....well I certainly did not mean to be away from this blog for so long, but after two weeks of a full house, we moved right into Stefan's staycation......every night, we would enjoy dinner together if we had not eaten with the kids and would cozy up on the couch for a movie or sit together in our newly furnished three season room and devour our books......other nights we watched the sun set from our cozy backyard and made more plans for future house projects or simply enjoyed easy conversation that comes with almost nine years of marriage......
.....and his beard makes him look so yummy that I have begged him to keep it one more day before shaving and heading back to corporate America on Monday......
......I could not.....did not want to pull myself away from him at night time after the kids were asleep......so, blog, you took a back seat......
.....it has been so good to have him around the house and I fought the urge to give him too many honey dos, but I could not resist completely.......
.....agh....the wallpaper project......
....more on that to come......
.....we took a week at home and then we drove out to Long Island and rented a beach house for the second week.....it was our first family only vacation since Elsie was 9 months old.....our trips during the year are usually full of planes, rental cars and lots of family........and although we missed making trips to our home states this summer, we also learned the value of spending time with our children on our own turf......
.....I also learned that as a momma running the household along with carpooling the kids, making meals, cleaning up the house, folding laundry and all of the other minor tasks that end up to being a full days' work of being a stay at home mom, I needed the off time with my children too......sure there were still diapers to change and messes to wipe up, but we had no schedule......we were all together......and there was a relaxed vibe that isn't present in normal day life........it isn't present during trips to faraway places, either.....it is just the ability to be still, to watch a little more closely, listen a bit more intently......
......we were able to share moments with one another as an intimate little family of five and I truly cherished and savored the time we had to close out our summer......I feel like in between my moments of reading a book, rocking in a hammock or swimming with the kids in the middle of the day; I could really watch and observe them.....meals were easy, bedtimes were not set and we let the day's activities lead us instead of letting a routine take charge......
.......I saw many sweet moments of how they interact with each other and with us.......I took the time to examine every detail about what makes them unique.......I watched them sleep, noticed more of life's moments that make them laugh and stretched out every conversation with each of them......
.....we enjoyed the beauty of our surroundings whether it was the Long Island sound, Yankee stadium, our own backyard, the view from the moon roof on the water ferry or an island we hadn't explored......
....we ate lobster rolls, seafood chowders, crab cakes, scallop salads, steamed mussels, tuna steaks and fish sticks.....and if it hadn't been for me growing a baby, I would have added raw oysters to the list too.....
....we found old friends that retreated to the same place as us to break away from the city's concrete, the craziness of life and to slow down their pace too.....
.....we inhaled our 14 days of togetherness, let it absorb throughout every cell of our body and as we exhale on our last weekend of relaxed unity; we are a refreshed, bonded family ready to capture the excitement that lies ahead this fall......
.....not to cut you short, blog.....but I have one more Saturday night of Stefan's two week staycation and our sitter arrives at 5pm.....we are capping off our time the way our family began.....just the two of us......
.....we need to get an early start so that tomorrow can focus on our soon to be Kindergartener who starts on Monday......gulp.....cheer......joy.......gulp.......
.....happy Saturday.....
.....more posts to come on all of the fun times we have had with summer visitors and a returning sponsor......
.....hope you find a moment of true peace....
