Monday Morning Weekend Wrap Up

And only 7 more Sundays until Christmas - let the insanity begin

Wednesday
A half day for The Youngest, followed by two days off of school. The annual Halloween parade and party, and I invited Corky. She loved it, and The Youngest loved having her there, as did I. I was able to introduce her to more parents at the elementary school, including the principal. It is all good, and I couldn't be happier with her, and with people being so cool.

Thursday
Went to a school district training in the morning, and got ready for a party in the afternoon. Made a couple of treats (photos tomorrow) and BFF had a party. When we got there, about an hour early, she was stressed to the ceiling and ready to break down. Got her calmed, and probably pissed her off some too, and the party was okay - not a rager, and the kids decided to go out on their own. They did fine, even though I was concerned about The Youngest going with the older kids. They took care of him and made sure not to leave him behind. An hour and a half later, and they were back with FULL bags of candy. We stayed and visited, and it was cool. I feel like my kids aren't kids anymore and it must have happened when I blinked because I could swear they weren't old enough to do that. Then I remember being allowed to trick or treat with my friends at the same age. And so it goes. Drove The Boys back to the ex, and crashed when I got home.

Friday
I had a procedure to test for abnormal endometrial cells, in preparation for an endometrial ablation in the near future. I was prepared for pain, but it was relatively simple, quick and completely painless. Corky came with me just in case, and I took a sick day. Afterward, we ran a couple of errands and decided to get out of town, to one of my favorite local places. We went to Santa Cruz, and I showed her my version of the town which included lunch at Saturn Cafe, a walk on the mall, and a tour of UC Santa Cruz and the Yacht Harbor. It was a wonderful day, and I remember how badly I want to spend time like this with her. I love spending time with The Boys and Corky, but I also love having her all to myself, and being able to experience stuff just the two of us. I must remember to schedule more of these days. We hightailed it home (or went as quickly as one can in stop and go traffic on a Friday night, during rush hour), anticipating the return of The Boys after dinner, which ended up being after 9pm... Another communication fail from the ex.

Saturday
I was able to sleep in, but that put me under the gun to complete some stuff before going to the High School band review. I did manage to bathe the dogs, but I didn't complete a presentation promised to the elementary school principal before leaving because it took four hours to get The Boys showered and dressed and out the door. That was likely due to the sugar crash they suffered when I awoke. They'd already been into their stash of Halloween candy for hours at that point, based on the sheer volume of wrappers strewn about the living room and kitchen. We sold Jelly Bellys for a couple of hours. (I know, I know - and I wouldn't have signed up, had I known I am supposed to be boycotting them...) It was a fundraiser for the middle school band - and the trip to Disneyland in the Spring. The Boys went back with the ex, and Corky, her roommate and I went to dinner. I did complete the presentation and sent it to the principal after 10pm, then to bed.

Sunday
Slept a total of 13 hours - though with the time change it looked like 12... Felt WAY more rested when I did get up. BFF came by with some stuff for me to print, wrote a communication for the middle school, and went to Costco with Corky and her roommate. Hadn't been in about a decade. Managed to get out for only slightly over $100, but that included flea & tick medicine for the dogs. Dinner of soup & sandwich with Corky, and home to wait for The Boys. Sent text at 8pm asking when the ex was bringing them & he wasn't planning on it, even though he has always brought them home on Sunday night... He forgot that's what the norm was... Another communication fail, and it makes me wonder if he isn't winding up for another seizure. We've been doing this for a year and a half and he has never had them overnight on a Sunday... Weird.

I hope you all have a fruitful and encouraging week ahead!

Thoughtful Thursday and Happy Halloween

Love and hug those around you while you can.

Today I am grateful for the life I have. I wouldn't change anything about my past because it continues to shape who I am and will become. I have hopes and dreams, but I am not overlooking exactly how fortunate I am. I grew up with parents who placed importance on education, and with teachers who cared. I hope I am passing down those same values to my kids. Not through my words, but through my actions. In fact, that has been a central theme lately. "It isn't what you say, it's what you do." I am doing my best to ensure my loved ones know that they are loved. I actually probably "do" too much, but I also have inherited the need to help out when I see there is a gap.

What I haven't had in a very, very long time, is someone standing with me to help, or just offer encouragement and support. I have that now, and sometimes it overwhelms me. Sometimes I don't believe it, and sometimes I push her away a bit because I have been hurt by the last person to promise support (but not really show that). That's mine to own and work out, and I will. In times of high stress (now), I need to remember to take care of myself, and look at all I have in my life. My problems truly are first world problems, and do not impact my ability to actually live, nor will they cause me to have to make any particularly difficult decisions. For all of that, and the ability to accept the words when reminded, I am grateful.

