Our first week
of summer break was kind of hectic (in the best way), and it’s hard to believe
that one of our ten weeks is already gone… just like that – poof – in
the blink of an eye. I know the entire
summer is going to feel that way, especially the month of June since we’ll be
traveling so much, so I’m going to try to soak up every little bit of it that I
can.
Here’s how our
first week went…
Monday, May 25
Monday was Memorial Day, so Brian was off from work which meant that we
were all able to sleep in and have a leisurely breakfast. After breakfast, I sat down to do a couple of
things on my computer while I enjoyed my cup of tea, and then it was time to
get going because Brian and I had the Dave Matthews Band concert in Orange
Beach, AL!
We always go to the Atlanta/Alpharetta show, but this year, it happened
to fall on the same day as Olivia’s dress rehearsal, which meant we couldn’t
go. The Charlotte show was on the night
of her actual recital, so that was out of the question, too, but thankfully,
this year, they did a show in Orange Beach (which isn’t usually on their
schedule), so we got tickets to that one.
I’ve never missed a summer tour in 24 years (yes, literally… aside from
2020, of course, but that’s because they didn’t tour), so I was happy to be
able to go even though the drive was almost three times longer than our usual
drive to Atlanta.
Since the venue was so far, Brian and I had to spend the night, so I had
to pack and the kids had to pack, too, because they were staying with my
parents for the night. Once everyone was
packed and ready we had a quick lunch, and then we dropped the kids off at my
parents’ house.
Brian and I hit the road with plenty of time to get there because the
weather was looking awful and we wanted to make sure we didn’t have to rush. Thankfully, we made it a little more than
halfway before the rain hit, but the last two hours were spent driving in a
downpour. My anxiety always goes through
the roof driving in the rain, but thankfully, all went well.
When we arrived, we checked into our hotel. It was right across the street from the
beach, but the day was a complete washout, so we never made it down there even
though we were just a few hundred yards away from it.
After we checked in, we unpacked, I got everything laid out and ready for
the morning so we could make a quick exit to get home, and then we drove across
the parking lot to a Mexican restaurant called Cactus Cantina to eat dinner.
Brian and I both ordered their Cactus Margarita along with our meals, and
everything was good! It was very similar
to the Mexican restaurants we have at home, so it wasn’t super special, but we
enjoyed it.
After dinner, we went to a souvenir shop so Brian could buy a pullover since it was so chilly, and then we drove back over to the hotel to freshen up a bit before heading to The Wharf. The
Wharf is a huge outdoor complex with restaurants, entertainment, and shopping,
so we would have loved to have been able to explore a bit more while we were
there, but the rain was relentless, so we just parked for the concert and went
straight into the venue. The ocean is right over that dune in the second picture but you can't even see it because of the weather.
The bad thing about that amphitheater is that the entire thing is
uncovered – even up front – so we had been sweating it out the entire trip
wondering if we’d be getting soaked the whole time and wondering if they’d even
be able to play since they always delay or cancel a show if there’s lightning.
Well, we got soooo lucky Monday because the rain literally stopped about
15 minutes after we got to the venue, and it stayed dry the entire show!! Brian and I were in a HUGE puddle for the
whole show, so our feet were wet, but it could have been much worse. And our seats were in the front row right
behind the pit, so I couldn’t complain about that!
We grabbed a couple of beers (though they had terrible options at this
venue) and then when we sat down, a sweet lady a few seats down gave us DMB
stickers that she’d had made to hand out for the show! So fun!
DMB ended up playing several songs that they rarely play like The
Stone, Gravedigger, and The Space Between, so I was a happy
girl! They also did Sledgehammer by
Peter Gabriel as a cover, and it’s always a good one… we’ve seen that one live
at least once. We also got to hear Dave
do a solo of his new song Making It Great Again that he wrote in protest
of our current administration… it’s a song about their hypocrisy and empty
political rhetoric. He’s only performed
it live three times (I’d already seen it on Stephen Colbert) and I was so happy
to get to see it live.
There’s a website that I’ve belonged to since 2002 and they provide all
the statistics on your DMB concerts when you select the shows you’ve been to,
and after adding this most recent show, the website calculated that it was the
most rare DMB show I’ve ever seen. And
that’s really saying something since this was my 30th time seeing them!
