Sports!

So that posting thing I was planning hasn't actually been going as planned. Shocking. I know. Or possibly not shocking at all.

Yes, that one.

I signed up for Miss Zoot's prompts for November and have read each one and thought about posting and have done... nothing. Sorry Kim. You are doing all that work and I'm doing nothing. Doesn't seem fair.

Today's rockin' suggestion is Sports. And anyone who has ever met me, seen me on any social media, or had the unfortunate opportunity to smell my children knows - we do sports. Well, I don't do sports. That's just silly. I attend my children's sporting events. Mostly. And I drive them back and forth to practices and games/meets/tournaments.

My oldest, Alex, limited his serious sporting activities to baseball and soccer. He was a three season soccer player and a 2 season baseball player (with lessons during the off season). So there was overlap. The one rule I made when the kids were little - ONE SPORT - PER CHILD - PER SEASON. Broken. Baseball being his lifelong passion has taught me to enjoy the sport more than I did before but in general, I'm not a fan. I will watch my children play but, yeah, that's it. Now that he's in college he plays on a recreational soccer team and a rec softball team at the school and he played on a rec baseball team over the summer. I only went to one baseball game and haven't been to any of the others. I will say, he misses playing competitively and has been in talks with the college baseball coach but he's not playing for them yet.

Tyler, is my second son. My most competitive son (where sports are concerned). And my most focused son. He has taken gymnastics (until 6th grade to play soccer - see rule above), golf, ski team, and is a four season soccer player (RULE BROKEN). He gave up all other sports competitively to focus on soccer and has been killing it. Unfortunately, now he's in college and the competition is tough.  He has been so close to making various college teams during the application process last year but he just missed. It is heartbreaking as a parent. He is playing on an intramural team and a rec team at school and he still has a shot for next year. I believe he begins training with the team soon so we will see.

Now that those two are out of the house, the sports schedules have let up and NOW my junior in high school has decided to pick up a new sport. NOW. So this is the year I learn about how the swim team does things. Dylan has tried various sports over the years. Wrestling, soccer (off and on), lacrosse, tennis and now swimming. He's hoping to get back to tennis this year too. But overall he's never been a big sports kid. He seems to prefer individual sports to team sports. I think he may be pretty serious about swimming though because he has been getting up at FIVE-FORTY-FIVE for weeks to swim before school. Before the regular season started. This is a kid that likes his sleep. The season started yesterday. It should be interesting. Also, I need to figure out how to hold a team breakfast for 30 at my house in the coming months. I've chaperoned the varsity baseball team's Myrtle Beach trip for two years for Alex. That was cooking and shopping (my God the shopping!) for approximately 30 but it wasn't in my house. The things you learn that you never imagined sports will teach you.

It's the youngest, Zach, that may be the death of me though. He's a two season soccer player, baseball player, and ski team racer. He also joins every club known to man and now that he's in high school he's doing even more. This kid is a serious overachiever. He's hoping to play premier soccer but I'm making him wait because there is just not enough time in the day.

So what has all this taught me? The least athletic person on the planet. The person who didn't expect any of her children to play sports. Sports can be good. The kids' grades tend to be better during sport seasons. They form strong friendships and develop healthy habits in regards to exercise and nutrition. And you need to take out a second mortgage to feed them when they are playing.

Tattoos

10/16:
Weather report: Absolutely gorgeous! Sidenote: Fog this morning was insane.

I've reread the posts I've been writing and realized I've forgotten how to do this. Apparently practice is key and I've fallen way, way out of practice. I have decided not to give up. I shall keep writing and maybe, if we're all lucky, I'll get better at this. Or at least not make anyone want to vomit at my words.

Tonight is the last JV soccer game of the season. As fall sports come to a close in our house a sigh of relief can be heard. It hasn't snowed and no freezing rain. This may be a first. Global warming - it's real, yo.

10/21:
Weather report: The rain has arrived.

It seems the doubt from the realization my writing is crap has kept me from practicing after all. I shall no longer look back. Onward!

