Oh you know; it's just life.

What a whirlwind of a weekend!!! I spent Friday with my dearest "Bread". We slept in (of course) and then spent the day together doing all sorts of stuff. Stopped by a few stores (he apparently found this super rare movie and was super excited). Afterwards we went to his best friends house (who I had not met) and let me tell you; it was WONDERFUL! They have a little girl that is absolutely adorable and three puppies that are totally cute! We feasted on great food that I'm gonna take a moment to explain. There was fresh from the stalk broccoli with a homemade cheese sauce; savory pork chops lightly battered with flour, pepper and salt then fried in butter; potatoes that were roasted with seasoned salt/pepper/garlic; and corn on the cob (slathered in butter of course). Absolutely delicious. Afterwards we watched the movie mentioned before and had adult conversation. As a single mother that is quite unique you have no idea how uplifting and inspiring it is to meet women you can relate to. She's not a single Mom, and her husband is quite nice, but her as a person made the entire night that much more of a great time! I have very few female friends in my life and I'm very grateful for any real/genuine women I meet. It's always a joy to connect, share stories and learn new things! After dinner we had some delicious ice cream cones. I ended up sharing mine with their little girl. She really didn't even have to ask; she just looked at me all adorable like. I'm such a pushover when it comes to children other than my own. :-)
The following day I went with Sissy to our family's Fourth of July celebration. The whole way there my Zellie was texting me asking what I was doing. He lead me to believe he was at home with his girlyfriend since she's nine months preggers. Oh no. He was the first person I saw when we arrived. Needless to say; I punched him before hugging him and crying. It had been far far too long since seeing my favorite cousin. Me and Sissy mingled for a bit then kind of felt awkward. See; at any family event you see these little cliques. These kids belong to those and these siblings are really close and etc etc. Well, mine and Sissy's clique wasn't there. It was just the two of us (and Dad after the cornhole tournament). So it was kind of awkward for the two of us. Now; I'm not saying the family shunned us or anything. Everyone was delighted we had made it out. It just so happens as the day passes that the little cliques drift into their own little worlds (not hatefully by any means) and those that don't have a mass group of their immediately family get left feeling a little outsiderish. All in all though, it was a great time. We missed the fireworks because I had to come home and make sure Grams had everything she needed for bed.
Then; I went to see Bread again. :) it's crazy how much you realize you've missed someone when you go a while without seeing them. Our first day together after everything happened was a little awkward. We had to talk a bit and reconnect. Then, our second time together was much better. We stayed up way later than we should have but we were having so much fun we didn't realize how late it was. It's odd how fast time flies when you truly enjoy someone's company. This afternoon I met my sister for a bit and might I say; her daughter is too cute for words. I'm her See-rah. I absolutely adore her which is how she got me to climb through a McDonald's Playplace. Up the little step things, through the tunnels and down the slide. It's a wonder I didn't keel over from exhaustion then! So worth it though to see the smile on her face. See; I haven't been around much since she was born. A lot my fault; a little my sisters. We actually had a huge argument about it a few weeks ago. I think things are looking up though. And now that I'm starting a job in Bardstown (Tuesday!!!) I'll be able to see them more. It brings a lot of joy to my life because my Sissy was a very big role in keeping me sane throughout my childhood. We have always been close and she is one of my role models. Words can't express how important her family (my family) is to me and I'm glad to have them in my life again. With both of us making an effort we are starting to reconnect.
Anywho, after that I went back to Bread's and we made dinner. Now; this is a pretty big deal. He's never really cooked before and I love cooking. I actually usually don't let people in "my kitchen" when I'm cooking. But we worked really well together. He grilled our steak (dry rub: random spices) to a perfect medium. Warm pink middle, marbled steaks so they were tender and juicy and full of flavor. We opted out of vegetables for the evening :) The potatoes were mashed (LOTS OF BUTTAHHHH) with a hint of garlic. The mac-n-cheese was made with penne noodles and a blend of monteray jack/cheddar. We both thoroughly enjoyed it and it was our first meal made together. Cute enough to make others sick :)
After dinner I headed to pick up the most amazing, wonderful, adorable, smart and funny kid in the world! I was very excited to see my Anakin after such a long, though good, weekend. We stopped in to see a friend for her birthday. It was rather awkward because Country Boy was there. I debated for quite a while on whether I should go or not, for his sake. In the end I went (after several calls) and it wasn't all that bad, though there was that underlying awkwardness. All in all it wasn't a bad experience; I just hope he's doing alright.
We left there and stopped in to drop of some clothes to a friend of mine. Her grandson is a size below Anakin so I give them the clothes he doesn't fit anymore. I get a lot of clothes handed down to me for Anakin and I'm very grateful I can pass them along to others as well. It's gratifying to be able to help; and being a single Mom I know how much it's appreciated. Kid clothes are expensive! It was already pretty late at that point but we stayed a while anyways. It was good to catch up with her and to see the guys. It's crazy how much they've grown! I remember being their age and them harassing us all the time. Now they're all grown and I must say I'm very proud of them all. My brotha-from-anotha-motha was leaving for work as I got there. He's a little older than I am and actually works with my best friend now, hardy har har. We'll call him Bfam.
Sidenote: funny story here. Remember me telling you all I went to Juvi? Well, my FIRST court date, I'm walking through and there Bfam is! He had apparently gotten arrested for beating up a guy that hit is gf (who was preggers). So, we say hi. Well, they call my last name and I go out into the court room. But guess who's out there? His Mom!!! So here I am flipping out "OMG OMG OMG she's gonna kill me". Well it turns out, they called Bfam and just thought it was me since we had the same last name and first initial!!! It was too much! (I laugh now, I almost peed myself then)
Well now; where were we? Oh yes! So I stopped by to drop off clothes to them and catch up while my Anakin made a new friend. Then it got wayyy late so now here I am at home! Walked in and one of my delightful little nephews is here (already asleep of course). Now my little big man is asleep and I'm excited to spend time with both of them tomorrow! Sweet dreams world! P.S. If you want to see pictures of the gorgeous trip to Rineyville, or my life in general, my "picture story" is on Instagram: Srstri91.