Bingo!

No matter how organized a person is, things seem to avalanche right before you anticipate a vacation or a break.  I'm very organized.  Unfortunately, life is not that organized.  

So I've been spending this week running around filling out mountains of paperwork simply so Ian can be a part of our local high school's golf team.  Now, Ian is a fine golfer.  I imagine he'll be a very good golfer in a year or so.  However, he's no superstar.  Yet, we have to have get forms notarized to say we will not allow him to be recruited by another high school.  Really?  Additionally, it's not enough that we file paperwork every year with our county, I have to provide stacks and stacks of paperwork further documenting Ian's homeschooling career.  Again, much of that requires that Mike, Ian and I all get our signatures notarized.  It's insane.

I had grand plans for today.  I had everyone up early (yes, here in this house, we were up early) and ready to go.  We were all set to head out the door and Andy was nowhere to be found.  After a thorough search, I found him in the garage sobbing.  Yep.  He's sick again - another bout of strep.  He was hiding because he was afraid I'd be mad if he got sick before vacation.  Gah!  Upside?  My sister called to say Andy's cousin Jamie also has strep.  Guess who'll be sharing a bedroom?

I set Andy up on the couch and left him in the care of Dan and Tim. As Andy slept most of the day no one was too put out.  I spent the day shopping for the beach with Bing.  We had a communal fund at our disposal.  First we hit Restaurant Depot.  I love that place.  

I like to pretend I'm on a food show shopping for some exotic meal. (Sue me, I don't get out much!) So much cool stuff, crazy forklifts racing around everywhere and the chance to shop in a freezer in Florida on a 100-degree-plus day!  Bing is as easily distracted as I am.  I think next visit we make, I'll bring some bungy cords and strap Bing to the front of our cart like a maiden head on ship.  That way we'll stick together and distract the forklifts enough that we can get through to our destinations more quickly.  

Next, we headed to Costco.  Costco, I have a bone to pick with you!  I'm all for whole grains and healthy foods but there are times when I just want my regular old pancake mix.  I don't want 57 grains.  I don't want to pay three times as much for 1/3 of what I used to buy.  Sometimes, I want just plain old pancakes.  I promise I'll add fruit and other healthy things to the 2 grain mix I used to love buying from your store.  

Aside from my pancake dreams being shattered, we had a good run at Costco.  We spent far less than I usually spend on a big Costco run and got WAY funner stuff.  Wine.  Chocolate.  Cookies. Hummus. Guacamole.  Sunday (the day our vacation starts) cannot come fast enough for my stomach! 

Mostly, though, today was fun.  I received regular updates from Dan and Tim about Andy.  I got to spend time alone with my mom surrounded by an astounding assortment of food.  I hadn't eaten before we met up and neither had my mom.  I'm sure our purchases reflect our hunger, but I think it will all work out in the end.  I think we're both content with our purchase of a two-pack of gorgeous olives.  I'm not sure what Bing is going to do with her olives, but I know mine are going on the bedside table.  Mmmmm... olives.  


The kids keep complaining how they're surrounded by food but we have nothing to eat.  They're just going to have to hang on until Sunday (AND we have plenty to eat - it's just not fun vacation food!).  I've made spaghetti sauce, meat loaves, chili, quiches, cinnamon rolls, pickles and pesto to take with us.  Sunday I'll make pasta salad and some brownies so we can take possession of the beach house without worrying about anything but "beaching" the first day.


Wish us luck getting tomorrow's list of stuff done ... after that, we're home-free (aside from cleaning because I'm a goober and I hate coming home to a dirt house). 

Not that we're competitive . . .

Not that my sister and I are competitive or anything, but I howled today when I opened an email with this picture in it.  My last post mentions that her kids are too old to fit in buckets.  Well, color me wrong.  *snort*

I'm a-going out tomorrow to find me some super big buckets to stuff my kids into - I'll show her.  

L-R:  Jamie, Jesse, Mitchell

And again . . .

For the past 10+ years, my family, my parents, my brother and my sister and her family have been getting together every two years and staying at a house on the beach for a week or two.  This is one of the ON years.  We leave next Sunday for two glorious weeks. Fourteen of us basking and surfing and eating and reading and laughing.  I can barely stand the wait!!!!


