Even though this weekend will suck...

I think the kids and I did a pretty good job of filling our last week of summer vacation with fun stuff! I felt like I won a Mommy Gold Medal yesterday night. The kids said that they'd had a really great week, so that made all the hard work and boring hours (for me) well worth it!

We hit the Fun Zone finally. The Fun Zone is a skating rink/arcade/indoor play area. I even allowed two friends to join us. Aren't I cool? LOL!

We also did baking and supervised arts and crafts and playing in the hose (rare treat!) We ended our week with Barbie Island Princess (hadn't seen it yet) and Nim's Island. Whew!

I think, as far as I can tell, that I'm probably totally ready for school on Tuesday. The planners are filled in, the books are all here, Dominic's workbooks (so he can "do school" with us) are purchased, grabbed a mini MagnaDoodle for writing practice, have oodles of paper and notebooks, and folders and writing utensils. I think we're good. I'm feeling more confident now that I have everything in place and activities lined up.

Oh, and the new people moved in across the street and it looks like they have kids. YAY! Maybe they'll be normal??

Well, off to get dressed in grubbies and wait for Chris' call that the truck is at Mom's and I can head over to start loading it. I'm kinda worried that my arm might fall off, but I guess I'll just cross that bridge when I come to it as Sister Mary Frances used to always say in 7th grade. Gosh, I loved Sister Mary Frances. She totally rocked! Happy Labor Day weekend all!

Sign-up and spruce ups...

I'm so thrilled. I got Killian all signed up for an 8 week course in beginning guitar! He starts on September 10 and he's very excited! Under $100 to boot! The girls are signed up for homeschool gymnastics lessons at the local gym that I adore! They have the most awesome coachs!

All this and pretty hair, too! Got my hair highlighted and cut this afternoon. WOW! I feel so much better! I have lots and lots of long layers and when they grow out it's just ugly. I'm all light and bouncy again.

As for Mr Dominic, for those of you wondering, I'm waiting to see how he does with the big kids doing school. I'm not sure whether I'll sign him up for something or just make it a habit to take him to the preschool open gym in town or if the Y and swimming lessons will keep him happy/busy enough. Oh, I forgot, he and Carina will both be doing swimming lessons in the fall, too.

I feel like plans are falling into place and I feel as ready I can to start school and get that craziness underway. I will confess, I'm really kinda sick of other people's kids at the moment, so having them start back to school is a positive at the moment, too :-p!

The kids and I are moving...

No, we're not getting a new house or leaving our state. We're switching parishes...again. This is such a hard decision for me. The kids are both on board, in a half-hearted way, same way I feel. I've spent the last 15 years driving 30 minutes to the best, most orthodox with out being uber-traditional parish I could find. It's been 3 different parishes, but they've each been quite a hike.

Well, that hike has really interfered with our being able to take part in other parts of parish life. Volunteering for events involved 40 miles of driving and an extra hour for travel. Having the kids attend events that only last a couple of hours mandated finding *something* to do with the younger kids because coming home wasn't an option. It just got to be a major pain in the butt and it really shouldn't be.

So, on September 9 we will officially register with the parish here in Rosemount. I do not like the pastor of this parish, I do not like a few of the liturgical "problems" there and I like the disobedience on Communion distribution least of all, but I'm sure the people at the parish are just great...and LOCAL. We have a new archbishop, so I'm hoping he will take care of some of the "irregularities" that irk me so. If that happens, we're all good. So, though I won't be voting for him, I'll jump on the hope bandwagon with Obama *LOL*.

Wish us luck! I know it probably seems silly to some, but this is a really big deal for the kids and me!!

Baby brother???

Well, today is my baby brother's going away party. He leaves for college (Dallas) on Tuesday. It's all so weird. Just 2 months into MY freshman year of college, he was born and now he's about to embarque on his own college experience (which I pray will be infinitely better than mine).

I'm freaking out about him driving all that way by himself, but I know that he'll be safe once he gets there. Truly, he is attending the college of MY dreams. I really think he's going to love it and grow so much as a person. Next year he gets to spend a semester in Greece and Rome! How cool is that?

So, it's official. All of my brothers have grown up. It's crazy! I watched The Savages last night and found the sibling relationship so real and touching. Reminded me of how much I love my brothers and how absolutely unique that relationship is in life. It's a treasure for sure.

So, wish my brother, Thomas, good luck! He's off to the "real world" (tongue firmly in cheek here). He's an awesome young man :o).

On a happier note-- a rare Mommy Brag

I am SO very proud of Carina Claire. All this summer she's been the most amazing big sister to Dominic. She happily lets him tag along with her to her little girlfriends' houses (outside only-- I don't assume parents are up for babysitting my 3 year old) and plays beautifully with him. She is so awesome about waiting for him and including him and not letting him (usually) be pushed around by the bigger girls.

