So this summer is going by rather quickly. Some days I'd like it to slow down so I can enjoy it, others school can't start fast enough. Katie will start high school on August 17 and the rest of the kids start school August 26.
This summer has been filled with baseball, cheer leading, play rehearsals and as much time as possible enjoying the water and boating at Grandma and Grandpa's. Add in any free activities I can come up with in the Omaha area and I've been surprised at the things my sons have found time to do, usually while I've been at work.
I called home late in the afternoon about a week and a half ago to check on the progress of chores. I had gotten an exasperated text from Katie that said "I'm done! They don't know how to listen!" Okay, nothing knew.
First I talked to Alycia (age 11) she's old enough to inspire and lead her younger brothers in the direction of helping. She's really good at telling me what I want to hear. She said she's help and make sure to help Danny (age 8). I asked to talk to Danny. Here's our conversation.
"Hi Mom!"
"Hi Danny. I'm not very happy."
"Why? Oh, I know....the fire."
I think at this point, my eyes popped out of my head! "What fire?"
"Oh...why aren't you happy?" Nice avoidance.
"No, tell me about the fire."
"No," he said, pleading his case, "Why aren't you happy?"
At this point a good mother would have stuck her ground and continued to argue with the 8 year old and have the power struggle of who was going to answer the question first; or so I told myself. Me, I gave in...
"I'm not happy because you're not helping with chores. Now, tell me about the fire."
"Um...Oh...Uh...." click.
I'm sitting in the break room at work thinking, "Did that really just happen?" I called right back and Alycia answered again. I said "Tell me about the fire."
"Oh, Danny was outside with the neighbor kids and one of them dared him to start a fire, so he lit newspapers on fire in the driveway."
"When did that happen?"
"This morning."
"Why am I just hearing about it now?"
"I'm not sure."
"Where did he get the lighter."
"He won't say."
"Wonderful. Okay, tell him he's not allowed to play outside. He needs to go to his room until I get home. I'll deal with him then."
For the life of me I couldn't figure out where, or how he had gotten matcher or a lighter. The only thing I could think of was the one I use to start the grill, on the top shelf, along the side of the cabinet, so I even have to feel around to find it when I'm looking for it. Unless, Dennis had something in the basement I didn't know about.
When I got home that night, we sat Danny down to explain, for the umpteenth time, fire is dangerous. Fire can hurt you and your friends and your brother and sisters. Fire can burn our house down. It's not a toy. "Where did you get the lighter?"
"I don't know."
"It just appeared in your hands?"
"Yes."
"Really? Do you think I'm buying that?"
"Please?"
"NO! Listen, this is on Mom and Dad. We need to make sure we are keeping things in a safe place. I need to know, where did you find the lighter."
"On top of the refrigerator."
"One might think that was a safe place for a lighter to not be reached by an 8 year old. Okay." I really wasn't sure what to say. Most kids, I think, grow out of the whole climbing on things by age 8. My sister was 3 when she climbed up on top of the refrigerator and dumped the flour on top of herself. By 8, she'd moved on to bigger and better trouble. Granted by 8 my brother was starting fires in the hallways at the apartments behind our house. Why am I paying for his evil ways? Aren't we suppose to get kids just like ourselves. I wasn't in trouble like that. I've even had my own kids climb. Justin thought it would be fun at age 3 to not dump a full jar of cinnamon, but make it rain cinnamon on my kitchen carpet.
I actually had to have a conversation with him then where these words came out of my mouth. "Danny, if you can't reach it with your feet on the ground; it's not meant for you to reach." Isn't 7 the age of reason? That should work, right?
Thankfully, no one was hurt. The fire really never got started, and a quick thinking neighbor kid (older brother to the darer) was able to stomp it out.
A few days later, we were at my mom's house. I was helping her clean for a Fourth of July party. Alycia came in the house to announce that Danny was sitting on top of my van. Not on the hood, on the roof.
"DANIEL! ARE YOUR FEET ON THE GROUND?"
Saturday, July 11, 2009
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
Cold Weather
Today's post doesn't have much to do with the kids. However, our cold weather has been a huge topic of conversation and a favorite cousin of mine in LA thought it would be fun...or funny to let me know that it was going to be 86 degrees there today. Below was my response.
