Daddy's Back in Town

Chad has been on his annual Man Journey ... since last Friday ... which means I've been a single mom ... at the tail-end of my first trimester ... and I am completely exhausted and so very appreciative to have our wonderful daddy back!

First of all, I didn't blog about Chad's trip while he was gone (my journey through single mommyhood for almost a week) because I didn't want some psycho to find me on the web and track me down and try to cause me harm in my sleep ... without my big, brave husband home to protect me. At the very least, I didn't want that possibility bouncing around in my over-active imagination as I did my best to fall asleep each night.

Secondly, I have to say I am quite proud of how well Natalie and I provided for ourselves and took care of each other. But I really hope I don't ever have to do it full-time.

Okay, now for the highlights ...

Lack of Photos: To give you some idea of just how much work/effort/stress it was to be solely responsible, 24/7 for my sweet girl, I took a grand total of three photos the entire time Chad was away. Over the course of seven days, I took just three photos. How is that even possible?

Coordinates: Chad did not have cell phone service in the heart of the Olympics, but he did take along this satellite beacon thing-a-ma-jing that tracked his location. Once or twice each day I got an email with latitude and longitude coordinates. I could even "see" where he was using Google Maps. Pretty cool!

Potty Training, Take 1: I cleared our schedule on Sunday to give this whole "potty training" thing a try. I had a good reason for attempting this while Chad was out-of-town. To read more about that, click here.

Busy, Busy: The rest of the week was a whirlwind of Busy, Busy ... which also explains why my potty training attempt wasn't even remotely successful. We had too much to do to give training the full attention that it needs/deserves. I recognize my mistakes. Let's move on ...

Park Play: The weather was beyond gorgeous! Each evening Natalie and I played at a different park - I even found a "new" one near the Target that has become a favorite. We usually didn't get home until after 8:00. By the time I gave her a bath and put her to bed, she would all but pass out.

Our days went a little something like this ...

Monday - My friend Janelle and her two adorable boys, Colton and Brody, came over to play. It's always great to visit with Janelle because she's so down-to-earth and encouraging. She always shares good advice and insight and ideas. Her boys are super sweet and seem to really love playing with Natalie's toys, especially the little kitchen and whatever we have upstairs.

Tuesday - Another wonderful mom friend, Liz, and her son Oliver, hosted a really fun playdate here in our neighborhood. We met at the park for a walk to feed the ducks on a nearby lake. Those ducks were overwhelmed by the volume of our stale baked goods. As we were leaving, there was bread just floating on the surface. Afterwards, the kiddos played at the park while the mommies visited and talked about plans for the upcoming holiday.

It seems my mommy friends took good care of me while Chad was away. Deann, my good friend and fellow prego, invited us over for yummy tortellini alfredo and a delicious fresh fruit salad. With end of the school year craziness followed by Grammy and Grampy's visit, we hadn't seen Sahara in about two weeks. Seeing Natalie and Sahara reunited was priceless. After dinner the girls played in the backyard while Deann and I chatted and enjoyed a beautiful NW evening.

Wednesday - Natalie's "bestie" Sahara, aka Cee-Cee, came over to play ... while Deann pampered herself with a manicure and pedicure. I was so jealous but also happy to spend the day with the girls. We spent most of the morning in the backyard with our buddy Andrew and his mom Laura. Then we ventured to the park to meet up with Liza and her boys. The girls sat in the shade and ate snacks most of the time because the sun was so bright and hot - no complaints about that :) After a quick lunch, I tossed the sunscreen-slick girls in the tub and enjoyed watching them splash and play together.

Thursday - We hosted a delightful Red, White, and Blue Playdate.

Wow! What a week!

Despite all the fun, did I mention that we are so very happy to have our daddy back? When I got the call to say that he'd be home in about three hours, I could hardly contain my excitement! I am so glad to have help with Natalie. Natalie is so glad to have her daddy to play with ... he's way more fun than me! And I just can't get over how much I missed him.