How Many Today?

The Colonel isn't here yet. Yesterday, he made ZERO calls!

Not what I would think is a good plan if the Big Cheese just told me I had to make 25 a day.

Don't forget you can have your chance to win my favorite print - I'll be drawing a name tonight. Just scroll down - you'll find a link. God knows I posted it enough.

Well, guess who arrived while I typing this? MmmmHmmmmmm

I ordered a beautiful mug and candle holder from my friend, Gary, potter extrordinaire! Why not check them out. You'll want one, too, I am sure.

There is a blog I just can't miss every day, Stretch Marks. Why not pop in and find out why?

Of course, all the blogs in my "Reads" and "Follows" lists are musts for me.

Never fear... we will be monitoring the Colonel and posting regularly on his progress (or lack of). After all, we have 90 days before the Cheese returns.

Oh! And I might get to hire another person (yea!) and I know her. That's good news!

For all that have asked, my darling child, Miss Priss, seems to be thriving in her new school. This may be the best thing we've ever done for the kid.

Of course, we haven't seen grades yet, but, Lord willing, and some effort on her part, it might just be okay.

Normal Again

My kiddo is back to school (and this is when the angels REALLY sing - hear 'em?).

God bless antibiotics.

Okay, and for other things...check out this longhorn sugar bowl that is soon to be mine. Well, mine to give as a gift, but I am hoping to order up another one for myself. I think am becoming a sugar bowl addict.

This post looks destined to be a hodge-podge of stuff, but what the heck?

The "colonel" just called in...he overslept (big surprise), but since he has a dentist appointment at 9am, he'll just come in after that (angels singing again).

Tonight is College Night. Speaking of which, will you check out the stadium and arena for our school district?? It's better than the stadium we had at the University of Houston back in my day. That's where College Night is being held tonight. I think we're going. Of course, if Nicole doesn't make up all the work she missed being sick, we might be revisiting 11th grade again.

Well, I am at working, listening to Pandora Radio's Quick Mix... currently playing James Taylor;s Country Road.

Kid in school, colonel not expected for hours, and a fabulous longhorn sugar bowl making it's way to Texas....life is good, angels sing, and peace reigns for a while.

Amen.

Mystery Illness Solved

It was testosterone. As suspected.

Later in the afternoon, my darling daughter called to tell me the boy she likes was telling "everybody" that he only liked her as a friend and didn't like like her. Then she started crying.

I asked her if that is why didn't want to go to school and she said it was. What hurt was she had been flirting and telling people she liked him, etc... and he was saying the opposite to everyone BUT her.

So, she was humiliated.

God, I remember that time of life. Not necessarily the same set of problems, but the thought of being ridiculed and talked about was tragic. Enough to make you "sick."

So, after a nice, long "come to Jesus" meeting, it is well understood that skipping school or avoiding life isn't acceptable.

Tomorrow starts a new chapter.

Uh Oh, They've Gotta' Go!

Or so it seems. My daughter called yesterday - she was realllllllly sick. I know it came about from all the running around and staying up late she's been doing since school has been out (due to Hurricane Ike).

Her throat hurt, her neck hurt (that's the one that scared me), her head hurt, and she was dizzy.

I called the doctor from work and they could work her in. She drove herself over and I was close behind.

Seems this child's tonsils are abnormally HUGE. We knew this, but it's gotten to be a problem now.

Looks like they'll have to come out. We have to see an ENT first, though.

So, school started TODAY and she has to miss the first day. Do you have any idea how much we have been praying for school to start? Well, whatever you just imagined, double it!

But, poor little thing, she is truly ill (doctor-certified) so home she stays.

Day Two

I do not intend to keep this blog as a commentary on my child's school life, but felt a follow-up to day one, The Day When Only My Hair Matters, was in order.

Miss Priss zipped by the house after school to let the dogs out and might have been home all of the 45 seconds it took to get them out the door, peed, and back in again. We didn't see her again until about 8:50pm. She has to be in by 9pm on school nights.

Her hair was a success. Her ex-boyfriend's new, old girlfriend wore hers UP the first day? Can you believe it?? She's evil, though. And, if my daughter's name comes out of her mouth again, the gloves are off!

I cannot believe I have kid who would trounce someone because another person TALKS about her.

We spent about an hour talking about letting it go, quit carrying around all the drama, it's no one's burden but Nicole's as she is the one hanging onto it, and how life, in general, is just better when we release the crap. When all was said and done, she still wants to pound her if she says one more word.

At that point, all I could say was, "If I find out YOU started anything, you're grounded."

The rebuttal, of course, was, "Oh, she'd start it, but I'd finish it."

That's my delicate, beautiful flower.

Back to school. She needs to change her schedule, but informed me that the first period teacher said it might take 2 weeks. TWO weeks?? Goodness! I am having a hard time refraining from calling the school and making this happen today, but we're determined this year to let her reap the consequences of her own actions. If, by some reason, this means she has to revisit her junior year or spend next summer in class, well, so be it.

As a good mom, I want to end this report on a good note. Nicole's hair was just lovely today - she had her bangs pulled back and the rest straightened and hanging down. Lovely.

And It's The Last Week of Summer

...for kids! For kids in my school district, that is. Meaning, MINE!!! Wooohoooo!

I don't mean it to sound like I don't want her around - that's not the thing. The "thing" is she thrives so much better in structure.

She's SO boy-crazy, it wears me out. I'm telling you, Michael Phelps has nothing on me.

Except a well-muscled body and 8 gold medals.

School, Please Start!

I can't wait till school starts! It's not that I don't want to spend time with my daughter. We don't - she's "out" with her friends. Evidently, her friends' houses are cooler than ours - because we're not in them.

She just pushes the limits on every, single thing. "Be home at 10:00pm," I say. At 9:50pm, the phone rings, and she says, "Mom, can I please be home at 10:30 - Courtney is going out of town next week and this is the very last time we can hang out until school starts?"

Sounds reasonable - after all, she's 16, she's being polite, asking, etc.... except she and Courtney have been together since 2pm! Sheesh!

Structure and routines. I need them. Now.

Okay, and to veer WAY off-topic. Did you love that swimming relay race or what???

I admit it, I am an Olympic junky. I mean, I LOVE the Olympics. If I start watching, I can't stop.

Swimming, diving, gymnastics, volleyball, badminton...it doesn't matter. I was reading on one of my regular blog reads that this particular person was not pleased that NBC is slanted toward the USA. Bummer. Gotta' say that it seems to me each country WOULD slant toward their own country. I can't really imagine that I would go to Japan and find all the coverage slanted toward anyone but the Japanese. That's their market.

Marketing 101 - appeal to your market. I want to see what my teams are doing. Don't you?