Smellyann Strikes Again

Wordless Wednesday: Yes. This.

Saw this at the doctor's office while I was scheduling my endoscopy, and loved it. Had to snap a picture with the ol' iPhone. It's good stuff, here.

Link up with 5 Minutes For Mom if you're any degree of wordless today!

Fin.

Something's Fishy At Sweet Pea Academy...

So with the help of my MIL and her brother, along with lots of bonus points from doing community service with the Scouts (both Cub and Girl), we turned in enough Labels For Education to get the following goodies:

(Photo from LFE site) A world map, which hasn't come yet, or I'd have a better picture to show you,

a dozen bottles of tempera paint for our artistic pursuits, and,

 

our new 5-gal fish aquarium! The kids are decidedly most excited about this new swag.

We ran as soon as possible over to Petco to get some gravel, silk plants, food, and dechlorinator to set up our tank, as well as figure out which fish we were probably going to get after the tank had time to set up for a few days. I put it together, and the kids were beside themselves the whole time. Jack kept saying, "I'm going to cry happy!" He said it again today when we went to go get our fish.

This is Steve, who helped us both today with our new fish and the other day when we picked out what we'd need to get the tank ready, pulling out Chloë's Starfire Red Glofish and Sophia's Galatic Purple Glofish (both are Danio rerio).

The girls with their new fishies!

Then, Steve plucked out a Neon Tetra (Paracheirodon innesi) for Jack. We were originally going to go with something else, but Steve said no, too big. Jack recovered quickly from that setback.

Does Jack look like a little white monkey when he's super-excited, or what?!

We also picked out an algae-eater (Hypostomus plecostomus) for the tank, although eventually it'll get too big for our tank. That's okay; we planned on upsizing eventually anyhow. Sophia got to carry it on her lap on the ride home.

 

This is Hallie, the very friendly Scottish Terrier we met at Petco today. I always wanted to get a Scottie and name him Hamlet. Hallie was all over me; cute pooch!

 

I went against common knowledge, sense and practice and unceremoniously dumped our four new fishes into the tank, instead of taking the proper time to acclimate them to their new environs. Sue me. They seem fine.

I stopped at Jenny From the Block's house after Petco to bring her a few things, and we collectively decided that, since she's the tank "maid," we'll name the plecostomus Alice. Get it? C'mon, please tell me you get it. We briefly considered "Hazel" as well but quickly decided that was too old school for Alice. Hey, Alice? You lookin' at me?

And finally, we have Jack's Tetra, originally named "Little Frankie" but renamed "Speedy" since "he moves so fast" on the far right; Chloë's hot pink Glofish named "Moon" on the bottom left, and Sophie's "Starlight Starbright" above Moon. They all seem happy with their new home.

The kids are totally thrilled. I mean, it's been a couple hours, and they're still in their staring at the tank. Jack exclaimed, "This is even better than going to the Aquarium, because now we have our own aquarium!" Ha! I'm so happy they're delighted. So. Happy.

Fin.

P.S. Thanks, Mamacita and Unc!

 

The Dad I Sort Of Had

I write sometimes about my dad, but this post is about the man who was more of a Father Figure to me than he was, and it's taken me since the last posting to figure out how I wanted to write this. I thought about a compare/contrast, but that wouldn't honor this great man the way I wanted to. So instead, it's going to be all about him.

James Morton Brickley was a class act. I could stop there and that would be 'nuff said, but there's so much more I would like to say about him.

I met Jim when I was working at a Publix Supermarket in St. Pete, Florida. I was a cashier there, again. I mean, I worked my way at a Publix in Coral Gables while going to the University of Miami, so it seemed only fitting to work at yet another one while putting myself through the rigors of a Ph.D. program at the University of South Florida. And I liked it. But that's a different post.

Anyway, one day, Jim came through my line and, unbeknownst to me, observed me while he waited his turn. When he was up, he handed me his business card and said, "I need you at my law firm. You're exactly what I'm looking for. Call this number and talk to my wife - she's my office manager - and tell her I said to call about the job." I was stunned, flattered, and... well, flattered some more.

In the end, I got the job as Jim's legal secretary, along with the two lawyers who worked for (they'd say "with," but it was really "for") him. It was just the five of us, including his Office Manager wife. A small but busy law practice that Jim had started years earlier and built the way he felt a law firm should be built: by word-of-mouth, not advertising on TV or the back of phone books.

But I chatter too much. Getting further along, I worked there until I moved up to Tampa to be closer to my doctoral program, and I sadly said good-bye to Jim and the gang. We'd forged friendships, though, and when a semester had passed, he called me up and asked me to come back. Seemed he couldn't find a legal secretary as good as I had been, I said, patting myself on the back, and he would bump up my salary to pay for the commute.

So I went back to working for Jim. By that time, I had stepped down from the Ph.D. program, a heartwrenching decision I made after deciding I didn't have enough passion to spend my life on that (but again, another post for another day) and was working on my Master's degree in Science Ed. (By the by, maybe it was just that program at that school, but hello, that was a cakewalk compared to the Biology program. Easy peasy.)

After yet another semester, I decided I needed a break from school to make more money to continue the program, now that I didn't have the assistanceships and stipends I was earning in the former degree program, so I moved back to St. Pete. Jim and his wife helped me find a really decent apartment; I was financially strapped - as students are wont to be - and they fronted me the money for the security deposit, out of the goodness of their hearts.

But it didn't stop there. When my car, Bullet, got stolen, Jim was all set to loan me the money for a kickin' boat of a car (I think it was a stinkin' Lincoln, but I can't remember now, though it was nice) until Bullet suddenly turned up a month later. In the meantime, he picked me up for work himself, many times, though I could just as easily have ridden the bus.

When I got very sick suddenly at work one day, too sick to even drive myself home, Jim called up a cab, put me in it, and paid the driver not only to take me home, but to take me to the emergency room, and pick me up for work again when I was ready to return.

When my live-in boyfriend at the time threw me into a bookshelf and broke my two front teeth, and I showed up to work with a big gaping hole in my mouth, Jim took me into his office to ask what happened. He was furious with the guy. He called his own personal dentist and, while I listened, made me an appointment for later that same day and told the dentist to send him the bill. I got my teeth fixed, and Jim paid for it.

Then, one day, I met my future husband, and within weeks, we were engaged. And then we eloped. Jim was against it, but he wished me well and sent me on my way with a bonus paycheck. I moved to Panama City, FL, to live with my new husband. Before we knew it, a baby was on the way.

When Chloë was born a month prematurely on September 7th, 2001, I tried calling Jim and his wife to let them know. Or maybe Rob did; I forget, but we didn't get through and had to leave a message. Chloë was born in Pensacola, three hours from home, and she spent ten days in the NICU fighting this, that and the other serious issue while Rob and I lived in the Ronald McDonald House there to be near her. Because of that, Jim and his wife weren't able to get ahold of me.

Then bin Ladin and his cohorts struck on September 11th. Actually, I was still in the hospital, having had an emergency c-section, when we heard the news. As Rob is in the Navy, we had people crawling out of the woodwork to ask what that would mean for him career-wise, but our world was all about our sick new baby. And still, I didn't get to talk to my Father Figure, Jim, to tell him of our news.

Well, a few days later, his wife finally found us by telephone, calling the NICU to reach me. She asked about Chloë, and then she told me the awful news: While standing there, in front of the television, watching the news of the terrorist attacks, Jim suffered an acute aortic aneurysm. He died that day, that horrible day. I was in shock, hearing the news. I cried out in the NICU (a big no-no, by the way) when she told me, and I sobbed.

Jim from Kentucky, I plan to have a mint julep on Derby Day this year for you, 10½ years later. And I'll remember that day, as always, how good you were to me. And for me.

Thank you.

Fin.

Christmas Continues With Crafts And...Stuff.

I took advantage of a few after-Christmas sales and picked the kids up some small things at AC Moore last week. All three picked out their own colors of plastic canvas and some embroidery floss for some crafty-time fun. The girls wanted to use theirs before I was ready, so I gave them the needles and thread and go crazy. It's hard to tell here, but Chloë made a face and a flower on hers; later, since it was New Year's Eve, she stitched "Happy New Year" on hers, too. I neglected to get Sophia's project, because her floss knotted up and she threw it down in frustration. (Hey, she's her mother's child.) I'm going to check out this site soon to see what we can do together with the rest of it.

 

I also snagged some Learn-to-Draw books for the kids, and Sophia's was horses and ponies. She started sketching right away, and this is one from the next day. I'm not sure where the others ended up, but they were equally impressive, for a six-year-old to whip out, in my mind!

Mindware had several cool items on crazy clearance, too, so I grabbed a few things from there for the kids, too. Jack wanted to start painting his car bank inmediatamente!

Chloë at least waited until after dinner to paint her scooter bank. Look, she even painted a little road on the paper. Silly girl.

For Christmas, the Littles each got a three-month subscription to Kiwi Crate from a Plum District deal, and they've been eager to break into their first boxes and see what goodness was contained within. I worried it would be a little young for them, but so far, they've had a blast with what we've done. Here they are decorating and putting stickers on special dates in the calendars therein. (The scissors came with the crates; they have everything you need to do the crafts and activities, which I like, even though we obviously own scissors and tape and stuff. They loved getting them.

 

The next activity was to make these super-simple but nifty "rockets," receiving enough supplies for about a dozen, each.

Jack was oh-so-careful making his. I mean, rockets! Right up a boy's alley!

The first launch was directed at his mother. It really flew, too! Good job, Bud!

When Sophia's first one was finished, the two of them were in competition to see whose could go the fastest, the farthest, the whatever-est, and they had an absolute BALL. I mean, days later, they are still making and playing with these things. Even Chloë made one or two of them, and they've been running all over the house, up and down the stairs, launching these rockets. WIN!

Finally, the kids each got gift cards from both sets of grandpas, and they opted to spend them entirely at Books-A-Million. (If you'd like the pictures individually, just let me know. Figured a collage was in order for this one.) Chloë shopped frugally and ended up with four books and a Gordian's Knot; Jack got two Legos packages, and Sophia bought a book and a Barbie DVD. Plus, all three of them bought Angry Birds stuffies; they are huge fans of the game app on my iPhone! Thanks, Grandpas!

