Wednesday Whines: A New Routine

 As busy and sometimes stressful as our September-June schedule has been, I am sad to bid it farewell. We have our routine down pat. I can menu plan with my eyes closed because I know who will be where when. The rhythms are predictable and enjoyable. I know when I have to do each tiny little step of my morning routine to get out the door on time-- everything is just so easy.

Even the things I thought would suck have been great-- unexpected little fun spots, actually. Like, for example, Dorothy's lone Tuesday night dance class-- her tap company class, so not easily skippable. Not enough time to drop her off, go home, and go back (we'd be home for less than 20 minutes), but awkwardly long to stay. Except it wasn't! Because I would read a book, and Minnie would play so happily with a bunch of 8 year-olds on a break before their acro or musical theater classes. Or Friday night ballet team which seemed like a drag but again provided me a quiet 75 minutes to close out work for the week or rad a book and a break from dinner planning and making and general house stuff, which I needed after Ben being out for a few days mid-week. Driving Dorothy and Coop to school in bad weather was a blast because we did it infrequently enough to make it a treat (coffee or snacks or donuts). I loved my long Mondays watching Cooper dive. Even the Tuesday and Wednesday nights that Ben was out of town were great because Jack was home to watch TV with me- we had lovely, relaxing nights and shared shows and snacks.

But now! We are looking at all new routines. AND THEY ARE COMPLICATED. My Google calendar is a MESS. And my paper monthly cal is EVEN WORSE. SO bad I might just start over.

The first week of this month is our last "normal" week, but even that one isn't because I am done with school and working on summer projects, and Harry is barely working any hours because the pool is only open from 4-8, and he is a manager not a guard (and yes, his dad and I told him this might be an issue, but did he listen? I WILL GIVE YOU ONE GUESS). Then the next week has no dance (yay!) but normal dive and only 3 days of school (2 if you are Minnie). The following week, Cooper has an abnormal club dive schedule (1:30-4) and jumps into his summer dive and swim schedule. Meanwhile, Jack goes to Des Moines, and Dorothy and I head to Charleston. When we get home, we have Dorothy's first week of dance, plus she will join the swim/dive stuff. But! Coop is still on a weird club dive schedule, and we leave Thursday of that week for Cleveland. We won't start our "standard" summer schedule until June 30!

On July 31, everything changes again because USA diving nats os done, and Cooper's club takes a break. Summer dive league is also over. Dorothy finishes summer dance on August 14. But then! I start welcome week just 7 short days later and right after that, Harry goes back to school, and then the pool closes and school starts again. Gah!

Before you know it, I will be complaining about the fall.

I gave away the swing set Minnie never plays with by posting it on FB marketplace. A lovely couple came over with their own tools and a trailer and took it off our hands almost immediately.

She does not care at all.

Morning coffee outside, RIP linden tree that blew down a year ago this week but gifted us nice end tables.

IT IS FIRE SEASON, and I have s'mores supplies on the regular shopping list.

 

June Goals

 Thanks for the sleep advice! I am going to do B6 in the AM (I do not take this every night, so I don't think it will be the magic bullet, but maybe) and move everything else a little earlier. I also need to be better at reading or journaling for a bit when I start to get stressed in the middle of the night. Like the other night, I fell asleep perfectly in my own bed but then woke up (probably from my own snoring) and got super anxious. That would have been a GREAT time to read a few pages of a book or use a journal or do a Calm app meditation. Instead I just laid there and got freaked out.

1. Visit 2 restaurants to catch up-- this should be NO PROBLEM since we have a couple little kid sports travel things in new cities. I might even get ahead and settle back into my eating rut for July.

2. Bake! Even though I am not eating sweets (can I just say I feel GREAT not eating sweets?!!? It's wild)

3. Make peace with my sleep. 

4. Do a strength workout 5 days a week and do cardio all 7 days-- including when we travel

5. BE A FUN SUMMER MOM. This does not come naturally to me, but I will only have ONE PARTIAL WEEK of our summer schedule to slog though in June (school gets out the 10th and we spend the whole next week in Charleston and then go to Cleveland at the end of the next week), so I KNOW I CAN DO THIS.

6. Write every day. I got sidetracked with my job dramz in February and then the world falling apart in January and gave up. NO MORE!

How about some pictures of my current mundanity, yes?

Got a mammogram and got the (all clear) results back within hours. Sometimes my HMO knocks it out of the park.

I figured out that I can wear my weighted vest no problem as long as I walk outside with the world's best posture.

For some reason this year, dance pictures were very stressful for Dorothy (honestly I have no idea why) which meant they were stressful for me, too. But Minnie's! WERE SO CUTE! (Also, we had them spread out over 3 days, and they kind of ate up the whole week).

Posting all of these pictures reminds me of another June goal: I want to stop consuming social media but I also want to post a cute snap every day to IG-- a 30 day project. Hopefully I can do that without losing track and getting behind, which is what always happens to me when I try to do 100 days.

