The good ole summertime....

A couple weeks ago I thought..well, if I only post monthly, is that so bad? Now I've even passed up that deadline. Seriously, I don't know how those 'Mom Blogger's" out there manage to post everyday. Plus they go on all those exotic vacations with a zillion kids in tow. I've got two boys and no fancy schmancy vacation going on and although I get extra kids around here occasionally, I don't have what some other Mom's have going on. And yet, I still feel as if I am on a tread mill where I cannot reach the speed dial. There used to be a time when I found reading a zillion blogs was inspiring-kept me positive, ya know?? Now, it seems to be the flashing light of inadequacy of my life! BUT...never been a quitter so here I am ...writing again. (If you want to call it writing..::Flash:: Flash::

My kids and I just got back from 2 days of a mini vacation. We went with my folks to visit my aunt and uncle at their lake home which is just about 2 hours away from me. We packed in the fun--I covered as much ground as I could for my boys and am indebted to all who made it possible. We fished-from the dock and from the boat, we went out to dinner and played the required "up north, resort video games", rode 4 wheelers, swam and pulled the boys around the lake in tubes, and I ate..man, did I eat. It was a great time and we were all exhausted. It was a huge sacrifice for my Dad, who never wants to leave home and if he does, he races back home as fast as possible. He managed to suck it up for my boys and we stayed overnight and he didn't return back to his chair until early the next evening!!

Every summer about this time (2 weeks before school starts) I start to worry-worry that my boys will be disappointed in life. That I didn't plan enough, that they didn't get anything special out of their summer vacation. The Mad-Sci says to knock it off because they are so spoiled already that they should be grateful. This is a huge argument for us. I always want to give more and he says they should be satisfied with what they have. I don't know, maybe it is just the difference between a mom and a dad. Or maybe the flashing lights in his inadequacy sign burned out leaving more juice for my flashing lights??

Whatever. T-Dogg had a great baseball season this year. His team won his league standings, the league tournament and made it to the state tournament. I played ball for well over 30 years and never made it to a state tourney!! So I was pumped!! His team started out like wild fire, winning their first two games. The third game...well..they lost before they began. We got to the field looked at the other team - all who were inches taller than our whole team and 90% of them were African American. (Is that politically correct now??I can never remember). Honestly I do not want to offend anyone it is just that it never occurred to me before but my boys do live a pretty sheltered life. We live an hour for any major city and frankly-it is pretty much white. No big deal and I teach my kids about the world and what is out there and that we are all created equal-people are all different whether it me color, language or religion. But when the boys on our team looked across the field at the opposing team, a couple of us moms laughed. We knew what the kids were thinking and we knew we had just lost the game. In the end it didn't matter because the kids had a great experience and they worked hard to get where they were (not as hard as their Mothers worked to get them there, mind you). A lot of the boys on our team cried, which I suppose for 9 and 1o year old boys is understandable. It is frustrating to lose. My TDogg didn't cry though. He stomped over to our truck, threw his equipment in and locked the doors. Refused to talk to our family members who came to cheer him on. Silly boy-his older boy cousins are never going to let him forget that. Which is what those cousins are for I guess.

This summer we had another life lesson brought home. It was very serious and very sad. And I floundered for a while. A friend of T-Doggs, one of his first friends in pre-school has had a terrible time of things. And that is an understatement. While watching the news one evening, it is flashed across the screen about a murder/suicide in our area. Sketchy details but enough so this family flashed through my mind. I told myself no and didn't mention it to TDogg who was watching with me. The next day when the pictures and names were all over the television and newspapers I had to give my boys an explanation. The Dad strangled the Mother and then hung himself while 2 out of the 3 children watched. These were people that TDogg knew, had been to their house to play. I explained as best I could, prayed like crazy for those children and TDogg seems to be o.k. with it. It has been 2 weeks and I cannot quit thinking of it. It won't get out of my head. The kids or the Mother and even the Dad. So much suffering before and after.

Happier thoughts. I had a nephew, get married this summer. The boys and I traveled to Wisconsin for the wedding. TanMan had never been to a wedding. So we had fun, once the actual ceremony was over anyway. Apparently little boys are not to excited over wedding ceremonies. After TanMan asked me,"Mom, why do they say you may kiss the bride at a wedding?" Before I could reply he said "I mean, who else would you kiss?" As I sit trying to think up something really smart to tell the boys as we are driving down the road Tdogg pipes up with "Yeah, why don't they say...wait, what's the boy name for the person getting married?" I say "GROOM" hoping we are going to take a different direction and then TDogg says "Yeah, that's it, GROOM...why don't they say you can kiss the groom???"
Why do they have to always make my brain hurt so much? Incidentally 2 weeks after the wedding it has been announced that there is a new baby on the way. Thomas thinks they made a baby awfully fast. Why, yes son, yes they did.


Two weeks until school starts. My Mother wants to know if I am going to wait until the last minute to get school supplies? Shouldn't I already be done with that? Geesh I have almost all of their schools clothes bought and hid. Yes, hid! Apparently my Mother doesn't remember what it is like to have your kids drive you nuts wanting to wear their new shoes, underwear and backpacks before the first day of school. Glue sticks can wait because I think the list from school says they need 85 sticks of glue...what the heck who all am I supplying with supplies? Actually, I love buying school supplies but I am learning and I know, if I don't want to have to buy the supplies twice before school even starts, to just wait and they wont have time to use them before the actual first day of school. Just like I have learned when we are shopping for clothes, if I just stand there with my mouth shut, 9 times out of 10 TDogg will pick stuff I like. If I try and direct him at all he goes way off the board trying to make me nuts with his style. Took me 10 years but now I know, whatever I say-he is going to do the opposite. Just to flex his rights. So. I'll shut up.