I introduced myself to a new person in our playgroup today as "Hi I'm Freak. I have an attitude problem" RF says it sounded like an attitude problems anonymous meeting.
Honestly, after she said something about someone else saying that they didn't do something in their house and I responded with "then maybe they should go to their house" I decided that I needed to clarify so she didn't think that it was anything personal. It is just the way I am :)
Friday, August 29, 2008
My kind of music
Looseyfur and Missy have been pimping Death Cab for Cutie's show at the Assembly Hall like there is no tomorrow. I've watched both the videos they posted and I saw them on Letterman a year or so ago (or maybe even longer than that) and so far, I haven't heard anything that I like. They just aren't my kind of band. All the songs are so down. They just don't appeal to me.
Who does appeal to me you might ask? Or you might not but since it is my blog, I get to post what I want LOL
This is my favorite song they have ever done
(high praise, since I really like a lot of their albums). They are also the singularly best live band EVER!
Who does appeal to me you might ask? Or you might not but since it is my blog, I get to post what I want LOL
This is my favorite song they have ever done
(high praise, since I really like a lot of their albums). They are also the singularly best live band EVER!
Instead of chores
I'm playing on the computer and the kids are playing trains. They are playing together well (KOW) and I'm not going to get in the way of that.
Over my shoulder I just heard TB telling MT that he "needed to bring in forces to help negotiate a treaty with Sir Topam Hatt" LOL Apparently STH is doing some bad things if forces need to be brought in
Over my shoulder I just heard TB telling MT that he "needed to bring in forces to help negotiate a treaty with Sir Topam Hatt" LOL Apparently STH is doing some bad things if forces need to be brought in
Thursday, August 28, 2008
Bits and pieces
Thanks to Quigs and Looseyfur I have slightly expanded my eating habits. At the garden, I called dibs on the tomatoes and Loosey told me I could have them if she could have the green beans. Since I don't like green beans I was ok with that. Then while we were sitting there, Loosey took one of the beans and ate it. I was fascinated. She didn't cook it, she didn't even wash it. That was madness! Because I was so intrigued, I had to try one and miracle of miracles, I really liked it. This is actually not that big of a surprise because I eat lots of raw veggies that I wouldn't touch cooked (broccoli and spinach come to mind). Because our garden is tiny and couldn't support what is shaping up to be a habit, I decided to pick some fresh green beans from the farmers market. I had planned to just eat them plain but decided to cut them up in my salad tonight and they were tasty.
For many years, I have had glasses that I'm supposed to wear while on the computer. They are bifocal because I don't have sight issues aside from reading on the computer. At my office job, I wore them because I was on the computer all day every day. I found that they were kind of a pain because I spent a lot of time looking at that middle distance and looking through the bifocals made my head hurt worse than not wearing them. For the last three weeks, I've had a headache every single day. I thought for awhile that it was caffiene withdrawl but drinking more tea didn't seem to be helping. Yesterday, I remembered the glasses and thought "what the heck, the worst that could happen is my headache doesn't go away" I put them on and less than an hour later, my headache was gone. Everytime I've been on the computer for the last 2 days, I've worn them and my head hasn't hurt at all. Obviously, I need them again so I will do my best to wear them. I do find looking at the kids a bit difficult because they are right in the bifocal but too far away so they are fuzzy.
Have you seen the walmart commercial for back to school? The one that says "I can't go to school with her, but I can give her what she needs to feel good about herself". And the girl is trying to sit with some of the other girls and they are all complementing her on her top. Every time I see it, I want to gag! Can you say shallow and vain, if wearing the "right" shirt is what makes her feel good about herself? What about her own self worth? Her intelligence? Her personallity? Obviously none of that matters, as long as you are wearing the right top :(
RF is out with papaQuigs and Missy's hubby getting their nerd on. I have to agree with Quigs that every girl should marry a nerd. They work a lot harder and cause little strife. He may spend hours in front of a video game, but at least I know where he is at. He may go out with his friends but I never wonder where they are or what they are doing. I know they are all too shy/nerdy to be out trying to pick up other women (if any of them even had that desire), they aren't getting wasted, etc. Being married to a nerd is a good thing LOL
MT finally got the hang of swimming several feet at a time. She can't quite get lifting herself out of the water to take a breath but she is so close. She jumps in in the 5 foot, pushes off the bottom and swimms 6-8 feet to me, where I lift her out of the water. It won't be long before she figures out the breathing (or, at the rate she is going, grows gills LOL) and is FINALLY able to go off the diving board.
I'm pleased to announce that TB has started making some different friends this year. There is a boy from his class last year that he has been playing with at recess and another boy that he has been sitting with at lunch. After school, he has found a couple boys who are a grade older that he plays with, although he does still occasionally chat with B and J. So far, so good and I couldn't be happier!
I have yet to get the hang of this stupid early schedule. I am staying up outrageousely late and barely dragging myself out of bed in the morning. Speaking of which, I'm headed to bed so I can read for a bit and still be asleep by 10, which is a little late, since I have to get up at 6 but not as bad as midnight (last night's bedtime)
For many years, I have had glasses that I'm supposed to wear while on the computer. They are bifocal because I don't have sight issues aside from reading on the computer. At my office job, I wore them because I was on the computer all day every day. I found that they were kind of a pain because I spent a lot of time looking at that middle distance and looking through the bifocals made my head hurt worse than not wearing them. For the last three weeks, I've had a headache every single day. I thought for awhile that it was caffiene withdrawl but drinking more tea didn't seem to be helping. Yesterday, I remembered the glasses and thought "what the heck, the worst that could happen is my headache doesn't go away" I put them on and less than an hour later, my headache was gone. Everytime I've been on the computer for the last 2 days, I've worn them and my head hasn't hurt at all. Obviously, I need them again so I will do my best to wear them. I do find looking at the kids a bit difficult because they are right in the bifocal but too far away so they are fuzzy.
Have you seen the walmart commercial for back to school? The one that says "I can't go to school with her, but I can give her what she needs to feel good about herself". And the girl is trying to sit with some of the other girls and they are all complementing her on her top. Every time I see it, I want to gag! Can you say shallow and vain, if wearing the "right" shirt is what makes her feel good about herself? What about her own self worth? Her intelligence? Her personallity? Obviously none of that matters, as long as you are wearing the right top :(
RF is out with papaQuigs and Missy's hubby getting their nerd on. I have to agree with Quigs that every girl should marry a nerd. They work a lot harder and cause little strife. He may spend hours in front of a video game, but at least I know where he is at. He may go out with his friends but I never wonder where they are or what they are doing. I know they are all too shy/nerdy to be out trying to pick up other women (if any of them even had that desire), they aren't getting wasted, etc. Being married to a nerd is a good thing LOL
MT finally got the hang of swimming several feet at a time. She can't quite get lifting herself out of the water to take a breath but she is so close. She jumps in in the 5 foot, pushes off the bottom and swimms 6-8 feet to me, where I lift her out of the water. It won't be long before she figures out the breathing (or, at the rate she is going, grows gills LOL) and is FINALLY able to go off the diving board.
I'm pleased to announce that TB has started making some different friends this year. There is a boy from his class last year that he has been playing with at recess and another boy that he has been sitting with at lunch. After school, he has found a couple boys who are a grade older that he plays with, although he does still occasionally chat with B and J. So far, so good and I couldn't be happier!
I have yet to get the hang of this stupid early schedule. I am staying up outrageousely late and barely dragging myself out of bed in the morning. Speaking of which, I'm headed to bed so I can read for a bit and still be asleep by 10, which is a little late, since I have to get up at 6 but not as bad as midnight (last night's bedtime)
Wednesday, August 27, 2008
Hair
This is her hair after we have beaten it in to submission with detangler and 2 combs (we start with the ultra wide comb and then finish with the slightly less wide tooth to get more snarls out)
Hair
This picture and the one in the next post is what I wake up to with MT's hair each morning. Unfortunately, these pictures don't do it justice because you can't see all the little hairs standing nearly straight up on the top of her head.
Pay no attention to my ugly bathroom in the background.
Tuesday, August 26, 2008
Curl up and die
Seriously, I read Curly Girl today and I'm with the mom in one of the curly confessions that told her daughter "take care of your hair or I'll cut it off" It advocates insane amounts of time spent on hair. I was worn out just reading the description, let alone actually following the steps. I already feel like we spend too much time messing with her hair and all we do now is wash, condition, and comb. Every morning I spray her down with detangler and comb again. Otherwise, I leave it alone. I also never use product on my hair. I did for a very short period of time, when my hair was super short and I spiked it but that got old about the second day that I did it.
She can love her curs when she is old enough to handle them herself (maybe college) because I don't have time. Just watch, in 20 years she will be quoted in a book talking about how horrible her childhood was because her mom was too lazy to screw with her hair every day!
She can love her curs when she is old enough to handle them herself (maybe college) because I don't have time. Just watch, in 20 years she will be quoted in a book talking about how horrible her childhood was because her mom was too lazy to screw with her hair every day!
Can you tell the difference
We were talking about MT's hair and TB said to my mom that daddy has been brushing her hair at bedtime and that she likes him doing it better than me. My mom says "well, what does Dad do different from Mom?" TB thought about it for a second then said "um, Dad leaves to go to work and Mom stays home" Absolutely true but not quite what we were asking. The answer to the question is that RF has patience with her and will take whatever amount of time is needed to get her hair combed without pulling it at all.
I was in the bedroom doing something and MT came in and told me that she was getting the markers out. I said "ok, sweet heart, I'll be out in a minute" She walked out and got all the way to the microwave before saying "wait a minute" and turning around to come back. She poked her head back in the bedroom and said "that's Batman to you"
Today, we went to the park with Quigs and the Quiglets. They were running a bit late meeting us and MT was getting stressed so she asked to call Quigs to see where they were. When Quigs answered the phone MT said "Hi Quigs, this is MT" After talking about where they each were, Quigs asked how long we had been at the park and MT said "um, 2 hours". Closer to 15 minutes but either way LOL
I was in the bedroom doing something and MT came in and told me that she was getting the markers out. I said "ok, sweet heart, I'll be out in a minute" She walked out and got all the way to the microwave before saying "wait a minute" and turning around to come back. She poked her head back in the bedroom and said "that's Batman to you"
Today, we went to the park with Quigs and the Quiglets. They were running a bit late meeting us and MT was getting stressed so she asked to call Quigs to see where they were. When Quigs answered the phone MT said "Hi Quigs, this is MT" After talking about where they each were, Quigs asked how long we had been at the park and MT said "um, 2 hours". Closer to 15 minutes but either way LOL
Monday, August 25, 2008
It's all about me
I was filling out our family calendar for the rest of the school year and I noticed that in January, the only things that are on the calendar are either days out of school (Xmas break) or my stuff. I know it will fill up with other play dates and things but right now it looks like it is all about me :)
Also, am I a bad PTA mom if I blow off the Feb district meeting for book club? It is the first one that has been a book I actually wanted to read on my own. I think I'll ask someone else to go to the district meeting for me that one night.
