Month: October 2008

Caffeinated!!

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Boy, was that a mistake.

I really wanted a soda at lunch, and all we had was regular Coke or Dr. Pepper. Wisely, I decided against the Dr. Pepper….

Then, on the way to school to watch the Halloween Parade, I stopped at 7-11 for a coffee. I should have gotten the decaf, but I was unable to resist the “Heavenly Blend.” It was really good, too–almost like coffee ice cream. Yum.

That was a lot of caffeine all at once, though. It’s probably 3 times the caffeine I consume on a daily basis. So I’m feeling just a little extra…hyped up. OK, a lot extra. It’s not really a good feeling, either.

I guess it would be best if I stay away from the Halloween candy today. I’ll just put some of those Milky Ways in a Secret Hiding Place so I can scarf them down enjoy them another day.

Ask a Dad

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Every year one of the most challenging parts of planning our Living Nativity “Greccio” service is finding a baby to play the part of Baby Jesus.

We’re not too particular about whether we find a boy baby or a girl baby to play the role. One year we even had twins, which was great because the first baby started screaming halfway through, and his mom ran up and switched him out with the understudy! Another year we didn’t have a baby lined up in advance, and we begged the parents of a sleeping toddler to let us cast him in the role. He slept through the whole thing.

But this year, our parish business manager gave me the name of a family whose child was recently baptized. I called them and left a message, and eventually got a return call from the dad of the family.

Normally the moms arrange these things, and I have years of experience in describing what will happen, who will be holding the child, how the baby should be dressed, that we will provide a clean and soft white blanket to cover whatever the baby is wearing, that it only takes about 20 minutes and that it is outside and there are real animals.

And normally the baby’s mom will freak out over one or more of these things, and I have to reassure her that her child will not be handled by a snotty-nosed four-year-old but instead by reliable teenage girls, and that the animals will not touch the baby, and that I’ll bring a gallon of hand sanitizer, and that I use hypoallergenic laundry detergent.

But when the dad makes these arrangements, he says things like, “Great!” “No problem!” “Sounds good!”

I’m definitely going to make it a point to talk to the dads in the future when we plan our events.

No more junk…

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…in my (car) trunk!

Yes, I cleaned out the car today. I was given a few reusable shopping bags at school when I volunteered in the library this morning, and I figured that instead of carrying empty bags into the house, I’d fill them up with what had been left in the van.

No wonder Little Brother couldn’t find his jacket this morning! I found his fall jacket, a windbreaker, and 2 sweatshirts (one hoodie, one regular) in the van. (Never fear, I sent him to school wearing a half-zip fleece, so he was warm enough!)

I also found 2 flashlights, 2 rain ponchos, a key I’d been missing, 2 books, and 4 DVDs.

I threw out a grocery bag full of trash and then even dragged out the shop-vac to get the popcorn kernels (who ate popcorn in the car? Must have been sometime when TheDad took them somewhere…)

And when the kids get home in 10 minutes I will issue the inevitable warning against eating in my van, leaving stuff in my van, and generally trashing my van.

But I know perfectly well that by Saturday I’ll need to clean it again.

Things I Never Thought I’d Have to Say…

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…to a child who is in the backyard playing, wearing a winter jacket with the hood up: “Put on your shoes!”

The Things We Do For Our Kids

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The things we do for love!

TheDad drove an hour each way last night, in the pouring rain, with Little Brother and Adventure Boy, on the way to a Cub Scout haunted hike that was cancelled the second they got there. So he took the boys for ice cream before coming home.

Then TheDad stayed up so that he could take Big Brother from the homecoming dance to his friend’s party.

Our front lawn has been painted by members of the junior class at Big Brother’s high school. They didn’t intend to paint the lawn–they just overran the borders of the plywood they were using for their homecoming float. So we’ve got odd lines of white, black and Eagles green.

The same members of Big Brother’s class used our driveway, and our sidewalk chalk, for sketching practice before painting on the plywood–so until it rained last night we had a panda, a dog and the crime-scene-type outline of a dead body adorning our driveway. That last was particularly effective when TheDad parked his car partially covering the picture.

And one of Big Brother’s friends was heard to sing, as he helped himself to a soda from our refrigerator, “Welcome to Big Brother’s house, where your food is my food.”

I visited no fewer than 3 stores this week and spent no less than $34 looking for the perfect ensemble for Middle Sister’s Halloween costume (she and her friends will be the 3 Blind Mice.) Those same friends, along with Middle Sister, are sprawled all over our family room after last night’s “awake-over.” In fact, Middle Sister is currently sleeping along the top edge of the couch, balancing precariously with a blanket over her shoulders but with her bare feet sticking out. (I feel sorry for the friend she’ll land on when if she loses her balance!)

TheDad went on a late-night Wendy’s run so the girls could have a snack after they ate popcorn, potato chips, and ice cream.

Just another typical week at our house…

World Series Confusion

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Just now….can you tell we don’t follow baseball too closely around here?

Little Brother: “Mom, are the Seattle Sea Dogs in the World Series?”

Me: “No, it’s just the Phillies and the Tampa Bay Rays.”

Little Brother: “Only 2 teams?”

Me: “Yes.”

Little Brother: “That’s not going to be any fun!”

What Not to Wear

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Because the Phillies are in the World Series, and Phillies Fever is sweeping through the younger kids’ school, they are allowed to wear a Phillies clothing item with their uniforms today (just like Aimee’s kids).

We don’t have any Phillies-wear, unfortunately.

But it’s Gym Day, and our school colors are red and white, so the kids’ gym clothes consist of red sweats and white T-shirts.

Middle Sister, as usual, will be a Fashion Rebel. She insists on wearing the optional white gym sweatshirt, because she doesn’t want to “look like a tomato.”

Note to Self

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When you’re planning to have the Tiger Cub Scouts meet in your dining room shortly after dinner, don’t serve cornbread to Little Brother.

Attention Shoppers:

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The Church is Not Wal-Mart

Father Philip Powell, OP, lists 10 reasons why.

Little Brother’s got skill!

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When I cleaned out the garage last week, I took Big Brother’s old bike out of the shed, pumped up the tires, and put it in the garage. I figured that it was time to take the training wheels off Little Brother’s tiny bike, and then when he got the hang of it, he could graduate to the bigger one.

He was having none of that. He found that big bike on Saturday and there was no turning back. He worked and worked. Mostly, he didn’t want any help as he struggled to get the hang of balancing the bike and pedaling and staying in a sort-of-straight line.

This afternoon, he finally got it all together. Up and down the street he pedals, with his tongue sticking out of the corner of his mouth and his helmet slightly crooked as he concentrates to stay on the bike. His friends are out there encouraging him.

He may never get off that bike now. I’ll have to serve meals out in the driveway.