Time Off

It’s been a while since I’ve taken some contiguous days off from work. The last couple times I’ve driven the family to Idaho to see the in-laws/grandparents I’ve just taken the day of the drive up and back off because I knew I’d be totally out-of-pocket for the day. But the days in between I worked from there on my laptop.

This time I started to do the same thing but my manager insisted I take the entire time off and it didn’t take much for me to head back to the team calendar to make the adjustment; I’m a team player like that.

The six-hour drive from Vancouver, WA to Kuna, ID was so much smoother. This time I was 40 lbs (18 kg) lighter and Mackenzie was 8 months older. I didn’t have to stop to stretch my legs nearly as often because my back was bother me. I think in total we stopped twice? Once for a bio break and one for some snacks. Also when we pulled into the driveway I didn’t have to make a bee-line for the bedroom to get a nap so I could function the rest of the day.

The next day was Kayla’s birthday so we spent it together and had a really good time. It started out with a massage for her (the masseuse came to the house and set up), followed by a mani-pedi trip for the both of us, heading to a hotel downtown to check in, and finally dinner at Ruth Chris steakhouse around the corner.

Ruth Chris was an experience. I’d never been but evidently they cook the meat at a hojillion degrees and then serve it on a hot plate. It popped a few times and burned my fragile self, but it was pretty good. Desert was extra delicious and Kayla was a lot of fun. We had some great conversation and took the evening extra slow.

The hotel had a big fancy tub Kayla luxuriated in that with a bath bomb which made the entire room smell delicious. We had forgotten to bring our bedding & pillows so sleeping wasn’t amazing, but the room was set to a chilly 60º F (15º C) which makes me want to crawl into a pile of blankets but it’s Kayla’s happy place. The things I do for love, amirite?

Yesterday was spent looking at model homes from two different builders. There were lots of options but we’re focused on the latter builder and a specific model. Kayla was up late last night working with her stepdad going over all the options and customizations available. They’ve gone through the process recently so their input has been invaluable.

Today we’re going to look at a few models of the same type with a flipped configuration and some customizations that we want already in place. I also have a return for an Amazon item that sort of fell flat (not long enough for my long long torso) so I have to drop that off at the local UPS Store to return.

This is the longest I’ve had my laptop open since I got here so far and it’s been so nice. Half the house is out in the backyard and I’m sitting at the dining room table with a Monster energy drink and my laptop.