This is the first year we haven't been able to pass any of the kids off as 1/2 people.  We ended up renting a HUGE house.  (I promise lots of pictures.)  I was worried about Scout, though.  Mike, my brother and my dad will split duties at the warehouse so someone was available to watch her during our visit, but she's so old and weird.  


I emailed the house owner with details about Scout and in a final fling for mercy, I included her cone-of-shame pictures.  Though the owners normally only allow dogs up to 18 lbs, they caved and Scout will be joining us for vacation.  Cross your fingers the ocean doesn't totally freak her out.  


As I've been making lists and putting together supplies and more lists, I started thinking back on the first beach vacation we took as an extended family.  I remember loading Ian and Tim into the car to pick Danny up from kindergarten.  It was a big deal that I drove through and got them Happy Meals before heading to the beach (Mike was working and drove out to the beach after his shift at Chili's was over around midnight).  I was grumpy and tired and out of sorts.  


We arrived to find my parents and my sister, her husband and their cherubic baby boy in a totally white penthouse overlooking the beach.  I immediately banished my 5,5, and 6 year olds to the balcony outside with strict instructions to touch NOTHING.  NOT ONE THING for the whole week.  I was really grumpy.  


We had so much fun.  Most of our time was spent outside and it was easy enough to dip all the kids in the pool before heading upstairs to our white "palace."  Jamie, my cherubic nephew, enjoyed sitting in a bucket full of water while the older boys ran back and forth entertaining him.  


About two weeks after we got home from the beach, it occurred to me, I might be pregnant and sure enough . . . that would explain the grumpiness.  I'm pretty sure that was the summer my brother perfected his margarita recipe.  We're all thankful that Andy did not come out as a pickle.  


Anyway, we're doing it again this year.  This year Danny turns 18.  It could possibly be his last vacation as a "kid" with the whole gang.  Ian and Tim aren't far behind.  Bittersweet.  Jamie is now 12 and no longer fits in a bucket.  He has a brother and sister who are also too big for buckets.  Should be an interesting vacation.

Henry the VIII . . . I'm not

I KNOW I'm not alone in this particular layer of my weirdness.  If I'm reading or listening or watching something that has any type of medical condition involved, I will, the longer I'm exposed to the medium, adopt those symptoms and convince myself I'm doomed.  This would be the reason I don't watch shows like House or any of the reality health channels.  It's never likely to end well.  

However, I DO watch the history channel and I read a lot of history.  For some reason, Henry VIII has been on my mind.  Interesting man.  Did you know he suffered from gout when he got older?

Well, lately, my elbow has been killing me.  I don't know why.  I've not done anything weird with my elbow.  But, it's been painful to do the craziest things - open doors, fold towels, or pull things out of the oven.  So, of course, I diagnosed myself with gout.  That's right.  No more roasted swan and peacocks for us.  And, I vowed to give up my wine with breakfast and all snacks.  Still, no relief. 

It got bad enough that I started sneaking frozen vegetables wrapped in tea towels into bed with me.  (Yes, I know, nothing sparks a 20+ year marriage like frozen corn, but this is a family blog.)  Unfortunately, I'm a restless sleeper.  The first night I tried this, Mike awoke to his 5 am alarm shrieking (I'd say he was shrieking like a little girl, but as I've no experience with little girls, I'll let it slide) because he thought he was blind when it was only a harmless bag of frozen corn pasted to his left ear and eye.  

This experience was enough to get Mike thinking.  He called me a few hours later to suggest that maybe we just needed to get a sliding thingie for the keyboard and mouse.  As it is, I'm typing at table-top level. 

I'm married to a brilliant man.  This elbow (forearm, wrist, hand) thing happened once before and the solution was the same.  So, whew, I don't have gout.  Bring on the roasted swans.  I hope to be back to functional in a few days.

Mmmm . . . chocolate . . .

Ian spent the weekend (a LONG weekend) with my parents at an impromptu golf camp.  Dan worked all weekend.  Tim was home all weekend.  

We put Tim to work.  We emptied his and Ian's room, spackled, repaired and primed the walls. Someone explain to me how walls get so dirty?  Yick! Next we painted - a gorgeous chocolate color.  I painted the trim while Mike and Tim built loft beds to replace the boys' bunk bed.  