Whew. So, I think I'm done blogging for the night. And now... back to my hexipuffs. At least one more before I turn in for the night. Have a great week!

Fin.

What I Almost Lost

The other day, Sophia wrote this on my desk. "*♥DeAr mom I ♥ You ♥*," and I was mad. If you look carefully, you can see where she previously etched her name above the word "dear," too. That, I can't erase, but I was just sitting here knitting, thinking to myself that the next time I run across one of the Mr. Clean Magic Erasers I have in various places around the house, I'll give that a good scrub to get rid of it.

And then I mused, and pondered, and thought, well, why?

My six-year-old loves me, and she wrote it down, and if you look at the stupid desk, it's obviously been weathered and worn by time anyway... and what matters is that my baby loves me.

I hope I remember never to undo that.

Fin.

Good Things Of The Many (And The Mail)

Okay, so the mail has brought in packages lately that are of major delightfulness, so the stars of them have been photographed and are ready to share. I've been a busy little bee lately, so I have't had a chance to edit them 'til now. Wanna hear about it? And see some pictorial evidence? Awesome. Read on, then, ye three followers of me.

I totally stink at keeping presents from their recipients when I'm excited about giving them, so I've been, uh, kind of giving the kids the Christmas presents I swore I wasn't going to get (because we're doing Great Wolf Lodge again this year and, you know, I wanted to make it about memories and not stuff and all...), but since I have gotten them, and since, well, they were there when I opened this box from Disney, I couldn't really not gi-- oh, I'll just stop babbling and say that I got a kick-butt deal on these fleece blankets, with free shipping and personalization of their names, to boot! Jack got a Cars-themed one, Chloë's is Cinderella, and Sophia's was Tinkerbell. They LOVED them and carry them around all. the. time. WIN!

Mamacita, which is what MIL and I have decided I shall call her (after 10½ years or so) henceforth, sends us Hallmark Christmas ornaments each year. We have an awesome collection of them, thanks to her. This year's package arrived last week, so we all gathered 'round to see what she chose for us this time. Jack always gets a Santa in some sort of transportation, which thrills him to no end, and this year it was hot air balloon. So cute!

 

I will say two things: these pictures were taken in my cluttered, messy office-slash-craft room, but my excuse is that things are ALWAYS happening in here, so cut me some slack, will ya? And also, I did a poor job of focusing on the ornaments in several of these photos, but I didn't realize that until today, so since they're already put up in the attic until we set up the tree, I can't fix that. My bad.  Chloë usually gets one to do with the year or her age, ever since birth, and she loves her little snowman guy!

Sophia's was, appropriately, a gymnast - with her name on it!! Love it!! Also, the tiaras the girls are wearing in these two pictures are from the same Grandma package, which is why they're wearing them here. They light up, too!

This one appears to have been handmade, but if there was a note about that, I missed it. Mamacita? I'm guessing it's from the childhood of Rob, at least, since we've gotten a few of those in the past as well. Isn't it cute?

Rob's an angler of great enthusiasm, so he's gotten lots of fishing-related ones over the years from his mama. Too bad the expression on his face took precedence over the ornament, because it's The Awesome. So many of these ornaments have such great detail, and this one is no exception!

Ditto the above, about his (hehe) expression and the clarity of the ornament. Boo, me. He always gets a Navy/military/patriotic-themed one, since he's been in the US Navy for about 18½ years, so this year he got a flagged-out Santy Claus.

I love, love, love, love, LOVE the ornaments Mamacita chose for me - not this year, but every year - because she puts such great thought into them (well, everyone's, not just mine, but you know what I meant, right?). IMHO, I saved the best for last, because look! Apropos of the baking business I started this year (which is on hiatus for the time being, although I'm starting to reconsider that idear), I received a Christmas-themed cupcake ornie. Sweet! (Heh. Sorry, pun-haters.)

Also, since we homeschool, Mamacita gave me this "World Class Teacher" one, with a laptop on the, well, top. I adore this!! So very cool. Thanks, Mom/Grandma, for the wonderful additions to this year's tree!

But that's not all that was in the box. There were a few things I forgot to photo, like the Thanksgiving tablecloth and napkins we put away already, but not this train set for Jack! He immediately opened it and started choo-chooing it all around the office and living room:

(Again, 'scuse my mess!)

Oh! This guy was in the box, too! He'll grace our table this Thursday. Mama-jamma, did you make this?

Oops, speaking of trains, this mini-set of ornaments (or should I say set of mini-ornaments? Yes, pretend I did) was included also, for the whole family's enjoyment. Isn't it darling? Maybe it'll go on the fireplace this year, all set up. Of course, Jack thought it was just for him, since he and his gram share a love of all things train.

 

I got this fabu book of recipes in the box, and don't you think I should make that gingerbread house? I've never made one, but I want to and think about it every single year. This might just be the one. We shall see, we shall see.

And last, but certainly not least, the kids received another one of these recordable books from Grandma, in which she reads the story aloud to them. This year, it's Under The Same Moon.

Sophia immediately sat down to enjoy the book, but the other kids, who had already danced away to other adventures downstairs, heard it and clamored for share-age. So she traipsed on down there, where they all sat around the book and listened to it approximately 18 times. And no, I'm not exaggerating. For once. They love these books from Grandma.

My dad sent a small package of trinkets and things for the kids and us, but I only managed to get this one of Sophie with the toy maze things - you know the ones? - she opted to get. She also chose the mini-Bible he sent, which the girls have sat down together to read on several occasions since then. Isn't that lovely?

 

I got a package I ordered from Old Navy, but it didn't contain the Christmas outfits I bought, so boo. They better come soon, because they're awesome. I mean, so we can take our holiday card photos ASAP, y'know?? Anway, there were a bunch of shirts I got myself on clearance, as well as four fleece hoodies for the girls, in this package. The lady-babies insisted on trying them on straight away, which is the sole reason I took their picture. Plus, they're cute, are they not?

And these are the other two. No, I didn't pose the girls; they linked arms of their own volition. ♥ Yes, Sophia is now taller than her sister, who is 3½ years older, which Chloë definitely does not appreciate. Sorry, darling.

Okay, so technically these three sundaes I made for the chirren didn't come in the mail, but the ice cream, caramel sauce and whipped cream did get delivered by Oberweis, so I'm including them in this post. Can you stand it? They look so good, I want to make (them?) some more right this minute!

 

Okay, so I made one for myself, too. I got about five bites in before I passed it to Rob - not because it wasn't delicious, because it was, as is every-dang-thing we have gotten from Oberweis. I didn't want to overdo it, though, because I have such a grumpy pouch!

And that is all. I have to go break up an argument. Oy.

Fin.

Aloha Friday

Happy Friday! Link up here to play along with Kailani today.

My question for you this week is:

What are five things you are grateful for today?

Here are some of mine:

1. My husband is out of the hospital, alive and kickin'!

2. Messy as it may be, I have a home for my family and me.

3. My desktop computer is fixed and returned to me, so hopefully we can get back on track with our regularly scheduled homeschooling adventures!

4. Elephants. I just like 'em.

5. Finding our four sleeping kitties on top of the ironing board, all together. Hey, man, it was cute. Warm fuzzies.

What are some of yours?

Have a great weekend!

Fin.

Aloha Friday

Link up with Kailani here if you're playing along with her today!

I saw this question on a friend's Facebook status update a little while ago, and it's been making me think ever since, so I thought I'd steal it for this post:

What if you woke up today with only the things you thanked God for yesterday?

Now, I realize some of you may not believe in God, so apply it to your particular belief system and don't be offended, please. As for me, wow. What a heavy-duty question. I would be stripped of a lot of THINGS that make life comfortable and interesting, but I would still be super blessed. And now I'm making sure I express my gratitude, whether silently or out loud, for those "things" on a daily basis.

Happy weekend!

Fin.

Sophia's MRI

A week ago, Sophia had her MRI at CHKD. She has central sleep apnea, which is different than the obstructive sleep apnea that's far more common and well-known. Unlike that form, which is when you stop breathing because something is blocking the airway (it's common in heavy people; I had it before my surgery and want to get another sleep study to see whether it's gone away or diminished significantly, at least), central sleep apnea is a rarer condition in which the brain doesn't communicate well with the lungs and the message to keep breathing doesn't quite get passed down, during sleep. Kind of scary, when you think about it. So her neurologist at the children's hospital ordered the MRI to see if there was a structural reason in her brain for the disorder. We'll meet again with her next week for the results.

We were at the hospital for about six hours. Her test was originally scheduled to be at 1400 (2 PM), but we had to get there at 12:30 for check-in, and all that fun stuff like getting her IV put in, and filling out a billion forms and stuff. You know the drill, right? We had dropped off Chloë with her Girl Scout leader beforehand, because I knew she wouldn't make it back for her meeting at 1600, but Jack was with us. The difficulty with that was that Sophia wasn't allowed to eat anything, and both kids were hungry. So you have one kid who CAN eat and one who CAN'T, and you pretty much have to deny both of them food to be fair to the one who isn't allowed food. For what turned out to be three hours, by the time they took her back for her test.

You can bet he ate like a champ in the hospital cafeteria when she was taken away, and as usual was a mess with food all over his face. (I don't know if it's just our family, but my kids are not clean eaters! They wear their food all over their lips and cheeks. The heck?! When does that end?)

Anyway, we spent a long time in the café, just chilling out and getting a change of scenery after the long time spent in the pre-procedure room, and then we went to the waiting area to let Jack watch some cartoons and, well, wait. I had my second boo-hoo of the day, there. Sedated for her test, Sophia, who is very active even in her sleep, was unnaturally still, and besides that, it's just that it was my baby, and I had to cry. And cry I did. (Note to the hospital: Invest in softer tissues, please.) I mean, I know it wasn't surgery or anything, and I know she wasn't a super-sick kid coming in there for chemo or some other horrible thing, so I felt a ridiculous being so tearful, but I couldn't control the tears. The nurses understood. They said it was common.

After we realized we were in the wrong waiting area, we were walking to the MRI one, and Jack was commenting on everything he saw. "Oh, there's the room we were waiting in, and there's a picture of (something I can't remember), and that's the MRI room, and there's Sophia, and..." "Wait, what?!" We stopped in our tracks and took a few paces backward. Yup, there was Sophia, already out of her MRI! Much less time had passed than we expected. The nurse stepped out of the hall to say that she was still asleep and had just come out, but they would be waking her in a few minutes.

