Holiday Weekend Wrap-Up: Memorial Day
Hello and welcome back NEO Homeschoolers!
How was your unofficial kick-off to summer? Our Memorial Day weekend was busy. From morning hikes and family meals out to belated Mother's Day celebrations and lazy days at home, this year's Memorial Day weekend was packed in my house and today, I want to share with you all what we did during the unofficial start of summer.
After a hectic week with late-day travel, VBS prep, playdates, and a bout with nausea for me, I was more than ready for the weekend by Friday afternoon. Thankfully, my hubby was a hero and finished up his workweek at 3 PM on Friday so he could come downstairs and help with Maureen because starting Thursday night, I'd been feeling nauseous on and off which led to a lot of TV time for Maureen... something I'm not proud of when it happens. As a mama, I'd much rather be actively engaged with my daughter, playing, learning, and exploring. TV feels like a lazy excuse of an activity to me and I prefer to try and avoid it as much as possible. Unfortunately, that's hard to do when you're not feeling well.
Anyway, after a low-key Friday evening, we started our Saturday with a trip to the library and some general straightening up around the house. Since Maureen had zero interest in helping with household chores, my hubby and I split up and I took care of chores such as dishes and laundry while my amazing hubby took Maureen to our local library for some Daddy-daughter playtime. Maureen loved being able to go to the library and explore the newly renovated children's section with Daddy... she kept Daddy busy!
Once our chores and library excursion were finished, it was time to get lunch and prep to drive to Nana and Grandpa's house -technically, we met at a Texas Roadhouse- for a belated Mother's Day celebration with my in-laws. Maureen was excited to see Nana and Grandpa, and enjoyed getting to play a little with her younger cousin, Xavier while we waited to be seated. The meal was delicious, and I loved the quality time with extended family. Ben's youngest brother and his wife are the closest auntie and uncle Maureen has, and their son, Xavier is only about 18 months younger than Maureen, so it's always fun to watch the two interact and try to figure each other out. Unfortunately, our Mother's Day dinner ended up lasting the better part of 2 hours -we met at around 4 and didn't finish until almost 6:30 PM- so there wasn't time for wiggles and playing, meaning Maureen went from sitting in the car for 2 hours to sitting at a restaurant for 2 hours back to sitting in the car for 2 hours. I felt bad for my sweet girl. 😦
Saturday ended with about 10 minutes of playtime for Maureen before a late, almost 9:30 PM bedtime. As usual, Sunday brought church and connection with our church fam. I was so ready for Sunday School on Sunday morning! It had been a long and tough week, and I was eager for the time with my sisters by heart, Quinn and Emma. Unfortunately, I was met by some unexpected news when I walked in.
Emma was in the elementary Sunday School room by herself, talking with one of the other volunteer teachers. Initially, I thought nothing of it that Quinn wasn't there, but then I overheard a snippet of the conversation Emma was having with the other teacher. Apparently, Quinn had ended up being taken to the hospital by her daughter after some pretty significant health issues during prep time that morning. My heart dropped as Emma relayed the story of what had happened. I knew almost immediately that Sunday School was going to be a challenge for me because my thoughts would be with Quinn, instead of on the kids. I also knew I'd be texting Quinn that afternoon to see how she was doing.
After service, Maureen got to play for a bit with one of her besties, Max, while I caught up with my friend (and Max's mom), Hilary. It was nice to catch up, and great to be able to laugh at our kids' antics. Unfortunately, I was once again left feeling concerned for a friend as Hilary told me she too is experiencing challenges with her health. I promised her prayers and after several hugs and standing offers of help should she and her husband need anything, we headed home to a low-key Sunday afternoon. It seemed that our hectic week caught up with all of us, because not only did we have a low-key Sunday afternoon, but we all slept in and felt tired on Monday.
We started Monday -Memorial Day- with an attempt at a morning hike, but Maureen's seeming exhaustion and moodiness quickly ended that plan. So, we headed back toward home and made a stop at Buffalo Wild Wings for lunch, planning to get Maureen down for a nap once we got home. Well, Maureen didn't nap. Instead, she watched about an hour of TV while my hubby and I both rested for a bit. After our quiet time, we spent much of the rest of Monday outdoors, enjoying the gorgeous springtime weather. By the end of the day, all 3 of us were tired and ready for a good night's sleep. I crashed early and hard Monday night, and still ended up feeling tired on Tuesday by about 2 PM, haha. Regardless, it was wonderful to have a 3-day weekend with my family. I loved getting to spend time outdoors and really enjoyed connecting with extended family. Now, it's time for a 4-day work-week and loads of preparations for my sweet girl's 3rd birthday!! 🤩
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