He worships the ground she walks on! Today, she went to an impromptu "party" two houses down and Dominic wasn't invited. He came up to me about an hour later and sighed, "I miss Carina, Mama." So sweet!

Don't get me wrong. They can annoy and pester and even bully each other to the point of insanity, but I'm so proud of her for how loving she's been with him this entire summer! Just wanted to brag for a minute...

My poor little girl...

Back at the beginning of July a neighbor/friend and the mom of Zay's best friend here in the neighborhood had, what I will politely refer to as, a mental health crisis. This crisis in combination with some other things changed our friendship. I wasn't angry, just couldn't have the same level of involvement with her for both her sake and my own.

I emailed briefly with her husband (also a friend of Chris' and mine) and expressed my hope that her anger with me wouldn't effect the girls' friendship. Things had been going OK over the last three weeks, til today.

The neighbor was screaming out the window how her daughter could never play here again and never play with Zelie again. None of us have any idea what happened to cause this shift, but Zay's very sad and confused and upset. I don't blame her, but there's nothing I can do to fix this. I'm just so sad and upset for her. Please keep her in your thoughts :o(.

Stomach flu...ugh!

Zay and I had the worst stomach bug that has passed through this house in YEARS! It was one of those throw up every 20 minutes, no break from the nausea for 8 hours type things. BAD! We were both totally out of it all day today, too! So glad it's over. Now, just praying that nobody else comes down with it.

Now I've got all the stuff I was planning to do over the weekend to tack on to my weekly plans. I'll be shipping and stocking my butt off tomorrow. I hate falling behind on Queen stuff. Luckily, the goal was to get everything shipped tomorrow, so I will still be able to do that. It'll be messy since I haven't had a chance to stock my new product, but I'll get it done.

I feel like I lost an entire weekend...cause I kinda did :o(.

Omnivore's Hundred

1) Copy this list into your blog or journal, including these instructions.
2) Bold all the items you’ve eaten.
3) Cross out any items that you would never consider eating.
4) Optional extra: Post a comment at www.verygoodtaste.co.uk linking to your results.


The VGT Omnivore’s Hundred:

1. Venison
2. Nettle tea
3. Huevos rancheros
4. Steak tartare
5. Crocodile (I'm guessing alligator counts)
6. Black pudding- disgusting, by the way
7. Cheese fondue
8. Carp
9. Borscht
10. Baba ghanoush
11. Calamari
12. Pho
13. PB&J sandwich
14. Aloo gobi- ewww! curry!
15. Hot dog from a street cart
16. Epoisses
17. Black truffle
18. Fruit wine made from something other than grapes
19. Steamed pork buns
20. Pistachio ice cream
21. Heirloom tomatoes
22. Fresh wild berries
23. Foie gras- have some from France in my pantry now
24. Rice and beans
25. Brawn, or head cheese
26. Raw Scotch Bonnet pepper
27. Dulce de leche
28. Oysters
29. Baklava
30. Bagna cauda
31. Wasabi peas
32. Clam chowder in a sourdough bowl
33. Salted lassi
34. Sauerkraut
35. Root beer float
36. Cognac with a fat cigar
37. Clotted cream tea- not my cup of tea
38. Vodka jelly
39. Gumbo
40. Oxtail
41. Curried goat
42. Whole insects
43. Phaal- again with the curry???
44. Goat’s milk
45. Malt whisky from a bottle worth £60/$120 or more
46. Fugu
47. Chicken tikka masala
48. Eel
49. Krispy Kreme original glazed doughnut
50. Sea urchin- NASTY
51. Prickly pear
52. Umeboshi
53. Abalone
54. Paneer
55. McDonald’s Big Mac Meal
56. Spaetzle
57. Dirty gin martini
58. Beer above 8% ABV- allergic
59. Poutine
60. Carob chips
61. S’mores
62. Sweetbreads
63. Kaolin
64. Currywurst- I suspect this contains curry
65. Durian
66. Frogs’ legs
67. Beignets, churros, elephant ears or funnel cake
68. Haggis
69. Fried plantain
70. Chitterlings- YUCK!, or andouillette
71. Gazpacho
72. Caviar and blini
73. Louche absinthe
74. Gjetost, or brunost
75. Roadkill
76. Baijiu
77. Hostess Fruit Pie
78. Snail
79. Lapsang souchong
80. Bellini
81. Tom yum
82. Eggs Benedict
83. Pocky
84. Tasting menu at a three-Michelin-star restaurant
85. Kobe beef
86. Hare
87. Goulash
88. Flowers
89. Horse
90. Criollo chocolate
91. Spam
92. Soft shell crab
93. Rose harissa
94. Catfish
95. Mole poblano
96. Bagel and lox
97. Lobster Thermidor
98. Polenta
99. Jamaican Blue Mountain Coffee
100. Snake

Poll-- to see just how weird I am...