Also, am I a bad PTA mom if I blow off the Feb district meeting for book club? It is the first one that has been a book I actually wanted to read on my own. I think I'll ask someone else to go to the district meeting for me that one night.
Saturday, August 23, 2008
Taking charge
At bedtime, I read to the kids, kiss them goodnight and then set up a gate to keep MT in. This was to curb finding all manor of food and bathroom items in her bed because she would get up and silently roam the house after I put her to bed. A couple of times she has tried to scale the gate but overall it has been sucessful.
Tonight I was in our dining room when I saw her standing by the gate. She looked around and didn't see me watching her. Then she backed up and took a running start at the gate. She charged into it, shoulder down, full speed ahead. I'm not sure if she expected it to hold up to that kind of assault or if she just really wanted out. I'm betting on the first since when she stumbled to a halt in the kitchen, she looked quite surprised to find herself on that side of the gate.
She looked around frantically for a second (I had hid byt that point so she didn't see me) then turned and walked in the living room. I hustled to my chair and was sitting, waiting as she came around the corner. She looked at me and said "hrm, you forgot to put the gate up" ROFL
We had the exchange of "Can I talk to you" "no, go to bed" a couple of times before she finally agreed to a final kiss, then back to bed. On her way out of the living room she said "I'm going to bed but you need to put the gate up this time"
Tonight I was in our dining room when I saw her standing by the gate. She looked around and didn't see me watching her. Then she backed up and took a running start at the gate. She charged into it, shoulder down, full speed ahead. I'm not sure if she expected it to hold up to that kind of assault or if she just really wanted out. I'm betting on the first since when she stumbled to a halt in the kitchen, she looked quite surprised to find herself on that side of the gate.
She looked around frantically for a second (I had hid byt that point so she didn't see me) then turned and walked in the living room. I hustled to my chair and was sitting, waiting as she came around the corner. She looked at me and said "hrm, you forgot to put the gate up" ROFL
We had the exchange of "Can I talk to you" "no, go to bed" a couple of times before she finally agreed to a final kiss, then back to bed. On her way out of the living room she said "I'm going to bed but you need to put the gate up this time"
Drama
Have you ever known someone who was a complete attention whore, that CREATED drama for themselves just so they could talk about it? What about people who tell you one story (very dramatic) and then later on, add MAJOR details that completely change the story and make it ever so much more serious? Yeah, I know one of those people too (no one here and no one any of you know, just another blogger that bugs the crap out of me)
Have you ever been happily reading blogs, entertaining yourself when you come across a post that makes you want to scream and beat the poster with your computer? Yeah, me too. Random blog linked from another random blog brought up a serious hot button topic for me. It was an opposing viewpoint to mine (which isn't surprising since I rarely want to hit people that agree with me LOL), which I can accept but it was written in such a way that it was very inflamitory and just put me into a rage.
Have you ever been happily reading blogs, entertaining yourself when you come across a post that makes you want to scream and beat the poster with your computer? Yeah, me too. Random blog linked from another random blog brought up a serious hot button topic for me. It was an opposing viewpoint to mine (which isn't surprising since I rarely want to hit people that agree with me LOL), which I can accept but it was written in such a way that it was very inflamitory and just put me into a rage.
Friday, August 22, 2008
5 things about you
Missy tagged me for this so here goes:
1. Post the rules of the game at the beginning.
2. Each player answers the questions about themselves.
3. At the end of the post, the player then tags five people and posts their names, then goes to their blogs and leaves them a comment, letting them know they've been tagged and asking them to read the player's blog.
4. Let the person who tagged you know when you've posted your answer.
What were you doing five years ago?
Working full time while trying to take care of a house and a toddler.
What are five things on your to-do list for today (tomorrow since today is pretty much over)?
1. Go to the farmer's market for some much needed produce
2. Avoid any major stores for fear of the idiot students
3. Find something fun for the kids to do since our carnival was cancelled.
4. Be REALLY glad I went to KAP last weekend since Obama is invading Springfield tomorrow
5. Take a nap since I'm going to an ultra late movie with the girls tonight.
What are five snacks you enjoy?
1. Ice cream
2. Popcorn
3. Berries
4. Tomatoes
5. Whatever my kids are eating and can't finish
What are five things you would do if you were a billionaire?
1. Pay for all future school for my kids
2. Travel with my family
3. Buy/build my dream house
4. Buy RF the motorcycle he wants
5. Invest wisely to ensure that I didn't do anything stupid and blow it all on junk.
What are five of your bad habits?
1. Procrastination
2. Obsessiveness
3. Being overly opinionated about things that aren't my business
4. Eating too much
5. Avoidence
What are five places where you have lived?
1. Rantoul, IL
2. Homer, IL
3. Urbana, IL
4. Villa Grove, IL
5. Champaign, IL
What are five jobs you've had?
1. Cashier
2. Phone sales rep
3. Product Support Tech
4. Receptionist
5. Preschool Teacher
Five people I tag:
1. Dana at Looseyfur's midwest adventure
2.Linda at Vegan Linda
3. Rogers at Those Rogers
4. Sarah at Make-up girl
5. Jen at Flannel Hippos
1. Post the rules of the game at the beginning.
2. Each player answers the questions about themselves.
3. At the end of the post, the player then tags five people and posts their names, then goes to their blogs and leaves them a comment, letting them know they've been tagged and asking them to read the player's blog.
4. Let the person who tagged you know when you've posted your answer.
What were you doing five years ago?
Working full time while trying to take care of a house and a toddler.
What are five things on your to-do list for today (tomorrow since today is pretty much over)?
1. Go to the farmer's market for some much needed produce
2. Avoid any major stores for fear of the idiot students
3. Find something fun for the kids to do since our carnival was cancelled.
4. Be REALLY glad I went to KAP last weekend since Obama is invading Springfield tomorrow
5. Take a nap since I'm going to an ultra late movie with the girls tonight.
What are five snacks you enjoy?
1. Ice cream
2. Popcorn
3. Berries
4. Tomatoes
5. Whatever my kids are eating and can't finish
What are five things you would do if you were a billionaire?
1. Pay for all future school for my kids
2. Travel with my family
3. Buy/build my dream house
4. Buy RF the motorcycle he wants
5. Invest wisely to ensure that I didn't do anything stupid and blow it all on junk.
What are five of your bad habits?
1. Procrastination
2. Obsessiveness
3. Being overly opinionated about things that aren't my business
4. Eating too much
5. Avoidence
What are five places where you have lived?
1. Rantoul, IL
2. Homer, IL
3. Urbana, IL
4. Villa Grove, IL
5. Champaign, IL
What are five jobs you've had?
1. Cashier
2. Phone sales rep
3. Product Support Tech
4. Receptionist
5. Preschool Teacher
Five people I tag:
1. Dana at Looseyfur's midwest adventure
2.Linda at Vegan Linda
3. Rogers at Those Rogers
4. Sarah at Make-up girl
5. Jen at Flannel Hippos
Thursday, August 21, 2008
Scoot over
I got a scooter. It is super cute. It looks a lot like this one
Except it is black and a year older (strangely enough you can't find good pictures of a 20 year old scooter on the internet, go figure). I really like riding it and I'm coming up with reasons to leave the house by myself. I figure I can ride it to work out when RF is home, to PTA, to girl's night outs, to book club, on small errands during the day, etc. It doesn't have a trunk or anything so no major shopping trips, but if I can fit it in my little back pack, I can carry it.
RF and MIL (who owns the scooter and is just letting me use it since it is an extra one that has been sitting in their garage for years) kept cautioning me about not being intimidated by other cars on the road but since I believe I am the most awesome thing on the road, I'm really not intimidated by them. It is only a 49cc, which is why I can ride it, legally, without getting a motorcycle license. But that means that it tops out at 30 miles an hour so I end up a little slower than the rest of traffic. I really enjoy riding and will likely get my motorcycle license and look for something bigger in the next few years.
My dad has had a motorcycle license as long as I can remember (I burned my leg rarther badly on his bike when I was 5 and I know he had one before that. If you want, I can still show you the scar sometime) and RF and my brother took the motorcycle training class a few years ago. My mom decided to get her's again after not having it for years (she had a bike in CA before she married my dad and had to ride his first bike home for him because he didn't have a license for it) and also took the class. I honestly don't think I will mess with it. By the time I get around to getting one, I'll have been riding the scooter for at least a couple of years and once I learn to shift and use the clutch (the scooter is automatic), it will be no big deal.
My mom is absolutely shocked by my choice NOT to take the class. Really, it is a major pain in the neck. It is 4 hours, 4 days, over the course of 2 weekends. You go over to campus, and ride a 250cc motorcycle around the parking lot, in long pants, long shirt, boots, gloves and full helmet (I wear a full helmet anyway because I like my head the shape it is in now, thanks so much) in the summer in the outrageous heat (or the rain or whatever other crappy weather is happening during the class). Besides all that, you have kick, scratch, bite and potentially kill to get in the classes because they fill super fast. It isn't worth all that to me. Riding a bike isn't rocket science, I have no need to waste 16 hours learning to something I already know how to do.
Anyway, if you see a girl on little black scooter with a big black helmet that weighs more than the bike, it is probably me. Feel free to honk and wave, although depending on how my ride is going, I might not wave back since I might have a white knuckled, death grip on the handle bars. :)
Except it is black and a year older (strangely enough you can't find good pictures of a 20 year old scooter on the internet, go figure). I really like riding it and I'm coming up with reasons to leave the house by myself. I figure I can ride it to work out when RF is home, to PTA, to girl's night outs, to book club, on small errands during the day, etc. It doesn't have a trunk or anything so no major shopping trips, but if I can fit it in my little back pack, I can carry it.
