Before I get to the recap of moving day number one, my day
started out with more than a little strange.
With Ethan and Ehlana at Grandma and Grandpa’s, and Mom and Dad getting
their kid-free break; Michael came over to Rowen’s house for Tai Chi this
morning.
We’d had more rain earlier, and the grass was wet; but we
were able to do our lesson in the back yard.
That’ll be the last time I do that without back yard neighbors, but we
weren’t unobserved. Patrick was awake;
watched us from his bedroom window; and was glaring daggers at Michael the
entire time. That may have been because
of seeing us share a good morning hug and kiss, but whatever the reason; his
unhappy spectating made it a little tougher to concentrate on our lesson and
postures. Michael managed to do that,
and he didn’t look up at Patrick even once, but he did know what was going on;
and we may need to try and help Patrick deal with his crush a little better
than he has been so far. We sat on the
front porch steps and drank bottles of water while chatting for another ten
minutes or so after we’d finished exercising.
I’d hoped that being there would have spared Patrick witnessing our
goodbye kiss; but a loud thump from the general vicinity of the front dining
room window was a strong hint that he’d come downstairs to keep an eye on us –
and hadn’t liked what he’d seen.
That’s probably why he didn’t want to talk to me during
breakfast, and though I really feel bad about being the reason why he’s so
upset and mad right now; Rowen and I didn’t mind missing out on the usual
morning pranks that Patrick wasn’t in the mood to play on us with Scott. Taking turns having showers and getting ready
to head over to my house for the day was a lot easier without those extra-curricular
games.
I walked, and Rowen rode her bike when we left her place at
the same time that her parents went to the computer store and Patrick and Scott
biked off to go hang out with their friends.
We were in time to see Dad off to work, and then have a little visit
with Mom before Alicia came over to work around the house with Mom while they
waited for Ethan and Ehlana to get home.
It turned out that Rowen and I didn’t really have much to do for the
next couple of hours while we waited for a few things to happen first. Aunt Leanne, Claire, and Dad were all
involved in getting the three house sales closed, and then Naomi, Aiden, and
Hailey were busy for a while checking out their new homes with their parents
before Naomi and Aiden were dropped off at our house; and Hailey went to spend
the day with Grandma and Grandpa Draper.
Ethan and Ehlana were home by then too, and Rowen and I took
over watching all four toddlers until lunchtime. Alicia helped out when we took them swimming,
but we were on our own for a trip to the park playground. We had extra company at our house for lunch
so that the adults who were helping out with the work around the three new
houses didn’t have to take the extra time off to cook and clean. Grandma, Grandpa, Uncle Nick, and Aunt Deborah
helped Mom and Alicia with that; and we all had fun hearing about what everyone
else had been doing all morning.
Michael came over after lunch; and he joined Rowen and me
for our toddler-rated play afternoon. We
started out with a pair of bike and trailer rides around town; the first with
Ehlana and Naomi, and the second with Ethan and Aiden. Rowen and I did the first one, and Michael
was with me for the second loop. We
followed that up with another swim, and then played in the back yard for a while
before deciding that we needed an Emporium ice cream break. Mom and Alicia came with us for that; and we
collected Miranda and Jacob along the way.
Another trip to the playground was nixed when rain looked imminent, and
we barely had time to get home again before the first showers rolled through.
The rain kept us indoors for the next four or five
hours. Michael’s baseball practice was
cancelled, and after finding out that Rowen had family dinner plans tonight; he
invited me to have dinner with his family.
We managed to mostly stay dry when we ran over to his house after Dad
was home and Naomi and Aiden had both been picked up for the night. Stephanie was there for dinner too, as she
often was on their nights off; and I really loved everything about feeling like
I was truly part of the family now. It
was definitely a lot different than how it always felt anytime I was there as
Rebecca’s friend. Jacob and Jake had
experimented with the entree they make for dinner; and this is one of those
times that I really enjoy having a full-sensory photographic memory!
While dinner was really special, my favorite part of the
evening was when Michael began teaching me how to play guitar. Dad’s taught me how to play a few chords
before, but my motivation for wanting to learn to play is different now; and we
had a lot of fun tonight. The
combination of a great memory and the fact that guitar will be the third
instrument I’m learning to play helped to make for a very successful first
lesson. The alone time in Michael’s room
felt strange, but it may feel that way for a while when we’re on our own at my
house too.
For those of you who may be reading this in the future and
wondering if Michael’s room was the kind of disaster zone that you’d find with
most boys our age; I’ll have to disappoint you by reporting that his room was
fairly neat; and very organized. He
takes great care of his music gear, and even his collection of music books is
neat and tidy. His space and sci-fi
themed decorations and collectibles were interesting, and while his gaming
system isn’t as cool as the one Dad put in my lounge; it is pretty good.
We didn’t play video games, but after the nearly hour-long
guitar lesson, we watched a bit of television with his parents in the living
room; went for a walk once the rain had stopped; and ended our evening with a
swim in the river before Michael walked me home and we shared a good night kiss
or three on my front porch.
After watching Michael walk home, I went inside to find
Ethan and Ehlana still awake and in the office with Mom and Dad. They apparently needed me to tell them a
bedtime story about my adventures with Michael before they could sleep; so we
did that while having a bedtime snack.
Mom and Dad gave me the moving news update then too. There wasn’t actually a lot of furniture
moved today. Uncle Mark and Aunt Grace
have moving trucks or deliveries coming here starting tomorrow; but they didn’t
book anything for today in case they’d had a major flight delay.
They did get a couple of new deliveries from ValleyView
Furniture, and spent some time shopping for the long list of supplies they’d
need; using Dad’s truck to haul loads of purchases from the Emporium and
grocery store. The Drapers and Seagers
had a lot going on too, but there’s very limited capacity for moving trucks and
trailers in Witch
Falls; and they’re all
sharing that equipment this week. Add to
that the need to juggle running a bakery and Liz’s work at the Salon; the
morning paperwork shuffle; and the afternoon rain; and that pretty much
explains why the first day of work was slow and a bit disorganized.
Tomorrow is going to be different and busier; and Rowen,
Michael, and I will be doing more babysitting.
I’d thought about making it an early bedtime tonight, but after Ethan and
Ehlana were tucked in for the night; I ended up spending some quality time with
my Jacuzzi. The nightly computing after
that dragged on for an hour and a half longer than I’d expected after I got
caught up in a lengthy project proposal for the family business. It’s heading toward two o’clock at a high
rate of speed – rhetorically speaking; not through a time phase. :^)
With Tai Chi only a long nap away, though, I have had enough
fun and don’t have anything else to report for today, so...
...until next time, this is Magi Master Cassie Proctor;
logging out!
