Growing Independence

As my teens age and mature, I am seeing their growing independence expand right before my eyes. They are unique individuals--they are NOT "chips off the old block" so to speak. They may have SOME things in common with us, their parents, but not a lot. They are becoming independent thinkers, and they are learning to express their thoughts regardless of what we or anyone else thinks about them. I was that way as a teenager--I was eager to strike out on my own and make my way in the world. I loved my family, but I loved the idea of being independent and on my own even more. I think my teens both have that fierce independent streak. I think it will serve them well as they enter the adult world in the near future.

Forming Opinions

My son was having a heated discussion with his father the other day. I was proud to hear him express his OWN opinions about things, even though they were NOT the same opinions that his father had. They "agreed to disagree," and the situation stayed calm and peaceful. Yes, I want them to get along better and learn to talk to each other without arguing. BUT--I want to see my son form his OWN beliefs and opinions about things, not just accept OUR way of thinking. I was proud to hear him say things that, though I knew went against the way his father thought, were HIS thoughts on the matter at hand. I am proud of him for standing up for what he believes in instead of just accepting what his parents think and believe. Good job, son!

On Sale

I love seeing this sign! My daughter and I went shopping for some spring clothes. We found a lot of things on sale--we saved a lot of money! My daughter was especially happy with the bargains that she found! Nothing warms the heart more than seeing the "On Sale" sign by some of your favorite things! :)

Eating Leftovers

They may not have been hungry at our early dinner, but they sure did enjoy finishing off the leftovers later that night! I guess next time we will plan differently so they ARE hungry when we go out. It didn't matter, though--we had a nice time anyway, and they enjoyed the leftovers later. I guess it all worked out!

Late Lunch/Early Dinner

At our early dinner, our teens really did not eat very much. Apparently they both have late lunches at school, so our early dinner was just too close to their lunchtime. Oh, well! We enjoyed visiting with each other more than eating, anyway! :)

Family Dinner

We enjoyed a nice family dinner out this weekend. My husband and I picked up our teens from school and went out to eat at a nice, reasonably priced place. We were there fairly early--after the lunch rush and before the dinner crowd. We enjoyed talking to each other even more than we enjoyed the food! :)

Drive Less, Live More

As I said before, I hate to waste gas and I would LOVE to drive less. Whenever possible, I try to combine errands so I only make one trip instead of two or three. Still, with teenagers who need to be many places, this doesn't always work out. When we finally move to Florida, we have focused on one particular area that has EVERYTHING in walking distance, and there is a great public transportation system set up as well. That is quite different from where we live now. There are many things I will enjoy about our new life after we move--saving gas, driving less, and living a life outside my car are things I am really looking forward to experiencing!

Wasting Gas

I hate wasting gas!--especially now that it costs so much! The other day, my son needed a ride to one of his club events. When we arrived, he was told that the event was canceled. We had wasted a trip! I hate that! I tried to think of things that we needed to do while we were out, but there were some things that just couldn't be done during that time period. Another day, my daughter's bus never arrived in the morning, even though my daughter was not running late that day. She was worried about being late to school, so I drove her. As we entered an intersection, we saw why the bus was late--there was an accident and traffic was rerouted around it. We had to drive WAY out of the way to get around the wreck and get to her school. She was 30 minutes late! I hate days like that--not just the part about being late, but the large amount of gas that I had to use. I TRY to drive less, but it doesn't always work out as planned. We live in an area that has NO public transportation and NOTHING is in walking distance. We HAVE to drive! At least my teens can ride the bus to school, but days like this cancel that all out!

Self Defense

My son is not a bully--and he usually is not a victim, either. The other day, a friend of his was being attacked. My son and his friends stepped in to help defend their friend. I'm not sure who was hit or who swung any punches, but it turned into a big fight. Unfortunately, this happened on the school bus. My son and ALL of the boys ended up getting in trouble for fighting. Some of the boys were on the attack and some were using self-defense--but they ALL got into trouble. I'm not sure what advice to give--just ignoring or standing by while a friend is being attacked is not good. Alerting the bus driver could be an option, but one time my son did just that and was then attacked for ratting on the person who started the fight. Luckily, no one was hurt--everyone was just angry, at each other and for getting into trouble. If a friend is being attacked, shouldn't you try to pull the attacker off of him? That is what my son said that he was doing. Oh well--everyone is ok and apparently they are all friends again. The aggressive behavior of adolescent boys is completely foreign to me--I just don't know exactly how to handle these situations. I tell my son to be nice to everyone and don't start any trouble, but when it comes to defending himself or a friend, that is a different story. I just hope there aren't any more of these situations--I don't know how to handle them very well!

