I Cried During Diary of a Wimpy Kid--Clearly I Am Worn Out

I was exhausted on Friday night.  I was home cooking shrimp with pasta and grilling salmon because our refrigerator #2 went on the blink and the frozen shrimp and fish had defrosted.  Eldest son runs in the door at 7:10 after having been out of the house since 6:30 a.m.--school and then baseball practice.  He runs in and through the kitchen asking if I could take him and a friend to the movies for a 7:35 movie.  Sure, I say.  Hubs was having a social hour with work friends, which he never does, so I obliged.  Seems there was texting to girls on the way over, who were waiting there.  The next day he told me he saw Diary of a Wimpy Kid--Roderick Rules, and that it was pretty funny.  Anyway, here is a recent shot of Eldest.  I just measured Eldest and Middle.  Middle has grown an inch in a month, and Eldest a half inch.

I had a date with Youngest to see this movie on Sunday--we had bought Red Vines for me the week prior, and Milk Duds for him and Starburst to share.  But we went on Saturday after all baseball games were cancelled due to the moonsoons that stayed around all weekend.

Previously I've blogged that Hubs and I won't go to the movies again for a long time, but I do like taking the kids (well, apparently Eldest makes his own arrangements now) and one expects noise from kids and a kid movie--it is not like it was The King's Speech.  We sat in a section to the right, and it was a bigger than usual theater.  I whispered to Youngest, "Isn't it nice not having anyone behind us or in front of us?"  Yep, jinxed it.  A mom arrived with 5 boys, and I totally get that.  The 5 boys sat behind us and the mom sat behind them.  However, if I did this and saw one of the boys with his foot on my chair about one centimeter from my head I'd nix-nay that.  I had to turn around twice and was "this" close to saying something when she noticed and told him to put his foot down.

Well, I cried during the movie.  I enjoyed it--it was all about Greg Heffly (a Middle) and his older bro and having to get along.  They toned down the parents--not as goofy as previous Wimpy movie.  My fave Harry Potter movie is the 3rd one because it was all about relationships too.  So here I am as usual--not enough sleep, stressed, and hormonal. 

A couple weeks ago I had to go to Albuquerque, NM for business.  I was so excited to see this different part of the USA for 48 hours.  I researched what to do and where to eat.  I had lots of quiet time in a hotel.  But I really, terribly missed being at home with the usual boy action.  It wasn't as great as I thought it would be and I realized that was because it wasn't really a vacation, and I wasn't with friends or family.  But I did take this photo in Old Town near sunset time:

Saturday’s Super Size Full Moon at Sunset

And here I thought I was going to write about this month's full moon being the Full Worm Moon.  Well, that is what those originally in North America named this moon, knowing it's when the Earth begins to thaw out and get ready for spring (and last year in March I checked it out and there ARE bunches of earthworms under there!).

But I was doing my pre-full moon Googling and found out that this Saturday the full moon will be a Supermoon--the biggest in almost 20 years.  It turns out that full moons vary in size to us because of the oval shape of the Moon's orbit. It is an ellipse with one side (perigee) which is closer to Earth than the other (apogee).  This Saturday's full perigee moon will look 12-14% bigger and 30% brighter than moons that we see on the apogee side of the Moon's orbit.

And, the full Moon on March 19th (technically around 7:00 p.m.) occurs less than one hour away from perigee--and that happens only 18 years or so.

I'm looking forward to this special weekend.  I'll definitely check out this last full moon of the winter.  It will be fullest at sunset on Saturday.  And then Sunday at sunset…..spring will officially begin.  So glad these events are taking place at sunset because as far as the mornings go, I have been announcing all week that I am going to sleep in big time on Saturday and Sunday.

