Maturity

So, Nicole decided to be "mature" about everything.

She and Justin (April's recently dumped boyfriend) took everything April left in Nicole's car or at our house (this means tons of clothing) to April's job at the grocery store. April is a cashier.

Along with the mass quantities of clothing, a four page handwritten letter was delivered as well.

From what I gather, Nicole carried the letter and Justin carried the clothes. They walked through her line, dropped everything on the conveyor belt and informed April they were "through" and to "never speak to us again."

Off they went to a mutual friend's house and enjoyed the evening.

She came home in a good mood. Works for me.

Responsibilities and Face It

A combo post! Almost like being in a Chinese restaurant, isn't it?

So, about responsibilities... I had a loooooooooooooooooooooooong discussion with Nicole on Saturday night about responsibilities. She thinks I micro-manage her too much and don't give her an opportunity to show me how responsible she truly is.

That went on to what we expect from her as a member of our family and a resident in our house. We are VERY easy on the kid. Keep your room neat. I don't want to walk in your room and see dirty clothes on the floor when the hamper is THREE FEET away.

Make your bed.

I don't want to see shoes all over the house.

Keep the bathroom neat. Don't take your clothes off and leave them there for God and everyone to see.

Do your laundry and put it away.

And CALL HOME at the appointed times. Quit saying, "Sorry, I forgot."

After this, she says I don't give her enough time to do these things before I tell her to do them again. My point: Do them and there won't be any discussion about it.

I had to act like my child rides the little bus: These things must be done FIRST and DAILY (except the laundry, of course). Not pick up your clothes and shoes once a week, or at 11pm.

The big point: You want extra privileges? Privileges require responsibility. If you can't show us responsibility right in front of our faces, how are we to believe you are being responsible the rest of the time? Sheesh!

Give me two toddlers for one teen - please!

Face It? I snagged my own name on Facebook... I felt like I won the lottery. Of course, Lynda isn't as popular as it was 30/40 years ago. I imagine if my name was Brittany or Courtney it wouldn't be so easy.

There you go... almost as good as sausage on a stick!

Not The Best

..of weekends, but, thankfully, it's over. I don't really want to go into great detail, but let's just say Miss Priss had a meltdown on Friday. Basically, she just didn't her way.

Unfortunately, we have discovered this child may need some assistance in handling her anger. God bless her...she's a trial, but we love her. It's hard to know what you will face when you adopt a teen. We're finding out.

Now on to other news... I've moved into my new office. Goodness! I absolutely LOVE it. The painter is right behind me this very moment, so I need to sign off for now.

Later!

Spring Break is Over!

Yea!

I know... aren't I horrible? I couldn't be more happy that Spring Break is over.

I love school.

Sure wish it was in session year round.

The Manipulator had her boyfriend over for the day this past Saturday. I talked to the mom prior to the exchange of children... we agreed... there would be NO spending the night of Brandon with one of Nicole's guy friends. That is a big, fat negatory.

The deal was... Brandon could hang out till 9pm, then I would take him all the way home... and, people, he lives an HOUR away.

At, 8:45pm, they call and want more time. I gave them 20 minutes.

Left the house at 9:20pm and got home at 11:30pm.

Sheesh - the things I do for this kid! *wink*

They are already plotting for next weekend. Wonder what that will bring??

I need a nap.

Score One For The Moms!

The plot thickens and turns in my direction...

I called Brandon's mom... we were to meet halfway and I would bring Brandon to our side of town. Brandon was to spend the night with Josh. Well, after talking to Brandon's mom, she said she talked to Josh's dad to confirm Brandon could stay the night. She doesn't know Josh or his family.

Well, guess who doesn't have a dad in his life? That's right, Josh! They almost pulled to wool over our eyes. Soooo, the kids said the "dad" that called was Josh's mother's fiancee... are you following??

