Random Weekend Musings

I put a poll up on my sidebar. I'm curious about your kids' bedtimes, particularly your preteens/tweens/whatever you want to call them. Bear in mind when voting that the kids in question have to get up at 6 a.m. and most experts recommend 9-11 hours of sleep for that age group.

This may or may not have been prompted by a meddling mother-in-law.

#bitch

My son is moving home today. He has lived with his dad for several years now, but we live in the same town and he spent about 2/3 time there and 1/3 here (except for summer, when we do a 50/50 split).

But today, his father kicked him out.

I think in the long run, it will all work out for the best.

"And that's all I have to say about that."

This evening John and I decided to walk down the lane to see if there was any wildlife wandering around. We were greeted with the sight of several wild turkeys and five deer; two adults, one 'adolescent' (no idea if there's a proper term for that), and two babies (fawns). They froze when they saw us, and we stood there and watched them for a long time. After a while, they suddenly spooked, and the three largest deer ran in one direction but the babies ran towards us! But then they ducked into a trail in the woods.

We had a blast at karaoke last night. A blast. We even sang "Ice Ice Baby". Hilarious!

John picked some pears off of our pear tree, and they are currently in the oven, covered in butter, cinnamon, and brown sugar. I can't wait till they're done! Yumm-O!

I hope you're having a fantastic weekend!

Monday Mingle

Well hello there!

Today I've decided to join in with Monday Mingle over at Eighty MPH Mom.

This is my first time doing the Mingle! *waves*

I don't do vlogs. I don't watch/listen to them, I don't record them. I don't know why, they're just not my thing! So I'm doing the text version of this meme. Here we go:

1. What do you do when your child refuses to eat what you made for dinner?

For the most part, they eat what I cook. They have to at least try it. If it's something I know they don't like, I'll let them make a sandwich or some noodles. I don't make separate meals for everyone.

2. How do you handle a grumpy kid in the store?

If there's a reason for grumpiness, like being tired, I may offer a treat if they stop the whining (because in my world, grumpy always = whining). If they're just being grumpy for no good reason, I ignore them.

3. Why is being a mom (or dad) the best thing ever?

Now this makes me all teary. I have four kids, two are teenagers (ages 15 & 18), and I am so proud of them. That's one of the best things about parenting; watching them become young adults. Not only are they smart and accomplishing great things, but most importantly to me, they are becoming truly good people.

And the younger two (ages 10 & 11) are so sweetly affectionate and cuddly and fun. They still think I'm cool. I love feeding them and just taking care of them, and trying to do fun things with them, and make good memories.

And that is all! Link up with Eighty MPH Mom for Monday Mingle!

(the Monday Mingle button isn't working for me, but here's her blog button)

Sweet News, Cupcake!

I've been watching too many Cupcake/Cake shows. I am CRAVING cupcakes! Nom nom nom. So today, you get a (graphically) cupcake-themed Friday Fragment post.

Today (Thursday) was my oldest son's last 'real' day of high school. Tomorrow he has a field trip, and then he's done. Forever. I know it's so cliche, but WHERE did the time go?

The other kids still have a few days left, only the seniors are done already.



My Littles went on a field trip today. They went to the YMCA pool and had a blast!

I posted this on my Facebook wall yesterday:

Cyndy Helpful Advice: Never bring a popsicle as an afterschool treat for your kids, then stick them in the pocket of your car door and forget to give them to your kids. The end result is pretty messy.

Okay, I can't stand it any more, I have to share my GREAT news! I got a new job today!! I will be taking care of an elderly woman in her home. The position was posted on Craigslist. I emailed my resume, she called the next day, I interviewed today, and was hired on the spot! They loved me and think I'll be the perfect fit. Two big things got me in the door: an excellent reference from a former employer, and the fact that in the personal area of my resume, I mentioned my love for & work with animals. This family has at least 5 dogs (I lost count) and the fact that I am totally at ease with that made them very happy. In fact as soon as I walked in and started playing with them instead of being overwhelmed by them, the (college-aged) granddaughter said "Now that's what I call a perfect match!" For right now, I'll be doing one set 12 hour shift and then filling in PRN, which is so perfect for me right now. FINALLY I will be working in my ultimate field of choice, doing something about which I am so passionate. It just feels like everything fell right into place! I am super-excited.





Have I told you lately how much I love you? I have some of the most loyal, supportive, fantabulous blog friends on the whole wide interwebz! This is how much I love you:

I can't help but post this song today, it's running through my mind all the time lately.

Don't forget to visit Mrs 4444 for more Friday Fragments!

Melting My Mommy Heart

Okay, who unplugged Blogger yesterday?! That was insane!!

