The Weekend It Didn’t Rain: An Urban Adventure

If there is one thing that can be counted on during a Pacific Northwest spring, it is that the weather forecast is unreliable. Even the day before. Or the morning of. Counting on the ten-day is folly.

My Seattle family had a full weekend of activities planned, three of them outdoor sporting events. Rain was in the forecast for every hour of both days. I wore my fuchsia raincoat, put my rubber boots in the car, and left home under unpredicted partly sunny skies.

I won’t belabor the story, but, though it was chilly, the sun shone the whole glorious weekend. We went to Elliot’s baseball game, where he slid home to wild cheers from the stand.

We celebrated Adrian’s sixth birthday—coming later this week—at Dinos Live, a robotic, life-size experience. He in an armpit-to-knuckles cast after a playground incident ended in a small fracture of his elbow, and a long evening in the ER the day of, and another the next night to loosen the cast when his fingers turned blue and cold. (BTW, he’s letting his hair grow so it covers his eyes because “it will look cool.”)

I got to be Gigi-in-charge for the first time in a very long time, while the moms went to a school fundraiser and a late date-night out. Mother’s Day began with pretend stories with the little guy, and birthday presents and . . .

. . . sparkling sun.

Off to (not rainy) outdoor activity #2: Elliot’s soccer game. I love kid sports, and Elliot and his team mates are becoming skilled, which makes it even more fun.

Then activity #3, a Seattle Reign game in the afternoon. (The Seattle part of the name of the professional women’s soccer team isn’t any more, but their newest name—OL Reign, for the team owner’s name—is lame.) The world-class team has finally been granted a world-class stadium to call home, and it’s my first visit. I was practically thrown out. First my very small bag was over the size limit and Emma had to run it back to the car; then I failed to empty my pockets of what had been in my bag, and I set off the scanner alarm. They can’t take me anywhere, and probably won’t again.

It was sunny and warm. It did not rain, or reign. The game ended in a 2-2 tie.

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I’m back home to my routine. Great news at the cafe Monday morning, my favorite regulars are back! After seeing them weekly for years, it’s the first time I’ve seen them in more than two. I felt like hugging them.

Now, can I find a not-rainy day this week for a wilderness adventure? As I write this, Tuesday is the only one with a sun icon. And I can’t go Tuesday. But the forecast will change six or fifteen or fifty-seven times before the week is out. And still be wrong.

I hope all who have or are mothering, however you define that, had a lovely Sunday celebrating you.

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To read about my upcoming memoir, Mother Lode: Confessions of a Reluctant Caregiver, and for care partner resources, visit my website: www.gretchenstaebler.com. Subscribe to my e-Letter there, and receive a PDF of the first two chapters immediately!