Brandon's mom and I both thought this was extremely fishy, so she insisted on talking to Josh's mother. Seems Josh's mom doesn't have a fiancee or even someone she's dating. Josh's mom kiboshed the plan.

Uh-oh. No spending the night.

Devastation reigned. In two households.

Teens in heat!

Today is Nicole's 17th birthday. If only her boyfriend could spend it with her. Sigh. Misery.

Of course, she's going to the rodeo tonight to see Taylor Swift. Guess that will balance it out a bit.

If only....sigh... Brandon could go. Sigh.

Manipulation

It hasn't started yet, but it's coming... the kid will begin manipulation tactics today. Her boyfriend, that lives across town (and I mean ACROSS town - over an hour or more away), has been invited to "spend the night" with another friend on our side of town. Wonder who manipulated that??

Of course, the boyfriend, Brandon, doesn't have a car. So, he can't drive over. The manipulated friend who is doing the inviting doesn't have a car. My child, aka The Manipulator, does.

Problem here is she knows she is NOT allowed to drive across town... even though she has already done it once... sneakily. Not sneaklily enough - she got caught and in trouble.

So, The Manipulator comes to me to tell me how Brandon was invited to spend the night with Josh... maybe even two nights. But, how will he get there??? My answer was... doesn't he have parents??

Seems to me if Josh is doing the inviting, shouldn't he worry about picking up his own guest? Of course not! He's just being manipulated.

The Manipulator turns 17 tomorrow. I told her if Brandon's folks would meet halfway, I would consider going that far. Doubt this will happen.

She doesn't know I still have Brandon's mother's phone number... bwahahahahah!

She will need years of practice to beat me at this game...but she might wear me down before she gets there.

Never Again

Mark my words... I will never, ever, EVER chaperone a whole host of teenagers again.

Whew! It will wear you out.

I had 5 boys and 4 girls... one poor boy was not "partnered up," but he's the oldest and was basically everyone's "big brother."

There was a LOT of snuggling, cuddling, and kissing going on. I felt like mega-bitch...stop that, behave, get off that bed, nobody under blankets, etc.... the hardest part was getting the girls into a separate room every night. They tried to wear me down so that I would fall asleep before they did, but, unfortunately for them, it didn't happen. So, they'd come in the girl's room, I'd lock the door... they'd talk and giggle for an hour or more...then the texting would commence.

Guess who they were texting? The boys in the next room, of course.

Finally, they'd lie down and immediately drop into deep sleep.

Then, morning came and it started all over again....

I couldn't be more grateful to be at work.

To The Beach

People, please keep me in your thoughts... I am off to Galveston this afternoon with 4 girls and 4 boys. For 2 nights!

Thank goodness another mom will be joining me tomorrow.

At 50 years old, I don't know if I still have the stamina to keep up with these hormone-laden creatures.

The bad part is I had to be in the office at 7:00am today, which means I got less sleep, will be more tired, and have to be a monitor until the wee hours of the morning. Yikes!

Plus, to top it all off, we're having record lows for this time of year. Right this moment, it's 45 degrees and that's the predicted high for the day. Luckily, it's supposed to be 54 in Galveston.

There won't be any swimming going on.

I am interested in getting down there to see the after-effects of Hurricane Ike - it was really devastating to the island. They've done a massive amount of clean-up, but I hear there are parts that are still bad.

On the Bolivar peninsula (a ferry ride away), it is complete devastation. Just heard on the radio this morning that some of the main roads are still being cleared and repaired. Ike was 8 months ago.

I'm rambling now, but thinking about this is bittersweet in a way. My great-grandmother had a beach house on the peninsula where I spent every summer of my childhood (until I was 17). It's just gone.

I miss it and I miss her.

So, I'll loop back around and ask you to send some good vibes my way!

Rodeo, Teen Idols, and More...

Yesterday, my daughter got invited to bring a friend and go to the rodeo. So, you're probably thinking....hmmm... a rodeo. But, we're not talking just any rodeo, we're talking the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo - the biggest rodeo on the planet. It's a big deal in Houston - lasts for a couple of weeks and tons of big-name stars.

