Getaways

I am giddy.

I have planned a trip for the four of us to Flagstaff. I never thought Flagstaff would thrill me that much, but the idea of escaping Arizona July Heat gives me the giggles.

I haven't had much luck with vacations this summer. Our annual Father's Day weekend in Lakeside was a bust for me since I had a migraine the whole time, but the boys had fun.

Cash caught THREE fish!

Due to said migraines I skipped out on Michigan with my parents. Which suuucks because they visited Mackinac Island where Somewhere In Time was filmed.

Maybe if we are lucky I we will get a weekend in San Diego before I go back to school. But, truth be told, hanging out in my PJs with my boys and the AC raging around us, is pretty sweet, too.

Summertime Overheards

Overheard in a seedy bedroom of two little boys, "You are my brother and I love you, but jump in the hot lava."

Overheard during a seedy bath time, "Smell my butt."

Overheard in a seedy TV room, "Did you hear that? ... Now do you smell it?"

Cheese-wick

So this happened.

We added a new furry friend to our family. We got him from our favorite rescue, HALO, where we also got Tucker.

His name is Cheeze It. No, I didn't pick it out. Yes, it is spelled that way on his paperwork and micro-chip. (Ugh.) We tried to change it, but Cash insists on calling him "Cheese Wick".

And, really, Cheese Wick is better than Cheeze It, or Cheez It, or Cheesy (which I have resorted to calling him.)

30 days...day 12

Day 12: Describe a typical day in your current life.

Now that school is over for Jeff and it's summer break for me and the boys, the current life is pretty easy going.

It used to be like this: Everybody up around 5:30am. We get ready together. Jeff is out the door, headed to school by 6:30am. The boys and I are off around 7am. After work Jeff goes to work around noon, to be home around 9pm. I work until 4:30-5pm, and pick the boys up from my parents who (like the rockstars they are) have graciously picked the boys up from the sitter (they did this all year for us). I am home around 5:30pm to make dinner, do homework, finish chores, and eventually put the boys to bed around 8pm. I wait for Jeff to come home. Bed.

It is now like this (summer edition): Jeff gets to work around 5am and gets home around 4pm. Boys have been at camp for a couple weeks. Me, it's like this:

And when I say "party", I mean read a book, or clean the top of my refrigerator. 

When B is away

Bradley is a 72 year old person in a 7 year old body. He is going to make the best crotchety old person some day. In the meantime he is like one of those service dogs that loves to visit old people in the nursing home. He is so sweet, charming, and sincerely interested in other people's life stories.

Over the last couple months he has been asking to go to Kansas and visit great-grandma. A couple summers ago we took a road trip with my mom and a baby Cashy. Apparently, B remembers every part of this trip and wants to go back and see GG Dorothy. (Yes, that is correct, I have a grandma in Kansas named Dorothy, and she does not think it's very interesting or funny, thank you very much. And NO, she does not have a dog named Toto. Why do you ask?)

Baby B's first trip to Kansas.

The most amazing fun B has ever had in Kansas. PS- Gawd, Cash. Could you look less attractive?

Grandma baked so much he always had a cookie in his hadn. Even at nap. 

And all the horses were there for him to ride.

My mom decided to take B with her for a grand Kansas adventure (hint hint: grand is ironic). According to text messages, all is well, fun is being had, the little old ladies in GGD's assisted living looovve B, and it's totally my mom's fault that B barfed in the middle of the first night because he ate so many treats. K, thx, mom.

With B gone, we are parents to an only child. A child that has never had the glory of being an only child. We have taken him on the light rail a couple times, dined at real adult places, gone treasure hunting (thrift store shopping), ridden miniature ponies, and I EVEN LET HIM HAVE CANDY FOR BREAKFAST. I have a couple more activities planned for him that involve water and swimsuits. Hoorraayy! Is it me, or is it easier with one? It's me, isn't it? I totally have a warped mindset, right?

