One really good day :)

Today was a great day, truly. Spring-like warmth in the air and a whole day of 'free' time with the monsters. I feel the gloomy frustration of the last week ebbing away, if slowly. For months, I have been submitting resumes, getting a few interviews and one job offer that was just too far away to make it feasible. If the last two years hadn't been such hell...with so many sacrifices, financially and emotionally, this frustrating and seemingly impossible job search might be more easily taken in stride. And to top it all off, I really want to move as we seem to be out-growing this house. I found this house, a blue ranch style home set back in the mountains with a 7 mile view of the lake. A den with a fireplace, 3 bedrooms, eat-in kitchen and dining room, 2 car garage and a large deck. AND they said the tenant can paint at will. All for only 125 more than what I pay for my house now. However, I can't do it with a part-time waitressing job. I have so many dreams and have waited so long for the payback...to see all of the friggin sweat and tears pool into a cushion of security...nothing more.

So, back to today. The kids and I had a lazy morning, simply because we could, and after lunch got our things together for a road trip. We packed ice skating gear in case we decided to skate. But our main purpose was to explore the glass museum in New York. It cost $5.00 for the three of us and we had a great time. Their exhibits ranged from windshields, to telescopes and microscopes, to ancient glassmaking, to everyday glassware. It wasn't a day for me to meander around examining glass sculpture or ancient mesopotamian glass artifacts, my 4 and 8 yr. old weren't all that impressed. We did enjoy the innovation display and the glassblowing demonstration. It was a short trip, but a good one. Then we decided to have dinner at this Italian restaurant my ex-husband and I used to go to, but they didn't open until 5 and it was only 4;15 when we got there. So the kids and I explored Market Street. I love Market Street, with it's brick sidewalks and dozens of shops, art galleries and microbreweries. We visited this craft and candle shop where we discovered a basket of beanie babies for $3.00 each. So that made the kiddies a little less impatient with our window shopping excursion. Even I got a beanie baby, a sloth, because it brought back memories of an old friend. Then we ventured on to a small art gallery, I wanted my son Derek to experience the different styles of painting. He is already known at his school as quite the artist. (His kindergarten teacher had a student that became an illustrator and said Derek reminded her of this student.) After our walk we headed back to the restaurant for dinner.

The restaurant...now that brought back memories; a few good ones of sharing wine with my ex-husband when on the rare occasion things were good and there was the hint of romance in the air. On the flip side, the more recent memories of me sitting there with him after an argument, crying throughout the entire dinner and he, nonchalantly eating and drinking as though I had no good reason to be acknowledged at all. But tonight was nice, just my sons and I, no one else's agenda to adhere to, no one complaining or rushing us, no critical rantings of our behavior. Days like today I really enjoy that I have the freedom of just being me, and my boys being with ME. We then headed home, watched Shark Tale for the 20th time, played Connect Four and wrestled. The monsters were tucked in, and a request for snuggling resulted in my falling asleep and having to post my blog this morning. Nothing too deep or even especially interesting here, just a good day in the life of a bluenewt on the brink of something greater. It is what it is.