I wonder if I will write while I am off work

12-20-13

Crap, 5 more days??? Crap? More like FUCK!!

Clearly, I have some shopping to do this afternoon. I have to get some cookie dough, items for cookie decorating, a present for Grammie, and just a few other things. I will most likely pick up the gift cards for my folks and Matt, too. I still want to pick up some jammies for the boys. It means lots of running around tonight!

Last night was awesome. The boys had their Christmas program and I am telling you, they never fail to make me all happy. Dax got to do his “guitar solo” with a handful of other kids and he was a rock god out there. Bobby ate his bug with less gross out factor than I think he planned, but he was so damn cute it was wonderful to watch. We stayed after to help clean up, too, doing our part for the school. All around a wonderful night.

This morning I am clearly just going through the motions. I went through old pics to post fun Christmas pictures. I am on a high of having the best photos of the boys last night in their handsome attire and in front of Steve’s fireplace where they looked amazing. My house is made for photo ops, which is another reason it is the place I am meant to be.

I feel a little bad that I will be dragging the boys all over the place today, but they will be fine, being able to play Minecraft tomorrow morning while we bake and before we head over to meet Grammie.

I have become re-inspired to write my stories down. I was talking to John D yesterday, just matter of factly telling him things and he was just blown away at the tales. I was surprised and he told me really I should write them all. I now have a new idea for narrative in the idea of making the book a random conversation between two people, with one person telling stories that will end up switching to me talking and jumping between all of these wacky things that have happened to me and my friends over the years. Now, I need to start writing an outline and jotting down the stories in a couple lines so I can figure out which ones to include. If I do this right, it will be pretty damn awesome.

Now to kill some time.

Snowman

12-19-13

Christmas party today at work.

I went ahead and have acquired an “ugly” sweater. I went to Savers and found a plain red sweater and what could only be described as a snow skin rug and brought them home to Ken who worked his magic. The rug is actually a flattened snowman that clearly is designed to imitate the bear style rugs. Ken was able to attach the mittens on the sleeves and sewed the feet on the front of the sweater. The piece de resistance is the head. Ken gutted the giant snowman heads and affixed it to the sweater like a hoodie. I now am rocking a snowman hoodie. LOL!!!!

Of course, the only real issue with it is how hot it is, but luckily I am able to wear it on my back unless I need to show it off. Thank goodness for the party being held in the cold warehouse.

The merriment continues this evening with the school’s holiday program at 6. I am all kinds of excited, especially since both the boys also have “solos” for the songs. Bobby is supposed to pretend to eat a bug at some point in the song, and Dax is the kid doing the guitar solo by rocking out air style. Woo hoo!

With all of this holiday cheer, it is really going to be hard to get me motivated today. I also finished this huge reconciliation yesterday which leaves me pretty much caught up and bored silly. I really only have to entertain myself until 11:30, but of course that is actually most of the day. LOL!

As much as I find the Duck Dynasty guy’s comments regarding the LGBT community and truly people in general offensive, I am in a strange place on my opinion on his suspension. He was simply voicing his opinion, which although is vile, is still his right to say. It isn’t like he is mistreating anyone. He is just vocalizing his beliefs. Of course, on the other side of the coin, this means A&E has every right to take him off of their very LGBT friendly station. Their opinion is that he is gross. It is a strange thing all around. Either way, I suppose “punishing” people for being as ignorant as he is may in fact be the only way to get them to think about what they are saying. Just as we put kids in the corner for saying they hate their brother, we are as a society essentially having this guy take a time out to really consider whose feelings he is hurting. It is probably a very simplistic way to look at it, but we truly do need to try to educated people more as opposed to just wacking them on the nose with the rolled up newspaper.

I got to see Stephanie!

12-18-13

I got to see Stephanie!

Stephanie, Sabrina and Donna stopped by Steve last night, which was a wonderful visit! I still am so excited to show off the digs and the cats decided Donna was super awesome. It was a lot of fun being able to hang out and chit chat while the kids all played downstairs. We are planning a day of game playing and movie watching soon. The plan as of now is next Friday, but there may be some work snafus that will keep that from becoming a reality. We will figure out a time as I will make it our mission!

We went through multiple crates of books yesterday, which produced about 3 to go to Savers. I was able to also find a handful of books to take to Mrs. Senechal for her book exchange. I put out the kids’ books onto the shelves in the book nook. I need a better shelf there as the tiny one we have, although super cute, isn’t practical for the sizing of most of our books. I would like to find something else, even if it ends up just putting up some boards to make into shelves without the restrictions of a cased in shelving unit. I also want to start looking for something cool for the living room for my books I want to display. It won’t go up until after the holidays since I will be putting it where the tree is.

I think I will let Ken handle homework again today and I will head out to Old Navy for some PJ’s for the boys. It will be a good Santa present for sure. I still would like to pick up something else for Bobby from Dax since I think I have two unique presents for Dax along with something from Bobby to him. I have two unique presents for Bobby which means I need one small thing for him from his brother.

