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Saturday, May 06, 2006

Saturday Night

Rochelle and Rebecca have gone to the races (stock car?) at the Fairgrounds with a group. Not including me. Elcie is asleep (or was - she just came back out).

Welcome to her bad mother from Toronto, Ontario. She has a daughter, two Siamese cats, and an extremely interesting blog. I've been running into her comments often and I'm delighted she joined in here.

And to Junie Rose who doesn't seem to have a blog. (Correct me if I'm wrong, Junie. Your Blogger account didn't show one).

And to Autumn , a wife, mother, and grandmother from Virginia.

And finally to Ginny a mom of two and trumpeter in the Idaho National Guard.

Has anyone but me noticed what an amazing group we are? I take a few minutes to check out each new visitor because I like the idea of all of us here knowing a little about the others. It blows me away. The accomplishments, the diversity, the collective intelligence, and most of all I think, the caring. I can't imagine a group of people I'd rather spend time with.

Fixed brunch this morning for the first time in a while. We used to do it every Saturday but with Ray sick and everything going on I'd gotten away from it. We're slowly getting back to normal. Pancakes, sausage and eggs today.

Dinner and the peach cobbler went over very well with lots of leftovers so no cooking tomorrow. We're planning for church and possibly a trip out to the lake later. Maybe the Sunday night movie at the church. I'll have to see what they're showing. Not that I object but if it's one they have or at least have seen, we may skip it.

Today I dropped the three of them at the park on their own for the first time. They had thought about walking (and pushing Elcie) but changed their minds. I sent the cell phone with them, took a deep breath and let them go. Dropped Tim off at work in exchange for a cold drink at the Barnes & Noble cafe, hung out for a little while, and was waiting for the red light a block away from the park when Elcie called. Perfect timing. I picked them up - they'd done just fine. I know they're old enough to do it but it's still a little hard to let them out of my sight. I can always count on Elcie to tattle so as long as she's along I'm sure they won't go anyplace they shouldn't. The playground and picnic area is safe - other areas aren't - and they know which is which. If they can be trusted at the park, summer vacation will be much easier. There just isn't much around here and we're once again having neighbor problems. I finally said enough - they just couldn't play over there any more no matter how sad it makes the girls or the other little girls. I can't deal with it any more.

I give the girls a little more leeway each year and see how they handle it. If they abuse the freedom, they go back to square one and start over. The park is the latest in a series of small steps toward independence.

Backing up to Friday. I splurged on a new vacuum cleaner. Most housekeeping doesn't bother me - not my favorite thing but I do it. Except for floors. I hate floors. Ray and I used to have a division of labor - he always did the floors. Now it's too much for him. I was trying to get by with a broom and dustpan and a small electric broom. I finally said enough. It works very well - nothing fancy but it's okay. A bagless Dirt Devil and the price was within budget - barely.

Mollie - when do you suppose we'll win another game?

Girls just came in shivering. It still gets chilly here at night and it's now after ten. They sound like they had a great time watching the wrecks.

Take care everybody.

12 comments:

Anonymous said...

hey, you've gone "bagless". how neat.
so, i agree about your group here.

and you are so lucky, getting free drinks. i want a tim, that works at barnes and noble!

Janice Seagraves said...

Hi Ann,

I'm glad you got a new vaccum cleaner, as it's bad enough to have to clean the house but ya got to have the proper tools.

I kinda do that with my daughter, give her a little more responsability a little more room to grow on.

Next year it's High School for her and I have still no idea how I'm suppose to handle that!

Janice~

oshee said...

Ooo have fun with your new vacuum. I am jealous. I have tile through most of my house, carpet in the bedrooms. I would love anything that would help me keep it up easier. Tho, my baby has started to scoot around the room pretty successfully. It has me sweeping and vacuuming much more frequently.

You can cheer for the D-Backs tonight instead. They won their 7th straight!

ipodmomma said...

funny, I love to 'hoover', but I'm not to that or mop, due to my back. sure didn't mind it though... (however I do NOT miss mopping!) :)))

totally know that freedom thing. letting them have a bit of time and space. mobiles make that easier...

who does SF play next? oh woe....

have a good Sunday. I'm stitching with a friend. raining here today, glad we got the lawn mowed yesterday...

Madcap said...

I agree with you, I'd rather read about what my blog-friends are pursuing than discuss lawnmowers with the neighbours.

JunieRose2005 said...

Hi Ann,

Sure I have a blogging account- in fact I have THREE! They keep me busy ! :)
I thought you had been there but maybe it was just the E-mails...

Anyway, Come check me out sometimes!

Junie

Gina said...

A good vacuum cleaner is worth it's weight in gold! If it is convenient, easy to use, and lightweight it makes that chore sooo much easier to bear.

Thank you for your words of wisdom, Ann. I feel much less desperate after a good night's sleep, and after all the great advice I got!

Jo said...

Awww, I think the same thing, what a neat group of people, and the collective wisdom??? Extraordinary!I was reading another blog and they were talking about giving and receiving mean comments. I thought about how grateful I am that my little blog has gotten off to such a neat start, thanks Granny!
Sounds the girls are growing up as children do and you sound like such a seasoned parent. So relaxed. Nice place to be.

Anonymous said...

I've been offline for a bit... busy with kids and work. Stupid job. Lots to catch up on.

btw, I love cobbler. Peach cobbler especially!

Oshee -- Just tape swiffer pads to your baby's diaper. Problem solved.

kittenpie said...

I love the giving them a little more rope a bit at a time. This is exactly how I hope I can manage it with pumpkinpie when her time comes. Hard to do, though, isn't it? Must keep your heart in your mouth sometimes.

Her Bad Mother said...

Thanks for the welcome - warmly received...

Ava said...

I agree ... part of the fun of blogging is getting to know each other. I think it is fun too. I haven't visited the new bloggers listed here yet, but I will.

Mmm ... peach cobbler!!!!

I'm sure the girls enjoyed their independence at the park.

Ava