RF and MIL (who owns the scooter and is just letting me use it since it is an extra one that has been sitting in their garage for years) kept cautioning me about not being intimidated by other cars on the road but since I believe I am the most awesome thing on the road, I'm really not intimidated by them. It is only a 49cc, which is why I can ride it, legally, without getting a motorcycle license. But that means that it tops out at 30 miles an hour so I end up a little slower than the rest of traffic. I really enjoy riding and will likely get my motorcycle license and look for something bigger in the next few years.
My dad has had a motorcycle license as long as I can remember (I burned my leg rarther badly on his bike when I was 5 and I know he had one before that. If you want, I can still show you the scar sometime) and RF and my brother took the motorcycle training class a few years ago. My mom decided to get her's again after not having it for years (she had a bike in CA before she married my dad and had to ride his first bike home for him because he didn't have a license for it) and also took the class. I honestly don't think I will mess with it. By the time I get around to getting one, I'll have been riding the scooter for at least a couple of years and once I learn to shift and use the clutch (the scooter is automatic), it will be no big deal.
My mom is absolutely shocked by my choice NOT to take the class. Really, it is a major pain in the neck. It is 4 hours, 4 days, over the course of 2 weekends. You go over to campus, and ride a 250cc motorcycle around the parking lot, in long pants, long shirt, boots, gloves and full helmet (I wear a full helmet anyway because I like my head the shape it is in now, thanks so much) in the summer in the outrageous heat (or the rain or whatever other crappy weather is happening during the class). Besides all that, you have kick, scratch, bite and potentially kill to get in the classes because they fill super fast. It isn't worth all that to me. Riding a bike isn't rocket science, I have no need to waste 16 hours learning to something I already know how to do.
Anyway, if you see a girl on little black scooter with a big black helmet that weighs more than the bike, it is probably me. Feel free to honk and wave, although depending on how my ride is going, I might not wave back since I might have a white knuckled, death grip on the handle bars. :)
Bad dreams
I just had to the worst dream. I dreamed that we left MT with my mom for a few hours while we did something with TB and she ended up kidnapped. We didn't know where she was or if she was ok or anything.
Now I have lingering icky feelings so I'm blogging about it, in the hopes that I will feel better and be able to go to sleep, since I have to get up in 30 minutes for school.
Now I have lingering icky feelings so I'm blogging about it, in the hopes that I will feel better and be able to go to sleep, since I have to get up in 30 minutes for school.
Wednesday, August 20, 2008
Chalkdust Torture
Some of you remember in the past I have posted about J, TB's frienemy. At the end of the year last year, things were total madness. I talked to the K teacher and the principal and requested that they be seperated for this year. The teacher agreeed with me and also talked to the principal about the situation. J's mom mentioned it but I don't know if she actually talked to anyone about it or not. We were all pretty much on the same page about the boys needing to not be together this year.
This year, in a twist, they decided not to post class lists, instead mailing out the assignments to each parent and you get to be surprised on the first day of school (tomorrow, which is insane, isn't still like July). As soon as I got our assignment, I emailed J's mom to find out who he got. The next day she emailed me and told me that they got the same teacher!! :( The teacher they got also happens to be brand new. I was excited about that, because new teachers have to get burned out, they have more energy, etc. They also have more chaos and a looser structure. Could go either way on the good bad scale LOL
I immidiately fired off an email to T, the principal (Libbygirl thought it was funny that I was on a first name basis with him),not really expecting a response because it was Sunday. Much to my surprise, I got a response less than an hour later. He told me he remembered the conversation and would review the class lists first thing Monday morning at his office to see what we could do about it.
I called him that afternoon because I hadn't heard and he said that he did get TB moved to Mrs. C's class!! I didn't know anything about her, because we had gotten Ms. M's letter, telling us about her. We went by the school yesterday to see if we could meet her, or at least see the classroom. As it turned out, she wasn't there, but her lockers were all labelled, acting as a very nice class list :) So now I know who all is in his class and the class next door (Ms. M's class was labelled also). I also know that his classroom is the ONE with the air conditioner this year. Last year, his K teacher had it, now his first grade teacher has it. He is going to get spoiled and be mad when his class doesn't have it, eventually.
This year, in a twist, they decided not to post class lists, instead mailing out the assignments to each parent and you get to be surprised on the first day of school (tomorrow, which is insane, isn't still like July). As soon as I got our assignment, I emailed J's mom to find out who he got. The next day she emailed me and told me that they got the same teacher!! :( The teacher they got also happens to be brand new. I was excited about that, because new teachers have to get burned out, they have more energy, etc. They also have more chaos and a looser structure. Could go either way on the good bad scale LOL
I immidiately fired off an email to T, the principal (Libbygirl thought it was funny that I was on a first name basis with him),not really expecting a response because it was Sunday. Much to my surprise, I got a response less than an hour later. He told me he remembered the conversation and would review the class lists first thing Monday morning at his office to see what we could do about it.
I called him that afternoon because I hadn't heard and he said that he did get TB moved to Mrs. C's class!! I didn't know anything about her, because we had gotten Ms. M's letter, telling us about her. We went by the school yesterday to see if we could meet her, or at least see the classroom. As it turned out, she wasn't there, but her lockers were all labelled, acting as a very nice class list :) So now I know who all is in his class and the class next door (Ms. M's class was labelled also). I also know that his classroom is the ONE with the air conditioner this year. Last year, his K teacher had it, now his first grade teacher has it. He is going to get spoiled and be mad when his class doesn't have it, eventually.
Tuesday, August 19, 2008
Boy, oh boy
During birth and recovery Mrs. Chicken is having guest bloggers. Today's guest is Erin from Mama Said No, a blog I haven't had the chance to read. However, I read her guest post and felt compelled to make a post of my own.
In her post she says "I’ve eventually gotten used to my little boy. I even *gulp* kind of LIKE him. He is dirty, and he pees standing up, and he (quite thankfully) likes baseball. I can throw a baseball. I regularly step on wayward hot wheels and Thomas the Train, and I constantly find rocks in the lint filter of my dryer"
I read that and thought "does she have Ms Thang at her house too?", minus the "pees standing up" thing. But really, I have most of the rocks from the schools driveway in my house and she is always a dirty mess (she let me put her hair is "big girl pigtails today and she is super cute), she is more rough and tumble than her brother and generally, aside from her dresses, not a girly girl at all.
When I was pregnant with The Boy, I found out as soon as I could what I was having. I don't like surprises and simply wasn't going to go there. During the ultrasound, my son was very obviously a boy. He was very obviously proud of being a boy as well, with his hands behind his head and his knees open, giving him frog legs. I was thrilled beyond belief. Boys are awesome and boys I understand. Life was good. I had my boy and went on my merry way.
Then I got pregnant with Ms Thang. I hoped and wished and prayed for another boy. No way did I want a girl. I was so insistant that I wanted a boy, that I had myself convinced that was what she was. Until the sonogram. When my daughter was just as uninhibited about showing that she was a girl as my son had been about his. Everyone in the room with me was thrilled. TB wanted to call his paw-paw and tell him that he was having a "baby sitter". Everyone except me. I didn't cry then because I would have looked like a jerk but I did when I got home and I did for several weeks after, every time I thought about how I DIDN'T want a girl baby.
Girls are mean and scary and they are strange and I didn't want to go there. Despite more than a few months of hoping and wishing that the sonogram was wrong, that was exactly where I went. As a baby, she had a very unfortunate habit of crying all the time. All I could think was "what have I gotten myself into?" TB was such a nice, calm, easygoing baby. Once she started to get a personality, she seemed so girly to me. Even from a young age, she was obsessed with shoes and bags and babies and all kinds of girly stuff.
Then she got older and gained herself enough attitude for 5 kids. She wasn't a girl so much as she was an amazon warrior, scaring the hell out of anyone stupid enough to cross her. Now, she asks for "girl toys" (which we don't call them that or restrict them in that way, but you all know what I mean) like Barbies and dolls but the toys she actually plays with are the swords and the lightsabers and the train table. She loves to play in the dirt, she hates to have her hair messed with (we've been working on the hair issue and it is getting much better), she loves her dresses, etc.
As scared as I was about having a girl and as much as I dread her teen years (good lord, can you imagine her on a killer hormone surge!!), I'm really glad that I got her. She taught me a lot about being a parent and despite all her issues (seriously, I'm glad that she can take care of herself but she has to learn to be nicer), I wouldn't trade her for anything
In her post she says "I’ve eventually gotten used to my little boy. I even *gulp* kind of LIKE him. He is dirty, and he pees standing up, and he (quite thankfully) likes baseball. I can throw a baseball. I regularly step on wayward hot wheels and Thomas the Train, and I constantly find rocks in the lint filter of my dryer"
I read that and thought "does she have Ms Thang at her house too?", minus the "pees standing up" thing. But really, I have most of the rocks from the schools driveway in my house and she is always a dirty mess (she let me put her hair is "big girl pigtails today and she is super cute), she is more rough and tumble than her brother and generally, aside from her dresses, not a girly girl at all.
When I was pregnant with The Boy, I found out as soon as I could what I was having. I don't like surprises and simply wasn't going to go there. During the ultrasound, my son was very obviously a boy. He was very obviously proud of being a boy as well, with his hands behind his head and his knees open, giving him frog legs. I was thrilled beyond belief. Boys are awesome and boys I understand. Life was good. I had my boy and went on my merry way.
Then I got pregnant with Ms Thang. I hoped and wished and prayed for another boy. No way did I want a girl. I was so insistant that I wanted a boy, that I had myself convinced that was what she was. Until the sonogram. When my daughter was just as uninhibited about showing that she was a girl as my son had been about his. Everyone in the room with me was thrilled. TB wanted to call his paw-paw and tell him that he was having a "baby sitter". Everyone except me. I didn't cry then because I would have looked like a jerk but I did when I got home and I did for several weeks after, every time I thought about how I DIDN'T want a girl baby.
Girls are mean and scary and they are strange and I didn't want to go there. Despite more than a few months of hoping and wishing that the sonogram was wrong, that was exactly where I went. As a baby, she had a very unfortunate habit of crying all the time. All I could think was "what have I gotten myself into?" TB was such a nice, calm, easygoing baby. Once she started to get a personality, she seemed so girly to me. Even from a young age, she was obsessed with shoes and bags and babies and all kinds of girly stuff.
