When The Student Becomes The Master

As a parent, your ultimate goal is (or should be) to teach your children and have them excel at whatever it is that you're teaching them. And, of course, eventually beat you at it.

In our family, Ken is, shall I say, a little competitive and isn't going to let the boys win. If they win, they win fair and square.

Good job. Congratulations and all that good stuff. And, of course, I'm coming back for a rematch.

A while back, I blogged about Shane becoming the master and beating Ken in chess. The other day, Ken and I were sitting in the kitchen and Ken starts out a conversation reminding me of that day.

Then he took a big sigh.

And continues to tell me that Owen (our 7 year old) put a beat down on him in Madden 10. Something stupid like 65-0.

Then he continues to complain (yes...it turned to complaining) that Owen took the ball and ran it in for another touchdown on the last play of the game...even though he could have knelt down. He says that Owen was doing spin moves and all kinds of things that Ken had no idea how to do or to stop.

Owen comes walking in and giggled and acknowledged that he did that on purpose and knew he could have knelt down but that's not how he rolls and Ken would just need to bring his A game next time. lol

The student has apparently become the master. That's good stuff. :up:

Merry Christmas!

Wishing you and yours a very Merry Christmas.



Ken, Kim, Shane and Owen

What Are They Thinking?

Sometimes it's hard to tell what the kids really think or feel about the world around them. I think that I know but it's always good to get some confirmation about what they like and don't like.

And it's always good to occasionally go into their room and snoop around...err...I mean straighten stuff up. Sometimes I find plates that have petrified stuff on them but sometimes I'll find little gems. Something that really gives me a view into them as the individual person that they are growing up to be.

Shane is a "preteen" as he repeatedly tells me. Particularly when he's moody. Then it becomes "I'm just hormonal mom. I'm a preteen, you know. You wouldn't understand." Seriously. This is not made up. It is a conversation that I've had with him more than once.

It's usually at night when he's in his stall tactic #5 but that's beside the point.

Cleaning up his room the other day, I found this little gem. Apparently, he was in one of his dark and moody periods and decided to write down what he loves and what breaks his heart. At least I think that's what he meant. You decide.



I'm glad that he loves his family and I know that he loves playing cards. I'm also super glad to see that he loves himself. That's awesome that "myself" made the "love" list.

And I get the hates "brockily" (tee-hee on the spelling) but I don't get what unicorns ever did to him. I thought that he liked shcool (tee-hee) so that was a bit surprising.

All in all it's a great list but I wonder if it's done in random or specific order. Either way it shows that he's thinking for himself and he's really learning about the world around him. Aw. He is a preteen.

Sometimes I could do with less of the preteen moods but I'm all warm inside when I see sweet drawings like this. Shane rocks!

A New Measurement Learned Just Yesterday!

We rarely get snow in Virginia in December. Usually it waits until February when it's really cold to snow. But I guess that the gods (or whomever is mad at me for having plans on Saturday) decided that I needed to stay home and chill.

Whomever is in charge of the weather decided to dump a crap-ton of snow on our area yesterday. Honestly, I didn't know what a crap-ton was exactly until yesterday. So, in case you're a little confused about this little understood measurement, here's some visuals to help you comprehend it.







Shane was the first one out.

Sn*w Angels!



I think that he had a difficult time getting up from the snow.



"There's no place like a warm house. There's no place like a warm house."





Again...a crap-ton of snow. For reference, Shane is about 54 inches tall.



Playing in the snow "seemed" like so much fun. Until he realized how cold it was! Well, duh.





Owen decided that he was ready to venture outside.

Poor thing could barely move in the snow.



I'm surprised that he didn't get lost in it.



Could his hat be any lower? Seriously. lol.



And this is what I get when I ask for a picture. Nice, Owen. Really nice.



Out of about 15 pictures, I finally got a good one of Owen.



While they were playing in the snow, I made cookies.





While I was baking the first batch, Shane came in to warm up. He went upstairs to change. About five minutes later, I look over to the window and see a ruler dangling from a string.