May: What I Read

May was a great reading month for me!

I was really happy to read more with my eyes than my ears, and I am glad a Kindle book made it in. I might try reading more of these at the pool...

I read 21 books this month, and here they are from worst to best:

OK reads

Fractured Fairy Tales by A.J. Jacobs: I read this to help Jack cut a storytelling piece for nationals, and it was super cute. 

The New Menopause by Mary Claire Haver: Women of a certain age should read this. I am turned off by the author's supplement business, which felt kind of MLM-y to me, but otherwise this was great. 

The Galveston Diet by Mary Claire Haver: LOVED THIS and am trying to follow it. It has been hard for me to eat enough fat (old habits die hard) to get the macros right, but I am working on it.

People of Means by Nancy Johnson: This was just OK for me-- a story about a mom's college activist years and then her daughter's. **2025

Good reads

My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult: LOVED IT.

The Death of Mrs. Westaway by Ruth Ware: Another backlist gem. **audio

Society of Lies  by Lauren Ling Brown: A good but not great thriller.

The Griffin Sisters' Greatest Hits by Jennifer Weiner: An enjoyable summer book. **2025

Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers by Mary Roach: This is wild, and you should read it.

A Well-Trained Wife by Tia Levings: About a blogger's escape from Christian patriarchy and her abusive marriage-- riveting. **audio

Saltwater by Katy Hays: I expected to love this thriller but I only just sort of liked it. **2025

Liquid: A Love Story by Mariam Rahmani: This is funny and sad and quirky and sweet. I love any book that tears down academia. **2025

Great reads

Finlay Donovan Digs Her Own Grave by Elle Cosimano: This was ADORABLE. This series has had some ups and downs, but book 5 might be my favorite. **2025 **Audio

One Golden Summer by Carley Fortune: A May 2025 book! This is a sort of sequel to her Every Summer After but features Charlie's story (although you do catch up with Sam and Percy). Loved it. **2025 **Audio

Andromeda by Therese Bohman: So sad and spare. **2025

Early Thirties by Josh Duboff: I loved this breezy, chatty book about friends in the surprisingly small NYC media scene. It reminded me of being young and the sense of possibility that entailed. **2025 **Audio

The Third Gilmore Girl by Kelly Bishop: She reads this herself-- you gotta listen! **Audio

BOTY contenders 

Sunrise on the Reaping by Suzanne Collins: SO GOOD YOU GUYS I LOVED IT. **2025 **Audio

The Favorites by Layne Fargo: OH YESSSSSS-- this is about Olympic ice dancers, and it has been optioned by Netflix... **2025 **Audio

Every Tom, Dick &Harry by Elinor Lipman: I adore this author, and this book was as delightful as I hoped it would be. **2025 **Kindle!!

The Bright Years by Sarah Damoff: A May 2025 book! And maybe the best book I have read this year. It's a story of a couple through their marriage told form their perspectives as well as their daughter's. I cried at the end even though I was poolside. **2025 

STATS

BTM 21

Book books: 12

Kindle books 1

Audio books 8

2025 books: 12

BTY 87

Book books: 49

Kindle books: 3

Audio books: 35

2025 books: 44

5 on a Friday: Complaints, I have a few

 1. My sleep is MUCH BETTER you guys. But it is still not great, and I have been sleeping at least part of every night on the couch in the living room, which is fine, but feels illegitimate to me. And the night Coop and Ben came home from NC, I knew they were getting in at midnight, and they planned to just come in downstairs and stay there. Ben took a shower and slept on the basement couch. But! I was still awake! Because I am dealing with major sleep anxiety and was worried that they would wake me up! Only I felt bad being awake when they were trying to be so considerate, etc etc. And now I am all nervous about my sleep again and sleeping badly. GAH. 

Here's what I am doing every night to trick myself into not noticing I am going to bed, thus bypassing anxiety: 

1. Magnesium powder at around 8:30/9

2. Shower at 9-9:30 and take b6 and also progesterone

3. 9:45/10: retire to the couch with sleepy time horchata tea, my book and book light and glasses, my favorite blankie. Doze while we watch West Wing or Hacks

4. 11-ish: Jack and the dog go to bed. I watch Getting On or Etoile and doze some more. In a moment of semi-lucidity, I take some melatonin and go to bed in my room between 12-1.

2. I can't deal with an alarm right now, so I find myself waking up around 6:30 or 7 when Minnie gets up. This sucks because I used to be asleep by 10 and up by 5. Now I am missing a good 90 minutes in the morning, meaning I don't exercise or walk the dog until much later, and I really need that time back. Baby steps, I guess.

3.  Annabel and I got dive bombed by a red winged black bird on our walk-- it TOUCHED MY NECK with its gross wings, and hearing it approach was creepy and terrible. I think it would have pecked at me if I had not turned around and run away as fast as I could. Apparently, they are very aggressive when nesting, and if you have to walk by their nests, you should wear a hat to protect your head and MAKE EYE CONTACT. WHAT THE HELL.