Singing and Performing

My daughter's class will be performing some songs in an upcoming program. She has been staying after school a lot to practice for this program. The other day, I went to pick her up from practice. I was early, so I decided to sneak a peek at what they were doing. My daughter, who is normally quite shy, was belting out the songs as if she was a rock star! Way to go, girl! I'm so proud of her! :)

Shouting Match

My teens were also yelling at each other during their latest fight. I wish they would heed my advice and just ignore each other, but they can't seem to let things slide. One says something, the other says something, and back and forth it goes. The voices elevate, and then they are yelling at each other. Sometimes it culminates with door slamming, and sometimes they come to me with the hope that I will solve the argument. I try to stay out of it unless I feel I really need to intervene. I want them to learn to work things out between them without me having to be a referee. Sometimes they do a good job working things out--after some time has passed, that is. I do like the fact that they tend to split up and cool off first. It is much easier to work things out when you are calm--trying to come up with a compromise when everyone is angry doesn't usually yield very good results. This sibling thing is complicated, but they are learning a lot as they go through the process of learning to get along with each other. Great preparation for the future!

Slamming Doors

My teens were arguing the other day, and the argument ended with both of them slamming their bedroom doors behind them. I had to get on to them about that--don't want to tear the house up when we are trying to sell it! They just aren't getting along very well lately. I sure hope they get past this sibling rivalry soon!

Standardized Testing

UGH! My teens hate those standardized tests! Who doesn't? They had some this past week--stressful and not fun at all! They make good grades in school, but they get test anxiety and don't always do as well as expected. Still, I guess that is just part of academic life. Gotta do what you gotta do!

Six Weeks

My teens began counting down the last six weeks of school. I'm not sure why they are focused on 6 weeks, really. Their quarters are 9 weeks long. A month is about 4 weeks. Once they went from 10 weeks to 9 weeks, they were happy about the single digit factor. They have been counting down for a while now, but 6 weeks seemed to be a turning point somehow. I took the opportunity to focus on the 6 week theme, too. I need to get back into the habit of exercising--I did really well for over a year, then things got busy and my exercise routine was the first thing to go. I am determined to get back into the routine--six weeks of exercising regularly should be a good starting point. I heard something one time that referred to "Give me X amount of time, and I can break any bad habit." I THINK it referred to 6 weeks, but I'm not sure. I will use that idea in this case--give me six weeks, and I can set myself in a new direction--and I should be able to stick to it once I do it regularly for six weeks. Anyway--just six short weeks and summer will be here. It would be REALLY nice if we could sell our house in six weeks!! I'll keep trying!

The Wii is Back!

My mother brought the Nintendo Wii back to our house this weekend, and my son was thrilled! He loves the Wii! His grandmother played it a bit, but she gladly returned it and said that he could keep it for a while. I know what she is doing--she really bought it for him but just couldn't wait until his birthday or Christmas to give it to him. She is spoiling him, that's for sure! She does the same thing for my daughter, too. I guess that is a grandmother's job! :)

ABC Family

My daughter watched some movies on the ABC Family channel this weekend. I know that Disney owns ABC, so these are usually Disney movies. Even when they put out movies that aren't "Disney," they still are usually family-friendly and parent-approved. When she was younger, she liked to watch Disney Channel's Original Movies. She still sometimes likes those, but she sometimes feels "too old" for them. Take it from me--you are NEVER too old for Disney! :)

Treadmill Fundraiser

My son participated in a fundraiser this weekend for one of his clubs. They had to get sponsors to pay for the time they could remain on a treadmill. They didn't have to go too fast, but it was all about constant walking and seeing how long they could stay on the treadmill. They did get to change places a few times during the day--no one was on ALL day long. I think they raised quite a bit, so they must have done a LOT of walking! I think this is a cool idea! When I was a teen, we had "walk-athons"--we were sponsored by the mile. This is a good idea when you can't use a large area for walking--sponsoring by the minute on the treadmill instead of by the mile on a trail. He had fun! This is also a GREAT way to stay in shape! :)

