Ash Olivia for Dinner

I woke around 2am and right away my mind took off like a rocket contemplating everything from soup to nuts. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t get back to sleep for quite a while. In fact, I remember glancing at the clock and seeing it after 4am. The next thing I knew, Mindy woke me near 550am. Crap!

I hustled through brushing my teeth then and gathering my running clothes. The good news was that it was late start day, so I wouldn’t be leaving for work until 1015am. The bad news was that I still really needed to treat it like a regular work day in regards to my run. I wanted to have my run completed before Mindy left for work so I wouldn’t have to leave the kids by themselves.

I whipped out 50 sit-ups and 50 push-ups. Felt about as good as I have in quite a while doing push-ups. Coffee was ready. I poured a cup and headed to my PC. I spent at least 15 minutes fooling around there before taking Mindy some coffee and waking her. I wasn’t too worried about the time. My goal was to be out the door for my run by 640am.  It was as chilly as it’s been in a while. It was 35 degrees. Supposed to be the beginning of a downward trend. Sadly, though, it won’t last but through the weekend. No snow of any sort in the ten day forecast. At leas they’ll be able to make snow at MRM for the next 4 or 5 nights. Not real sure how much they can make overnight. The day time highs will be in the mid 30s so they’ll have to stop once the temp rises above freezing each day.

Did an abbreviated meditation and a full stretch. Was dressed for a run by 635am and out the door a few minutes later. I wore running tights, a toboggan, and hand covers. Glad I did, too. It was chilly. I warmed quickly and felt great for the run’s duration. In an effort to ensure I was home ahead of Mindy’s needed departure I almost talked myself into trimming the run to 3 miles, but last second I had a change of heart and ran the full course. Glad I did.

I was home just ahead of 730am and Mindy was busy putting the finishing touches on my breakfast while I gathered the dog and headed out for a walk. The dredging crew was already gathered on the bridge discussing the day’s strategy I guessed. We avoided any confrontation and walked the opposite way.  Eiknarf took care of her business quick. Mindy was pretty much on her way out as I was heading in.

Because it was late start, the kids didn’t need to be up for another 90 minutes or so. I went about having a leisurely morning eating my eggs at my PC and while logging onto my work laptop. I was actually working a little even before 8am. Things were quiet though. I didn’t head up for a shower until approximately 820am. By then, it was spitting snow. The temperature had actually dropped a couple more degrees.

I was out of the shower, dressed, and back downstairs by 840am. I returned to my computer desk where I dug into work. I heard the dredging team making all sorts of racket. They were loading up their excavators appearing to be completed with all the heavy work. Had straw and grass seed.  I wondered what they were gonna do about the sidewalk they damaged bringing in that giant excavator to free the smaller one. The boulders they used to build an island to the stuck implement were now along the west shore, but they didn’t have them looking natural by any measure. I was a little disappointed if this was their finished product. In my opinion, the work product suffered after their excavator got stuck. I got back to work and didn’t wake the kids until 915am. Both were slow to motivate. At some point I called Chrissy and then later Kenny to see if they needed me to keep their kids too. We left it kind of open as of last Sunday, before I knew I could alter my customer sit work day.

Kenny called me back and let me know that he was home with the girls. I checked on the kids a few times. It had to be near 950am when I found Bella fooling around in her room essentially still in her PJs. Jacob, on the other hand, was fully ready and playing video games in his room. He’s good about that. Bella got it in gear and was downstairs and ready by 1000am. That’s the time I had to join a recurring conference call. I motioned for quiet as the kids made last minute preparations for the bus stop. They call was extra brief. Not a lot to discuss. The kids headed out to the bus stop a minute or so in front of me, but I wasn’t too far behind. I was out a minute or two later after leashing up Eiknarf.

Kenny and I chatted at the bus stop, mostly about the dredging project’s apparent completion. He asked if all the heavy equipment was gone. Yep. No sooner had the bus arrived to get the kids when the excavator returned on the large trailer. Maybe they just needed to refuel the beast. Not sure. Or maybe the city inspector came by and made them come back. Regardless, they were unloading the thing as I was backing out the drive and heading off to work.

It’s been a while since I worked a Wednesday at the main office. Nice. I arrived just after 1030am. For the first hour or so I had all but forgotten about the late start.  It wasn’t until I glanced at the clock and saw that it was 1230pm did I remember. The day was soaring by.