OK, so I'm sitting here reading The Bloggess at 1am (who happens to be guest posting on Her Bad Mother today) and I skim through the comments. Got me thinking.

If you see a trash bag or a large grocery sack in the road do you make every effort to NOT run over it because you fear there might be a baby or puppies or kittens in it?

Now, I realize that if I REALLY thought there might be a baby or puppies or kittens in the bag, I should probably pull over and check, but I guess I'm just not that much of a nutjob. Or maybe that makes me more of a nutjob??? Please tell me that other people have this...errr...fear?

Streeettttchhhhh.....

Physical therapy. It's a wonderful thing! I had my first appointment for my frozen shoulder/shoulder impingment syndrome. I was scared! My shoulder has already started hurting and keeping me awake at night again, even after the cortisone injections. Well, it was wonderful! I got ultrasound, massage and manual stretching. If the therapist holds the ball of my shoulder back and then moves my arm, it doesn't even hurt! Do you know how exciting that is??

So, I have 4 or 5 stretches to work on at home and will go back Thurs or Fri for more stretching. She doesn't think it's a rotator cuff injury because I still have quite a bit of strength, so that's awesome news! Hopefully, in a month, I'll be able to resume P90X!!

I'm so relieved!

OMGosh!! Did you SEE that men's 4x100????

Did you SEE that!!! Holy buckets was that awesome or what! *hanging head* I admit it. I'm a swimming junkie. I was the high school swim team stat keeper, so I'm ALL about the relays and the splits. THAT WAS AMAZING!!! Dang it-- I love the Olympics!

...the answer, my friends, is blowing in the wind

FANS! We have FANS!! I've been hunting for fans for weeks now. We had one break and figured out that, now that we're in the basement, we need more anyway. Of course, August in Minnesota means fall and winter gear and apparel, so I've been having trouble finding your basic box fan.

On a whim, I swung through the fan section at Target while there to purchase an innertube for Carina's bike and *angel choirs singing* FANS! I bought three handy dandy box fans...complete with the extra bonus of stating that each one costs less than 2 cents an hour to run. Christopher refused to believe me when I told him over and over that running 6 box fans STILL doesn't come close to the cost of running the a/c. I now have proof that to run six box fans 24/7 costs about $2.50/day! Our a/c costs about $10/day. YAY! I hate running the a/c except in the most dire of circumstances. I can't hear the kids outside with all the windows shut and I get all heebie jeebie without fresh air...feels too much like winter and you all know how I feel about MN winters!

So, we now have a nicely ventilated house and all my windows are open! I'm so very happy!

Just peachy

How much more midwest mom can I get? No offense to any other midwest moms :o). I made two peach pies this morning. They're in the oven. This is extremely weird for me since I love to cook, but hate to bake. But, a neighbor (who I've been doing a lot of last minute babysitting for) asked me if I needed anything from the store. I kept telling her that I was fine, thanks for asking, blah blah. It was quite clear that she REALLY wanted to get me something, so when she asked if I liked peaches, I said, sure. You can get me some peaches. FTR, I hate peaches, but Chris loves them and today is his birthday, so I thought-- hey, why not?

She brought in a huge produce crate of peaches!!! WTH?? ROFL! Very sweet of her, but what am I gonna do with 50 peaches? So, I made a pie for Chris' birthday (instead of cake) and I made one for her, too. I think I only have about 20 peaches left now. Good grief!

I hope the pies are good. Like I said, I'm SO not a baker!!

Things are shaping up...

'round here. I still have some stuff to get to in my room, but I'll be honest and say that I'm just so over the sorting and figuring that I'm giving myself today off. I fear that I will just chuck stuff cause I'm burned out on the whole thought process.

You know there's something up when I'm excited about returning to my normal housecleaning routine. Tomorrow we resume our regularly scheduled programming ;o).

We did get rid of the hideous, ripped up, hand me down, faux black leather loveseat!!! HOORAY! We now have two super comfie, clean, moveable Poang chairs from Ikea with one ottoman to match. It's working great and the room seems more open and larger. I'm loving that. I may have to run back to Ikea next week for a single row Expedit to hang on the girls' wall. We'll see if the shelves I picked up do the trick or if we need a little something else for storage. I also found an adorable small scale armchair for the little reading corner I want to put in our new room. It's only $150, so totally affordable and would fit perfect in the corner. So, maybe that'll be my birthday present.

It's been a very productive week! I'll be glad to have some more free time this week though. It *is* summer!