We actually finished the whole project this evening.  The boys haven't put their room back together yet, but the pictures give you an idea.  Not bad for two 6'+ kids who are sharing an 8 x 10 space. The floor is clear for the most part; they each have a spacious desk and long bookshelf.  Additionally, there is storage under the beds and in the closet.  

I'm kind of proud of us.  

Grumpy

Talk about an excellent word!  Grumpy ranks way up there.  And grumpy is exactly my mood this morning.  While I'm not a morning person, I'm generally not a grumpy person either - caffeine is my friend.  But, today I woke up grumpy and fought nearly all day to shake it off.  Some people are good at grumpy.  It's a gift.  I don't really have that gift.  When I wake up in a bad mood, it's not impressive or intimidating or anything but stoopid. (I'm looking at the picture I have next to this paragraph and I'm thinking maybe as my nose grows, I'll grow into grumpiness.  I have a substantial nose as it is, but who knows?)

I had absolutely no reason to be grumpy this morning.  Not a single one.  But, there it was - grumpiness.  We dropped Dan off to meet his girlfriend and head to the beach.  Ian, Tim, Andy and I headed out to Walmart to get Ian a pair of shorts and I had a list of groceries.  Now, I think I've established that I was in a bad mood before we left the house.  Imagine how much my mood improved as Tim and Ian alternated driving on minor highways . . . go ahead, think on it.  Yep.  My mood did not much improve.  

We got to Walmart.  I sent Ian and Tim to find shorts and Andy and I went in search of groceries.  In the frozen food aisle I got stuck behind an insanely tattooed couple and just gave in - honestly, I'm not anti-tattoo, but if you have time to have all four of your limbs and your neck encased in ink, you have too much time on your hands.  

I don't know.  I snapped.  The tattoo people depressed me.  They were so young and they, from a distance, looked dirty.  Once you got closer, you could see the tattoos, but gah!  What happens when they're my age?  Those tattoos are going to sag and be really scary.  Anyway, I'm weird and that just shut me down completely.  I actually said to Andy, "Forget it.  I'm not buying food because you guys will just eat it."  Yes. I said that and meant every word.  We bought the shorts and left Walmart, sans groceries.  

Guess who has to go to the grocery store tomorrow?  I sure showed them.  (And, no . . . I don't know who "them" is, but they're out there.)


The day moved down from there . . .

Upside, my mood is finally improving.  Mike is a smart guy.  When he came home from work he picked up pretty quick that there was no dinner in the making and that it was sure bet I'd cry if he asked about it.  He suggested we go to Tijuana Flats for dinner.  Danny asked who died - yes, it's that rare that we eat out.  We had a lovely meal that I neither cooked or cleaned up after.  

Strangely, a woman who is running for the local school board was hosting some kind of rally at the restaurant this evening.  I dunno, if I was running for the school board and saw a family walk in with four school-aged children, I'd probably introduce myself.  (Those are HUGE if's here - I would sooner eat my own liver than introduce myself to anyone I don't know.  Run for office?  Um.  Not hardly.)  So, I'm inclined NOT to vote for this woman, but I did get her web address and I'll see what she's all about before I decide.  I just thought it was strange.  Maybe she could sense my pissiness?

In other news, I don't think I've shown you all my latest project.  I found a cool dresser/sideboard thingie at Goodwill a few weeks ago.  $25.  I painted, you know, how I do.  We removed the middle set of cabinet facings so the stereo and big Lego pieces would fit and set it out on the porch.  It's funky, white with a peppery-orange interior.  The four drawers on the side hold the bulk of Andy's Lego's.  It's a good thing.

I'm currently looking for a new project.  So far nothing is coming to mind.  I've been listening to The Passage. The main reader (there are three) is the same guy who read Atlas Shrugged to me while I put in the spring garden - I like him.  The book is fun - vampires, conspiracies, end of the world, great characters and some fun plot twists so far.  While I listen, I've been knitting the world's most hideous scarf/shawl thing.  I really need a new project ... 


OK - I'm off to bed - unGrumpy and fairly certain I'll be nice in the morning.
 

The Cone of Shame

Poor Scout . . . (though I must say her tail and legs are looking WAY better after just two days)

Shhhh ....