Of course, I wanted to be with her, and so did Rob, but only two people were allowed by her side at a time. So Rob stayed with Jack for awhile in the waiting room, watching telly, and then we switched off. She was very groggy when they did wake her, but she absolutely wanted a drink and some crackers. They told me not to feed her - to let her do it herself, because being able to meant that she was ready to take food. She had no problems and ate her little baggy of Teddy Grahams between short snoozes. She didn't like their apple juice, so we gave that to Jack and let her sip my Diet Sierra Mist instead. Not quite Sprite or Ginger Ale, but it's what she wanted.

Finally, it was time to release her, and they wheeled her out to the van that Rob had fetched. We had to have him sit in the back with her, so her head didn't flop forward and block her airway. That was a chore; he kept having to reposition her. She seemed depressed and just... sad, in the intermittent moments when she woke up. It broke my heart to see her that way, since this is a normally happy-go-lucky, devil-may-care child. We picked up Chloë from her Leader's house, and Leader's youngest child, who is one of my Daisies with Sophia, came running out to see her friend. "What's wrong with her? Why does she look like that?" Poor Soap was just so out of it! Daisy Friend was sweetly caring, but we sent her back in the house, so we could get Soph home to rest on the couch.

Around 9:15 PM, a good six hours later, she suddenly woke up and asked for some dinner. And she was up for good, running around and bouncing off the walls like her usual self.

Gotta admit, those few hours of quiet were kind of nice, once I got used to them. Life in this house is pretty hectic, often chaotic, and always noisy. Shushing the older two children so Sophie could sleep, we had a few hours' peace, and I enjoyed the time. But she was back to her old self eventually, and I will say, I like her much more the way I know her, troublemaker that she is. That's my girl!

As for the results, I'll keep you posted. And one more thing. I just want to say how grateful I am that we have an excellent children's hospital nearby, and that our insurance is willing to send us there when necessary, because they took fabulous care of both us and our daughter. For you locals, support CHKD when and how you can. Thanks.

Fin.

 

Giving 'Til It (Almost) Hurts

Those of you who read here regularly know two things: I'm a big-time deal shopper ("extreme couponer", no, but I try) and I'm rebuilding my Jafra business. So when I found out that our local Girl Scout unit was going to be supporting the kids for Salvation Army's Christmas party(ies) and that older tweens and teens were underrepresented under the tree, I realized that I would be doing some serious de-stashing of the goods I've amassed over the past year or two. My family is going to be all-Jafra, all the time, because - not to sound like a perpetual commercial here, but - it's really good stuff, and I want the best for them. And I need to support my own business. So I went through MY bin (we still have to go through Rob's, to make stockings for the young men) and made a pile of everything I could get rid of, that I would only be using Jafra products for from now on. Here's my pile!

Oh yeah, and my make-up stash had to be gone through as well, since of course Jafra has an excellent color line, and I will only be putting our products on my face from now until Kingdom Come. Heh, well, that's the plan, anyway. So hopefully, I'm going to make some young ladies very happy when Christmas comes and their little brothers and sisters are getting coloring books and toys. Grown-up stuff for grown-up kids!

Don't think I completely depleted my stash. I kept everything Jafra doesn't have a product line for, like toothpastes and razors and stuff. So I'm still all set. (And please don't be paying for toothpaste. You should never have to, if you get into couponing! I seriously get so much, I could open a toothpaste store.)

Anyway. I received, from our GS unit, six stockings. These were supposed to be for my troop and Chloë's troop to fill. Well, uh, um, take a look:

Six stuffed-full bags of toiletries for some hopefully happy teen girls! They all get deodorant, floss, lotions and potions, soap, shower gel, and more. And look, you can see it's all good, name-brand stuff. No crap, nothing I wouldn't have used myself if I wasn't going Jafra-crazy. (I can admit it, you can say it.)

And that's only about half the girl stuff, and I haven't even touched the make-up stuff yet! Plus we still have Rob's bin to go through. I hope the unit leader in charge of this project has a half-dozen or more extra stockings, because I'm going to need them...

I feel so blessed and privileged to be able to help in this way. It feels awesome. Rob's reaction, when he woke up just now and I told him to go look at the bed, was, "Cool." And it is. Really cool. I just hope the kids like their loot!

Fin.

Chloë Raine Turns The Big 1-0!

All right, so check it out: on Wednesday, my oldest baby in all the world, the one and only, Curls, aka Clorox, aka Chlo-Bo, aka Chloë Raine, turned TEN years old! This is her in the morning before we headed out to our Christian Military Homeschooling Co-op's "Not Back To School" Breakfast Pajama Party. Yes, even I wore my PJs, which were about eight sizes too big, but it was either that or the skimpy stuff, and well, you know, it wasn't that kind of party. (And no, I have never been to that kind of party.) Anyway. She was, as you can see, entirely too excited about turning ten years old. Well, "too" isn't the word. Omit that. Just plain excited is more like it. And who wouldn't be? Ten is HUGE, right??

There were myriad snafus at the party; it was just one big comedy of errors, all of which led to one giant omission: I didn't take a single picture of the occasion, even though I promised the absent-but-present-in-spirit leaders of said co-op that I would do exactly that. And we sang to Chloë and another birthday girl present at the party, and did cupcakes and the whole bit for it, and everything. Not one dang picture. Gah! But let's not dwell on that, because I took 94 pictures of the rest of her big day, and we shall focus on that. Not that I'm going to show you all 94 pictures, or this page would never load.

After the shindig ended around noon-thirty, we cleaned up our mess and headed right down to the Oceanfront to play miniature golf. My pal Ashley, for whom I have yet to assign a nickername (and I don't think she'd appreciate "Trashley,") had given me a Groupon for 4 people to play, plus two funnel cakes. What an awesome gift to start off our "Poor Man's Birthday Party," as I call our birthdays-full-of-freebies! Neither of the girls had ever played any kind of golf before, and I'm not sure if Jack has with the Cubs, but they all pretty much stunk. Know what, though? I stink at it, too. So, the four of us were fairly evenly matched, except that I had to teach them the rules of the game. The miniature game, that is. Don't ask me about the rules of an actual fairway, 'cause I haven't got a clue.

I did find it interesting that Sophia, a Southpaw, stood the same way as the rest of us Righties to hit the ball. I tried telling her she might want to try the other direction, but she wasn't interested. It's all good.

I couldn't convince Jack to (a) hold the club properly, (b) hit the ball gently when he was a foot away from the hole, (c) not stop the ball when it kept moving past where he thought it ought to be, or (d) not pick up the ball and put it back where he did think it should be. He kept saying, "oops, sorry!" every time I reminded him of any of those things, which was, like, every other five seconds. Since I was in Birthday Mood, I just laughed it off, or else the competitive spirit in me might have gotten fired up about it! Although I admit I might have said "freakin'" once or twice, as in, "Stop touching the freakin' ball, Jack!"

On this particular hole, my ball was the first (and second) to go into "the drink," as my gran'pappy would have called it - although I could have lied and said that never happened, as there is no photographic evidence of such events. But that wouldn't be "Honest and Fair," which is the part of the Girl Scout Law my Daisies and I are working on this week, so I'm telling y'all the truth. Chloë was second to have to fish her ball out of the drink. (Speaking of balls, I never tired of saying, "Stay off the green, and don't touch your balls!" whenever it was my turn to give my bright orange ball a whack and I couldn't watch the youngsters. "Don't touch your balls!" I'm so mature.) Chloë also had to fish her all out of the drink two times. Team Odette rocks at putt-putt, y'all.

Twice fishing for Jacky, too. Haha! We so suck at this game, but since all four of us sucked equally, it was fun for everyone. They had a total blast. I don't have pictures of Sophia's ball in the drink, which makes me think hers didn't go in - but She of the Amazing Strength kept whacking her ball so hard it would fly clear across three or four holes and into some other form of golf-related trouble. Once, we even had to replace it, because it was lost completely. She'd probably give Tiger Woods a run for his money!

I didn't let them win, but this is Chloë's reaction upon my adding up the scores and announcing that she won amongst the kidlets! Fair and square, the birthday girl did the best. This, even after discovering on the third or fourth hole that we were, in fact, aiming for the LOWEST score and not the highest. **Snort**

After our four balls (hee) plunked into the hole (hehe) at the end of Hole 18, the kids discovered a "pirate ship" playground, complete with a fireman's pole-type, uh, pole, which kept them occupied for about 72 days or 15 minutes or something. They really liked that thing. We'd probably still be there if it wasn't hotter'n blue blazes that day, and we were getting all sweaty. Oh, and if I hadn't conveniently remembered the matter of the free funnel cakes we still had coming to us. Heh heh. (Hey, I was bored. Maybe I shoulda gone down the fireman's pole, too.)

Here's Sophia oh-so-patiently awaiting the arrival of the funnel cakes. Not.

I discovered that the kids' hands and feet were all orange from the fireman's pole, so I sent them to wash up before the funnel cakes arrived. Jack came back first and dug right in. I admit, I didn't wait for Birthday Girl and had some before she returned, too. Mmm, mmm - good stuff!

But, it doesn't look like she minded much, does it? She got plenty and there was some to spare. Too bad Daddy wasn't with us or it would've all gotten eaten fo' sho'!

What kid doesn't love these things? I don't know, but mine go nuts for them. Nuts, I tell ye!

Love. They LOVE these fool things. (Btw, what is up with cornhole boards? Are they all the rage now or something? I seem them advertised everywhere. What's the deal?!)

I had a few extra quarters, so I let each of the kids get one of these piratey-themed bouncy balls, after confirming that's what they were and not, in fact, gum. Jack's the only one who can have gum (Sophia never throws hers away in the proper place, and Chloë can't have it with her dental appliance), so that wouldn't have been fair. In any case, all three are probably long lost by now!

Here's my eight-year-old boy saying goodbye - a few dozen times - to the super-cute girl behind the counter. Can you say "first crush"? Yeah. He's eight. Is it time for that stuff already?!