And you know what? Cash is acting amazing. He is following directions the first time and being helpful. What does this mean?! Do I have to keep giving him candy? Do I have to take him to real dinners? There is a lesson here somewhere. Hopefully it is not that I have to give up one of my children. JK. Kind of. Maybe.

To be fair, Cash gets a good case of the sads if we don't distract him. He has been asking for Bradley and when they talked on the phone the other day, I almost melted when I heard Cashy say, "I love you, Bradley." And B answered, "Yeahhh, I love you, too, Cashy."

30 days...Day 11

Oh, look. I have fodder for posts. An unfinished challenge.

Day 11: Describe 10 pet peeves you have.

(Oh, this should be easy... I don't even need Jeff by my side for this one.)

1. People who speed up on the freeway to get in front of me when I am entering/they are exiting. Jerks.

2. Little (and big) boys that strip off their clothes next to the dirty clothes hamper. Jerks.

3. Little dogs that take little boy socks and hide them around the house and yard. Jerk.

4. People who stop walking in front of you. Pull off the promenade, ass!

5. People who dress up in anime costumes for Matsuri. Douches.

6. People who swing their wheel the opposite direction before turning. Double jerk.

7. People who wear white sunglasses. Double douche.

8. People driving slow in the left lane. Seriously, asshole?

9. People that make comments about what/how much I or other people eat. Mind your own business, ass.

10. Vaguebooking. Tell us what is happening or hold your tongue, jerk.

Hiatus Ended

The last year has been the most hectic one for our family. New home, new jobs, new dogs, new headaches, and new joys.

I am going to make an effort this summer to get back in touch. I have so many friends and family members who are also making big life changes and--even with Facebook--it's difficult to keep everyone in the loop. Plus, looking back, our kids might wonder what happened to this year of their lives.

Top changes this year...

1. Work
Jeff started and finished a training program that would help him in his new career as a machinist. He is so happy with his new career path. We are so proud of him, too. After 14ish years in woodworking, working with metals keeps his creative soul happy.

I moved from the classroom to the office. I am the mean assistant principal now. It took me awhile to mentally adjust, and I still miss working with my babies, but no matter what school you go to there are amazing kids, teachers, and staff. Plus, I have some out of this world stories. Sometime I should tell you how I got the voodoo doll.

2. House
We are still in love with our house. We are still in love with our neighborhood and neighbors. I am still in love with decorating and rearranging--just ask Jeff, when I call him from the local consignment store to come pick up a tacky, vintage sofa. Since my house (I feel like I should name her or something...) was built in 1950. I love making purchases that befit her age.

3. Dogs
I told you that Paddy and Tack died in August, only weeks apart. Ugh. The worst ever. That left poor little Frisco all by himself and he was not having it. I always thought people who took their animals to therapists were a special type of asshole, but I considered joining that club for three whole minutes. We adopted Tucker, a border collie mix, in November. Then we adopted another dog, Hansel, in December. Unfortunately Hansel had to go back to the rescue because he was stressing the other dogs out and getting snippy with the boys. We are much more balanced now (allegedly).

4. The boys are growing up!
Bradley will be in 2nd grade this August. Let me repeat that: he is going into SECOND EFFING GRADE! In second grade I had my first boyfriend. In second grade I got sent to the principal's office. I vividly remember shit from 2nd grade, which means we need to pay attention because we won't be able to use the phrases: "That never happened" or "You are imagining that" or "I think that was a dream".

This is Cash's last year of preschool. He is still going to preschool for his speech, though I am not sure why. He is incredibly loud and verbose. We second-guess speech therapy at least 17 times a day. He no longer wants to be called Cashy ("I am Cash, not Cashy"), he is obsessed with his father, and he cannot get enough of trains/trucks/airplanes.

I am so pleased that things have settled down some. I learned that even though me and my family are Type A, have varying degrees of OCD, am hermits/homebodies, that we really can roll with the punches. That being said, they were good punches this year. We had friends and family experience loss and illness, so having physical health (see what I did there?) and each other is a boon.