Sigh.  Monday.  Here again.  And almost August – how?  I’m exhausted.  Last week was a doozy – from Wednesday through Friday, I was out of the office (but not out of town) attending training workshops on all things deposition (how to take, defend, use exhibits in, and – unfortunately relevant – deal with aggressive opposing lawyers and recalcitrant witnesses).  I made a special request to my firm to allow me to take the training (and to fund it – it’s expensive) and I really, really wanted them to get their money’s worth – but I also had to get all of my regular work done and meet a couple of major external deadlines, so after each full day of attending lectures and conducting mock depositions, I headed home to put in another full day of work.  After a week of working more than twelve hours a day from Tuesday through Friday, I really needed a relaxing weekend – but that wasn’t in the cards for me either.  Steve headed out of town on Thursday for a boys’ weekend in Chicago to celebrate a friend’s milestone birthday, so I spent the weekend kid-wrangling.  Even on a normal two-parent weekend, the kids tend to orbit around me shouting requests (Mom! Can you get me a coloring book? Mom! I’m thirsty. Mom! I need to potty.  Mom! Can I have cereal without milk? Mom! She made a face at me! Mom! I WANTED MILK WHERE’S THE MILK.) – you get the picture.  On a weekend when it’s just me – it’s like they smell blood in the water.

Actually, they could have been worse.  It was pretty much the normal amount of belligerence and not-listening.  And we did have fun.  On Saturday, I let them ease into the weekend and spend some time with their own toys after a week of camp, then we headed out for our afternoon activities – Nugget to see his first movie in the theater (Toy Story 4 with his former nanny – I was a little sad to miss out on his first movie theater experience, but I figured she’d earned the milestone) and Peanut and me to a sweet little secret garden across the street from the library, where we pitched a picnic blanket, set out cookies and lemonade, and hosted two of her friends for a “reading party.”  Peanut came up with the idea herself – she’s been planning it for months – and I was glad to make it a reality.  On Sunday, we logged a couple of hours at the playground and then hit up a pool party for the rising first graders at Peanut’s school.  The kids had a fun time playing with their friends and the moms caught up on summer plans and exchanged vacation recommendations.  I left with several restaurant suggestions for our upcoming trip to Duck.  (Although I’m not sure I’ll be able to find “the hole-in-the-wall crab shack in Kitty Hawk,” come to think of it.)  All in all – a fun weekend, but tiring.  We sure were glad to see Daddy back on Sunday evening.

Reading.  Another slow reading week – surprised?  Me, neither.  On Monday I finished Ayesha at Last, which I really enjoyed.  I’ll say more next week in my July reading round-up, but it felt like I was finally reading a Pride and Prejudice update that borrowed just enough from the original, but brought something new to the table, too.  Next – library deadlines – I turned to Celine, which I just finished reading last night.  Liked it very much, but not a love.  Ended the weekend curled up with On the Come Up, Angie Thomas’ sophomore effort.  I’m going into it totally cold.  All I know about it is that I loved Thomas’ debut, The Hate U Give, and I’m looking forward to digging into her new book after waiting months on the library holds queue.

Watching.  Kids, kids, kids.  Watched them like a hawk in the pool, mostly.  And a little less anxiously on the playground.  Oh, and we all together watched Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse on Saturday, because, of course.

Listening.  Just podcasts – the podcatcher is as out of control as ever, I’m sorry to say.  But I just downloaded Daisy Jones and the Six on Audible, so I think I might switch over to an audiobook, just to mix it up.

Moving.  A run or two this week – I think just one, but tbh I can’t be bothered to go look at MapMyRun to confirm.  Otherwise, nothing, ugh.  When you’re working 13+ hour days and solo parenting all weekend, some things fall by the wayside.  Like self-care.  Here’s hoping for a better week next week.

Blogging.  Plans for the week include a July garden update on Wednesday (spoiler: it’s ugly) and the continuation of PNW travel recaps on Friday.  I get emo in the Whale Museum.  Check in with me then.

Loving.  I try to vary things, but I have to tell you about another non-dairy product this week.  Two in a row, I know.  Sorry.  But if you haven’t tried vegan coconut Reddi-Whip, you need to correct that ish, now.  I tossed it in my grocery cart on a whim, because I needed whipped cream to go with the angel food cake and blueberries that we were serving alongside the cookies at Peanut’s reading party, but I wanted to go with a non-dairy option because I like to save my dairy intake for things that really matter (like Greek yogurt and fancy cheese).  And – WHAT.  I have a new favorite whipped cream.  The coconut Reddi-Whip was delicious!  Very sweet, but I was serving it to kiddos, so, you know.  They were good with that.  And it has more than a hint of coconut flavor, which could be a non-starter for some but which is a bonus for this coconut lover.  I told my BFF, Rebecca, that I was trying to think of desserts that wouldn’t be enhanced by the coconut Reddi-Whip and couldn’t come up with a single one.  I think it would literally make anything better.  (She said she’d tried the almond Reddi-Whip and thought it was okay, but I think I sold her on the coconut.  It really was phenomenal.)

Asking.  What are you reading this week?