JV soccer ended the season 13-3. Pretty great record if you ask me. And now on to the winter sport portion of the year. That would be ski team and swimming for those of you (mom) following along at home.

I managed to see both of my older children today. Tattoos are healing well. Having to bring them mail and groceries are a great excuse to see them now and then. It seems they have entered the buckle down portion of the semester. Grades were doing well and now the workload is increasing. I hope they can keep it up.

So tattoos... yes. If you follow me on Twitter or Facebook you will see we had a family tattoo day on Saturday. EIGHT of us got tattooed. Those getting inked for the first time included my husband, oldest child, second child, and my MIL. Those getting 3rd or 4th tattoos were myself, SIL#1, SIL#2, and Alex's girlfriend. It was a long day. We had people along for moral support though. Tyler's girlfriend was present as was our youngest. Also, "adopted" child Brenden showed and even brought the new girlfriend around for introductions.

The first time tattoo(ees?) were surprised it hurt so much. I'm thinking that is my fault though. I am known to have a VERY low tolerance for pain. I mean I am quite the wuss. I accept this. It is what it is. However, I now have 4 tattoos. And yes, I always say, they HURT. But I'm thinking the people in my life didn't realize how MUCH it hurts. It was eye opening for some. And, I'd like to think I upped my street cred just a bit. Maybe that should be house cred. since they mostly live in my house at least part time and no one on the street knows.

I love October. It is usually sunny and not too cold and just beautiful where we live. But as the days get shorter, my bedtime gets earlier and I have a harder time waking up in the morning. I'm tired. I was thinking something was wrong until I remembered I think that every year. I just have to get past this adjustment period where the extended darkness tells my internal clock it's time to sleep. I may be counting the hours between when I can nest in my bed and read/sleep. Maybe.

Time is up! Time to publish. From now on it is writing and publishing. No thinking allowed.

Warm weather, do not leave us. Please.

It is the type of day outside that makes you look for reasons to stay outside. Highs in the low 80's, warm winds, brightly colored leaves and just gorgeous. Also, probably the last day it will be this warm until June. Everyone is prolonging lunches and taking walks and trying to avoid their desks. I'm not sure how anyone can tell people not to do this. It is too nice and it will be too long before we enjoy this again. (This is until Mother Nature decides to prove us all wrong and does it again just to spite us and this narrative.)

So I mentioned two of the offspring are in college. I did not lie. They are both attending the same college. They both live on campus. They both have girlfriends. They both seem happy.

What else is there to say? One is a journalism major and the other Physics. Yes, I know... physics. Insane. I always wondered if he was really mine. Now I'm sure he was switched in the hospital.

Life, it sounds so calm. It sounds so delightful and accomplished. It sounds like we are winning at parenting. (Not to worry, we're not.) The problem with teenagers is their stories are their own. But just know we all have our issues. I worry about them all in different ways. I'm still hoping they all grow to be happy, productive members of society. I'm hoping we all make it out of the teenage years alive. Do not laugh, there are days I wonder.

I can say, the house is so quiet now. So much calmer. So much less laundry! So many less groceries! I'm not sure why the bills aren't going down though. Can I ask? Why are groceries so much more expensive? How did this happen without me noticing? The past year has been insane! Am I the only one this is happening to?

A story I can tell is my story. A story of a surprisingly happy marriage. A story of settling into life a bit more. A story of (hopefully) coming into my own. I will try to focus things there.

Hello there.

 It's been... a super long time. It's also been massive losses of past content and the ditching of my domain.

Not sure what I'm doing here but felt the need? desire? itch? to write something here. I've been denying it for weeks but have let the blank page cower me. I've let the terrible photo below mock me as the last thing I contributed to the internet.

I found while moving my archives over that my favorite posts are reading about what was going on when. Things I had forgotten remembered. The whole reason I started this thing.

So, we're going back to basics. No design to fiddle with. No domain to keep up. No brand or advertising or anything. (Not that I had any of those things.)