He said that he wanted to measure the depth of the snow. Why he couldn't just carry the ruler outside with him is beyond me. I suppose that this contraption was much cooler and he wouldn't have to carry it around.

But this could mean only one thing...Shane had opened his window and threw something (else) out of it. Never mind that he froze the inside of the house in the process of doing his experiment. :/





All in all, we got about 20-24 inches of snow. Since our paper hasn't been delivered (well...duh), I can't be exactly sure of the totals. Shane measured it around 10 am when he went out and it was about 12 inches as you can see. It snowed hard for the rest of the day and didn't let up until about 7 p.m.

So now (if you live outside the area) you can enjoy the snow from the comfort of your own home and you can just get into your car and drive where ever you want to go without having to dig out first.

This has also been an educational post as you have now learned scientifically what a crap-ton measurement looks like!

Kim...Come On Down!

I've been called to the principal's office.

Well, not really. But I have been called to the teacher's office for a conference. I may as well have been called to the principal's office though. Apparently, Owen is acting in class like he does at home...and that's not really a good thing.

Back in high school, I have distinct memories of seeing my parents coming down the walkway towards Mr. Sams office. And if I didn't see them, I definitely heard about it from others.

So now the shoe is on the other foot. But...the big difference is that my parents got called in high school, not second grade.

Super groan. Oh well. I did tell the teacher that I give good Christmas presents. But I'm wondering if I need to return what I got her and upgrade it. I guess I'll find out later today.

Oh. And for the record, my parents weren't called to the office for me. And I would complain that I'm having to pay retribution for something "she" did but that would be so very wrong.

She just got caught. I didn't. :p

Making A List...and Crossing Things Off

So my friend was freaking out because she was just now getting her Christmas cards out. I giggled to myself because I had just congratulated myself for 1) getting our cards printed by the middle of December; 2) and actually sending out cards this year; 3) getting the tree up before Christmas Eve and having bought AND wrapped most of the presents.

I guess I learned my lesson last year when I waited until Christmas Eve to wrap everything and then I was sick as a dog and couldn't even tell Ken what to do. Ken had to wrap everything, clean up the middle room and set out all of the presents. :) And he did a GREAT job!

As I was proudly telling my mom this morning that I got my cards out this weekend, she asked if I had gotten ALL of them sent. Well. No. I have about 10 or so that I need to get addresses or I wanted to put a note on them. It's like she knows me or something. ;)

So she says that I can't check it off my list because it's not really done. Darn her and her logical reasoning. :/

Way to be a bah-hum-bug and ruin my joyous celebration of actually sending out cards this year. ;)

The One Cent Stamp Costs One Cent...Duh

ME: "How much does a 1 cent stamp cost?"

POSTAL CLERK: (Thinks about it for a second and looks at me like I'm nuts) and says "Um. 1 cent."

ME: (Face red after realizing what I said.) "It's so awesome to share my blonde moments with other people."

After that exchange, I felt the need to justify my blondness and explained that I really needed to know how much a stamp cost now because I have a modge podge of stamps and need to buy one cent stamps so I can use them.

The clerk giggled and said thanks for the laugh because she was probably going to need it today. So glad I could help her out.

And I think that I should rename "blonde moments" with "Kim moments" because that's more appropriate.

Most Boys....

Leave the toilet seat up after they go potty.

But not mine.

Nope. Instead of even putting the lid up, they pee with the toilet seat down. (Not the lid...that would be an even grosser, bigger mess.)

What I can't decide is if they are just being lazy or if I drilled it into their heads too much to put the seat down when they're done.

Either way...I'm not sure which is worse. 1) sitting down to go potty and having a...um...wet seat, or 2) sitting down to go potty and falling into the toilet in the middle of the night when they've forgotten to put the seat down.

Neither option is great.

All I can say is boys. Sheesh.

Happy Friday!

Guess What Animal Mary Had...

My three-year-old niece sure does love to sing.

And she sure can belt out a tune like nobody's business.

