Poor Jon and Kate

yes that is sarcasm... sorry but our actions have consequnces..when we decide to put our lives on public display we can't complain when the public intervenes. There is a difference between say being an actor or singer and demanding that our children received the privacy they deserve but when they put their children on display and make money from being a family then complain cuz now you are being exploited... grow up!!

Of course poor jon and kate reminds me of a story from when my children were little...

I diligently did mom and me with each of my kids making sure they had that time with me. When Blond Girl was a baby (still in the infant seat) I attended said classes with Word Girl. Of course I dragged blond girl to classes with us. Hair Boy was in kindergarten and Pita Boy was in preschool so my time had to be very scheduled. There was this family of triplets that came to the meetings and along with mom came grandma, grandpa, uncle louie, aunt marie, etc, etc.. I swear they brought every single extended family member they could.

One day Word Girl had picked her spot she wanted to sit (no one was there as of yet) she placed her craft there and went to get the rest of her stuff.. Sure enough along came this family and MOVED my child.. she was in tears when I confronted the mother and yes I confronted her.. Her answer was well I have triplets and it is so hard... whine whine whine.. and we need to stay together... I need all the help.. I just about came apart.. Here I was alone, with an infant, an 2 yr old, a 4 year old in preschool who had to be picked up and gotten home fed and ready for his afternoon bus pick up and a 6 year old who would be coming home from school. My mornings were scheduled to the minute.. I must admit I raised my voice..

Sorry Lady, yes you have three kids but every friggin member of your family is here to help.. I have to be in three places at the exact same time, have FOUR kids and no one I repeat no one is helping me.. so granny can get off her fat ass and let my daughter have her spot..

For some reason they never came back...

giggles really I am a reasonable and patient person....

A Memory I Wish I Could Forget

Today is my older brother's 50th birthday. Now that is not a memory I wish to forget even though somewhat estranged from him these days.. but on this day 9 years ago I got the phone call I never wanted to get..

Shaughnessey, he is going to be alright but you need to call the hospital.

I was on a Girl Scout Camp Out and Hair Boy had been staying with a friend he had of course forgotten to take all of the emergence contact information it was sitting all pretty on out dining room table. Pita Boy was with another friend they had the info but they were out visiting friends.. Anyway.. Hair Boy and his friend were riding double on a bike without helmets where they shouldn't have been and were hit by a car. Hair Boy did a Bo Duke across the hood of the car before being tossed to the ground. The driver being of the scum of the earth backed up (so he wouldn't run over them again) and went around them. Speeding off... A man and his girlfriend on a motorcycle saw the entire thing. In the amount of time it took for the girl to get off the bike to check on the boys.. the driver had disappeared never to have been caught.

Once the police arrived Hair Boy had them contact our friends who had Pita Boy.. but it was midnight before I got the call.. to this day I have nightmares about him dying not in the accident but in those 6 hours before they caught up with me.. alone wanting his mom.. anyway, his friend had a broken femur a clean break that required surgery because it was so close to the artery, he got a plate and has recovered just fine. Hair Boy broke his tibula and fibula.. they were like two jagged puzzle pieces the doctors seriously thought pins were going to be needed. They weren't by the grace of God they were able to refit the bones.. but since it wasnt life threatening he had to sit in the emergency room until I gave permission.. well actually my friend called them and said she was me and she gave permission..

anyway I may not remember this exact date had it not been my brother's b-day so gee thanks Doug.. but I did learn it isn't impossible to hate really hate until someone threatens your child. Hair Boy is fine he wore a full leg cast for the 6 weeks, a short cast for 4 and an air cast for 2 but by winter swim season he was back in the pool like nothing had happened.. but me well it is a memory i will never forget..

Just Cuz I Love These Pics

Lovingly referred to as the boys in the band...




and this one i call Big Hair...

now these were taken almost four years ago when JR (he is the skinny dark haired one sitting down - and btw the hair is much longer now) was a junior but i can't help but love these pics...

and honestly i think i dated a guy who looked just like at least one of them 30 years ago

Isn't it Cold Out There

One has to feel sorry for the beasties today....

it never did get over 0 today and the kids all had school. What a horrid day.. of course for me, the California girl, it is much worse than for them. Seems they all just bundled up and went on their way...

The only one I felt really sorry for was Frankie, She had to stand out at the bus stop at 7:10 this morning. On a corner, with no trees (so no windbreak) she had to be miserable.

Watching them all bundle up almost made me feel guilty for not going anywhere (almost) but it did bring back memories of standing at the door waiting for the school bus to round the corner then all but throwing them out (our house was the bus stop). Made me a little sad when I realized that they were all almost grown... but I got over it when I realized that I got to cuddle up under the covers and go back to sleep.

Back When I Liked 'Em

My two middle children ages 16 and 18 have ever been a source of amusement, bemusement and confusement.. I am sure once they reach adulthood they will remain fast friends, that is assuming they don't kill each other before that.

I am convinced that these two are in fact one person. Cori is a funny witty dreamer with a sense of loyalty that goes bone deep and Frankie is a pessimistic, logical hard head that if she can't see it, taste it or touch it, it can't be real and yet inside of her beats one of the biggest hearts on the planet. Cori has ADHD and is a bit immature (fortunately that is something we all outgrow) and Frankie was born practical and self sufficient.

As children they could play together for hours in silence then break out into huge knock down drag out scream fests, as teenagers well it is pretty much the same. Except the arguments are meaner and hurt me more (not them they just blow it off).But because these two are so wonderfully close and right on the brink of leaving me to go off on their own grand adventures I wanted to share a favorite memory of mine.

It was summer 1996 right after the Atlanta Olympics, remember the magnificent 7? remember Kari Struggs? her fantastic jump into history and Bella Karoyli running after her and collecting her. Carrying her about for the rest of the time? Well my two crazy kids were playing in the living room one day.. Frankie (4) would run across the room and do a rather interesting form of a cartwheel and collapse to the ground. Then Cori (6) would dash over pick her up and help her hobble to the sofa. Amazed I watched having absolutely no clue as to what they were doing. When I finally asked.. they looked up at me with shining faces and brilliant smiles and said "we're playing Olympic Gymnast mommy" I laughed until tears fell down my face, watching these two clever children with their unique perspective on things.

And as I watch them now, I think of this and smile