Hair Issues

Why is it that we are never happy with the hair that we have--and we always want it to be different than it really is? My daughter has the most beautiful hair--long, blonde, thick, healthy, wavy--it really is gorgeous! I WISH I had hair like hers! When she was younger, she had curly ringlets--a true "goldilocks." As she matured, it became more wavy than curly--still very pretty. But she sees girls with straighter, thinner hair and she says--THAT is how she wants her hair to be! She does use a straightener on it sometimes, but you really can't take much thickness out of it. I don't know what could be done to get her hair the way that SHE wants it to be. People tell her she is CRAZY--they would LOVE to have her beautiful THICK hair! But she won't be happy until it looks like SHE envisions the "perfect" hairstyle. No matter what I say, she is determined to feel this way. SIGH! If only she knew how many of us envy HER hair!

In Real Life

I have talked to my teens about their online life versus their real life--I want them to spend more time in the real world than they have been lately. Why talk for hours to friends through instant messaging when you can talk to them in person? Some of their friends came over this weekend--they were hardly on the computers. I was glad to see them interacting with each other IRL! :)

Online Friends

For the most part, my teens communicate with "real life" friends through the internet. But they do seem to have some online friends that they don't know in real life, too. Sometimes I comment on people's blogs--I kind of have some online friends, but most of us don't even use our real names or give personal info so it is strictly online. I am trying to decide how I feel about teens and online friendships--are they good or bad? If they are innocent and do not give their real info, I guess it can be just as safe as when I correspond with strangers through blogs and email. But we all know about those scary internet prowlers pretending to be friendly teens. I always worry about that. My teens have made their Myspace profiles private, but I still think strangers can find them on there--and if they agree to add people to their friends list, then they are "in." I guess all I can do is to continue to monitor what they do online--and I do that quite often. And I have talked to them endlessly about safe internet use--protecting their privacy is of utmost importance. Even when they are communicating with people they know in the "real world", it seems that they sometimes spend more time online with them than in face-to-face contact. I want them to get out from behind the computer screen and get out into the real world more than they have lately. I guess putting some limits on their online time will help. Friendships are great, but are they REALLY friendships if they are mostly limited to the internet?

Time Flies

I am really seeing the fruition of this saying come true on a daily basis lately. On a day-to-day level, it seems that we are just getting going each day and then, blink, the sun is setting and the day is ending--what happened to all of that time in between? And no sooner do we survive the Monday rush when, suddenly, it is TGIF again! As the whole weekend stretches out before us on Friday afternoon, soon it is Sunday night and we are once again preparing for another busy week. Now, as April marches on and the summer quickly approaches, I cannot believe how fast the school year has gone! It seems that school just started, and now it is almost over for the year. And as the graduation season approaches and some of our friends' kids are graduating from high school, I absolutely cannot believe that my son will be doing this in only 3 short years--and my daughter in just 5 years! WOW--time really DOES fly!! Sometimes I have to look back at all that has happened--in a day, in a week, in a month, in a year, in a decade, and thus far in my lifetime...I hope that I have many more years ahead of me, but boy this time that has passed sure has been great! It motivates me to try harder to enjoy each and every moment instead of constantly looking ahead--I think I am missing out on some of the daily things because my gaze is so glued to the future. When I look at things from this perspective, I can see clearly that the future will be here VERY soon--I should stop and smell the roses while I wait for it to arrive! :)

The Boy Next Door

My daughter has a crush on some of the neighbor boys. And recently, she saw a photo of my friend with her 14 year old son and thought that he was really cute. She is really noticing all of these "boys next door"--both literally and figuratively. I got to thinking about something--hopefully this is WAY WAY into the future, but I was thinking about who she will date, marry, have kids with, etc.--WAY WAY in the future for some of that!! It crossed my mind that it would be nice to be friendly with her in-laws--the people who we will share the grandparenting experience with someday. Chances are, I won't know these people until we are about to become family--in-laws usually don't meet until the couple is at least engaged. But sometimes families are friends and then the kids grow up and maybe one day end up together. And sometimes couples meet each other through mutual friends who have known each other for years. I am sure that I will get along fine with whoever my daughter's in-laws happen to be--but wouldn't it be cool if good friends ended up becoming family because their kids ended up together? Once again, I am talking WAY into the future. For now, I may meet one of my friends from college somewhere--my daughter may join me and her son may join her--this will be nothing but a cute little flirting thing for now. But one day, when I get together with an old friend and our grown adult children happen to be there together, who knows? When our "kids" are way into their 20s--maybe a spark or two will fly--who knows? I won't be matchmaking--I am just saying if THEY initiate anything, it would be kind of cool. And not just with this friend but others, too. Basically--if my daughter ended up with one of my friend's sons one day, I think that would be really cool. Then, if and when we become grandparents, we would be doing that together--how fun! Of course, that can also go very wrong, too--I can think of some specific circumstances where friendships were broken because a couple like that ended up divorced or other issues--and the friends who became family had trouble staying friends after everything happened. For now, I am just thinking about this in a very light-hearted way--my daughter thinks my friend's son is cute--nothing more than a sweet and innocent crush. Who knows what the future holds--it would be nice to have a good friend become family this way! :)