And, like her Aunt Kem, if she doesn't know the words, well...she just makes them up or sings the music.

If you were unsure of what animal Mary had, you should know after watching her performance at Thanksgiving.



LOL. That's good stuff! :up:

A Field Trip to Remember

Every kid looks forward to going on a school field trip. As parents we'd like to think that they're looking forward to learning about something new. In reality, they're probably just glad to "get out of school" for the day. But that's okay. They will have fun and, even if they don't realize it, they will learn something.

And, as I sometimes do, I temporarily lost my mind and offered to chaperon Shane's field trip to the Morefield Gem Mines. It's always enlightening spending time with a group of fifth graders. I now realize that Shane is not the only one getting ready to hit the preteen years.



That aside, the field trip was great. It was a unique field trip. I didn't even realize that there were still gem mines around. The kids enjoyed getting dirty when they were digging for gems. And they sure did get dirty...it had poured down rain the night before.)

The mine operators dig out the gems from the mine and then spread them throughout a few fields for the kids to sift through looking for the various gems and rocks. Note the dirt.



After they've dug up the gems, they have to wash them (of course!) It's probably the only time the kids actually like to wash anything!



Most of the kids were looking for the biggest rocks that they could find. They brought buckets to carry their loot in and by the end of the day, some were really struggling to carry them. But they were NOT putting any back!



The kids scored when the mine operators threw down new dirt to dig through. SCORE!



They were a little disappointed that they didn't get to go into the actual mine but I think that they had a great time. No one was complaining on the trip back. Well. No one but the chaperons. But we weren't complaining. We just were glad that we remembered our Advil.



I realize that the video is only looking at a drink but I didn't want to videotape any of the kids. I did want to give you a taste of what it's like to chaperon a field trip. This will either make you shudder and shake remembering your own chaperoning days or it will remind you why you shouldn't check "yes" on the permission slip. :p

Or you could enjoy the time spent with your child and his or her classmates. Just remember to take your Advil prior to getting on the bus!

For The Love of Harry Potter

Shane is a verocious reader. He usually has two to three books going at one time.

For the last few years, Shane has been really resisting reading Harry Potter. I told him that the books are really, really good and he should give them a try. Especially since his latest obsession is all things wizardly.

He dresssed as Dumbeldore at Halloween. Wizard spells. Wizard magic. Wizards of Waverly Place. Wizards. Wizards. Wizards. (He wanted to become a Wiccan for a while...but that's a different post for a different day.)

He picked up a series called Magyk and really enjoyed it. I begged him again to read the Harry Potter books.

He again said no. He said I didn't know what I was talking about and he wouldn't like them. He was sure.

So I did what I had to do and I resorted to bribing him. (Yes, your honor, I am guilty of bribery as charged.)

This was a few weeks into the school year. (School here begins after Labor Day.)

He just finished the seventh book.

He came into our room after finishing the last book and asked where the eighth book was. He was only kidding, of course, because he knew that the seventh book was the last one.

Then he said he wasn't ready to be done with Harry Potter and it wasn't fair.

Even though he loved Harry Potter and said that he'd never be able to find such a great series again, he had his nose in a book this morning and it looked like he was already halfway through it.

But...yeah. I know I had to resort to bribing him to read the books but I knew that he would love them.

And I was right, wasn't I, Shane?

Stop Clock, Stop!

It seems that the days are just accelerating at a neck-breaking pace and going by too fast. It seems that there's no time to do anything. The to-do list just continues to get longer. And it seems that no matter how many things I get to check off the list, three more jump onto it.

And somehow I blinked and Shane is 10, his pits stink like a man's and he's asking me when he can date and is talking about girls, girls, girls.

Ugh. Stop clock, stop. Well, don't stop because that would mean only one thing. But I wouldn't mind if it slowed down just a tad.

Hail to the Redskins! Hail Victory!

Hey, this is Ken...Kim's Husband and this is my first (last?) guest blog. First off I have to say that I don't have the talent or training of my wife when it comes to writing or spelling, but I will do my best.