After we finally finished at the golf course, I called my homeschooling pal Jenny From the Block to have her and her kids - sickly though they were - meet us at the mall to ride the carousel. When you join their birthday club, you get to take 9 friends with you for free, not including parents, who are free anyway. Sweet deal, right? So Jenny FTB hopped in the shower, and we drove past the mall to pick up a Victoria's Secret gift card I'd snagged on Freecycle that morning while we waited for them to get ready. It was for ten bucks, and when we got to the mall, we found all kinds of perfumes on sale for - wait for it - ten bucks! So I let my tween birthday girl pick out her favorite scent (read: the bottle she found most appealing), and we didn't owe a dime. Sweet score! (And she made a point of telling me that - see those skimpy blue undies in the back? - that those wouldn't look good on me right now because of all my extra skin. Thanks, kid. LMAO)

I'd gotten a $5 birthday gift certificate in my email inbox for both Chloë and me, so I of course gave her mine, which made $10 in free money for her to spend at Build-a-Bear Workshop. We headed down the mall hall after Vicki's to spend it. She already knew she wanted a pair of rollerskates for her BAB kitty, and she kept praying out loud that they wouldn't be more than ten bucks. Lo and behold, they were only six bucks! She found these silky undies for her kitty - complete with a rose decoration that her hand is covering - for $3.50, so after tax, we owed mere pennies for these two otherwise free presents. Yep, that grin was genuine. She was having a grand day.

Team BB (Jenny from the Block and her two kids, G and M) texted me to let me know they'd arrived at the mall, so we scooted over to meet them at the carousel. There was no wait and no charge for the ride, so on we went. Sophia and Jack stayed on the lower level, while the rest of us headed to the upper tier. Here's my birthday girl on the horse she picked, looking cute as a button, no?

Whoops, I didn't realize M blinked during her photo op. Sorry, M!

My loverly friend, Jenny from the Block (who has nice teeth, I just noticed), and her adorable son, G

Sophia was already having a blast spinning her spinny thing downstairs, before the ride even started. Goofball.

As it turns out, so was Jack, in his. Goofball #2. The ride started immediately after this picture was taken, so I was stuck sitting nearby on a bench instead of on the horse next to my birthday kid like I'd planned. Ah, well. Can't win 'em all, right? No one showed up to ride - it was in the middle of a school day, after all - so I'm pretty sure they gave us an extra long turn on the ol' carousel for the birthday girl. Nice, right?

Another cool thing about the carousel birthday club thing is that each rider gets a free punching balloon - at least at our mall. Who doesn't love a punching balloon? That's like, high on my list of Favorite Things in the World. Punch, punch, punch. Chloë, notoriously immature for her age, suddenly acted the part of the growing-up tween in many ways, including this one: When M's balloon accidentally popped shortly after receiving it, almost immediately Chlo turned to her and said, "You can have mine!" and handed her the balloon. I was bursting with pride over that smooth move.

For my birthday, I got a BOGO Free coupon for Auntie Anne's pretzels, so the seven of us walked down there to get a couple cinnamon ones. Team BB shared theirs, while Chloë shared hers with her siblings. I neither got, nor wanted, nor should have had any, especially after eating the funnel cake earlier in the day. (Besides, I like the ones with crushed almonds, so there.)

When yummy snacks are involved, this oft-squabbling trio somehow manage to get along. Amazing.

I don't remember if M got any pretzel - I think she opted out - but G sure enjoyed his!

Oh, my Jenny FTB, you are so silly!

Speaking of my silly Jenny, she later texted me this image of her in the new shirt I gave her. See, I had a $10 birthday gift certificate to Torrid (because I'm a Diva), and these Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles t-shirts on clearance for $9.98 were pretty much all that appealed to me in the "get it for free" price range. The shirt didn't fit me, but I figured I could use it for a comfy nightgown around the house, y'know? So when I showed it to Jenny FTB during our pretzel-engorging time, she was all raggin' on me because it wasn't my size. Turns out it would be her size, however, so after mucho back-and-forth, I convinced her to take it as my thank-you for coming out and sharing some of Chloë's birthday fun with us, despite not feeling so hot. Doesn't it look super cute on her?! I think so, too.

These rides were right next to the pretzel hut, and I still had quite a few quarters on me, so what the heck? I treated Sophia and M to this ride, and...

...Chloë, Jack and G squeezed in together on this one. Jenny FTB tried to give me her sole quarter, but I made that big spender keep her cash. LOL!

Then we headed over to Charlotte Russe, where I'd gotten a $5 Gift Certificate for my birthday, too. Jenny FTB immediately found a wallet in that price range that she loved, and since she rilly, rilly needed a new wallet, I was all, "Here, take the $5 GC." And you know what? Giving feels really good. I felt pleased, and she was happy, and the new wallet works for her, and yay yay!

And then we went over to the JC Penney Portrait Studio to use my coupon for a free sitting fee and free 8x10, thinking the seven of us could take a silly picture or eleven together. But you know what? Unlike Sears' coupon, the JCP sitting fee apparently only covers ONE person, which is lame. So JFTB and I looked at each other, scowled, and then decided to just let Chloë get HER pictures taken. I mean, it was her birthday, right? It only made sense. I can't copy any of the pictures off the site or I totally would, but hopefully you can see them here. If Slide 1 is of a close-up of her face with the balloons around it, that's the one I ordered for my free 8x10. Which would you have chosen?

 

After that, we were pretty much mall-tired, so we all trucked down to our closely-parked vehicles and hugged each other good-day a hundred bunches of times. I'm so glad they were able to come out; it was a blast hanging out with them, and I know Chloë would agree! (And yes, I was making them say, "Happy Birthday, Chloëëëë!" for the picture, and yes, Jack was rolling his eyes about it. He was being a total punk that day!!)

We returned home, then, and woke up Daddy, so that he could come with us for the rest of Poor Man's Birthday Party. He changed out of his uniform lickety-split, and off we went again, for more fun!

First, we went to Sonic for our two free Wacky Pack kids' meals. I had a coupon for two, for my birthday and Chloë's. We let Sophia and Jack eat those. Happily, they both picked the apple slices as their sides, with no encouragement from the 'rents. Booya!

Then, we went to Ruby Tuesday for a free burger, fries and some other side (green beans?) that I got for my birthday but obviously wasn't going to eat, so that was Rob's dinner.

Silver Diner gave Chloë a free meal for her birthday, so she chose the mac-and-cheese entrée with a side of strawberries (again, no prompting!), and a strawberry shake. My kids LOVE eating at Silver Diner, but since only Chlo got a free meal, we took it to-go, like everyone else. Yep, I let them eat in car after just getting a car wash (for a mystery shop, natch). I'm a glutton for punishment. Guess I'll have to take another such shop soon!

Chick-Fil-A was right next to Silver Diner, and I happened to have a coupon for a free chicken sandwich from probably over a year ago, so I drove over and redeemed that without a hitch. I ate a third, and then Sophia ate a third, and I think the other third went into the round filing cabinet. I would've eaten it later, but whatev.

From there, we headed down to Chuck E. Cheese's to redeem Chloë's birthday coupon for 20 free tokens. Twenty isn't a lot, but they made it go pretty far and managed to spend about 40 minutes in the place, so it was worthwhile. I doled them out, giving six each to the Littles and eight to Chloë, with surprisingly no complaints. Now, looking at this picture, I'm wondering what was so fascinating on the side, there!

The three kids went off in three different directions, so I'm always thankful for their blacklight kid-numbering system when we go! Jack always heads for this shooty-thingy, so it wasn't too hard to track him down. In this picture, what I see, though, is how tiny he still is. (He still fits into some 6-month baby swim shorts, if that tells you much!)

Sophia was a little harder to track down, since she zipped right away from me and is good at finding hidey-holes. But find her I did, for once not riding the bike-helicopter ride that goes up and down. That's her favorite thing-a-ma-jig.

I pretty much followed Chloë around after that, waiting for good birthday photo ops. Found one!

Make that two! :) After this, I kicked her butt at air hockey. I play a mean game of air hockey, and by that, I mean, "against ten year old wimpy girls."

The kids all crowded around to watch Chloë play her last token, while Rob and I stood back and made jokes about honey pots.

One of the things the kids enjoy the most at CEC is feeding the ticket muncher machine. They fight over it! I'd get in the fray, too, if it wouldn't be juvenile, because that thing is F.U.N. With their 20 tokens - half spent on rides and not games - they managed to earn exactly 50 tickets. Not too shabby.

It's hard to divvy up 50 tickets amongst three children, so without my even asking, the ticket redemption counter guy said he would round it up to sixty, to make it even. Thank heaven for small favors. (Although, 50 doesn't really "round up" to 60, but I'm not complainin'!)

Sophia picked a 20-point pink rubber spider (hence the scary face). Chloë chose a sweet tarts a top, and Jack opted or sweet tarts and a sticker sheet. Hey. They were happy, and once again, you can't beat free!

We ran across the street after that, so I could redeem my birthday coupon for a free Homewrecker (well, that's what I chose, anyway) from Moe's. Welcome to Moe's! Love that place.  It took me three or four sittings to eat that thing, and I think I puked every time anyway. Le sigh.

 

The fun wasn't over yet. We stopped at AC Moore so I could run in and redeem my free birthday coupons there, and I managed to get these Crayola markers and glue sticks for practically nothing - both hot commodities around here, so woot!

Our last stop of the night was at Chili's, to get our free birthday brownie sundae. It was mine, by rights, but I gave it to Chloë, who shared it with the rest of Team Odette. Except me. No thanks, can't do it! Here she is, eagerly awaiting the treat.

I had to take this picture fast. The brownie sundae disappeared in a flash. Oh, hi, iPhone.

That was the end of our freebie tour for the day. Chloë wanted to go home and, indeed, so did I! There were mini cupcakes leftover from the PJ party that morning (and I got some ribbing for bringing store-bought cupcakes when I'm supposed to be the baker!), and I wanted to do candles and sing to her, so we did that. Only Jack and Sophia had a cupcake, though Sophia probably had three when I wasn't looking...

She's either praying or thinking of a wish. Or both.

I hope ALL your wishes come true, Baby Doll!

