"The Fastest Summer of All Time"--
it has flown by.
The yahoos go back to school August 19th
and here we are at the end of July.
Usually, by this time of summer,
I have. had. it.
I am ready to send all of the yahoos
on a long boat to China.
This summer has been different, however,
because I am down to having just two kids
at home.
Two.
TWO!
I could do two kids, drunk.
I could take a Benadryl and still care for two
that's how easily two kids are for me.
Yes, they squabble.
Yes, they leave their breakfast bowls on the table
and glasses of orange juice with an inch of backwash in them
on the counter.
But it's two, people.
I got this.
What's been funny is what we discovered
since Dara has left for Alaska--
when there's three yahoos around,
the "blame game" is alive and well.
But down to two,
hey, there's not alot of wiggle room
for finger pointing.
ON the other hand,
when a yahoo leaves the nest,
it becomes amazingly clear the impact
on the house that one person has in the dynamics
of family life.
For example,
when our oldest, David Scott was home,
we had to buy five gallons of milk a week.
He said he didn't really drink that much milk.
It wasn't him.
When he left for his mission,
we suddenly had extra milk in the fridge--
so we cut our milk order down to two gallons a week.
So, yeah, that was a difference.
When Danielle left for her mission to New Jersey,
our heating bill went down twenty five dollars a month--
girlfriend used to take long hot showers every day
until there was none left.
She balked when we told her it was expensive to do that,
but when she left the house,
well, the bill said it all.
When Dean left our house,
I stopped sleeping peacefully.
Having a special needs son out in the world,
has it's own unique worries.
That's another post for another time.
Our Nana left for Provo a couple of years ago,
and all that meant was less drama.
And mashed potatoes,
as she is the only one I really made them for.
Dara has been gone a week--
I'm convinced my blood pressure has stabilized.
She is very good at being eighteen.
She announced her age many many times:
"I'm eighteen!"
"I'm eighteen!"
She'd declare when it suited her fancy.
And on my end was no shortage of the same declaration:
"You're eighteen! For cryin' out loud! Eighteen!"
It was the perfect time for her to go off on her Big Alaskan Adventure,
to test all of her eighteen-years-old-knowledge.
So far, she hasn't called much
except to tell me she had fifteen dollars in her bank account--
when she should have had a bit more than that.
Also, a FB message that said she has to get up two hours early
to get up for work--
she has to catch a bus, an hour before she has to be there.
Now, this girl is not a morning person.
Refused to be a morning person when she lived at home--
and she is up by 6:45am...
she cannot run upstairs with ten minutes to spare,
exasperated, "We have to go NOW, Mom!"
Which unraveled me to the bone.
She's shared that she has had a few mornings where she's had to RUN
to the bus stop,
that is downhill from where she is,
and then had to turn around and run back UPHILL to the apartment
fetching something forgotten,
and then run back to the bus stop!
Ha! Yes! The Lessons of Life are at her eighteen year old feet!
I love it.
She won't forget these lessons of Independence, will she?!
My girl used to say she hated doing dishes so much,
that when she moved out
she would only eat off paper products
and try with all her might
to never have a dirty pot to wash.
"How's that going?" I asked her.
"Um. Yeah. haha. I do my own dishes. And cook." she answered--recognizing the reality.
So our girl is learning things away from home
on a fast track to maturity.
She's paying her own bills, for her own food,
for her own fun.
I did put $50 of her own money from a savings account
into her checking yesterday to get her to her first payday tomorrow,
but she knows that money is for college and I'm protecting that for her.
She is happily living away from home,
meeting loads of new people--
going to church, young adult activities, Institute,
and she even had the sister missionaries over for breakfast--
she made them crepes!
It is comforting to see that she's doing good and being good.
So summer is nearly over.
I've been so busy with work and staging homes,
that we haven't done much else.
Joseph went to Camp Alexander Scout Camp for a week--
he took the kayaking and mountain bike merit badge courses--
which means he did alot of this everyday
Joseph is the tallest boy on the far left.
Ari went to Girls Camp in Rye, Colorado and had a great time.
But we haven't done anything as a family yet...but a camping trip is coming up next weekend and I am so looking forward to it, even if it's just Kent and I and the youngest two. It'll still be good to get up in the mountains and breathe those in...
Dean is at a Lions Camp for Special needs young adults this week. I got an email from the Director that said he's having a great time and that fills my heart with gratitude.
Okay, time to make the donuts...hope you're all having a great summer. It'll be over before we know it.
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