While I am out, I may need to hit up the thrift stores for an ugly sweater. There is the ugly sweater contest tomorrow at work and although I had not planned on doing anything, my people here kind of expect my creativity to shine through. I think I can pull off something if I just put a little effort into it. I don’t expect to win, but at least I can be creative, right?

Today looks to be pleasant with Trusty gone until noon thirty. I am currently on the quest for another PDF book I would like to read. I have one in mind, but have had difficulty finding it, which is frustrating. I recognize that not all books are available as pirated copies, and honestly, if the book is fantastic, I have no problem paying for it. I just want a PDF copy so I can read it at work. LOL!

I know Ken didn’t enjoy it, but Dax and I sure did. I found a stack of old pictures in the book crates of the boys when they were babies. We played “which kid is this?” Turns out, Dax is better at identifying his and Bobby’s picture than Ken is. It made me laugh. LOL!

Pokemon

12-17-13

I don’t know why I would win an Emmy.

Most of my dreams are based in some kind of reality in the idea that they share common fears or truths. Me being at a huge party in which I won an Emmy makes no sense. I am guessing that there is more to it and that I don’t remember key points. I do have vague recollection of a few naysayers, and I do have this strange feeling as though it was almost like being at a high school reunion, so who knows what all of it means. Of course, it may mean nothing.

Maybe my brain was still relaxing. I was in rare form yesterday afternoon, in the idea that I truly didn’t do much of anything. I sat around, dinked on the net, watched some Daily Show with Ken and had a nice afternoon. I should have cleaned up the kitchen a bit, but I have today.

Today does also bring me some errands in the form of shopping. I need to go get pretzels for Dax’s class along with a book for his book exchange. I am going to hit up Savers if I can’t locate the books in our garage. It doesn’t have to be a new book, just one that is appropriate for the age group. I want to pull out our books anyway since I would like to make them available. It will give us an excuse to get them out.

I also need to pull out my box of desk items since I think the gift card to the aquarium is in there and I wanted to go there on Monday. I wish everything was already put away. Then again, I am ok in a lot of ways since the Christmas madness is upon us, which means I can’t put out my normal things anyway. I love Christmas, but I will be happy when I can put away the decorations.

I have decided the boys are old enough to stay up till midnight on New Years with us. It should be interesting, but I figure we can watch movies and be all kinds of cozy and if they fall asleep, no worries. It isn’t like we do a whole lot on that night. I suppose in the next couple years we could have some kind of shin dig at Steve since it would be a nice kid friendly environment.

I now have guilt. I had let Ken’s family know we were not coming up this Christmas time. I wanted to stay at home this year and just nest at Steve. I also know that the time off should be spent working on Eydie a bit. I also just didn’t feel like driving up there, knowing that I still have to come in for reports the week after Christmas. I know his family helped a lot with the house, and it isn’t that I don’t want to see them. I would rather them come down so they could see what we have done as opposed to us having to set up a house sitter and to drive up and all of that chaos right now. I had planned on going during Spring Break for a few days, but right now doesn’t make sense.

Sadly, I also have been feeling rather frustrated that Ken’s mom is angry at us for not coming up. She seemed more snippy in the last few emails (not just to me, either. She sent one to all the kids and it just seemed, I don’t know, off?) and I of course am the type of person to get defensive quickly. Mama Bear kicks into high gear and I get growly, for sometimes the wrong reasons. Either way, I think that it has been settled since Papa Bear (that would be Ken) has calmed me down. He in so many ways reminds me of the king in Brave in the idea that he knows how to settle the sometimes stiff queen.

I need to do Christmas inventory today, too. I have to determine what Santa has obtained for these kids and see what else is needed. I took care of the stockings this weekend, and I think there might be just a couple other things to get. I still have to get some other presents, too, so perhaps today I will be out and about while Ken handles the whole homework thing. Go tag team!

Pokemon is now on Cartoon Network! Like the old one that we used to watch! I was quite pleased. I don’t know that the boys were as amused, but I certainly was last night. I think it may be time to bust out the card game!

Steve's party

12-16-13

SteveFest 2013 went well!

We had visitors to our home from noon till almost midnight. It was really wonderful! Our afternoon crowd was the biggest, bringing Sarah, Alyssa and her family, my folks, the Machados, Maryann, Frank and Brandon, Aaron, and Chris and Kathy. It was a really great time being able to show off the digs and visit with everyone. I was feeling so happy! It was quiet much of the early evening with us even closing up shop around 8:30 when there was someone at the door! Aaron showed up, which was awesome and a little unexpected. We showed him around and visited when Andrea sent me a text asking if it was too late to come by at 10:30. She and Ben came and brought the coolest gift in the form of an ornament with Steve’s name on it along with a little house saying our home. I was so excited!! It was truly a wonderful way to warm our house!

Sunday was much more mellow. Ken went and lined Hull while the boys and I went out shopping. It was shockingly fun, considering it was 10 days before Christmas and the boys hate shopping. LOL! We got home and they of course disappeared into 8 bit paradise and I watched some 30 Rock. Ken got home which allowed me to head back out and do more shopping for the boys. I really felt kind of bored much of the afternoon. I don’t know if it was bored or just confusion as to what to do with this down time. We played a board game in the evening, and I did manage to read the Playboy while Ken did my toes, but I still felt wrong.

