Light Blue

Guys, I'm digging really deep to make it through this week without losing my shit. Its just a cluster&ck of awful/stressful/just busy, including but not limited to:

1) I think (hope) I am at the peak of the P@xil withdrawal. Waves of anxiety and nausea throughout the day and waking me up at night, and just overall feeling ready to cry or scream or both at the drop of a hat

2) I'm sick. Sore throat/fever/coughing etc... Like legit sick where I would love to stay home and rest but I can't because...

3) I'm on call. Thankfully not for the weekend, so I just have to drag myself through 2 more days, but the service is getting busier and busier. And literally each night I've been woken up by a call JUST as I've finally gotten to sleep and then am up for another hour.

4) The election was, of course, super stressful and I stayed up way way too late on a group chat while results came in and am swinging (still) wildly between optimism (so many house seats taken by an incredibly diverse group of women and men! but mostly women!) and despondency (if this election was really a "referendum on tr&mp" then this is not good news and man I'm sad that some of my absolute favorite candidates across the country just barely didn't make it). Underneath all of that though, I do feel a deep pride and inspiration in my friends near & far who put so much work in registering voters, canvassing, texting...I'm inspired to do more in the future.

5) Its just an overall unusually busy week. L was sick so we had to work around that on M/T (yes that's where I got it from). The kids had Tuesday off and half-days Wed/Thurs/Fri for report card conferences. I have to go to these conferences this evening---and then rush to meet friends for the first in a season of shows at a local theater we are going to see together. My parents came last night and while its helpful on the childcare front and I am very happen to see them, its still people in my house I have to feed & make plans for and...well, you know.

I really really hope I feel better by the weekend so we can take advantage of the babysitting and get out! And I've got a "work-cation" next week (work-related conference, but I'm staying with a friend and not planning to do too much work-work and just immerse myself in the conference)

Anyways. Off to round.

Some Sirius Fun

Bullet updates! Better late than never!

• We did run the race! In the cold & rain! L ran the 1.5 mile loop and B continued with me for the second loop and ran his first 5K in 33 minutes! I was so proud of him!
• And then we went straight into my new favorite way to socialize as a family: the boozy brunch playdate. We prepped this amazing casserole Friday night and popped it into the oven, set out fruit and salad and pancakes and the kids grazed and played for hours while the grownups had mimosas and chatted. 
• Sunday it was not raining, so I was inspired to put up the Halloween decorations and paint pumpkins---we did Harry Potter, Hedwig, and Platform 9 3/4. They were amazing and I will try to add pictures if I have time later. 
• I made two big pots of soup: this African peanut soup (I used kale instead of collards) and this curried cauliflower (I subbed lime for lemon zest, vermouth for wine and used chicken broth since we had it). Both were thick and hearty and made a full meal served over rice. 
• I've mentioned this before but I really love Halloween in our neighborhood. Its just...fun. Everything except the candy part. The weather was beautiful this year, in the 60s, and just getting outside and walking & seeing friends & neighbors was great. 
• G made B a BRILLIANT costume---he went as Sirius Black in the "wanted" poster---he created a whole foam board box, with lights, that he wore with shoulder straps and his face was in the middle (tough to explain...). I would say maybe 20% of people "got" it, but those that did were really impressed. L was jealous at the attention---he was a super cute Harry himself, and quite honestly made out like a bandit by being able to sneak in and grab candy from all the bowls, while B was hindered by the huge box around his body! I borrowed a robe, greased my hair, and put on a dark mark tattoo so I could be a very low-key Snape.
• I buckled down like a madwomen and analyzed data to create a poster that I ordered as custom fabric online. I HATE carrying a huge poster tube on the plane and I really wanted to try it, but the turnaround is slow and my poster is in 10 days. I am super proud of myself!
• Definitely not committing to writing daily this month but I AM trying to figure out a regular blogging schedule. I have thoughts and ideas I want to share, and I am missing this space.