the sweet spot

I'm in a familiar space...in the sweet spot.  I've spent alot of time this year taking and talking about "time off' of travels and plans.  But today I packed my bags, kid bags and dog bags and lined them up by the door.  The plan is to get up and go tomorrow.  We haven't been on a road trip in two months, has to be a record for us.  And this one is super duper sweet because I get to see my husband, hug my parents and sleep in our new house.  It isn't going to be exactly as I envisioned it.  It will be better.  It will be piles of love under one roof, working and living together to plan the future.  Just thinking about it makes me feel strong, makes me proud of my family.


"Suck it up and get it done."  That's what my Dad said last week on the local news (so proud of him all the time) and that is exactly what we will do.  It's just...how we roll.


So yeah, this feels a little monumental, like another step out of the funk and back into the world.  The play lists are cued up, road snacks packed, movies ready to go.  Toss on some comfy clothes and hit the open road.


I know I've typed that before and it feels awesome to type it again.  I've never been one to complain about the long haul to my family.  I really do believe that getting there is half the fun.  Even though the roads to SD are well worn and not full of surprises, I find comfort in every landmark that tells me we are that much closer to home.   I love stopping at the same places to eat the one favorite item only they make or to stop and use the best bathrooms.  I can even tell you which truck stop has the warmest bathrooms in the winter.  I'm the walking road trip to South Dakota survival guide right here.


Big trip tomorrow:)


Big trip a couple of weeks ago.  To Dragonfly Bay.

A weekend rental on the lake with an extra "party room" building.  A big house, party room with a piano and video games, docks to fish from, hiking trails, hot tub, message bed and sauna.  A gift of relaxation for an extended family that has taken quite a beating this year.  A time just for us and our babies to welcome spring and summer in with lazy mornings and completely unplanned days.  Work forbidden, points ignored, make up optional, belly laughs required.






The girls each brought a friend. This is their first traveling sleep over with friends, what a fantastic gift from the best Uncle ever. I spent so much time just watching them, realizing that they would remember this weekend forever. I remember the first weekends I spent away from home with friends in the summer, how free it felt to sleep in a new place, to have no rules about bedtime or a wake up call. I was keenly aware of making sure they got the whole experience, that this would be the benchmark for a weekend at the lake.




There are so many things people try to tell you about being a parent before you are one. And when you are pregnant it's all about the sleep deprivation jokes and warnings about how fast they grow up. But no one tells you how funny your kids will be and how someday after poopie diapers and night terrors, you will want to hang out with them. They will become people who's opinions you respect and who's style floors you.


And our girls have such fantastic friends, who dip a toe in the nerd pool and upon finding it pretty warm and cozy in our family...don't hesitate to jump right in. They contributed desserts and babysitting, dance recitals during our talent show. They take hugs and give them right back, it felt like we just lucked into the best biggest family ever.








The weekend activities flowed organically, inspired by a sight or sound, a quiet moment, the presence of the lake and the absence of any "have tos."

What I did on Memorial Weekend...by fricka:

I had sunrise breakfast every morning with my baby boy, just the two of us early birds.


I laughed until I peed at the monkeys for the monkeys. My mom sent fun stuffs for the babies ahead of time and they got to open them the first morning. It is a shame we lose the ability to get this excited about a stuffed monkey.


Or warm bubbly water...


I kicked off my shoes and put my feet up. Let slippery cold mud coat them, cool green grass scrub them "clean" and the warm sunshine bake them toasty warm.

The little feet did that too.

I also just took it all in. Quietly soaking it all up, letting it fill my heart.

Who is the absolute coolest Uncle ever?  I think you know the answer.

Nature makes city babies sleepy.

Yes, we will remember this weekend for a long time.









My favorite moment? It's hard to say. They Murder Mystery dinner set a high benchmark. So cool it will get it's own little blog post in a moment:)


But I let me show you one that may take the title.


My baby girl has had the fishing bug for as long as I can remember. She loves to fish, the peacefulness of it, it calms her very busy soul. And as I stood on a hill, getting ready for a hike, I looked down to see her bathed in fishing peace.


They were not talking, there was no noise, just the two of them quietly fishing.


