Day #4 - Stress Recovery - The Day All About Hannah
“Hannah, will you spend the day with me?”
”YES! Oh, mom. YES!”
I had no idea how much my girl needed this time, too.
This stupid Covid-19 thing has really shone a light on all the places where dust has collected. I’m both thankful for the truth and aching from the realization.
Being self-aware is EXHAUSTING.
Our living room is never anything but comfortable, but the last remnants of normalcy has been thrown to the wind, as we shoved all the furniture along both walls & prioritized this puzzle table for my man.
Immediately, both Hannah and Noah dove in to put together the first puzzle with their dad, and as I type this it’s done & the 2nd one is picked out. Again, I’m surprised by how much they needed this down time with us. They’re young adults on the launchpad & I usually feel like I’m begging for scraps around the edges of their lives, but perhaps they’ve just not wanted to bother me? Or their dad?
It really makes me think. And ponder some serious changes in our lives.
After puzzle time and a long, leisurely bath with one of my library books, we headed to Buca Di Beppo; my girl & I. We were the only ones dining in the entire restaurant and honestly, the Limon Chicken we shared was expensive & wonderful, but absolutely not enough to fill us up, even though we spent more on that lunch that we’d spent on a meal in a very long time. Lesson learned. But we were OUT! Out is exciting.
Then we went to Chick Fil A for grilled chicken nuggets & Kale salad so we could be FULL. Hannah splurged on a frosted lemonade. She’s methodical about unhealthy food choices. Have I mentioned how at 17, she blows me away? Because she does. When I was 17, I was hard-core bulimic with the full binging and laxatives and vomiting. My teeth still suffer from the abuse and I’m not sure, but I feel like my regular ulcers are still a residual effect of my bad choices. I know…..I’ll never know for sure.
I seriously have the most beautiful daughter on the planet. Her spirit blesses me in every way.
I didn’t catch a photo of Noah yesterday, because what we shared was intense but it wasn’t the moments of photos and fluff. He is going through some deep work to move forward in his life, and it’s his to share. Not mine.
20 years old is hard. Recovering from assault has been a lifelong journey. This is just the latest chapter. He’s doing the work, with God’s help. I am in awe of his tireless work to be the man God has called him to be. In the midst of his push forward to become a better man with the hard work in the trenches, he’s also taking up Tae Kwon Do & pushing his body to a better place.
One of our last stops was a local travel store, where I found this luggage.
I never stop dreaming of travel. It’s been incredibly hard to cancel so many of our trips this year, and we’re holding out hope we’ll be able to go to Florida, to Walt Disney World, to train some of our team & enjoy being away with some of our favorite people. I say I’m hoping, but really I’m not even able to fully hope. I’ve never felt less in control of my life than I do right now.
But I had control over who I spent time with today, what I did, how hard I listened, even how often I laughed. And I was blessed to be with my sweet little family. I’m thankful for Day #4. 11 more to go!
