Weekly Review 90

This was an eventful, yet tiring, week. There was commuting to Chicago, seeing an old friend, and two parties to attend. Overall, it was a fun one, but some of it I wouldn’t ever do again (can you guess which one? lol). 

On Monday morning I was up early. Around 4/4:30-ish AM. I was getting ready to go into my office in Chicago. My alarm went off and I sat up on the edge of the bed, thinking, “I don’t know how I ever did this full time. If I ever have to do it [full time] again I’m quitting. 

It’s a bit dramatic but I was so tired! I guess I’m used to that “home based” lifestyle now. I don’t believe I can ever go back to being in an office full time. Especially commuting into downtown Chicago. After I ate, packed my stuff and made my lunch, I started Lois (my car) and drove to the train station. 

I will say, it was so beautiful out that morning. It was cool and breezy, and the sun was just starting to peek over the clouds. It helped me wake up a little bit and by the time I arrived at the train station I was ready to go. When I pulled into the parking lot I checked the time. “Ah s%#+” I said to myself. “I’m here too early.” 

I decided I wasn’t going to let the fact that I timed my commute wrong frustrate me. I took whatever train came next because you never know if the one after that, or the one you’re waiting for, will be on time or not. So I made my way across the parking lot and up to the platform. Of course, nothing has changed since I stopped commuting. The train was a few minutes late. On the bright side, and as I said earlier, it was beautiful outside. So the wait was okay with me. I would have been super early anyways!

When I arrived at the office I was greeted with a warm welcome. People I haven’t seen in person for maybe 6-12 months greeted me with big smiles and warm hellos. It was great seeing everyone again. The work day went by and we all left the office a tad early to go across the street. We were having an after work social event at the JW Marriott with our new executive leader that was in town (which was the reason for my visit). 

I had a good time catching up with some of my work friends and chatting with management. 45 minutes later I checked my watch and realized I needed to go catch my train. I walked as fast as I could! I was NOT missing this train. I already went the whole day without seeing Mr O, and I wanted to spend some time with him before bed. 

Thankfully, I got to the station just in time. I rode the train home and gave my boy the biggest hug. He was so excited to see me. I showered (because I felt disgusting), made myself dinner because they ate already, did the dishes, read a little bit, and then finally I helped Mr O go to sleep. Lea tried but he just wanted me. 

On Tuesday I did it all over again. I woke up early, read my book and ate breakfast, and then caught the westbound train to Chicago. I had to go in again because Tuesday was our Townhall meeting with our special guest. It was nice and based of the little time we all spent with her, I’ve decided I like the new executive. She was kind and really tried to meet and speak with all of us. It also helped that she decided to scrap her whole presentation at the last second and just do an hour long Q&A, Lol. 

By the end of the day I was exhausted. I left work about 10 minutes early and walked so fast to the station that I actually caught the earliest train I could. I’ve never been able to get there in time to catch this one. I was thrilled! Of course, the one time I catch the 5:04 PM the train is having issues and we have to stop for a bit. So it didn’t even really matter that I was on the early train. 

As I was sitting in my seat, there was a woman in the row in front of me. She was sitting in a seat that was facing my direction. I don’t know what the deal was, but every time I looked up we made awkward eye contact. Every. Single. Time. I raised my eyes above the back of the seat, there she was looking back at me. I looked up to see where the man who checked our tickets was, and our eyes met again. Each time I quickly shifted my eyes, and each time it became more awkward. 

I was wondering, “why do you have to keep looking up whenever I look up?!” It was really frustrating because she probably thought I was staring at her. Now that I think about it, she probably thinks that I thought the same about her. It was really weird, lol. 

When I arrived home I was greeted with another hug from Mr O, and then he came to play in the bathroom while I showered again. That commute and being in the office all day really makes me feel gross and sweaty. I don’t know what it is, because I sit at my desk most of the day. It’s probably walking to and from the station. Either way, I feel gross when I get home. When we went back downstairs, Lea made tacos and we continued our night as normal. I was finally home and this time I had no plans to leave again. 

When Wednesday morning came around, I was able to complete my only workout of the week. I somehow had the energy to get up a few minutes earlier than usual, go downstairs to eat breakfast, and then lift [light] weights. I’ve decided to slim down, so I’m not lifting as heavy, or as much, as I used to. This year I’m going to try and walk even more than I already do. 

The day went by quickly, and in the evening an old friend of mine from church and school came over for dinner. He is in town for a little bit and we usually try to see each other when he comes back. He lives in California now. It was a fun night. Lea made dinner, Mr O had a blast, and we hung out for a few hours before it was time to part ways again. I’ll probably see him one more time before he goes home.

Thursday came and it was time to wake up Mr O for daycare. The little stinker was sleeping with his Mama in our guest bedroom, so I had to quietly wake him without waking Lea up. After I got him dressed, we went into his bathroom and I combed his hair. Every time I comb his hair he has to go show Lea. “Mama, look it!”. Then Lea tells him how handsome of a boy he is and he smiles and giggles. It’s a weekly routine. Every week, twice a week. 

