Grateful Friday

I'm grateful for time and energy and health.

I'm grateful for Adam.  He's had an incredible busy and intense several months.  It's a good thing he is the most even keeled person alive. Despite his natural sunny disposition, it is wearing on him but he. Is. A. Champion.  

I read an article in the Liahona recently about the challenges some couples face when confronted with the empty nest.  They find they have nothing in common.

Adam and I are going to be just fine as empty nesters.  We like being together.  A lot. 

I'm grateful.

I'm grateful for time with our kids.  Braeden called from Virginia yesterday to tell me all the National Parks posters he'd found.

I told him which ones we needed.  (Need, not want....)  We collect them at National Parks we visit but we don't have all the ones we've visited yet.  I chatted with Braeden for a little while.  I said, "I miss you!  This is what it will be like when you move to California and I don't like it."

He said, "I don't like it either."

Nevertheless.

It is good to talk/text with him.  He'll always be my boy.

Emma and Mark and I got the garage totally cleared out yesterday.  It was a feat!  Mark left partway through and Emma and I finished assembling bunk beds and moved lots of heavy boxes and stuff.  She is taking over what we affectionately call the bunk room (where the bunk beds are...it's a really subtle name) which is across the hall from her bedroom.  I decided to call it the West Wing (another really subtle name because guess which side of the house it is on?).  

As a reward for our labors, we decided to paint our nails and watch a movie in the evening.  We tried to decide between an actual good movie and a terrible movie because we love to watch terrible movies together and talk to the TV the entire time.  The movie we landed on was neither good nor terrible enough.

Halfway through, Mark texted that he was done with work but really sick.  He'd had a rough glucose level time starting the night before and then the house where they'd been moving was super dirty and he was super allergic.  I told Mark Emma and I would come and get him.

We decided it saved us from the dumb, but not dumb enough, movie.

Emma drove Mark's car home and Mark and I rode together.  He was 50% in pretty good spirits and 50% out of it.  We were almost home when out of the blue he said, "I think Mambo #5 should be included in the new hymnbook." 

Even when they don't feel all that well, my kids entertain me.

I'm grateful for my sisters.  They are doing most of the heavy lifting for the anniversary party for my parents (which is tonight). Along with my mom and dad, they have carried the mental burden of figuring it all out.  It's sort of the role Marianne was born to play, but I really appreciate them all the same.

I'm grateful for the opportunity this weekend to spend time with my siblings and their families, time with my parents and then as a bonus cherry on top, we are having a Dahl reunion on Saturday.  

I probably won't take enough pictures but Olivia will and I'm not afraid to steal hers.