Two perfect days

#1 I tried to make Adam's high school graduation May 20, 2006 a memorable and special day for him. His dad and grandparents made the journey from Nebraska, and since he didn't invite any friends to the celebration, we let Cal have some friends come over, which was a thrill for them, as it turned out.

The ceremony was scheduled for 7:30 pm so we started the party officially at 3:00. The menu and recipes were planned well in advance to accomodate Adam's special tastes and cut down on my stress. Grandma Tuttle brought her famous Italian Beef in a crock pot. I had Sahlen's hot dogs flown in from Buffalo (well, overnighted). My last minute indulgence, and I'm glad I did it, was Jumbo King Crab Legs. Everything was delicious and everyone ate at their own pace.

After the food, Adam opened up the many cards he received. I presented him with a scrapbbook of his school years, made with love. Next was the Parlor Games. We were all sitting in a big cirle in the living room. Dad had given me this idea one day a few weeks earlier with tales of his youth and old fashioned games they played when he was a kid. We started with a "trick" where I went out of the room and nine magazines were placed on the floor. I had to guess which one the group had picked by how dad pointed at the magazines. I had somehow misunderstood the directions, but randomly guessed right the first two times. On the third attempt I screwed up, and we had a squabble in the other room about how it worked. Then Gary attempted the guess, and Carter, and no one could quite get it. Finally Dad revealed the secret forumula. We played "I never..." which Carter got everyone on, "I never ate Chinese food." We had a levitation game where someone stood on a skateboard blindfolded. We tricked them into thinking they were lifted way up off the ground, and then told to jump off. Carter again was the star with his dramatic jump of a few inches. Betsy led another blindfolded game of trying to scoop up the most cottonballs with a spoon.

#2 In early August the whole family was here. On Saturday evening we had a cook out at Spring Lake where Chris and his family were staying in the RV. The kids did some fishing, catching nothing and having a hard time sharing two poles between five kids. Michael got a little lost on the way home from fishing, but luckily I don't think he knew it.

We had hot dogs and salads for dinner, which no one was able to micromange. The kids all dragged a heavy picnic table across a field, like a bunch of ants transporting a large cookie crumb.

A hysterical moment came when the kids started sucking their stomachs in with their shirts off. Ethan was the winner of that one. He looked like a starving child of Africa (before the stomach bloats out). Each rib and some parts I didn't know existed were prominently displayed. We got lots of photographs which I haven't seen yet, by the way.

The kids played at the playground, swinging high and flinging their flip flops over the play structure. They played soccer well after dark, with Grace joining in. They were having a ball and drilling each other relentlessly. Grace helped Megan find the unusual items in the homemade Find Its. Ethan spilled one of the jars, necessitating a new item, grass, be added to the list.

Brother in law Chuck and niece Laura were the only family members missing. It was a very relaxed, pleasant way to spend time together.

Slip Sliding Away

I heard this Paul Simon song today, and while I don't really like it, I could relate. It feels like my life is slip sliding away.

I've already been in Macomb 10 years. One of my children is out of high school. All my kids are out of elementary school. I am halfway through my work life. Every year goes quicker and quicker.

Sometimes it seems like they will nevery grow up and more and more I'm afraid that they will.

First Day of School

I was helping at the Junior High on the first and second day of school, helping the newbies (7th graders) get adjusted. Ie. helping open combination lockers and find classrooms. Things I learned:

7th graders don't necessarily know their left from right. Hence, you have to explain how to work the lock by pointing to the direction they need to turn.

Old lockers stick.

Don't put a saxophone in your locker, jam it shut and expect it to open later.

300 kids, four food lines, computer problems and 25 minutes to eat spell disaster. Luckily, the lunch hour was extended and I, as the last to eat was able to finish, albeit, rather quickly.

The new kid is painfully at a disadvantage.

My kids are wonderful. I'm proud of them.

reinventing self

I didn't realize I was creating a whole new blog this evening but oh well.

I recently decided to reinvent myself. I wanted to be someone with a strong sense of self, a confident stride and self assurance. I was going to be, drum roll please, Paris Hilton, until she got her DUI and that is so not me. So I will now can the walk, which I only remembered to do .08% of the time. Hey, that was Paris' Blood Alcohol Level. And only one margarita! (A 64 ouncer I guess). Bad girl. I won't be Nicole Richie either as that would mean giving up food and precious flesh I earned.

I've got to hurry along now and watch the premier of "Path to 911" a supposed, according to my liberal acquaintances, radical right wing Clinton/democrat bashing docudrama. However, I think it sounds good, and since I don't watch the news, I expect to find it quite informative.

armmeat

Moments to remember:
The other night Cal sat close to me watching tv and put his cheek against my armmeat (bare arm with some sag to it). I couldn't move and disturb the moment. He's twelve and there aren't many of these left.
But then last night he put a pillow between us and leaned against me. I absentmindedly stroked his hair. When I stopped, he said, keep doing that, so I did. I loved my mom to stroke or brush my hair with a boar's hair brush. She insisted you must use natural fibres on your hair. I never heeded her advise and have survived on plastic bristled brushes. When I had to replace my purse brush recently I saw for the first time, a wooden handled, boar's hair brush. I bought it on a whim. Maybe I saw them before but thought they would catch and keep too much hair in them. But I discoverd the best thing. I can self soothe myself brushing with that thing. I only must be careful not too overbrush as it tends to create greasy hair rather easily. My mom thought this was healthy, too.