Love and Peace and Happiness for you all.
Oh, and have a safe and happy Halloween

This year's carvings:

Mine is Corky:

When it rains, it pours

My life is so busy right now that I absolutely have not had a moment to spare to write in my paper journal, let alone here. I am on a CMMi Appraisal at work, requiring 6A-4P on the phone and computer with my lunch break occurring at 9:30A. Today there was an interview at 8A, requiring me to send The Boys to school on their own, which made me mildly nervous. This insane work schedule started last week, and I took 2 days vacation to travel with The Oldest and 17 other 4th and 5th graders and 8 other adults. We had a crazy busy schedule fro two days that looked like this:
Thursday:
7:30A - Leave School
10:00A - Pitch tents at campground
11:00A - Tour State Park museum with Ranger
Bag lunch at cemetery
1:00P - School house presentation with docent
2:00P - Drive to Caverns
3:15P - Tour caves
5:00P - Return to camp for dinner
Story
9:00P - Bed

Friday:
7:30A - Breakfast
Break camp
9:00A - Explore Old Town merchants
10:30A - Pan for Gold
Stage Coach ride
1:00P Railway Museum
3:00P - Leave for school
5:00P - Return to school

What REALLY happened:
Thursday:
7:15-7:30A - Run around like crazy trying to figure out if we have all of the people and stuff we need.
7:30A - pile 4 kids and 2 adults and as much stuff as possible into my car and leave the school.
9:30A - First to arrive at campground and check in
10:00A - Pitch tents at campground while trying to get kids to help and set up their own stuff.
11:00A - Tour State Park museum with Ranger - This was REALLY cool.
Bag lunch after recovering from a hike to the school house, then a walk through the cemetery.
1:00P - School house presentation with docent - Also REALLY cool.
2:00P - Drive to Caverns
3:15P - Tour caves (165 ft below ground - gotten to via spiral staircase, also the only way back out...)
4:00P - Realize how very little aerobic activity there is in my life
4:30P - pull over the car and kick The Oldest to the side of the road for throwing an Altoids tin at the front windshield while we were travelling at 55 MPH
4:40P - Let The Oldest back into the car after calming down.
5:00P - Return to camp and snack on dried fruit and saltines. Dinner was shredded pork, baked beans (with pork), corn bread and butter, which the kids made while dinner was being prepared. I didn't eat the non vegetarian options.
Story - I read this to the kids by campfire light.
8:00-10:00P - Trying to get the kids to go to sleep, listening to giggling and talking and yelling

Friday:
6:00A - Kids start waking up
6:30A - one dad yells at awake kids, "Hey Jackasses, if any of you wake my kid, you will answer to me" - this was WAY louder than any of the kids who were awake, and was likely the reason his kid looked sleepy all day.
7:30A - Breakfast
Break camp - really more trying to get the kids and all the stuff crammed back into the cars.
9:00A - Explore Old Town merchants - this included a bowling alley and apothecary, blacksmith too.
10:30A - Pan for Gold - The kids LOVED this part.
11:40A - Stage Coach ride - They also loved this and chattered away about how awesome it was while we walked to the Mercantile to pick up lunches.
12:30P - walked to Limestone area and kids played while adults chilled.
1:00P - Left for Railway Museum, which was closed.
2:30P - Leave for school
4:30P - Return to school
5:30-9:00P - The Oldest was a t a Birthday party for a friend with many of the kids from the camping trip. Reports from the parents who attended made it sound like a therapy session with laughter one moment and crying the next.

This weekend was also Halloween Fun Night. Because I was gone for the 2 days preceding the event, I was not heavily involved in set up. I kind of missed that level of involvement, but the one person who I would do absolutely anything for (as evidenced HERE) was not in fact involved at all. I really missed doing this event together, but I'll survive...

Saturday was an early Football game, then helping rig some things for Halloween Fun Night, then an afternoon Soccer game. That was followed by attending Halloween Fun Night, and photographing the event. The kids all had a ton of fun!

Sunday brought me back to the school for 6 hours to clean up Halloween Fun Night. The clean up crew was 3 adults, and 5 kids under age 12. It took WAY longer than it could have.

Monday started a grueling work schedule that has me waking up at 4:30A and working on phone and computer from 6A-4P, and mostly unable to get The Boys to and from school. Thankfully I have dear friends willing to watch out for them and make sure they make it to and from school.

Oh, and The Dude was out of town Wednesday last week to Tuesday this week.

I'm wiped out, and the work schedule continues through November 18th.