It wasn't really intended as a birthday present, but since I'd gotten the flute at the co-op party that morning (to be paid for later, in installments - and I got a good deal to boot) from another homeschooling mom, I presented it to her as such. She's been wanting flute lessons. I'm going to try to find a tutor from one of the local colleges, for cheap lessons, though the same mom gave me a lesson book from which to learn, too.

All you musicians out there are cringing at this picture, eh? We have lots to learn. Lots. Although I did teach her how to put her mouth and lips, because this was killing me!

All in all, it was a splendid day, and she proclaimed it, as she does every single year, "The Best Birthday EVER!" but, "And this time I mean it!"

********
As for me, I spent my 35th birthday yesterday writhing in headache pain, lying down and letting the kids chill, until it was finally time for me to get up, shower, and prepare my plan for the Daisy meeting two hours later. Thankfully, Rob came home early, so Jack could stay home with him while we girls headed to Girl Scouts for the first meeting of the year. I thought it went really well, all things considered. I only have five girls (so far) this year, which is a much more manageable number than the eight and nine we had at various times last year! I do miss my "old" girls, but I love having my five familiar little ones back again, too.

The headache lasted throughout the evening and into the night, but I was cheered considerably by the sight and sounds of Sophia reading to Chloë, with minimal help from Big Sis. And when Big Sis did help, she was pleasant and considerate, not bossy or critical. It was absolutely a wonderful sight to behold, and I loved every minute of watching and listening to them. Sophia's reading has improved by leaps and bounds in the past month, and I know she is so proud of herself, as she should be!

And that, my friends, is the end of the birthdays for 2011. Thanks for reading and commenting as a birthday present to me! Hehe - see what I did there? ;)

Fin.

 

 

Hurricane Irene Hits: 27 August 2011

So, we had ourselves a li'l ol'-fashioned hurricane this weekend, and her name was Irene. Much was said about Irene in the days leading up to her arrival. If you asked 47 different sources about her path, severity and potential for damage, you'd have gotten 47 different answers. So, between that and the fact that we couldn't afford to evacuate anyhow, we decide to stay put and, well, weather the storm in our humble abode. My pal Jenny from the Block let her two kiddos have a slumber party in their hallway, so I copied her and let my three-o have one in the living room Friday night. They promptly set up about 900 seven folding chairs to make their respective tents and settled in to watch a movie or twelve.

I figured they'd fall asleep around midnight. Give or take. Well, give (or is it take?) five hours, because they all pretty much konked out right at 0500, all at once. Up 'til that point, they drove me absolutely crazy, which, as you know, is a very short trip. I did everything I could think of to get them to go to sleep, which really means I shouted said, "Go to sleep!!" approximately six thousand times. And I do not ever exaggerate. Never. Please note: that is not an effective means of getting my kids to go to sleep, if you're ever in charge of their slumber. Remember that. You pretty much have to sock them over the head with a club and stuff. I kid. Just use a sock. That still won't work though. (I'm in a mood, if you can't tell.)

This was the kids at, like, 3 AM. Since my desktop computer, my beloved Dell, went to the big PC recyclator in the sky on the day of Thor, I was stuck on the couch using my laptop. I hate this freakin' laptop. I hate laptops in general, but this one seems to be particularly cursed with shittiness. But, I have it, and so let's be thankful for that, shall we? Yes. We shall. Anywho, I was on the couch - the blue one, while Rob slept for about 93 hours in a row on the red one - the whole time the kids had their slumber party (emphasis on "party" with the word "slumber" being completely unnecessary). I checked my email 100,000 times, and Facebook, and my Google Reader, and generally exhausted my interest therein. I even knit a few rows on the Sparkle! dress before I got bored of that, too. Well, not really bored. It's just too freakin' hot to knit wool, so I gave that up in a hurry. (I'm ridiculously close to finishing the front half, though, so I really ought to get back to it post-haste.) (Why not pre-haste?)

We all woke up sometime around 1300, which is 1 PM for you non-military American-types, and Hurricane Irene was in full swing by then. This was Saturday afternoon. While Jack kept busy watching out the back door for the "eye" to hit (it never did, poor laddie), the girls decided to clear the living room floor and have a dance party. I put on modern hits for them like, "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun" by Lauper, Cyndi, and "Hey Mickey," by Toni Basil. They didn't care as long as the beat kept bumpin'. Had themselves a grand old time. As did I, watching them. At one point, I tried to join, but they made me sit down. I don't know why. I have skilz. I can do the running man, y'all.

Around 1600, suffering from major cabin fever, Chloë asked me if she could go get the mail. In the middle of a hurricane, FPS! So I went outside, determined she could handle the weathah, and agreed. It was a wee bit windy but not too gusty, or else my 2-lb girl would NOT have been allowed out there. This is her running across the street to the boxes o' mail. If we didn't live right there, I shan't have allowed her.

Here she is, just about to check the mail...

...and here she is getting knocked into the next box by the wind. By that point, I was ready to run out there and grab her, but she called out to me, "I'M OKAAAAAY MOM," so I held still.

She made it back in one piece, hiding the mail under her raincoat - but not before dropping half of it into a huge puddle under that white truck. And one of them was a mystery shopping paycheck for me. D'oh!

As Saturday darkened and turned into evening, the tents returned. The girls were making it, and they refused to let Jack in, which of course made him want to go in more than he otherwise would have cared to do. Tell me this is not the cutest picture of him ever?!!

Sophia didn't care that he was in there, but Chloë had a total flip-out break-down about it (she does that frequently) and was subsequently sent to her room for a calming session. She sets my heart to racing, that one does. Regularly.

We all fell asleep much earlier that night, and by the time we awoke on Sunday, the rain was finished. Irene had passed, and we turned out to be some of the lucky ones who never lost power, not even for a minute, despite a few foreboding flickers. Several hundred thousand between here and Richmond are predicted to be power-less for up to two weeks. A few locals lost their lives in the storm - including two children, I hear - and a family I know lost their house and everything in it. They're in my homeschooling co-op, so the members are banding together to provide whatever we can for them. All-in-all, this little bit of flooding in our neighborhood streets is the most we've suffered, and for that, I am thoroughly grateful.

The streets up the other way, out of the neighborhood, are like lakes right now, but that's the extent of our "damage." Well, that and a piece of roofing we lost, but Rob can fix that, easy-peasy. He's already replaced it once before, after the November '09 Nor'easter. Anyway, when I went out for a look-see around our neighborhood, I saw four ducks swimming in the street-lake, which made me chuckle. It's not as cool as this:

but at least it was real, so hey. Ducks. They are so cute, swimming in the street.

Anyway, that's our Irene story. Thanks for all your prayers and good thoughts, and I hope any of you reading this who experienced Irene also fared as well!

Fin.

P.S. Chloë posted a blog about it as well, and it's here if you care to read. She'd love your comments!

As Thursdays Go...

...yesterday was a long one. But a very fun, thoroughly enjoyable one. I had a fantastic time.

Thursdays are the days that a few friends from the military co-op and I gather at one of their houses and learn all kinds of new (to us) and interesting gardening techniques. I love this class. C, the gardener, is amazingly zen and patient with all of us, and she is a veritable fountain of gardening knowledge. I am so impressed by her. Over the past several weeks, we have released butterflies into the garden...

 

 

...learned all about composting,...

 

... discussed the various bugs and other creatures that can be found in a garden and which are beneficial (or not), before going out on a hunt for as many different bugs as we could find in C's garden,...

 

... had lessons on subjects from the importance of bees to gardening and the health of the planet as a whole, to square-foot and container gardening as it relates to "density," and so much more. C is an awesome teacher, and I'm so thankful we decided to join her in this endeavor.

 

We've learned about using egg shells and coffee grounds on plants, and rose hips, and acid-loving plants, and gosh, so much more than I can remember right now. Yesterday, we were taught about drip lines and sprinkling Espom salts there for roses, tomatoes, and other veggies, to help them grow bigger. I'd never have thought salt could be good for plants! Shows what I know.

 

Sophia enjoying one of C's bran muffins, before going out hunting for sticks, so we could make swings for drying sprigs of herbs and what-have-you. 

This is my amazing, incredible, awesome friend Jen, and young S., who is not her son but someone else's there, being so proud of the corn that she planted weeks earlier. It grew the tallest!

 

Would you like a not-quite-ripe blueberry? I think I did eat this one, and it was still fine.

Here, C was helping us make mason bee habitats, to attract these important critters to our own home gardens. So far, no one has gotten a mason bee to join their garden yet. Fingers are crossed!

 

After Gardening 101 is over for the day, we all get in C's beautiful pool for a swim, and at some point have a picnic lunch alongside the water before going in for a final dip. Sometimes the moms swim, and sometimes we just let the kids go in while we sit out to watch, chit-chat, and do our knitting. 

It's been a beautiful experience, really. I'm loving it.

 

 

Normally, that's it, and then we all go home. But yesterday, there was so much more. Jen's son, G, was turning five, so we had his Cars birthday party. I made the cake the night before at Jen's house, and he was SOOOOO excited. It was very cute. (Some parts got a little messy because G couldn't resist touching his cake. Hehe.)

 

I made him some cupcakes, too, which turned out to be great because so many people were there, the cake wouldn't have been enough. But don't look too closely at them, because they got a little oopsy during transport to C's house!

 

After that, Rob joined us, along with my friend T from Bunco, for a super-long canning session. I was picked as a host for a Ball House Party, and C agreed to hold it at her house for me. That was a HUGE gift.

 

We all had SO much fun, and tons of laughs, while making our strawberry and blueberry preserves, raspberry jam, peach preserves, and cherry syrup - 31 jars in all. A productive night, in many more ways than one.

I'm so blessed to be part of such a wonderful group, and I'm lucky they'll have me!

And of course, now I'm all gung-ho about canning and want to buy cases and cases of jars, hit the Farmer's Market for produce, and fill up our pantry.  I can't wait to get started!

Fin.

Wordless Wednesday 2: To MIL, With Love From The Grands

Hee.

Fin.

Things That Suck

Two things, at least this past Tuesday (yesterday):

1. Winning a contest and not having the gas to go pick up the prize. I am guaranteed to have won either: a 2011 Ford SUV hybrid, a trip with hotel and airfare included, $2500, or a big-screen LCD TV. I'm supposed to drive up to Woodbridge on Thursday night to claim it. Not having the money for gas to get there, which is near DC, means that it'll have to go unclaimed. Sure would have been nice to have one of those prizes, though. Except for the trip, we'd have sold it and used the money for house repairs, to get this baby ready for sale. Le sigh.