Just me writing.

Writing about one of the littles, the older of the littles. The little whose birthday is today. The little who is officially SIXTEEN.

He may not be so little anymore.

So now I have two children in college. IN. COLLEGE. And two children in high school.

Where are those adorable little boys? Where are they? All I have now are young men who are all taller than me. All taller than their dad. Smelly and busy and all doing their own thing.

People ask how they are and I don't know what to say. Alive. Still in school. Still doing what they do.

To be fair, Dylan started swimming. As in the swim team. I haven't seen him swim yet but he seems to really like it. Like leaves the house at 5:45 AM to go to the pool. Without prodding likes it.

Dylan also had a roll in the school musical last Spring. He's worked backstage for the last few years but decided to try his hand on stage. He amazed me. He danced. He sang. He had his own lines and was funny.

Zach is on the JV soccer team, the ski team and the baseball team. He is also involved in several clubs. I'm not sure I even know all the clubs he's involved with. I usually find out at some crucial moment when he needs a permission slip signed (Math Team) or a coat for the coat drive he helped spearhead (Community service club). Who knows what else he's involved with. He is a total overachiever. He does NOT take after his mother in this area.

And here I'll leave off for today. I must pick Zach up from soccer practice and check on Dylan and his Trig homework.

Offspring Today

Tyler's Award

We are so proud of the young man he is becoming.

It seems I have a lot to say...

The rain has been making me crazy and cranky and pairing that with PMS has made me what I'm sure is unbearable. Luckily the sun popped out yesterday while I was driving home and this morning on my ride in to work. I am much happier now. Also, a fabulous woman in the office made mini carrot cake cupcakes for another coworker's birthday today. That has made me smile. And eat. And maybe just one more because they are so small.

Alas, the sun has gone and more rain is expected. Have I mentioned how over the rain I am? It seems as if it will never dry out around here. The ark jokes are not even funny anymore.

The new house is lovely. I even bought some plants for the yard. Yes, it seems it's my year to garden. Maybe. I find I am willing to dig in the dirt about every five years. So as soon AS THE SUN RETURNS I will be digging. I hope it goes well since this will probably be it for many years.

The plants came from Flower Days at the Public Market. Somehow I've never attended this flower filled event. Unbelievable I know! I've lived in this area for about TWENTY YEARS... my God, am older than dirt... and never managed a trip downtown for the event. It of course it was cold and rainy on Sunday. The good news was it wasn't very crowded because of this. Even without the crowds I got very overwhelmed and probably would have left without buying anything but luckily I brought a friend who kept me calm. We did a walk through to survey the goods and then went back and purchased what we wanted. Let me just say, that was the perfect way to handle it. One, no carrying heavy pots around and two, better to price things and narrow down before actually purchasing. Still, by the end of the walk through I was completely overwhelmed and not sure what to buy. I had to refocus on what I originally wanted and then picked up a few annuals at the booths I was already buying from.

So what did I get? Well, the big purchase was two gorgeous Rhododendrons in the traditional light purple. They had some lovely maroonish ones but I decided to stick with the traditional that reminded me of my youth (so important in us ancient ones). I picked up a bunch of basil, mint and coriander. Also got some gerber daisies, poppies and begonias. Why have I never taken notice of begonias before? They were amazing! So lovely. Maybe once I get them in the ground or the rain stops falling I'll take some photos to put up here.

In other news, I've been baking tons with my new kitchenaid (thanks honey for the Mother's Day gift!!!) and new double oven. The kids are thrilled with the baking of course because it means yummy treats for them. The scale however is very unhappy with me. Well, too bad scale. I'm having fun, enjoying homemade treats and making people smile.

I've also gotten even more crunchy. We're still composting and recycling of course but now our garbage pickup takes even more recycling then the old one. We are down to about 2 - 13 gallon kitchen bags a week. For six people! And even then, one of them is usually not full. Also, there are still always extra people and kids around. I was a little worried that the kids would stop showing up now that we live further from school but that has not been the case. I'm so glad. I love having people hanging out everywhere. Makes me happy. (Plus, more excuses to bake!)

