Single for the weekend

Clint went up to the cabin for the weekend. It's some kind of male bonding thing with his uncles and cousins. They'll probably go snowmobiling, work on snowmobiles, drink beer, talk about snowmobiles, watch snowmobile videos and drink more beer. Most of it sounds pretty boring, but I wouldn't mind snowmobiling. I happen to LOVE snowmobiling. I hope he's having fun up there while I sit home and brood about why it is that I never get a weekend away without my family, like he does. (This is the third weekend in a row that he's spent a day away...and it's not even fishing season yet!).

I thought about asking if we could come along; he might have been OK with that. Then I thought of all the work I would have to do getting the kids and I packed and ready to go. And then I thought maybe I could stay home and work on my scrapbook all weekend instead. Without Clint, we do simple dinners, so I could just let the kids loose to do whatever they wanted for the weekend, and I could get some serious scrapbooking done!

Reality check.

First we went rock climbing. After we got home, I gravitated to my scrapbook table and started working on a page while the kids went outside to play. Everything was going according to plan. To my surprise, they were done playing outside in less than an hour, and in the house looking for things to do. Rhiannon has been begging me to help her make a skirt...she wants me to teach her how to sew on a machine. So she came to "check on me" every once in a while...no pressure...she only asked if we could cut out the skirt this weekend twice, but I could feel the "I wish Mom would help me with the skirt" vibe, and it was distracting. Tamzin needed help with the cottage cheese and honey concoction she had dreamed up as a snack (I confiscated the honey). Then she wanted to "help me scrapbook". With Gillian on the computer, Shelby reading, and Rhiannon wandering around thinking about her skirt project, she had no one to play with...or keep her from inventing an activity with involving creative mayhem and destruction.

So, in the interests of maybe getting to scrapbooking later, I helped Rhiannon start on her skirt, made Gillian and Tamzin lunch (she didn't eat it) and then suggested that Tamzin help me make a snack. We made the pink heart shaped rice krispie treats we had been planning to do for Valentines' Day. The older girls got involved, so I didn't have to do much. Very fun project, and tasty too. After that the girls settled down to watch a movie. I went back to my scrapbook for about 45 minutes, and then sat down to eat a bowl of chili, and ended up watching the rest of the movie with them. I went back to my scrapbook for about an hour, then realized they needed to be fed. I told them I'd fix them Chili Dogs, but by the time I looked up from the page I was working on, they'd served themselves and were finished eating. They're such good kids. They really want me to scrapbook all day if it makes me happy.

Then it was time to read aloud. We read Little Women and Dr. Seuss. Tucked the kids in bed and kissed them goodnight. Cleaned up the kitchen fallout from a day without washing dishes. Checked my email. Now I'm blogging. Maybe I will scrapbook tomorrow.

Making Cookies

Having kids old enough to cook is SO cool! I get to have fresh baked cookies without going to the bother to make them myself! Not that I don't like making cookies, I do, but sometimes I'm otherwise occupied. So all I have to do is say "You can make cookies if you want to, and I get to reap the rewards!

Of course, they do always leave me the dishes. At least they pile them neatly in the sink. I guess it's a fair trade, cookies for dishes.

Smelly Pets

I admit, the new Guinea Pigs are very cute. They are cuddly, friendly and affectionate. They make really cute little chirping noises. But I hate cage pets because of the SMELL. Gillian has been cleaning the bottom of the cage every two or three days, and it still has a noticeable odor. We used to have a hamster and it was the same thing. Maybe I'm too sensitive, but I can't stand the smell of urine in my house, no matter how slight. Don't have that problem with the dog, the fish, or the chickens (well, they do live outside). I guess we'll have to try cleaning the cage every day...

More Games

Once again, I found myself playing games with the kids. We went swimming at the club Thursday night, and after soaking for a long time in the hot tub (my usual spot when I take the kids swimming) I got into the pool to see how they were doing. Next thing I knew, I was embroiled in a very fun game of Marco Polo! I must be a cooler parent than I thought! Marco! Polo!

Reading Aloud

I love reading aloud to the kids. It's one of my favorite things to do.