Sunday Evening Weekend Wrap Up

Another INSANELY busy weekend...
Friday was Halloween Party at The Boys' school, starting with a parade after lunch, and continuing with food and games at school. Everyone had a great time and the weather was fantastic! Following school, we headed to the 9th Birthday of a friend, which was themed around "It's The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown". Everyone was in costumes, and the party transitioned to a Halloween Party 3 hours later. For a couple of hours in the middle of the parties I left for Happy Hour with some friends, and returned to the party refreshed and looking forward to kids running amok. Finally talked The Boys into going home around 9:00.
Saturday, The Youngest had an early soccer game, after which we ran to get candy for later. The Youngest had another Birthday Party, and I took The Oldest to play mini golf. It was a nice Mommy and Me day for us, and we had just enough time to get home, carve pumpkins, get dressed, eat dinner and get out the door for Trick or Treating. We walked for 2 hours with friends all around our neighborhoods, and by the end a few of the kids were whinning about sore feet and being tired. I mapped it tonight, and we walked 2 1/4 miles! That's pretty far for The Youngest, and The Oldest didn't complain at all. We ended up home at 9:00 again, which helped them sleep in until 7:00 this morning, but they were really dragging all day.
Today was laundry and grocery shopping, and claening. Oma and Opa brought over additional toy shelves (made by Opa) to add to what The Boys already have, so I emptied out the 4 shelf unit and washed it down, and now it is 2, 3 shelf units. I also had The Boys help me clean the playroom and look for The Oldest's iPod shuffle. We didn't find it, and I had to ask his best friend where they put it down on Tuesday when they were playing. He says the playroom, so it's my turn tomorrow to tear it apart and look bid by bin, shelf by shelf. GAH! The Boys fell asleep on the couch by 8:15, so they should be back to normal sleep tomorrow, just in time for school.

My Town Shoot Out - Park Landscapes

I'm coming, I'm coming!  I'm Late, I'm Late, for a very important date!!!!

This week's shoot out theme is courtesy of JarieLyn of Write Place! Write Chick! "When I think of park landscapes, I think about the design of an entire park. This could be a local park or a state park. A park landscape not only includes trees, plants, grass, ponds and bushes but also could include functionality such as playgrounds, baseball diamonds, soccer fields, skateboard parks, tennis courts, swimming pools, etc. Some parks also have decorative items scattered about such as statues, monuments, benches, courtyards, buildings, etc. What makes the parks in your town special and/or fun? Tell us in pictures what it is about your park(s) that captivates you. ... here is a photo of one of the state parks located in my town of Las Vegas, Nevada."
I encourage you to go and see everyone's contributions here!

that date was Halloween, and these are why:

And this year's Pumpkins:

Monday Evening Weekend Wrap Up

OOOOkaaaayyyyyy
The weekend is over, and I'm pooped!
Friday, The Boys had a field trip to the pumpkin patch/corn maze where it was over 80 degrees after having rained early in the week, making for a humid maze, where my hair frizzed and I sweated while following a group of 3 boys, only one of whom was mine. We then went to the pumpkin patch part of the day where they found a corn pit, which is basically a GIANT sand box with dried corn instead of sand. A bit easier to get out of hair/clothes/shoes. Following the field trip, we went home, and I loaded the moon, clouds, trees and fortune teller booth and headed to the school to set up for Halloween Fun Night (HFN). I was doing that until 10 that night, came home and went to bed.
Saturday I was back at the school at 10am to continue setting up. I had to leave at 1:30 for The Youngest's soccer game. I got back home at 4:30, changed into costume and went back to work HFN selling tickets at the door. MDH and The Boys came over to HFN at about 5:30, and my folks were there with one of my nephews. The cafeteria looked great, the Haunted House was a HUGE success, and the dinner was yummy! The raffle baskets were as popular as ever, and the cake walk was epic! I also stayed to clean up until about 10pm. When I got home, I found out that the neighbor and friend of The Youngest was having a Birthday Party the next day...
Sunday The Boys and I went to continue the HFN cleanup from 10:00 to 2:00. After that, I dropped them at the house and ran for the Birthday present, where I also picked up 3 other presents for upcomming parties. I was revelling in the quiet solitude of a kid free experience for that amount of time! Because of all the activity, I had to cram all of the laundry into Sunday night - bleh. The boys were wiped out, I'm still pretty tired, and we all have a full week ahead, 2 more birthday parties this weekend, a Halloween party at school, trick - or - treating, pumpkin carving - you get the idea!

