Our Week - The One with Labor Day Swimming, a Braces Update, a Lunch Date, and a Wedding Reception

Last week was fairly low-key considering we’re kicking off the four busiest months of the year (excluding May)!  I used the time to be ultra productive because as you’re reading this, we’re right smack in the middle of the busiest week of the entire month of September.  Seriously, you should see our calendar.  It’s ridiculous.  You’ll be able to see what all we have going on in my recap next week, but until then, here’s the recap for last week…

Monday, September 2

Monday was Labor Day, and we had plans to swim with friends.  We slept in, had cinnamon rolls for breakfast since we’d done waffles on Sunday, and then I spent the morning working in my office. 

We ate a light lunch, and then headed to my parents’ neighborhood pool to meet my friend, Jeannine, and her two boys for a day of fun.  Y’all may remember that my parents’ neighborhood pool was closed aaaallll summer due to a broken liner and a broken pump.  Well, they finally got it fixed and opened it… right when the kids went back to school.  Womp womp.  Since it was still open Labor Day weekend, we decided to get one swim in to say farewell to summa summa summa time.

I have been in my fall feels for quite some time already, so I have to say it was a little weird switching gears back to summer for a day (especially since we got home to a fully decorated house for fall – haha), but it was a fun day, the kids finally got some good pool time with their friends, and they burned a whole lot of energy!  I love these sweet friends.

We got home around 3, and I got showered for the day and right into workout clothes.  Then I headed to my office to finish my blog post for the next day and do my Bible study while the kids played video games and Brian mowed the lawn.

We had zero food on hand since Monday was my grocery shopping day and I had skipped it, so we made do with hot dogs and mac n cheese for dinner… I guess that’s appropriate for Labor Day anyway, right?

After dinner, Brian took Jacob to Dick’s Sporting Goods to get him his first pair of golf shoes (they let the younger players use regular tennis shoes so this is the first time he’s gotten actual golf shoes), and Olivia tagged along with them so I could get outside for a run.  I ended up doing two miles followed by an arms workout, and I got home just shortly after they did.

The rest of the evening was spent watering the outdoor plants, showering, and sitting around in PJs.  We didn’t really have anything to watch with the kids, so we hung out downstairs together for a bit, and then we got them in the bed.  After they went to bed, Brian and I watched another episode of A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder and then we went to bed.  I didn’t want to turn it off, though, because it left us with a HUGE cliffhanger!

This also popped up in my Facebook memories from 15 years ago... some things never change!

 

Tuesday, September 3

Tuesday was SUCH a Monday even though it was a Tuesday.  I woke up with severe neck pain… I have a lot of trouble with my neck, and the previous day I’d had some pain and stiffness when I woke up (probably from sleeping wrong), but I forgot all about it as the day continued.  Well, I had done an arms workout Monday evening (which always affects my neck one way or another) and between that workout and probably sleeping wrong, I couldn’t move my head at all without pain.  I could turn left and right slightly, but I couldn’t look down at all, and it was not a fun way to start the day.

Thankfully, the only thing on the agenda was grocery shopping, so I went to Walmart and Publix right after I dropped the kids at school, and then I headed home to work all day.  I had an extremely productive morning, completing three full blog posts and starting on two others, so that felt great, and I knocked out several more tasks that needed to be done.

I picked up the kids from school at 3, and then we headed home, and everything went downhill from there.  I won’t bore you with all of the details, especially because they weren’t really HUGE things in the scheme of things, but it was just one of those afternoons… and I hadn’t gotten much relief from my neck pain at that point, so that didn’t help. 

I did my Bible study and then got Olivia to dance, and then it was time to cook as soon as I got home.  B swung by and grabbed her on his way home from work, and we all sat down and had baked ziti, green beans, and garlic cheesy bread for dinner.

Afterward, I got in a stair stepper workout minus the arm resistance bands (didn’t want to anger my neck even more), and then we all watched some of America’s Got Talent before sending the kids to bed.  B and I watched the second to last episode of A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder, and then headed to bed.