Picking Through the Trash Twice in a Week

On the weekend we were missing "the red phone".  This is on of two cell phones we added a while ago to the house so that we would have a home phone and an extra phone for the kids to use.  Finally it was found deep into an arm chair cushion after every one of us tried looked under the cushion but finally Hubs reached down the side and found it.  Before it was discovered, I emptied out the kitchen trash can.  Call me crazy, but I have a small red camera and one day it was missing and I found it in the waste basket we keep next to a desk.

The second trash picking incident that occurred last night was much messier.  You know all those papers that kids bring home from school?  I only have one elementary school aged child left and I am still amazed at the amount of paper that is sent home.  Every Friday I check his folder and throw out papers.  But on Thursday night he decided to switch around a binder and he left a bunch of worksheet papers on the table. 

Now, here is how I make bacon: I put some sheets of folded up newspaper on a plate and then put three paper towels on top of that and then lay out the bacon strips and then microwave it for 4 minutes.  Many weekends I cook bacon on Sunday with a big breakfast.  Only this past weekend I made a big breakfast on Saturday.  There was no Sunday paper (Hubs is old fashioned and likes to get the Sunday paper and he brings home bagels so it works for all of us).  I needed some papers for my method of absorbing the bacon grease.  So I grabbed some of these busy-work-looking papers that Mr. 4th grader left lying around.  We had our breakfast, went on our merry way the rest of the weekend, which involves massive amounts of food cooking as usual.  And then of course there were lots of trash bags that went from the kitchen to the bin outside on Saturday.  And on Sunday.

Last night Youngest asks if I had seen a paper he had on the table with a story about water lilies (yes I did, because I read everything before I throw it out or use it for bacon-cooking). 

So the first time I ever use papers that are not newspapers to assist in my cooking of greasy bacon turns out to be papers that Youngest needs to turn in.  So in addition to everything else, I found myself last night in my work clothes going through 4 bags of kitchen trash outside with him.

He is actually taking these to school today -- they are folded up and in a ziplock bag.  I hope the teacher likes bacon.  He will ask for some new sheets and he tells me that he can't read some of his answers so he'll have to redo a few.

Thinking of Grandma today

My maternal Grandma will turn 90 on her next birthday and today she is having elective surgery to redo her hip surgery.  She lives a 10-hour drive away, in Naples, Florida (I have been visiting there since the 1960's when it was quite, quite different than it is now.  Sigh).

Over two years ago she went outside, zipping along as usual, and tripped.  That is all it took to require hip surgery, be in a convalescent home recuping for three months and not be able to drive again.  She decided that she does not want to continue using a walker to get around, and not being able to drive, and most of all not happy that the surgery didn't heal as well as it should, so she found a doctor who says he does hip surgery on many her age.

She is brave and determined and wants to take the chance for an improvement for however long she has left.  As she always says, "Thank goodness I still have my faculties."   We have gotten closer over the past few years, recognizing our commonalities.  She has talked to me about how she has arranged "her affairs" "in case something happens."  We talk about The Bachelor.  She doesn't get why Brad is appealing at all to these gals.

So today she is in my thoughts and hope that all goes well.  Here is a photo of us from the late 1970's.  I have no idea who that guy is to the left, posing.

Ten Minutes In and We Walked Out Of The Movie Theater Tonight

Well, I'm sure that Hubs and I will be speaking of tonight for many years to come.  We made plans to go out tonight to see A King's Speech.  So we left the two teens at home (the youngest was sleeping at a friends house) and we headed out early to shop at a few stores first--the movie theater was attached to a mall.  There there was a Chili's at this mall and we had some dinner and had a super nice waitress and everything was peachy.


We arrived early for our 7:30 movie and it was at the very end of the hallway.  It was such a small theater, but we had our pick of the rows and we sooted in the middle.  The seats were comfy and I was feeling fine (back at the restaurant I had ordered a "platinum" margarita and had no idea it was one of those in which the glass is the size of a soccer ball).