I am feeling like I am developing a bit of a cold. I am not surprised, what with the weather being wonky and I have been on the go for so long. I am excited to only have to deal with 5 more days of work until a nice week off.

naked

12-13-13

It will be a long day.

I have a lot to do when I get home, so I will be chomping at the bit to get there to get started. Tomorrow is the big party day and I am excited. I know it won’t be some raging party, but just the fact that I get to see a bunch of people I know and love will make me all kinds of warm and fuzzy.

I also still have some shopping to do this evening. Ken is hitting up Costco this morning, and we will need to run by the grocery store this evening. I also have a Dollar Tree run along with a couple of other stops. So much to do!

Yesterday, thankfully Bobby’s homework was light and fluffy and we got it all done rather quickly. It was a tough week, what with a whole day being lost from the 90 minute visit from Mr. Chin.

Ken started painting the back part of the house. The stucco repair was dry and he started work on the back porch and trim. It looks so good! I don’t anticipate having the rest of it painting before party time, but it should be ok. Everyone knows how much work has gone into everything and no one will fault us for not having one part undone.

You would think that once this party was done I could relax. In fact, I still have another hosting event next Saturday as well. Grammie is coming, who has seen Steve once, and my folks and Matt will also come and we will do Christmas cookies! Yay! I have a house that can host cookie making! I have a grown up house! I am a grown up, and I am not as upset as I had assumed I would be.

Come January I am hoping for some rest. Of course, Area Playoffs are like the second weekend and I have another soccer day coming up. I guess I will rest when I am dead.

I had a discussion with Bobby about nudity. He was asking about things, and mentioned something about how long has Ken been looking at Playboy. We started talking about Playboy in general, and he wanted to know why anyone would pose nude. I said it was nice to look at. He said that it was icky to look at anyone else naked. I pointed out that our family is a naked family, including him, who sleeps naked all the time. He said that was ok because we knew each other. He said you shouldn’t see people naked unless you know them. It was such a sweet and pure answer that I was kind of happy that he wasn’t tainted in some bad way with nudity. He has been around it enough in person and having seen the magazines and he isn’t getting all weird about it.

I hate cramps. These had better subside before tomorrow. 

tiny kitty

12-12-13

I got shoes!

I know, that shouldn’t be news, but it was one of those fun things that happened because K-Mart had a sale and Bobby and I had to go get him shoes since one of his pretty much exploded. Thanks to the good folks over at K-Mart, they had buy a pair and get a pair for a $1. Woo!

We have some serious shopping to do. Party supplies need to be obtained, most likely at Costco perhaps this evening, and there are more presents to purchase for Christmas itself. We got a handful of items in yesterday, which is good, but there are still some that need to be purchased. I am hoping Costco will be able to help me out so I don’t have to go multiple places.

There is an ugly Christmas sweater contest next week at our work holiday party. I have considered entering, but the prize money doesn’t seem worth the extra effort. I know, it should all be about having fun, but shoot, I don’t have time for every single thing that happens in life.

Ken installed my disco ball in the kitchen yesterday. It is awesome! It also inspired the greys to play and tumble all in the hopes to kill one of the light dots spinning around. It is nice to see Bellatrix being active. She is still so dang tiny. She is healthy, affectionate, and seems to have spunk, but I also worry because she does this random gargoyle sit when she stops somewhere. She looks like an old man who falls asleep watching tv. But at night, she is super active and is all kinds of squishy. I think it may be time to take her to the doc to take a look.

I need to make a list this morning of things I want accomplished before Saturday. I suppose I will get on it. 

The Conferences

12-11-13

An hour and a half.

Dax’s parent/teacher conference went well. As expected, my kid kicks some ass. He is advanced in reading and when he came into the class he was already ahead of the game in writing. He needs some work on his math, but that is just some practice and both Mrs. Senechal and us agreed he has already improved over the past couple months. Mrs. Senechal said he is a great kid and she does seem to really enjoy having him in the class. I was very happy to be able to see some of his writing and how much she really loved how detailed he gets. I was a proud mama.

Mr. Chin came to the house at 3:30. Bobby gave him the grand tour, which Mr. Chin seems to thoroughly enjoy. Apparently in the two years he has been doing in home visits, this is the first kid who showed him around. Bobby was very detailed, too. He pointed out where they put their clothing. LOL!

I assumed that it would be a standard conference after that. I don’t know why I would think that being that it had already been atypical. It was awesome! Bobby was actually encouraged to sit with us. We went over his report card along with multiple items he has done since he started this year. Mr. Chin is so incredibly sweet and kind, even in his pointing out flaws. It never felt like he was criticizing Bobby. It was all a huge teaching moment, which was fantastic for both Bobby and us. I We discussed every subject and went over ways to improve and ways he did great. Ultimately, the biggest thing Bobby needs to improve on is to put his chatty nature to use in his writing. He needs to expand out his written to compliment what is going on in his head. He is very creative and Mr. Chin seemed quite tickled at the two stories that Bobby had written. Now the stories just need to be longer. Here is where clearly I can come in. LOL!