Oh, and on the crunchy front I'm going natural with cleaners and a steam mop to go along with the cloth napkins, hand towels and old rags instead of paper towels and napkins. I'm thinking I'll be making my own laundry and dish detergent soon. I know! Who am I?

The boxes are slowly getting unpacked. So far my cake pans and measuring cup seem to have gone missing in the move but those I can definitely replace. The living room hasn't been touched. Except the other night I hung a bunch of pictures on the nails left behind from the previous owners. Then I made Jeff take them all down because they were giving me anxiety. Yes, he agrees, I'm a freak. I have no idea why but I couldn't stand them hanging just randomly like that. I prefer them in a box until I have a plan of some sort.

The bedrooms are mostly done. The kitchen is done. The rest? Well, we're getting there. I haven't even started painting yet! I did manage to change the hardware in the kitchen though. It made it so much calmer and updated looking.

Sorry about the poor quality of the photos. The one that is probably the closest to how they look in real life is the bottom right. So the top two? Shiny worn brass that came with the house. NOT my style at all. Bottom two? Antique pewter. Ahhhh, anxiety gone. And the change also totally toned down the oak color. Looks much more mellow now. Now, tell me what you think...

Zach's 5th & 6th grade band concert

For the fam.

Sitting at the dentist

So I'm sitting here waiting for all 4 boys to see the dentist which in of itself is no big deal. Unfortunately the children are annoying each other and whining and complaining. This is making me want to run away. One of the children, I will not name names, is insisting I bring him home when he is done. Oh, and btw, he's going first.

In other goings on, I'm not a fan of swyping long passages on my phone. It annoys me. This is why the grand idea I would blog from my phone all the time hasn't really worked out. Until today that is. This is what the waiting room with children has driven me to.

On the house front... we haven't had a single person look at our house in forever. Apparently the market is at a stand still in our area. No new homes on the market and no purchases. I'm hoping the weather will warm up and things will get going.

In the mean time I've been looking at home and design sites and blogs. I am not very bright when it comes to these things. See right now the thing to do is paint your woodwork white, paint your cabinets in the kitchen a light color, actually paint anything you've got - furniture, cupboards, etc. White is very in right now. So what happens in a few years when natural woodwork is back in vogue? You know it's going to happen. It always does. And how in the hell does someone with 4 boys and a bunch of their friends live in a white house? Boys are dirty yo. The other thing I'm finding is spray painted ornate mirrors and chandeliers. Do people not have dust and cobwebs in their homes? Am I the only one that just sees more stuff to dust?

I'm not so sure I'm cut out for this decorating thing.

CRAZYtown

So much is happening right now. Life is CRAZY in an all caps kind of way. Luckily, most of it is good.

As you may have surmised from previous posts, we are planning on putting our house on the market. We are hopping to sell in time to put an offer in on a house about 2 miles away. It's a move from the village to a country setting. As much as I've said I don't want to live in the country, I suddenly want to. Hopefully, it's not just the fact that I'm overloaded with socialization. With the constant sports since March I've been a bit burned out. I love the social season but I also love my winter hibernating. Unfortunately, that doesn't look like it's going to happen this year. Tyler joined the ski team. Ugh! Not only will I have to attend meets? races? whatever they're called, I will have to stand in the cold and they are all at least 30 minutes away.

If you're my friend on Facebook you hopefully saw the video of the talent show. Dylan and his band played a song he wrote. The 3 guitarists are all 12 and in 7th grade, the drummer is 13 and in 8th grade. I was mightily impressed. I see this as the beginning of a lifetime of concerts in my future. I may try to post it here later. I'm so proud.

Another thing I'm insanely proud of is the amount of work Alex and Tyler have put into getting the house ready. They have done everything I've asked and I haven't had to threaten or cajole or anything. They have been heaven-sent. Also, it is nice to have the extra muscle around. I haven't had to move anything more than a can of paint.

