Bustin' a Move

I was going to wait until I had nothing to do before returning to Blogland. With our visitors from Australia, a flooded basement, another water leak a week later, my daughter's pageant, Yellowstone, Disneyland.....I haven't had a chance to catch up! Then Seth shared with me this hilarious story:

Seth walked his girlfriend out to the car to say good-bye......his little sister (Mimi, 11) decided to follow them. As they had their arms around each other waiting for the right moment for the goodnight kiss, Mimi stood three feet away from them. Unaware of the awkwardness she was causing she stood there, dancing to the beat in her head, wiggling her hips and shaking her booty. The young couple looked at her, trying to give her the hint. Finally, Mimi said, "C'mon, Seth. Let's do the Macarena so we can go inside."

Personally, I like doing the Hustle.

Lessons From Drama

So, I told you about my sucky letter that I got on Saturday. I was a bit emotional about that on the weekend but I'm good now. Just had to get it out of my system. I'm still a little bitter. I could spew out some sarcasm, I'm sure.

Saturday, as I sat at my desk and cried, my wonderful 17 year old daughter Ali walked in and asked me what was wrong. I told her I didn't even get an interview for the position at her school that I really wanted. I had told her about it before and she thought it would be cool if I got a job at her school. I told her they probably had someone in mind for the job already.

My precious daughter put her arms around me and said, "It's okay, Mom. In theater we learn that sometimes people are already picked out for parts. And even when you do your best and you try out for a part and you don't get it, it doesn't mean you weren't good enough. It just means the part was already given to someone else. There's nothing you could have done to change it. You're still a good actor and there will be other parts."

Really? Is she mine? How did I get a daughter so wonderful? My 19 year old son, Seth, came in and hugged me and said, "I love you, Mom." Mimi just came in and hugged me. My husband of course, said everything right and encouraged me. The dog reminded me that there was still ball to play and sometimes it gets stuck under the couch and you need someone to get it for you. There's a deep analogy there for you. My true friends have dived under the couch for me this week.

I'm feeling the pressure of improving my skills so I am not at the bottom of the totem pole but schooling is really taking a big bite out of my time. I love studying graphic design but it sure is hard having much energy for anything much after that. So I'm trying to decide if I need to cut to one day a week of school or what. That was another reason I was looking forward to having summers off, so I could fill in some more time with school. Well, I'll keep reading my fortune cookies and see what life has in store for me. Any advice?

Desperate Parenting

I share this story, which I find humorous now, but oh so far away from humorous ten years ago. Young moms can learn from this, old experienced moms may applaud me. But I survived a son with behavioral problems. I'm not talking normal boy things, I'm talking about me and the principal having a close working relationship. Did I ever tell you about the time in second grade when he peed all over the other boys in the boys' bathroom? I, unfortunately, got to know all of Seth's elementary teachers.

I was the president of our children's program at our church and was holding a meeting at my house. We were planning away when Seth, fourth grade, made a huge scene. I'm talking my face was probably bright red, I was trying very hard not to kill him in front of four other women, he was screaming with his foghorn of a mouth about life not being fair and he's going to run away. I believe I told him he couldn't go outside until he cleaned up the landfill we called his bedroom. He went upstairs and packed his backpack, slamming the door as he left. It was one of those slams where you're amazed every picture didn't fall off the walls. To say the least, I was beside myself in anger. BUT......I had to remain socially respectable. Lucky for him.

When the meeting ended, I had calmed down quite a bit and decided to really dig into Seth. I made a sign and put it on our mailbox in very large letters. It said, "BOYS ROOM FOR RENT. MUST DO CHORES." A couple of neighbors called to find out if we were really renting out a room. (There goes the neighborhood!)

A couple of hours later, Seth returned, sign gone, and he said, "Sorry, Mom" and gave me a hug. Here we are ten years later and he still lives at home, usually has a messy room, still fights about mowing the lawn, doing dishes, etc. The thing is, he really can move out and we remind him of that sometimes. We parents need leveraging no matter what age our kids are.

Cheesecake Happens

Last night I had a dream that my son graduated and he was wearing a cap and gown. The thing was - he was graduating with a bunch of delinquents. I have no idea what meaning that dream has.