2. Operation Rescue Mallard gone bad:

This poor drake was the straggler in a flock of ducks that was flying over when Rob was driving home on his motorcycle, and wham! he hit Rob right in the helmet and windshield instead of clearing him. Rob came home, I called a wildlife rehabber, and we were instructed to get him and put him in a box.

So we went out to the lake, where he skedaddled off to be amongst his breathren after the accident, and called out for him. "Bob! Uh, here ducky...!" when Sophia let herself out of the van (not following instructions to stay put) and started running through the flock of geese and ducks converging on us, mistakenly thinking we were giving handouts. Her actions parted the ways quickly and led us down to one hunkered-down bird who refused to scatter. That was our duck. Rob gingerly lifted him into the box, and I could see that both legs, and a wing, were badly damaged. There was blood on the bottom. He was in bad shape.

I called the rehabber back and, since we couldn't bring him out until late that night when they figured out if they had the space for yet another duck - already having over five dozen to care for - was told to give Bob a little water. We tried. He didn't seem to interested in that. Apparently Tap doesn't taste like Pond. (Lucky us.)

He'd soiled himself badly, and I didn't want him sitting in that, so we moved him to a slightly bigger box. One with no stinky duck pee or poo. We imagined the rest of the flock back at the lake, still whispering about Bob being ducknapped. We hoped they realized we planned to bring him back, in time.

Bob seemed content, if not completely stressed, in his new digs. He still didn't drink. We decided to let him chill out there and came in the house. The children were still out playing. Before too long, less than an hour, Sophia came inside to do her impression of poor Bob, which included lolling her head to the side.

Oh, no.

We rushed outside, to find what was clearly a very dead Bob.

I burst into tears, and one by one, so did the children. I don't know that they all would have done that, if I hadn't, but I couldn't help myself. I love the creatures, great and small, and I'm so sad it didn't work out this time. Bob was just too hurt and stressed, and he didn't make it.

Poor Bird. We tried, we really did.

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Things that DON'T suck:

All the support I received, both in the comments here and on Facebook, to continue the blog. Rest assured, I'm not going anywhere. How could I? Thirteen people would be devastated if I left the Interwebs, wouldn't you?  And I won't tone it down, keep it in, change my style, either. Again, how could I? All I know is how to be me. So that's what you get. Thanks for following along. Say hey once in a while. I'd like that. That would be not-the-suck, too.

Fin.

The First Weekend In June

I keep feeling like I had this unproductive weekend, because I didn't accomplish my singular goal at all, so here is a run-through of what I actually did do, to make myself feel better. And to share with you, because I know you hang on the edge of your seat, waiting for me to post these scintillating things I talk about, right?

First, like I mentioned, there was desire to paint in the wee hours of Saturday morning. Now. So I painted the pantry door. And the little bitty corner of wall next to it, which of course meant that more painting in the kitchen would need to happen, or else that little green section of wall would like mighty curious, all by itself.

Well, the real first first was making the pizza cake, from Friday night into the wee hours of Saturday morning. 

And the second thing, immediately after finishing the cake, was scooping up the leftover cake and frosting and constructing these cake pops. These are long since gone, sold right away, but like I (think I) posted yesterday, more can be made if you need parting gifts for Teacher, or a special graduate, or Dad, or, well, anybody, because I really don't care whom you give them to, as long as you buy some. Heh.

So the third thing, then, was painting the door.

I went back and forth all day Saturday after that, moving kitchen furniture (that would be the full baker's rack, the deep freezer, and the table and chairs), scrubbing sections of wall piece by piece, paint first, second, and the exasperatingly always-necessary third coat... and coming back here to play on Facebook and run my stupid Farmville. (I call it "stupid," but I really like it. It gives me a quick opportunity to take frequent breaks from whatever I'm doing, and I've always been a girl who likes taking frequent breaks. Maybe I do have ADHD, but that's how I manage it. Whatever. Moving on.)

As part of this parenting course we're doing right now (more on that later), Rob and I are each supposed to spend 10 minutes of true quality time with each of the kids, twice per day. So Sophia and I spent one of our ten-minute sessions painting the back of the kitchen wall. I did all the cutting in around the edges, and she painted in the middle. I guided her with the correct way to hold the brush and move it back and forth, back and forth, and then she went and did it her own way. Which is fine. You can lead a horse to water...

Chloë wanted a painting turn after that, too, so I spent another segment of quality time showing her the same things I'd shown Sophia. She did it more exactly like I showed her, because that is her way. She, being a Virgo like me, is quite a bit of a perfectionist. I am doing my best, now, seeing this, and knowing how difficult it is to be that way, to guide her away from that tendency. It's not easy. Anyway, so they helped me paint the walls.

Jack wanted to paint, too, but he was never available when I was ready for him, because he spent a great deal of the weekend outside with the neighbor kids, riding his bike, driving his Cadillac Escalade Power Wheels, using the girls' scooter, and generally getting dirty and having a ball. So I didn't force the 10 minutes on him, although I do think it's especially important that he and I connect for those 20 min per day. I'll work on it, getting it in.

So eventually, the bottom half of the kitchen got painted, as far as I could go without moving the refrigerator. Luckily, I have plenty of paint left, for whenever Rob gets around to helping me with that. (I tried, but I'm a weenie.)

In the eight-plus years we've lived here, the kitchen has always been at the top of my "gotta change this" list, but for some reason, it has escaped my ministrations thus far. I even have the paint for the top half. Well, now that we've had to keep the windows open all the time (no AC), the cats have scratched out half the screens in the house, and they've all but shredded the café curtains covering the kitchen windows. I hate it. And I hate the country-cottage-y wallpaper on the top half of the kitchen walls, too. That's fine and good, but I am just not a country-cottage-y type of person. I like bold, striking colors that pop. 

So I got up on the chairs and started to RRRRRRRRRIP the wallpaper off the walls, tossing big strips of it onto to floor, to the kids' shock and dismay. "Mom! What are you DOING?!" they demanded.

I just laughed and let their father explain. That's often the way things go around here. I laugh, and he's left to explain why.

I pulled off all the copper molds from around the top of the walls, too. I'm going to sell them. I collected them years ago, when we lived in Panama City, FL. And while I still absolutely adore copper - it's my favorite precious metal - it's just not the look I'm going for anymore. So they have to go. I don't have them listed anywhere yet, but I do have some interest. Let me know if you, too, want to stake a claim. I'm willing to break up the lot.

Because we didn't get Rob's Navy paycheck the first of the month and things are uncomfortably tight right now, and also because I'm trying to walk more and drive less in the interest of Saving The Planet, Chloë and I walked to the grocery store late Saturday evening. The kids were begging, crying, for milk, so I decided to break down and spend some of our very little money on a gallon. I mean, it's milk, and they're kids. Not exactly a luxury. 

Chloë and I had the best talk on our way to and from the store. We discussed physical beauty and why that might not be the most important thing about a person, and what things might be more important. She decided that being healthy was the most important thing, and being safe, so we talked about ways she could be healthy and safe. She came up with lots of fantastic answers, like eating junk foods in moderation, always wearing her helmet when she rides her bike or scooter, and getting the proper amount of sleep. I was impressed.

At the store, she "helped" me shop, and by that, I mean she pushed the little cart around and mostly observed as I made decisions about what to buy and what to leave at the store. We talked about the importance of shopping the perimeter - she remembered what "perimeter" meant from her studies in math - and, like eating junk food, using the processed foods in the center aisles in moderation. I had decided to make a Key Lime Pie for dessert, to use up the Key Limes I'd picked up at a roadside citrus stand in Florida a few weeks ago, so we bought the condensed milk and graham crackers I needed for that, comparing prices-per-unit and all that we always try to do.

And since I have a partially-made batch of hummus in the freezer, I decided that I should get a lemon or two (of which there were none, so I'm going to try Key Lime hummus instead!) and the tahini I need to finish it. We spent about six years looking for the damn tahini, which used to be much easier to find, back when they had a separate section for "health foods." (Now it's next to the mayonnaise and other condiments, in case you're wondering.)

Having "gone green" by walking to the store instead of driving, I'd have felt pretty crappy about getting one of those God-awful plastic grocery bags in which to lug our loot home, so I bought yet another 99¢ canvas bag, too. I just can't stand those plastic bags. They, among other things like inconsiderate smokers, people who drink copious amounts of bottled water and don't even recycle the bottles, and folks who take nine hours to make the right turn in front of me, are the absolute bane of my existence.

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So we walked home, me lugging the bag full of milk-and-schtuff, and continued our nice, Mom-to-Daughter talk. Somehow it morphed into what life will be like as she eases into her teenage years, and how it's natural for girls to butt heads with their mothers frequently in those times. That really upset her. I made her promise to remember one thing: that no matter what she said or did, and no matter what I said or did, I would always love her more than she could understand until she was a mother herself. That eased her mind a bit.

Then that translated into a conversation about the pressures of being a teen and experimenting with things like drugs, alcohol, smoking, and sex. I told her my hopes and expectations, and she asked good questions. Overall, it was a very productive conversation, and I'm so delighted we had the chance to have it.

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So we got home, and I made the pie, and oh, my word, it was freaking delicious. Beyond expectations. I still have plenty of Key Limes, so I plan to bring another pie to our Gardening club this Thursday. Assuming I still have the gas to get there. Jack didn't like the pie, but everyone else devoured it with gusto. I had way more than I had any business having, but after cheesecake, Key Lime Pie has to be my fav... well, no, there's Dutch Apple Cream Pie, and Chocolate Chip Cookies, and... Uh. I just love sweets. I'm in the right business, I think. (And I'm glad I've discovered the power of prunes to help me take off any extra weight I might gain from sampling my own wares! Phooo, do those work well. Golly. *ahem*)

So that was Saturday.

Sunday, we didn't make it to church either, which was sad, especially since I'd visited their food pantry on Thursday after Girl Scouts, and they serviced us quite nicely. (That's something I've never done before in my life, and it's quite humbling. Thank you, to any and all of you who donate to the Food Bank. We haven't needed it before, but with this paycheck snafu, I'm certainly glad it's there for us in this time of need. Now if only there were a Gas Pantry, eh?)