Oh, and thanks for voting. I went with Mushroom bisque for our bedroom. I think it will give the room a fresh but warm and cozy feel.

I suppose that's all for now. Have a million things to do!

New experience as a parent

I just realized in my almost 16 years of parenting, last night was my first time staying up all night with a puking kid.

Today was my first time cleaning up an entire gallon of paint off the floor.

FML.

My mind, in bullets so you don't get lost

So, things on my mind...

• I love, love, love Old Navy's Dreamer jeans. I forgot how wonderful it is to wear jeans that don't gap in the back. In fact, I want to buy more and just toss out all my other pants.


• I won - Thank you Cursingmama! - a copy of The Mayo Clinic Diet book & journal over at her review blog. I also started it even though it cautions to wait until a good time. The week before Easter is decidedly NOT a good time. As I have mentioned every single year on this blog, my favorite candy in all the world is only available at Easter. The first two weeks (the Lose It! portion) you are suppose to give up sugar. Hahahahaha. Yo, that shit is hard. I've done... ok. Not perfect but not nearly as bad as I would have been if I wasn't doing this. Also? I have to decided to eat as much candy as I want on Easter. For one day. I will be in a sugar coma. Then? I might extend the first 2 weeks for one more. We shall see.


• As anyone who follows me on twitter already knows, I had my annual review yesterday at work and it has been decided I'm full of the awesome. As for a raise, extremely minimal merit raises are being offered up. I for one am glad to have a job. Not that we couldn't use the money but I'd rather have no one lose their job.


• Found out a friend from high school is in the hospital with an infection around his heart... from twitter. Twitter FTW! (As for the other business on twitter. Suck it, don't suck it, I'm out of caring. Although, thanks for the entertainment.) As for my friend, I'm seriously worried. He is one of the kindest people I've ever met and we just reconnected. Get well Alan!

Child update for the related people and grandparents out there reading - non-related and non-grandparents, do not feel the need to read my annoying gushing. (I must gush when I can because usually I'm just complaining about them):

• Alex played for the Varsity baseball team during a scrimmage the other day. He was not nervous. I was a wreck. He held his own though. It's his first year catching and he's doing great but has some stuff to work on. What? I don't know - see: not informed about sports. Still, the coaches seem to like him and he's getting the hang of it.


• Tyler made the JV golf team. He's very excited and we are very proud. Now we need to invest in a membership for him at the local golf course.


• The last parent-teacher conference ever for Dylan was the only one where the teacher had nothing negative to say. Only lovely words were spoken. And his grades are higher than they've ever been. Also, it has been agreed by all that Jr. High should be good for him. Apparently letting him almost flunk out last term worked. He's getting all his homework done at school now. Now if he would just let me cut his hair.


• Zach. What to say about him. He's a bit sassy. A bit whiny. All brilliant and still adorable. Baseball starts next week.


• The 3 youngest have all signed up for the mini-triathlon again.


• Clearly none of these children are related to me.

New Year's Eve 2009

This is for Carmi over at Written Inc. He does a thematic photo every week and this week I thought I'd hop in. The theme is What I Did On Vacation and he has a very similar photo posted. I just couldn't resist adding my version of "They don't always get along as peacefully as we'd like. They're bright, creative and engaged kids, so it's inevitable that they have their moments - with each other and with us. But sometimes, when the stars align, they manage to make our hearts melt." Yes, Carmi writes that beautifully. And yes, I totally stole his words there. Feel free to join in!

Happy 2010!

Bullets!

My brain is so full I just haven't known where to start. So I will just start...

• My kids got into the honors classes they wanted. Tuesday was their first day. So far, so good. We will see. I will say they are happy about it. And, they both had homework to do last night. A first this year. And as you might assume, the homework was in their honors classes. So yes, they have more work but no, it doesn't seem too difficult for them. I think I'm liking being THAT mom.