More and more people arrived and just before the movie started, our row was completely filled up except for the seat next to Hubs, who was on my right.  On my left was an older man who resembled Bad Santa with a very large belly....and he was snoring very loudly.  Hubs looked over at him to check out who was sleeping--only the man wasn't sleeping--this was his breathing style.  Inhale and exhale...inhale and exhale.  Loud and annoying.  Plus, he smelled like mothballs (Hubs agreed on this later).  Ugh.


Then a minute after the movie started another very large man takes the seat next to Hubs.  Another Loud Breather!!  But not as loud as Snore Man next to me.  As soon as this guy sat down he took out his IPhone and checked his mail.  Oh no.  This guy was going to hear it from Hubs.  We saw True Grit over Winter Break and a guy in front of us did this--right at the time the teenager Mattie was in the snake pit and Hubs yells out, "Put The Phone Away!"  It really was deserved.


Fortunately this guy did not check the phone again....at least not while we were still there....  The movie began and we started to hear really loud noises like babies crying, shrieks here and there, lots of talking, white noise, etc. coming from next door.  I wondered what movie was playing so loud that we had to hear it.  We tried to ignore it and concentrate on the movie, which is after all about a man's speech and so one is fixed on the words.  It's not like our movie had any music or a loud soundtrack to drown out these distracting noises from next door.  I whispered to Hubs, "What on earth is playing next door?" and he tells me that it is the entrance/foyer area of the mall and the noise is the population out there.  WTH?


Meanwhile, Snore Moth Ball Man next to me is relentless.  Hubs and I agree we can't take it any longer.  I suggested to Hubs that he walk out and tell management about the mall noise and I'd wait.  A few minutes later he appeared back at the doorway with a gesture that mission was accomplished and I left as well and we got our money back (manager was very nice, offered another movie, or our money back).


On the way home we fantasized about winning the lottery and then creating our own movie theater room or at least renting out a theater.  I don't mean to sound all crabby but I am sort of glad that the noise from outside the theater was so loud and gave us a final reason to leave because Snore Man #1 and #2 would have ruined the movie for us without a doubt (and with the theater so small there weren't any seats left).  Shucks, I know it is a good movie, but looks like we won't be going to any movie theaters together for a while.

Engaged Parenting

It’s been a weary parenting week—seems there is always something to address every night, or a sports practice.  In a couple of weeks I will be going to a pretty cool part of the USA for a business trip on a Friday and I asked Hubs if he wanted to go too and we’d farm out the kids and make a weekend out of it—not something previously done.  I was all caught up in the idea but after talking about it we realized that it was far to go for just 2.5 days, flying is a huge hassle, the three boys in three different schools and two in sports…..is a lot going on.  Hubs does have summers off and loves road trips.  And right now it is best for one parent to be here and hold down the fort—I swear these teens keep you on your toes if you are engaged and know what’s going on.

Now that they are 14 and 13 I think a lot about when I was their age and I thought of something I hadn’t thought of in 25 years or so.  Picture high school with all of its activities—sports, clubs, lots of homework, wanting to be with friends.

When I was 15 and my brother was 17, my mother and ex-step-father left us alone at home while they went on a vacation.  I’m not talking about a weekend alone as portrayed in movies, or like my Hubs’ stories of parents leaving for the weekend and the kids had a party.

My folks went to Europe for 4 weeks and left us alone.  This was in the time before cell phones.  My mother had decided that November was a good time to go to Europe (less crowded).  So they went to all the typical countries for a pleasure trip (the two of them during our school year).  

 Making a phone call from Europe was a big deal back then.  There were no neighbors, friends or family  taking care of us (we’d moved to this new part of town 4 months prior).  I have no idea how they could have been reached if something had happened.  My mom called us a couple of times.

I remember she left a well-stocked refrigerator and $200 for groceries and gasoline.  My brother didn’t have his own car so he used hers for getting to school.  He went to a public school located in our old neighborhood about 25 miles away.  I do recall a big lecture later on how much mileage he put on the car—I remember that he took off to see friends on the weekends.