So, first off I wanted to say when I had kids one of the biggest thrills I thought I would have is enjoying sports with them. You notice I said kids and not boys because I inherited my love for sports from my Mom. Oh, my Dad liked sports and was a South Jersey Philly Fan but most of the memories I have are of my Mom taking me to oh, The World Series in '79 or countless Redskins games, including the 1991 Playoff game against Atlanta. I actually took the same seat cushions that we were given that day to our game today.....and so it begins anew.

Getting ready for the game (game paint included):

Tailgating, a big part of the game. The Stadium and Owen doing some of his plays:

Some, of the sights before the game including a Hogette and Ledell Betts before his big game:

Go team! After the before game fun, it is almost time. We get the cheerleaders and the players take the field to loud music and fireworks!

On to the game, it was a great game and just the type of game that will keep Owen interested for years to come. It was a close, the home team came from behind, the crowd was so into it, there was a cool trick play and of course the most important part...

Owen's favorite player, Clinton Portis (along with his teammate, Chris Cooley) can only watch:

WE WON!!

Well, Duh!

Ken was watching TV last night and I heard the broadcaster talking about a research report that came out that found that chocolate helps reduce stress in women.

Well, duh!

The university who did the research project could have saved a bunch of money and time by just polling a group of moms. They would have gotten the same results.

Moms have known for years that the best thing to do when your children are driving you bonkers is to get a piece of chocolate from your hidden stash of sweets, sneak into the laundry room under the auspice of "folding clothes" and eat it really, really fast so you don't have to share it with them.

And you choose the laundry room because they won't come within 10 feet of there because they think that they may have help you and do some work. We moms aren't stupid, you know!

And five minutes later, you feel better. Albeit then you have to deal with the guilt of blowing the diet that you had to restart today because you did the same exact thing yesterday.

But that's okay. Because your children's lives have been spared and you will survive another day of telling them for the umpteenth time not to throw balls in the house, picking up their dirty underwear off of the floor and asking them for the 10th time to clear their dishes.

So, yeah brilliant researchers, thanks for the confirmation of what thousands of moms already know. Chocolate does make it all better!

Three Sheets: A Different Kind of Travel Show

Before Ken and I had kids, we use to travel a lot. When we travel, we always look for the local dives to get a real flavor for the places that we are visiting. We never eat at a Applesbees, Chilis or Red Lobster. We can go to those here. (But we usually don't....local establishments all the way baby!)

And whenever we travel, we always like to search out the local beer or whatever beverage the place we are visiting is noted for since we typically can't get it at home. It's no secret that we occasionally have an adult beverage. For those of you who don't know, I use to work at a brewery. Yeah. I brewed beer for a living.

If you ever thought that you'd like to try your hand at it, you should visit Shenandoah Brewing Company and take a crack at it. Aside from the brewery operation, the brewery is also a brew-your-own place. The owners, Anning and Laura, are awesome and really know their beer!

PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT...So, we like to drink. But before I go any further, please don't flame the blog. We don't drink and drive and we're responsible drinkers. Our kids have been told that drinking in moderation is acceptable for adults.

Okay, now that that has been said, onto the reason for the post.

We love to travel. We love to watch travel shows.

We love to explore local culture when we travel.

And we love a good beer or cocktail.

And we found a show on TV that combines all three of these. And does it in a funny and, oddly enough, educational way. Ken found the show channel surfing one day and now we are hooked on it.

The show is called Three Sheets and the host, Zane Lamprey, is the hostest with the mostest. When he travels, he searches out the local adult beverages and drinking customs and makes himself right at home. He particularly likes to learn local drinking games. As a "professional drinker," he is also on a quest to find out the local cure for a hangover.

He has rules to drinking games that must be followed. One is called the "good burp" which sadly appears that he stole from my sisters and I about 20 years ago in college. Of course I have blackmail pictures but I will refrain from putting them on the blog but it's something like this. As in it *is* this. ;)



Lamprey is crazy. And fun. He doesn't take himself, or life, too seriously. But he's very knowledgeable about his subject. Whether that be the drink of choice or the country that he is visiting. You'd think that the show wouldn't be educational since it's about...well...drinking.