I couldn't even Frag. What the heck?!

So, this has to be rushed since Blogger was down all day yesterday. (gives Blogger the death look)



I was going to have a Girls' Night Out tonight with my BFFs from high school, but one of them is sick so we have to postpone. Bummer!



BUT! It will still be a great night. You see.....

Tonight is my oldest son Tim's Senior Prom. His tux is rented, his girlfriend's dress is purchased. He is going with his girlfriend, his friend Zack, and Zack's date. Last Thursday we were talking about where they were going to go for their pre-Prom dinner. I made a few suggestions of some of the nice restaurants in town.

And then, earlier this week, I got a text message from Tim. He asked me if I would cook chicken & dumplings for all of them on Friday night, and said that's what they all want to do for their pre-Prom dinner.

And I melted.

As y'all may know, especially if you read my Southern Loving Food Blog, I love to cook. And for me, it's more than just preparing a meal. Food is a way of taking care of my family, showing love, celebration........it's love on a plate. And the fact that they came up with this idea on their own, chose to do this for a special occasion, and are all looking forward to it so much (they have all told me that, separately, except for Zack's date, whom I don't know)......I am one proud mama. In fact, I'm kind of weepy about the whole thing, hopefully I won't embarass myself!

Oh - and both boys have not only offered but INSISTED on paying me.

So, I would not miss this chance for the world. Who could resist this face?

{Tim, 1995}

He's 18 years old. He graduates from high school next month. (I'm going to be a freaking WRECK.)

He's my firstborn and he's grown up in the blink of an eye. In my heart, he'll always be my baby boy. So it may not sound like a huge deal, but it means so much to me. And I can't wait!



Tomorrow my littles have their last soccer game, then the Tournaments will be the following weekend.



And Saturday afternoon is my niece's wedding shower! YAY!



Hope y'all have a great weekend! Visit Mrs 4444's for more Friday Fragments.

My Happy List

With the stressful stuff going on at Dysfunction Junction, I was really hoping for a weekend full of happy. And this weekend totally delivered!

1. After an insanely stressful day on Friday, I made it just in time to go to Girls' Night Out with the ladies from church. We had a great time; we had dinner and then saw Soul Surfer, which is a great movie; so much more than I expected! I enjoyed myself so much. I never do anything like that, I'm always at home with the kids, and I really needed it!

2. My teenage daughter Shelbie went out of town with her best friend, who is my best friend's daughter, this weekend. Shelbie's BFF is in Baton Competitions, and Shelbie went along with her. I am so glad her dad let her go; it's his weekend and since he only sees her every other weekend I wasn't sure if he'd want her to miss a whole weekend with him, understandably. She has been texting me all weekend and is having a blast! I love that these girls are so close; they remind me so much of me & my BFF! They are definitely their mothers' daughters.

3. This morning my Littles had a soccer game. Their team didn't win, but they played hard and I always enjoy their games, win or lose.

4. Afterwards, we went to my BFF's (same one mentioned above) son's birthday party. The Littles came with us. I got to hang out with my BFF and the kids played and had a great time.

5. It was a beautiful day and when we got home, we spent some time outside, doing some stuff in the yard and just soaking up the son. My two unhealthy addictions are Diet Dr Pepper and the sun! Ok, and chocolate. So that's three, but who's counting?

6. Yes, there's still more! Tonight John and I went to the burger place where my son works for dinner. We got there just before his break time, so he sat and had dinner with us! I love any extra time I can grab with my kids, especially the 18 year old.

7. One more - went to Winn Dixie for a few things; I had coupons and a sale list. I spent $30 and saved $20; not bad for a quick trip!

And now I'm sitting with the hubsicle, laughing at Parking Wars and just enjoying our night.
If only WEEKDAYS could be as wonderful as WEEKENDS!

What's on your Happy List?

Visit Mamarazzi for more Happy List posts!

Awards, Festivals, & Chupacabras - Oh My!

I can't believe it's Friday already, this week flew by!

We live out in the woods now, and so far we have seen wild turkeys, rabbits, a deer....and a mysterious unknown animal. We're pretty sure it's a chupacabra.

We have a fun weekend planned. The littles have a soccer game tomorrow, then we're planning on taking the kids to lunch at a new pizza buffet place.

Saturday night, John and I are going out for our anniversary.

On Sunday after church, we're going to our town's Spring Festival. I love weekends like this! Simple, but fun.

I got a blog award this week! I love me some Katertot. Here's the award:

And I have to list 7 Facts about myself.

Hmmm....here goes.