Sunday Evening Weekend Wrap Up

Last week sucked. This week brings more preparations for Halloween Fun Night. This year I will forego trying to burn down the house, unlike Last Year. And because I'm using power tools, I will also not have any injuries!
Friday, The Boys were invited to a Birthday Party Sleep Over at a classmate's house. They've never gone there for playdates, and the classmate has never come over here either, so I said no. I want to have at least been to the house before I say yes. They were really angry at me, but I don't like sending my kids anywhere I haven't been. Plus, The Youngest had an early Saturday game.
Saturday was freezing foggy early soccer game. My folks were there to watch, and The Oldest complained alot. The Youngest scored a goal, so he was happy. Immediately following the game, we checked prices on supplies at the Restaurant Supply Store, and tried to drop off 4 CPR dummies for use in the Haunted House. MDH ran errands, and while he had a break, I ran mine including buying myself a new pair of running shoes (which I actually use for walking). Came home and started building trees for the decor. I'll get pictures up when I'm closer to getting something that actually looks like a tree... There are 4 semi-built trees in the garage, that can be taken apart and flattened out for storage. I need to bring home paint to finish them. I also have to measure the tables so that I can buy table cloths. There are clouds and bats, a diner and city limit sign still needing to be done, but I can knock those out fairly quickly. The trees are going to take the longest. I also did laundry, and we ordered pizza because we were too tired to cook.
Sunday MDH had an early soccer game, and I did more laundry, switched us all to flannel sheets in anticipation of more cold weather, thought about working on the trees some more, and decided to use the roto-zip for pumpkin carving this year, which will hopefully save my aching hands. I tend to go a bit overboard in the carving department, choosing VERY detailed carvings, that I then spend the entire 2 days before Halloween carving, leaving me slimy, sticky and my hands curled in claws of pain. We attended a celebration for a friend receiving his black belt in Karate. That was nice - we haven't seen these friends since summer and we've been friends since High School. In fact, she introduced MDH and I to each other. Stopped at my folks to drop off some clothes that don't fit my size or style, and came home to play in the backyard with The Boys before dinner. MDH also had an evening soccer game, and as I type - all three are watching Arly Army talk about ammunition. Also today had a "A Christmas Story" moment when The Oldest used the F-word. Because we have Bertie Bots Every Flavor Bean, and have eaten all of the not disgusting flavors, I made him eat a soap flavored bean. He picked Sardine by mistake and spent the next 45 minutes crying and gagging before we made a deal that he could hold a bar of soap in his mouth instead. He chose that. Ewww. And in case you have no idea what this is or has to do with 'A Christmas Story", I found the clip:

Weekend "off"

I took a weekend break from my blog. I know no one is really reading it, so I don't think it's that big a deal. I had other RL stuff to do. It was the Halloween Fun Night at the kids school on Saturday, and I was at the school for a total of 24.5 hours over 3 days. I am tired, but I feel good because the kids had fun - lots of fun, and the parents didn't complain too much. Or if they did, I wasn't aware of it. Then again, from my perch on stage I wouldn't have heard most of it anyway.

I got to call Bingo, and that was pretty cool. The High Schooler who was helping me was wearing a really short skirt, and kept squatting down to check people's bingo cards, so there was a glut of gawkers in the center aisle most of the time. From what I hear, she was wearing white panties, but I didn't see them.

It was a Pirate theme, and as previously mentioned I made the sail which looked cool. Most of the parents who help set up, run the event and tear down want to do a haunted house next year. We'll have a meeting to look at what worked, and any improvements, and start planning for next year. This year, planning didn't start until a month ago, so it all felt kind of rushed.

Now I can concentrate on planning end of season soccer parties, Birthday parties, Christmas - - ARGH it never ends!!!!

What I learned today

I learned today that if you hold a BBQ lighter to a $2.50 sheet in an attempt to create a more realistic pirate sail for Halloween, and you are not also holding a spray bottle, you could nearly burn down your house. I also learned that burning sheets, when stomped on will melt the bottom of your sneakers. Luckily, I still have the sneakers, and my house, and I learned a valuable lesson.

It started innocently enough. As a favor to a friend, I said I'd help with my kids' elementary school Halloween Fun Night. She's in charge of the fun night, and I am more than willing to pitch in. I went to my first meeting, and started throwing out ideas for decor. Next thing I know, I'm in charge of decorating. This weekend brought painting nursery tubs like powder kegs, and making a sail out of cheap sheets, then distressing it with paint, a steak knife and flames. It looks kind of cool, but I hope it translates ok in the gym. It's about 16' x 24' and a pain to haul around.

I'm moving my blog from a very limited area to here, so if you are reading, you'll see some back posts. I'm not very regular with posting, but occasionally I do have something interestng to say (at least to me).