Blueberry burst muffins, the boys are coming!

Y'all, these muffins are so good! An entire cup of huge, fresh blueberries plus lemon zest, cinnamon and peaches, and just a sprinkling of demerara sugar on top. Aah! The boys are coming home today, and I can't wait to see them. I'm not sure they've missed us much, and really, I might try to subtly shift the glom-dynamic towards one a little less so. If they can go a whole week with just an aggregate of 20 minutes of talking to me on the phone, then I definitely don't think they need to follow me to the bathroom and ask me to watch everything they do. I'm going to turn the tables on you little ones. Heh!

Phantom limb-like syndrome

It is unbelievable how light child-free travel is. About every five minutes, I feel certain I've dropped something critically important or left one of the boys on the plane. I have but one bag with me, and I've read six chapters in two different books. This is utterly surreal.I just ate lunch quietly at Cat Cora, enjoying a lovely edamame-avocado hummus with olives and pita. There were no spills, no small hands discovering old gum under the table and then putting those hands into their owner's mouth, no refrains of "please, please do not touch the potty seat" while also making sure I don't get sprayed by rogue pee (little Ol shoots at 2:00 which makes the stream's direction a bit random). But I also haven't had my legs attacked by a hug or my cheeks covered with kisses, and I feel the slightest bit teary in a vaguely schizo way: eager for this week alone, kinda lonesome for a little hand enveloped in mine. My heart aches some.

Saying goodbye to my boys

I know it's a sign of a wonderful week to come for my darlings, but I basically had to force them to give me real hugs and kisses goodbye this morning. We'd gone to Target to get some treats because they have done such an amazing job with their swimming lessons and they were totally wrapped up in Legos and a Captain Hook boat. So really, I suppose I should count my blessings for this peaceful, happy send-off, but I cried a bit as their sweet little legs raced them away and back to play. I'm of the dreaded prop plane now and will be glad to get to Houston soon, jump off and get an enormous coffee.As an aside, y'all should hear this flight attendant's voice. Soo sing-songy and fake. It's like a roller coaster bedecked with knives.