Saying Hello = Glaaaaaaaaaaaaaad

There are a lot of good things about San Diego. At this point in our expedition and with this very white-knuckled flyer (meeeeeeeee), I can appreciate that the weather is consistently lovely there. Meaning? The flight in and out is smooth, seemless, and offers beautiful sun scenes.

We could have done this a million more times. We may have gotten close.

I was too invested in watching Alden and Dustin hug for the first time in over a month to catch any photos of it. I wanted to be there to see it and to get a hug for myself. Dustin and I have spent a lot of time apart in our years together... we traveled for work and moved quite a bit. This was the most trying time apart though. It's a total game changer when you have a child that misses their parent during that time. It was hard for Dustin to be alone and looking for the perfect home for us. It's also difficult to be the single parent on the other end packing up the whole house all with no car. But. I'm posting this nearly 6 months later so we must have made it.

 

Saying Goodbye = Saaaaaaaaaaaaad

With the house on M St. entirely packed up (Thanks Dad and Sy) and the house completely cleaned (Thanks Mom and Robbie) we were able to leave Grants Pass a whole day early in the latter part of March. I thought that it would be really hard to leave Grants Pass and our little home but, to be brutally honest, it was a huge relief. Our economical portion of life had become such a crippling issue that it was difficult to have fun at even the simplist things in life. And as usual, it the people that it's the most difficult to say good-bye to.

 

This is at Bekki's home where we all lounged around for the day before we boarded the plane to San Diego.

My mom offered to take our long term traveling cat, Y'all. The apartment we had waiting for us didn't accept animals AND in her near 12 years, this cat has moved so many times that I didn't think her sanity could handle one more test. Though it was hard to hand her over, I know that Y'all has been purring ever since.

 

Bekki kept Alden busy while I checked in our bags at the airport. We were all a sobbing mess by the time it came to depart. It's astonishing what kind of control you have to keep, though, so you can show your child that it's ok to move on. I didn't want him to focus on the good bye but the huge HELLO we were anticipating on the other end. Dustin was eagerly awaiting us in San Diego!

The BEST Dancing Batman You've Even Seen. Ever.

Stove S'mores

Once we've finished up a nice 6 mile hike around G.P. and gotten all of our mundane errands done for the day/week/month/forever, a mother and child can be hard pressed on things to do. Park? Done. Movies? Seen 'em. Books? Read 'em. Candy Land? Played it. Chores? Yawn.

 Fire up the ol' gas stove and make some single mama s'mores. I am bummed that I just now thought of this little late night snack. I could have been a lot heavier this whole time! Darn it. Now I'll have to shove all of the fun into the last few days of living with a gas range. Better get to work.

 This was seconds before Alden claimed that I was his best friend. Marshmallows will do that to a kid.

Swimming Lessons

There is always so much comfort in familiarity. Living in Grants Pass and raising your child to do the same things that you did is so fun and made easier because you already know the ropes. Alden took swim lessons this February, two times a week for the month, at the YMCA. The same one that I learned at about 30 years ago. Crazy. Most of the facilities have been updated excluding the changing room and shower bay. Same cold concrete and echo-y sound as you pee in the most unhygienic latrine ever. 

 The swim instructor is a saint and her name is Tomorrow. Adorable and patient. Still not sure how she managed to keep three wiggly, slippery boys ages 3-5 from drowning. Not only that but she got them to dive in and under the water and kick and blow bubbles. That is an art: being a swim instructor. 

Alden really likes swimming and I am happy that he responds well to water. Getting him to put his face IN water has been a small challenge made easier because of this type of exposure. Next, surf lessons, right?\

Touring Grants Pass on Foot

With Dustin AND OUR CAR in San Diego, Alden and I have been Forest Gump-ing it around town for the month. We've gotten a ride here and there but mostly when we had plans with the folks driving. I wished that I had a app that tracked mileage or, better yet, a car.

I'm mostly kidding. It's not been that bad. We have a great deal of "free" time (what is that exactly?) so walking our errands has been a great time soaker. We walked from our home to The Kid Zone at the top of town. We've walked from Westholm Park and then over to Famous Footwear. We've walked up to the Dutch Coffee House and library and Riverside Park and Video World and over 6th street bridge to Walgreens... and... and we are exhausted. Alden is a truckin', troopin' fool with a great deal of zest for observance. We stop and look at every interesting (and some not so interesting) artifacts along the way. We've scaled every fence and teetered on every yard perimeter that offers a ledge. We've met many folks who love a cute kid and a smiling mom. We've popped into stores we have NEVER been in during all of my tours through this town. While getting groceries hasn't been ideal,  I certainly appreciate looking at our town for the last time in such a slow and methodical way. There are homes on Washington Boulevard that I have never noticed before and people's yards can be so inspiring. Our town is rather clean and quirky and full of friendly faces.

As is typically the case with me, I sign up for taking less and doing things the hard way but I always end up with more gratitude and a stronger character. I like thinking that Alden may be picking up on that. Thanks for the long good bye, Grants Pass.

Good bye. Again.

Typically I don't like to advertise that I am at the house by myself but this blog is pretty safe, right? Don't tell anyone, ok, Grandma Betty? (She's my number one blog fan.)

The night before departure, February 28th, Dustin read to Alden and spent some quality time putting him to sleep for the last time for a month or so.

The next morning, Dustin was packed and one his way. Alden was a little sleepy. A little sad.

Does this pose look familiar? It's the second time we've moved out of Grants Pass but we are lucky to have such a wonderful house to rent out and come back to.

Booo-hooooo. Yeah, right. See the surf board? Dustin is pretty excited to get back to the beach.

He is securing our new home somewhere near San Diego while Alden and I tie up loose ends, pack up the house, pack a P.O.D. with the help of several friends, file taxes, get a new renter, etc. It's been a busy month for sure!