Then she got older and gained herself enough attitude for 5 kids. She wasn't a girl so much as she was an amazon warrior, scaring the hell out of anyone stupid enough to cross her. Now, she asks for "girl toys" (which we don't call them that or restrict them in that way, but you all know what I mean) like Barbies and dolls but the toys she actually plays with are the swords and the lightsabers and the train table. She loves to play in the dirt, she hates to have her hair messed with (we've been working on the hair issue and it is getting much better), she loves her dresses, etc.
As scared as I was about having a girl and as much as I dread her teen years (good lord, can you imagine her on a killer hormone surge!!), I'm really glad that I got her. She taught me a lot about being a parent and despite all her issues (seriously, I'm glad that she can take care of herself but she has to learn to be nicer), I wouldn't trade her for anything
Monday, August 18, 2008
Knight's Action Park
We went to Knight's Action Park in Springfield over the weekend. I hadn't been in a while (not since I was pregnant with TB) and I was wholly unimpressed. Pricing is pretty expensive. For an adult to get into the waterpark, it is $23.99. If you add in a ride pass, it is an additional $14.95. If you do the math on that it is a total of $38.94. That price doesn't include the go-karts, mini golf, driving range, or batting cages they also offer. Currently, that is more expensive than going to Six Flags since they are running the "everyone pays kid's price" promotion. Even regular priced, Six Flags is only $1.05 more expensive. Knight's Action Park is also pretty small. For the rides, they are all carnival type rides and if you have little kids forget it. There are only 3 rides they can ride :( For the bigger kids there are only a few rides as well. Very disappointing selection.
The waterpark isn't a lot better, but there is enough stuff to do to keep busy for part of a day. They have a couple of kiddie areas, 4 big water slides, a wave pool, an "action" river, bumper boats and peddle boats on the lake. The wave pool is decent, although they require a tube past the 3 foot line. My kids just weren't sure what to do about that because they like being in the deeper water but not with tubes. The action river was nice and a great way to get around the back side of the park. It was one of the fastest "lazy" river's that I have been on, with a serious current, as well as sprayers, white water sections and a wave area. TB enjoyed it as much as anything else.
Seal Bay is a nice play area for middle sized kids. There are several small slides a couple of things to climb on and best of all, there were 3 bigger kid slides that were perfect for my 2. It was perfect because you could sit at the bottom of the slides and still see the ramp up to the top so you weren't walking back and forth to get them up and down. MT spent a lot of time running up the ramp and sliding down one of the 3 slides.
Besides that, they have 4 big kid/adult water slides. 2 of them are new and 2 of them are original. The new ones are the "Royal Flush" which is a bowl type slide. The other one is called the "Devil Ray" and it looks like a half pipe. You sit on a raft and slide down and up the other side, then back down and so forth. The 2 original slides are built into the side of a hill and are flat abusive. TB and I both got hurt on one and although it wasn't an active hurt, I came off the other one feeling like I had been beaten. They are old and poorly maintained, as well as too narrow to be comfortable. The twists are sharp, the bumps are hard and I was left with a headache that took the rest of the day to get rid of.
The bumper boats and the peddle boats were both nice. The bumper boats are big enough for adults to ride and younger kids are able to ride with an adult. The peddle boats are peddle boats. You do get to take them through the "feed the fish" part of the lake so the kids were able to se the gigantic fish pretty up close.
The food is marginal. We ate at Barnical Bill's and were disappointed to find out that they only offer nacho cheese sauce for their burgers. The chicken was decent and the amount of food was better than expected. I was also impressed with the price of the food. The meal (entree, fries and a drink) was around $6 and contained plenty of food.
The bathroom/changing rooms where gross. They were small and inadaquate. There were 5 stalls, one small bench and 4 open stalls to be used for changing. There was no where dry to put our stuff and no where closed to change, unless you took up a bathroom stall. The lack of privacy doesn't concern me but other might well be bothered by it.
Overall, the place was over priced, small, old and poorly maintained. Everything had paint peeling off of it and looked a general mess. I would give it 2 stars, simply for proximity. It is closer to drive to Springfield than to St Louis or Chicago for something bigger and better. If given the choice, I would absolutely drive further to one of the other options.
The waterpark isn't a lot better, but there is enough stuff to do to keep busy for part of a day. They have a couple of kiddie areas, 4 big water slides, a wave pool, an "action" river, bumper boats and peddle boats on the lake. The wave pool is decent, although they require a tube past the 3 foot line. My kids just weren't sure what to do about that because they like being in the deeper water but not with tubes. The action river was nice and a great way to get around the back side of the park. It was one of the fastest "lazy" river's that I have been on, with a serious current, as well as sprayers, white water sections and a wave area. TB enjoyed it as much as anything else.
Seal Bay is a nice play area for middle sized kids. There are several small slides a couple of things to climb on and best of all, there were 3 bigger kid slides that were perfect for my 2. It was perfect because you could sit at the bottom of the slides and still see the ramp up to the top so you weren't walking back and forth to get them up and down. MT spent a lot of time running up the ramp and sliding down one of the 3 slides.
Besides that, they have 4 big kid/adult water slides. 2 of them are new and 2 of them are original. The new ones are the "Royal Flush" which is a bowl type slide. The other one is called the "Devil Ray" and it looks like a half pipe. You sit on a raft and slide down and up the other side, then back down and so forth. The 2 original slides are built into the side of a hill and are flat abusive. TB and I both got hurt on one and although it wasn't an active hurt, I came off the other one feeling like I had been beaten. They are old and poorly maintained, as well as too narrow to be comfortable. The twists are sharp, the bumps are hard and I was left with a headache that took the rest of the day to get rid of.
The bumper boats and the peddle boats were both nice. The bumper boats are big enough for adults to ride and younger kids are able to ride with an adult. The peddle boats are peddle boats. You do get to take them through the "feed the fish" part of the lake so the kids were able to se the gigantic fish pretty up close.
The food is marginal. We ate at Barnical Bill's and were disappointed to find out that they only offer nacho cheese sauce for their burgers. The chicken was decent and the amount of food was better than expected. I was also impressed with the price of the food. The meal (entree, fries and a drink) was around $6 and contained plenty of food.
The bathroom/changing rooms where gross. They were small and inadaquate. There were 5 stalls, one small bench and 4 open stalls to be used for changing. There was no where dry to put our stuff and no where closed to change, unless you took up a bathroom stall. The lack of privacy doesn't concern me but other might well be bothered by it.
Overall, the place was over priced, small, old and poorly maintained. Everything had paint peeling off of it and looked a general mess. I would give it 2 stars, simply for proximity. It is closer to drive to Springfield than to St Louis or Chicago for something bigger and better. If given the choice, I would absolutely drive further to one of the other options.
Sunday, August 17, 2008
Code Monkey
A few months ago Missy talked about Jonathan Coulton and his geek rock songs. We have been listening to his song "Code Monkey" since then pretty regularly. The kids like it enough to ask to listen to it REPEATEDLY in the car whenever we go anywhere. Because they listen to it so often, TB decided to do his very own version of geek rock for the masses.
Saturday, August 16, 2008
8 for 8?
I love Michael Phelps. He is absolutely my favorite olympic athlete. I was watching last night when he won his 7th gold by the length of a fingernail. I seriously didn't think that he won the touch based on the replays of the video. His competition filed protest and the judges declared him the final winner, which was awesome for him. Tonight, he swims for his 8th gold, making him the winningest Olympic athlete in history.
Many of you know my "Michael Phelps" story but I'm telling it again here for those that don't know and to record it for myself.
During the 04 Olympics, TB was FASCINATED by the swimming. He and I watched all the races but he was especially interested in Michael Phelps. That is how we convinced him to start actually swimming (looking at him now you wouldn't know he needed convincing but he was only 2.5 and didn't like putting his face in the water), we told him that if he would put his face in the water, he could swim like Michael Phelps. That was all he needed to know. Anyway, we watched the races and I even taped some of them so he could watch MP swim repeatedly.
A few months later, he was pretty much over the obsession and hadn't watched the tape in weeks. After I found out I was pregnant with MT we were talking about how he was going to have a baby brother or sister and I asked what he wanted to name it. He looked me and said "Michael Phelps", in the most "duh" voice he could manage. I said "well, what if it is a girl, what would we name her?" He rolled his eyes and said firmly "Michael. Phelps." LOL
So now you know why I love Michael Phelps. Besides the fact that he is an absolutely fabulous swimmer
ETA:The USA team just won the medley relay and Michael Phelps is now 8 for 8 in the olympics
Many of you know my "Michael Phelps" story but I'm telling it again here for those that don't know and to record it for myself.
During the 04 Olympics, TB was FASCINATED by the swimming. He and I watched all the races but he was especially interested in Michael Phelps. That is how we convinced him to start actually swimming (looking at him now you wouldn't know he needed convincing but he was only 2.5 and didn't like putting his face in the water), we told him that if he would put his face in the water, he could swim like Michael Phelps. That was all he needed to know. Anyway, we watched the races and I even taped some of them so he could watch MP swim repeatedly.
A few months later, he was pretty much over the obsession and hadn't watched the tape in weeks. After I found out I was pregnant with MT we were talking about how he was going to have a baby brother or sister and I asked what he wanted to name it. He looked me and said "Michael Phelps", in the most "duh" voice he could manage. I said "well, what if it is a girl, what would we name her?" He rolled his eyes and said firmly "Michael. Phelps." LOL
So now you know why I love Michael Phelps. Besides the fact that he is an absolutely fabulous swimmer
ETA:The USA team just won the medley relay and Michael Phelps is now 8 for 8 in the olympics
Friday, August 15, 2008
It must be magic
Are you a Harry Potter fan? Did you know that the next movie (Half-blood Prince) is being delayed until next summer? Did you know it was so the WB could make more money by filling a gap in the summer schedule created by the writers strike? Are you irritated?
I am a little irritate because I was looking forward to seeing it. On the other hand, I'm not feeling too bad because it will give me time to finish reading the book to The Boy at bedtime. As it was, we were going to be pushing it to finish the book before the movie came out.
