Girls Weekend . . .

   I spent the latter part of last week with all of my sisters at Girls Weekend. This is our 3rd year doing it & each year I love it that much more. It is a wonderful time, to hang out with my sisters, craft, talk, stay up late, shop, & just have a break.

 My wonderful hubby took all my boys, including my baby, who as of last week was still nursing. Bless my angelic husbands heart, because that boy cried, a lot. So my hubby took my kids & heading camping & to check on some of the herders & sheep.

 I loaded up in my car, & headed down to my sisters house.

         Me driving solo for a the 1st time in a long time. I am not sure then last time I had so many hours completely to myself in a car.

                                                         We ate delicious food.

  We gave each other demonstrations, taking time to teach each other new things. In this picture my sister The artist, taught us all how to make natural deodorant.  I  love that we teach each other new things, as we go.

  It wouldn't be girls weekend unless we all squished into a vehicle & spent a good portion of the day shopping. We also did a service project prior to shopping all afternoon.

Of course, we had to visit at least one quilt store. My mother & I have a major obsession with quilting & fabric. My mom does some amazing things & makes some beautiful quilts. 

My Artist sister also introduced us to Project Life, & generously gave us the materials to start. I have checked this out so many times over the years, but never had the guts to go for it. I have always been hesitant. We aren't doing this exact binders, because we wanted smaller, more portable ones, but the concept is still the same.

It was a wonderful, wonderful weekend. I came home refreshed & exhausted all at the same time. It was so wonderful to spend time with my mom & 3 sisters. It is one tradition I would recommend to everyone. 

The Grownup.

  Recently I turned 31.

 It sounds so old. 31

. I don't feel old, in my mind I am still twenty- something, or at least not grownup.

That is my mother. My mom, now she is a grown up.

Some days I don't feel like I am a grown-up.

It feels surreal. Like playing house when I was little.

Except I am 31, married & have 4 kids who look up to me for all their needs.

I sound crazy, don't I?

Oh well, that is how it is some days.

A while ago it was one of those days. My hubby & I had a plan that I need to show up on the desert at 5 p.m. to help sort sheep before loading the following morning.

No problem, I told him, I can do that.

A couple hours later I get a text with a picture of a rattlesnake eating a mouse. For those, as myself, who don't care for snakes, I chose not to share the picture with you.

The message in the text: Look at this picture the herder took, while tending his sheep today.

Great.

Now fast forward, its close to 5 p.m. I have 4 kids, in Walmart, picking up a few things.

4 kids in Walmart, should have said enough.

I get another text from the Hubby: "Hey love, things are going  a little slower, I need you to head out to the desert, find the sheep & start herding them back to the corrals with the boys. I will get there as soon as I can."

I breathe, trying to remember that I am the grownup. I don't feel like a grownup today.

 In my mind I am silently whimpering. I don't want to do that. I can't do that. "Okay, but try to hurry." I reply.

So with my 4 kids, we load up, drive to the desert & began to look for sheep. We find a few.

So we hop out of the pickup truck, when I remember the text my hubby sent earlier about the rattlesnake. I grabbed a few things, so I can feel protected in case we do see a snake. Pretend, that I am tougher than I am, even though inside I am quite nervous about our little expedition without my strong handsome knight at my side. And we start herding sheep.

We gather them, when looking at them, I know we don't have them all. So we keep looking for sheep. We find some more a little further away, we herd those with the others, we still don't have them all. So we repeat.

Finally I realize it going to start getting dark & we have to herd them all the way back to the corrals. My boys complain a little. I try to express more courage & calmness then I am currently feeling inside. The whole time terrible worried we are going to see a rattlesnake. Then trying to keep calm & reassure my kids, its no big deal if we do, but I am sure we won't. And we begin to herd. After all, I am a grownup right?


Each arrow, is pointing to one of my boys out herding sheep.

I would drive a bit, hop out & help move the sheep, run back to my pickup & drive again.

And then I would repeat that, over & over again. Finally, I can see corrals over in the distance. In my mind, it would be shorter if we cut across the desert, instead of going down & around.

My kids, ready to be done, agree to our plan. My hubby said, I could drive across the sagebrush. No big deal right. I had my reservations, but the hubby said to do it & I was a grownup. So I did.

It worked pretty good at 1st, but the sagebrush kept getting bigger & bigger, and I am fairly new at driving across the desert.

Did I mention, I drive an old manual pickup with a crew cab & an extended bed. It is a huge beast. Huge.

Pretty soon, I am in some tight spots, for my long boat of a pickup. No big deal, just keep driving. It just keeps getting worse. I can't see my boys, or the sheep & am almost high centered on a some sagebrush & rock.


                       (I borrowed this awesome pictures is from Here)


Though this isn't how I looked, it was certainly how I felt. So I climbed out of the pickup & did was any grownup would do in this situation. I threw a fit. I screamed, yelled & even waved my hands in the air.

I am almost high centered in an old beast of a pickup with my 4 kids the oldest being 8 & the youngest 1 year old. Chasing after sheep, on a desert, while some are still missing: I can't find them, because I have no idea on where to look on these thousands of acres. I am all alone, with snakes slithering around, with kids who are tired & hungry because it is almost dark, & we still have a ways to go. And to top it all off I have no idea where my hubby is yet or how long until he comes to rescue me & he doesn't have cell phone coverage.

Then in the midst of my fit, one of my sons yells Mom. And then I remember that I am the grownup. No matter how much I like it or not, it is me tonight. In charge of this situation & it is I, the grownup, who is in charge of getting us out of it.

So I regain my presence, say a quick pleading prayer, & we continue.  Eventually, we got unstuck, back on a road, & the sheep herded to the corrals. (At least the ones we could find).

My hubby showed up just before dark, reconfirmed my fears that we were still missing some sheep & we loaded in with him. Immediately I felt relief,  my knight in shining armor had finally rescued me & for now he could be the grownup.

 We eventually found them & by 11:30 had everything in the corrals.

Yes, some days I feel amazing. Others, not so much.

Sometimes my life feels surreal, other days I want to curl up in a ball & call quits.

But I can't, & I don't, because like it or not:  I am the grownup.

Whether I feel like it or not.

I just hope I am a good enough one.