1. I love to vacuum. It's a sickness, I know.

2. I eat way too many Whopper's Robin Eggs at this time of year.

3. My 18 year old son is drawing and coloring a bunny rabbit right now. Don't ask me why.

4. My anniversary with hubby is on Saturday! 6 years.

5. My toenails are almost always painted purple. It's my favorite color, and that way I'm always wearing purple. It makes me smile.

6. It's taking me almost an hour to come up with these seven things.

7. I love camping. We haven't camped in forever and I am SO ready to go again!

The song of the week is from my girl T-Swizzle! The girls & I have been jamming to this one all week. Enjoy!

I Don't Know Whether to Scratch my Watch or Wind My Butt!

{Anyone know what movie that's from?}

TGIF!

I am very glad to see Friday roll around!

This was my first week at my new job. I only worked two days, but today was a busy one and it kicked my butt! This job is great because I basically set my own schedule. I can be home when the kids get home from school, but on days that they're not home, I can work later (and make more money!).

On Thursday, my Littles (Elayna & Andrew) went to Saint Augustine on a school field trip. They had a blast and Elayna took about a million pictures. I'll be posting them here soon! Well, some of them anyway. I won't subject you to all 983,276.

Thanks for all your concern & sweet words about my burn. I have 1st and 2nd degree burns. Mostly first though. They're healing well and not very painful any more. In fact, the fingernail I broke way down deep today hurts far more!

We have a crazy busy weekend ahead. Tomorrow is our March for Babies, and tomorrow night we are all getting together to celebrate my husband, father and oldest son's birthdays. They were all born in March! Which I think is kind of interesting.

Then on Sunday, we'll be moving all day. A bunch of guys from church are coming with trucks & trailers to help us out. Have I mentioned lately how much I love our church family? They are AWESOME.

Speaking of love. I can't even explain how much we love our new home. After looking at homes in other school districts, one total dump, and even considering an apartment, we found this absolutely amazing little home out in the woods. Instead of being bummed about the move, we're all excited now. One of the things I'm most excited about? There's a chicken coop there, and the landlords are going to give us some of their laying hens! WOOHOO Fresh Eggs!

Next week is my kids' Spring Break. My kids will be with their Dad, and Andrew will be with his Grandma. It's going to be so weird for them to be gone for a whole week! But I have a feeling I'm going to stay very busy & it will fly by.

Time for the Song of the Week! I love this one. Enjoy & have a great weekend!

And don't forget to visit Mrs 4444 for more Friday Fragments.

Globetrotting

Last week the Harlem Globetrotters came to our town, and I won four tickets from our local TV station! So me, John, and the youngest two kids went to the show. Tim had to work, and Shelbie wasn't interested, so it worked out well.

The kids didn't know what to expect, but it started out with a bang and they had a blast. They did tricks, and were funny & totally entertaining. The kids totally got into it, screaming and dancing.

{I have no idea why Andrew's eyes are OPEN WIDE in this pic. He's a goofball!}

Click these pics to make them bigger & see the action.

In this first one, they are bowling using the mascot, Globie, as a bowling ball.

Strike!

Then when the show was over, the performers signed autographs and posed for pictures. So we got a ball and had it signed by almost all of the Globetrotters.

In the picture below, the Globetrotter is asking Elayna what happened to her thumb.

They are so fan-friendly and really good with the kids.

It was definitely a memorable experience & I'm so glad we got to go!

Visit Seven Clown Circus & Parenting by Dummies for more Wordful Wednesday posts.

Sundays in my City - Duck Derby!

We had a lot of fun last weekend.

The kids were home, and went to the park both days. But Sunday after church, we also went to a Duck Derby.

It was the first annual Duck Derby, and it was a benefit for our local children's home society. There were lots of activities for the kids to do, and the final thing was the Duck Derby. Anyone could purchase a chance to win for $5 per duck. Then the ducks were released down a giant water slide into the big public pool. There were several prizes for the winners, but we didn't win anything. Our duck was a loser! Oh well, we still had a lot of fun.

Elayna & Andrew both broke boards at the Karate demonstration.

They won 2 weeks of free karate lessons!

Snowcones!

Bean-bag toss.

A sign to cheer on our loser duck.

After the Duck Derby, we went to the park for the kids to practice soccer. My oldest son Tim's girlfriend Jessica went along too. She plays soccer for their high school team.

Elayna's thumb first got hurt on Saturday, but it got bumped again on Sunday and that's when it turned purple and scary. So later on this night, we ended up at the ER!

You know what they say; it's all fun and games until someone breaks a thumb!

{This is her new splint - she hates it!}

Visit Unknown Mami for more Sundays in my City posts!