Nutty as a Fruitcake

Our favorite road trip pic

Happy birthday Syd! - June 19

Where I am writing right now is in front of a very large mirror.  I am not sure how I feel about that.  I see that my newly waxed eyebrows and covered-up gray hair are looking quite... hmm, well, to be honest, fresh.  And I kind of like it.  Today, I am a new age.  34.  And all in one day, my mom colored my hair and she sent me in for an eyebrow wax, facial, and pedicure.  All in one day I say.  My body is a bit shocked.  And I’ve got this cute new red zip-up sweatshirt that Jayson got me... I guess I am just ready.  Ready for this 34th year.  Ready for... well, I don’t know.  We’ve got jobs, home, schools, neighborhood, health insurance, pediatricians...  all to be filled in.  And my new eyebrows and red sweatshirt are ready.

When I last left you, we were packing up to go on a road trip.  Rockford, Chicago, St. Louis, Nashville, Wisconsin Dells, and back to Bemidji.  It was quite the trip.  We covered some sweet mileage and spent time with very great friends and family along the way.  I am going to attempt something very challenging for me, but because I am 34 now, I am going to do just do it.  And my vacuumed out facial pores are going to help me.  I am going to sum up each stop in two sentences.  

Rockford (where Jayson was born): Jayson’s mom hung out with the kids while we went into Chicago for the weekend - she is a total rock star.  Loved seeing Jayson’s grandpa (Mor Far) and other aunts, uncles, and cousins.

Chicago: Talked for two straight days with our friends/mentors about our time in India, current status, and what’s to come.  We walked out of that weekend with a better understanding of why we are as nutty as a fruitcake currently and started the process of healing - we are so appreciative of them.

St. Louis:  Had great fun with Jayson’s sister and her family (we give a shout out to Denver, our newest nephew, born June 12) and Jayson’s folks.  I loved watching the cousins and adults get back into the groove like no time has past. 

Fun with the cousins in St. Louis

 

Nashville:  Who knew Tennessee was two states away from Florida (we got pretty south)? Spent a very merry weekend with Jayson’s other sister and husband, trying to catch a glimpse of their world, and loving it.

Wisconsin Dells:  This was an 18 hour pit stop - the half way point between Nashville and Bemidji.  It turned out to be a wonderfully fun and needed time for the Palm Six to just be us.

I did it, two sentences each, but I totally wiggled around with the parenthesis, commas, and hyphens.  Yikes.  We were on the road for a total of 40 hours, the same amount of time it took us to get back from India.  The kids asked if we can withhold a bit from the 40-hour-block traveling in the near future.

A few days after we got back to Bemidji we did take another long weekend down to Minneapolis/Owatonna for a few family showers and a graduation.  Again, it’s great to reconnect with family.  We also spent a few days with Sarah, David, and kids.  The kids were a bit beside themselves that we have been in the States and hadn’t seen the Landt kids.  We’ve missed them.

I am not quite sure what to say about our current status, folks.  I do know that change takes courage.  And we are in a whole lot of change.  Not just change, but recovery as well.  Some days I feel like change is for the birds, other days I have a bit more gumption. Soon, I will start sharing in more detail... but for now, this is all I got.