• I have officially started my holiday shopping. Hold me.


• Little snow flakes are showing up in my weather app on my Google homepage. Not for today but for Friday and Saturday. I have heard there was a sighting of flakes this morning. f.l.a.k.e.s. Not happy. Not ready. And yes, our heat is on already. I do not compete in your furnace wars you foolish ones. I like to be warm. In related news, the kids are still complaining it's cold in the house.


• It seems the children and I are battling a cold. I'm not sure who is winning at this point.


• SQUEE! GLEE! is on tonight.


• I have now downloaded all 16 Glee songs that are available on Amazon. I may have a sickness. I will not tell you how many times I have listened to Gold Digger on my ipod. There is however a need to point out the absolute brilliance of Mercedes' (Amber Riley's) opening of that song. If you have not heard it? I would like to offer my condolences.


• The Halloween costumes have been procured. Only 2 of the children still want to dress up. The other two are wearing masks. At least, that is what they tell me when I say they can't go beg for candy without some kind of costume. I have also bought extra masks. What are the two littles going to be? A repeat of Indiana Jones that necessitated a new whip and hat. (Old whip was broken and old hat is too small for his GIANT 11 year old noggin.) The littlest little is going to be Dr. Horrible. I predict no one here will know who he is. Except me and the boys. I am okay with this.


• The invites for our Halloween party have not been printed.


• The garage has not been cleaned.


• I predict it will not be warm like it was last year. I predict rain and cold and snow. Glad we had the roof replaced. Also, Jeff ripped out the ceiling and the beams are now exposed making the garage extra spooky. Also, the cobwebs add ambiance. Do not try to dissuade me of this fact.


• I got a call from one of the children telling me he had to stay after school for the next 3 days to make up something or other in band. BAND. Fine, whatever.


• I got another call two hours later telling me he was home and skipped out on his detention that "is not really a detention." I do not even know what to do with this information.


• Anyone who knows any of my children can identify this particular child. I shall not name names here. Although he may have had a birthday recently.


• One of the children keeps crying. Over EVERYTHING. Surely not everything you say. Yes, EVERYTHING. It is making me weary. Also? I hate nine. Nine and boys do not go together well.

That is all. I have things to do and loins to gird. I'm not sure I want to go home tonight.

I'm Turning into "That" Mom

For ten years and four kids I've tried my best to avoid being "that" mom. You know the one. The one that when the teachers or administrators at school see you coming they groan, run and hide or roll their eyes. I've really tried to let them do their jobs and trust them. We live in an excellent school district. In fact, we moved to our current location BECAUSE of the school district.

But...

I have found one problem. I've let it slide most of the time. Or rather I've addressed the problem and then let it go numerous times. Individual teachers have made it easier to let the issue go. In 98% of cases they've done their part. The administration however has refused to do their parts. And now I'm done discussing the issue. I want action.

Maybe I should mention what the problem is. Yes?

The school refuses to challenge my kids. More specifically, my oldest two. They slide by without putting any effort in. They are happy enough getting mostly A's with the occasional B without doing more than the bare minimum. I am so not okay with this. Now that they are in 8th and 9th grade they need to learn how to work a little. They need to be in a more competitive academic atmosphere. They need to be with kids that work at school and take pride in their grades.

Here's the thing. My oldest's friends are all in honors classes. They have been since 7th grade. None of them understand why he isn't. His father and I don't understand why he isn't. The junior high has some formula they use to place kids in honors and apparently he didn't qualify. Even though he could do the work. We let it slide. I will admit, this was my mistake. I should have gone to the school back in 7th grade. I should have pushed. But I didn't want to be "that" parent.

Now he's in high school. He has 100 average in everything 5 weeks in and we told him he needed to talk to the school about getting into an honors class. He needs a challenge. Get this: He AGREED. I told him to pick one subject that they offer as honors. His choices: math, science & social studies. He chose social studies. Now honestly? That is the LAST class I would chose to take an honors version of. In fact, I believe that was my worst subject in school. But that's what he picked. He spoke to his teacher yesterday and his teacher said he was already looking at moving him into his honors class. All he has to do is ace his unit test this week. Only thing standing in his way? He hasn't cracked a book. Guess what we're doing tonight.

