yin and yang come full force

This last weekend was less than stellar on many levels. Yin and Yang that I can see in hindsight as the fog clears.
I didn't take pictures or want to dwell on much of our last road trip to Kansas even though there were some good times too.
It started out well with us leaving Des Moines as the first flurries started to fall.  Our drive to Kansas was peaceful and fun with all of us happy in the van together.  It was good to be near family again in Kansas and I felt rather sly at having missed the snow storms for a weekend in the sun even if it was to still be rather cold.

  On Christmas eve morning we had a house fire.    Jaymon woke me up and told me to get dressed and get my shoes on.  I was not quite in the world of awake people but I was aware enough to know that he needed me to focus and be serious.  None of us were injured and I have already gone through and experienced the components of grief..  Our house was not fancy and there was minimal damage to belongings however its the ideas and plans that suffered.   It was hard to sleep the next night as I lay in bed thinking of how surreal of an experience it was and how lucky we were to not have been hurt and that even though it was a real crap thing to happen, it could have been much much worse.
That house is where I did a lot of growing up as a young adult.  It was a safety net or backup plan if the move the boys and I made to Des Moines to get better autism services for Jupiter didn't work out.  It does mean that there will need to be a huge amount of work put into it for it to be useful again.

So, fire on Christmas eve...handled and dealt with. We even gave the firemen some nuun.  They were pretty hot too so there is a silver lining! Yes, pun intended!

   My dear one comes from good people.
Not only do I like being around them but they are very giving and kind. My sister in law jumped right in and started cleaning and readying the house she owns on our street.  Its right next door to my mother in law so very convenient.   This was fantastic since we were in a bit of shock and were thinking of just driving back to Des Moines.  That would have been hard for the kids.   I  have a large boisterous entourage and it was perfect that Sabra offered for us to stay in her extra house since staying with other people is a lot to ask for although they did offer that as well.

  Later that evening I thought that I could relax until little Milo had a couple accidents trying to make it to the bathroom.....do you see where this is going?  I thought, "ok, one kid sick, what next"  about the time that thought formed in my mind,  little Archimedes vomits on the kitchen floor.  I will say that he is the bravest of the four when it comes to throwing up.  He took it in stride and was playing again shortly there after until he needed to puke again.
Skip forward 24 hours and Jaymon's hands are about to seize up from rubbing my fevered body.  Thank the gods that all I had was a fever.  I did make some poor food choices though over the weekend and by then I was very unstable from eating something that infracted me.  My food intolerances side effects are not only intestinal distress but mental and emotional as well.
The food issues are wearing off although what to do in the mean time is always the worst. I feel restless and weary at the same time. Spending a couple of hours at the library this afternoon was cathartic and refreshing.

Focusing on the good  parts in hindsight...
No one was hurt and the firemen were hot.
The kids had a great time dispite being sick and it was better than being cooped up here while it snowed.
It was cold but the sun was out and on the last day it got up to 42 degrees!
When I was feeling down about the house, I got an email from a friend saying that my Mind the Ducks entry is covered!
I came home to lots of awesome mail.
My sister in law sent a bunch of hats that she made ( like the ones I wear) to share with some of you!

Yin and Yang.  Bitter sweet.
Home now in Des Moines. Unpacking. Cooking, blogging, listening to NPR while the kids play and eat.
Thinking of running on the treadmill.
Maybe some yoga.  One of my goals for 2011 will be a yoga goal.
Its nice to be back in my bubble again.