Saturday

My Saturday began bright and early, putting the baby birds out to play. I ate some cherries right off of the tree and cleaned the kitchen.

Kelly had a practice AP test this morning, so I drove her to Hoover; this was immediately followed by fast and furious texting about where her teacher was, where the test would be given, etc. She couldn't find her teacher or the class, and finally, just when I was about to turn around to go get her, she discovered her teacher who was running late.

I went home where my home teacher was ready with chain saw and dolly to help me in my yard. For the next few hours, the kids and I helped clean up the big pile of wood and branches right outside my back door. I took motrin before the big event, hoping to stave off the migraine I felt building, and I took an allergy pill since I'm very allergic to the Modesto Ash trees we would be working with. However, the whole time I was sneezing, my eyes were watering and my headache just kept getting worse. I sneezed in my yard, 200 feet from my neighbor's house, and I heard "God bless you" shouted across the yard!

We were able to finish the task finally, with the help of Joe who returned from his Father-Son Camp-out (less his father, who attended a Giants game instead of going on the camp-out) just in time to help with the last little bit. We filled two green waste bins and moved the wood to the front where it can be chipped at the appropriate time. We also moved some pots to the garden area with the dolly.

After my home teacher left, I drank as much water as I could and tried to be quiet until Laine's friends arrived at 1:00 for a swim party. By that time, my headache had become a full-fledged migraine, and it was all I could do to be the proper supervisor for swimming in our beautiful pool.

We made a bit of pasta as a late afternoon snack (with meat, much to the dismay of Laine's vegetarian friend. I'm such a bad mom...) and Laine and her guests made brownies. When they departed, I rested for a few minutes to try to kill the headache once more. It refused to leave, so I took Kelly with me to the grocery store, where we purchased a few necessities for Sunday and I managed to cook dinner, then collapsed into bed again.

Later this evening, I went out to the yard to check on the chickens, and felt HUGE gratitude when I saw the empty spot where carnage and chaos had once reigned in my yard. I feel so blessed!