I napped a lot on Sunday. Rob napped a lot, and Sophia did, too. The other two mostly watched Nova shows on the Wii, from Netflix. Jack is especially fond of the Nova programs, and particularly the ones that feed his transportation and mechanically-oriented brain. He'll watch the same ones about plane crashes or rockets taking off over and over, always going upstairs to get a toy that goes along with the program, and making-believe he's part of the action. It's pretty cool. Rob gets a huge kick out of his doing that.

For my evening 10-minute session with Sophia, she just wanted to play with the discarded boxes I'm trying to get rid of on Freecycle. She's decided she needs them for her tiny toys instead, like finger puppets and the Squinkies a friend gave her at her birthday party in April. Here she is admiring the bunk bed she made for her bunny finger puppet.

This is her favorite box, though, because "it's the biggest, and it has a window, so I can see what they're doing in there." She asked me to punch holes in the window with my knitting needle, so her bunny could breathe. And so I did, until she told me, "enough."

While Sophia had been napping earlier, I got started training Jack and Chloë on the way we do laundry, from beginning to end. They collected all the laundry in the house, sorted it into the proper piles, learned how to run the washer and the dryer, and then I showed them how to fold their own clothes. For now, I'll leave it at that, until I feel they're ready to start folding Mom & Dad's, and the towels and sheets. I've just always done the laundry myself and only had them run and put away their things. But with the parenting course, I see the error of my ways. I don't know why I didn't, but I guess I figured they would just pick it up eventually. Foolish. So now I'll be working on their "training," and we don't call them "chores" but rather "contributions." It's working out well. They feel important and significant, and Jack even commented that doing the laundry was "fun." (Not to me, but to his big sister. No way he'd let me hear such a thing on purpose!)

After dinner, when I wanted some knitting time on my sparkle! dress, and Chloë wanted a break from folding laundry, I asked her to spend a little quality time herself with Sophia. The two of them have been fighting a lot again lately, so I asked Chloë read Sophia some stories. She grumped and grumbled about it at first, but in the end, she read three stories to Soap without me asking her to go past the first one. And I made lots of progress on my dress:

Pretty soon, I'll be at the placket, which is my new favorite word to say. I can't wait to finish the front.

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Jack went to bed first tonight, so again, I didn't really get to spend my QT with him. I'll give him extra tomorrow. After story time between the girls, Chloë wanted her ten minutes with me. Sophia and Dad spent those ten minutes together, too, playing and Soph telling cute, six-year-old stories to her Daddy. Chloë and I went for a moonlit walk around the smaller lake.

I took the Nikon along, just in case I found anything cool to take a picture of, but most of my pictures didn't turn out. I liked the way these branches stuck out far into the light of the street lamp, so I snapped it.

Halfway 'round the lake, I spotted a "frog" hopping off the path, toward the water. I managed to catch it for Chloë, who immediately squealed when she felt it and dropped him. So I caught him again, and then, of course, I could see it was really a toad and not a frog at all. We agreed to bring him home to show Daddy and Sophia. We took turns holding him and talking about what we learned months ago when we covered Amphibians, about the differences between frogs and toads. Chloë surprised me by remembering quite a lot of them without my prompting her, and I felt a lot of pride inside me.

There were a lot of ducks and drakes pairing up along our walk, but those photos didn't come out. I'm glad this one of Mama and her four ducklings did, though - how cute are they?! I just adore baby aminals of all flavors and varieties. I'm definitely a Woman in that regard. Baby people, baby ducks, baby anything, and my heart melts.

Chloë could barely wait to burst in the front door and show them the toad. We had to shh-shh-shh her, because the windows are open, and our neighbors sleep early. Of course, they gave her all the attention she was due, and there was even more fun when Sophia, holding the poor toad, dropped him in the house. I was in the powder room when that happened, but the sounds of them all gadding about, trying to catch it, were amusing to hear.

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Chloë went to bed shortly after that - no, she had her ten minutes of Dad time first, and they looked through an American Baby magazine together, of all things - and Sophia and I shared some more time while I knit. She drew pictures of different things, like Chloë and I taking a walk, and of an "alien monster mouth" coming out of the sky and eating our entire unsuspecting family. I'm not really worried about that one, since she was giggling while she told me what it was. Sophia loves to color and draw, and she has become quite good at it, actually. I'll have to show you some of her drawings next time.

For now, though, I'm going to wrap up my weekend by trying to knit at least to the placket and making my To-Do list for the coming week.  I hope yours is a good one.

Fin.

An Open Letter To The Greatest Man In My Life

Dearest Grandpa,

I wanted to write and tell you exactly how much you've meant to me over the past 34½ years. You'll be 85 later this year, and while I hate to think about it, that number keeps inching ever closer to a time when I may no longer to be able to tell you how I feel.

Overall, I did not have a happy childhood, between mom dying so terribly young and all the awful times that followed my dad remarrying. However, there were many bright spots during that time, and I can't think of a single one that didn't involve Grandma and yourself. You saved it for me and made the whole thing far more wonderful than it ever could have been without you in my life. And I am grateful.

I remember when you and Grandma would wake up Stacey and me at the crack of dawn for an overnight trip down to Atlantic City. Scruffy would be in the car, too, and while Grandma was playing the slots at Trump's Tower, the three of us would walk the dog up and down the boardwalk and look in the windows at the salt-water taffy and other fun beachy wares. When Scruff didn't come along, you took us to see a show or two. I know we saw A Chorus Line, but I forget what else there was, because the most important thing about it was getting to spend time with you and knowing you were right where you wanted to be, too - with us kids.

I remember all the times you two took us down to the Jersey Shore to stay at Alma's house, whether it was for the Fourth of July or just because it was Summer and the Shore was our place to go. Back then, Stacey and I were free to roam around and walk down the block or two to the beach and get as sunburned and sandy as we wanted to be. Grandma always scolded me to put on sunscreen, but now, all these years later, I am still not doing a great job of listening to her!

I remember when you took us to see the tall ships for your big company picnic. My favorite thing about it was the endless supply of ice cream. Which reminds me, you were always so proud to tell everyone that you were the guy who taught me how to eat it! You and I shared a love of ice cream like no one else, and now, neither one of us is allowed to have it! Tsk, tsk.

I remember the time you drove us into the Bronx - or maybe it was two or three times, I'm not sure - to go to the zoo. One time it was because the pandas were there from China, and they weren't to be missed.

There were lots of little things to remember, too. The way you, Stacey and I always made a special trip to the Butterflake bakery in Englewood after church, for doughnuts. I always loved the way they tied the box with that red and white string. I thought it was special for them then, but now I know that it's a common thing.

Or what about how you would wake up at 4 AM and come home for dinner by 4 PM, and even though you worked phsyically hard all day long while Grandma and we lounged at the pool, you were never too tired after supper to go out back and throw the ball around? You had an arm like a major leaguer, and I threw like a girl. Stacey was so much better at Catch, so you two would play while I ran after the balls that didn't get caught. Sometimes I was jealous of that, but really I didn't mind, because I just loved being out there with you.

I remember how many times you walked us around the corner to the little park, and we sang, "Hi-Ho Cheerio" the whole way there. You pushed us higher and higher on the swings, until I thought my toes would touch the treetops and begged you to stop. And you always stopped. You never let me be scared.

How many times did you grab the two of us girls for a late-night run to Carvel for hot fudge sundaes? Grandma would put in her order, and then we'd go and pick up the treats. I always looked at the silly shaped cakes while you chatted with the guys behind the counter who knew you well. Then you zipped home so Grandma's ice cream wouldn't melt too much.

We had so many traditions when we stayed with you: Grandma giving us each a can of black olives for Christmas, and going out at midnight to bang pots and pans and wake up the neighborhood on New Year's Eve! Going for flowers and planting them at Mom's grave each time we came for a visit. The nightly games of Uno and Skip-bo out in the living room. Grandma in the bedroom, and you in the living room, shouting the answers to "Wheel of Fortune" and "Jeopardy!" back and forth to each other. Wednesday nights at Wendy's, where Stacey and I would each order double pickles on our hamburgers, and I gave all of mine to her. She was the pickle queen!

Today, Grandpa, you're three or four states and far too many hours away from me, and I hate it. I would give anything to have you near me now, for my children to know you as well as I did, to get as much out of knowing you as Stacey and I were able to do.

You did so much for me in my life, and every chance I get, I want to be able to do something for you. Tonight, when you called me after opening the box of pistachios I sent, it absolutely made my day - no, my whole week - to hear how happy you were to get them. When you cried a little bit over it and all the other packages Stacey and I have been sending you lately, I felt that love in my heart that is so big I think I will surely burst. It feels tremendously good to know that you're aware how much you are loved and adored by the two of us.

You mean the world to me, Grandpa, and I thank my lucky stars every day that you're in it.

Love you forever,

Melanie Ann

 

Fin.

It's That Time Again

I made this thing a couple years ago. I'm kind of tired of it, but the kids won't let me get rid of it. So it's out again, and now it's time to start thinking of Valentine's crafts to do during our homeschooling day. If you have suggestions - especially for awesome things I don't have to go out and buy a bunch of special materials for - throw 'em my way!

Thanks for your kind words about last night's post. I debated about 100 times about whether to pull it down, but once it's out there, it's out there. I'm okay. Really. I just put it out of my mind and don't' deal with it. Ever. It's probably not the healthiest thing to do, but it's worked for me thus far. I've got plenty of other issues clogging up my frontal lobe!

Anyway, blah blah blah.

Fin.

Sayonara, Señoritas

So, we gave up Vanna a week ago to the dealer where we're getting our new Honda Odyssey. (Which, by the way, will be green, instead of ocean blue, or dark cherry red, or, well, a different green... lots of switchy-switchy with this process!) We were put in a loaner Odyssey for a few days (I named that one "Mona." Monah the Lonah. Heh), and I really liked driving it. Not 100%, because I truly miss a lot of the features about Vanna that are missing from this new vehicle. She was a great van, and nicely appointed. Yeah, I might be a bit too sentimental about a dumb ol' minivan, but what can I say? I loved her. And she has some serious sentimental value, too, since we got her immediately after we found out we were expecting twins. We're in a Pilot right now (Mona got sold out from under us! Way to go, Hall Honda), and I absolutely despise it. If you're considering it, don't. I hate it.

