WHEN YOU HAVE KIDS, CRAZY IS THE NEW NORMAL.

Yesterday I wrote about how this past week was not our family's finest. The stomach bug wreaked havoc on our home, and although I dodged that bullet myself, I spent the week nursing my sick family, washing load after load of sheets and towels, and disinfecting the house like Typhoid Mary had come and gone. My four day trip to Connecticut had turned into a six day trip, followed by a four day visit from our Lexington, Virginia friends.  The bug struck Monday, the very day that our guests left. By Saturday my family seemed to finally be getting better after five days, and since the family could now take care of themselves, I took a much needed day off and headed to Durham with the girls to see Kinky Boots at the Durham Performing Arts Center (DPAC). 

How was Kinky Boots? I loved every kinky minute of it! How can you not love a flashy and fun, glitzy and glamorous musical cast with red sequined, thigh high stilleto-heeled drag queens shaking up a traditional men's shoe factory, with some very poignant moments thrown in, and a message of accepting oneself and others the way they are? Plus, my musical theatre loving girlfriends are a riot! 

 Deitra, Myself, Jenny, and Sandy getting Kinky at DPAC

Deitra insisted that we try the "big hot nuts" at DPAC. If you have ever been to DPAC then you know exactly what I'm talking about. Warm pecans covered in a crispy sugar and cinnamon coating. You can smell the aroma of sugar and cinnamon wafting through the air when you make your entrance. They are seriously so good. Guess what. I make these at home. For real. In the crock pot. I promised to give my recipe to the girls, and I plan to share on here, too, so the whole word can share in the deliciousness. ps They don't allow crock pots at DPAC, so when you go, take $5. 

I was very pleased with my day, so happy that the family was finally well and we could all resume our normal lives. Then I got home and found out that Carrington had run smack into a pole on the playground at church. He had a huge goose egg just above the bridge of his nose. I was relieved that it was swollen, because I've always heard that it's better to swell on the outside of the head than inside. I don't know if that's true or if it's just an old wives tale, but when my tough guy started complaining of feeling nauseated and dizzy, both classic signs of concussion, we decided to take him to the ER. I stayed home with Courtland while Mark took Carrington. The doctor assured him that we made the right decision, and Carrington did have a pretty bad concussion. He recommended keeping Carrington home from school and observing him closely for a couple of days. I was hoping to get back to normal. The truth is, when you have kids, crazy is the new normal. 

So what's a boy to do when he can't join his sister and friends at school and his mom won't let him run and play outside nor play video games? Legos, of course! Massive amounts of Legos. All. Day. Long. I could tell how proud he was of his creations by the way he carefully memorialized them on his iPod. How great is this? I really don't know what is better, the Lego figures he built, or the pride he shows in his work. Priceless, both of them. 

Did you notice the rug? This is one of the two I ordered last week to go in the almost finished design-on-a-dime basement. I was so excited that it arrived today and I could finally put that on my new basement floor. There are two fairly easy things you can do for a room that completely change the look and feel. One is paint. Paint is the cheapest way to completely transform the look of your room. Two is a rug. A rug is the simplest way to pull a room together. I knew once I got it down, the room would be better pulled together and finally have the cozy feel I wanted. I love it!  (By the way, it is a natural jute fiber rug, very reasonably priced, and I found it here.)

Tomorrow's a new day. I hope you have a great one! As for me, I'm breaking bad on a box of Legos, my friends. Carrington and I are planning on building some crazy-tall Lego fortresses, maybe a castle or two, a lair of some sort, and some super hero hideout, I'm sure. And as much I'd love for life to get back to normal, I'll take these moments, because right now, it's what we have. Normal or not. 

xoxo, Erin

Southern Virginia Mom

SovAMom Home

 ps Is this not gorgeous? I took this when leaving a meeting at the Prizery tonight. This gorgeous sky was anything but normal! The most beautiful things in life often aren't.