As I walked the half block home from the closest parking spot last night, because I couldn't pull in the driveway (it was covered with snow) and the high school up the street can't teach their parents where to park I thought this isn't that bad. After all, none of my neighbors had shoveled yet, so walking down the middle of the street to get to my house…not that bad. Not that bad that I had a half inch of snow in my shoes. It will melt into my shoes causing my toes to go numb and maybe I'll regain feeling in a few weeks.
As I wrap into 2 blankets to sit on the couch and watch TV last night I thought this isn't that bad. I'm sure glad Dennis has used his last 3 and a half weeks being laid off NOT putting up the plastic on the windows. That'll give me something else to do this weekend.
As I dressed in 10 layers of clothes to just walk from my front door to my car to drive the 15 minute drive to my office I noticed that LA and most of Cali was having record setting heat. I really have to say that I felt kind of sorry for everyone out there. While, yes, it might sound nice to have 86 degree temps as opposed to -3 (a good 90 degree swing) how can you really appreciate it? I mean, you sit in your car on a crowded freeway, waiting 15 minutes to get from the point where you can see your exit to reach even the start of the exit ramp (oh by the way, that's my one way commute time). The air conditioning blowing on high, because the air is so polluted you can't roll the window down. Will you really appreciate the weather? Sure, you can run outside, if you can breathe due to pollution, in January, in shorts, while I go to the gym and have to make sure my hair is completely dry before I even think about walking back outside.
As I put on my second pair of socks this morning I thought it won't be that bad. Wind chills of -20, we've seen worse this year, and it sounds like we might see worse yet this week, not that bad. It makes me appreciate when I get to wear sandals…in May.
As I chased after my kids trying to walk out the door for school without gloves I thought it won't be that bad. After all, it's -3 and their walking to school. Some fresh air will do them good! I mean they are lucky, it's only 6 houses, not the 5 miles that my grandpa claimed to walk (up hill both ways) every day.
As I ran from my car to the door at work I thought this isn't that bad. Really, so what if I dropped one of my favorite, cute, and incredibly warm gloves while grocery shopping at 10pm on Sunday night, these extra gloves of the kids aren't really that bad. Fashion statement at the very least! Thinsulate ROCKS!!!!
As I ran back from the office to the car I thought this isn't that bad. I'm prepared for this because either the heat was going out at work today or cost containment and green initiatives have meant that I never really got a chance to warm up today. I'm use to being cold.
As I drove my short 15 minute across town commute home I thought this isn't that bad. My windshield wiper fluid is out, the drivers side wiper is ripping because of the ice and snow stuck to it for days on end. Oh well, I just stopped at the next 5 gas stations to clean my windows.
As I walk into the house I think this isn't that bad. I slip off my wet shoes and step off the rug onto the freezing wood floor. Who am I kidding…this sucks! And I ask, why do I (or anyone for that matter) live in this climate?
Good people
Good schools
Good community
Lower crime rates (most of the time)
Less traffic
Less pollution
Change of seasons (although we don't always appreciate it)
Low cost of living 214 sunny days per year
But LA has 284 sunny days per year…2 months more then us…time to think about moving. On a positive note, I can feel my toes again!
As I walked the half block home from the closest parking spot last night, because I couldn't pull in the driveway (it was covered with snow) and the high school up the street can't teach their parents where to park I thought this isn't that bad. After all, none of my neighbors had shoveled yet, so walking down the middle of the street to get to my house…not that bad. Not that bad that I had a half inch of snow in my shoes. It will melt into my shoes causing my toes to go numb and maybe I'll regain feeling in a few weeks.
As I wrap into 2 blankets to sit on the couch and watch TV last night I thought this isn't that bad. I'm sure glad Dennis has used his last 3 and a half weeks being laid off NOT putting up the plastic on the windows. That'll give me something else to do this weekend.
As I dressed in 10 layers of clothes to just walk from my front door to my car to drive the 15 minute drive to my office I noticed that LA and most of Cali was having record setting heat. I really have to say that I felt kind of sorry for everyone out there. While, yes, it might sound nice to have 86 degree temps as opposed to -3 (a good 90 degree swing) how can you really appreciate it? I mean, you sit in your car on a crowded freeway, waiting 15 minutes to get from the point where you can see your exit to reach even the start of the exit ramp (oh by the way, that's my one way commute time). The air conditioning blowing on high, because the air is so polluted you can't roll the window down. Will you really appreciate the weather? Sure, you can run outside, if you can breathe due to pollution, in January, in shorts, while I go to the gym and have to make sure my hair is completely dry before I even think about walking back outside.