The meeting was 90 minutes long, but it was really pleasant and I was especially thrilled to have the space to be able to have this meeting. I of course was nervous, as I am prone to be, worrying that he would think us bad parents for some reason. I feel pretty confident, though, that after the meeting he was pleased with us and didn’t seem overly concerned about anything that was to hinder his progress.

Ken kicked some serious ass and cleaned the shit out of the house all day yesterday. It looks fantastic and it is ready for party time. I need to clean up my desk a bit, but other than that, we are looking good for our open house. What is nice is that I don’t have to work on anything specific today, so I can really help the boys get through all of their homework this afternoon so that they have time to play on their computers a bit this evening.

We have several Christmas presents in route today from Amazon, which does mean a visit to Eydie is in order for the day. Much of it is Santa based presents, so we have to be sneaky. I also need to re-hide the backpacks I got the boys from Santa. They are in a closet that is way too easy for them to stumble across.

Bobby Fulton sent us some homemade jams as a housewarming present. It was so incredibly thoughtful! I feel so fortunate to have been able to keep in touch with so many people from Madison. 

Mother Nature is cruel

12-10-13

Bleah.

Well, that explains my pissy attitude last night. My cycle appears to be this fun system in which 3 months are early and the 4^th month is late and a doozy. Rude, Mother Nature, very rude.

I worked feverishly yesterday and got the family room looking pretty damn good. Sadly, it probably was part of the reason my daydreamer took for freaking ever to do his homework. I am sure today there will be a crazy homework day what with the two conferences. I am hoping to not stress about today being done and instead sit with him tomorrow to get everything done timely.

Ken set up the fireplace and we had our first fire in Steve. It was really quite cozy and happy making. It means we will be able to have one burning for the party, which should make for awesome smelling air. Ken is going to work on a bunch of things today, including shelving and cleanup in general, which should make for a nice environment for Mr. Chin this afternoon along with a good start for Saturday.

It looks like another Lowe’s trip may also be in our future to obtain another couple of curtain panels since the ones we got are a smidge small. Not a big deal, but if we add another one to each side it will look really great. I am in love with the color and all kinds of thrilled with the way it brings the room together.

Dammit! It looks like some idiot fucked up here at work again. I guess I need to go clean that up. 

2 more weeks of work

12-9-13

2 weeks!

I am counting down for the time in which I have a week off. I am looking forward to some much needed down time. Of course, I will do anything but just relax is my guess, but I can dream, right?

Friday’s award ceremony was fun. There were a surprising number of kids who were getting the attendance award. Turns out the families in Torrance must be healthier than the folks over near Halldale. LOL! Either way, it was great to be there. Ken also was able to use his booming voice to help the school organize the class photos of the kids who won the award. It was pretty entertaining to watch these school folks in awe of his ability to pied piper the kids.

After the assembly, I was able to hit up Target. I picked up several things and really had a nice time just shopping alone. It is still weird to be focusing on the home décor section now. I keep realizing things that we need at Steve that are so simple yet easy to have forgotten about. Trash cans, paper towel holders and even things like clocks are things I have been hunting down. I am trying to get everything organized for Steve’s big debut this week! Plus, with Mr. Chin coming to the house tomorrow, I want everything at least a little more organized.

Ken and I lined the field at Adams after school let out. It needed to be done for playoffs over the weekend and since we would already be at the school to get the boys, we volunteered. It took a couple hours, but at least it was done before the rain would hit the next day.

Rain was awesome for me, but not so much for Ken who ended up reffing a game in the midst of some of the worst of it. I, on the other hand, was in my dry house and emptying 5 boxes of stuff. I was very proud! I cleaned our room up and added a shit ton of stuff to the go away boxes. I also put away some blankets and other items.

Ken got home and we organized some of the games and went through a bunch of other items. It was not as productive as I would have hoped since we realized things like the vacuum was out of bags and we still needed to do some time consuming items. Still, it was good that we did what we did.

At this point, we took the boys to my folks where they would be spending the night. Ken and I were off to Aaron’s birthday party. It was intended to be an event in which Aaron would be re-creating our favorite childhood dishes for everyone he invited. Unfortunately, Aaron ended up getting rather busy over the week and ran out of time to really get everything done. It didn’t end up mattering in the least because the party was fantastic! It was Aaron’s folks and his sister and brother-in-law. Chris and his fiancé along with Jen and Matt were there, too. It was such a cool set of peeps and I had a really good time. We played a funny game on the iPad that was like password. We also just hung out all evening chatting and laughing. We got to the party at 5 and didn’t leave until 11. It was perfection.

Sunday was another whirlwind of activity. After I picked up the boys, we had errands to handle. We went to Lowe’s, Petco, Vons, Office Depot, Big 5, and in all of those places had multiple things to get. It was mostly successful, though, and we made it to the team party early.

