Longest Week Ever

The past week was pretty long for us. Maybe because Ryan was gone for 9 days and that is technically longer than a week! We said goodbye to him 2 Saturday nights ago as he headed off to Young Life camp with a great group of students. I wish I could say we stayed and waved goodbye as the bus pulled off. We didn't. I was too sad so we said our goodbyes at home and made it a quick goodbye when I dropped him off. Like I've said before - I know that so many husbands travel for work all the time or are deployed. I'm not sure how they do that but I respect how strong those wives are. I was so sad to say goodbye to Ryan for that long of a time.  My plan for the week was basically to stay busy visiting lots of friends and families so that I could look back at the fun memories we made this week instead of sitting around waiting for Ryan to come home.

Sunday morning we went to church and then as soon as Eva woke up from her nap we headed to stay with my parents. I know when back-up is necessary :) Eva likes to play "music" on their piano. This picture is kind of cool to me because this was my grandparents piano and I grew up playing on it. Also I like the balance of wedding photos with Eva photos. 

Sunday night Eva put on her new bikini and played in the sprinkler. What kid doesn't have a blast running through the sprinkler?!?! Eva pretty much loves everything about Mamy and Grandpa's house.

 It also happened to be Father's Day so it was nice to spend the evening with my Dad. We love him!

After putting that munchkin to bed - not an easy task when traveling - my mom and I played Life. This is our family's original game box from the 1980's. I think the dad on the cover looks like a cross between my dad and Michael Scott from The Office. Classic. 

On Monday I set off to conquer fear and cross off an item on my bucket list. I left Eva with my mom while my bff Erica and I went rock climbing and then enjoyed The Bachelorette together. Thanks Erica for being my fearless rock climbing leader and forever best friend!

Let's take a break to discuss the joy that is trying to get a toddler to sleep well when traveling. I'm not sure if it was the pack and play or the huge stack of CD cases inside of it but this girl has been tired for over a week. She wouldn't fall asleep. She would wake up in the night (for up to 3 hours!). She would wake up early. Her naps were short. All that combined to make an exhausted toddler. I would say that was one of the hardest part of our vacation. Moving on. 

Tuesday afternoon we went to play at my sister in-law's house with my niece Mallory.  The girls had big fun playing inside and outside and then we went to Ryan's parents together for dinner and stayed the night there.

{This video is here even if no image pops up. Just hit play.}

Nana and Papa have a small stroller that is designed to be used for baby dolls. Mallory and Eva decided that Eva should pretend to be the baby doll. This was hilarious.

The next morning Nana showed Eva how to turn their dining room table into a play fort for all the babies. Eva loves playing babies these days. 

Wednesday afternoon we said goodbye to Nana and Papa and went to see Aunt BB. We swam and played with Brooke for a while...originally I was planning on going back home Wednesday night but I decided that I just wasn't ready to go back. So we went back to my parents' house.

Thursday morning we went to Northpark mall with my mom and grandma Dede. Northpark - where I first learned to shop. 

Luckily they have a beautiful shaded courtyard area so we let Eva run and chase some birds before eating lunch. It always helps to let your toddler wiggle around before sitting in a restaurant.

Then we went back to my parents' for nap time play time with the dogs. There was very little napping involved. Eva LOVES their dogs so much. She pets them. She lies on the floor and pretends to be a dog with them. She growls at them. She kisses them.

Somebody get this girl a dog! Just kidding. Let's wait a few years on that one. I tried to get more photos of her with the dogs but they were mostly chasing each other all around so the pictures were all blurry.

Thursday night I decided that maybe we should head back home so that Eva could try to get back to a routine. Tired toddlers become cranky toddlers and the cycle gets worse as the days go on. I loved staying with my parents but I knew we should go home.

I am SO THANKFUL that we have our family so close. It was truly AWESOME to have my parents and Ryan's parents there to help and love us. THANK YOU parents! 

Friday morning we went to story time at the Roanoke library (no photos) and Friday afternoon we drove out to Aubrey to swim with some of my former teacher friends and their kids. It was good to catch up with them and they both have such cute kids! Then we went back to my friend Ashley's house to cook fish tacos while our kids played. We joked about how different it is to attempt to enjoy a meal with toddlers around. So true. But worth it. I really enjoyed my time there and wish that Ashley didn't live so far away! I admire her outlook on life so much. It's good that we both write blogs so we can keep up with each other.

On Saturday morning I was torn. On the one hand, Eva probably needed a day of rest at home. On the other hand, she was still so emotional that it made hanging out at home alone very trying. I knew that a huge part of this was that she was getting anxious and missing Ryan because at this point she was asking about him often. She would see his truck in the drive way or hear a noise and get excited thinking it was him. Lots of tears. So.... I decided to pack tons of fun times into our last girl's day together! We went and bought fresh fruit at the Farmer's Market. We played at the splash park. We went to the pet store and played with the puppies. We got ice cream and played at the playground at Central Market. We bought some new gold sandals for me because I messed up my old ones. We had a great dinner with my bff Marianne. Whew. That's a lot of fun packed in one day. Then she finally drifted off to sleep peacefully. Hallelujah!

Sunday morning Eva woke up asking for her Daddy the minute her little eyes were opened and again as soon as I picked her up from the church nursery. That afternoon we were there waiting for Ryan to get off the bus. It's so good to have our little family back together again.