Okay, so why is this a big deal? Well, guess who was the entertainment yesterday?? Sit down, calm your hearts... The Jonas Brothers...gasp! oh my! (unfortunately, this mom doesn't know a thing about them!)

So, if you happen to have rodeo connections, you can find a way to get in... oh yes, you can get in. You won't have a seat, but, you will be in THE VERY SAME ROOM as one of your teen idols and that is just what happened. They got in, they stood, they sang, and they left happy. The tickets had sold out in approximately 15 minutes when they went on sale the month prior, so to get in was a big, big deal.

Luckily, for my teen, her uncle happens to be another rodeo connection for her and she and the same friend will be getting in to see Taylor Swift, too. They might be standing, but I don't think they care.

The plan for Taylor Swift is... all the girls will wear sundresses and cowboy boots. Oooooookay!

Yesterday, when Nicole was getting ready for The Jonas Brothers, she changed clothes about 12 times. She said, "Mom, what if I happen to meet one of them?"

What you wear DOES matter ;-)

Napping time

I want a nap.

I want to be by myself.

I want to take deep breaths that aren't worry-filled.

I never want to see another teenager again. I mean it.

Me. Books. Maybe my doggies. It would be okay if Jerry was there, too, but he'd have to be quiet.

It's one of those days. My mom didn't tell me about these.

The Drama Queen Lives In My House

Here it is Tuesday morning and it seems like it was Saturday just yesterday. Beats me how it all flies so quickly.

My child is in big, fat trouble right now. I won't go into details, because I promised her I wouldn't "tell her business" - of course, she doesn't even know about this blog, but you never know. Suffice it to say, she confessed to doing something she shouldn't and knew would get her in that big, fat trouble, so I have to give SOME credit for coming clean.

We're discovering that she has to have a HUGE circle of drama around her at all times, and quite frankly, we're not sure how to handle this. In fact, we're wondering if what she confessed to doing might just be a story to create drama with us and her friends - especially the friends.

Maybe we could invest in a quality lie detector.

Even When She's Driving Me Crazy

I still love my teenager. Oh, and God knows that's hard to say some days.

So, after a day filled with bloggy love courtesy of the SITS gals, I thought I'd share some momma love. As you may know, Jerry and I adopted Nicole on her 14th birthday. She was in foster care for about 7 years. Her life has been a hard one and she's endured things some of us can't even imagine.


Adjustment has gone very well for our girl. Don't get me wrong. There are still issues. Lots of issues, but because the transition has gone so wonderfully, we find ourselves forgetting to remember her background and filtering her responses to things through that light. We eventually lose amnesia.


So, indulge me as I share some photos of my kiddo:

Friday night football in Texas...a tradition embraced by our girl and a friend

Nicole loves her friends - they are like air and water to her - I love how much she values them
(l-r: Sam, Courtney, Nicole)

There is this "face" that Nicole wants to make in every photo...it's hard to get one where she isn't doing this. Oh, and she'd probably kill me if she knew I was posting her photo in her glasses - I think they're cute.

Oops! It's me trying to make that face, but I don't quite have it down.

One Sick Girl

The HALTER pumpkin patch

Nicole is sick again. She is missing so much school that I don't know how we're going to get her back on track. Plus, she faked that one day of sickness, so, of course, we keep thinking she's crying wolf.

This morning, her back hurt (where her lungs are), the right side of her throat hurts so much she can't swallow, she has a headache, and 100 degree fever. I know she's really ill.

It's back to the doctor at 11am.

Now, if you didn't read the comments regarding her charity work at HALTER, she did go. She was appointed the official face painter and sticker tattoo artist. The day flew quickly. As the facility is open to the general public in October as a fund raiser, there were not as many special needs children, but still a significant number.