I was excited more than anything about hearing The Space Between
again, though. I’d only heard it live
three times prior to this show, so it was great to finally catch it again! DMB is not like other artists doing the same
setlist repeatedly night after night… they do a completely different, random
setlist every single night while they’re on tour, and they pull from their
massive catalog of songs, so you never know what you’re going to get! That’s what makes their shows so fun!
Here's the setlist and some stats... and also the Dave selfie that I got from social media. We almost made it in there this time, but we were too far to the right. Bummer! Oh, and a beautiful picture that DMB's official photographer got of the sunset behind us! We're in there somewhere on the right!
After the show was over, we headed back to the hotel (getting out of that
venue is a nightmare, BTW, but Brian jumped a curb and got us out a little
faster – LOL), and we went to bed because it was after midnight our time.
Tuesday, May 26
Tuesday morning, we got up at 7 AM CDT which was 8 AM back home, and we
got ready and then had breakfast in the hotel (we love some hotel waffles!)
before hitting the road. The weather was
looking v questionable the whole day again, but thankfully, we made it home
before any of the bad stuff hit.
We ended up getting stuck in some traffic for quite a while, though,
making our drive five hours (yeesh) but we somehow managed to drive straight
through with zero stops, and we were home by 2 PM our time.
We grabbed the kids from my parents’ house on the way in, and we chatted
with them about their time with Pop and Cokie before we left. They’d been living their best lives doing a
little bit of everything – dropping some food off at my aunt and uncle’s house,
eating at Culver’s, taking a drive through my dad’s old neck of the woods and
getting a family history lesson, going to our local animal shelter to see all
the cats and dogs, getting watercolor lessons from my dad, playing Scrabble,
eating breakfast for dinner and donuts for breakfast, and Olivia got to ride in
my dad’s Miata with the top down. Oh,
and my Momma also did some fun photography with Olivia. And Jacob said he enjoyed watching Antique
Road Show with my parents.
LOLOLOLOL. They kept busy, that’s
for sure! And my parents and Olivia sent us lots of pictures so I have some snapshots of their adventures...
When we got home, Brian and I had a late lunch (the kids had already
eaten), and then I got to work – unpacking, doing two loads of laundry,
finishing my blog post for Wednesday, and looking at flights for Colorado
again. It poured all afternoon – so much
rain! – and it was a cozy afternoon inside.
For dinner, I made beef and parmesan pasta with zucchini and garlic
cheese bread, and then after dinner, I had just enough time to take a walk
before it rained yet again. I jumped on
my vibration plate for the second time after that, and then I got showered and
in my pjs.
We settled in with popcorn to finish the movie If, and everyone
enjoyed it. I had dozed off for a few
minutes when we started it Sunday night, but I really loved it.
After the kids got in bed, Brian and I discussed the whole Colorado trip
again for my cousin’s celebration of life, and he ultimately decided he wanted
to come, too, even though I was prepared to go alone. We decided we might as well take the kids,
too, and make a whole thing out of it since they’ve never been out west. We’ll be going for less-than-ideal
circumstances, but I’m hoping to get some joy out of the trip, too. The good with the bad. The bad with the good. Life is such a roller coaster.
After our trip was booked, we watched a little bit more of Your
Friends & Neighbors and then we headed to bed.
Wednesday, May 27
Wednesday morning, Brian headed off to work, and I got up at 7:30
AM. I ate breakfast while the kids were
still sleeping, and then I went to my office to get some work done before my
hair guy came.
Both kids were up by 8:30 AM and they grabbed their own breakfast, and
then they went to work in their Minecraft world together for a bit while Jamey
cut and highlighted my hair. Third
attempt was a charm because I was finally able to get it done! And thank goodness, because my roots were
loooong.
After Jamey left, I had to put heat on my foils for 30 minutes, and then
I showered all the coloring out and got ready for the day. And by get ready, I mean shower and throw on
some bumming clothes because we had nowhere to be. No makeup or hair for me Wednesday!
I got two more loads of laundry done and then I put it all away, and then
I went to check on the kids. They spent
most of the morning making a movie with their Palm Pals, and it was hilarious. After they filmed it, they put it into CapCut
and they added sound effects and music and transitions, and I was dying
laughing when they showed it to me. It’s
the most absurd thing ever and it is hilarious and creative and fun.
We all had lunch together after that, and then I got a few things tidied
up around the house. The kids went back
to working on their movie after that, and I went to my office to do some more
work and prep for all the things coming in June. I also finallyyyy caught up on blog
reading. That took forever because I was
so behind per usual!