It's a surprise!  

I FINALLY get it.  I get the rules and the restrictions and the grumpiness.  AND, because I finally get it, I've decided to move back into my parents' house.  I'll behave, it's only 30 years too late for that, but I will behave.  

In the meantime, I'm going to leave Mike here with the snarky teenaged boys and their scary world and their utter cluelessness.  

All the news fit to report . . .

:::sigh::: So much I can't report.  Let's suffice it to say things have been interesting around here lately - all is good, but interesting.  Heck, even thought-provoking at times.  I have not been avoiding the blog so much as trying to figure out what the heck to do with it lately. 

Random bits: 

I love the new addition to our neighborhood. The "addition" would be the newly adopted brother to Andy's best friend.  I'm just going to call him LG (for little guy) for now.  I'm five years removed from 5-year-olds and I had completely forgotten how funny, funny, funny they can be.  LG absolutely *hearts* the older boys, especially Tim.  About a week ago, he was playing here and got a cut on the bottom of his foot.  I cleaned it up, stuck a bandaid on it and, since he didn't have shoes on (Florida and all) I stuck a sock on it so he could walk home without the bandaid falling off of his foot.  Joking, I told LG that he should take the sock off as soon as he got home or he'd have stinky feet like Tim.  Guess who's been wearing that same sock every single night?  His poor mom . . .

We've discovered an antibiotic Andy cannot tolerate.  It cleared up the strep, but tore up his stomach something awful.  Poor kid.  When I finally figured it out, I called the doctor and she switched him to something new.   Wish I had figured it out sooner.  I think today was the first day he's felt fully human in over a week. 

Poor Scout (12)  is navigating life through the green cone of shame.  She's old and crazy and we're doing our best to keep her and her tail as one.  She's making me insane with the cone, but it appears to be working.  Cross your fingers.

The rest?  There's a lot of funny stuff going on here, but I can't figure out how to share it without potentially embarrassing people.  I don't want to do that and I don't want to hurt anyone's feelings either.  I really need to figure out how to re-channel my blogging.  Until I figure that out ... I seem to be stuck.  I'm going to go back to sitting on my hands for now.

Focus!

I am WAY too old to have kids that need me in the middle of the night.  I'm good with being up late.  I'm not so good with just dozing off to sleep to waking to full alert for a sick kid anymore.  I used to be WAY better at this kind of thing.  

But, poor Andy was a mess last night.  He's a tough kid in general and to see him so puny and sad and sick is heartbreaking. I had to get him up early this morning to get him to the doctor. He actually cried in the doctor's office.  Andy NEVER cries.  NEVER. Sure enough, strep.  (Janet, the doctor actually called him a "Poor Bunny.")

I brought him home and settled and to sleep, and I got a call about a survey I'd done with an organization I've been signed up with for years and years.  They wanted me to fill in for a focus group on bread.  Andy was passed out and the older boys were home with tons of instructions, so I went.  35 minutes, six bites of bread later, one survey filled out and I was home.  $75 (cash) richer.  Nice, huh?  

The group I'm on board with is called About Orlando.  They do surveys for companies that offer a variety of services and products.  Sometimes I fit the profile they're looking for, sometimes I don't.  But, it's nice "found" money when it works out.  If you're in Orlando, check this group out.  If you're not in Orlando, see what is in your area.  The things I've done in the past are easy and usually fun.  

By around 8 pm tonight, Andy (with two rounds of antibiotics in him) was nearing human.  I made him stay up for a bit so I could get the Advil timing right, but I think by tomorrow night, he'll be back to normal.  

Ian and Tim are planning to gut their room tomorrow.  They want to build loft beds and paint.  We've given them the go ahead, but my stomach is churning at the thought of what they'll come up with ... I know, it's not permanent, but *twitch* it's hard to let go.

And, that's that for today, I think.  

Unteachable me?

You would think, after having four children, that I would catch on to patterns of behavior and learn to act accordingly.  But, no.  That would be too easy.  Sure, I've seen Dan, Tim and/or Ian get mean and grumpy after big weekend holiday kind of things.  Sure, I've told them to snap out of it only to figure out a day later they had strep or some other ailment that was making them mean and ugly.  

