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48 hours in Portland, ME

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  We have a family goal to actually enjoy vacations this year. To kick us off, we spent 48 hours in Portland, Maine during April’s school vacation. Here’s a loose tracking of our stops: Day 1 Stop 1 : drop Bella (our Maltese-Yorkie) off to be boarded about 20 min from our house; her tail started shedding on the ride over and the anxiety level in the car is oof. Stop 2 : Gas station snacks! Lil Momma navigates her indecision (so. many. oreo. flavors.) AND agrees to get a water, so a win overall.  Stop 3 : The rest stop just over the New Hampshire border to pick up a Combo spill, use the restrooms, and stretch our legs  Stop 4 : A Wendy’s in Portsmouth; hanger averted, but at what cost? Stop 5 : Our hotel in Portland! We figured out parking for the night, ditched our stuff and went walking! Stop 6 : Gelato Fiasco ! We got mediums when we should have gotten smalls (and LM mixed her mint chip with her s’mores and had to steal my cookie dough because ew), but another overall win.  Stop 7 :
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pale lips and too sparkly lids

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  A ways back, I talked about trying to leave the house looking more like a person and not like I’ve given up. This only became more critical as I started encountering more and more people on my in office days because of our requirements change; sigh, I miss the days of not worrying about running into a big up I haven’t seen since 2019 and just getting my   2pm   emotional support Reese’s in peace. I’m still working on the clothes side of this (that’s going to be a   process ), but I did make some changes to my makeup that have been helping me feel better about myself when I’m out and about, be it at work or school pick up or extracurricular activities.   Am I no longer president of the Pale Lip Club? At first, I tried using a lip oil by e.l.f. (in  Berry Kiss ); I’d slap some on in the parking garage once I parked my car (I drink my smoothie on the ride to work) and then maybe again after lunch. I like h ow it felt moisturizing and gave a bit of color, but it was almost too wet? Is t
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on Google spirals and trying

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  “Playing  Disco Elysium  I’ve been thinking more and more about who I am, or the pieces and parts that combine into what I and others think of me. The protagonist screams, “I DON’T WANT TO BE THIS KIND OF ANIMAL“ which begs the question of the player: What kind of animal are you?” From “This Kind of Animal” by Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah in Critical Hits: Writers Playing Video Games   I’ve have a bit of a swirly week. I got a thought in my head about a possible medical diagnosis over the weekend. Actually, Dr. Google got a thought in my head about a possible medical diagnosis over the weekend. (Mind you, I’ve since been to the doctor and l, big surprise, am not afflicted with said diagnosis. I believe the doctor’s reaction was “Why would you go THERE?!?”) I spent the whole week thinking about how I would have to change my life - literally how I approach everything - to deal with this diagnosis.   What I do when I wake up, what I eat, how I spend my time, how I move my body, how I naviga
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week in the life: sun april 7

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Sunday funday or Sunday scaries? Here’s how the week ended for us: 7:30 : I hear LM stirring: she loudly whispers that she wants to play for 30 minutes and I go doze.  7:50 : I’m awake and scroll a little while I let the Mr. grab his last 10 minutes of sleep.  8:00  (on the dot!): LM throws herself on my bed and lets me know she’s going to talk the Mr. into donuts.  8:05 : I get out of bed use the bathroom. Glasses, hair in a ponytail, moving at the pace of Sunday.  8:15 : The Mr. gets back with donuts. We sit with our coffee while LM eats hers with a show and a bonus OJ he got her.  8:45 : LM heads up for a show in my bed. I clean up the kitchen and then work on my task list for all my mom’s affairs. (Apparently, I was dragging my feet too much because her financial guy has started giving me homework, oof…) 10:15 : I head upstairs and organize my meds for the week - the only way I can deal with my “did I or did I not take my meds” anxiety… 10:30 : LM and I change into our workout clot
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week in the life: sat april 6

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Finally, a day off! We get some stuff done and then we laze about spectacularly! 7:30 : LM comes out of her room and wakes us up. She jumps in the bed once the Mr. heads downstairs to advocate for a “lazy” day and I boot her and scroll a little.  7:50 : I go the bathroom and head downstairs. The Mr. and I whisper about what we could do today while LM eats breakfast with a show in the other room (and Bella begs when we aren’t looking).  8:15 : LM tries on the new hiking shoes we got her. Oof, just a bit too tight ?and I hate returning things) (but that’s a future me problem). We decide the Mr. will go food shop and LM and I will go look for spring / summer clothes and shoes for her because it’s still pretty cold and raw out and I don’t want her get-over-the-cold progress to fall apart if we go walk somewhere. 8:50 : We dig our LM’s various shorts from last year and figure out her size. She negotiates one tv show in my bed before we go and decides on dessert-first Saturday (we usually ha
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