No Room at the Inn

Today is Mick's birthday.  It's hard to believe that he is 4 already! 

My friend Amy is in town for the weekend.  She came down to visit and to help me get things ready for Tim's return.  At the moment, she is at another friend's house.  Megan's friend is also staying for the weekend while her mom and sisters are driving her brother to college in Alabama.  With Megan's friend came my two favorite (not) dogs.  Just when the dog smell had started to dissipate......  Katie asked me if her friend could spend the night as well.  Sure, if they want to sleep in the van in the driveway!  Come to think of it, they've slept on the trampoline in the backyard a few times.  Sheesh.    I need a bigger house! 

Gotta go fix up the couch for Amy.............

Saint Anthony

I have St Anthony on speed dial.   I lose things all the time.  So do my kids.  It doesn't help that Mick displaces many items.  We've found numerous objects in the air conditioning vents - Barbies, dog food, a cell phone, cd's, etc.    I once found a plastic lizard in the computer's floppy drive.  And, a sock was jamming the printer cartridges another time.  Not to mention the toothbrushes (3 to date) and the rubber shark they've removed from my toilets.   We have our kitchen trash can on a stool so Mick can't reach it, because he also likes to throw things in a trash, which is a good thing, unless it is Kiley's blanket or her shot record (the trash can in the Dr's office is not up high).  I am pretty sure that St Anthony and Mick's guardian angel are well acquainted by now.   

Shane started looking for his sneakers at 7:15 this morning.  The bus comes at 8:10.  At 8:07, he was putting his cowboy boots on , which he loves, but they are 2 sizes too big, and don't look or feel so great with shorts.  At 8:09, I saw his daily schedule and realized he has P.E. today, and wouldn't be able to participate with boots on.  At 8:09:23, I was pleading with St Anthony to cut me a break and lead me to his shoes.  I came upon Mick in the bathroom, (which is his favorite place to be except when he has to go..., but that is a blog for another time!).  I moved the stool to the sink so that he could wash his hands, because I was sure they needed washing since the Groovy Girl doll he was holding was sopping wet.  When I moved the stool - there were Shane's shoes!!!!!!!  Following a rousing chorus of "THANK YOU ST ANTHONY!" Shane ran out the door and made it to the bus stop just as the kids started getting on.

If we hadn't gone with the Irish theme when naming our kids, I am sure it would have been fitting to name a son Anthony considering how many times we've asked him for help!  I bought a  print of St Anthony awhile back with the intention of creating  a small shrine to him in my house- or at least a shelf with a statue, the print and maybe a votive candle on it to light when it's a particularly important or expensive item that is lost!  Think I'll be creating that shrine after I find the print.......

Back to School....

My goodness,  we had a frenzied day today.  Some of the kids needed shots for school, and what better day to take them, than the day before school starts? ! Then we went shopping for school.  I spent almost $400 at Walmart, mostly on school supplies, and that wasn't counting the four backpacks I bought a couple of weeks ago, or the supplies I had already bought when Walmart and Staples had their big sales.  Yikes.  Maybe home schooling would be cheaper.  Then again, I am not sure I can put a price on my sanity!  I was looking forward to breakfast with a friend in the morning, after the bus leaves, but then I realized today that Mick doesn't start preschool till September 6th.   If I can't get him into the drop in daycare in the morning, we will have breakfast at IHOP.  Otherwise, it will be Cracker Barrel.  I do look forward to a little quiet time during the day.  And I definitely have some housekeeping to catch up on!  It will be nice to clean the floors and have them stay clean for a few hours...........

We went to the middle school orientation today, and Timmy met his teachers.  They are the same team of teachers that Jack had in 6th grade.  I was able to speak to each of them individually and tell then a little bit about Timmy.  I asked them to please be sure to contact me if they have any concerns about him.  I do worry that he isn't ready, academically, or socially for middle school.  He has diagnosed learning difficulties, as well as ADHD, and so far, I think his teachers have not expected from him as much as he is capable of doing.  And, like many kids, he will do just the bare minimum that is required to get by.  Which is a shame, because he really is quite bright, just has a hard time getting what he knows onto paper.  He is my heart.  When I see him struggle, it almost hurts me physically.  I have done a lot of reading about ADHD.  It is a very real disorder, and affects people who have it differently.  I hope that his teachers will push him this year.  I hope that he will be able to handle his frustration when things get difficult.  I hope I will be able to help him with his homework!!!  And, I hope he and Jack will be there to help one another with the social aspects of school.  I could tell that Jack enjoyed showing Timmy around the school today.   They will ride the bus together, but probably won't see each other much during the school day.  It is always my hope that my kids will stick together if/when things get rough.  At least I know that if there are bullying problems on the bus this year, one of them will tell me about it!  But, it's a new year, and a fresh start, and here's hoping it will be a good one for all........

 

Argh....

We've had a large turnover on the block this summer.  My next-door-neighbor and I are hosting an in-the-yard block party tomorrow, so that all of the neighbors can get acquainted, and the kids can meet each other before school starts. This weekend I also have two extra teenagers staying here (Katie's friend and her sister), and 2 extra dogs.  Molly's friend's family asked if she could go camping in Ohio with them.  Then asked if I could watch their pugs while they are gone.  These dogs are cute, (in an ugly sort of way) and very energetic.  Shane is loving having them here.  When they dropped the dogs off, Molly's friend's dad told me that the male is "completely housebroken", but that Scarlet, the four month old puppy, "will go anywhere except outside".  I thought he was joking.  Apparently, the only thing he was joking about was the male dog, Brutus being housebroken, since he has marked his territory in the house at every opportunity.  Scarlet will go outside, run around, then come in and immediately let loose on the floor.   I now have them confined to the back hall (which has tile flooring).  They don't like it much.  I don't like that now my house smells of dog.  Which isn't at all the impression I want to make to our new neighbors who may have to come in and use the bathroom tomorrow. And I am praying that it won't rain and force the party INSIDE !!!!  Ugh.