However, I'm in a couple of Harry Potter communities on Livejournal and people over there are INSANE about this. They are have created petitions to demand that the movie be released as planned. They are circulating contact information for execs at the WB, they are talking about boycotting the film completely (yeah right, they were all rabid for something as small as a trailer, there is no way they are going to skip the movie) and talking about ways to see the movie, without giving money to the WB (buying a ticket for a non-WB movie and going to see HBP instead, that way, tickets sales look like the non-WB movie beats the pants off HBP). One girl was screaming about how "thanks to the WB, my birthday is now ruined. I had plans and because they are money grubbing bastards, they are completely ruined. It will be my worst birthday ever"
I just wanted to be like WTF! It is a freaking movie and OF COURSE the WB is money grubbing, they are a corporation, in the business of making money! Those people seriously need lives and help, asap. That they are that up in arms about a release date change is just nutty.
I am a little irritate because I was looking forward to seeing it. On the other hand, I'm not feeling too bad because it will give me time to finish reading the book to The Boy at bedtime. As it was, we were going to be pushing it to finish the book before the movie came out.
However, I'm in a couple of Harry Potter communities on Livejournal and people over there are INSANE about this. They are have created petitions to demand that the movie be released as planned. They are circulating contact information for execs at the WB, they are talking about boycotting the film completely (yeah right, they were all rabid for something as small as a trailer, there is no way they are going to skip the movie) and talking about ways to see the movie, without giving money to the WB (buying a ticket for a non-WB movie and going to see HBP instead, that way, tickets sales look like the non-WB movie beats the pants off HBP). One girl was screaming about how "thanks to the WB, my birthday is now ruined. I had plans and because they are money grubbing bastards, they are completely ruined. It will be my worst birthday ever"
I just wanted to be like WTF! It is a freaking movie and OF COURSE the WB is money grubbing, they are a corporation, in the business of making money! Those people seriously need lives and help, asap. That they are that up in arms about a release date change is just nutty.
Thursday, August 14, 2008
Get Lost
When Lost came on the air, I thought "that looks interesting" but then through a series of errors, I never managed to see it. After several weeks, it sounded less and less like anything I would actually enjoy so I pretty much wrote it off. I did put season 1 and 2 on hold at the library, so that, at some point, should I find myself without anything better to watch, I could give it a try. But honestly, I thought all the rabid Lost fans were more than a little crazy.
Sometime came a few weeks ago. I couldn't get the series that I had started (Sex and the City) and it wasn't very good anyway so I decided to release season 1 and see what the deal was. I watched it and I liked it a lot. I loved Hurley and Charlie and Claire. I like Sawyer and Kate (and especially later) and Jack (although I could do without his hero complex) and the premise of the show was interesting. While I was watching season 1, I commented to my mom that she might like it since she enjoys sci-fi (and there is a serious sci-fi premise to the show) and gave her the disks I was done with. She watched them over the course of a couple of days and was begging for the rest. She got absolutely hooked and so did I. I promptly put season 3 on hold so we would have some chance of getting it before the end of time. I just finished season 3 last night and I'm all WTF.
I've started watching season 4 on abc.com (Fortunately, abc keeps their stuff up for a while, some of the other channels take things down after a few weeks) but I'm only about 10 minutes into the first episode, where Hurley has the high speed chase. Quigs has been waiting anxiously for to get the season 4 so she can talk to me about it. Fortunately, Rogers is a completely rabid fan and has been discussing it with me as I go along. She has also been filling in some blanks that I have been too anxious to wait for.
I'm DYING to know more. Why does Walt keep popping in, about once a season? Why did Hurley have a high-speed chase? Who was waiting for Kate when she was talking to crazy Jack? Why couldn't the Charlie character continue? (Rogers said it was the actor's choice because he thought his run was done, but I think he is stupid) Who is the invisible guy that Ben talks to? Who are the people on the "rescue" ship? And ultimately, what is the deal with the island? My MIL thinks everyone is dead and the island is limbo. Those that "die" on the island have simply passed on. Rogers says the writers say no but could be lying. That makes me sad because I like that theory way better than the time travel on they keep bringing up.
Sometime came a few weeks ago. I couldn't get the series that I had started (Sex and the City) and it wasn't very good anyway so I decided to release season 1 and see what the deal was. I watched it and I liked it a lot. I loved Hurley and Charlie and Claire. I like Sawyer and Kate (and especially later) and Jack (although I could do without his hero complex) and the premise of the show was interesting. While I was watching season 1, I commented to my mom that she might like it since she enjoys sci-fi (and there is a serious sci-fi premise to the show) and gave her the disks I was done with. She watched them over the course of a couple of days and was begging for the rest. She got absolutely hooked and so did I. I promptly put season 3 on hold so we would have some chance of getting it before the end of time. I just finished season 3 last night and I'm all WTF.
I've started watching season 4 on abc.com (Fortunately, abc keeps their stuff up for a while, some of the other channels take things down after a few weeks) but I'm only about 10 minutes into the first episode, where Hurley has the high speed chase. Quigs has been waiting anxiously for to get the season 4 so she can talk to me about it. Fortunately, Rogers is a completely rabid fan and has been discussing it with me as I go along. She has also been filling in some blanks that I have been too anxious to wait for.
I'm DYING to know more. Why does Walt keep popping in, about once a season? Why did Hurley have a high-speed chase? Who was waiting for Kate when she was talking to crazy Jack? Why couldn't the Charlie character continue? (Rogers said it was the actor's choice because he thought his run was done, but I think he is stupid) Who is the invisible guy that Ben talks to? Who are the people on the "rescue" ship? And ultimately, what is the deal with the island? My MIL thinks everyone is dead and the island is limbo. Those that "die" on the island have simply passed on. Rogers says the writers say no but could be lying. That makes me sad because I like that theory way better than the time travel on they keep bringing up.
Wednesday, August 13, 2008
Odds and ends again
Yesterday was a busy day. I had to go grocery shopping, which takes half a day, then we booed the pool for TB's b-day party, then I cleaned the house, took TB shopping to spend his vast amounts of money ($35), cooked dinner, went to the school fundraiser meeting, then home to watch Lost.
Speaking of birthday days, I have apparently missed the boat on goody bags. Quigs made super cute summer fun sets for PG's b-day. S had purses for the girls and little baskets for the boys with cute fun summer stuff in them. Missy had neat bags with beach accessories in them and even had a CD of summer music in each to set the mood. At TB's last birthday, we did Harry Potter and since no goody bags were to be had, I had the kids decorate brown lunch sacks with HP stickers and some markers and then put in some bubbles, a rubber ball, some truck things, etc. Nothing thematic. In years past, I alwasy bought whatever theme items they had a FActory Card and called that good enough goody bag. MT has never had a birthday party were goody bags were given (family only so far). Now I'm thinking that I need to step up my efforts, lest I fall even further behind. This year is Star Wars so I should have an easier time of it.
CDs are also the new thing in goody bags. I need to find some good Star Wars music (I'm going to find the Weird Al songs and some of the score I think) to make for our CD and maybe a picture of TB dressed in his Star Wars halloween costume for the cover art.
I absolutely can not compete in the domestic games (or as RF tells me "of course you can. Someone has to come in last place LOL). I don't sew, I don't cook, I rarely make it if I can buy it, I'm inclined to eff the house, I'm going to the pool, etc. I can (and do) compete in the wit and sarcasm games. In fact I not only compete but I hold world records in sarcasm and bad attitude :)
Maybe I'm a selfish bitch (ok, before you call me a liar as well, I realize that I AM actually a selfish bitch but I keep hoping) but I'm really irritated by parents who bring no toys for their kids but expect other parents to share. We went to the "Hassle Park" today because I didn't want to go to the pool. I took the regular, 2 buckets, 3 shovels, one rake and a sifter. That way, I have enough for the kids to have what they want and to share with anyone they are playing with. What I didn't take was enough for every kid in the park to use. What I also didn't take was enough for a kid to accost me before I ever got to the park telling me that she could play with our stuff. Um, no you can't. What I also didn't take was stuff for the same kids (who were completely unsupervised) to come to my table while I was sitting there and just take the toys I told them they couldn't play with. I also didn't take things for the other kids to take and then refuse to give back when MY kids (the owners of the toys) wanted to play with them. The first few times they came to the table and took things, I would get up and politely tell them that I needed them bac because I wanted to keep everything together. After that, I tried to impart my brand of morals to them by telling them that it was very very rude to tae things from people without asking. That if it wasn't their's they shouldn't touch it because then it was stealing. When that didn't work, I demanded to be taken to their adult, which prompted both girls to run to the other side of the playground where I couldn't see them. I never did see them with an adult but I was ticked about the whole mess.
I get to go to a school meeting tonight. When I went to registration today, they had papers out about a "parent forum" about silent lunches and a few other things I don't really care about. I know that last year some of the classes had silent lunch because they were out of control. I don't think that a silent lunch policy across the board is acceptable. Show of hands, would you sit at a table with 8-10 co-workers and friends for 20 minutes, and say nothing to any of them? No you wouldn't, especially if you had nothing to do to entertain yourself while you sat there. Why would anyone think that it is an acceptable thing to have kids do? Unknown, but that is my point and I intend to make it!
Speaking of birthday days, I have apparently missed the boat on goody bags. Quigs made super cute summer fun sets for PG's b-day. S had purses for the girls and little baskets for the boys with cute fun summer stuff in them. Missy had neat bags with beach accessories in them and even had a CD of summer music in each to set the mood. At TB's last birthday, we did Harry Potter and since no goody bags were to be had, I had the kids decorate brown lunch sacks with HP stickers and some markers and then put in some bubbles, a rubber ball, some truck things, etc. Nothing thematic. In years past, I alwasy bought whatever theme items they had a FActory Card and called that good enough goody bag. MT has never had a birthday party were goody bags were given (family only so far). Now I'm thinking that I need to step up my efforts, lest I fall even further behind. This year is Star Wars so I should have an easier time of it.
CDs are also the new thing in goody bags. I need to find some good Star Wars music (I'm going to find the Weird Al songs and some of the score I think) to make for our CD and maybe a picture of TB dressed in his Star Wars halloween costume for the cover art.