As I put on my second pair of socks this morning I thought it won't be that bad. Wind chills of -20, we've seen worse this year, and it sounds like we might see worse yet this week, not that bad. It makes me appreciate when I get to wear sandals…in May.
As I chased after my kids trying to walk out the door for school without gloves I thought it won't be that bad. After all, it's -3 and their walking to school. Some fresh air will do them good! I mean they are lucky, it's only 6 houses, not the 5 miles that my grandpa claimed to walk (up hill both ways) every day.
As I ran from my car to the door at work I thought this isn't that bad. Really, so what if I dropped one of my favorite, cute, and incredibly warm gloves while grocery shopping at 10pm on Sunday night, these extra gloves of the kids aren't really that bad. Fashion statement at the very least! Thinsulate ROCKS!!!!
As I ran back from the office to the car I thought this isn't that bad. I'm prepared for this because either the heat was going out at work today or cost containment and green initiatives have meant that I never really got a chance to warm up today. I'm use to being cold.
As I drove my short 15 minute across town commute home I thought this isn't that bad. My windshield wiper fluid is out, the drivers side wiper is ripping because of the ice and snow stuck to it for days on end. Oh well, I just stopped at the next 5 gas stations to clean my windows.
As I walk into the house I think this isn't that bad. I slip off my wet shoes and step off the rug onto the freezing wood floor. Who am I kidding…this sucks! And I ask, why do I (or anyone for that matter) live in this climate?
Good people
Good schools
Good community
Lower crime rates (most of the time)
Less traffic
Less pollution
Change of seasons (although we don't always appreciate it)
Low cost of living 214 sunny days per year
But LA has 284 sunny days per year…2 months more then us…time to think about moving. On a positive note, I can feel my toes again!
Sunday, January 11, 2009
Funny Girl
I have one more daughter to introduce to you. She's taken me a while to write about, because she gives me the most material. To narrow her down to a simple post has taken me a half a year. In fact, there is a lot of things that I have to write about that's so much easier, but here I sit, with Alycia right next to me, looking over my shoulder to make sure that I don't write about any of her sibling...until I tell you about her.
Last night I took Alycia (10), Katie (14), Justin (9) and my nephew Anthony (9) to see Marley & Me. Alycia is a reader, and had already read the book for a book report due this month. She had been pestering me to take her to this movie. It happened that Anthony was going to be with us and I thought it was a good outing to keep all the kids entertained. Plus our favorite theater is shutting down at the end of the month and we wanted to get there one more time.
Pressure...she's reading the words as I type and giving me pointers. Did I mention that she's a control freak?
Alycia's contraband snack of choice was Gummy Bears. I didn't realize that she was going to be providing the pre-movie entertainment with them. The girls and I sat waiting for the curtain to rise (yes, there was a curtain) and chatted about life. Alycia was bored by our conversation, and that's when the fun started.
"Oh, really," Alycia says out of the blue.
Katie and I look over to see what she's doing. This is the same child that played I Spy with herself on a recent road trip home from Illinois.
"He says he can't wait for the movie to start." Alycia announces. Do you know how hard it is to get a 14 year old girl to be seen in public with her mother and siblings on a Saturday night? Mine is sitting between her sister, who is hearing voices and her mother, in a movie theater.
"The gummy bear says he's really excited for the movie." Alycia tells us, very casually. After a
brief second of confusion, Katie and I both burst out laughing. I'm sure concerning some of the other movie goers around us.
"Oh, that's your girlfriend? No, I won't tell them." Alycia continued.
"This one is his girlfriend, and he doesn't want me to eat her." She shares. "Oh, I'm sorry!" She again holds the gummy bear up to her ear, as if the bear is whispering in her ear. "I wasn't suppose to tell you that."
Alycia is a fun, and funny girl. She enjoys making us laugh, all the time. She is sweet and caring, though. She doesn't laugh at other people's expense, like so many people do. She is bright and imaginative. I'm sure that once she stops looking over my shoulder to make sure that I'm writing what she thinks I should write, you'll hear a lot more about her. Like I said, she's complex, funny and a joy to be around.
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