Updates

It's been nearly two weeks since I posted and here's why.

On Thursday, April 21, hubby and I flew to New York. We arrived around 3:30 P.M. and my son and daughter-in-law picked us up from Laguardia. We then drove to their apartment to pick up the packed U-Haul. The plan was to park the car and U-Haul at the Hampton Inn Laguardia, where we would spend the first night, and have dinner in the city. Unfortunately, that plan didn't pan out.

The Hampton Inn Laguardia has a parking garage, which was one of the reasons I picked it. But after arriving at 4:30 P.M. we were told the garage would be full until a meeting let out at 9:00 P.M. What!?! We decided to just start driving home despite rush hour traffic.

After several hours of nail-biting traffic, we arrived at the Hampton Inn in Harrisburg, PA, for our first night. The next night we stayed in Columbus, OH, with plenty of time to enjoy an authentic German dinner at Schmidt Haus. Except for the first night reboot, it was a good trip. We don't care to do it again, but it really wasn't bad.

We returned home late afternoon Saturday, April 23, and have been busy ever since helping my son and daughter-in-law set up their new home. Within hours of arriving, Zuae bought a washer and dryer and we took a trip to Aldi. On Sunday, after hubby and I went to mass and the school district's art show, where both grandsons had a piece on display, we picked up a nursery glider I found on Craigslist. Then that evening my daughter hosted a barbecue.

On Tuesday we looked at a kitchen table and chairs I found on a Facebook virtual garage sale. Hubby and my son picked it up last night as well as a coffee table Zuae found on Craigslist. And yesterday afternoon, Zuae and I shopped Target, Aldi again, and Dollar Tree.

It's been busy, but I believe we're nearing the end. I'm most excited about an online Macy's order Zuae placed earlier this week. Zuae is a professional chef, trained in French cuisine at the International Culinary Center. And soon she'll have the tools she never had room for in their tiny New York apartment and all of us will be enjoying some amazing dishes.

Now that the couple is here and settled, I can focus more time on our upcoming trip to Eastern Europe. After months of planning and waiting, yesterday I picked up our travel documents and departure is now just a few weeks away. So excited!

This is the second year one
of Elliott's master pieces
was chosen for the district's
art show.

And now it appears we have
another artist in the family.
Our Kindergartener, Jonah,
also had a piece in the show!

Feeling More Like Myself

I've kept up with chores, cooking, laundry, workouts, and the grandsons' activities. I've also been able to do various tasks in setting up my son and daughter-in-law's new condo. But I've definitely not felt 100% for weeks until just a few days ago.

The biggest problem was fatigue. To the point I started analyzing all the vitamins, and the allergy OTC med (Mucenix), I take on a regular basis. Nothing stood out as a possible culprit. Besides I've been taking all of them for years with no adverse effects.

The other problems were a blocked tear duct, and a severally dried inner nostril and cuticles. And to add to the misery, my nails were going through their twice-a-year pealing. That alone drives me crazy and I've yet to figure out what causes it. The nail tech I use infrequently said it has to do with weather changes that occurred months earlier. Damage was caused to the nail at the cuticle area, but it's not noticeable until the nail grows out. That at least makes more sense than what I uncovered online all of which points to diet. My diet hasn't changed in years.

Anyway, all together these problems have been extremely frustrating, especially the fatigue. Then a few days ago, my sore inner eye improved and it appeared my nails had finally grown past the pealing point. And today my inner nostril is nearly completely healed. But most importantly, as of a couple of days ago, I feel my energy level is quickly getting back to normal.

I have no idea if all the health problems I've been having are related. And I have no idea why I was so tired. I'll probably never figure it out. I'm just glad to be feeling more like myself again.

Big Changes

In less than two weeks, my son and daughter-in-law will be living less than a 10-minute drive from our house. It's been 10 years since my son left his home town to teach English as a second language in Daejeon, South Korea, where he met and married Zuae. Five years ago they moved to New York. Daniel continued as an ESL teacher while also becoming a SAT tutor. And Zuae became a professional chef after graduating from the International Culinary Center.

Tired of New York and with a baby on the way, Daniel is finally ready to come home. All of us are excited but I'm also anxious. Daniel was a challenging child and teenager. Good but always going against the norm and making things harder than they needed to be. Honestly, the distance between us over the last ten years has greatly improved our relationship.

Yes, there's no doubt this move will be a test but I'm working hard at thinking positively. I'm looking forward to finally really getting to know my daughter-in-law. And I'm beyond excited to hold my first granddaughter. And I'm glad my grandsons will have more time with their Uncle Dan and Aunt Zuae than a long holiday weekend once a year.

Yep, big changes are coming. And it's all good. . .all good. . .all good.

Busy Month

Last Monday our home-improvement team arrived to work on our family room and hall. The family room is in the center of the house and was on hold while bedrooms, bathrooms, and the kitchen were updated over the last 10 years.

After a full week of work, we now have updated baseboards and new crown molding. The linen closet at the end of the hall now has a six-panel door instead of a bi-fold, which I've hated for years. And the attic fan is now history. But the most noticeable updates are the formerly golden oak mantel and staircase. Both are now black, making for a better visual flow from our white and black kitchen that opens into the family room. Tomorrow the walls will be painted (trim and ceiling were done last Friday); and the mantel and staircase will get a first coat of polyurethane.

During all the chaos, I've been held hostage in the kitchen when not at the gym, or indulging in a lunch out, or visiting stores I haven't been in for a very long time. Needless to say, I'm "chomping at the bit" to thoroughly clean and put our home back in order.

Thankfully, over the weekend we had a lot of distractions. On Saturday we had our bi-annual garage sale at my daughter's house to raise funds for MS research. (In case you don't know, or forgot, my son-in-law was diagnosed with MS eight years ago.) After emptying out my dad's basement at his request, we were able to raise $700, which my son-in-law's employer will match. And we'll continue to take monetary donations through the last day of the month.

During the garage sale, I escaped with Jonah, my six-year-old grandson, for his first t-ball practice. What a blast! I sure hope Jonah's enthusiasm continues. That boy is built for sports, especially running.

In between all of the above, my son and daughter-in-law took possession of a three-bedroom apartment five minutes from our house, which we've been prepping and stocking for their arrival April 23. For example, today hubby and I lined all the kitchen cabinets.

And there's still much more to come in April: end-of-school concert; MS Walk; Cardinal baseball game with the boys' school; and a trip to NYC to help move my son and daughter-in-law. And, when possible, there's still shopping and prepping to do for our trip to Europe in May.

Crazy busy, but super happy to be up for it all!