We were really proud of her doing this alone - not bringing a friend to feel "safe," but jumping right in and being a trooper.

Nicole and two of the ponies

Now, we need our girl to get well.

Two young cowboys at HALTER

Will She Go?

Our daughter, Nicole, needs some volunteer hours to get a letterman's jacket for school and some service hours to get the opportunity to take some fun trips with her church group.

Soooooooooooo.....she found a charity near our house called H.A.L.T.E.R. It's an amazing place with tiny, miniature horses, ponies, and full-sized horses. HALTER stands for Horses Assisting Learning, Therapy, Eyesight, Rehabilitation, Inc.

From what we understand, they bring in handicapped and blind kids and let them ride the horses. It is supposedly very therapeutic. Halter happens to need volunteers this month because they are having a Pumpkin Patch.

Today's hours are from 8am - 2pm. I went to wake her up at 7:30am. She wanted to know why she couldn't go at 9am. We compromised at 8:30am.

Last night was the homecoming game. It went into double overtime, so Miss Priss didn't go to sleep until 1:30am (neither did her mother).

I'll let you know if she goes or not. I am on the fence right now.

The power of a letter jacket is very powerful.

So is the power of teenage laziness.

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.

Just When You Think...

..it's getting better, you get another surprise. Guess who got a speeding ticket?? Oh yes, the 16 year old.

She wasn't TRYING to speed, it just happened.

Consequences? Oh yeah. She's paying the ticket out of her savings and will work to reimburse the increase in insurance. If she gets another one, the car goes in storage for 2 - 3 months.

Whew, Buddy, there was a LOT of crying and apologizing around here this morning.

The first decision was to ground her from the car and we had every intention of doing so, but with proper remorse and saying of the right things (and this is a BIG step for this kid due to her background, etc...), we are giving a "second chance" of trust.

Now, we wait and see.

The Most Wonderful Day of the Year

Oh yes, that's right...the first day of school! Nicole was so nervous about the first day, she barely slept. She had budgeted out her time to be able to flat iron her newly-cut hair. She thinks it's "short," but it's WAY below her shoulders.

I got up at 5:30am and saw her bathroom light flick on. A few moments later, she was straightening her layers. It looked great. If I hadn't left my camera at work.... oh well, maybe she'll let me catch her tomorrow.

So, she's a junior and driving to school (gasp!). She is picking up her best friend, Samantha, and they're riding together. I, of course, am nervous (breathe, OMmmmmmm, breathe).

Of course, she has informed me that she'll be completely changing her schedule - including dropping PE. It will mess up her hair. She'll play a sport next year or just take PE then. Like her hair won't matter in the future.

As you can see, school, thus far, is about her hair. And friends. And getting a good parking spot.

We did all the lectures about homework and grades, etc... she agreed to all our instruction, but we KNOW her...

Here we go...

Post Toastie

That's me - I seem to be doing more than I planned this week, so I am not being a good poster.

Oh well, it happens to the best of us from time to time.

This is tax-free weekend in Texas on clothing and school-related items. I don't know if you have these in your state, but it turns into a darned zoo! The bad thing is this is the weekend I coerced my daughter into going school clothes shopping.

Her schedule is so booked with her many social activities (read: "chilling" with her friends), that I have to get a commitment from her in advance and this is the weekend she picked. Who knew?

Pray for me... we're going to the mall with a gazillion other people tomorrow.

That, on top of missing lots of sleep (thank you, Olympics) is why I am a Post Toastie!

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?

Never Caught Up

A couple of days ago I was mentioning how much I love naps. Now, that hasn't changed, but I haven't caught up with my sleep yet. Seems like I have gotten out of whack and I can't get my whack back.

Sheesh! That sounds like, "This Old Man," or something of the sort.

The weekend is coming and we might be teen-free for almost 24 hours. God knows we love her more than anything else on earth, but teenlessness is pretty darn good, too.

So, what drains YOUR energy the most?