Using Free Cell Phone Minutes

WOW! My bill was fine--no more than usual--thankfully I have free nights and weekends!! My teens--especially my son--have been using my phone when it is free after 9 pm and on the weekends. I normally use around 350 minutes or less a month--I am on a plan for 450 minutes a month. I never go over--many of my calls are Verizon to Verizon (free) or on the weekends (also free). I only use about 200 or less of my "anytime minutes." I was shocked to see how many minutes my teens used this month--not a problem since it was the free minutes, but still shocking! I did the math--if they had used my anytime minutes (not "in calling" or on nights or weekends), I would be way over my allowance--almost 4,000 minutes over! WOW--what would that have cost if it wasn't free? I think I would be charged 35 cents per minute over 450--that would come to about $1400 if I had been charged for all of those minutes!! WOW!! Thank you, thank you, thank you for free nights and weekends!!! Whew! I insisted that my teens wait until the free time started before calling anyone--guess it worked out fine, but I still can't believe how much they talked! I also refilled their cell phone minutes recently--they have been very careful with those minutes so far. They have finally figured out that using MY phone when it is free is a better deal! Still, I don't always want to give MY phone to them--sometimes I need it myself. I do like it when they can use their phones to call me when they aren't home--it is a great way to stay in touch, know where they are, and know when they need a ride home. If they save their phones for those circumstances, I will be happy. And, for now, I guess I will continue to let them use my free night and weekend minutes--I can't really complain as long as it is free!

Riding The Bus

My son and daughter both ride buses to school--his arrives around 6:45 am and hers arrives around 7:45 am. They really have their own "getting ready" time--he gets up around 6:15 and is on the bus before she wakes up--she get up and gets ready around 7:15. BUT--sometimes her hair isn't "just right" or she has a "fashion emergency" and she gets delayed. She has missed the bus a few times due to this--I am NOT happy when this happens. My mother reminded me that I did exactly the same thing when I was a teenager--I was late a lot due to hair/makeup/wardrobe issues. Guess it is just a "teen thing"--now it's payback for me! It has only happened a few times--I think she gets the message that she needs to get up earlier or prepare more things the night before. Still, a "bad hair day" can happen now matter how prepared she may be! I prefer that they ride the bus whenever possible--the cost of gas makes it an expensive endeavor to drive them to school these days. So I guess I'll continue my mantra--"HURRY! DON'T MISS THE BUS"!!

KFC

We decided to have KFC chicken for dinner one night this week. We don't eat it very often, but we do enjoy it every now and then. However, my teens are changing their tastes so much lately that I never know what they like to eat these days. My daughter had a small piece of chicken, but she really enjoyed the coleslaw and corn on the cob. My son really didn't want chicken--he just ate some mashed potatoes and a biscuit. Not exactly the most well-balanced meal, but my husband and I sure did enjoy ALL of it! :)

Returning Borrowed Things

Now that my teens are back in school after spring break, their grandmother asked to have "her" Nintendo Wii back for a while. She wanted to show her friends how to play! They reluctantly returned it to her, but they were happy when she said that she may bring it back to them this weekend. It is funny to see a grandmother and her grandchildren sharing video games--who'd expect that they would come out with something that people of all ages enjoy! :)

Father and Son Time

My son and husband spent some time this week doing work around the yard. At times, they were working very hard--at other times, they were sitting under trees having a chat. It seems that they had a really good father-son talk while working in the yard together. I am glad to see that--they haven't been getting along very well lately, and it is good to see them actually talking about relevant issues together. Sometimes the best way to talk to teens is to put them to work on something, then work side-by-side with them and talk while working together--it seemed to work for them! :)