But it is. It's a different sort of show. If you have a sense of humor, like to travel and are interested in trying different local beverages and food when you travel, give this show a try. It's light, entertaining and educational.

Have fun watching it and let me know if you like it! Cheers!

Get It Right Next Time

Dear Owen,

If you're going to put down your brother, please make sure that you know how to do it properly before you open your mouth.

We all know that your brother can't take a joke but you lose something in the put down when you state in a loud, sarcastic voice...

"Gawd Shane! It was a JOKE! We were just kidding you. Don't you get a G-O-K-E when you hear one?!"

Now, dear Owen, you have lost the battle because your brother can spell (well, he can't really but he CAN spell a first grade word) and he comes right back at you.

So....next time, Owen, please get the whole put-down correct before you say it. Don't be mad at me. I'm just trying to help you out.

Love,

Mom

I'll Get To That....Tomorrow!

OWEN: Mom, where is the ducky bath towel that I'm suppose to step on after getting out of the shower?

ME: In the laundry basket of clean towels, where it's been for two weeks. DUH!

OWEN: Well, I need it.

ME: Yeah. I know. I'll get around to unloading that basket tomorrow. I have to. There's a pile of dirty towels beside the basket that need to be washed.

I know that you readers (all two of you!) are thinking that I'm a lazy person. Well, just go ahead and admit that you've got a basket full of clean clothes that need to be put away too.

Go ahead and admit it. It will free you!

Happy Halloween!

Another Halloween has come and gone.

The boys have shaken down the neighbors for the best candy that they could get and are finally coming out of their sugar induced coma.

Shane went as Dumbledorf from Harry Potter, combining his obsession with the Harry Potter books and all things wizardly.





Owen went as Mr. Potato Head, courtesy of my mom and her awesome sewing abilities. Her friend Alice helped her with the costume too...so thanks, Alice! And, of course, thanks again mom for the costume. It was AWESOME!



Of course, I waited until 5:30 to get Owen ready (even though every year I say I'm not waiting until the last minute!) and then it was rush rush rush.

And of course if I would have actually read my mom's instructions before then, it would have made it go quicker.



And if Owen/Ken hadn't pulled the cord out of the costume that is used to tie up the costume so we can make it into the shape of a potato, and we hadn't had to pull it back through, it would have been quicker.

And by "we", I mean my friend Kirsten. She was working that and I was trying to figure out how to get Potato Head's ears on. We really should have just left them off because he lost the ears on the first couple of houses so he ended up being a deaf potato. lol



They even got a few tricks. Our crazy neighbor Lori loves Halloween. One year, she gave out nasty live worms to the kids who said they wanted a trick. Shane said that if he got a worm this year, he was putting it into her mailbox to shrivel up and die.

I guess he didn't like the worm either. Yuck. This year she gave out witch boogers. lol



As luck would have it, it started to rain (of course!) so we decided to drive the kids around the neighborhood instead of walking.

Can I just say that that was the best idea that I've ever had! Now I know why my parents use to drive us around. It's so much easier and we were able to get to a lot more houses.

At one house, I noticed that Owen was up at the door for a long time. I looked closer and he was making the lady at the door go through her candy basket. His patience paid off because he came back with a Babe Ruth. And his teachers said that he couldn't follow instructions. Sheesh.

I mentioned my friend Kirsten. She lives in California and was in Richmond for a conference so she came here on Saturday night. It was great seeing her. She was a great co-pilot and so much fun! At one point, Owen was running and slipped and fell.

Instead of asking if he was all right, Kirsten rolled down the window and yells "you left your candy on the ground...get it!"

LOL. A girl after my own heart!



It was the first sugar that Shane had had in two and a half weeks. Even though I warned him not to eat too much, he gorged it. And then came to me yesterday and said that he had a stomach ache.

