The boys and I worked ourselves to near exhaustion on Saturday. By the time Wren and Allen showed up to pick up the dogs for our carpool to D&D, we were weary beyond belief. But there are several dozen new bulbs planted and the laundry is all clean and upstairs, mostly put away, even. Many thanks to Wren and Allen for not letting us become slugs in the den.

We sallied forth to Jax & Mags, and by the time we arrived, our attitudes had already started to improve. The dinner was wonderful and restorative as much as was the company. The dogs had a wonderful time, and we all enjoyed the campaign. After the boys were tucked in, we adults played Chez Geek, a game that had us in stitches until four a.m., which turned out actually to be five.

This morning dawned even more beautiful than yesterday, and breakfast was a calm, restful and delicious affair. After clean-up, I read and fell asleep on the sofa with Tiger and Cordelia while everyone else played outside. I hear a bubble wand sword was involved. I am so glad I went. I feel like a new person, ready to tackle the coming week. What a blessing to have such a great community.