Procrastination

     I'm not feeling overly inspired to write since the kids and I are no more prepared for the NJ trip than we were two weeks ago...woops. Maya and Ethan both came down with the flu last week or so and recovered rather quickly, but now Maya has had a relapse. At points over the weekend she was unable to sit up, feed herself and sadly, unable to walk. Her temperature spiked to a 103 periodically and I felt like all I was doing was pumping her up with meds. For the first bout, the doctor recommended Tamiflu, which is $230 a pop. It is a virus inhibitor...don't waste your time. The potential risks, IMO, are not worth taking for shaving only one day off the life of the flu course.

     I have been drinking Kombucha everyday and adding it to Maya's green smoothies. After drinking the smoothies, she is more energetic and wants to play with her toys. Today she hasn't been as bad as she was over the weekend and her fever is much lower, sometimes not even there.  She drank her smoothie this morning after having her honey coconut oats and within one hour, I was telling her to stop jumping on her bed. Her little face is still pale and she rests between energy bursts, but it has been a gradual improvement.

     Today I really must buckle down and get the bags packed and tie up all the loose ends. The laundry pile is relentless and the house is screaming for one last deep clean of the season. My car is road-ready, the yard is prepped (mostly), the animals are caught up on their vet visits and I think I have managed to set aside time for the VIP's in my KY life. Gonna miss all of you for the next several weeks, but looking forward to seeing everyone mid-July. Normally, we come back with less than a week to spare before the start of the school year, but this year we want to spend Art's birthday with him on July 15th.

     When we arrive in NJ, Thursday night, I look forward to a nice relaxing chat with my parents and sister. Once settled in, Dad and I will start working on some major projects like garden planting, tile flooring, re-lining the pool and workshop organizing. During that time, Ethan and I will be training for our hiking excursion by trail running and walking with our packs on to adapt to the weight of all the gear. I have been running for the past couple of months and hiking throughout the entire year, but have to admit, not as consistently as needed. Tonight I am going to lay out all of the gear, assess what we have, need and can cut from the list. My guess is that in addition to the estimated 30lbs of stuff I will carry, there will be at least five more lbs. of food to consider, the animal-resistant sacks and  extra clothing (minimal of course). There will be five hikers on our excursion. My good friend and her daughter (who is roughly Ethan's age) and my grade school BFF!! I officially arranged for our shuttle this morning and will be gathering the maps next.

     One thing that I always look forward to upon my return to KY each summer is being greeted by my flower garden. My husband, Art, takes care of it while I am away and gives me live, FaceTime tours of what's in bloom during my absence. Spring came early this year which has proven delightful for me since some of the blooms are early too. My echinacea is starting to bloom, the roses are budding and blooming, tiger lilies are up, coreopsis is in full force and the butterfly bushes are lengthening by inches every day. The day before I leave, the sunflower seeds will go in and in late summer, I will be able to watch the yellow finches feast while my cat lazily enjoys the shade of the giant leaves below. Amazingly, she allows the birds to merrily partake of the seeds without any threat of becoming prey.

     Earlier this year I mailed a giant sunflower head to my parents so they could plant seeds before our arrival in NJ. My father just gave me a FaceTime tour of his seedlings and the garden will be magnificent this summer!! Stay tuned :)