Wednesday, September 4

I had a lot of trouble sleeping Tuesday night into Wednesday because of my neck, and I woke up a ton of times during the night.  When I got out of bed Wednesday, my neck was still hurting pretty badly, although some of the stiffness had eased.  Thankfully, I had nowhere to be on Wednesday at all, so it was another day of work.  I ended up completing a couple more blog posts and working on another, and I also got started on the alumni relations work for the school.

Mid-morning, I got this message from Jacob's art teacher... he was one of the few in his school selected to have a piece of art entered for a contest they are doing for an big event they do here in Georgia every year called Steeplechase (a horse race).  Jacob decided to make some origami horses and then he created the race track and painted it and glued the horses to the track to make it look like they're racing.  His teacher said she thinks it could win because it's so original as most students enter drawings/paintings.  I just love getting messages from our kiddos' teachers like this!

Mid-afternoon, I saw the news break about the school shooting in Winder, GA, and I was devastated.  Every single time something like this happens (which is way too often), all I want to do is go pick up my kids from school and bring them home with me.  And this one hit (literally) way too close to home as we live in Georgia and we know two families who have kids who attend the school.  Thankfully, by the time I saw the news, it was time to leave for the car line, so I didn’t have to wait too long. 

It’s getting absolutely exhausting waiting for something – anything – to change in this country, and I absolutely loathe having to tell my kids every time there’s another school shooting.  School is the one place where children should ALWAYS feel safe, and it breaks my heart every single time I have to explain to my kids why and how something like this can possibly happen… and why it continues to happen time and time again. 

When I picked up the kids, neither of them mentioned the shooting as it hadn’t had time to spread around school yet, and since we had lots to cram in before Olivia had dance, I decided to wait until the end of the day to talk to them so we didn’t have to rush.

When we got home, I did my Bible study while the kids got snacks and did homework, and Olivia got ready for dance.  I dropped her off, and then headed home to cook dinner for Brian, Jacob, and myself.  I made my one pan chicken, rice, and green beans, and while it was baking, I made some chocolate chip pumpkin muffins from scratch, but my silly self accidentally dumped the whole can of pumpkin in there (15 oz.) when the recipe called for just 8 oz. so the muffins came out terrible and I had to throw them all out.  I HATE wasting food, so it killed me to throw them out, but they weren’t edible as they wouldn’t cook through.  I tried putting them back in the oven three times, but they were still uncooked in the middle after every attempt.  Sigh.

After dinner, I got outside to walk/jog and clear my head.  I usually do a strength workout on Wednesdays, but my neck was still killing me, so I couldn’t do anything that risked straining my neck muscles.  A walk was just what the doctor ordered, though.  The weather was SO nice – 83 degrees and low humidity, and there was a strong breeze.  I kept hearing leaves brushing down the sidewalks and streets, and it just felt like fall was near.  It was refreshing.

When Olivia got home, it was late, so she jumped in the shower, and then after both kids were ready for bed, Brian and I talked to them about the school shooting.  I wanted them to hear about it from us so they could know what was true and what wasn’t, and I wanted to allow them the time and space to ask questions if they wanted to, which they both did.  I was heartbroken afterward as I always am, and it was just a tough evening.  We said lots of extra prayers for all of the families affected, for our own school’s resource officer who serves and protects our babies every day, and for the state of our nation. 

We ended up getting them in the bed later than usual, and then Brian and I finished the show A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder.  I loved it.

 

Thursday, September 5

Thursday, I spent the whole morning working on the blog and I also did a deep-dive into gun laws in our country, especially in the state of Georgia to see if there was anything I could do to take action.  My number one priority in life is keeping my kids safe, and it’s hard to keep them safe when I have no choice but to send them off every single day to place that should be the safest… but might not be. 

Needless to say, I have already done thorough research on candidates running for various positions in November (locally and nationally) to ensure I know who I’m voting for, and I will be voting for those who support common sense gun laws (as I always do).  We may not be able to completely fix the problem, but we should at the very least be doing something – anything – that could possibly help.  (And before anyone comes at me, no, I am not anti-guns… I just believe that there should be stricter policies to obtain them, especially in my home state.)