I absolutely can not compete in the domestic games (or as RF tells me "of course you can. Someone has to come in last place LOL). I don't sew, I don't cook, I rarely make it if I can buy it, I'm inclined to eff the house, I'm going to the pool, etc. I can (and do) compete in the wit and sarcasm games. In fact I not only compete but I hold world records in sarcasm and bad attitude :)
Maybe I'm a selfish bitch (ok, before you call me a liar as well, I realize that I AM actually a selfish bitch but I keep hoping) but I'm really irritated by parents who bring no toys for their kids but expect other parents to share. We went to the "Hassle Park" today because I didn't want to go to the pool. I took the regular, 2 buckets, 3 shovels, one rake and a sifter. That way, I have enough for the kids to have what they want and to share with anyone they are playing with. What I didn't take was enough for every kid in the park to use. What I also didn't take was enough for a kid to accost me before I ever got to the park telling me that she could play with our stuff. Um, no you can't. What I also didn't take was stuff for the same kids (who were completely unsupervised) to come to my table while I was sitting there and just take the toys I told them they couldn't play with. I also didn't take things for the other kids to take and then refuse to give back when MY kids (the owners of the toys) wanted to play with them. The first few times they came to the table and took things, I would get up and politely tell them that I needed them bac because I wanted to keep everything together. After that, I tried to impart my brand of morals to them by telling them that it was very very rude to tae things from people without asking. That if it wasn't their's they shouldn't touch it because then it was stealing. When that didn't work, I demanded to be taken to their adult, which prompted both girls to run to the other side of the playground where I couldn't see them. I never did see them with an adult but I was ticked about the whole mess.
I get to go to a school meeting tonight. When I went to registration today, they had papers out about a "parent forum" about silent lunches and a few other things I don't really care about. I know that last year some of the classes had silent lunch because they were out of control. I don't think that a silent lunch policy across the board is acceptable. Show of hands, would you sit at a table with 8-10 co-workers and friends for 20 minutes, and say nothing to any of them? No you wouldn't, especially if you had nothing to do to entertain yourself while you sat there. Why would anyone think that it is an acceptable thing to have kids do? Unknown, but that is my point and I intend to make it!
Tuesday, August 12, 2008
Puck you
When we were on vacation, The Boy saw a commercial on TV for Evansville youth hockey and he said "Mom, I HAVE to go do that", despite the fact that he has never been on ice skates in his entire life We explained to him that that was for people that lived there, since it was an ongoing thing. He wasn't pleased but accepted it when I told him that we have a youth hockey program here and that I would check it out when we got home. I thought no more about it and assumed it was a passing thing.
Then on Saturday, I happened to see one of those "Coffee News" papers that a lot of businesses have and on the front page it said "youth hockey sign ups, Monday August 11" That sort of seemed like fate so I picked it up and decided to see about signing him up. I called the number listed several times, trying to get information before I made any type of commitment. Once no one answered once I got the son of the person and the rest of the times I got voicemail but no answers.
We decided to go over last night and check it out. I kept telling TB that I would sign him up, if I could. I had no idea of ages, cost, commitment, etc so I wasn't promising anything.
We talked to the guy, who told me it is for ages 3-high school. So far so good. Then he told me that the time commitment for the non-travelling team was practice one evening a week and a game on Saturday morning. Again, not bad. Then he showed me the fee schedule. It was $225 to sign up for the non-travelling team. If you advance to travelling, it is $925 and high school is $1025!!!! Plus, you have to buy the gear and sign up with the governing body to the tune of another $50.
I said nevermind, thanks anyway. That is entirely too much money to commit to something that he may not even like (if it were roller hoceky, I'd sign him up since he skates well). If he had been doing it and enjoyed, I would feel differently but other than taking him ice skating (I can't ice skate, it hurts my ankles too much) they won't even put him on the ice to see if he is skilled enough to actually participate. He would be in a league with kids that have been doing this since they were 3. Not only would I be paying an outrageous amount of money, there is so guarentee that for that money, he would ever actually play.
He was disappointed but when I explained to him why he I wouldn't sign up, he it well. I was really impressed with how well he handled it because usually that would have caused a meltdown.
Then on Saturday, I happened to see one of those "Coffee News" papers that a lot of businesses have and on the front page it said "youth hockey sign ups, Monday August 11" That sort of seemed like fate so I picked it up and decided to see about signing him up. I called the number listed several times, trying to get information before I made any type of commitment. Once no one answered once I got the son of the person and the rest of the times I got voicemail but no answers.
We decided to go over last night and check it out. I kept telling TB that I would sign him up, if I could. I had no idea of ages, cost, commitment, etc so I wasn't promising anything.
We talked to the guy, who told me it is for ages 3-high school. So far so good. Then he told me that the time commitment for the non-travelling team was practice one evening a week and a game on Saturday morning. Again, not bad. Then he showed me the fee schedule. It was $225 to sign up for the non-travelling team. If you advance to travelling, it is $925 and high school is $1025!!!! Plus, you have to buy the gear and sign up with the governing body to the tune of another $50.
I said nevermind, thanks anyway. That is entirely too much money to commit to something that he may not even like (if it were roller hoceky, I'd sign him up since he skates well). If he had been doing it and enjoyed, I would feel differently but other than taking him ice skating (I can't ice skate, it hurts my ankles too much) they won't even put him on the ice to see if he is skilled enough to actually participate. He would be in a league with kids that have been doing this since they were 3. Not only would I be paying an outrageous amount of money, there is so guarentee that for that money, he would ever actually play.
He was disappointed but when I explained to him why he I wouldn't sign up, he it well. I was really impressed with how well he handled it because usually that would have caused a meltdown.
Oh the tangled web we weave
Many of you have seen my daughter's hair. It looks sort of straight on the top but it a seething mass of curls underneith. Her hair looks sort of like small woodland creatures run through it with wild abandon every night. We went through a phase of brushing it several times a day, trying to get it under control. It helped, to some degree but it required us to have a brush with us at all time and take several minutes several times a day and get it good and brushed.
Then we went through the "superficial brushing" where we brushed the sort of straight hair and left the curls alone. That kind of worked, except eventually the curls got out of hand and all the hair was a mess.
Now we are in "the detangler" phase. I bought some cheap stuff at Deals to try and basically all it was make her hair wet and it smelled like dirt (it was supposed to be watermelon). I tossed it in the cabinet and went back to the superficial brushing.
Occasionally, I would hold her down and really brush it, which is what happened Saturday. My mom got involved because she was crying, which prompted a decnet arguement with her. She is absolutely certain that I'm making MT keep her hair long, despite covering her head and screaming "no, don't cut my hair" when asked about it. My mom decided to buy her some different detangler to see if something that wasn't from Deals would work better.
She bought her the Huggies Clean team stuff which smells ok (between that and the gel for The Boy's hawk, my car smells like a basket of fruit exploded in it LOL) and does it's job fairly well, but had problems all it's own. I don't why it does it, but it leaves her hair feeling greasy and nasty all the time. Quigs can attest to that because she felt the ick yesterday. combing repeatedly throughout the day helped but it was still pretty gross. Then we went to the park, where she got sand in her hair that stuck to detangler. Awful!
I'm at a lose what to do. I've got completely untangled hair and have had my entire life. Mostly my hair just lays there and if I forget to brush, no on can tell. I also take issue with HAVING to do things to hair. I've always believed that if you can't roll out of bed and be ready to leave the house in under 15 minutes, then your routine is too complicated. (mostly that applies to leaving the house without children) Suddenly, I'm spending 20 minutes every morning do hair, eithe spiking the mohawk or detangling or whatever.
I waver between "she should suck it up" because it doesn't hurt that bad to have your hair brushed and "I'm going to shave the damn stuff off until she can take care of it" because what we are doing now really isn't working.
Any suggestions that don't involve sitting on my child while dragging a brush through her hair or making her bald?
Then we went through the "superficial brushing" where we brushed the sort of straight hair and left the curls alone. That kind of worked, except eventually the curls got out of hand and all the hair was a mess.
Now we are in "the detangler" phase. I bought some cheap stuff at Deals to try and basically all it was make her hair wet and it smelled like dirt (it was supposed to be watermelon). I tossed it in the cabinet and went back to the superficial brushing.
Occasionally, I would hold her down and really brush it, which is what happened Saturday. My mom got involved because she was crying, which prompted a decnet arguement with her. She is absolutely certain that I'm making MT keep her hair long, despite covering her head and screaming "no, don't cut my hair" when asked about it. My mom decided to buy her some different detangler to see if something that wasn't from Deals would work better.
She bought her the Huggies Clean team stuff which smells ok (between that and the gel for The Boy's hawk, my car smells like a basket of fruit exploded in it LOL) and does it's job fairly well, but had problems all it's own. I don't why it does it, but it leaves her hair feeling greasy and nasty all the time. Quigs can attest to that because she felt the ick yesterday. combing repeatedly throughout the day helped but it was still pretty gross. Then we went to the park, where she got sand in her hair that stuck to detangler. Awful!
I'm at a lose what to do. I've got completely untangled hair and have had my entire life. Mostly my hair just lays there and if I forget to brush, no on can tell. I also take issue with HAVING to do things to hair. I've always believed that if you can't roll out of bed and be ready to leave the house in under 15 minutes, then your routine is too complicated. (mostly that applies to leaving the house without children) Suddenly, I'm spending 20 minutes every morning do hair, eithe spiking the mohawk or detangling or whatever.
I waver between "she should suck it up" because it doesn't hurt that bad to have your hair brushed and "I'm going to shave the damn stuff off until she can take care of it" because what we are doing now really isn't working.
Any suggestions that don't involve sitting on my child while dragging a brush through her hair or making her bald?
Monday, August 11, 2008
Holiday World Day 2
Day 2 was very much the same as day one. We got there just as they were opening. We went directly to the Scrambler because the kids had been begging since the night before to ride it. Fortunately, MT was big enough to ride because we would have had a serious problem is she hadn't been. I kept telling her "you may not be big enough" and every time she would respond with "I'm big and I'm tall and I'm brave and I'm GOING to ride the Scrambler" She spent the whole ride laughing her head off and as soon as we got off, she was ready to go again. RF and I neither one could take another trip on it and they couldn't go alone so I had to convince them to go ride the old time cars.
After the cars (much shorter wait this time), we got measured again then MT rode teh salmon run and TB and I went to ride the swings. We stood and watched for a minute before he decided he was too scared to do it so we browsed in one of the shops while we waited for RF and MT to be done on their ride. Then we headed to the waterpark.