Leopard Print Fabric

My daughter is in an art class this quarter, and they are going to make some things with fabric. She had to purchase about a yard of any fabric that she liked--she chose a leopard print. She has always liked leopard print--she once had some pajamas and some slippers in that pattern. Guess she has a "wild streak" that likes wild animal prints! :)

Teen Drama Weekend

Speaking of chick flicks, there were several on this past weekend. My daughter and I watched a few on LMN's Teen Drama Weekend. One of our favorites was Odd Girl Out--basically, a television version of Mean Girls. The basic story is this: a group of girls who were good friends--two were best friends from childhood--one likes a boy--the boy likes the best friend--jealousy issues surface--the group of girls gangs up on the one that the boy liked--rumors and cyberbullying ensue--the girl is ostracized--later she gains enough confidence to stand up to all of the girls who were bullying her--finally she decides "with friends like that who needs enemies" and she makes new friends. It was interesting to see the dynamics of the friendships--there seemed to be a "queen bee" that everyone flocked around--the other girls did whatever it took to impress her and get on her good side--putting one girl down seemed to make the other girls feel better about themselves. I just want my daughter to have enough confidence to NEVER want to please a "queen bee"--and to never be one of the girls who puts others down in order to lift herself up. No one wants their child to be the victim in these situations, but no one wants their child to be the perpetrator either. So far, all seems well regarding these issues and my teens. I really hope we can get through these years without being on either side of that type of situation. If only these girls could see past their present lives and look into the future--life doesn't work that way in the real world. I am glad that we haven't met these kind of girls and haven't been in these situations--I hope my teens never find themselves in that kind of world.

Girl Time

My daughter loves it when her dad and brother are both gone and we can have some girl time--we always enjoy it! We usually do things like go shopping or watch chick flicks--this time it was the chick flicks. It's always fun to have a little Girl Time! :)

Oreo Shakes

First the mint chocolate chip ice cream, and now Oreo milkshakes--mmm, mmm, good! It was just a quick afterthought one night, but boy was it good! My teens both love Oreos, and put it with ice cream and you have a definite crowd pleaser! YUM!

Neighborhood Watch

My son went with a neighbor, who happens to be a police officer, on a neighborhood watch the other night. Since he also patrols the community, they didn't stay just in the neighborhood. My son really enjoyed this experience! He has a lot of ideas about what career path he will choose, and he is considering law enforcement. I will be proud of him no matter what he does--I can't imagine, though--"My son, the cop". He also has talked about going into the military. I think I will be worrying about my son no matter what path he chooses--and I will be proud of him whatever he does--but I sure will worry about him if he is in the line of fire on a daily basis. But it is HIS choice, not mine. This experience was good for him, and he may not choose this line of work at all, but it was interesting to open his eyes to a possible future. Be careful and stay safe!

Wii Internet

My daughter also showed her grandmother how to use the Wii to get on the internet. That was even funnier to watch than the bowling! You have to type in www. the address .com--no, you can't just put your email address, you have to go to the main website and put in your user id and password, you have to click here--no, here! Anyway, they finally got it and my mother experimented with email--but she said that she would much rather use a computer for that. I understand--using the "Wii-mote" for a mouse is not an easy thing to do!

Wii Sports

My mother came over the other day and my daughter showed her how to play games on the Wii. That was a funny sight! Press A, now B--release it--you have to aim it! My mother was so funny when she was bowling! She had a hard time coordinating everything--it looked like she dropped her bowling ball into the crowd a few times! They had fun, though, once they learned how to do it. Grandmother and granddaughter playing Wii together--what a sight! :)

Pizza With Extra Cheese

We LOVE lots of cheese on our pizza! We really don't like pizza if it is not very cheesy. Sometimes we order extra cheese and it is piled on--other times it is barely visible. Sometimes they count the extra cheese as a topping, other times they charge a fee to add it. We never know exactly how it will all turn out, but we sure do love a thick slice of pizza dripping with lots of melted cheese! To us, it is the ONLY way to eat pizza!