The team party was at PV Bowl and I know the boys loved it. It was really a great way to bring a team together. Bowling isn’t something even the best kids at soccer are going to be the best at, so it meant Bobby won both games in individual score. Of course, my kid also grew up in a bowling alley, and since bowling is more about the slow and steady approach, it is way him.

Dax was a little more competitive (surprised?) and got upset because he is never on a winning team. My poor kid. He has every reason to be upset. Hopefully, though, there may be a way that he is going to be able to join the Creepers. The Creepers are going to area playoffs in January. We are losing a player who is moving to Florida in a week. Coach Lou has always said it would be great to have Dax on his team. If Dax takes this kid’s number, he may be able to fill in. YAY! I am crossing my fingers that no one will object in terms of AYSO rules or anything. We are going to talk to Jerry and Lou is looking into it, too. If all goes well, both the boys will play in a couple weeks. I am not looking forward to more practice right now, but if Dax gets to play, it is all worth it.

After the party, we went to Archlight to see a screening of The Nightmare Before Christmas. It was fun to see the movie in the theatre again. I remember when I saw it in the theatre when it came out. What is crazy is that this flick is 20 years old. Where does the time go?

When I get home from work I will have far less time to dink around than normal. I need to pick up the boys at 2 for the next 2 weeks. I am ok with this, what with it allowing the boys an extra hour to get homework done, which is good. I will work feverishly this afternoon to prep for Mr. Chin’s visit tomorrow. Ken is home all day tomorrow, so he will get the finishing touches on the place, which is awesome.

I found curtains that I fell in love with for the living room, so hopefully we can get those up before Saturday. We also got a few more little things to get the place all festive, including supplies to get an actual fire going! This should be fun. We are planning on having some burgers and hot dogs grilled in the early part of the day, and I will have a lasagna prepped for the dinner crowd. I wanted a signature dish on hand, and this makes the most sense. I don’t know how many people will come, and how many people will hang out for any extended period of time, but either way, it will be fun to show off our hard work.

spazbot

12-6-13

I get to go home in 2 hours!

I had a bit of a mini breakdown yesterday. I was already frustrated after spending a couple hours training a girl at work on reports. I am a lousy teacher, but on top of that I have no patience for people who have been with a company and worked in accounting like we do for as long as we have and yet they don’t understand basic Excel functionality. However, I was really thrown when this person didn’t even know how to toggle in Windows. Sigh. Yeah, it was one of those kind of training sessions.

My mom sends me an email around noon. She came from a place of concern. She didn’t want to butt in, but it was time to bring it up. Apparently Bobby was at school today and just looked rough. His hair was a mess and he looked almost uncared for. This isn’t news to me in some ways. I have this fight with my children daily. Bobby has long hair that needs to be taken care of almost religiously. Dax tends to think that with short hair he doesn’t have to brush it. Ken has been going with the “teach them independence” method and will remind but doesn’t enforce. In some ways, I almost didn’t get involved since Ken always gets on me for messing with their routine since I get upset if he messes with mine. I understand all of this and I think despite my frustration with it, I was trying to not nag and let Ken handle the kids in the morning.

My mom’s points were valid. If a kid looks all dirty and to some degree, uncared for, other kids will unconsciously treat them different. Plus, it is a skill and lesson that we are supposed to instill in our kids to have them take personal grooming seriously. They need to shower and brush teeth and eat decent food and dress appropriately for the weather. Hair brushing goes hand in hand with teaching them how to grow up.

I think I was embarrassed. I was upset because I felt like this was something I had told the household to handle every morning as part of routine. I had already come home a few times this last week to find cereal out and toilet seats still up and just general things that always seem to me, a control freak, should be easy to get accomplished in the multiple hours they have in the morning. Once again, I assume every works at my crazy speed. This coming from a woman who gets up at 4 and is at work at 4:30. This means I shower, dress, get my lunch together and drive into work and still manage to make it look good.

I kind of jumped down poor Ken’s throat when I got home. Luckily he called me out on it quickly and we discussed a game plan. Today I am picking up a couple of new brushes. Stephanie told me about one that really helps with Sabrina’s hair. The other is one I read about that has rave reviews and is hand size which may make it easier for Bobby. I also had a talk with the boys about hygiene. Bobby seemed to really take it to heart. He agreed that we should braid his hair nightly. He also is going to take steps to learn how to pull his hair back. It was a calm discussion, and I pointed out that they were not in trouble. Dax understand he also needs to brush his hair. He also is going to get a hair cut since he wants it his normal short so brushing takes like no time at all.

I feel bad how much it upset me, but I guess I just assumed it was something I would have to take on as another thing to handle. I felt like this was something that we all needed to work together on, and I wasn’t sure the rest of my team was up to it. This is me being awful. I need to have more faith in my family, my team, to know that they trust me on what is important and if I am calm about what I feel needs to be addressed instead of my normal spazzed out self, things will change and be good.

