull away to get the few patches in and around the Honda. It didn’t take long. There wasn’t that much. I also shoveled back the 2 feet of snow along the driveway’s edge that was making it difficult to maneuver our bodies around opened car doors. I remember thinking that I’ll most likely be back at it on Monday during/after the next storm hits. I returned inside and snuggled up in the big chair. The kids asked for lunch to which I obliged their polite requests. I wanted a nap but never went fully out. Instead, I sat there staring blankly while also watching the Olympics. I thought I overheard Mindy saying that Kaileigh would be coming over around 2pm. I headed up for a shower around 145pm. I asked Bella to keep an eye out. She was very excited for her arrival. Turned out, Mindy got home before Shelly brought Kai over. I helped Mindy carry in the groceries. She asked when I planned to fetch the kids. As tired as I felt, I said after a nap. Shelly arrived with Kaileigh a few minutes later. I sat in the big family room chair trying unsuccessfully to fall asleep. Ashley phoned around 3pm asking when I might be coming. After a nap. She understood, but also wanted me to know that Olivia was already waiting by the door with her coat on. That’s all I needed to hear. I got up and headed her way. I planned on picking the boys up immediately after fetching Olivia, but Ashley shared that they were visiting their dad this afternoon and wouldn’t be home until 5-530pm. She knew this after just talking with her mom. Olivia was ready to go so we left for home after a very brief visit with Ashley. Shelly & Sienna were just leaving when Olivia and I got home. Mindy was surprised to see that I didn’t have the boys. When I shared the situation, she phoned Lindsey and apologized for neither one of us returning her earlier call. Mindy insisted we get them at 5pm when they were due to be home. She asked Lindsey to attempt to make those arrangements with big Rocky. She did. The kids; Olivia, Kaileigh, Jacob and Bella all headed out to play in the snow. It wasn’t five minutes before the snow board ended up in the pond. Jacob ventured out to get it. After another five minutes, Olivia was ushered in after peeing her pants. Oh boy! Dad arrived sometime around 5pm. And not long after Dad sat down, neighbors Jake & Makayla came over too. Our house was rockin’, and Rocky and Landon weren’t even there yet. Yikes! Mindy left to pick-up the boys around 500pm. Dad shared the details surrounding his recent kidney procedure. Sounds like it was a smashing success.  No lingering complications either. It wasn’t too long before Mindy was home with the boys. Rocky was very excited but still saw to it that he greeted me with a hug. The house got incrementally louder. To be sure, Olivia makes more than her share of noise. She’s beyond loud. They were having fun. Dad, Mindy & I glanced at one another a time or two, each of us surprised at the level of craziness. Dinner was served around 6pm: fried chicken, mashed potatoes, salad, and rolls. Everybody ate their fare share. The mood remained lively throughout dinner. Never a dull moment with the grandkids over. I muddled through the clean-up process, which took a while longer than usual, just as you might expect. The kids rushed off to play once again with their volume attaining levels never before reached in our home. While it was tough on us, the kids were having fun with relatively few tears. Mindy served dessert around 7pm – ice cream and cup cakes -and also gave the kids their Valentines. Our kids gave grandpa his, too. Dad passed out homemade cards and goodies too. Go Dad! Dad left around 8pm, or just before. It wasn’t long before Mindy asked for help corralling the kids and getting them road ready. She agreed to run everybody home while I agreed to fold a big load of laundry. Mindy half expected Jacob & Bella to ask to ride along with her, but neither did. They stayed home with me. I watched the men’s mogul competition at the same time I folded laundry. Mindy was home by 9pm and quickly motivated the kids upstairs for showers. That was my queue to head up and get into my own PJ’s. Ahh – what an incredible feeling. For the duration of the evening I was sucking down water. Not sure if I was dehydrated from the fried chicken or from yesterday’s skiing. I’m guessing it the skiing. Mindy & I headed for bed not long after tucking in the kids. It was just after 10pm when my head hit the pillow.