Pizza Coupons

Anyone notice how pizza coupons have changed lately? I used to get great deals--2 large with everything for about $16. Lately, it's been much higher--at least $21 for 2 basic large pizzas, and add extra fees for things like extra cheese. I guess it is just the result of the changes in our economy, but they need to be careful not to overprice things and knock out much of their customer base. We love pizza, but it is getting ridiculously expensive. One time, I forgot to use coupons, and it was over $30 for two large pizzas! From that point on, I have been diligent about using pizza coupons--except now they aren't the deals that they used to be!

2,000 Wii Points

I decided to purchase this card for the Wii--mainly because I was curious about the internet access feature. It was $20 for 2,000 Wii points--the internet feature used 500 points and the other 1,500 points can be used to download games. Once we were online with the Wii, we explored some web sites, sent some email, and played some online games. It is pretty cool! It is ALMOST like having an extra computer around--not quite, but almost. My son has a keyboard for his PS2 that works with the Wii--it makes surfing the net a lot easier than using the virtual keyboard on the screen. My only negative comment is that the "Wii-mote" (Wii controller) is used like a mouse and is a bit hard to get used to--it vibrates every time it hits a link and is not always easy to line up the cursor--it is like using a vibrating shaky mouse and can get frustrating trying to point and click. Other than that, it is really neat! My teens thought it was cool to use the Wii to check on their MySpace pages and communicate with their friends. I think buying the Wii points card was well worth it!

500 Cell Phone Minutes

Another refill--wonder how long it will last this time? I had considered only getting them $25 worth, but that turned out to only be about 120 minutes--not the 250 minutes that I expected. SO--I decided to go for the $50/500 minutes refill--it is the better bargain in the long run. I am thinking that this pay-as-you-go plan is a lot more expensive than we expected--still, it is much better than running up a huge bill due to overages!

Pet Sitting

My son often volunteers to check on the neighbors' pets when they are out of town. He has a few "pet sitting" jobs to tend to this week during spring break. He doesn't mind it, and he enjoys making a few extra dollars this way. Still, he would like a REAL job soon--he can't drive alone yet, so a real job means that I would have to provide the transportation. I am all for him getting a job, I just don't know if I can always provide a ride for him. As nervous as I am about him driving alone in the future, I do look forward to his growing independence regarding transportation. It will be kind of nice when he can drive himself to and from school, work, and activities. Until then, taking care of neighborhood pets seems to be working for him. He sure does enjoy earning the money! :)

Spring Cleaning

My teens weren't completely lazy during their spring break. We had some people call about the house so we cleaned up in case we needed to show it. Lately, our spring cleaning is more about packing to move more than anything. We are constantly weeding out things that we won't need after we move--there isn't a lot left! Still, there is always something to clean or put away--we want our house to sell so we try to keep it in "show condition"--still, it is hard to live that way!

It's Your Turn

My son went to his friend's house the other day and he took the Nintendo Wii with him. He told his sister that she could use his PS2 while he was gone--I was shocked! He never wants to share his PS2! I guess that he is enjoying the use of the Wii and he would rather share his PS2 than the Wii--especially with his sister. She was happy--she likes the games he has for PS2--especially Guitar Hero! He doesn't have that for the Wii! So she enjoyed having her turn--when he returned, they switched again and my daughter played the Wii for a while. Honestly, she gets bored pretty quickly with video games--it is really not "her thing." My son can spend HOURS playing video games--it is interesting to see their differences. I am just glad to see them sharing and taking turns--that is something they don't do very often together!

Sleeping In Again

Now that my teens are on spring break, they are back to their "holiday schedules"--they are definitely night owls! They stay up nearly all night and sleep a big part of the day away. I have mixed feelings about this--I guess it is okay to do this sometimes, but it can't be a lifestyle choice for most people--most jobs aren't conducive to this schedule unless working a graveyard shift. Still, it seems to be a way of life for many teens when they aren't in school. I used to do the same thing--and even now, there are times I do stay up REALLY late, although I normally don't sleep all day to make up for it. I am definitely a night owl too--but then I have to get up the next day and it catches up with me. For now, the holidays are often slept away around here--as long as it doesn't become a way of life, I guess it will all be okay!

Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream

After our dinner at Red Lobster, we went out for ice cream. My husband chose this instead of the traditional birthday cake--we LOVE ice cream! There are many wonderful flavors that we enjoy, but there is something about spring that makes us choose mint chocolate chip. I think it stems from when I used to take my kids to McDonald's in March to get their "shamrock shakes"--milkshakes with the mint chocolate chip flavor. We used to eat lots of green things in the spring, but this was one of our favorites. I guess McDonald's stop carrying these a few years ago--I used to ask for them and the young servers there didn't know what I was talking about. Oh well--we can still get mint chocolate chip ice cream at other places--and we sometimes get it made into milkshakes! Yum! :)

Dinner at Red Lobster

We all went to dinner at Red Lobster for my husband's birthday. It was really good, but also quite expensive. First of all, my teenagers now eat adult meals--no more cheap kids meals for us. Plus, I think prices must keep going up due to the economy, gas prices, etc. Times like this make me glad that we have a small family--I cannot imagine how expensive it must be to feed larger families--especially when eating out! Our grocery bills are going up, going out to eat costs more, and buying even the bare necessities is an expensive endeavor these days. It is tough! I used to think I wanted a large family--ala Brady Bunch, The Waltons, and Eight is Enough. I had major complications with my two pregnancies and was told that it would get worse with each one--my doctors recommended NOT having any more--it was a tough decision at a fairly young age (my late 20s)--but my dreams of a large family ended when our second child was born and we decided to stop there. It was a tough decision then, but now I am glad it worked out that way. Two kids are plenty for me! I love my two--it has been wonderful!--but two is enough. And I am glad that I had them close together--21 months apart--so it was ALMOST like raising twins--not quite, but almost. And I also am glad to have a boy and a girl--I thought I wanted at least two of each so everyone had both a brother AND sister--but now, I am perfectly happy with the way things are. Anyway--I think about these things when we go out--I see larger families and I think about what it would have been like--I used to feel a bit sad that it didn't work out that way--now I am very glad at how everything turned out. Plus, now I have plans for a different kind of life after my two are grown--that is harder to do if you have to spend a lot more timing raising several children. I know several families with two teens PLUS a small child--they put in about 20 years with the first two and will add about 20 more with the last one--fine for them, but I find myself feeling very glad to NOT be in their shoes! Funny how a dinner at Red Lobster led to all of this thinking--eating out with my family is enjoyable and I often have the opportunity to see other families and their different dynamics--I usually end up feeling very happy with my family dynamics and wouldn't change it for the world! :)

Dogwoods are Blooming

One nice thing about our house--even though I am SO ready to move!--is the wooded lot that surrounds it. We have many beautiful trees that bloom in the spring. There are several dogwood trees that are currently blooming--they really are pretty! I know when we move to Florida that the trees are very different there--many don't change much and stay green all year long. And there are LOTS of palm trees in Florida--they are pretty in their own way! Still, I am trying to enjoy the changes in our wooded yard as spring arrives--I am HOPING that it will be our last time to see it!! I used to watch the trees change each season and think how lucky I was to live in a place with four distinct seasons. I especially loved spring and fall--watching the trees bud and bloom and watching the leaves change colors and fall--it inspired me to do things in life to mimic the renewal and changes in nature. Now, it is much less inspiring to me--I just am reminded of yet another season that we are stuck here and not moving forward. I know--it's all about attitude--I normally am an optimistic person and think positive thoughts about most things in life--I guess I have a bad attitude right now--it's not like me, but it is how I really feel right now. Spring is a beautiful time of renewal--I should be watching nature and enjoying it's beauty--but, instead, all I can think about it is the beauty of Florida's palm trees and tropical flowers that bloom all year long. I know--I have Florida on my brain--I'll try to welcome spring here and have a better attitude--still, it can't hurt too much to hope that this is our last spring here--I sure hope that is true!