Once again, spent the lion’s share of the day working on monthly reports. I want to have both completed by Friday if at all possible.  Didn’t bother taking a formal lunch break. In fact, I haven’t taken a real lunch break for several days now.

Talked with Ashley at some point during the day. She needed/wanted to stop by to get more cash for the dentist. I Invited she and Olivia over for dinner. She accepted. I sent Mindy a text indicating as much. We were having pork roast. It was cooking in the crock-pot on the island. In fact, the house smelt like cooked pork when I left for work. Yum!

But I worried that it wasn’t kosher. J

I hoped to get out of work a few minutes early but that never materialized. Instead, I actually worked a few minutes late not leaving until 545pm. My boss, a peer and I were talking for the last 10 minutes or so. According to my car, it was 33 degrees on the drive home. It was pitch dark already too. It felt like winter. My thoughts were all about making snow on MRM. Get them snow guns fired up, boys! I called Mindy, too. Said that Ash and Olivia were already there. I shared that I was taking the back way home after learning that a semi was going  the wrong way on I-270 south and had traffic at a stand still. I got that tip from a co-worker just before heading out.

The back way entails heading all the way down

Old Dublin Rd west

of the river to Trabue. That proved to be a smart move. And for the first time I can recall, I got every light along the way. That’s never happened before.

Just as I have the past couple nights, I walked out over the bridge to check out the dredging work. Their heavy equipment was indeed back and parked for the night in the neighbors yard. Looks like they redid the boulder placement along the west bank. Looks a whole lot better. Still, though, I know neighbor John isn’t going to be happy. They stopped just short of his property line. I’m only guessing but now believe they must’ve had orders to only concern themselves one property line back along both sides. Looks like they completed the lawn restoration across the street, too.

Inside, Olivia was playing with Jacob and Bella. But honestly, she was overtly fussy, almost to the point where it’s hard to enjoy her company, especially when she sasses her mother. I hate to say it, but it seems that Olivia rules the roost. Complains/wines about everything. I did my best to cheer her up while we ate dinner. She was more concerned with getting chocolate from the advent calendar that Mindy picked up for all the grand kids. More than once I had to insist she return to the dinner table with the rest of us. She eventually made a decent dent in her dinner, but after lots of prodding.

Mindy was planning to take Bella to her gymnastics class, but asked if I would pick-up. Yes. They left just as I was finishing up kitchen duties. Jacob went with her. They planned a stop at Targhetto afterwards. I’d have some alone time. Just how much, I wasn’t quite sure. Ashley might’ve stayed around another 10-15 minutes after Mindy and the kids left. We talked for a while, both about her potential move to KY as well as some life choices I’d really like for her to consider, including giving up cigarettes. She may not be making all the right decisions at one time, but I can tell that Ashley’s matured quite a bit over the last year or two. For one, she takes full accountability, and two, she knows what she needs to do. Doing it is always the toughest part, however.

I’m thinking that it was 715pm when she and Olivia departed, but not before taking a few photos, first of Olivia and I, and then Ash & Olivia together. After they left I changed out of my work clothes and into PJs then did some work in my blog. Mindy called around 810pm to say that they were running to another store, and since they were out, they were going to go ahead and pick Bella up from gymnastics too. Yippie! It was after 830pm when I finished up on my blog, or just about the time that Mindy and the kids got home.

I saw that Mindy bought Jacob a new indoor basket ball hoop. She helped him put it together while I continued playing on the computer. I poured a beer just before they got home. It’s Barley’s Double Dog IPA. Losing it’s flavor already. It was just OK.

I was on the computer until just before 930pm. Jacob was right below in the basement bang around with his new basketball. It sounded like a bass drum slamming against the wall. I asked Mindy to have him stop at 930pm. I felt that was more than reasonable. 

I headed in to the familyroom and checked out the program listings to see what might be on the knowledge channels. Nothing of interest, though I did see that Christmas Vacation was playing as I passed some of the less heralded channels. I flipped to it joining it already in progress, or right where Sparky is trying to figure out why his Xmas lights won’t come on. Bella joined me. I couldn’t help but laugh, even though I’ve seen the movie probably more than any other over the last 10 years. A true comedic classic.

Mindy and the kids were off to bed just before 10pm, late for the kids.
After tucking Bella into bed, I headed back downstairs to watch a little more of the movie. I didn’t watch a whole lot more, though. I’m thinking that I stayed up until about 1010pm. I was tired and wanted a good night’s sleep.