Wonderfully Ordinary Days

I just need to remember today.  Nothing out of the ordinary happened, but it just felt magical.  I felt content and happy with my life.  My children still whined and made messes, but they were cute and sweet a lot of the time, too.  Maybe the fact that I know I will soon be starting work and getting to enjoy a few less ordinary days is making this one seem extra sweet.  Whatever it was I just want to remember.

I want to remember the crazy hair atop Eliza's head this morning.  Those thin, blonde wisps take on a mind of their own during the night.  A happy girl with bedhead is a great thing to wake up to.

An obvious reason today was so great was that Ryan was home from work.  I know I will enjoy the day when his schedule is more regular and he has weekends off, but for now I sort of like the middle-of-the-week break we get every Wednesday.  After getting the girls up, dressed, and fed we headed to the gym.  We got there a little later than usual, so instead of doing our usual thing (me at a class and Ryan doing cardio/weights) we ran and lifted together.  It always feels good to start the day with a workout, and doing it with my boyfriend is even better.

After the gym we made our way to everyone's favorite money pit, Costco.  While I wish I could say the trip was so enjoyable thanks to well-behaved kids and a small grand total at the check-out stand, it wasn't those things at all.  But anytime you can make a Costco run with the husband in tow and not wait in line at all to check-out is a good day in deed.

After Costco we did what any gym going family would do and stopped at the local Mooyah for some seriously yummy hamburgers, french fries, and maybe even a chocolate shake.  I mean is there any better way to celebrate a good workout and the end of Ryan's weight loss competition?  I think not.  (By the way, the boy lost 20 pounds and got second place.  Go boyfriend!)  And just to so you have no doubt about the pure irony of that lunch date, we were both still wearing our gym clothes.

After a quick stop at the car wash (which both my kids are afraid of) we made it home for some quiet time spent putting away the fruits of our Costco labors (does this seem to take anyone else about an hour to do?) and relaxing for a minute.  After Stella finally broke free from her bedroom and Eliza started chattering in her crib we made our way outside to enjoy the beautiful weather that has finally decided to grace us with it's presence.  We cleaned and vacuumed the car, went on a walk to see our neighbor's new baby boy, and put together the water table that was a Christmas present from Nana and Papa P.  The girls loved the water table and spent a good hour pouring water in cups, on the grass, and on each other.  I think part of what made this day so great is that even though my kids were digging in dirt, soaking their clothes, and walking around the house gnawing on the core of pineapple (and drooling all the while), it didn't phase me one bit.  Clothes can be changed and floors can be mopped, and I need to remember to relax about the extra effort or time letting my kids have fun can sometimes create.

Ryan has wanted a smoker since the second day we moved to Montana, and last week his dream finally came true.  A new smoker and beautiful weather can only mean one thing: it is finally time for summertime dinners.  One of the best parts of the long summer nights is the fresh produce and grilled goodness.  I love when the only things I need to make dinner is a sharp knife and a little bit of salt and pepper.  Tonight's debut from the new smoker was delicious and made me excited to see what else the house chef can come up with.

We ended our night the best way we could, with Popsicles on the deck in our underwear and a quick run through the hose to clean up the mess.  Real baths and story time soon followed.

And now it is 8:30pm, my kids are asleep in their beds and my house is mostly clean (except for those three baskets of clean laundry I didn't fold yet again today).  I know most of my days as a mother go something quite like this, and not all of them are nearly as wonderful.  But today was both ordinary and grand, and one day, when life isn't feeling quite so dreamy, I can remember that the good days do come.  The sun does eventually come out, the sticky messes get cleaned up, and life can be beautiful even when it is ordinary.