I am shockingly wired this morning. I don’t know how this is possible. I had the board meeting last night, that I might add that I went to with a nice buzz from both the excitement of getting to see Santa with the boys and a large glass of Mangria, which got me home later than my normal bedtime. On top of that, Ken watched a couple of Big Bang Theory episodes, which normally doesn’t distract me but I found myself at the very least listening to the show and laughing a lot which sadly kept me up even later. Maybe I am just jazzed that I get to watch the boys this morning get their awards and as if that wasn’t treat enough, I get to hit up Target by myself this morning.

Ken kicked some serious as on Steve yesterday. The whole back yard looks amazing now. He cleared out most of the debris pile and has it looking as if we almost had no debris to start with! He also put in a couple shelves in the hall closet. He did some painting work and a bunch of other little things, all of which are making for a fantastic looking Steve. It is all so freaking exciting!

Tomorrow morning we are going to work on organizing the catio along with clearing the last bit of clutter from the family room. Hopefully we can put in some shelves in the other closets, too, which will make it all much easier to organize. I have a box full of more stuff to take to Savers. I even got rid of a bag of jewelry, which is a big deal to me. I am getting rid of so much stuff! I am excited about this. I am in this amazing mindset in which I know I am in the house I will die in. I know that the décor is not changing to incorporate some of my old stuff and I am shockingly ok with this. I know it is time to move on. This includes a giant box of ducks that I plan on going through. I have a lot of random duck items that I just had because they were ducks. I think it is time to get rid of a lot of this.

I felt more involved with the board meeting last night than I normally do. I actually listened and cared a bit about the random things they talked about. I was even involved, asking questions and offering suggestions on things that I would normally just stay out of. It almost seemed like I knew what I was talking about, which cracked me up. I also had to explain some basic accounting to people, which can be fun, but in other ways it is just annoying.

All of that being said, I am in a strange love/hate relationship with being treasurer. I started working on a whole new budget plan for the region. I also felt slightly more protective of money spent last night than I normally would. It was me taking on ownership in a way I didn’t plan on doing. This puts me into shock at how much I enjoy the challenge, which makes me hate that I am doing this and then I feel tugged in all different directions that make me get freaked out and I want to bail.

Yesterday I had planned on bowing out, but I am still sticking with it for a while longer. I am hoping that my inspired self keeps my disenchanted self in check for just long enough to get the position in a good way before leaving.

Award Season

12-5-13

Awards!

The boys are both getting awards tomorrow. Of course, Bobby’s said “???” on the category, but since Dax’s said attendance and Bobby ‘s pointed out that like half the kids in his class are getting an award tomorrow so I am assuming it is also for attendance. Either way, Bobby in particular was quite excited so I am going to leave early from work to make it down there.

We went to the Holiday Shop at the school yesterday and Bobby picked out items for a couple people. Dax really didn’t see much so I will have to take him out soon to do some shopping. In reality, most of the stuff we are getting for the boys is sitting in the Amazon cart, so hopefully we can place that order soon so we can get everything in time.

I need to go get some gift cards. The most important is one for Coach Tom since the team party is Sunday. I figure I can get him one for Sports Authority or something like that. I will just be happy when all of this is behind me. I was a lousy team mom.

We picked up a really cool looking light fixture for the dining room table. It happened to be the cheapest, and the one we liked the best, which is cool. We also picked up a baby gate. No, not pregnant, but I have two idiot dogs who have issues with waste. One of them keeps peeing on my carpet when she sleeps down there. The other snacks on Kitty Roca. Sigh. So we put up this really nice looking gate to the family room so the dogs cannot go down there unless we let them down there. When Lycos passes, we will end up putting the gate in the doorway to the catio so that Luna still can’t have her little “treats”.

Due to my leaving tomorrow, I will need to train someone on reports this morning. I had planned on it tomorrow, but really, it needs to be done sooner than later. I am not looking forward to it except for the fact that it will make my morning go by quickly.

This is the day of the first board meeting we are going to be able to walk to. It is pretty exciting for that reason alone. The meeting itself will most likely be dull like normal and there will end up only being a couple of things I need to be present for. The main things we are talking about seem to be tournament, but knowing how some of these folks love to talk, I know I am there till probably 9:30.

Rebel

12-4-13

Talk about a windy night!

Stupid wind woke up the household with a vengeance last night. I know Ken has not been able to sleep for a couple of nights now, so I am sure today is going to be rough on him. I also think Dax was up quite a bit this morning so I wonder if he isn’t feeling well. I suppose I will find out soon enough if I get a call from home.

Bobby isn’t getting enough sleep. We are noticing bags under his eyes and he just seems exhausted. Of course, a lot of it was due to an overdose on computer over the weekend, but I also just think he has problems falling asleep. Like father like son. The two of them can sleep, but it isn’t during night time that they fall asleep. In fact, often on weekends I get up early since I know Dax will be up. He and I are Bowlbys deep down and it is something we cannot shake. If I can get Dax occupied, the other men-folk in my house can get some snooze time.

