Day 2,150

Days like today are the ones when I miss Dad a little more than usual. My day was shaped on more than one occasion by wisdom Dad shared long ago. To paraphrase:

“When you get too frustrated, just stop, take a break, and walk away. The problem will still be there waiting for you, but you’ll have a much more cool head when you take it on again. Attempt to muscle through it and you’re only going to get frustrated. Walk away before you make it worse.”

– Dad, aka Pete Kreiling

I miss him as he would have smiled and laughed as I shared my use of his wisdom. He’d flash me his “I told you so” smile, and then we’d laugh some more.

Not only did Dad’s shared wisdom help, it made me smile as I thought of his normal reaction in moments like this. I miss him tremendously, and yet my heart is beyond full for all the time we shared.

Thanks!!!

Day 2,149

After the deer hit a couple weeks ago I went in for an estimate. I tossed the. My keys, waited until they were done, got my quote, and got into my car. I drove across town on Hwy 61 and went to Kwik Trip for gas. I then drive back to my office.

When I tried to lock the car it wouldn’t let me, saying my keys were in the car. I realized the body shop never gave me my keys back so I started looking in all the usual spots. Nothing. I was pretty frustrated and got out of the car again to take a deep breath and stretch. That’s when I saw this…

Sometimes it really is better to be lucky than good!

Thanks!!!

Day 2,148

As the days and hours tick by until the beginning of Dominic’s senior year and Gavin’s freshmen year the clock seems to be moving so much more rapidly than in the past. At this pace I’m glad we have started to try out some of our empty nest dreams. We’ll definitely miss the boys, and knowing there won’t be as much craziness we’ll have to create our own.

Cue the reality testing of the campervan!

All went very well and we had a successful test run. We learned a few things to try things we’d like to try next and figured out how to do our next couple of test runs. So glad we’re starting to try this early to see what enjoy most.

At home I also had the opportunity to work on part of my potential empty nest “hobby.” While it didn’t go as smooth as I would have liked I was at least able to make some serious progress. Thinking ahead to the idea of having more time to devote to it I’m a little giddy!

Im going to keep enjoying all the time I can with the boys AND I’m going to keep reality testing the idea of being empty nesters to get myself ready for that next chapter as well.

Thanks!!!

Day 2,145

We bit the bullet and are reality testing one of our dreams this weekend!

Seeing as we keep talking about getting a camper van after Gavin graduates we figured we’d better start testing them out to make sure they are everything we hope they’ll be.

Fingers crossed, we’ll see how it goes!

Thanks!!!

Day 2,147

As has become our annual tradition, Becky and I headed out for a bike ride to the state wildlife refuge near our campsite. Each year this gives us an opportunity to head out and spend some time doing a few of the clothing’s we love all rolled into one. It’s a 20+ mile bike ride that includes some quiet county roads and quiet gravel paths through the preserve. So much greenery and marshland, such a beautiful area.

This year we even got to see some bison! each year we keep an eye out for the. As there are signs saying they are nearby, but this year there was a new form in the road which led us right to the bison. Pretty awesome!

To wrap up the night we chilled out around a blazing campfire, always the right backdrop for conversation on a summer night. So peaceful to chill and relax while enjoying the warmth and visual effects.

Thanks!!!

Day 2,146

One of my personal goals for this year is reading 100 books. I’m currently on pace to reach the goal and am already savoring the potential joy of reaching the goal.

For clarity, there are already a couple of books I’ve read more than once. These are some of my cornerstone books, the reads which have had the most profound impact on my life. I rather enjoy the concept of having a single book shelf filled with my favorites to be read and reread each year. In order to reach 100 read this year I have certainly needed to add some variety to keep me fresh and going.

The large number of new books I’ve read this year has added a pretty sweet added benefit. The concepts have blended and collided with past books. Sometimes they are complementary while others are in polar opposition. Regardless, they reading of the new books have been adding an additional level of depth to the books I’ve read in the last. Some of the concepts seem to make even more sense with the benefit of the additional information. What an awesome additional benefit of this goal!

Thanks!!!

Day 2,144

I am so thankful for how adept we all became at communicating via Zoom and Teams during the pandemic. The ability to bridge the gap of distance with technology was so helpful in so many ways. We were able to work and get stuff done while being literally countries away from each other. So beneficial in so many ways.

Today I was reminded of the importance of interpersonal communication in a small handful of events. Each pointed out so clearly how important face to face conversation still is. In one moment in particular there was so much more understanding and relatability thanks to being in the same room. Somehow my filter gets knocked a little offkilter in the electronic world but is so quickly straightened back out when face to face.

Yes, electronic communication can be super convenient and helpful, sometimes 100% necessary. The value of being in a room together, face to face, and communicating as humans evolved to do is so much more natural and much more befittting of certain conversations.

Thanks!!!

Day 2,143

LOL – I really need to go back through my blogs from the past almost seven years to see how often I say how busy the day was! Pretty sure it is a higher number than I’d expect and it will only increase significantly as soccer season starts. Wowza!

Busy day from before sun up to last sun down. All good, lots going on, fulfilling, firsts, family time, laughs, hard work, and memories made. Solid day all the way through, in many ways it just felt like the word bonkers seemed to sun it all up.

Crashing into bed, closing my eyes, and back up and at it early tomorrow morning. The day shouldn’t be as bonkers as today, but then again…

Thanks!!!

Day 2,142

This is going to be a ridiculously busy week with something planned almost every single night. I probably didn’t make the best of choice when I laid this week out. Oh well, what are you going to do, right?

When Becky asked me last night if I wanted to join her for yoga my answer was almost a snap “NO!” Why add one more thing when I’m already feeling claustrophobic? But then I remembered to breathe and say yes. I do not know the question, but if it involves stress I can almost certainly guarantee the right answer is yoga (or hiking or travel 😉)

Tonight I went to yoga and now I’m totally calm and relaxed. Taking time to breathe, to be present, and to be physically active always improves my mood.

I’m so thankful for remembering to say “yes” to yoga.

Thanks!!!

Day 2,141

This morning I happened to wake up at just the right time. I rolled onto my back and slipped my sleep mask up just a tad so I could see if it was still light or dark. What I saw was amazing.

Due to the temperature we’d left all our window flaps down and had only the screens protecting us from bugs. Thanks to the lack of obstruction the first rays of sun came pouring into the tent from across the lake. The inside of our tent was lit up in a beautiful golden orange glow that was slowly moving across the tent. It was spectacular!

I just laid on my back and enjoyed the moment. While the sunbeams were very visually stimulating some of my other senses were also taking in the moment. The wind was blowing hard across the lake and I could feel the gusts blowing gently across my face. The breeze was also causing the lake to have some small waves which almost sounded like being alongside the ocean. The rhythmic sounds of water crashing on shore lulled me back to sleep.

Quite honestly, I went right back to sleep after a handful of moments. I never got up to see the sunrise itself, I was so enthralled by the lighting in the tent that I never made it that far. Regardless, that time spent in quiet appreciation for what I was experiencing was worth every bit of beauty that sunrise likely had to offer. Not only that, the missing of the sunrise itself leaves me hungry to watch the next.

Thanks!!!