Home Again
We arrived back on Friday night. My Dad has been out if the hospital for over a week now and seems to be regaining his strength and the confidence to leave the house for short stretches. We returned to Seattle via New York and the return was one of the most draining I've experienced. Various reasons and then our flight was delayed for 2 hours on the runway at JFK, so we didn't arrive into Seattle until 11pm. Pauline was such a trooper about the whole thing and met us at the airport. The girls, who had slept on and off for most of the flight to Seattle, were alert and thrilled to see Pauline. They had really missed her and talked about her a lot while we were in Dublin.
It was after midnight when we got back to the house and the girls' body clocks told them it was morning time and all they wanted to do was eat porridge and rediscover their toys. We did all get to bed and had a few hours sleep. On Saturday we went to the Pancake House for brunch (having little food in the house) and then onto Creation Station in Lynwood to celebrate our friend Isabella's 5th birthday. We were keen to get the girls out and about and back seeing friends and being active. They were delighted to see Isabella. Then we went to Trader Joe's to stock up on some supplies for our empty cupboards and fridge. Fortunately, right next door to TJs in Lynwood there is a Half Price Books. Our first day back and we were all ready book shopping.
On Sunday James finally got back on his bike and went out for some much needed exercise. My friend Teri came over late morning to drop off some Teddy Bear breads that she had made for the girls as belated Christmas gifts. The breads were adorable and the girls enjoyed them. Teri then offered to sit with the girls so that I could take a nap (I'd been awake since before 4am and up since 5am with the girls). So Ashley and Caitlin enjoyed introducing Teri to the world of Hayao Miyazaki (Japanese director) and the anime movie ‘Kiki's Delivery Service'. I managed to nap for about and hour and a half. Thanks Teri!
In the afternoon we made the Gingerbread house that has been sitting in the pantry waiting for us since before we left for Ireland. Ashley had asked me several times while we were in Ireland if we could do it as soon as we returned to Seattle. They were very pleased that the whole family made it together and it's currently taking pride of place on our kitchen counter.
Pauline popped around after dinner to exchange gifts. The girls received beautiful wooden stools that match the desk and rocking chair that Pauline gave them last year. The seat of Cailtin's stool is in the shape of a frog and Ashley's is a teddy bear.
After we hung out for a little while I was excited to head off with Pauline to our friend Linda's house to meet with our Women's Group. It was wonderful to see them all again. It was a relaxing and energizing evening to be around these smart, supportive, fun ladies. It's good to be back with you all. I'd missed you all so much.
Now we're returning to our routine. We went to Costco yesterday and then spent a few hours at Ballard Community Center at the indoor toddler gym and their playroom. Today Ashley returned to school and Caitlin and I spent a few hours alone drinking chai, reading stories, playing with a sticker book and listening and dancing to a U2 DVD (U2 Go Home Live from Slane Castle-it has a lot of the songs from the All That You Can't Leave Behind album). This afternoon we went to Loyal Height's Community Center and played for an hour in the indoor gym before Ashley's dance class. It was the first of a new series of classes, which meant Cailtin and I could sit and watch. It is such a fun little class and Caitlin was amazingly patient about just watching and not being able to participate. Her turn will come next quarter.
We are now batting down the hatches as the weather has turned wet and very windy this afternoon with snow and a drop in temperature forecast for tonight. Depending on how conditions are tomorrow we are certainly hoping to return to our Wednesday ritual of library story-time. We are hoping to slowly get back in touch with all our friends again. Thanks to everyone for their emails and phone calls of support while we were away. I'm sorry to those in Ireland that I didn't get to see. I'll be in touch by email or phone very soon. Everyone in Seattle, we're glad to be home and looking forward to reconnecting with you all again soon.