I paused late in the morning to go to my eight-week checkup at the orthodontist, and what I thought would be a quick 10-minute appointment ended up being a 30- minute appointment with an hour-long appointment scheduled next.  Sigh.

The orthodontist told me that while my teeth have straightened beautifully and my bite is looking good, I have big gaps in my gums between my upper teeth, and he wants to close those a bit.  In order to do this, they changed out my wire on the top and the wire is slowly going to create small gaps in my front teeth so at my next appointment, he can shave a tiny bit off of the sides of each of my front teeth, allowing them to come together more to close the gaps in my gums.  I have never heard of such a thing, but he said it’s standard procedure, so I’m trusting him.  It sounds WEIRD, though. 

They also took some new x-rays to check on my jaw as I’ve had excessive popping after this last round of rubber bands, and he told me that I did the right thing by discontinuing the rubber bands when my mouth started feeling “crooked” this past time.  On a good note, he did say that he wants me to continue NOT using rubber bands for the next eight weeks, so I’m hoping that means that I won’t have a lot of tension and dizziness.  It does seem to have settled somewhat since I discontinued them a couple of weeks ago.

However, at my next appointment, he is going to remove a few of the brackets from my bottom teeth and reposition them so he can get my teeth in better position there.  My jaw was so terribly out of whack that it has changed drastically these last 19 months, and because of that, the brackets on the bottom are no longer serving me, so they need to be removed and repositioned in order to complete my treatment.  So basically, at my next appointment, I will be having my braces removed on the bottom and then I’ll be getting a fresh set.  I was not expecting that at all, but it is what it is.

After my appointment, I headed back home to work on alumni relations data migration for the school for a bit, and then it was time to pick the kids up from school.

After school, we had music lessons.  Jacob started working on a new piece from Minecraft, and Olivia made bracelets for a bit during his lesson before retreating to the lobby when her friend, Aubrey arrived for her voice lesson. 

Brian arrived to pick up Jacob for his golf match right after his lesson was over, and I stayed with Olivia for her guitar lesson.  She started on a new piece from The Rise of Red (the new Descendants movie) and her teacher was amazed yet again at how fast she picked it up.  She had a blast during her lesson, and as usual, she didn’t want it to end.  She always says, “It’s 4:30 already?!” when the lesson is over.  And all the way home, she was talking about how much she loves Mr. Steve.  He is truly the best.  He makes learning to play guitar so dang fun… you don’t even realize you’re learning. 

After her lesson, she and I headed home.  Jacob is only allowed to have two people accompany him on the golf course, so we don’t usually attend his matches as that just consists of us sitting at the club house waiting for him to get back.  Haha.

Instead, I did my Bible study while she did some homework and cleaned her room, and then she got showered early and into PJs because she said that it was “such a cozy evening” because it was dreary and not hot.  She wasn’t wrong!!  And I was loving it, too.

When Brian and Jacob got home, we sat down to baked ziti leftovers along with steamed broccoli, and garlic cheesy bread, and Jacob told us about his match.  He ended up shooting a 42 (par is 30) and he had one par, four bogeys, and four double bogeys.  Not his best match, but definitely not bad considering he hasn’t played much in several months. 

After dinner, I (begrudgingly) got in a half-hearted stair stepper workout while Olivia played the guitar for me, and then we all headed downstairs to watch the Chiefs game Tayor Swift.  While watching, politics came up in our conversation, and for the second time in the week, we had a very deep conversation with the kids.  I won’t get into details, but I’ll always be grateful that the kids come to us for clarification for all of the things that they hear at school, good and bad.  Needless to say, I will be glad when this election is over!

We ended up getting them in the bed late, and then Brian and I spent a few more minutes watching the game and snuggling with Maui before heading to bed.

Friday, September 6

Friday, I dropped the kids at school and then I had most of the day to work on blog stuff.  I met up with my old coworker and friend, Tammy, for lunch, and we tried a new build-your-own salad place in town.  I hadn’t seen her in months, so it was great to catch up with her.

It was dreary and drizzly all day long, so our all-school tailgate was canceled for Friday evening, and we decided to stay home and be cozy.  We’d originally planned to be at the tailgate (I had to plan and set up the whole thing with the other fifth grade room mom) and then go to the football game, but I had zero desire to be out in the rain to watch the game, so we had an unexpected free evening.