RF was done before the day even started but he did an amazing job not bitching too much about it. We rode the slides, played in the wave pools, played at Kima Bay, etc etc etc until lunch time. TB had wanted Goblin Burgers for dinner the night before so I promised him that for lunch. We all got dressed (Holiday world does not allow uncovered swimsuits in the park, everyone has to wear a shirt, shoes and shorts while in the park) and headed to Halloweentown for lunch. Fortunately, they weren't just burgers so MT was able to have chicken fingers. The burgers were super tasty and I liked that they offered a "veggie pack" (lettuce, tomato, pickles and onions) with the burgers, which is something most food stands don't offer.
After we ate, we had to ride the Scrambler again since we were directly across the walk from it. Then we talked MT into going on the Log Flume ride. She didn't want to but we convinced her it was just like the Indian River Canoe ride, not mentioning the drop at the end. She likes roller coasters and so forth so I didn't think it would be a big deal, we just had to get past her refusal to get on the ride. We did convince her on the ride and she really enjoyed it. After we got off, she kept saying to herself "That was awesome, that was so awesome" When we would ask her what she thought about it all she would tell us was "that was really fast" LOL
After the log ride, we asked if she wanted to go on Thunder RIver (what it called at Six Flags and the only name I've ever called it)and she wanted no part of that. So I asked her if she would rather go on "the splashing river" That was an absolute yes!. She didn't even hesitate getting on and she laughed and giggled and squealed her way through the ride.
Then it was back to the water park for more water play for another couple of hours. Finally, RF couldn't take anymore and we decided to head out. But first we needed funnel cakes from the "Funnel Cake Factory" They were very tasty but I must comment that the funnel cake on their sign looks more like a soft pretzel! More canoes and salmon then we went and did the kiddie rides they hadn't had time to do yet. It was really sad to see that TB was tall enough that he was being measured to make sure he wasn't TOO TALL for the kiddie rides :( I geave them each one turn on each of the rides they were willing to ride (neither wanted anything to do with "Reindeer Games"). Fortunately, it was not too busy and they were able to pretty much walk on to each ride. We were all tired and it was hot and I was ready to GO. T
After riding all the kiddie rides and meeting 2 other boys with completely awesome spiked mohawks and their little brother who had a cute faux-hawk, we made a bathroom stop and a stop at guest relations to check on my missing sunglasses (which were never found :( ) and then got in the van and headed for our hotel. An hour later and we got checked in and unloaded. Dinner, a little TV and it was time for bed. Once I turned the TV off, the kids were asleep within 10 minutes and slept like the dead all night.
We got up, had breakfast, listened to some people debate the time in China for the Olympics (they were debating if they were 12 hours ahead or 36, the answer is 12-ish depending on time zone, if you are interested), listened to MT tell everyone in the breakfast area about the slides and how "they were FREAKIN' fast" LOL and then headed for home. We made worse time coming home, despite only one stop for bathrooms, which was disappointing.
After the cars (much shorter wait this time), we got measured again then MT rode teh salmon run and TB and I went to ride the swings. We stood and watched for a minute before he decided he was too scared to do it so we browsed in one of the shops while we waited for RF and MT to be done on their ride. Then we headed to the waterpark.
RF was done before the day even started but he did an amazing job not bitching too much about it. We rode the slides, played in the wave pools, played at Kima Bay, etc etc etc until lunch time. TB had wanted Goblin Burgers for dinner the night before so I promised him that for lunch. We all got dressed (Holiday world does not allow uncovered swimsuits in the park, everyone has to wear a shirt, shoes and shorts while in the park) and headed to Halloweentown for lunch. Fortunately, they weren't just burgers so MT was able to have chicken fingers. The burgers were super tasty and I liked that they offered a "veggie pack" (lettuce, tomato, pickles and onions) with the burgers, which is something most food stands don't offer.
After we ate, we had to ride the Scrambler again since we were directly across the walk from it. Then we talked MT into going on the Log Flume ride. She didn't want to but we convinced her it was just like the Indian River Canoe ride, not mentioning the drop at the end. She likes roller coasters and so forth so I didn't think it would be a big deal, we just had to get past her refusal to get on the ride. We did convince her on the ride and she really enjoyed it. After we got off, she kept saying to herself "That was awesome, that was so awesome" When we would ask her what she thought about it all she would tell us was "that was really fast" LOL
After the log ride, we asked if she wanted to go on Thunder RIver (what it called at Six Flags and the only name I've ever called it)and she wanted no part of that. So I asked her if she would rather go on "the splashing river" That was an absolute yes!. She didn't even hesitate getting on and she laughed and giggled and squealed her way through the ride.
Then it was back to the water park for more water play for another couple of hours. Finally, RF couldn't take anymore and we decided to head out. But first we needed funnel cakes from the "Funnel Cake Factory" They were very tasty but I must comment that the funnel cake on their sign looks more like a soft pretzel! More canoes and salmon then we went and did the kiddie rides they hadn't had time to do yet. It was really sad to see that TB was tall enough that he was being measured to make sure he wasn't TOO TALL for the kiddie rides :( I geave them each one turn on each of the rides they were willing to ride (neither wanted anything to do with "Reindeer Games"). Fortunately, it was not too busy and they were able to pretty much walk on to each ride. We were all tired and it was hot and I was ready to GO. T
After riding all the kiddie rides and meeting 2 other boys with completely awesome spiked mohawks and their little brother who had a cute faux-hawk, we made a bathroom stop and a stop at guest relations to check on my missing sunglasses (which were never found :( ) and then got in the van and headed for our hotel. An hour later and we got checked in and unloaded. Dinner, a little TV and it was time for bed. Once I turned the TV off, the kids were asleep within 10 minutes and slept like the dead all night.
We got up, had breakfast, listened to some people debate the time in China for the Olympics (they were debating if they were 12 hours ahead or 36, the answer is 12-ish depending on time zone, if you are interested), listened to MT tell everyone in the breakfast area about the slides and how "they were FREAKIN' fast" LOL and then headed for home. We made worse time coming home, despite only one stop for bathrooms, which was disappointing.
Saturday, August 9, 2008
Holiday World Review
We left here at 7 on Tuesday morning. We drove, except for a quick break at McDonald's for breakfast and bathrooms, straight through to Holiday World. Unfortunately, we had some of the worst directions I've ever had from Google maps
:( It first off routed down a road that was closed (not Google's fault but a pain none the less). Then, once we took the detour and got back on the right road, it wound us around down through these little towns with 25 mile an hour speed limits, around hairpin turns, up and down hills etc. For the last half hour of the trip, we couldn't go over 40, which was extremely frustrating. We got in just before 11, so we still made pretty good time. The weather was dreadfully hot so our first stop was "Kringle's Cafe" to get drinks before we headed for the water park. Before we made it to the waterpark, we had the kids' official height measured so they could get wrist bands and we wouldn't have to mess with having the measured at every ride all day long. The waterpark measures shoes off and the other rides are all shoes on. Ms Thang was absolutetly over 36 inches and The Boy was just barely 48. He actually had to put his shoes on to top 48, but that was ok. He was actually the best height he could be. They charge a reduced price for anyone under 54 inches, but the max height of any of the rides is 48 inches. He fell in that "golden zone", which was fantastic for us.
After getting measured, we went around the corner and down into the waterpark. We got changed and went to get sunscreen. Unfortunately, they were nearly out so we got a little and went to find a spot for "home base". The water park was crazy busy so we ended up just parking the stroller (which neither kid rides in, but it makes a nice container for our stuff) near a fence and moving on. Ms Thang wanted to play in "Crocodile Isle" which has a nice all ages slide but is really too small for anyone but her. It has a small kids' slide and some sprayers and is absolutely perfect for younger kids. The Boy was more interested in going to the wave pool (of which there are 2) so we rounded her up and headed for The Wave (the smaller of the 2 wave pools). After she got over having her fit, she decided that the wave pool was pretty cool and figured out quite quickly that she could jump over the waves and they were fun to play in. She was insistant that she could go past the "strong swimmer" line. After the cycle of waves, the kids wanted to go to the treehouse, but I suggested the new feature "Kima Bay", which was similar to the tree house.
Kima Bay was awesome! It was a long walk from The Wave (and appeared to be a long way from everything else except the Bakuli slide but we found out later, there was a bathroom/sunscreen station and an Oasis just around the corner). It is all spraying water, climbing things and slides. It has 7 slides, 3 that are able to be used by the 36 inch and under crowd. TB and RF took off and did the big id stuff and MT and I did the stuff she could do. We went down the slides and up the stairs and under the spayers a million times. We finally drug her out to have lunch because it was 1 o'clock and we were all getting hungry. We ate at Safari Pizza, which is centrally located. They offer combos that are 2 pieces of pizza, one order of fries and one cookies. We decided to get 2 of them and split them, which caused lunch to be all of $14. That is one of my big selling points about the park, is that food is VERY reasonably priced. After lunch, TB decided he wanted to ride the "jungle racers", which Ms. Thang was too small for (and quite pissed about, at that) so I took him on it and RF took MT to the "jungle jets" which is right next door and a "sprayer garden" that she could play in. The racer was really awesome, but watch out for the second hill. It is a rough one!
TB and I went to play in the jets, for about 5 minutes until TB banged heads with another kid and decided to go to Bahari, the other wave pool. Bahari is huge, more like 2 wave pools smushed together. One side has big aggressive waves, suitable for older kids and adults. The other side has much smaller, softer, less consistant waves. It is perfect for younger kids and worn out adults (us by that point in the day LOL). MT refused to play in the smaller waves so huge pounding waves it was. When that cycle was over, we went and got more sunscreen (I love the free sunscreen) and then went back to Kima Bay. By then MT was melting down so nothing was working well for her. We played for a few minutes but it didn't work out too well. RF tweaked his leg and wanted to sit down. I took the kids to the only place in the whole park where I could watch 2 kids by myself, the lazy river (also one of 2). Plus, I thought if she would lay quitely on me for a few minutes, she would fall asleep. There was a problem with wrong sized tubes and I ended up dumped in the water, twice. Once by myself, once with MT on my lap. The second time, I also managed to lose my sunglasses which sucked. :( We finally got some right sized tubes and started around. Part way around, the radios cut out and changed to a warning that storms were in the area and that all rides were being shut down. There went my idea for a nap! We got out and camped out, waiting for all the people to leave. It wasn't raining so it wasn't that big of a deal. Then it started to rain in huge fat drops and we booked to shelter. Not for us, I was drier in the rain than I was at Kima Bay, but for all of our stuff that we didn't want soaked. The rain was short lived, too short to really chase many people out of the park, sadly.
