Together again
Reunions after an absence are one of the most emotion laden times in life. Today I was musing on how these greetings are so often set against an inhospitable background such as a crowded airport. I mused on this while sitting in a noisy McDonald’s Playplace while waiting for my brother to arrive with Gleek. She arrived to interrupt my musing, all tanned and sun bleached and grinning. She hugged me tight and said “I missed you!” softly then she let go and dashed off to play. This left my brother and I to visit for awhile before we sorted out which kids were to return with him (his daughter and her friend) and which ones were to come with me (all of mine.) Gleek had a good adventure. She got to travel places with Grandma and Grandpa. She got to visit lava hot springs. She did crafts and acquired new shiny things. And she is very obviously glad to be home. We’re glad to have her.
With all of us here I found myself naturally planning snack and bedtime, which is something I haven’t done for weeks. It has me longing for a more stable routine. We’re halfway through the summer now. All of June was spent scrambling to meet business obligations. For the first time I can look ahead and think about the small things I can be doing to make sure that this summer is satisfactory for the kids. I called Link’s bestfriend who moved. There will be a get together with him sometime this week. There should also be some swimming that is not attached to swim lessons. There should be park trips. Beyond that, I need to sit down with the accounts and figure out what my budget is for summer fun. It would be nice to visit the local museums and zoos, but that can add up. Also, I need to not over schedule. I want to plan fun stuff with the kids, but there are business tasks yet to do.
Some day I’ll master the whole balancing life and work thing.