I got together with my BFF on Friday night while my husband went on a medieval camp with Mimi. No, I did not want to go and when Mimi called to tell me goodnight, she happened to mention there was no toilet and she would have to potty in the woods, that was an affirmation of my decision.

Karen and I ate at Rubio's where I had a sip of water that tasted like it was fresh from the toilet. Really. It was that bad. Try putting out a flaming mouth with that.

Thursday, I came home from work and our conversation went something like this:

Mimi: Why are you wearing a shirt under that shirt?

Me: 'Cause everyone would see my boobs if I didn't.

Mimi: You mean your crack?

Me: Yeah. It's actually called cleavage.

Mimi: Your crack is called cleavage?

Me: Yes.

Mimi: Your cleavage crack?

It reminds me of a time we were sitting in church, Mimi was about 2 1/2 years old. She was sitting on my lap facing me and it was dead quiet during our meeting. Next thing you know she pulls my scoop-necked T-shirt out and puts her head in and says loudly, "Mommy! You have a bum on your neck!" I handed her to Jared and didn't look up to see who saw that one.

I can't wait to explain what an anal cleft is, AKA gluteal cleft. Makes it sound so intelligently special. "Cover up your gluteal cleft." I guess that's what the thong was made for.

Thursday night I had school and Mimi wanted invitations to her birthday party to hand out the next day, which was the last day of school. So when I was telling my friend at work about her turning 10 on the 10th of June of 2010......I started crying. I didn't cry when my kids went to kindergarten, I thought they were so ready. But my baby turning 10? AND my other daughter is going to be a senior in high school this next school year. She's hoping to get a singing/theater scholarship and she said friends are talking about scholarships being better out of state. I told her she's not allowed to go out of state. I would have to move out of state with her and be her roommate.

You may notice I've put on a few pounds since my profile photo from last year. It happens fast and it sucks. I'll blame my birthday when everyone gave me cheesecake. So tonight after a girl's night with Karen, I ended it with reading all the blogs I'm following and had some cheesecake to drown my sorrows (two girls growing up).

Mother's Day

I know some of you are wondering what happened at my house for Mother's Day. Did my kids acknowledge me? Will there be Christmas this year? You remembered what happened at my birthday!

Mimi was the first awake. She was cranky as she always is in the morning. She handed me a Toblerone candy bar and says begrudgingly, "This is what Dad bought for me to give you, 'cause he wouldn't take me shopping to get you a present." Then she handed me two cards and still in her grumpy tone she said, "I made this one in Primary and I made this one in school. Dad wouldn't take me shopping."

Then Ali came up and handed me a store bag from the store she works at and inside were some earrings and a necklace. She hugged me and told me Happy Mother's Day. She got me some ice in a bag because my eye was all swollen and I had a big bag under it.

Seth gave me a metal rose that was handcrafted. He also wrote me a beautiful letter. He said in one part, "I've been thinking about all the favorite memories I have with you but I've literally been thinking for half an hour because there are so many....just a few of them though are - when I was a kid you taught me songs like "Gallump said the little green frog" and "How much is that doggie in the window." When I remember them it's your voice that sings them still." Is that so sweet? I use to sing a lot with the kids.

So, I guess Santa will come this year. I was going to give Jared the budget and let him do everything if the kids forgot me. I hope all of you had a great Mother's Day.

Bye Bye Barbie

Adios Legos.

Ali loved Barbies. I described her bedroom once as "Barbie Hell." My Mimi breaks my heart because she doesn't have the same love. She likes "Littlest Pet Shop" stuff. Time to file the Barbie chapter away in my life. It's going to be painful. All the beautiful clothes, shoes and accessories!

Seth loved Legos. We invested a small fortune in Legos. He loved the pirates and the knights and so did I. You may think it would be his father that would be the one to love putting them together, seeing as he's an engineer and all. Nope. It was me who loved reading the instructions and putting all the castles and ships together. I was sad when Seth was too old for the Safari Legos when they came out. I packed up the Legos a long time ago - but we're saving them because I'm sure they will appreciate in value.

