Thursday, October 8, 2009

Hold Your Horses!

I know, I know. My last post about the dining room re-do left y'all hanging. I'm so sorry. Apparently, it's created quite a bit of angst for a couple of you :) but we are at an impasse.

You see, The Boss was really pushing to get that second coat of paint up before Saturday afternoon. The motivator behind that was the five days of family time that was to follow. Five days of being surrounded by my siblings, their spouses, and all my gorgeous sweet nieces and nephews. Five days of long conversations, lots of laughter, and hugs whenever I felt like one. Or twelve. Five days of bliss.

Saturday night, most of us gathered at my sister's home for a big pasta dinner. Pasta for 22, that is. Since it was just around the corner, we didn't actually show up till it was time to eat. We had to finish cleaning up the work area in the dining room, and get the guest bed ready for Grandma and Grandpa. And I was shopping for some fall clothes that could also be used for our family picture scheduled for Sunday.

Sunday, we met at my brother's church to celebrate his ordination. I say we, but to give you an accurate picture, I mean that 21 of us trooped in together to the auditorium. Shortly after we arrived, my sister-in-law's family added another 4 or 5 to those numbers. His church did a wonderful job of honoring him and his sweet wife for their service to the church family, and honoring my folks for raising my brother in a manner that set him apart for that service. It was a beautiful service, and partnered well with the 10th anniversary celebration of the church's ministry to the community.

After the service, the church hosted a fabulous luncheon for the whole crowd. And a friend of ours met us for a group photo session. If you are local and looking for a great photographer who is patient, creative, and great with kids, may I suggest this lady? You will love the work she does. And the fact that she maintained great composure and a sense of humor while corralling 15 rowdy, playful kids and 10 chatty adults is still a marvel to me!

We spent the rest of Sunday afternoon, Monday, and Tuesday hanging out together between the three local homes, chatting, eating, laughing and shooing the kids back outside for fresh air and wide open spaces to make their noise and mess. My sister and her family headed back to Massachusetts on Wednesday morning, leaving a still silence in their place. The Boss and I kept commenting that it was just TOO quiet now. While I kept busy getting laundry running, I felt really melancholy about the end of all the fun. All the togetherness. I'm so grateful for the time we carved out of our regular routines. I'm so thankful for time with family to celebrate the most important moments of our lives. But I'm really sad that it's over, at least till Christmas. It's the hardest part of being spread out over the distances. And the job restrictions. And school calendar limitations.

So today, we are settling nicely into our regular Thursday routine. Writing the bulletin. Catching up on my blog. Running laundry. Washing dishes. Prepping dinner. Catching up on school. Entertaining and occupying Li'l Empress. And so on.

And the dining room re-do? The walls are waiting for mirrors and prints. Although now they wait while covered in a lovely shade of . . . . (what, you didn't think I was going to TELL you what color we painted, did you?!) Curtains still need to be hung. Shades must be purchased. Furniture must be arranged. The details are coming together nicely in my mind. However, it's all going to have to be JUST in my head for a few more days . . .

We are going to be out of town tomorrow, enjoying a day trip here. And on Saturday, we travel north to be with my folks. They are celebrating their 25th year in ministry at their church. And I get another weekend with family, albeit a much smaller crowd this time around.

I promise, we will get around to finishing that room. We have to, we have another round of company coming soon and we will need the space! Until then, well, you are just gonna have to hold your horses.

:)

5 comments:

Aus said...

That is SO not fair! Mauve and you just don't want to confess eh? ;)

Glad you had some family time - we get a daughter coming home on Saturday too - at least for the day....and with the new boyfriend....one who has been "just a friend, dad" for about 18 months now.....hummmm.....

hugs - aus and co.

Cathy said...

Sounds like an awesome week. I love to spend time with family. I'm so happy you had a great time, but I'm not so happy that we're still waiting to see the diningroom. lol

Have a great weekend.

Beverly said...

So, do you need me to send D up to work on it for you while you are gone? It is my weekend, but I will gladly share!!

MUAHHHHHHHHHH

Wife of the Pres. said...

OK, I want to go there. Wow, I watched the preview. It would go SO WELL with your hs lessons lately. Tell us all about it when you get back!

As for the color and dining room, NO COMMENT.

:)))

Wife of the Pres. said...

"our" hs lessons

And maybe yours too. :)

I need to go to bed since I clearly can't type tonight!