I was 15 and had been going to the same private school for years—my folks moved a lot around a large, metro area, buying, renovating and reselling our homes.  Luckily for me, after 7^th grade,  changing zip codes did not mean I had to change schools every couple years.  There were no buses so it was customary for parents to arrange a carpool, or to pay a senior who had her own car to have riders the whole year.  We lived pretty far from my school but there was a senior in my area who picked me up and brought me home every day for the 45 min ride. 

Amazingly  I got dressed in my uniform each morning and made my lunch every day.  I did my homework each day and studied for tests/did projects.  Who knows what we did for dinner – frozen food I guess (my mom laughed afterward for years at how the salad stuff she left in the fridge had turned to “green soup” while she was gone).  All of my friends from school lived spread-out over miles of this metro area so no friends nearby.  And we had no outside activities such as sports or clubs.  We are lucky that my brother and I were pretty good kids and nothing bad happened.  

Back to the present, the important thing for us is that Hubs and I do want alone time together and we will try again this weekend to see a movie and maybe have a bite to eat together.  That kind of getaway we can do right now.

Yes! I Still Have One Who Loses Teeth!

Yesterday when I got home from work all three boys were playing basketball in the driveway.  It made my heart full of joy because they were playing together and seemed to be having fun (lately Eldest tends to pick on Middle and Middle tends to pick on Youngest).

Youngest son runs over to my window and opens his mouth to show me that a lower, front molar has fallen out and in its place I see the top of a new molar coming in.  It seems it has been a while since anyone in our house lost a tooth.  I remember one week four years ago when all three were losing teeth and the Tooth Fairy was scrounging around for dollar bills.

I got a kick out of Youngest telling me yesterday that he may have to leave a note for the Tooth Fairy because he left his tooth at school.  He was with another teacher’s kid in a different classroom after school, chewing a Starburst candy when it happened—he felt a gap in his mouth and took out the somewhat chewed Starburst and his tooth was stuck in it.  I told him it would have been pretty cool to put the tooth along with the Starburst in a baggie.

I forgot to remind him last night to leave a note….and I got another kick out of parenthood when this morning when I woke him up he reached under his pillow (nothing under it) and said, “Oh yeah, I need to find my tooth at school this morning and then bring it home.”  Well, he knows what is up with parents and the Tooth Fairy (he’s age 10), but what kid doesn’t love money and this kid is sweet to indulge his mom in the tooth-losing-parent-ritual-process. We have found middle son in the closet on the phone near midnight a few times recently talking to a girl, and Oldest doing other teenage things recently so I was quite ecstatic to ooh and ahh over Youngest’s missing tooth and Tooth Fairy ceremonial.

However, this afternoon I will be getting on a plane and will spend the night somewhere else tonight so Hubs needs to wear the male-version of the Tooth Fairy role tonight.  I left two dollar bills on his side of the bed and will remind him on the phone about three times tonight (regular teeth always earn $1 in our house but molars fetch $2).  Off topic—why is it that when I go out of town and want to vegetate in a hotel bed and watch TV with my very own remote control that he suddenly has to talk on the phone with me for an hour (I am prepared with my phone charger today).

Before I leave to head to the airport in search of a security line that does not have a body scanner (easy to do in Atlanta; other states not so much) I’d like to mention a PSA on multiple offspring and losing teeth.  If you are saving teeth, label envelopes or put post-it notes in baggies with ages and whose tooth it is.  Or maybe I am the only one who didn’t think about setting up a filing system for teeth??  On my cupboard-cleaning kick last month I opened a bathroom drawer and found about 20 zip lock baggies with one tooth in each baggie and only a few notes as to the date and whose tooth it was!  I moaned and groaned over this but then realized that the boys won’t care.  Youngest has his “eyeteeth” and a few more molars left to lose so maybe I’ll start a more organized method of tooth identification.  And to be honest I threw a few out since they had some blood and looked gross.  One can’t be sentimental over everything….. did I mention that one of the boys has now reached my height.....