Once that was done, I caught up on my devotional and did a Bible study,
and then Olivia and I cleaned out her backpack.
I think she still had stuff in there from August. Hahahaha.
It was SO packed full of stuff.
I put away the last load of laundry after that, and then I headed
downstairs to prep for dinner. When
Brian got home, he made eggs, and I made all the other stuff to have breakfast
for dinner.
After dinner, Brian went outside to mow, and I went for a walk. The sky was ominous the whole time, and I
ended up walking in the rain for the last ten minutes of my walk, but
thankfully, there wasn’t a downpour or any lightning.
When I got home, I showered and got in pjs and then after everyone was
ready for bed, the kids showed us the two movies they’d made. I’d already seen the one they’d made earlier
in the day, but Brian hadn’t seen either of them.
By the time all that was done, it was after 9:30 PM and Brian and I both
had to be up early the next morning, so we sent the kids to bed, we watched a
few minutes of Your Friends & Neighbors, and then we went to bed.
Thursday, May 28
Thursday morning, I had to be up at 6:45 AM for a 7:45 AM orthodontist
appointment (what was I thinking?!) so that wasn’t ideal. The kids were up super early Thursday and I’m
not sure why, so I left them playing Minecraft, and I was back in less than 45
minutes.
My appointment was just a quick checkup.
The orthodontist wanted to make sure that both my fixed retainers were
doing well, and he also wanted to shave down my Hawley retainer (the OG
traditional retainer) so it would fit over my fixed retainers. While the fixed retainers keep my teeth
straight, they won’t necessarily keep my upper palate from moving, and since my
upper palate was originally very narrow, the doc wants to make sure it doesn’t get
narrow again. He said he wants me to pop
the OG retainer in once or twice a week for a couple of hours (or as long as I
can stand it) to just make sure my palate stays in the right position.
The good thing is that after not wearing it at all for two weeks nothing shifted,
so he said that’s a good sign that everything is stable. He said it’s common for the OG retainers to
have to be forced into place after a couple of weeks without wearing them, so
he was happy mine was still easy to get in and out.
On the way home, I stopped to top off the gas in my SUV since we were
going on another road trip later in the day, and then I went home to have
breakfast, unload the dishwasher, and do all my morning chores that I didn’t do
since I had my appointment.
I settled in my office for a few minutes after that to get my calendar
organized. June has unexpectedly turned
out to be bonkers – we are traveling four times! (although, one time is just
Brian alone for work) – so I needed to get my calendar prepared, and there were
several things I needed to schedule and reschedule. It was like putting a puzzle together trying
to fit in all the things. Sheesh. Hopefully, July will be much quieter.
Mid-morning, the kids and I headed out to run a couple of errands. I had to go to the library to pick up my
beach book stack and then we ran to Walmart to grab some other stuff for the
beach… gallon jugs of water to refill thermoses and car snacks!!
When we got home, I made lunch for the three of us, and then the kids
started making another movie while I did more stuff to prep for the beach trip. I also worked on a couple of blog posts. The kids showed me their Minecraft house
they’ve been building and Olivia wanted to show me the baby chick that she has
for a pet in Minecraft… and she named him “Obart the Pixel Chick.” Lol.
Those kids crack me up.
The rest of the early afternoon was spent getting all my evening tasks
knocked out since we wouldn’t be home, and then we all got freshened up and out
the door to see Beauty and the Beast at The Fox Theatre in Atlanta! Olivia and I dressed in our Belle yellow best, of course! ;o)
My father-in-law ushers there frequently, and he was ushering at this
one, so he rode with us. When we got
there, we got to park in the Bank of America parking garage that he has access
to, and it was perfect because it’s right down the block from the theater… and
it was free!
My father-in-law had to be at the theater early, so split off from us
after we arrived, and then Brian and the kids and I walked to Publik Draft
House right next door to the theater.
We’ve passed it a ton of times and it’s always crazy busy before a show,
but we were there early enough to beat the crowd and get a table right away.
We started with a round of cocktails – an Old Fashioned for me and a
specialty Moscow Mule for Brian, and then we all ordered burgers. The kids got sides of mac n cheese which was
soooo good (I had to sneak a bite!), and Brian opted for the Cajun fries while
I went with the cinnamon sugar dusted sweet potato fries. I have to say, those were probably the best
fries I have ever put in my mouth. They
tasted like a cross between an apple cider donut and funnel cake, and oh, my
word, they were heavenly. The burgers
were excellent, too. We were all very
impressed and the kids are already saying that we need to eat there before
every show at The Fox now. Haha.