Well, duh.

So, Halloween is over. Kirsten is back in California (boo) and the candy is in the basket on top of the fridge.

Time to start planning for costumes for next year. I guess it really doesn't matter if I plan now or wait until Oct. 27th like I usually do. You know what they say about the best laid plans.

You call your mom at the last minute to execute them!

Dads Are Cool...Grandpas Are Even Cooler!

Dads are cool!

I wish I were a dad sometimes.

I could be the "fun one."

I could be the one to play "tickle monster" without worrying that the kid is going to fall off of the bed and break his neck.

I could be the one to play video games with the kids for hours instead of worrying about the mounds of laundry that needs to be done.

I could also be the one who says "yes" when they ask go to get ice cream...an hour before dinner.

And dads really don't care about making messes (or likely cleaning them up) so they're pretty open to doing whatever.

But if it's cool to be a dad, it must be really cool to be a grandpa. That's being a dad in super-duper-hyper-overdrive.

But the really cool thing about being a grandpa has nothing to do with the kids. Nope. It has to do with all the cool things that you know how to do and fix. Grandpas have had years to figure out how to fix stuff.

And when they come to your house to visit or stay, you reap the benefits of their boredom.

And the grandmas are ever so happy to have the grandpa out of their hair and occupied so that the grandmas can 1) do whatever they want with the grandkids and 2) have one less "big kid" to deal with.

And by "deal with", I mean referee and keep the grandpa from going into cool-dad-hyper-overdrive. If you're a grandma, you *know* what I mean!

So, when they come to your house, you can either have a list of things for them to fix. Or, if you're lucky enough, they just get bored and start fixing things themselves.

Either way...it's a win-win situation for everyone involved.

Some people get mad if others come into their house and start fixing stuff. Well, not me and surely not Ken. That's one less thing that I have to do...and one more thing I can check it off of my list!

And, frankly, that stuff probably never would have gotten done had it not of been for the bored grandpa.

So anytime a grandpa wants to come to my house and fix things, they are welcome to it. Because I surely appreciate it!

The Not So Funny Joke

The joke starts out with a little boy who wanted to take a shower with his dad. Little boy humor (on the dad's part, of course) ensures and he ends up teaching the little boy a new name for his private part.

The joke goes onto include the name of the dad's private part (a snake), the mom's private part (a jungle) and the boy getting scared in the middle of the night and sleeping in his parents bed.

This is an age old joke that I heard when I was a teenager but it included a car and a garage instead of the snake and jungle.

Unfortunately, this joke wasn't a memory and it's not as funny anymore.

No. This not-so-funny-anymore-joke was one that Shane told me the other night because he thought it was hysterical.

Meh.

Hey! Hey! Hey!

Was there anything better than as a kid growing up in the 1970's than rewarding your long hard school week with Saturday morning cartoons?

Unlike our kids today who have access to more cartoons and choices than we ever did through both TV and the internet, we only had three channels. Saturday morning cartoons were special because that was the only time that you got to see cartoons.

And there was no laying on the couch clicking away trying to find something to watch (while complaining that there was NOTHING to watch!) If we wanted to watch something different, we really had to hate what we were watching enough to get off of our lazy butts and change the channels. We WERE the TV remote!

Most of the time, fights over what my sister and I were going to watch were settled by who was the least lazy of the two of us and would get up and change the channel.

And was there anything better than Fat Albert? Seriously? I loved that show!



Happy Saturday morning!

Three Days And Counting

If you know Shane, you know that he's a sugar addict. Plain and simple. The boy loves him some sugar. He would probably eat it straight out of a cannister if we let him. In fact, he probably has and we just don't know it!

So a few days ago, Ken bet him that he couldn't go without sugar until Halloween. Ken bet him $10 and Shane took the bet.

The first day home from school, Shane looked at the box of Good and Plenty he had received for a prize at school and wandered out loud whether the $10 was worth it or not. He mulled it over and then decided it wasn't.