Do you see where I'm going with this?  Andy was grumpy and kind of a poop yesterday.  I sent him to bed kind of early thinking it was a post-fireworks thing.  This morning he complained of his throat being a bit sore.  By this evening, he had a fever, stomach ache and nasty white spots on his throat.  Guess what we're doing in the morning?  

Honestly, I'm pathetic.  It's too late for me to say I'm going to catch on to this kind of thing.  Andy's my last chance to redeem myself and, oops, missed it again.  Ugh ... cross your fingers no one else (family or friends) has caught it.  

 

July 4

We ended up with about 40 people here for the 4th.  For us, that's kind of a small crowd, but it rained and rained and rained from about 6 pm to 8:30 pm.  Normally, we have people spread out on the porch and in the yard.  This year, we were all inside watching the rain and EATING.  Wow, you take the outside out of a party and people are hungrier than usual.  It all worked out fine, but there were NO leftovers to speak of by the end. I've never had that happen before.  Talk about easy clean up!  ;)  

Ian had a magic show all lined up for early in the evening.  With the rain, he ended up having to put his show off until 9:00 or so.  (I'm promised video by tomorrow.) But, it was wet, humid and buggy in the back yard by the time he started.  AND there were a bunch of firework finales going on ... I think he did a great job (yes, I'm his mom, but he was good despite my bias)


All in all, though, it was a fun night.  Our "angry" neighbor did not call the police when we were setting off our legal fireworks.  The kids had fun.  The food was excellent.  I should have made more brownies, but that's kind of a live and learn thing, right? 

Happy July 4!!!

I hope you all have excellent plans for July 4.  In the olden days, I used to enjoy putting the kids to bed super-early (they were all scared of fireworks) while Mike worked and I sat and watched the Boston fireworks on tv while I ate M&M's and enjoyed a Mike's Lemonade and folded laundry.  Really.  It was my version of the perfect night. 

These days, we are the house for July 4.  I'm not sure how this happened.  So, like years past, I have no idea who is coming over and no clue about how many people to expect.  But, I've mellowed.  The house is clean, but not spotless - it's been raining here and there's no point mopping when everyone is going to be trekking dirt in and out all day.  


It's late, but everything is done for the day tomorrow.  Mike and Tim are up super-early to run a 5K.  They'll be home before anyone else wakes.  I'll get to sleep in.  

Once I'm up, I can putter with the fun stuff, table decorations, lights, all of that . . . Ian is staging his annual Independence Day magic show.  I know I can help with logistics there - I've sworn the blood oath to never reveal his secrets.  


Really, tomorrow, should be a fun easy day.  I made runzas tonight - meat and veg.  I also have the stuff ready to go for bruschetta (sniff) from the last of the tomatoes. I've got tortillas and salsa, a relish tray (with my own pickles - thank you very much), brownies stuffed with reese's cups and topped with cream cheese, a veggie/cheese/pepperoni tray ... that's going to have to do.  And, everyone coming is bringing something to eat, so I doubt we'll starve.   

Wishing all of you a very happy 4th of July!

Freedom!

Sorry, to be MIA for so long.  But, we've been off having fun and enjoying the world.  My parents headed to Pittsburgh late last week for my mom's 50th high school reunion.  (This freaks me out because I don't think my mom is even remotely old enough to attend something like this.)  BUT . . . I've had the joy of using my mom's car while they've been gone.  Andy and I have been in heaven.  We're not beholden to anyone's schedules, we can just go.  And, go we have.  

Friday, we headed out, with Tim in tow, not for fun (though we did stop at Kappy's, home of delicious cheese steaks) but to restock the pantry. This is what I would consider a mid-level shopping experience.  Interesting how when you normally drive a tank, how small a normal-ish car can be.  We were half-way through our excursion through Restaurant Depot before I realized we were not driving the Suburban.  As we'd made two stops before this, it was a concern.  

Tim, however, seems to be gifted in spatial planning as well as heavy lifting.  He made it all fit and Andy only had to sit on one bag of flour on the way home.  When we opened up the back of Bing's car, I was inspired to take a picture because I don't think she's ever seen her car so full. 

I pledge

I saw this recently and was touched by it.  It's old, but I believe in the message.   


Red Skelton's Pledge of Allegiance 1969 - The best video clips are here

Happy Independence Day!