I’m not exactly proud to admit this, but I’m going to anyway:

I’m 100%, completely and emphatically obsessed with playing on this solitaire app.

It’s like I turned 82 instead of 40 this year.

And yet I can’t stop playing, because I’m stuck at this score. 745. I CANNOT BREAK IT. And yet, I’m determined to. And so night after night, I sit on the couch and spend a solid 45 minutes or so playing solitaire.

Next thing you know, I’m going to mutter under my breath about the “kids these days” and their rap music and low-hanging pants and complain that the volume on the TV is always too loud.

Or say it loudly to a friend at the local coffee shop.

Whichev.

At any rate, my playing of the solitaire is an indication of what’s been happening in the mountains in the summertime. Which is basically, nothing. Nothing except drizzle, rain, thunderstorms and torrential downpours. We’ve had two windows of precipitation-free weather in which to swim this week, and thusly we went poste haste to the pool to take advantage. (I have no idea if that’s the correct spelling or proper usage of poste haste. But what do I care? SOLITAIRE.)

And the solitaire is also an indication of what Mama needed this week. Because as I’ve said before and will shout from the mountaintops again, LOVE LANGUAGE IS MY QUALITY TIME. And that includes quality time with myself.

Thusly, my thankfuls this week start with:

1. Quality time with myself. Jaana has a VBS camp this week, and since she would be occupied, I decided Paxton needed his own “camp,” too. So off he went to a couple mornings of Mothers Morning Out: Summer Edition. And he loved it, and Jaana loved it, and I LOVED IT. I was able to sit alone in the coffee shop, muttering under my breath about the kids these days and their low-hanging pants and the rap music without interruption of a “mommy!” every 1.75 seconds. And I solitarily played solitaire (just a couple hands, and still — SEVEN FORTY-FIVE.)

2. Thusly. It’s Thursday’s Word of the Day. Use it three times and it’s yours.

3. Watermelon. I think I’ve eaten about 14 entire watermelons this week. I can’t get enough. It’s so delicious. (And I’m searching out the perfect toenail polish that is the exact pinky-red of watermelon and it eludes me. Not even Essie’s “Watermelon” is exact enough. I’d love some suggestions if you have any.)

4. Antibiotics. So a week or so ago, my 9 year-old suddenly came down with her very first case of strep throat. So random. And so for two nights and days, I cared for her and slept with her until she was up and about. Meanwhile, Greg taps out and chases us around with Lysol. Fast forward exactly one week later. We’re in the mega-plex movie theater watching a 3D movie that rhymes with “Hospitable Bee 2” and Greg falls asleep. And then leaves the theater to sit in the car because he doesn’t feel well. After the movie we drive a couple exits up to stop at the Target, and Greg says, “I think I need a doctor.” We backtrack to the CVS Minute Clinic and sure enough, Greg’s got strep throat. So my hat’s off to you, penicillin. Well done.

5. “Hit it, Mommy!” Paxton’s musical obsession right now is Toby Mac, and when we play a song that has a “girl part” in it, I’m allowed to sing. Since he knows every single note and nuance, he’ll tell me right before the “girly part” to “hit it, mommy!” and thusly, it’s my turn to sing. Watch out, TruDog. J-Pax is hot on your tail.

6. Downton Abbey. Because I roll with the early bird special crowd, I’m a little late to this game. But back in January when everyone on Facebook was ranting about Julian Fellowes and how could he do that to Matthew???, I finally got intrigued about this show. I had heard the hype since it first came out, but the time period thing was my hurdle. But January helped me clear it. And in the past six months, I’ve finally finished all three seasons. (Took me way too long, no doubt, but I only allowed myself to watch it while on the treadmill. Or during a Canasta tourney.) I just finished the how could he do that to Matthew??? season-three-ender, and I cannot wait until season four starts. Say what you want to, but I’m a huge fan of Mary. I’m rooting for her every episode. I feel like her and I could sit in the library playing solitaire together, talking or not talking, for hours. (10 points if you get that reference.)

7. Ultra-Low No-Show Socks. One of life’s biggest jokes is the no-show sock. Because everyone knows the no-show sock actually shows. And honestly, yes. I should be more concerned with a lot of other plights across the globe. (Like I know there are some third-world countries that don’t have a solitaire app!) But I have wielded my sword and fallen hard on it, and finally (finally!) found (at Wal-Mart no less), an ultra-low no-show sock. And they really don’t show.

8. Hoosiers. Not the real Hoosiers. But my version — when my beloved Washington State University Cougars show up in Auburn, Alabama to play the Auburn University Tigers on Auburn’s home turf on Saturday, August 31. And some beloved friends of ours have offered me their tickets to this game (thusly, they are Auburn fans but unable to attend), and I’m trying to work out a way to get to this game in person, with someone who also cares about WSU football. (And those people only exist where you have to play a lot to fly to Alabama.) But I’m dying to be one of the only two crimson & gray wearers in a sea of orange and blue war eagle! (tiger?) cries, shouting out our extremely long and not catchy fight song. Because, to the death! Ultra-low no-show socks and the Cougs! Together at last!

9. Rainy Summer Cleaning. Innocently, I went to work out on the Fourth of July (to finish the how could he do that to Matthew??? episode), and when I came home, Greg met me with a “come upstairs” request that sounded decidedly not fun. I begrudgingly go upstairs and find all closets in total disarray. Apparently, my husband suddenly grew weary (after two very quick years) of living in unclean and disorganized surroundings. (As if.) Meeting me at the top of the stairs were four enormous piles of junk from all the upstairs closets. I was instructed to go through and identify what we could throw out and what we could keep. It took ages and made us really pare down to necessary things and not just board games with half the necessary items missing. And what was left behind were clean, organized closets and a husband who grew increasingly ecstatic with every “toss it” I uttered. And while it made us very late for the party we were heading to, it felt really, really good to drive to that party knowing our closets were free of all skeletons. (Except that one.) And now it feels really, really good not to have to come up with excuses as to why I haven’t initiated this all on my own, and I’m good for another two years. Score!

10. Jewelry Surgery. I’ve been known to put on latex gloves and a surgical mask to do surgery to my jewelry. I’ve taken post earrings and made them hooks. I’ve taken beads from earrings and put them on necklaces. I’m a huge fan of making Frankensteins of my jewelry box. This week I got another Stitch Fix package, and for the very first time, it was the first one where there wasn’t any item of clothing I kept. (Well, there was one I wanted to keep, but somehow they forgot I don’t spend $148 on anything, let alone a blue shirt.) But the necklace they sent was beautiful. Long, delicate gold chain with a large, teardrop-style turquoise stone. BUT, it had a starfish. Yep. I decided to keep it, because I knew I could perform surgery with these magical and solitaire-worthy fingers. So I kept it and took off the starfish. And now, I’m a happy camper-slash-starfish-killer. It’s a win-win.

So there you go. I know it’s not much, but that’s all I got.

Now if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got enough time to squeeze in just a couple quick hands of solitaire.

What are you thankful for this week?