Also, we gave up our pooch, Tiger Lily. We drove her up to PA this past weekend, to live at a longtime friend of mine's house with her family of six kids, another dog, a cat or two, a bunch of chickens, and lots of room to run. She'll be well taken care of and hopefully will put back on some of the weight she's dropped in recent weeks and months. She wasn't completely healthy, and we could no longer afford to care for her in the manner she deserved, so rehoming her was done solely with her best interests in mind. We miss her. There's not much more to be said, but I know she is in great hands. Thank you, C!

We've also drop-kicked at least a couple dozen other females from our lives (no exaggeration) in the past week, but that's all I'm going to say about that here.  You're welcome.

Life has been rough lately. Really rough. I've had a tenuous grip on it, but I'm still here, so I guess I'm coping okay. Some have said, better than expected. I - we - have a long, hard road ahead of us, but if the path we've traveled so far is any indication, we'll navigate it well together and come out on the sunnier side.  Thank God for my children, because I don't know where I would be right now without them.

There is a lot more I would love to say, much of it snarky, but I'll save that for a different venue where I know such snarkiness isn't going to come back to haunt me. Being with my Bunco pals tonight was great for me - such a supportive group of ladies who I know have my back. Thanks, girlies.

I'd like to leave you with one thought: The grass isn't greener on the other side. It's greener where you water it.

Fin.

No Sacrifice At All

I guess I suck.

I'm way behind here. I'm sorry. I'm way behind in general. I was totally gonna post a Friday Fragments, but Rob accidentally sabotaged that (yes you DID, honey!!) and gave me a sleeping pill instead of a vitamin D. That's like, the third time. We should totally keep that Trazodone somewhere ELSE, don'tcha think?!

So here's some stuff that's going on lately, since I posted Wednesday. I'm kind of in a blah mood, because this has been a ridiculously crappy night for me, so apologies in advance if the writing brings you to the doldrums, too.

 

We went back to that "other" beach on Wednesday. I remembered the camera this time. It was a pretty awesome day. Like, perfection. I was grateful for that day, like all days, but especially that day. I had taken the kids to the free Regal Cinema movie that morning (we saw Aliens in the Attic, which was good but a bit too 'old' for the kids) and then went grocery shopping for our picnic at the beach. I packed a lunch for everyone, and we brought the cooler with us. The kids loved that.

Rob joined us later in the day, and we went and had a seafood dinner right at the beach. I wore my bathing suit there. If we could pick up and move to that area tomorrow, I would do it.

The only thing that marred the day was when both girls got stung by a jellyfish (we found it and some people dragged it up on the beach, so it's a certainty), and Chloë had a bad reaction. I had nothing with me but sunscreen, and she was in hysterics (Sophie too, but I think she was egged on by Chlo), so I had to call 911. Don't pee on a jellyfish sting, by the way: vinegar is the best solution. The girls calmed down, were soothed, and wanted to stay at the shore. So we did, for a total of about eight hours!

I like this self-portrait, from dinner at the Green Parrot Grille that night... even if my nose ring does look stupid! I have since taken it out, and ordered some more from an Etsy shop (Hotwire, I think?).

And I think I look pretty good in this picture that Rob took of me with his iPhone, too (holding a squirming, plump Tinkerbell).

Which brings me to my next thing: I've decided not to have my abdominoplasty.

For now. We just needed that money for other things, and I have waited this long - what's another six months? The house has been flea-infested for a month, and we have COVERED it with diatomaceous earth. That 'natural approach' didn't work, so it was time to do something drastic: on Thursday, we bought the pill that kills fleas within minutes for all three pets, as well as three months of flea and tick treatment, for all three animals. And we went to the Exchange and bought LOTS of bug bombs. Lots.

(Independence Day, 2009)

But, life has gotten expensive, and we have decided to re-home our dog, Tiger Lily. She's a great dog, and we love her, but we just can't afford to take proper care of her anymore. There's a family that wants her, and they sound like a great match, but now that I've told them about the flea problem, I haven't heard back from them. Which isn't terribly surprising. *sigh* But, I had to be honest.

But hey, look!! We have green things growing!! We are terribly excited. Whoopee!

So Thursday, I mentioned, we did a little shopping at the Exchange, after we stopped at the vet's office for meds. Well, a lot of shopping, actually.  We used a lot of that money earmarked for surgery. Jack needed a bike helmet, and we had looked all over for one that fit. Eureka! He's stoked.

 

Vacs were on sale, and we needed a hard floor one for downstairs, so we got this! We also needed one for the carpeting upstairs, since the kids just broke mine recently. Buggers.  That night, the kids and I cleaned up the downstairs, and I vacuumed, washed and dried the living room floor with the FloorMate. It looked AMAZING, like new!! I can't wait to do it again.

 

I found these great cubbies for storing school supplies, so I got one for each of the kids, and one for me. We LOVE them! Our little school is really shaping up!

We bought lots more stuff that we needed, but when the cashier gave me the total, I stopped him and said, "Uh, I don't think you scanned our computer. It's a $600 laptop..." and I was right, of course. There was no way he had. In the end, the total came to more than we could afford to spend at the moment, so we couldn't buy it. I was so disappointed. I knew I had done the right thing, speaking up, but I admit - I was kicking myself a little, too! I really wanted to have a computer for school and for fun, for the kids.

So anyway, I didn't get it.

Severe weather, including flooding and tornadoes, hit while we were shopping. The drive home was nothing short of terrifying for me. I gripped the wheel and focused on the road, begging the kids to just. be. quiet!! I'd thought we were going to have to drive Rob to work later that night, but he decided it cleared up enough to ride his motorcycle in. I sure was worried, but he got there safe and sound. Whew.

 
I might post about this a bit more on the homeschooling blog, but Friday was fun because we broke out all the new (and a couple old) musical instruments in the music drawer. The kids were allowed to try each instrument out in turn and make, basically, a cacophony, while I attempted to help them find my beat. Not much success, but they had a lot of fun. Jack's favorite instrument is definitely the harmonica, but I'm not sure yet what each girl likes best.

Hilarious!!

 
  

I *really* wanted to use the remaining tax/surgery money to get the kids their own computer, so I did a lot of resarch Friday night and found one for HALF the price of the Exchange one, a Compaq that has a lot of really great reviews. I bought it online and bing, bang, boom! we were able to go pick it up at (the evil) Best Buy on Saturday at noon. Whoop!

Also, someone posted on one of my homeschooling boards about a bunch of free student desks that were being given away here locally, so I decided to pounce on that opportunity and snag one for each of my kiddos. When we got there, after picking up the computer, the lady turned out be someone I knew from the Girl Scout leader meetings, so that was cool. She was super nice and glad to have a home for three of the desks. They were in great condition, much bigger and roomier than I expected, and just the ticket for finishing up our little living room-cum-classroom. Exciting!

After we came home, Rob readied the house for bombing, while I set up the new computer and instructed the kids on how to turn it on and off properly, log in and use their passwords, get online, go to their favorite sites, and other basic things. They need lots more practice, but I feel they'll be doing it like old pros in no time. And they're so psyched to know how to go to Starfall, Webkinz and other places. Best? They have another great way to spend their Dad Dollars (I told them 5DD for each 30 minutes of play), so they're eager to earn more.

 

I neglected to ever give Chloë the necklace she earned for selling Girl Scout cookies this past Winter and Spring, so when I found it on my craft table, I gifted it right over to her. Of course, she insisted on posing for a picture!

 

I found us a motel in Newport News that took pets and was pretty cheap, so Rob set up the bug bombs, packed up the children, and off we went. It was alread about 8 PM by that point, so we were tired and ready to bunk down for the night. Only, when we got to the motel almost an hour later, it was nasty and more bug-infested than the house we were bombing!

Oh, my word, we were disgusted. We managed to get a quick refund from Priceline, and we hightailed it out of that place. We had the dog in the back and the cats in the middle, with the kids, and they were stinking up the place. We have no AC in the van, and we couldn't roll down the windows because the cats kept wanting to get out, so we were suffocating. And then everyone *really* had to go pee. It was getting to be pretty miserable in there.

We drove back down to Norfolk, to Military Highway where there was a place that I knew took pets, since we stayed there with our old dog and cat when we first moved here from Guam in '03. Only, they had no vacancies. Nor did the next place. Or the next, or the next, or the next. I stopped for a potty break at 7-11, and we used the BOGO Free Slurpee coupons someone gave us on the 4th of July. Not without requiring some math problem work out of Chloë first, and she did a great job... But I ended up losing my debit card after that stop, which was not good.

I called the bank and ordered a new card, and then we went home. We still couldn't go back in our house for a few more hours, but I couldn't deal with the pet stink and windows up anymore. We put the cats in Rob's truck, the dog in the backyard, and flew down to the oceanfront to walk along the beach.

We stopped and talked to the police on horseback for a while, and the kids all got a major kick out of that. They asked a billion questions, but when the horses sped away after someone whizzed down Atlantic Avenue much too quickly, well that was just a big ol' hoot for them! (I kinda liked it, too...)

Oh, and when we had gotten to the beach, I found my card! But then I lost it again! So I called initially to report it missing and get a new one, then I called back to cancel that. I had to call a third time to say yes, it's defintely lost this time - and I was right, because someone had found it and called it in. Thank you, guardian angel! At least, if I had to lose it, an honest person found it.

We walked along the boardwalk some, and when everyone needed to potty some more, we stopped from shop to shop until finally the good people at Subway said we only had to buy a bag of chips in order to use their bathroom. Phew! I was emergent by then, myself. We stopped in our favorite kitschy beach store to get kickboards for the kids, since they've been envying the other kids' a lot this summer. They were pretty cheap, thankfully.

Lots of things went wrong for me tonight (most of which I haven't mentioned here), but looking back, it has been a pretty great week. I shouldn't complain.  I have a GREAT husband, three beautiful children (who fight a lot, but hey, what kids don't?), and the bugs are dead. LOL!

Thanks for cheering me up, y'all. Maybe now I can go get a few Zzzzz's.

Fin.