We’re starting the second half of January
today, and it’s been a beautiful day; so I’m wondering why the weather
forecasters haven’t declared a wind-warm warning for the area! Excessively warm temperatures in mid-winter
are apparently not considered dangerous by the experts, but maybe that’s
because they’re too busy with their computer models to get outside very
often. Being able to toss off the winter
gear while outdoors this time of year can be very dangerous – it makes us all
wish that winter was over already when we know darn well that it isn’t!
Then again, I didn’t get to spend a lot of
time outdoors either. We spent a little
time enjoying the warm after school; but we also had a study group gathering
tonight too – this time at Rowen’s house.
Our last exam review day at school was fairly uneventful; though we did
go outside to play for a while at lunchtime.
We haven’t exactly had piles of snow or even much of a chance for
tobogganing yet this winter; but losing what snow we had on the ground could
mean a less-messy spring when we do get there.
The farmers aren’t as thrilled with this break in the cold, but at least
it’s still been dropping below freezing again at night; so they’re not too
worried about the potential to mess up any crops that might sprout too early.
As I mentioned, we spent a bit of time
outside after school so that we could enjoy the warm, but Rowen needed some
help at her house too to get ready for our study group; so Tim, Michael, and I
helped her with that. Okay, the boys
took care of shopping for frozen pizzas, wings, and snacks while Rowen and I
did the heavy lifting around the house; but then we were okay with that because
it gave us the chance to cheat a bit with nobody else in the house. We also worked a lot to take care of the teen
pizza party frenzy in the middle of the study session while also taking turns
tutoring our classmates; and we studied until shortly before nine – not-so-coincidentally
wrapping up at about the same time that Rowen’s parents were closing the store
for the night.
Another clean-up followed; Michael and I
took a break to go and have a visit with my family at Uncle Adam and Aunt
Leanne’s house; and then we went back to Rowen’s house to hang out with her and
Tim until the boys needed to go home for the night. The visit next door was mostly so that I
could see Dad; and dinner and a movie night was at Uncle Adam and Aunt Leanne’s
this week. I’ll get the week in the city
update sometime tomorrow, but I’m spending the night at Rowen’s tonight; and
Mom and Dad are both okay with that – particularly since Aunt Leanne decided to
keep Ethan and Ehlana for a sleepover too.
Unplanned kid-free nights are very popular with most of my favorite
parents!
By the time we were able to settle onto the
sofas in the living room after Rowen’s parents opted to go to bed early instead
of hanging out with us; we only had time for one movie. The boys picked it, and while it wasn’t
terrible; I was just in it for the cuddle time with Michael. I’m not complaining about the choice –
sometimes I like watching movies where it’s all about blowing stuff up, car
chases, shoot-outs, and hand-to-hand fighting sequences. Tonight just wasn’t one of those times.
The boys went home at midnight, and while we
split up for a few minutes so hat Rowen and I could each say goodnight to them with
a bit of privacy; that didn’t take long – mostly because Michael and Tim both
had orders to be home on time due to work plans for Saturday. Rowen and I will be busy with work days too,
and we have another study session booked for the afternoon; so we aren’t going
to sit up and chat half the night either.
It’s actually quiet here tonight because Patrick opted to spend the
night at Scott’s house instead of being here for a teen study session. I guess that’s not a huge deal now that they
don’t really annoy Rowen and I anymore with pranks and jokes; but it has been
nice not needing to worry about sharing bathroom time or listening to
late-night video gaming for a change.
Rowen and I have been enjoying a bit of
girl chat time, but it’s also time for us to get some sleep; so I’m going to
wrap this up now. We’re mostly going to
have a work and study weekend, so the fun level isn’t going to be too high; and
the best I’m hoping for right now is maybe an hour or two of Michael and me
time tomorrow night after he’s finished helping out at the Inn. It’s also a holiday weekend, with Martin
Luther King Day on Monday, but this is probably the only holiday of the year
that doesn’t feel like one to me. We don’t
really get any inbound visitors; there are no special events; and this year, we’ll
be following the holiday with four days of exams. Most of my teen friends are just happy to
have an extra full day off to study for those exams; and I’ll be helping most
of them with that work.
Okay, that’s it for now; so, until next
time...