Littlest Pet Shop. No clothes, shoes and accessories. Just a tiny dog bowl and fake dog doo doo. Yep. One of the little dogs has a fake feces. Nothing like pretending to clean up puppy poop. They obviously didn't design these things with moms in mind. By the time they're old enough to own toys that tiny - you're sick of poop!

Happy Birthday, Seth!

You never forget the day your children are born. Seth was born at 8.6 lbs. I couldn't find any newborn photos of Seth because a lot of our stuff is still packed away. Especially books, since we don't have an allocated library. This is Seth in Australia when he was about nine months old.





This week, he turned 18 years old. That means I had him when I was 11. They say the years go by fast......some went slower than others.



He was about two years old in this picture. This was in our front yard in Oz. We had a mulberry tree just a few feet away from this spot and he used to go out there in bare feet and come in with purple feet, hands and face.




This is his very first day of school at Acacia Ridge Primary School. They had uniforms. One difference between our schools in the US and Oz is they had no cafeteria. They brought a home lunch or bought something from the "tuck shop" and ate on the covered porches on the floor.

They also learned to swim at school. Being about an hour away from the beach, swimming is a popular sport. Once a week they would bring their "togs" and towels.


This is my favorite picture of me with my favorite son. I tell him he's my favorite son a lot. He also tells me I'm his favorite mom.

He has a great sense of humor. One day I was annoyed with him for something and I said the usual line, "Seth! How many times do I have to tell you....?" He answered, "Oh, probably two or three more times."

Once he threw an embarassing fit in front of some ladies at my house because I wanted him to clean his room before he went out. Then he packed his bag and "ran away." I was so furious from the scene that afterwards I put a sign out in our front yard that said, "Boys Room For Rent - must do chores." A few hours later the sign mysteriously disappeared and he came to me and apologized.



This is Seth's senior picture from high school. He never shows his teeth when he smiles in photos. I don't know why, he has very nice teeth and a very nice smile.


Mimi asked Seth if he was excited to be 18 now. Then she quickly added, "You can order stuff now!" Someone watches way too many ads.









This is Seth today. He is still recuperating from shaving his head - yes, down to the skin. I was not very happy about that. Mimi asked him if his head was always cold. Cord (AKA my other from another mother) is in the red.


Happy Birthday, Seth! Thanks for filling my life with laughter and for the free trip to the looney bin. Just kidding....kinda. Your my favorite son ever!

Here comes trouble!

Here's my 17 year old baby boy, Seth, carrying his two cousins, Wilson (left) and Jacob (right). He just carried them around for awhile and they loved every minute of it. Aren't they all chick magnets? The little dudes are almost four years old and cute to the core. They're like two little cyclones running around!

Mellow Yellow

One trait that Jared's family has is that their conversation always ends up turning to the toilet. So amidst the discussion about the half flushes and full flushes and the water rations, someone brought up that there was a commercial that a lady had written who's motto was, "If it's yellow - let it mellow. If it's brown - flush it down." Of course, I found that extra funny since I've been referring to everything being flush worthy or not.

Yesterday (Friday) was Fiona's birthday. We went to a tavern for dinner and met her father and siblings & spouses there. We knew her family from living here before but haven't seen them in 12 years. I can't think of Fiona's dad, Noel (rhymes with Joel), without remembering a time when Seth was about 2 1/2 years old. We went up to Rockhampton where he lived, stopped in for a visit and while we were all around the dinner table Noel walked up the stairs with Seth behind him. Those who have ever had toddlers know when they discover something they go through a phase of announcing it (like asking your favorite color or age.) Seth's new saying was, "I can smell something!" Then he would tell you what it was, like bread or burgers, etc. So as he followed Noel up the stairs he announces, "I can smell something!" Noel turns around and says, "You can? What do you smell Seth?" Seth answers, "A fluff! Pah! A stinky fluff!" We all teased him thinking he could get away with it.

Then there was a time when Seth was two and Fiona had him for the day, just to spend time with him. They stopped by Noel's and Seth had to go to the bathroom. Fiona went in to wipe his bottom and Seth says, "I don't want you to wipe my bum, I want Noel to wipe my bum!" Noel quickly said, "That's alright, Mate, Fiona will do it."

Tomorrow I will have a little more time to post some pictures - it's 11:30 pm and time for me to drop into bed!