And catching fish:)




We are a family that loves traditions.  As us "kids" get older we have begun to establish new ones, like the "parting shot."  A snapshot to commemorate that these people were here together for a time...and are joyful because of it.


Dragonfly Bay 2011 Baby! WOOT!

Cleaning up after the Frog Princess

When I woke from my 60 day couch coma, I was confronted with this:





For most of the time I was checked out, I assumed my little clan was cruising along on cleaning autopilot, staying on top of potential disasters. I belong to the "nip it in the bud" school of thought when it comes to cleaning and believed I had sent my entire family to this same school. What is the saying?  "never assume..."  In reality they belong more to the "wait until it becomes a problem" cleaning school.  


Also, it never dawned on me that all the couch cuddling I was demanding was taking away from not just my productivity, but theirs as well. I guess I thought that after I passed out at 9pm, they were meeting in the kitchen and dutifully executing house work. And to be fair, they must have been a little, because the well worn path I took from door, to desk, to kitchen and finally couch looked pretty good. Clearly they know my hot spots and took great care to make sure I didn't have to stress about what I could easily see. But the rest of the house...


I could have taken similar photos of any room off the beat and path. And the laundry...oh my stars. The only way I can ensure not cussing a blue streak when discussing the laundry is to go totally poly anna and throw out things like "oh my stars."


In typical type A fashion, I decided the house in shambles had presented us with some great opportunities, teaching moments if you will.  Don't you wish your mom/wife was an HR professional?  In the mess, there were lessons to be learned about:

• Team building
• Organization
• Giving to others via donating...lots and lots of donating
• Time management
• Sanitation (gag)
• Food safety (double super gag...I'm not sure what it was)
• Patience
• Humility
• Kindness...wait...what?

Turns out when your family is trying their hardest to manage a household in the manner you would, it's not very kind to point out every moment they fall short of the glory. It's not very patient to skip over all the things they did do... to point out what they did not. And it takes a great deal of humility to return to your house after walking out in a huff, to hug your husband and say "I love you" and acknowledge that his priorities do not need to mirror yours.  And that even though it may not be my cleaning style, he and the girls did give it a shot:) 


I thought I was "back." I was.. only like the Terminator "I'm back", not the good kind. The terminator wasn't in control for very long, but while it was...EEEEK!  It's hard to admit you are wrong, especially when you are sort of right. But as hard as it may be, I know when I'm wrong and I needed put on my big girl pants and let the girls see an adult apologize, sincerely apologize. So I did and they responded with smiles and new found enthusiasm for getting our home back in order.   We are one week strong with no laundry piled up, tidy (ish) tween bedrooms and floors not adorned with "dog hair" throw rugs:)  NOW I'm back, with the good stuff. 


BONUS to cleaning up 2 months worth of randomly discarded stuff? You can find treasures.   Like the heartfelt poetry of a 10 year old frog princess (I've translated on the right for those of you who don't happen to speak 5th grade spelling very well)



Little miss Annika has a fairly wicked case of dyslexia, so for a very long time she hated reading and writing and flat out refused to even attempt either.  Grammy pants introduced her to Dick and Jane books and pretty bags of books with cool lights and kitty cat book marks...and her whole world changed.  I tried to make it intellectual, Grandma made it awesome.  And look at her now, a poet.


And an artist.

I'm dying for this to be me!!  I need spring and grass and to run around in my favorite skirts and apron with ugly gardening shoes...and a flower in my hand.  

Now instead of begging her to throw away old notebooks, I'm begging her to let me page through them for more treasures, more soul soothing words of wisdom from my Frog Princess.


Other little tidbits of yumminess:


Baby boy...in boy blue...eating blue berries for breakfast.








Watching Annika interview my Dad over the interwebs.





Stolen moments on the kitchen floor after dinner clean up.  Nerf gun = boys bonding.






Stolen moments on the dinning room floor after monster cookies.  Sugar rush + Cars = fun with sisters.



I'm planning some pretty fantastic stolen moments for this weekend!  Some spontaneous, craaazy moments beginning with...skipping work today:P  More to come. In the meantime, you should do something spontaneous and unpredictable today too...it's Friday!


* After posting edit...whatever you do on this blessed Friday, please squeeze in some prayer for the people of Japan.  If not prayer, then whatever you do to throw positive, healing energy out into the universe:)