When the kids and I got home from school, I did my Bible study, and then Brian and I tried to do the “hands-in” TikTok trend with Maui while the kids videoed.  We had several tries and several takes, and all of them ended hilariously.  The kids were in stitches.  You can see the final take in my Instagram bio.  It’s the most recent Reel I posted.

Jacob was invited to spend the night at his friend, Jack’s, house Friday along with their other friend, Alex, so his mom came to pick up Jacob around 6.  They worked on a math project that was due Monday.  I love getting little updates here and there from all the moms when my kiddos are away from me!

After he left, Brian headed to pick up dinner for us.  We let Olivia choose and she chose Jack’s because of their delicious biscuits.  I had a BLT, and it was really good.

After dinner, we watched college football, and then after Brian and I got Olivia in the bed, we started that new show on Netflix, The Perfect Couple.  I read the book back in 2019 and I remember liking it, but I don’t remember a ton about it since it’s been so long.  So far, the show is pretty good… I do love Nicole Kidman in a suspense show/movie.

 

Saturday, September 7

Saturday, we had lots on the agenda, but thankfully, we were able to sleep in… I needed it desperately.  Even though our week had been short thanks to the Labor Day holiday, and we really didn’t have that much going on, the week had felt never-ending, and it was a rough/sad one because of the school shooting.  So, it was great to sleep as late as we wanted.

I got up around 8:15, and then Olivia helped me make homemade waffles for the three of us.  Meanwhile, Jacob was at Waffle House with his friends.  I love that they all wore the hats.  Haha.

After breakfast, I had just enough time to be lazy on the couch to drink my tea and watch the beginning of ESPN College GameDay, and then it was time to get ready for our first event of the day – Brian’s best friend’s wedding reception. 

They’d gotten married the day before with just close family there, and they waited to have a big celebration on Saturday.  All four of us hung out there for a little over an hour, and then we had to leave because we’d already planned to get together with my MIL and step-FIL because Brian’s aunt and uncle who we only get to see once a year were in town for the day. 

My MIL and step-FIL made a huge lunch, and we all enjoyed that and caught up with his aunt and uncle.  After we were done at their house, it was time to head home to watch Georgia play Tennessee Tech.  We’d missed the first hour, but we were able to watch the remainder of the game when we got home. 

While the game was on, I did an hour-long mixed cardio workout (that was half-hearted) and then I sat on the couch for a bit watching more college football.  It was a pretty lazy afternoon after that. 

Since we were all still full from a huge lunch, we just made a frozen pizza and some fruit for dinner, and then we watched college football for the rest of the night.  Gosh, I just love the sound of college football in my house!!!!

 

Sunday, September 8

Sunday, we stayed home all day until it was time to go to my parents’ house for dinner.  Since we’d been out and about Saturday, I had a lot to catch up on.

First up, it was cinnamon rolls for breakfast, and then I did my weekly yoga workout while I watched the sermon I watch every Sunday.  I followed that up with some planner organization for the week ahead, and then I did my Bible study and other quiet time for the day. 

Once all of that was done, I sorted the dirty clothes and did two loads of laundry, and I tidied the whole house.  My closet and our bathroom were a wreck, so it was much-needed.  I also tackled a couple of other random small projects that needed to be done, and then we had lunch.

After lunch, I got showered and ready for the day, and then I worked in my office all afternoon.  I had to get as much blog work done as I could because this week is bonkers, and I know I won’t be able to get much done while the kids are at school or after they get out.  Almost every day this week is booked solid.  I ended up getting so much done, so I rolled into Monday feeling good and prepared!

We headed to my parents’ house for Sunday dinner, and the gang was all there.  Momma made white chicken chili which was perfect since our temps have fallen to the low-80’s (for the highs) the last few days.  I’m SO ready for cooler weather, and we do have some coming up this week.  I know it’s just “false fall” and we’ll be in the 90’s again soon, but we’re enjoying the lower temps while we can!

Also, I would be remiss if I didn't recognize today, 9/11.  We will never forget.