Mom news, Halloween news, Football news...
2005-10-17
11:22 p.m.
I sort of promised Grizmom an entry in an e-mail earlier today, so here goes.
I disappeared because -- and I'd fill in the blank with a good excuse if I had one, but I have none. Because I'm lazy sometimes. There, just spilled the truth.
My mom's house is coming along. And she's actually probably coming along faster than most of her neighbors, because my brother is recruiting all of his friends who just happen to be contractors in varying professions. The carpenter has been there twice and will be back this week. The roofing contractor is already done. Sometime this week the electrician and AC guys are coming down to have a look and decide what she needs.
Since this area was so hard hit, contractors are pretty hard to come by. She's really very lucky to be as far along as she is. And yet she is so very impatient right now. As would I be.
Her spirits are good, though, for the most part. She and my brother are now driving each other up the wall, but they're still getting by. She bought a new car last weekend...off a ship, sight unseen, because that's how you buy Toyota Camrys in Southeast Louisiana right now. In fact, she didn't make up her mind soon enough on one car on the list and it was sold in that time..a whole hour and half or so later. She ended up with one just like it but in a different color.
Last week I worked in Mississippi, then arrived home Friday night to two very happy boys and one very happy husband. And I told myself for the whole 600 miles home I will not bitch about the state of the house. (It was every bit as bad as I usually return to.) I held that promise for almost 24 hours. I think that's a record. But Hubby is surprising me more and more each trip with how much he's doing with the kids, so I guess that's the trade-off. I can say that now since I've got the house cleaned up and in shape again.
Hubby left Sunday to attend a training class in Houston all week. Our kids now have no idea which parent will be home when they awaken every morning. He'll be home late Thursday night, though.
Sunday the boys and I went to a Cub Scouts event at one of the local pumpkin patches. I wasn't all that fired up on going, because I just wanted to stay hooooome, but went anyhow. It really worked out well, because the leader had changed the meeting time to 1:00 at her house, instead of 12:45 at the gates. Only she e-mailed that change to my hubby at work, and not me at home. We were there at the gates waiting on them at 12:45.
Finally we went on and did everything there -- jump castles, face painting, "educational pumpkin lecture," hay bales maze, hay ride, petting zoo -- and were paying for the pumpkins we picked out when the rest of the Cub Scouts arrived. And since Youngest Son had already had a meltdown over there being no more change in my pocket to buy goat feed at the petting zoo, I was in no way planning to stay and do it all over again. Got to spend a nice afternoon with the kids, visited with the other Scout parents about 10 or 15 minutes while the kids all jumped in the jump castles some more, then scooted on out of there. Huzzah!
The Scout leader, bless her heart, planned to have a scarecrow stuffing at her house after the pumpkin patch. Crazy woman planned on stuffing an adult size and a child size scarecrow. Picture 10 nine-year-old boys hopped up on an afternoon together at the pumpkin patch already, throw in a napless Youngest Son and myself, who just wanted to be hoooome, and you got yourself an activity I did not want to attend. Fortunately we got out of there without Oldest Son even knowing about it. And he'll miss Scouts this week because he has a make-up football game that night.
We went to football practice tonight. Oldest Son didn't want to go, which really surprised me. He's been so excited about it, this was the first I'd heard he didn't want to go. I listened to him whine all the way there. When I pulled in the parking lot I told him if he wasn't going to practice, he had to go tell his coach himself and ask when the next practice was. He could come back and tell me which one he was doing, staying or going.
He decided to stay. Pphhew. My instinct was to force him to go on and practice and not even listen to thoughts he didn't want to, but decided to make him make the decision. Still looking for that manual he was supposed to come with.
Turns out he had one of the best practices ever tonight. I'm amazed at how quick and aggressive he is sometimes. He does fight back with Youngest Son some, but on the whole I don't find he has an aggressive personality at all. It's kind of fun to see him go for it and take chances on the football field. Kind of like seeing a whole different side of his emerging personality.
Needless to say, he was very proud of himself for a.) making the right decision, and b.) playing his heart out, too. Plus we got his football pictures back tonight, and they are very good pictures. Glad my husband went against my instincts and bought the big package.
Tomorrow night we're going to be at the school for 6:00 for the Trunk or Treat program the PTA arranged. They asked for volunteer parents to park in the school parking lot with their trunks decorated and give out Halloween candy to the students that attend. A message left on my machine tonight said to prepare for 250 kids who had RSVP'd. I suspect there will be even more than that. This school has an enrollment of at least 1,200 kids, K through 5.
I'd planned to decorate in the '50s theme, with some fun foam wigs I bought for all of us in Mississippi. While the kids are having fun with the wigs, they nixed the '50s idea and instead insisted on a Power Ranger and a Harry Potter costume when we went costume shopping Saturday night. They had the cutest little Elvis costume I tried to talk Youngest Son into, but he wasn't swaying from the Power Ranger. I'm afraid my days of getting to pick the costumes are over.
On a side note, shopping with Youngest Son is so much easier than shopping with Oldest Son. Youngest Son had his mind made up when we walked in the door. We could have picked up a Power Ranger outfit and walked out in five minutes with him. And he's pretty much like that all the time. His mind is made up easily. But lo there is no swaying him if something is not practical or not available. Oldest Son, on the other hand, must inspect and try on each option available to him and would still be there deciding if we hadn't told him an hour into the trip we were leaving, costume or no, to make up his mind now.
Don't know how in the world I'll decorate the trunk for Harry Potter. Any ideas? Must be simple, quick and cheap (see above note about candy for 250 kids).
And because I don't ever have enough irons in the fire, well, Cinzel, this idea might be interesting to you. I got a notice in Youngest Son's cubby today about a party being thrown by another mom in day care. She makes decorated purses and hair bows, children's items, etc. I bought a cute black canvas bag from her, and she monogrammed it in hot pink and added a pink sort of fur, I guess you'd call it, around the top. Kitschy and cute.
Anyway, she's having a party Saturday night, and I was thinking, hmmmm, wonder if she'd want to add some jewelry stock to that party....just a thought. I probably won't, though, because Hubby is taking both boys to a hockey game that night (another Scouts event), and I'll have the house allllll to myself for three or four hours. Thinking about it, though... :)
I know this was all riveting news. Hope you're all still awake!
Over and out.
1 comments so far Summer Gale - 2005-10-18 11:58:03
Have you read happy potter? He's so easy! Some round glasses and a lightning bolt then think of wands and school stuff like a few books or graduation robes. A giant spider and if you have a tree like anything make it into the whomping willow. That is such a good idea I can't believe more people aren't doing it!
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