We still had some time to spare after dinner, but the theater wasn’t open
just yet, so Brian and I got another round of cocktails – both Old Fashioneds
this time. Then, once we were done, we
walked next door. But first – pictures!
When we got to the theater, we took a bathroom break, grabbed some candy
for the kids, and then my father-in-law ushered us to our seats. We were in row J, so the seats were
excellent, and the rest of the night was excellent, too.
Beauty and the Beast is my all-time favorite Disney movie. Belle is my favorite princess. Her dress is my favorite princess dress. She has a massive library full of books and
she loves to read. What’s not to love?!
Needless to say, this show was something that I’d been looking forward to
for a long time, and it didn’t disappoint!
It is officially my favorite production we’ve ever seen. The sets were breathtaking; the cast was
perfection – Belle’s voice was just like the original movie, and Beast... GAH! Just perfect. – and I think I
teared up at least five or six time throughout the production.
I had high hopes for the song Be our Guest since it’s such a big
ordeal in the movie, and I was thinking there was no way that they could
possibly duplicate that on stage, but boy, was I wrong! It was SPECTACULAR, y’all. My face was killing me by the end of the
night from smiling so much.
If you have the chance to go see this, DO IT. It was simply amazing.
The show was done at 10 PM, so we met up with my father-in-law and headed
to the car for the long drive home.
We made it home around midnight – traffic is always rough after a show
lets out – and then we all went straight to bed.
Friday, May 29
Friday morning, Brian worked from home, I slept in until 8:30 AM (and
then lay in the bed being lazy for 15 more minutes), and the kids slept in
until 10:15 AM which is super late for them.
I had a list of things to do a mile long because our beach trip was
Saturday, but my atlas dislodged yet again earlier in the week, and it was a
bad one because all my symptoms had come rushing back in – dizziness,
unsteadiness, brain fog, neck tension, sensitivity to light, etc. etc. So needless to say, I was frustrated and
extremely fatigued which also meant that I was completely unmotivated to do
anything.
I tried to work on a couple of blog posts that needed to be done before
we left, but sitting at a computer is hard when I feel yucky like that, so I
didn’t get a whole lot done.
Late in the morning, the kids did their laundry, and I got ready for the
day. Then, Olivia and I went to get
pedicures with my Momma. We weren’t able
to do anything with her on Mother’s Day because Jacob had Confirmation practice,
so we finally got to do our Mother’s Day with her on Friday.
We all enjoyed chatting and getting pampered, and after we hugged her
goodbye, Olivia and I headed back home to get cracking on all the things before
our trip…
-
Transfer photos from my phone to my computer
-
Organize the photos
-
Work on this blog post
-
Work on Friday’s blog post
-
Catch up on all emails
-
Pack me
-
Assist the kids with packing
And soooo many other things that I never got to… whoops.
Brian finished up with work around 5:30 PM and he picked up takeout from
Olive Garden per the kids’ requests.
They are both so obsessed with OG right now.
After we ate, I got to packing, watering the outdoor and indoor plants
(and checking on our new eggs and our sweet baby birds… they’re so alert now!), ordering a
birthday gift for my nephew, tidying the house, putting my Poshmark closet on
hold, and so many other little things that needed to be done before we left.
Around 9 PM, we’d all had enough of packing and doing all the things, and
we gathered in the living room to watch Just Go with It, that old Adam Sandler
and Jennifer Aniston movie that also has Dave Matthews. His character in that movie is hilarious.
We only had time to watch about half of it before sending the kids to
bed, and then Brian and I made toasted marshmallow Old Fashioneds and settled
in to watch the last two episodes of the first season of The Testaments. Since the kids had gone to bed so late, we
only made it about halfway through the second episode, so we still have a
little left. It is so good, though.
Saturday, May 30
Saturday morning, we slept in, I made waffles, I finished the last two
blog posts for our beach week, I finished packing, got ready, we had a quick
lunch, and then we left for the beach!
And I’m very much looking forward to being lazy for the next seven
days. Amen.
I’ll be recapping that trip in separate posts per usual, so stay tuned!
Happy Wednesday, y’all!
