Things

Lots and lots of things have been on my mind lately, so as I continue to ramble, don't be surprised if I end up going through several ADD conversations. First and foremost, my older brother Pat came to visit last weekend. He was on a road trip and a friend of his named Caroline, decided to come with him. So they traveled from Montana to the big city of Mountain View. It was so great to see them. I haven't seen Pat in a year. He has been through a lot this last year and it shows on his face. But it was wonderful to have him here and spend a few days with him. We ended up having a BBQ/Get together with friends and family that was fun. I have a younger brother that has had his ups and downs with drugs and alcohol and he seemed to be struggling with his sobriety. That made for a difficult situation all around but, after he left, we ended up had an evening full of laughs and stories. When my brothers John and Pat get together, they love to tell stories about me as a child. And have a lovely pet name they refer to me as well. And man can Pat tell a story, he remembers things that are long since gone from my memory, but he remembers them in great detail and repeats the events with a ton of humor. Anyway, I loved seeing us together. It feel like we are a whole family for just a few minutes. The kind some of my friends take for granted. My brothers and I grew up in a home that was not always the ideal situation, but I always felt like I had a family when I had them. And being 33 and an orphan, sometimes feels a little lonely. John and his family come over frequently, but Pat and George live so far away, and Joey is lost, so I feel so warm and fuzzy when we are all together. My brothers and I are close, but not in the since that other siblings are. We would, in an instant to anything for each other, but we don't talk all the time or need the constant conversations to have a connection. I love them so much. I hope that my over excitement to see them doesn't make them crazy, I just love them and I am happy to see their faces.
In other news, I am officially off my Ambien. A medication I have been dependant on since the stress of taking care of my elderly Grandmother was giving me massive insomnia over 5 years ago. I am grateful to the doctors for helping me, but they never said how dependant you can become on it. It was brutal. And now that I am sleeping on my own, I feel so much better. No hang over feeling, a reduction in headaches, less irritability and a massive amount of energy. Thankfully that is better. And I feel like I can concentrate so much better. I think those pills were eating my brain. It's was rough, but on the road to restful nights, all by my bug girl self :)
Now, school is out for summer. So far the kids have been fabulous. I love seeing them everyday and I really hope that we have a smooth summer. Right now we have baseball and dance then in July we have swimming for the older 3 kiddo's. Then in August we have a short little vacation planned to go see Todd's sister in Idaho, but other than that we hope to get out and go camping frequently and just chill.
Lets see, what else :) There are so many other things to talk about but I think those are better saved for a different post because feedback will probably occur :) Anyway, I hope all of our loved ones are safe and well. Love to all of you.