He admitted that he almost caved in the laundry room when he saw a pack of fruit chewies sitting unattended.

The first night, we put him to bed and he came back into our room and told Ken and I that he was really sad and depressed and didn't know why.

After a 20 minute discussion, Ken brought up the fact that he's probably having a craving reaction to the lack of sweets and is having sugar withdrawals.

Shane agreed that Ken was probably right.

So yesterday, (day 2), Shane had a tough tennis lesson. Art was really pretty hard on the boys (he takes a group lesson) and was making them do a lot of footwork drills.

After the lesson, Shane said that he had had it with Art and he had no energy because he hadn't had any sweets.

He then told me that he was having mood swings because of no sugar and he's an emotional wreck. He went onto describe in detail the chocolate cake that he could have had at lunch. It had chocolate frosting AND chocolate chips.

So we're on day 3 of no sugar. He's having addiction withdrawal but he's sticking with it. Poor kid. I wonder what he's going to come up with next though. He's been pretty adult like in his self-diagnosis of his addiction and reaction to it.

Hopefully he'll remember this and won't get sucked into the sugar again. Cross your fingers for him that he's strong enough to resist the fruit chewies and will get his $10!

Just Being Prepared, Mom!

The boys have a book fair at school this week and Shane's class goes today to it. If you haven't been to a book fair, it's basically a temporary bookstore where the kids can purchase books and other miscellaneous things that I tell them not to buy (erasers, pencils, posters, etc.)

Shane has been saving his money (shocker, I know!) and I told him that if he wanted to buy books, he had to use his money...not mine.

So, I sent him upstairs this morning to get his money. He comes back down with it tucked into an envelope and had used a stamp to seal it. (I should charge him for that stamp!)

I asked him how much money he was taking.

He replied $135.00. :eek:

When I asked him why, he said that he wanted to "be prepared." :p

I then told him that he was not going to take $135 to school and made him take out all but $20.

At the last bookfair, one little girl brought $200 in her purse to buy books and the parents who were working it freaked out. I remember one mom making the comment that she didn't understand how a parent didn't know that the child had $200 in her purse.

Well, now I know how. The parent was busy getting the kids ready for school and told the child to get some money for the bookfair.

And the child brought enough money so that she was prepared "just in case" she needed 200 erasers. ;)

Your Best Vacation As A Kid

When you were a kid, what was your favorite family vacation? For me, I loved going to Oconee State Park with our RV and camping. We did this quite a bit. Several of my parents friends had RV's too so there were always other people there.

I loved driving up through Walhalla. As soon as we passed Cuzzins general store, we knew that we were almost there. We would go there on Saturday nights and listen to the old men who hung around and played bluegrass.




My parents friends had kids our age so my sister and I had people other than ourselves to play with. In the morning, Susan, Lisa (our really good friend) and I would make monkey bread for breakfast and then set off on our adventures where we would roam around the park on our bikes and explore the woods around us.

I'm glad that I grew up in an era where you could still do that! During the day and in the evening, the park had a pavillion where they had clogging and square dances. Sounds kind of geeky but it was super fun!

Then at night, we would sit around the campfire and roast marshmellows before our parents would send us into the RV's so they could have "adult time" ...ie, so they could drink beer. :p

Someone had a small TV where we would watch Saturday Night Live even though we were told not to. We had a look out and as soon as we heard or saw them coming, we would turn it off. Sorry, mom. :)

Yes, I realize that's coming back to me trifold. Susan, Lisa and I are *really* sorry.

So, that's my best vacation memories. So, we're looking at taking the kids on vacation next year. We'd like to take them to somewhere they've not been so here's where you come in.

What was your favorite family vaction? Any good recommendations on where to take them or what to do? We've done Disney. We've done NY. We're looking for something different and fun.

So...what say you? If you could relive any vaction, where would it be?

Comic Strip Time

I love it when a comic strip makes me laugh out loud. This is one of them. The humor is just so dry and funny. I'm sure that a few of you will laugh at it too. And identify with it no doubt!