Spring Break '08

Spring Break--those words take on different meanings depending on who you are. To us, it just means a week out of school, which means a week to sleep in and relax. We weren't able to plan a vacation of any kind this year--last year we went to Florida to make our plans to move. We had a great time--we went to Disney World, we went to Cocoa Beach, we found a place to live, we looked at schools, etc. We were SO ready to move by the time spring break was over. Here we are, a year later, and NOTHING has happened! It is SO depressing! The housing market is KILLING us and killing our dreams, too. We are still trying to find a way to move this summer no matter what--but the truth is, we REALLY need to sell our house here in order to be free to do so. The house we used to love is now becoming a huge stumbling block standing in our way. If we went anyway, turned off the utilities and only had the mortgage to pay, it would still be tough on us financially. I guess we should just be grateful that we CAN pay the mortgage--it is TOUGH, but we are doing it. I just hope we can continue to do so--move or no move. It seems so wrong that a house is the only thing standing in our way, but it really is true. We feel SO stuck! This darn mortgage crisis--this bad economy--this recession--it is awful, isn't it? We feel lucky that we are staying afloat and not sinking, but we sure aren't moving forward, either. Anyway--no money for vacation until the house sells--plus, we don't want to vacation in Florida anymore--we want to LIVE there!! Spring Break for us this year was just a reminder of our dilemma--last year we had so much hope and promise--this year, we are becoming more and more discouraged. At least my teens were somewhat satisfied with having time out of school, sleeping late, and playing the Nintendo Wii--it doesn't compare to what we THOUGHT we would be doing this year during spring break as residents of Florida, but it wasn't all bad. As summer approaches, I am sure that we will feel the same way--if we can't hurry up and close the door on our lives here and open a new one in Florida soon, I don't think we can stand it much longer! Spring Break--a reminder that summer is around the corner. Someone PLEASE buy our house so that we can move forward in our lives instead of stagnating and moving backwards--PLEASE!!

Found a Nintendo Wii!

My mother--my son's grandmother--found a Nintendo Wii bundle and bought it! We discussed this on the phone--she knew how much my son had wanted one--I suggested that she put it away until December. Apparently, she was so excited about finding one that she just couldn't do that. She commented that she knows some older people her age that have them, too. The next thing I know, she is calling my son and telling him that she found one for HER, but that he could "borrow" it some time if he wanted! Uh...ok. A little strange but I guess it makes sense. Of course, he wanted to "borrow" it immediately, and she let him--he opened a brand new box and was the first to play it. Since his spring break was coming, she said that he could use it during that time. My daughter even got in a little playtime on it--she kind of likes it, but not like he does. Long story short--it is still "grandma's Wii"--after spring break, she asked for it back. She played it a bit, but she isn't crazy about it. She may let my son "borrow" it back on the weekends--sounds like a custody agreement, huh? You get it on holidays and weekends, I get it the rest of the time--crazy, huh? I highly suspect that my mother will "give up her rights" to the Wii in the future--probably sometime around December. I don't know--this seems a bit odd if you ask me--I think she should have waited--of course, my son would disagree--he is THRILLED to have access to a Wii NOW, not later! Grandparents--they still find a way to spoil the grandkids no matter how old they are, don't they?

Buying Presents in the Off Season

I know there are many people who shop for the holidays in the "off season"--they find bargains and hide them away for months. I have never been that kind of person. My daughter's birthday is in September and my son's birthday is in December--add Christmas to that, and you get the idea of when I begin shopping. For the first 8 months of the year, it just isn't on my mind. I compact all of my shopping season during the last 4 months of the year. Money is also an issue--that Christmas bonus really helps! SO--if my teens want something that is in high demand--especially my son with his December birthday--I am competing with the holiday rush to find the things they want. For the past two holiday seasons, my son had requested a Nintendo Wii. That was nearly impossible to find the first year--people waited in line for DAYS to get the first Wiis on the market. I gladly bowed out of that craziness--not worth it to me! Last year, it really wasn't much better. I went to many places searching for a Wii--many stores told me that they DO get them, but it was all about being in the right store at the right time and on the right day. Some were getting as many as 20 and selling out in a few hours--others were only getting 2 or 3 and selling out in a matter of minutes. I didn't hear as much about long lines last year--it was more of a "you JUST missed it" kind of thing. I tried, but I did not find one for my son--not for his birthday, and not for Christmas either. Now it is April and they MAY be much easier to find now--but for me, it just isn't time to buy one--can't really afford to right now anyway. Having said that...

CVS Card

My son needed some things from CVS the other day, so we stopped by on the way home from one of his after school activities. As we began getting checked out, the cashier asked if I had my extra care card. I have one, but I often forget to bring it with me when I go to CVS. You know, places that require a card to get the discounts really bug me. Places like Kroger, CVS, and others--I sometimes shop those places, but the dang thing about the card always gets to me. I would much rather shop somewhere else that gives me the discounts without having to dig those cards out of my purse--it is just so annoying! I saw that CVS is now putting out a card for those of us who feel like this--now that is just crazy! Whatever, CVS--I guess next time I'll go across the street to Walgreen's--I don't remember having to dig in my purse for a card over there!