Thursday, September 15, 2016

Week 19: The Memorial Weekend

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Here's another one of those posts that deserves a warning label. Reading is now on you. There were two memorials this week so of course it was emotional. These were the last ones for a while as far as I know. I won't be attending anymore right now anyway. It's a lot to handle. It's so nice of people to put so much effort into them but the emotion section of my brain might just shut down to survival mode if I go to another one. Unfortunately this is me. 


Friday was a good day. Got up, got ready, got stuff done, and my mom came down. It's always a good time when she's here and I needed that. I even wore the perfect shirt. Sometimes I have to remind myself it's okay. 

                                           

Saturday. The memorial. There were a lot of people here getting ready but we all made it on time. I don't know how. I sat on the couch and talked to my mom forever. Then there was a 30 minute delay because I just could not make myself get moving. I know it is subconscious avoidance but still. It happened. There was another 30 minute delay because Little2 didn't want to get dressed. She was being difficult so I was furious but once we got into her closet alone she just broke down in tears. She just said she missed her dad. I knew the day would be full of thoughts of him but she started earlier than I expected. We got through the episode by crying together in the closet then picked out an outfit that matched mine. She's beautiful. Also, she's holding Leo the Blue Peep in these pictures. Leo is traveling this year for an organization called We Ride to Provide. They provide K-9 officers with First Aid kits for their furry partners. It's a great organization that my husband worked with over the years so if you ever feel like giving someone a dollar they are another great option. 


Little1 got sick again. He said he only told me but he felt like he might pass out again. The morning had been a lot like the morning of the funeral which is the only time he has ever passed out. I think he was just stressing out. I got some sugar in him and he was better fairly quickly. He's beautiful too. (Nobody is ever allowed to tell him I said that. He'd kill me.) For real though... he is.


We got there a little early and passed out key chains to officers and talked to people. I avoided inside as long as possible. The ceremony was beautiful. Songs were sang, prayers were prayed, and tears were cried. There was a butterfly and balloon release as well. It was all gorgeous. 







It was a long day. We laughed and cried, had a meltdown in a store, made it home all in one piece, and I got to snuggle my nephew a little that evening so it worked out okay. Sunday morning we all got up and went to Law Enforcement Appreciation Day at our church. It was a nice service with a wonderful guest speaker. Look him up. He runs a ministry for officers. 



BFF's youngest had a birthday party Sunday as well since she rescheduled it to go to the memorial. 💙 We went there when we left church. We missed most of it due to church but we made it. Mom left from there going home with my nephew. We hung around for a while and then wasted the rest of the day with friends. It had been a long weekend and we were all exhausted.

Monday was boring. Everyone was still a little irritable from the weekend. It was stressful. We just did our own thing. School, homework, dinner, baths, bed. None of us were mad or even had a bad day. It was just a normal day after a weekend of going nonstop. As boring as that sounds, I am thankful for every "normal" day that comes along. Boring is better than bad. 



Tuesday was a good day. I found an article on Facebook that I liked which is rare. Find it here. I also shared a post that my husband had made after another officer had gotten killed. It's odd to read things like that sometimes. It was helpful to me to be reminded how he felt by him. It's always better directly from the source right?



 L2 wanted to make another video so we did that. She is hilarious. It's here if you want to see it. Now I'm going to share the biggest accomplishment in my life with y'all. I won't keep you in suspense. After 30+ years, I made a good bun. In my hair. MY hair. My I-refuse-to-do-anything-you-ever-ever-want-me-to hair. Okay people, yes, my children are my biggest accomplishment. Don't judge me. But -right after- them is this bun. 



See? That is an accomplishment right? The man upstairs knew I needed a good day because I also found out a friend is having a baby girl. This particular person struggled with getting pregnant and found out she was not long after DH passed. I feel like he knew we needed something new and bright. Then when we got to our first soccer practice we found out one of L1's lifelong friends was on his team. Tuesday was just a really good day. Other than not sleeping. And on that note:






Wednesday was another normal day. Very nice again. Made another video with L2. We were just sitting in IHOP. She's addicted. They are fun though, and this one is a classic. 



This week has been a very long, very difficult one. It has led to some great things though. L1 had his 2nd soccer practice tonight. My MIL and FIL went. After practice she and I started talking about nothing in particular and just wound up having a very long conversation. We were stressed out and few people understand what we deal with on a daily basis. We tend to not talk about our feelings anyway and then on top of that you never want to bring it up in case the other is actually having a good day and not thinking about it. We needed to talk. She needs all the prayers and good vibes you can send to her too. L2 went home with her after practice so she can take her to school tomorrow. She's stopping by to get L1 because he likes to sleep in his own room as much as possible. I assume that's a teenage thing. Whatever. This week is ending on a pretty good note all things considered. Thanks to everyone who has been checking on us!


Links to the previous and next post are below.

Week 20

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