as per usual. may was pretty wild. all these birthdays. mothers day. anniversaries. end of the school year. etc….
let’s see what i can rustle up for the may review…
first things first. a quick update on my plantar fasciitis. after a hike with derek on our anniversary trip revealed that i was maybe not as healed as i thought i was (ie: left me hobbling for days in pain), i reported these findings to my physical therapist. she advised i start back on anti-inflammatory meds and start back at a mile or so of walking and slowly work back up. we made another appointment for the end of may, but it felt like more of a pity appointment because i have expressed frustration with various departments of the medical industrial complex essentially leaving me on read regarding many a recent health issue.
anyways. i followed orders. rolling things back to basically nothing. which ruby likes. she’s a fan of slow, short walks. i’m trying to be positive about it, but it’s really getting to me at this point. and. things don’t seem to be getting better.
pt has helped me get stronger and more flexible, but there’s just still so much stupid pain. for my final appointment, i made “manifest destiny” cookies for the staff, in an attempt to literally manifest that i was done with pt because i was on my way to healing. they discharged me and my next stop is back to sports med, where i started a year ago when i first had all over joint pain descend upon me over the course of a few weeks (spoiler alert, that’s still happening too).
so. yeah. that’s that.
despite the plantar fasciitis drama, i was able to stay super locked in for may. i don’t know why. i just pulled it together and strung together a bunch of consistent days. so of course i took a million dorky selfies. some with my gym pals. some staged and taken by my gym pals. one at home when i couldn’t squeeze in the gym. most of them posted with ridiculous songs and captions for my faithful legions of instagram followers.
my nutrition however, was not 100% locked down. haha.
on may 6th, i celebrated four years of no alcohol. it’s not really a big deal at this point. not something i really think about much. but we were already out with some friends for costco hot dogs and pizza slices, so i took the opportunity to consume a shame-free exorbitantly sugary and chemical laden churro sundae to mark the occasion.
on the day after anna’s birthday and the day before mothers day, anna and i hit up the winston salem vintage market. it felt like it was mostly one million old t-shirts, but we did come away with some good finds. i bought these very cool sweaters. i was coerced by anna. we called it a mothers day gift. disregard my stupid face.
derek was out of town for mothers day (and the whole rest of the week), but he worked out some plans with the kids. they gave me some gifts. and ike brought in chipotle for lunch. and we mostly just had a chill day. it was lovely.
mothers day snuggles with all of the babies….
let’s see here. i was able to squeeze in a few friend hangz. coffee with my pal kate. and a birthday cinnamon roll from louie and honey’s with my pal sara without an h.
blood was donated. fabric was purchased as my reward to myself for being such a generous person with my blood.
every year (for the last few), over memorial day weekend, my girls have been invited to the beach with their best pals (also sisters) and their mom. every year they get burned. and have the very best time. and i get fewer and fewer updates.
so. hazel has had this boy pal from school that she’s been trying to hang out with. they have done a few school functions together and have a class together i think. but this was their first official out of school hangout. i picked him up from the car rider line and took them for frozen yogurt at sweet frog. it was pretty adorable.
since we are talking about the crazelnut, here’s some more pics of her in action. finishing up a math assignment that made our family (and apparently other local families) a little crazy. she would rather do arts. and crafts. and i love it. but i also love math too.
in other news. (i’m sorry this blog post is so chaotic and disjointed, but i have no patience for trying to make it cohesive). i got a tattoo. well. i started a tattoo. for YEARS i have had this vision for a giant tattoo of a forest silhouette, mountainous, night sky wrap around tatton on my leg. for christmas, derek started a tattoon fund and i got the first appointment on the books. but, then i was in a stupid boot and had to cancel. but finally, in may, i decided enough was enough. i was laying claim to my leg/ankle/foot, and we got started. and i am absolutely in love with it so far.
and now some anna pics. doing the cookie thing. wishing she had some melanin in her skin. practicing driving one last time before her first license attempt. and a hang with one of her best pals, luke.
and. it’s been a long time since we have taken chicken pics. but we still have some. they don’t get the same love and affection (mauling) as they used to. but we still love them and give them the best treats and eat their delicious eggs.
perhaps i talked about it in april, but in may, we were fully immersed in buffalo sabres mania. they had made the playoffs for the first time in like fourteen years, and even won the first series. even though we knew heartbreak was the likely final outcome, because that is just the life of a buffalo sports fan, we were all in. of course we lost the second series in seven games, overtime nonetheless, which is really the only way we do things – soul crushingly. but it was fun while it lasted. i have never had both buffalo sports teams be good in the same year in my entire adult life, so this is a lot of fun.
when i’m not at the gym. or doing mom stuff. i am trying to get back into sewing a little. i even made a quilt that i hope to post about soon. i also have continued to tutor one kiddo. we are deep in geometry right now.
you’ve almost made it to the end. allow me to wrap up the month of may with some random photos and stories.
chilling in the hammock with my favorite child.
bacon egg and cheese grilled sandwiches assembly line.
i have accidentally turned my first born into a full blown gym bro.
and lastly. a little storytime and big update…
after i dropped out of the absn program, i was a little (a lot) sad and directionless. i knew nursing was not for me. but i was back to square one. well, i decided that i would just try to rustle up a bunch more tutoring and maybe start subbing in the fall, and then figure out how to get my teaching license renewed. well, as i researched, i realized that i was closer than i thought (thanks to nursing school classes!) and i could even start looking for jobs for the fall.
well… it turns out, my old school had a math teacher position opening, so i applied. i still have connections to that district and community so i know i had some help landing an interview with my very strange resume and career trajectory. i was so nervous and talked 900 miles a minute, obsessed about what to wear (see below), and was sure i had ruined the chance. but lo and behold, i got the job and in the fall, after 19 years out of the classroom, i will be returning to my old stomping grounds, to continue my career in education. i could not be more excited. it’s literally the one thing i know i am great at. i don’t know why it took me so long to figure it out.
we did it!!
that’s may. phew!!