matching pajamas and other nonsense

the latest in my messy little life

Happy Aloha Friday! Or, as my son would call it, FriYay.

On the tail end of a nasty migraine marathon, I am finally able to try to get back to reality. I never thought leaving the house and running errands could be so much fun.

It was probably obvious to the retail clerk at Old Navy and the attendant at the carwash that I hadn't spoken to another adult human being in a while. I rambled on, desperate for human interaction. It was quite a scene.

The best part was my Costco run. I was chatting it up with other customers, commenting on items in their cart. I was giving my unsolicited opinion to women trying on dresses and shirts. I was way more excited than I should have been just to be out in public. It was like the stay-at-home mom equivalent of going to a club.

I also had my very first holiday trigger of the year. And, like all triggers, it was completely unexpected. It was an ad for matching Christmas pajamas for the family. It's not even Halloween!

We weren't the type of family that posed in our pajamas for holiday photos or anything like that. But we did attend a friend's annual holiday party where we wore Christmas pajamas, brought breakfast for dinner dishes to share and where Santa made an appearance, handing out gifts to the kids.

We were still in the process of creating holiday traditions of our own and that was one of our favorites. I haven't looked at these ads the same since he's been gone.

Since I was feeling like we had lost our neighborhood tribe, I was so excited to see a couple of kids recently playing outside of our house. I encouraged my son to join them, even though he can still feel awkward and shy when it comes to approaching new friends.

I saw that they were carrying nerf guns and told him to go and grab his gear. The next thing I knew they were running through the grass, hiding behind bushes and having an epic battle until dark. He was dripping with sweat when it was time to come in and he said they cleaned up the best they could.

The next morning, I thought I would peek outside to see if there were any bullets left behind. The lawn was completely riddled with them, looking like evidence from a crime scene. There's never a dull moment around here.

Until next time,

Aloha