Expect Deyays

How tired am I? So tired that I started a conversation with my son in the car–ten minutes AFTER I dropped him off at school. I was kind of mad he didn’t answer me…

I really can’t complain; all of our challenges are definitely of the first-world variety. We’ve been in a hotel for two weeks while our house is de-molded (one more week to go!) and I know that’s a privilege. Yet…I want to go home. As more mold have been found and more facets of repair have been layered on, I kept thinking of my favorite local digital road work sign: EXPECT DEYAYS

The sign cheerfully sits beside a roundabout under construction near our house. I had many reasons to look forward to moving into our new house—many! I REALLY looked forward to the shorter drive to school that would soon begin at that roundabout. I knew we wouldn’t get it right away, since the shorter road was under construction, but I'm excited for it to happen.

S. started the high school schedule this year, so I make at least four roundtrips to school each day. Saving ten minutes per leg saves me almost an hour and a half per day—that’s no small amount!

So when the road, due to open in August, didn’t finish on time, I was bummed but not overly so. I expected delays. It’s now due to open in November.

Blue=current options. Red/yellow=future option!

I haven’t been quite so calm about all the delays in our mold remediation process. My home is my sanctuary, so it’s hard to have mold, dust, dirt, and lots of strangers in it, especially since they’ve had to destroy and rebuild parts of it with all our belongings inside. I didn’t quite expect all the delays; I definitely didn’t expect the DEYAYS.

Yet they have come. One night we went down to the hotel pool to de-stress and met a delightful young man named Jensen who favored us with renditions of his favorite Jimmy Buffett songs—“Knees of My Heart,” “Volcano,” and “Come to the Moon.” Pretty good taste for a three-year-old! YAY! Thank you, Jensen.

Speaking of taste, our son, newly turned eleven, seems to be having a growth spurt—at least if the three-course breakfasts he’s downing at the hotel buffet are any indication. This morning, Big A and I decided that it might be a good thing that the HVAC contractor who goofed is buying those breakfasts! Yay!

I’ve been disappointed in my goals for the month—painting the kids’ Harry Potter bathroom, for one. Instead, I took out my frustration on creating a kick-butt Fire Swamp in the back of our van for Trunk or Treat. YAY!

Flame Spurts! (Candy) Lightning Sand! R.O. U.S.!!!

The dog has gone nearly everywhere with me and made lots of friends—far more than I have, thanks to his puppy magic. And the folks at the hotel simply could not be any nicer. Yay! We’ve had lots of random, silly fun as a family. Yay! And ice cream, lots of ice cream. Yay!

Our new home almost seems surreal; spending three weeks away after five months there has set it at a distance, in a way. Yet, as we all count down the days to our return home, I can’t help thinking what a wonderful partner and children I’ve been blessed with in this life. Yay!

EXPECT DEYAYS, everybody!

Bruno hoping for DEYAYS!