My oldest has also said he'd like to try for honors math next year. HIS OWN SUGGESTION. He doesn't want to do it this year because he thinks it might be too much all at once. I told him the longer he waits the further behind he's going to get. His response? Geometry is easy. You guys can help me get caught up. To which I replied, "Hell no. I can't do geometry. I'm the algebra lady." Yes, it's true. Geometry is impossible for me but I love Algebra. I know. Odd and GEEK. Whatevs. He says dad can help him.

So see, no need to be "that" mom. Son, taking action himself. I'm so proud.

Now, on to the second child. Oh dear son of mine. He has his head in the clouds most of the time. He is silly and goofy and a more than a little devious.  Good thing he's so handsome. Makes it easier not to kill him at times. Also, keeps the girls from completely dismissing him.

One other thing he is? A math brain. He is the child that would make me put addition and subtraction problems on our chalkboard at 3. For fun. And he got them right. He would demand more math when I was trying to make dinner. He made up his own math problems on white boards, chalkboards, paper. He could just "see" how numbers worked. He was also the one shouting out the answers to the multiplication problems when I quizzed his older brother before he could even comprehend what I just said. He is the one we've been trying to get into honors math since the end of 6th grade.

Last year we fought with the principle over and over. He would not budge. We were told we were forcing our son to do something he didn't want to do. That we would make him hate math. It was implied that we were being "those" parents. Then they conceded. He could take a math placement test at the end of August. A 90 or above meant honors math.

The fact is he got a 75.

Part of the problem was we were so intent on him studying for his Bar Mitzvah (on September 12th) and going to his Hebrew tutor's. We didn't push the math. The math he said he went over. The math practice test he assured us he could do. The day before the exam I realized the error of our ways and brought him to work with me. He worked for five hours. I showed him how to do about 30% of the problems. He got it. He took the exam the next day. He complained there was stuff on it not on the practice test. Four kids took the test.

I know at least one other didn't pass it with a 90. She got an 80. She studied all summer with three different tutors. He is not in honors math. This is a kid that WANTS to be in honors math. This is a kids that could do it if you just put him in the damn class. The school won't budge. I was going to give it up. After the exam I did nothing. But now he's bugging ME about it.

So now it's time. I'm making yet another appointment with the principal. I'm going to be "that" parent. I'm going to sit there and not budge from my position. I'm going to take a lesson from son #3 and be stubborn. So damn stubborn and not give up. I will not give in. I will wear him down. I will just not take no for an answer. I don't care about rules and guidelines. There are always exceptions. This is one of those exceptions. It is time.

Baseball...

has still not ended.

The baseball season that never ended

I am currently mired in baseball and soccer games galore. Yes, school sports have ended but travel and recreation leagues are in full swing. It is the usual Spring balancing act of great mental and geektastic scheduling. I will admit that this year I did not use an excel spreadsheet as I have the past couple of years. Still, life has become work, sports, bed. This week has the added bonus of being finals week for the older two.

This morning I came across something so fun and entertaining that I had to share. Or rather, I had to steal this from Marcy at The Glamorous Life Association. Really. It is hysterical.

By the Numbers

This week:

5 baseball games

4 soccer games

4 track practices

3 baseball practices

2.5 days as a single parent

2 soccer practices

2 appointments

2 work FAILS

1 missed 504 meeting (major parenting FAIL)

1 track meet

1 band concert

1 NJHS induction

1 guitar lesson

1 dinner date

unspecified number of bottles of wine drank

What's been going on here?

Last week was great fun around these parts. First off the kids were on Spring break. Secondly, the husband was out of state for the majority of the week and lastly, I almost died from a head cold.