4. Hot weather is coming my way. The first few days of June are supposed to be in the NINETIES. I hate that. I'll soon be complaining about our air conditioner and how it cant make my house 66 degrees. (That's something else making me anxious about sleep-- I keep thinking WHY ARE YOU AWAKE NOW WHEN THE SLEEPING WEATHER IS PERFECT)

5. I have SO MUCH WORK to do right now and VERY FEW JUNE WORK DAYS. (I took Shu's advice and color coded my June calendar to see what I am dealing with, and it is only 4 work days and 3 work mornings-- YIKES). Plus I put all of the kids' things on the calendar and almost threw up. Buckle up, I guess, because summer looks wild. 

At least I am delighting in rainbow breakfasts at 10 am, especially sweet after a 16-hour fasting window

cooooooop!

 While the rest of the family loafed at the pool, Ben and Cooper flew to Charlotte, NC, for the AAU Red-White-Blue Diving Championships. Technically, Cooper only qualified in 3 meter and platform, but he got a call up in 1 meter (he finished 8th at the qualifier, and only the top 6 make it to nationals, but lucky for him, 2 boys ahead of him couldn't go), so he competed in all 3 events.

He placed 14th in 1-meter, just out of the top 12 medal race.

Then the next day, he came back to place 6th in platform. 6th! At nationals! Competing in the 14/15 age group even though he is a tiny little 13 (dive uses your bday by the end of the calendar year, so the later birth month kids are kind of screwed).

He finished out the meet placing 7th (by.4 points!) in 3 meter.

Ben was an excellent sports dad and made sure to join in on all the team fun (Top Golf, escape rom, dinners out, sand volleyball for the kids, etc)-- I am going to  follow this example at dance nationals next month.

Next for Coop is one more national qualifier (USA Diving Zones) and a chance to compete at the USA Diving Junior National Championships is Mission Viejo in July. CROSS YOUR FINGERS.

(Yes there are at least 4 diving nationals: YMCA Swimming and Diving (our club does not compete on this circuit); AAU National Championships (this is something you can qualify for based on a score at a regular season meet. Cooper is qualified, but his club favors RWB and USA Diving); AAU Red White Blue National Championships (the one he went to, slightly more prestigious because you have to place 6th or better at a qualifying meet), and USA Diving Junior National Championships (this is the top tier event).)

What's really cool about AAU is that their have a national team that even winners make, and that team travels all over the world. Coop would love to make that team someday (USA has one, too, and ditto). 

He competes 9 dives per event, but here are a couple faves from last weekend.

Platform:

3 meter:

poooooooool!

In Madison, country club and pool and tennis club pools open on the Saturday of Memorial Day weekend, and the girls and I were READY, even though it was a cool 60 degrees all weekend.

Minnie and I shopped for pool bag essentials after preschool on Friday

And we were there when doors opened on Saturday

I sat on my chair fully clothes (long sleeves, even) and read the book that made NGS and J HATE Jodi Picoult. I loved the book, surprise ending and all and remain a Picoult stan.

SO COLD. I cannot overstate that.

We were back for round 2 the next day sans Dorothy who went to a pool across town with a friend. I remained fully clothed and on my chair, and I read another book!

Minnie was WIPED OUT after, and we found out on Tuesday that she actually has strep-- ooooops.

Monday, the bog boys joined us because neither of them was working, and we ate garbage pool dinner (well, they did. I am doing NO SUGAR and anti-inflammatory, so I had a chopped mediterranean salad no cheese, no dressing, add chicken-- so basically lettuce, red onion, green pepper, cucumbers, and black olives with grilled chicken on top).

I also read my third book of the pool season, and this one was EXCELLENT.

IT WAS SO COLD ALL WEEKEND, but that's exactly the way I like it, especially with these freaking hot flashes.

I can't wait for a summer full of days exactly like this one (with about 100% less strep).

 

Thursday Randomosity

 Annabel got a new bed:

YOU BET I bought this dress even though it's a teeny bit big on top. It's a swishy, nightgown-y dream, and I love it.

Dorothy had fancy dance pics-- can't wait to see the edited versions.

She was really feeling her outfit, hair, and make up (I did threaten to not buy the pictures if she put on anymore foundation or orange blush because I am the best mom ever, obvs)

Harry has already set up his room for summer **dead hesk*

He brought home this stolen stuffed raccoon from the 1970s It was stolen in the 1970s, and now the speech team passes it down to a freshman every year. He is supposed to add some flair before he takes in back to school. Neat.

Never forget that make-your-own pizza is an activity AND a dinner.

TAP CLASS. It's so cute.

Tape for the estrogen patch just in case, and a book I liked so much I also bought her other one.

Sometimes you gotta run to Crumbl after school, you know??