Bobby also has been uber distracted on homework. I know I am supposed to be teaching him independence, but I also think that the new house, new computer and just his daydreaming ways are working against him. He has less homework than he used to, but he still drags his feet. Today I am going to forgo my box empting and try to sit with him and encourage him to work. I think he needs a win for today.

We met the head of our neighborhood watch last night. I guess Ken has talked to her before, but it was the first time I have dealt with her. She is nice, and apparently has a daughter my age which cracks me up. She did seem skeptical of the house color, which confirms that some of the older and more conservative peeps are not as hip on our choice. She also seemed to be pushing a bit for landscaping. I wondered if she felt like our house was an eyesore. Never you mind all of the compliments we have received, but some people are, well, interesting.

I invited her in when she mentioned Leeroy, talking about how he was a recluse and how destroyed the house seemed when she saw it in the open house. I knew she should appreciate how much work we had put into the place. We showed her around and she did seem impressed, which is good. I know she probably notes that we are not “normal”. I mean, I do have multiple skulls all over the house and 8 cats wandering around. We also have a lavender house.

I was feeling rather defensive I think. She was mentioning different email alerts we can be put on, not realizing that I had already done all my research and knew about the neighborhood blog and was already on the police text alert system. Yeah, she probably doesn’t know that I will be cyber stalking the shit out of her this morning. LOL!

I am not proud of my weird reaction to people like that. I am just very put off by people who feel like they can decide the look or feel of a neighborhood based on their taste. Sure, I can understand getting on folks if they make their place messy. But shoot, if anything we have made our house look fantastic. If it takes another 6 months or hell, even 6 years, I feel like she should understand this. She talked about how when they got their place that they spent like 15 years working on it. So that being said, I want to make sure the neighborhood people understand that sometimes things like color or landscaping are going to be different than when they first moved in. I suppose it is the inner rebel that starts to feel like people are not allowed to tell me what to do. I get pissy and cranky. I am clearly a product of my parents.

I remember once when I was growing up and my dad was angry at his work because they decided arbitrarily that they should all wear ties to jobs. My dad installed phone lines. He crawled around under desks and under houses and ultimately, the only uniform he should wear really might be coveralls. But to wear a tie?? What the fuck, indeed. So my dad opted to go out and get some of the ugliest ties in existence. He figured he was still wearing what he needed to wear to not get in trouble. It was truly awesome and awe inspiring for him to be so bold.

I told Ken that if we get any kind of letter or complaint I may have to paint the house hot pink with a black trim and put up a giant skull on the wall.

Yeah, I get pissy.

I managed to go through a couple of large boxes yesterday. I put out my lava lamps and put up a couple of decorations I used to have at Eydie. I also was shockingly good and got rid of a handful of things I never would have thought that I would actually get rid of. I knew it needed to be done.

I think at this point the next major thing to be done is shelves in closets and a bar in the front hall closet so we can hang our coats. This will allow me to start organizing all of the bedding and towels better. Plus, I have some more bathroom items like hair dye supplies that need to be put nicely in a spot, and the bathroom isn’t the right place right now.

Thankfully today is an early day so the boys can get to work on homework sooner. We also plan to hit up Lowe’s to look at dining room table lighting. The one we had just isn’t right, so we found one we like online there and will hopefully be able to get some better shades for it. It will be a good purchase as it will add some light in that area of the house.

I am noting this weekend will be crazy. Saturday night I have two shindigs to go to. Aaron has his hobbit birthday party. He doesn’t believe in getting gifts and instead gives gifts to his close friends. This year, he is inviting people over and has asked us to provide him with a recipe from our childhood and he is going to try and replicate it for us. We then are to explain our choice. It should be a nice evening.

We were also invited to Cindy’s party, so I would like to stop by that on the way home from Aaron’s. The boys are staying with my folks, so this shouldn’t be an issue.

Sunday morning I need to pick up the boys early. We also have the team party at 1, followed by a screening of Nightmare Before Christmas that we got tickets for months ago that we will go to as a family. Yie! So much!

Bike rides and decorating

12-3-13

Ouch.

I must have pulled it during my bike ride, having been out of practice for my rides for a bit. I didn’t notice the pain until this morning. It is such a strange spot, too, on the back of my right thigh, right above the knee pit. It almost feels like someone bit me there. I am going to still attempt to do my new walk route this afternoon, since I will be sitting all day today and it will allow it to get stretched out without really hurting me.

My afternoon was productive. When I got home, I headed off to the store to do the AYSO deposit and pick up a few things. The ride from Steve to Ralphs is much harder than from Eydie to Ralphs. Way more hills, and way more stop signs in a neighborhood that is often patrolled by cops who would most likely pull me over for blowing through said stop signs. This certainly sucks for momentum purposes. However I made it round trip and I even made it back in time to still walk up to get the boys with Ken.

During homework, I worked on the family room. I condensed toys and managed to make the toy corner look great. Ken had suggested we move the little bookshelf over to the other corner, allowing for a book nook complete with rocking chair. Yay! This has opened up parts of the family room and it looks good. Today’s adventure is the items in front of the couch down there.

