Personal // Look at the bright side.

After a few days off, I’m back.  And the past few days have been some of the toughest ones I’ve had to endure as I saw my husband gracefully accept his defeat in his re-election for Mayor.  I won’t go into all the details here, but I will say that I am a changed person in many ways.   Trust me, I know there are worse things than can happen to me. To us.   But it was just so painful to watch all of Jeff’s hard work and his passion for leading this city get squashed out in a matter of hours.  But that’s the chance you take when you run for an election.  Someone will win, and someone will lose.  It’s the hard reality.  We’re feeling a bit lost around here, and at moments I feel like I’m in survival mode as I put on my yoga pants (again) and struggle through simple things like feeding my kids healthy meals instead of leftover chips and cookies from the campaign office.  We’re not sure what’s next for us. Which is tough because neither of us are fly-by-the-seat-of-our-pants type of people.  Jeff is in full swing job search mode, although I may be secretly wishing he goes back into the classroom at least until he has time to sift through the opportunities that are knocking on his door.

But after the sting of the first 24 hours, and the mini pity party going on inside our heads, the fog started to lift and the sun came back out.  Literally.  And I looked around me and was overwhelmed by all of the great things happening around us.  We’ve met some really incredible people through all of this and have even made some lifelong friends.  And one thing is for sure, you learn very quickly during an election who is truly there for you when things are tough.  Which is a beautiful blessing.  And I have my husband back.  No matter what career path he chooses to follow next, nothing will compare to the time (away from us) that it took to run this city.  He’ll be home for dinner with us, and not have to worry about who’s watching his every move.  I honestly can’t wait to have my husband back. 

And then there’s my kids. We spent all day on Wednesday cuddled up under the blankets as the rain came down.  It was a depressing day.  But their little smiles and giggles were enough to remind us what’s really important.  A few mornings ago, I popped into Nash’s room with my camera.  I had been wanting to document his mornings and how sweet he is when I come singing in to cover him with hugs and kisses.  And because he’s changing so quickly.  His morning routine includes a warm bottle of milk and snuggling with all three of his favorite blankets.  He carries them all over the house these days.  I’m sure once he’s able to talk more, he’ll name them.  He likes to pull the fuzz of them and rub them on his eyes before he falls asleep.  He has such a sweet soul, this little one.  But he’s growing into a boy before our very eyes and we’re reminded how quickly the time passes us by.  Just the day after I took these, he started handing me back his bottle when I laid him down for a nap.  As if to say, mom I’m a boy now not a baby… I got this.

We can’t thank everyone enough for the support and encouragement over the past week.  It really means a lot to us.  And we’re looking forward to sharing our next adventures with you as they unfold.