Empt(ier) nest

Tags

expectations, granddaughters, me-time, routines, St. John's River

Earlier this week as I checked to see if it was time  to pick Olivia up from school, it hit me:  When school starts in the fall she will go until 2:10, and this stay-at-home Grammy will have my entire morning free.  Every day, not just my Wednesday each month when I run away to Fresno for the day, but every Monday through Friday.  There will be a first grader and a fifth grader in our house, and my schedule will undergo a drastic change.

Now for many women this is commonplace, but it has never happened to me before.  As a mom with a job outside the home, I went back to work full-time when my daughter was five and a half weeks old.  She was in day care until she started school, and in after-school day care after that (I have shared before how my decision to continue working after her birth is one of my very few regrets in life).  So I didn’t experience this lengthening of my “free time” as she grew older.

I am kind of panicky about it.  How will life’s expectations of me change, now that I have the entire morning to myself?  More importantly, how will my own expectations of me change?  Will I rush to “over-schedule” those empty hours (I tend to do that), or will I simply enjoy the peace and quiet?  Will this be the time that I finally find a workable housekeeping routine (don’t hold your breath here)?  Or will I grant myself the flexibility and freedom to extend my reading-in-the-garden time, or set up a permanent creating space in my bedroom?

It was a beautifully cloudy morning for my walk along the St. John’s River Parkway today.

Right now I am enjoying my early morning walks by the river after dropping the girls off at school.  And I love that moment each day when I ask Olivia how her day went, and she answers with some variation on, “Awesome!”

I guess that time will simply come later each day.  To be continued in the fall…

 

 

Fall for real

Tags

flowers, puddles, rain, Rosemary, St. John's River

I think Fall really has arrived.  I realize I said the same thing a month or so ago, but Mother Nature was being a bit stubborn with her hot weather.  Today, after several days of thunderstorms, the sky was crystal clear and the air was sweet and mid-70s.

As I went for my morning walk, I was delighted to see that the plants were practically exploding with happiness at their repeated drinks of rainwater.  Trees that had been dusty and dry were sporting berries or flowers, and the rosemary hedges were beginning to bloom.

Where a few days ago there was only dusty foliage, today the berries are quickly turning red.

Beautiful yellow blossoms are drawing the bees and covering the ground with pollen.

The Rosemary hedges are beginning to turn pale blue with flowers.

By far the most exciting sight for me was the formerly bone-dry St. John’s Riverbed, sporting not only mud, but puddles from the thunderstorms.

There are still puddles remaining in the St. John’s River from this weekend’s rains!

Thanks to the beautiful weather drawing me outside for not only a morning walk but a late-night one, too, I hit my 10,000 step goal today for the first time in several weeks.  Thank you, Mother Nature.

S is for “satisfy”

Tags

A-Z Challenge, drought, Earth Day, family, St. John's River, walking

Dictionary.com defines “satisfy” as “to fulfill the desires, expectations, needs, or demands of (a person, the mind, etc.); to give contentment to” or “to put an end to (a desire, want, need, etc.) by sufficient or ample provision”.

Late this afternoon Georgia told me she was taking the girls down to the river, and invited me to go, too. It being Earth Day and all, it seemed like a good way to finish satisfying our need to get out into nature (Olivia and I had watered the veggie garden earlier this morning). In my mind we would be casually walking down to the river’s edge (I knew there would be no water) and back home again…an easy 15-20 minutes. But Georgia had other ideas.

Georgia and the girls heading north towards the St. John’s River, with Grammy (and the camera) trailing along behind.

When we got within shouting distance of the St. John’s River, Georgia took off across the street and down the path along the river. A sign posted just inside the pathway indicated that it was “1.6 miles from MacAuliffe Street to Ben Maddox Way” along the riverwalk. And we were already several blocks from home. Walking along side the river gave us a much better sense of just how dry it truly was.

There was no water at all. None.

It wasn’t too long before Olivia’s short legs started getting tired, but she continued hopping and skipping between complaints. Her mom carried her a little ways as a refresher, but put her down again, letting her know there was a park up ahead. (And my heart sank a bit, as I knew how far away that park was.) There was a steady stream of walkers, bicyclists, and skaters all along the way, as well as an idiot zipping along on a quad with two little girls hanging onto the back and a toddler sitting in his lap.

We finally made it to the park, and the girls immediately made friends with a little boy playing on the teeter-totter. They enjoyed the slide, swings, and a funny zipline contraption until we realized how soon the sun would be setting and gathered them up for the return home.

We followed the St. John’s River Parkway back home, cutting through the high school and shortening the return trip significantly. We stopped to smell honeysuckle vines and roses along the way, and Olivia shared some ideas about how people throw down their trash in places they think are dead, even though there are bugs and plants there that deserve a clean home. Mom came to Olivia’s rescue with a short piggyback ride, just enough to freshen her legs to finish the walk.

Piggybacking on Mom.

Once we got onto the school grounds (with a good sidewalk), Olivia got rid of her shoes and went the rest of the way barefoot. It was fun to see the school from a different viewpoint; we drive by the front side several times a day, but always focused on where we are going…this walk took us past the ball fields, the swimming pool, and the stadium before we re-entered the neighborhood.

We could not have had more perfect weather for our Earth Day walk, nor more wonderful walking companions. It not only satisfied our need to get outside together for a little while, but gave us a relaxing time to visit with each other, away from the washing machine and other waiting chores.

I hope your Earth Day was filled with clean air and good companions, too.