By then it was nearing 6 so we decided to ride the family raft slide, which MT loved. It was good, calm ride for the over 36 inch crowd. After the slide, MT and RF changed clothes, but TB and I stayed in swimwear so that we could ride Raging Rapids, a Thunder River type ride that I took TB on last year and he loved it. MT rode the Salmon Run and the Indian River Canoes, both of which were super. After the river ride, we changed clothes then RF and I had dinner at The Alamo resturant. Tacos, burritos, fajitas, etc. The food was fantastic, which was pretty standard for the park. I didn't have anything there that wasn't good. The fajitas where enormous and the tacos were so full of filling that RF ended up having to eat at least of it with a for because it all fell out. The kids wanted a cheeseburger (TB) and pizza (MT) and the only place in the park that had both of those items together was Kringles Cafe. We took the kids there to eat and then rode the antique cars.
My major complaint about the park was it's lack of correct line use. All of the rides have several rows so the lines can wonder up and down and back an forth, because walking is always better than just standing in line. So many of the lines didn't have any of them open, causing the line, while not terribly long to seem much longer than it was. It was super frustrating to to see all those open lanes and no one in them.
After the antique cars, we went to our hotel. After a bit of a disaster checking in (we were booked under my mom's name so she would get the points but because I was paying with cash, they wanted my ID which was forcing them to check me in under my name, costing her the points, we did get everything fixed and finally got into our room, where everyone promptly crashed.
Day two update coming later. I'm all tuckered out from writing this and I'm sure you are all tired of reading :)
:( It first off routed down a road that was closed (not Google's fault but a pain none the less). Then, once we took the detour and got back on the right road, it wound us around down through these little towns with 25 mile an hour speed limits, around hairpin turns, up and down hills etc. For the last half hour of the trip, we couldn't go over 40, which was extremely frustrating. We got in just before 11, so we still made pretty good time. The weather was dreadfully hot so our first stop was "Kringle's Cafe" to get drinks before we headed for the water park. Before we made it to the waterpark, we had the kids' official height measured so they could get wrist bands and we wouldn't have to mess with having the measured at every ride all day long. The waterpark measures shoes off and the other rides are all shoes on. Ms Thang was absolutetly over 36 inches and The Boy was just barely 48. He actually had to put his shoes on to top 48, but that was ok. He was actually the best height he could be. They charge a reduced price for anyone under 54 inches, but the max height of any of the rides is 48 inches. He fell in that "golden zone", which was fantastic for us.
After getting measured, we went around the corner and down into the waterpark. We got changed and went to get sunscreen. Unfortunately, they were nearly out so we got a little and went to find a spot for "home base". The water park was crazy busy so we ended up just parking the stroller (which neither kid rides in, but it makes a nice container for our stuff) near a fence and moving on. Ms Thang wanted to play in "Crocodile Isle" which has a nice all ages slide but is really too small for anyone but her. It has a small kids' slide and some sprayers and is absolutely perfect for younger kids. The Boy was more interested in going to the wave pool (of which there are 2) so we rounded her up and headed for The Wave (the smaller of the 2 wave pools). After she got over having her fit, she decided that the wave pool was pretty cool and figured out quite quickly that she could jump over the waves and they were fun to play in. She was insistant that she could go past the "strong swimmer" line. After the cycle of waves, the kids wanted to go to the treehouse, but I suggested the new feature "Kima Bay", which was similar to the tree house.
Kima Bay was awesome! It was a long walk from The Wave (and appeared to be a long way from everything else except the Bakuli slide but we found out later, there was a bathroom/sunscreen station and an Oasis just around the corner). It is all spraying water, climbing things and slides. It has 7 slides, 3 that are able to be used by the 36 inch and under crowd. TB and RF took off and did the big id stuff and MT and I did the stuff she could do. We went down the slides and up the stairs and under the spayers a million times. We finally drug her out to have lunch because it was 1 o'clock and we were all getting hungry. We ate at Safari Pizza, which is centrally located. They offer combos that are 2 pieces of pizza, one order of fries and one cookies. We decided to get 2 of them and split them, which caused lunch to be all of $14. That is one of my big selling points about the park, is that food is VERY reasonably priced. After lunch, TB decided he wanted to ride the "jungle racers", which Ms. Thang was too small for (and quite pissed about, at that) so I took him on it and RF took MT to the "jungle jets" which is right next door and a "sprayer garden" that she could play in. The racer was really awesome, but watch out for the second hill. It is a rough one!
TB and I went to play in the jets, for about 5 minutes until TB banged heads with another kid and decided to go to Bahari, the other wave pool. Bahari is huge, more like 2 wave pools smushed together. One side has big aggressive waves, suitable for older kids and adults. The other side has much smaller, softer, less consistant waves. It is perfect for younger kids and worn out adults (us by that point in the day LOL). MT refused to play in the smaller waves so huge pounding waves it was. When that cycle was over, we went and got more sunscreen (I love the free sunscreen) and then went back to Kima Bay. By then MT was melting down so nothing was working well for her. We played for a few minutes but it didn't work out too well. RF tweaked his leg and wanted to sit down. I took the kids to the only place in the whole park where I could watch 2 kids by myself, the lazy river (also one of 2). Plus, I thought if she would lay quitely on me for a few minutes, she would fall asleep. There was a problem with wrong sized tubes and I ended up dumped in the water, twice. Once by myself, once with MT on my lap. The second time, I also managed to lose my sunglasses which sucked. :( We finally got some right sized tubes and started around. Part way around, the radios cut out and changed to a warning that storms were in the area and that all rides were being shut down. There went my idea for a nap! We got out and camped out, waiting for all the people to leave. It wasn't raining so it wasn't that big of a deal. Then it started to rain in huge fat drops and we booked to shelter. Not for us, I was drier in the rain than I was at Kima Bay, but for all of our stuff that we didn't want soaked. The rain was short lived, too short to really chase many people out of the park, sadly.
By then it was nearing 6 so we decided to ride the family raft slide, which MT loved. It was good, calm ride for the over 36 inch crowd. After the slide, MT and RF changed clothes, but TB and I stayed in swimwear so that we could ride Raging Rapids, a Thunder River type ride that I took TB on last year and he loved it. MT rode the Salmon Run and the Indian River Canoes, both of which were super. After the river ride, we changed clothes then RF and I had dinner at The Alamo resturant. Tacos, burritos, fajitas, etc. The food was fantastic, which was pretty standard for the park. I didn't have anything there that wasn't good. The fajitas where enormous and the tacos were so full of filling that RF ended up having to eat at least of it with a for because it all fell out. The kids wanted a cheeseburger (TB) and pizza (MT) and the only place in the park that had both of those items together was Kringles Cafe. We took the kids there to eat and then rode the antique cars.
My major complaint about the park was it's lack of correct line use. All of the rides have several rows so the lines can wonder up and down and back an forth, because walking is always better than just standing in line. So many of the lines didn't have any of them open, causing the line, while not terribly long to seem much longer than it was. It was super frustrating to to see all those open lanes and no one in them.
After the antique cars, we went to our hotel. After a bit of a disaster checking in (we were booked under my mom's name so she would get the points but because I was paying with cash, they wanted my ID which was forcing them to check me in under my name, costing her the points, we did get everything fixed and finally got into our room, where everyone promptly crashed.
Day two update coming later. I'm all tuckered out from writing this and I'm sure you are all tired of reading :)
Thursday, August 7, 2008
Home from vacation
We got home this afternoon but after eating lunch, running a couple of errands and going to playgroup, we didn't get to stay home until after 7 tonight. It has been a long 3 days. Everyone was pushed to the limit and then some everyday. It is now 10:30 and the kids have been in bed for an hour. I'm on my way right behind them. I'll update tomorrow and give a review of our trip. The most important point is that we all had a wonderful time. No one got sick or hurt and miracle of miracles, no got sunburned. Not even pasty white RF, who has no base color because the poor thing is trapped at work all the time. We also came back with enough extra money to pay off the tires we recently had to put on the van and buy a couple of more expensive items that we have been wanting. All in all, a fantastic trip. :)
Tuesday, August 5, 2008
Vacation update
We went to Holiday World. It was fun. Free drinks rock. Checking in to the hotel was a nightmare after a very long day. Now i'm tired and going to bed. Talk to you all later :)
Monday, August 4, 2008
Damn it
I've felt like I was forgetting something about this vacation all day. I checked and double checked my luggage. I checked and double checked the movies and other electronics that we are taking. I thought and looked and thought some more and finally decided I was just being crazy (I'm a little more than a little OCD about packing and travelling). I just remembered about 5 minutes ago what I forgot. Fortunately, we haven't left yet. Unfortunately, it is something that I can't do anything about.
I was supposed to get 4 Pepsi cans from Lavendar Lemonade, to reduce the cost of our tickets to Holiday World. I meant to call her on Sunday and arrange a time to pick them up. I forgot. :( Now it is too late because it is 9:15 and I'm ready for bed and tomorrow, we are leaving at stupid o'clock and won't be on that side of town :( Darn it all. I guess I'll grab a couple of cans to take with us at the gas station in the am but having to buy them to get the savings sort of defeats the purpose of getting the savings :(
Alas, such is the story of my life
I was supposed to get 4 Pepsi cans from Lavendar Lemonade, to reduce the cost of our tickets to Holiday World. I meant to call her on Sunday and arrange a time to pick them up. I forgot. :( Now it is too late because it is 9:15 and I'm ready for bed and tomorrow, we are leaving at stupid o'clock and won't be on that side of town :( Darn it all. I guess I'll grab a couple of cans to take with us at the gas station in the am but having to buy them to get the savings sort of defeats the purpose of getting the savings :(
Alas, such is the story of my life
Sunday, August 3, 2008
Hair raising
The Boy has a new hair cut. It is so effing cute I can't even stand it. Maybe tomorrow I'll get some pictures of it. Until then, RF, don't ruin the surprise
Saturday, August 2, 2008
Sitemeter problems
Those of you that have sitemeter, you might want to take it down for a few days. Apparently, they are re do their code and it is messing up blogs all over the place. I took mine down and was actually able to see my page today.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