On my lunch break I decided to go for a walk around the neighborhood. It was beautiful outside! 80 degrees, sunny, breezy. It was the perfect afternoon for a stroll. In the evening, I cut the grass with Mr O. Everything was going great. He followed me with his mower, we high fived whenever we walked past each other, and he got a kick out of the lawn mower starting each time. 

It was fun until he threw this huge rock at me. I don’t know if it was intentional, but I was almost done for the night and I was sore, tired, and sweaty. I didn’t want to deal with being hit by a rock, so I sent him inside with Lea. He was not happy! A few minutes later he waved to me from the window of our sliding glass door. He had a big smile on his face and a popsicle in his hand. She bribed him to stop crying, lol. 

After cleaning myself off, we ate dinner and then all of us went to bed. 

On Friday I woke up early with the intention of working out. As I was eating breakfast I decided not to because I was so sore and tired from the week I just had. Soon, the boss was up, and he wanted his yogurt. We sat on the couch watching the movie “Shorts” from the movie Cars. Mr O got a kick out of them. He loves Tow Mater. 

After work, the three of us freshened up, got dressed, and went to a graduation party for our friend from church. Mr O was able to see his godparents and he had so much fun. He ran around with me, danced with them, and tired himself out. By the time I read halfway through his second book, he was snoring. I snuck out of his room and went to bed myself!

On Saturday morning, around 5AM, there was a wonderful summer thunderstorm flying through the region. Of course, I was half asleep and as soon as I heard the thunder I thought, “Oh no, he’s awake”. Before we knew it, Mr O was in our room and between us in bed. “The monsters in the sky are loud.” He sweetly told us. 

I could not fall back asleep. Especially with his little feet digging into my side. So I snuck out of my own room to go downstairs and eat. I also wrote a new blog post about the Bears that will be published tomorrow, so be on the lookout for that! 

When I finished, Mr O was awake for the day. He came downstairs and we watched some random Madagascar show on Disney+ for a bit. Then we went upstairs to get ready for our nieces (his cousin’s) birthday party. We packed our things and headed down towards my in-laws. 

The drive was nice. After talking for an hour-and-a-half ( he gets that from his Mother), Mr O passed out. I listened to an interview Theo Von did with former CIA official John Kiriakou, and Lea read. It was a very interesting interview, and I know some people don’t believe a word he says because he used to be CIA, but what reason does he have to lie? He went to prison for telling the truth about some bad things the CIA was doing. Obviously, I don’t believe everything he says, and we shouldn’t, but it was a great interview. 

When we drove into town we went straight to the party. They hosted it at a gymnastics place (gym? What’s the term?). Mr O had a blast as usual. He ran and bounced on this trampoline almost the entire party, and when he wasn’t on there he was jumping into the foam pit. It was a fun party! Afterwards, I helped clean up by popping all the balloons. Ugh, poor me with the hardest job. My brother-in-law had it easy! All he did was take all the presents, coolers, food, and tables down the stairs to his car. He could have at least helped me pop all the balloons!

When we left the party we went to my brother-in-laws house so the kids could continue playing. We ordered pizza and I got a little 10-inch Hawaiian style. Don’t let anyone ever tell you pineapple doesn’t belong on pizza. It’s the best. After spending a couple of hours there, we decided to just drive home, but Mr O had other plans. He screamed and cried because he wanted to see his Gaga and Boo (Lea’s parents). So we went to their house to stay the night. I gave Mr O a bath and then he cuddled his Gaga for a bit before we all went to bed. 

On Sunday I was up early because the sun was in my eyes, lol. I was sleeping on the couch in Lea’s childhood old bedroom because there’s no room for all three of us in the guest bedroom, and I forgot to close the blinds before I fell asleep. 

While I was lying there I finished a chapter I had started in Huckleberry Finn a few days ago. Then I wrote 90% of this post before Mr O and Lea woke up. When they did, everyone in the house showered and we met my sister-in-law and one of our nieces for breakfast. Mr O had two huge pancakes and devoured both of them. I had two eggs over easy, hash browns, sausage patties, and two pancakes. I didn’t finish them all this time so I let my niece have some (I’m a cool uncle!). 

After breakfast we filled up the car with gas and drove home. After unpacking, Mr O and I went outside. I cleaned the grill while he played with his toys. Then we went into the backyard and I filled up his water table. We had a big water fight with the water guns, then came inside. I gave him a bath and now we are eating popsicles on the couch watching a movie. He wanted to watch the Dinosaur Train Movie – Adventure Island. 

As for the rest of the day, it’s raining and gloomy outside so I think we’re just going to chill. 

A Moment I’m Still Thinking About

I’m still thinking about Mr O coming into our room on Saturday morning because he was scared of the thunder. He’s so sweet and I love that he feels safe with us. It’s a little thing, as children should feel safe with their parents, but it’s still such a touching, small moment that typically goes unnoticed (in our house too sometimes). He’s the best.

Thank you for reading! You should subscribe!

Peter

Instagram