Okay, so I didn't almost die. I had a cold. I was sick enough to be sent home from work early on Thursday and stayed home Friday. Unfortunately, the time I didn't take as vacation because I  HAD to work, I spent on my couch alternating between begging the children to let me sleep and barking orders for them to clean the house. It seemed every time I fell asleep someone would come in and wake me. EVERY. SINGLE. TIME. When I finally gave up, I tried to get them to clean the downstairs because we were having company Saturday night. Needless to say, some of the children complied. Some did not. And then I died.

Or, recovered enough to enjoy having two families over for dinner on Saturday night. Now two families may sound small and manageable but if said families were all crazy and all produced 4 offspring each... well, that's a whole lot of people.

One of ours was gone to a birthday party and another was away at college (not one of ours). That left us with six adults and ten children. Yeah. TEN. They ranged in age from six to fifteen. I would just like to praise Mother Nature for holding out on the rain that was predicted. The kids spent the majority of the night outside playing laser tag and chasing each other around outside. Yay Mother Nature! You go girl!

My husband declared the night, "Jewing it up night." We served matzoh ball soup, challah, hummus, matzoh, potato knish, applesauce, sour cream, He-brew beer, wine and salad. One family brought venison and the other brought latkes.

You should know, we live in a small town. We are one of three Jewish families that I know of. The kids only know two other Jewish students in their school. To say they are celebrities in their classes would be accurate. Their dad always did the Hanukkah demonstration in Primary school and the fact they get eight days of gifts makes them rock stars. When the oldest had his Bar Mitzvah it was the event of the year. I'm not niave enough to believe there is no hate but for the most part I believe my kids have positive experiences living in the situation they do.

So anyway, we are what I call Jewish-lite. We do not keep kosher. We do eat bread during Passover. We celebrate the secular aspects of Christmas and Easter. The kids do go to Temple and Sunday school. They attend Hebrew school and see their tutor every week while preparing for their Bar Mitzvahs. We discuss mitzvahs (good deeds) and tzedakah (charity) and try to make these part of our daily lives. So, Jewish-lite. Say what you may but this works for us and I think many families take what works for them from their religion and leave the rest. This is what works for us.

So, we have many friends that are not Jewish. We have friends that are curious. We needed a good excuse to all get together. Well, not really NEEDED an excuse. But with the business of 4 kids each, we needed a push. My husband gave us that push and I'm so glad he did. It was great fun. The kids are all friends and got along great AND the adults all get along really well. I find it is rare for that to happen. Men getting along and wives and kids. It's taken a long time for us to find this dynamic but I'm so glad we did.

Now for a string of non-related strange facts about our little group:

• The other two couples have been together since High School. Seriously. HIGH. SCHOOL. Yes, I find that odd.


• The men are all engineers. I guess that's not odd as I seem to know in inordinate amount of engineers and not just through my husband. But still, what's with all the engi-nerds? (heh, my pet name for them)


• We do not have the oldest child or the youngest but our kids are the closest in age.


• All the adults are between 38 & 41 and our kids ages are: 20, 15, 14, 14, 12, 12, 10, 9, 8, 8, 6, 6. The only ones without friends in the group are the 20 & 10 year olds. (they also happen to be the two not present)


• I have also now shown my highly nerdy need for numbers. They fascinate me. It's a sickness.


• I cannot fathom having a 20 year old nor a 6 year old. One of the couples has both. They are also not the oldest.


• I told you it was a sickness.


• Out of 12 children there are only 2 girls. 14 and 6. Two different families. Neither is mine. (You should all already know this random fact.)


• SICKNESS.


• Maybe I should take a statistics course.


• Also, it does not escape my notice that I called them engi-nerds and I'm here with the number sickness.

To wrap up here I will say that school is FINALLY back in session today after a extra day off yesterday for an unused snow day. And do NOT get me started on the fact that the kids had school on a day when several buses slid off the road - one containing one of my children - only to have 2 snow days left over now.

Routine, it is good.