Morning, everyone, how were your weekends?  Ours was nice – really nice – although we didn’t get as much outdoor time as I’d have liked.  The weather forecasts were for slightly better (but still a bit grey) weather on Saturday, so we headed to a new-to-us local park to squeeze in a hike.  (The joke was on us, because Sunday’s weather turned out to be much better – sunny and cool – ah, well.)  We explored a trail by the river, talked about kayaking there one of these days, and kept eyes out for birds.  (We met a father and son birding duo who had their binoculars trained at the treetops; the father told me that they were watching yellow-billed cuckoos; sadly, I didn’t spot any, so no new birds for the life list this weekend.)

The rest of the weekend was more productive than playful, but still satisfying in its way.  Both Steve and I had to get some work done, after a less-than-productive week last week.  (The hope is that both kids will become more independent and less needy during their school days…)  And I spent a lot of the weekend rushing around the house, getting art hung and boxes unpacked and hauled out of our space.  I’ve set a goal to be unpacked and settled in by September 22 – the fall equinox.  Steve thinks I’m insane, but I am determined to do it.  I’m exempting the playroom from this; it needs a lot more help than one more weekend’s worth of work.  And I’ve accepted that I won’t be able to get all of the donations out of the house until COVID-19 is over and the libraries are accepting again.  But other than that – I’m determined.  Lots of progress was made on Sunday, and I fell asleep with that satisfyingly exhausted feeling, like when you’ve spent the day doing lots of physical work.  Love that feeling.

Reading.  Good reading week!  I finished A Memoir of Jane Austen, which was hilariously inaccurate, mid-week.  Then spent the latter part of the week with Georgie Codd and a lot of fish, in We Swim to the Shark, which I LOVED.  I’ll have much more to say about it in the next couple of weeks, so won’t go into great detail now, and will just say that I have a strong suspicion that it’s going to end up on my top-ten books of the year.  Finished the weekend with September, by Rosamunde Pilcher, and am settling in for a long haul of reading this week.

Watching.  Since it was Nugget’s half-birthday weekend, we let him choose the movies for family movie night on Saturday and Sunday.  As a result, we all watched half of Star Wars: The Force Awakens and half of Ratatouille.  Other than that, we probably watched an episode or two of Rock the Park this week, but I don’t recall specifics.  Since the kids are now on the computer for big chunks of the day – doing school – we are trying to limit their screen time otherwise.  (Without taking away TV entirely, because COVID-19 is not their fault, and it’s also not their fault that school is online this year, so they shouldn’t be punished by having all TV taken from them when they’ve already lost so much fun this year.)

Listening.  Not much; music on the way to the grocery store this week – taking a break from podcasts – and an hour or so of an audiobook.  After all the screaming matches I’ve been listening to, I downloaded Peaceful Parent, Happy Siblings: How to Stop the Fighting and Raise Friends for Life.  Here’s hoping.

Making.  A lot of progress in the house – especially hanging art, which always makes such a big difference.  The sunroom is also starting to take shape, which is so satisfying.  Tonight I’m tackling the dining room, and tomorrow I’ll take the evening “off” – so to speak; I have to go to the grocery store to pick up my curbside order after the kids are in bed on Tuesday.  I’m really determined to have the house fully set up and a relaxing space by next weekend.

Moving.  Oof.  Not as much as I would have liked to do.  I hit my Garmin’s goal for active minutes for the week on Monday, thanks to Labor Day hiking at Shenandoah National Park (always a favorite!).  Other than that – nothing until Saturday’s hike and a run on Sunday morning.  Balancing work with the first week of school took every spare moment I had from Monday through Friday.  I hope it gets better soon, because last week I was burning the candle at both ends and it was not sustainable.

Blogging.  Another bookish week!  I have a Classics Club review for you on Wednesday – of Delta Wedding – and then on Friday, I’m musing about the surprising fact that I have lived in this house for three months and have not yet gotten a library card.  Who even am I?  Check back to find out.

Loving.  I’m almost embarrassed to admit this, but this section is all about telling you guys what is making my life better right now, in this moment, and that is: I finally got a wireless mouse.  I know, you have questions.  Haven’t you been working from home for seven months now?  What were you using before?  Told you it was embarrassing.  I have a wireless mouse at the office, but it never occurred to me to get one for home; for the past seven months, while I’ve worked first at the kitchen table and later in the dining room, I have just been using the trackpad on my laptop.  It’s awkward and cumbersome, but it literally never crossed my mind to get a mouse – until I ordered the kids each a wireless logitech mouse to make their online school days easier.  (Peanut chose a mouse that is festooned with flamingos; Nugget’s looks like a little owl.)  They were literally $20 each on Amazon, arrived the next day, and took thirty seconds to set up.  As Nugget comfortably navigated around his virtual classroom with his mouse while I awkwardly swiped around the track pad doing document review, I thought to myself: why don’t I have one of these?  So I’m now the proud owner of my own logitech wireless mouse.  While I was tempted by one with martini glass designs, I acted my age and went for a serene blue.  My only regret is that it took me so long to make this connection for myself.  File this with the rest of the examples of Mom putting literally everyone else before herself.

Asking.  What are you reading this week?