Shane's Home!

The day before Shane was due to return we had another storm.

There was ice everywhere by the time I got out for morning chores.

Including all over the horses!

The roads looked okay, but a second wave of freezing rain was supposed to roll through overnight. Temperatures were going to hover near the freezing mark, so it was anyone's guess to what we'd wake up to.

Nana and Pop had already postponed a week. Aunt Dot had an appointment for her first vaccine dose Monday, so they felt like they had to come Friday. There was a good chance things would clear up, but if the temperature dropped and the rain hit...well, I thought about it while sliding a sheet of ice off the horse jump. 

Thankfully, the rain missed and temperatures strayed close to 34°. Friday morning, Nana, Pop, and Shane headed out around 9:30 PM.

We met at Costco. It was directly in their path and let them take main roads (all of which were fully clear).

Shane was playing a game on the tablet he immediately began to explain.

There were big hugs, but it wasn't a long farewell. Nana and Pop wanted to keep going before it got too dark out.

Shane and I went in to Costco to pick up fruit, veg, and creamer for Carrie. Mochi was on sale, so we picked us up a side treat to keep in the garage (out of crutch range!). 

Carrie called just before we got home. "Where are my boys?"

Her boys were in the living room playing with her crutches! Shane talked for a little bit about his time away, but the TV cost his thoughts to unravel.

It was an electronic night. Carrie's couch bound, so the TV's been on consistently. Shane was excited about a game he'd borrowed from Cole, Splatoon 2. 

He played while Carrie cheered him on (and looked at her phone if we're honest!).

I'd made Shane trim his fingernails, so that probably helped! I sent Nana a teasing text that his fingernails were longer than his hair, but followed up thanking them again for having him. It's really a huge blessing.

I gave Shane the night off for horse chores. The couch potatoes hung out while I went to work.

The next morning, Shane was on the work crew. I told him I'd saved a pile stacked as tall as he was!

He complained about how cold it was, so I introduced him to hand warmers....which only entertained him for so long before he was wearing my gloves and I just worked barehanded. 

I kept Shane outside with me for a little over two hours. We listened to an audiobook for part of it (The Monster Ring by Bruce Coville). 

I sent Shane inside to warm up and watch TV with Carrie while I stayed out another hour to wrap up. It's going to be a big transition for Shane. He went from party-land where he could bounce from person to person to work-land where he got to spend two hours in the cold shoveling horse poop (at least it was above freezing!). He'll get a ton of electronics over the weekend since Carrie's on couch rest, so don't feel too bad for him!