Day to Day...one day down!

With early morning labs under way, Davis willed himself beyond a stomachache and headed to KJH for the first day of 9Th grade. This was a day that we had hoped could happen back in April. It was great to see him so excited about school. So with a sensitive-stomach-friendly- bland home lunch, several locker snacks, instruction notes for teachers ...and plenty of hand sanitizer, I dropped him off. It felt a little like the first time you leave a newborn that you've been with 24/7 for months on end. My hesitation was quickly replaced by hope for a successful day as he grinned upon seeing familiar faces of friends.

Back home to get the next round off to the elementary school and then Courtney down to Provo, and Jeff off to the airport. Courtney had switched places with Davis for the couch position as she has fought the stomach flu all weekend. She was still on the couch, unable to keep anything down. Leaving her to try and get ready to go, I headed to 6Th, 4Th, and 1st grade. The photo taking was limited by Ryan, the 6Th grader being too "mature" for that. Ben agrees to 3 photos at home and 2 at school..."that's it!" Emmi just grins, even if she is not in the frame!

All went well and I lingered at the first grade door to reflect on the momentous emotions flooding the day. When all was spoken out loud of the happenings from Courtney moving to Emmi in 1st grade and the three boys in the middle, someone asked if I needed a Valium... I think I must have a built-in drip of it in my head from the past few years of trauma and stressful challenges. I had someone just the other day comment as they stood next to me in a line. "Do you realize that you are breathing deeply?" I laughed at the now daily and often hourly habit of remembering to breath being such a subconscious need.

After a phone call to the doctor and quarantined spaces with Lysol spay on hand, we determined that we would have to put off moving for a day.

I did not hear from Davis all day despite my efforts to contact him to call or text at lunch to check in! No news was good news, I guess. Upon picking him up, I took a mental photo of a day that I had prayed for the past five months...Davis in his officer sweater, in the hall laughing and smiling with peers at the days happenings. He stated that it was the "most normal" he had felt in months....I forgave him for not checking-in.

One day down as Emmi announces, "I have homework. Today it is easy mom, but it WILL get harder!" As each child rolls in and homework and forms to be signed are spread across the kitchen counter, I pause to take it all in...and then after a really deep breath, I dive right in with gratitude for the privilege of all my responsibilities that I am increasingly aware, unfortunately do not last forever.

May every day have a photo opportunity