A Little Slice of Normal

Tomorrow morning Drew comes home.  It will be the first time in 33 days our whole family will be together in our own house.  I'm so thankful it worked out, because 48-hours ago it wasn't looking so good.

Turns out when the weather men predicted 8-12" of snow for Thursday, they were right for a change.  And here in Lawrence, 8-12" of snow pretty much shuts the place down.  I was prepared (and by prepared I mean brought some work projects home and then loaded up on baking supplies and junk food) in anticipation of school closing and being trapped at home.  I was also pissed.  I'm all for a snow day, but the timing of this one sucked.  It meant:

1. Drew's flight home Thursday night was undoubtedly going to be cancelled.
2. I was going to be stranded in the house, alone, with a four-year-old for what was likely going to be 4 days straight.  I'm a pretty patient and tolerant person, especially when it comes to Jack, but even I could predict that spelled trouble.
3. All 8-12" of snow was going to need to be shoveled off the driveway.  By me.
4. No one would be house hunting in a snow storm or even in the several days following as the streets are cleared and the muddy, melty, mess ensues.

So yeah - I was pretty much cursing Kansas on Wednesday.

As it turned out, Jack and I got along fine.  It wasn't until this evening, 48-hours into our lock down, that we started to get on each other's nerves.  After shoveling about 3/4 of the driveway yesterday, our neighbor graciously finished the job for us this morning (we thanked him in cookies). 

And while the trip home is significantly shortened, Drew is going to arrive in the morning and will head out really early Monday in time to go straight from the airport to work. So we still get to see each other.

There has been zero house activity this week and I still think this snow storm just set us back further, but I'm trying hard to let go of the things I can't control.

Despite not really having plans for Drew's visit (how bizarre that he now "visits" us in Lawrence) I'm so excited for him to be here. Obviously Jack & I miss the heck out of him, for a number of reasons, but more than anything I just miss his presence. Someone to share a look with when Jack says something hilarious. Someone to talk to that isn't a four-year-old. Someone to make noise around the house so it isn't so eerily quiet at night. Someone to lend a hand.

The two days will fly by. We'll all be terribly sad when he leaves. But it will be worth it to experience this little slice of normal in a time that is anything but. No matter how brief.