Eat the Chocolate

and revisit childhood whenever possible.

Well, how are we doing? 

Daylight Savings Time is well underway. It always takes a bit for things to feel somewhat normal again.

I can’t adequately express my disdain over feeling the urge to crawl into bed at 6:45pm. We’re just a little out of sorts, if I’m being honest. As I write this, our dog is giving me the death stare, and truthfully it’s making me a little uncomfortable. She’s silently demanding that I get up and feed her, but it’s nowhere close to dinner time yet. We’re just doing the best we can over here.

Side note: While it’s not my favorite, I’ve decided to embrace the season and look at Daylight Savings with a new perspective. Even though I hate seeing the sun sink behind the mountains at 4:45, the time change signals the start of the holiday season which means our college girl will be home SO soon! Just 10 more days! 

Anyway, I’m back home after a fun solo getaway trip to Texas this past weekend to visit my family. It wasn’t just fun because it was a solo trip, although upon reflection I definitely didn’t mind that part. 

While waiting for boarding to start, I decided to treat myself to a “share size” Snickers bar. I had zero qualms about the fact that it was intended for two people. I devoured every bite while casually strolling along on the moving walkway (aka human conveyor belt, aka “Travelator" according to Google) with all the happiness in my heart. 

I spent a wonderful weekend with my sister and parents. We ate great food, the girls shopped, we watched movies, and just enjoyed time together. After moving to Colorado over 7 years ago, our visits happen less often, but they’re always so full.

When we still lived in Texas, there was never a time when my sister and I spent three full days and nights together just hanging out with our parents at their house. Treasured memories for sure! 

My sister and I are 5 years apart in age. As kids, we shared an affection for three main things: Barbies, Nintendo, and New Kids on the Block. Those three things seemed to anchor us in the times when our age gap left little room for compromise anywhere else. 

Thankfully, by the time we reached our 20’s, we found our way to equal footing. Now she’s the person I text more than anyone else, and with whom I have the longest running collection of shared Instagram reels. 

When NKOTB reunited 15 years ago, we were giddy with excitement over the resurrection of our childhood. We snagged tickets for their Dallas concert and enjoyed a fun night out. At the time I was a stay-at-home mom with 2 kids under the age of four. A night out was a splurge in and of itself. Our seats were in the third deck of the stadium, and we happily watched the entire show play out on the jumbotron. 

Several years later, after realizing this was not a temporary endeavor as they continued to tour, we began making plans to attend their concerts together whenever we could. Not only do we get to spend a weekend together, but the memories come flooding back, immediately transporting us to a different time. Back to when things were carefree, and our bedrooms were wallpapered with posters and magazine clippings.

Last year, we became a little concerned that these tours would soon come to an end. Let’s face it, none of us are getting any younger. Surely those guys can’t continue to run around arenas and stadiums like that for the next 15 years, right?! 

So we did it. We splurged on floor seats. We decided we’ve reached a stage in life where a little extravagance is worth it now and then! We reminded each other, “We’ll regret not getting the good seats at least once if they decide to stop touring!”

So when the evening of the concert rolled around, we went all out. We wore matching shirts and earrings, and our inner 12-year-old thanked us profusely for the opportunity. 

But nothing could have prepared us for what actually happened next. In the span of about 7 seconds, my ultimate childhood dream came true.

Yes, that reaction was genuine and unfiltered and I’m not sorry for it.

Our 12-year-old selves would have died on the spot.

There’s no coming back from that. The bar has been set. We are fully committed from here on out.

So committed, in fact, that last Friday morning we stopped shopping long enough to sit in the Target parking lot, log on to Ticketmaster, and secure seats for their concert next summer. We chose floor seats (again) and comforted ourselves by pointing out that you can’t really put a price on sister time and memories. 

I’m so grateful for the fresh perspective this weekend offered. It’s so important to just take the trip, buy the tickets, make the memories, and eat the whole dang candy bar.  

As a Bonus: 

As I was killing time in the airport, I stumbled across a plethora of Internet gold, otherwise known as hilarious memes. If you’re new around here, a good meme is my primary love language.

Here’s to a fun week! May you embrace this new season and change brought on by Daylight Savings Time with a whole new perspective. Or at the very least, an early bedtime.