Ken also got lights for the tree which are freaking awesome! He wired it all up and the boys put up the ornaments. We cleaned up the boxes and house and it looks so wonderfully festive and awesome in Steve. I am all kinds of giddy.

Apparently, Ken spoke to our neighbor, Shirley, who seemed to be skeptical of the lavender paint job. She mentioned something about it being a rather conservative neighborhood and that we may get complaints. This of course only makes me happier for my color choice. I am sure the dog crew who meet next door have been chattering about it. I say bring it on, peeps! I know we are fine since we got another compliment on it from a fellow Adams parent. This one gentleman I have spoken to before was telling us how great the house looks with the paint. We come to find out he is the one who bought this one house Ken and I fell in love with years back. It was fun to talk to him about what he has done in upgrades to the place.

It has been nice having the dishes done consistently every night. Yay child labor! I know that the boys are not thrilled with their new chores, but I have to say, it makes things so much easier on me. I need to get back into giving them an allowance. They have done the dishes every night, the cat pans every night along with many other things I have put them to work with.

4 days of activity

12-2-13

How is my niece 21?? Where does the time go??

What an equally productive and lazy weekend all around! We managed to get tons done at both Eydie and Steve while still making some time for fun and the actual enjoyment of the new digs and all the comforts that come with.

Wednesday night we prepped the turkey and stuffing so that sleeping in was an option. In fact, we had it all put in the oven just ready for me to crawl out of bed at some point in the morning to turn it on, and then head back to snoozeville.

I also managed to bake 2 pumpkin bread loaves that were gluten free for my dad. I was impressed that they didn’t turn out gross or burnt. Don’t get me wrong, I almost messed them up when I was about to put them into the oven when I noticed that I had neglected to add the flour to the concoction. LOL! Luckily I discovered this BEFORE cooking as opposed to later in the process.

My parents and Matt came over around 10:30 and I was able to hang out in my kitchen and chat (yay big kitchen!!!) and Matt watched the football. The food was ready around 1. I had indicated we would eat around 1 and was impressed that everything was in fact done on time. The food was good and my parents seemed impressed with the spread. My gluten free stuffing was actually pretty good considering I am not used to the gluten free bread.

My folks headed out in the afternoon and us Brenans opted to celebrate a new Thanksgiving tradition which is T.Hanks-giving! We will be watching a Tom Hanks flick on Thanksgiving every year now. We opted on Forest Gump, which still left me a wreck despite having seen it a million times. Of course, this may be in part that it violates one of my steadfast rules in which Tom Hanks is not allowed to cry since it just kills me for some reason.

On Friday, it rained. It was awesome! The rain drops on Steve sound so freaking cool! It was all kinds of happy making! Ken headed out to ref the Turkey Tournament, which was at first postponed a day, and then ended up being postponed until January. This worked out well since it allowed us to work on Eydie quite a bit. We cleaned out 4 rooms and brought over a lot of items to Steve. We need to take some boxes over there to pack up the remaining stuff in the house. There is still the matter of the garage, but that is something that hopefully can also be accomplished in a day if we say rent a truck and just get it empty.

We really should have probably gone back yesterday, but it ended up being a day of rest for all of us. We had spent much of Friday and Saturday going through boxes, starting the decorating for Christmas process and even making room in Steve’s garage for the rest of the stuff coming from Eydie. We got rid of a bunch of old costumes and even more toys since the boys really are in a place in their head in which the computers are their main and favorite toy. It has been awesome in the idea of getting rid of things.

Sunday did allow Ken and I to watch the Netflix season of Arrested Development finally, which was quite fun. I agree, not as good as the regular seasons, but still quality television.

On Saturday night, we also decided to play a game with the boys. They chose Hero Quest, which was a game I remember playing with the guys back in high school. It was one of their games I actually enjoyed playing. We had fun since Ken and I don’t get too wrapped up in things needing to be serious with these kind of games. It is why I don’t mind playing games with Ken since he was never one to get mad at me when I would make silly comments or joke around during the games.

The boys enjoyed it enough that we played the second quest last night. Sadly, it isn’t a quick game, so we were all a little tired of it come hour 3, but we managed to get through it and they still love it, which is cool. I am hoping to incorporate a game night in our regular routine since it is something I remember fondly as a child. I need to figure out a place for shelving so we can store all of the games we have.

Really, I need to figure out some more placement in the family room, especially since the party is in a couple of weeks and I would like the family room to be cleared of construction and supplies. I may be able to work on a lot of that this afternoon since we have a nice work bench area set up in the garage now, which is where I can put the little bit of tools and whatnot in there. I also would like to move doors and screens out of the way.

We determined where the piano will go so we should be able to pull that out of the garage and move that. That will probably be the most difficult thing to move.

There is a lot to do, but we are doing well with it all. I worked on soccer paperwork over the weekend and Ken did a lot of laundry. There were items put up and rooms cleaned. Our lives are pretty much spent at the house, but at least I am seeing results.

I wish every weekend was 4 days.