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Spring Break Woo Hoo.
When I was in Kindergarten, my teacher had a conference with my parents in which she told them that I was a very bright child, but I needed to be encouraged to “lighten up a bit and have some fun.”  
 
I don't think I was meant to overhear this comment, but I did, and as a child I felt confused by this suggestion because to my knowledge, I was having plenty of fun.  
 
I like fun.  I am fun.  But my favorite kind of fun is not the typical Spring Break Woo Hoo kind of fun best illustrated by throngs of people gather on a beach to yell and woo-hoo about how much fun they are having. (So much fun!  Having fun!  Look at all the fun!  Spring Break '22 woo hoo!)  
 
Good for them, but no thank you for me.
 
This week my children were out of school, and Hurley House was closed.  I started the week of Spring Break with a stiff schedule, a fully formed idea of what I needed to accomplish, a plan to stay busy and productive.  But, by Monday afternoon, I realized I was not having fun.
 
Though it caused me a bit of stress, I decided to go off-script.  I embraced what sounded fun to me and ushered in my own version of Spring Break Woo Hoo.  I ditched the production schedule and took liberties with my swaths of available time, spending most of it with my girls.  
 
We made a Cherry Pie on Pi Day.  We enjoyed breakfast at Central Market and visited a local book store.  We drank lots of tea and coffee.  We pulled out old toys and laughed.  We shopped for Easter dresses.  We roller skated.  We made green eggs for breakfast and Corn Beef with Cabbage for dinner on St. Patrick's Day.  We decorated the house for spring.  We took walks and listened to Taylor Swift.  We watched movies and read books.  We welcomed Annie home.  We rose late and stayed in pajamas.
 
We had a lot of fun (woo hoo).
 
There are different kinds of fun, but this week my idea of fun began with a whisper of a schedule, an inordinate amount of quiet time laid out like a feast, a few non-vital things on a barely-there to do list, and allowed me the freedom to take the day as it comes.  
 
My fun consisted of creating space in the context of other tasks to think, plan, iterate ideas, and let my mind stretch her legs a little bit to see what she will come up with.  
 
My fun included trying something new, taking things slowly.  Spending lavish amounts of time attending to details that usually get sped through in the bluster of everyday life.  Creating order in a tiny spot of chaos and enjoy the rewarding fruit of easy, low-level labor.  
 
My idea of fun?  
 
To let go while leaning in.  To create space for new, knowing the familiar will be waiting for me when I return.  To breathe and stretch, allowing quiet time for renewal and accepting that fun comes in many forms.  Woo hoo.

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“Choose a few special toys and keep them.  My girls pulled out their old dolls this week and giggled together recalling memories of when they were little….Tangible toys can be bastions of nostalgia, providing future avenues for connection.”
“Homemade Corn Beef and Cabbage for the win this week…It was fun to learn something new and give it a try…I used a recipe from the New York Times Cooking, and it was splendid!”
“Isn't spring the best?  I love creating space for pops of pastel and subtle signs of the season…This silk flower is particularly pretty."
 

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