Playground equipment...

Two sentences a parent ALWAYS needs to take seriously :

"I feel sick"  and "I have to go to the bathroom!"

I took Katie to tennis camp this morning.  It was a good distance away, near a playground, so Colleen, Megan and Shane went with me.  They had a great time on "the spinny metal thing".  As I was pushing them, I thought how sad it is that my kids haven't had the pleasure of living near a merry-go-round.  Not a carousel, but the "burn your bare legs in the summer heat, and hang your head over the edge till your hair touches the sand, and spin till you are so dizzy you can't stand straight, and hang on with your legs out and pretend you are Superman"  merry-go-round.  They've also missed out on the precariously high metal (again, burning in the sun) slides that go extra fast when you ride down sitting on waxed paper.  I remember we would flip over the tops of those slides (about 20ft high, I'd say) before we slid down.  My heart is in my throat even picturing one of my kids doing the same!  But, I digress..........  Colleen got off saying she felt sick (she was a little green), and sat with me on a bench.  Then Shane got off, walked a few feet, and threw up in the sand.  And, threw up a few more times on the 35 minute ride home.  Do you think they were sick because they haven't had 5 and 7 years of experience on the playground equipment we grew up playing on?

I guess I will never know.........

Priorities

I banned TV for the day after my kids were fighting (for the 35 millionth time) over what to watch.  It's been almost too hot to play outside, and they'd spend all day in front of the TV if I let them.  My 7 year old asked me if she could read Junie B. Jones after dinner, and I said, "Of course!".  Well, I had a meeting to go to from 7-9, and she came knocking on my door as I was getting ready.  When she saw that I had changed my clothes, her face fell, and, even though I had been telling all the kids, all day, that I would be going to this meeting, apparently she forgot, and there she was, book in hand, ready to read TO ME.   She crumpled, buried her face in a pillow and sobbed that I was going out.  Mind you, I don't go out a lot, and usually only when there is something that I really need to go to.  She also doesn't cry at the drop of a hat, so of course I felt horrible.  I promised her we would read when I got home, (even though it would officially be past her bedtime by then).  As I was leaving, Mick started crying, too, and I was so tempted to reconnect the cable and turn the TV on so they'd have something else to focus on, other than their mother abandoning them!!!!  As I was driving to the meeting, my 15 year old passed me on her bike, returning from a friend's house.  She waved happily, and as I caught sight of her in the rear view mirror, I couldn't help but wonder where the time has gone since she used to want to read with me!  They do grow so fast.  Anyhow, I came home at 9, put on pjs, and Colleen and I curled up in my bed so that she could read to me.  3 minutes passed and there was a knock on the door.  It was Shane, who wanted to listen too.  1 more minute passed.....knock, knock, it was Megan, wanting to join in.  2 minutes later, Timmy was at the door, wanting to know if we were having a party in here.  By this time, my bed looked like Charlie's grandparents' bed in Willy Wonka - 3 at the head of the bed, and two at the foot of the bed.  Colleen was getting frustrated at each new arrival, and interruption.  We've been sporadically reading  "Mrs Pigglewiggle", so I took over the reading, and we read a chapter about a boy who had trouble sharing.  I would love to have a Mrs Pigglewiggle of my own to go to for advice on child-rearing!  All the noise woke Kiley up, and she ended up in bed with us.  I really think she just likes to be included in things.  After that chapter, Colleen said she was tired, and we all said prayers and they went to bed.  Kiley fell asleep with no trouble, too!  Reading to your children is heavily stressed in the schools.  My kids are strong readers, so far.  Colleen is getting there.  But I can't take the credit, I don't read to them nearly enough (I barely have time to finish a magazine in one sitting myself!).  I am glad we read tonight.  I had intended to call an old, dear friend tonight, who I got an email from today.  Mary, if you read this, I hope you will forgive me, and I will call tomorrow so we can catch up!  I know that when I take a little extra time with my kids, we are all better for it.  Makes me realize how little it takes to make them happy.  That's something I need to remember.............

silverware....

We had our monthly parish council meeting at the O'club this morning.  It was a breakfast meeting, and we were one by one, serving ourselves from the buffet.  Our table had not been set with silverware, and as sat down with my plate, our parish priest turned to me and asked, "Do you need weapons?"  I laughed, and said he must have been looking through my window at mealtime, and he said, "Hey, I'm from a big family, too!"

The advance party (about 35 Marines) arrived from Iraq this evening.  It was great to see the families reunited with their Marines.  I look forward to our turn in a few weeks, when the main body gets back.  There will be a lot more people at that event.  Pretty sure I won't have too much trouble finding the one who belongs to me, though!  I can't wait....

So very hot....

Wow, it's hot today.  The maintenance man who came to fix my a/c this afternoon said it was 110* outside.  Hotter in Iraq, I'm sure.  We've been suffering silently (some more silently than others) for the last couple of days, because I haven't been home for a long enough stretch of time to be here to let the maintenance guys in.  So they came today.  First, they took the 20 lb bag of dog food (for the 13 lb dog) off of the vent in the kitchen.  Then they took a plastic bag out of the vent in the downstairs bathroom.  (MICK!) .  Then they removed the backpack that was on the vent in the hallway, and turned the switch upstairs off of fan, and back onto auto.  Viola!  It is no longer hot in here!  One of these days, they are going to start charging me for house calls...........