Briefcase on the Kitchen Table

So after two full weeks on the road and away from the office this last week was an all-out sprint to get caught up. I had hearings of some kind every day and lots to get done on my upcoming cases. I was working during the day and then working during the night. To top it off Avery just started teaching his first class (yay!) which takes a LOT of time (curriculum writing, writing tests, homeworks, etc). This was one of those housework-is-when-the-dishwasher-and-washing-machine-are-running-at-the-same-time kinds of weeks. Then this weekend we helped celebrate dear friends’ wedding Friday and Saturday and (because I’m a sadist) I volunteered to coordinate the Church Picnic this morning which, even moving inside because of rain, was a blast. So now I feel like I am finally get a chance to breathe and am making shopping lists, and to do lists, and catching up on emails and all of the other things we do to *try* and get ready for the week. My last few weeks I have been a lot of places and I learned a few things:

1) I have a great family. My first stop was to Fort Wayne to throw a Bridal Shower for the beautiful Amanda Smith who is marrying my cousin in a few weeks (we still haven’t figured out how he conned her into that but we are glad he did). It was a blast to see my family and know what a crazy gang Amanda is joining. They are great people.

2) My sister is an event rockstar. Next on the trip list was Orlando to work for one week as a bit of a hired-hand for my sister’s Event Production Company. It. Was. Insane. Very long hours (we are talking 5:30 am to 1:30 am folks). Interesting dietary choices (chocolate covered pretzels for lunch). A wonderful group of people. I have to say I had heard that my sis was good at her job but watching her in action was awesome. I watched her command the coordination of a conference that had 750+ participants, 100+ vendors, thousands of dollars in food and beverage, Broadway-level stage/lights/sound, and a client who is a rockstar in her own right and demands high performance by the team she hires. Needless to say I can understand now why coordinating Avery and my wedding wasn’t a thing at all- this girl killed it with a smile on her face. And I met some amazing people (who got to see my gnarly dance moves).

3) Avery loves Disney. After a week of event life Avery flew down to Orlando so that Kat, her roomie Lindsey (LL), Ave, and I could hit Disney for three jammed packed days. Let’s just put it this way- by day three Linds and I took a three hour pool break while Avery and Katherine ran full tilt all over Magic Kingdom and Epcot- Avery rocking the Mickey Fanny Pack and the Goofy Hat the whole time. This boy loves to have fun and is not ashamed of it.

4) I love the people I work with. The last stop of the whirlwind trip was to fly into St. Louis for a couple hours of doing laundry and then driving two hours to Columbia, Missouri for a couple days of Juvenile Law training. It was great to see my work friends after a week and half out of the office and to be reminded of why I have the best job in the world- the best clients, the best co-workers, the best boss who is so supportive of us.

What a whirlwind it was. Next weekend we have NOTHING on the calendar besides the regular going out to eat and church on Sunday. Hopefully that will give us a chance to actually clean our poor apartment and get to Target to restock our lives a bit. I am thankful for the craziness though- I have wonderful people in my life and it is wonderful to get to share it. Now where to store these Mickey ears…