At some point I discovered they loved "cuddle-with-Mommy-time" so much that I could get away with reading aloud books they might not have chosen for themselves. Of course, every now and then we...or I...pick a book that is just too boring to read aloud. But great books are called that for a reason. They suck you in, and leave you eager for the next installment every time. From James and the Giant Peach, to Ramona the Pest, Charlotte's Web to The Witch of Blackbird Pond, we love them all.

As the girls have gotten older, we've started delving into some of the "classics" I've always wanted to read. It's so cool to finally read some of the stories I've known about, but had never actually read, for myself, and it's even cooler that the girls want to hear them too. Swiss Family Robinson, Around the World in 80 Days,Tom Sawyer; it's amazing, but the kids love these books. Such stories surely have dry parts, but the girls keep listening, maybe because because the good parts are so good! I'm so lucky that I get to indulge my passion, and share it with my kids!

Life of Pi

A story about a boy stranded on a lifeboat for 227 days with a Bengal tiger. Great premise! Interesting story. Philosophical in parts, funny in others. I liked the funny better than the philosophical. I kept feeling like his comments were going over my head. The author says reading this story will make you believe in God. I'm still waiting...

Sounds of Music

How nice it is to have the piano in the house again! While I still think it's the ugliest piano on the face of the earth, I don't seem to mind that so much with it in the basement! I resisted putting it in the basement in the first place; somehow a piano seems like an IMPORTANT piece of furniture, and I thought it should be given space in the living room. How I could have confused this piano with valuable furniture is beyond me; my mother in law bought it for $40 from a guy who had it on his front lawn and was about to sledghammer it to pieces to get rid of it...seems it was a remnant of a messy divorce.

Clint didn't want to put the piano in the living room because he thinks the floor can't bear it's 800 lb. weight. So, we decided to put it in the basement family room, with it's concrete floor.

Shelby and Rhiannon are so happy to have the piano in the house now. Wearing hats, coats and gloves to practice piano in 20 degree weather was not exactly encouraging them in the musical arts! It's so nice to hear strains of music wafting up the stairwell when they practice. I love that they wanted to take piano lessons, and stuck with it through this cold, cold winter! Maybe someday I'll take up lessons again myself. I'd like to. I just have a few other projects to finish up first...

Dinner Theatre with Friends

Had an awesome time Sunday night! Rhiannon, my 11 year old creative genius, wrote a play about a modern Cinderella, and has been rehearsing it with friends for a couple of months now. She decided to have all the parents over to see the play.

I've been desperately needing to move our 800 pound piano back into the house. It was banished to the garage during the remodel, and I have been informed I have most likely destroyed the sound board by exposing it to severe temperatures. So, I bribed my friends with a pre-play dinner in return for the loan of a few muscles to carry the piano into the house! I have to say, I was very impressed with the muscular and manuverability skills of Pat, Troy, Chris, and Clint. Not only was the piano very large and heavy, but they had to carry it all the way around the house and through the treacherous bare dirt play area affectionately known as "Holes" or "the Nile". They were so quick and efficient! They moved that piano and were on to more important things like drinking wine and snacking on cheese fondue in no time.

Dinner was delicious. I was nervous about serving a family favorite, fish chowder, because I myself was suspicious of it the first time I had it. It's now one of my favorite meals. I decided to supplement the chowder with fondues. My girls gave me a fondue pot for Christmas, and it's so much fun! Seems like the perfect party snack. So we served a cheese fondue with herbed bread cubes and fresh veggies, along with a chocolate fondue with angel cake and fruit. Needless to say, the chocolate fondue was never unattended!

The only thing that could have made dinner better would have been...bar stools! We spent most of the night hovering around the new bar in the kitchen. It's an awesome gathering place, but I only have two stools (donated by Mary Ellen!). So, most of us ended up standing. We could have sat in the comfy living room, but then we would have been so FAR from the food!

The play was...what can I say...fabulous! It was tongue in cheek, witty, funny, and the actors really enjoyed their parts. I was so impressed with all the efforts the kids made to put out a real production. They spent time creating sets, developing costumes and doing makeup, in addition to memorizing their lines. It's been a great experience for them on learning to work as a team, and I'm so impressed with their efforts! I have a feeling there will be other plays in the future, as I've heard rumors of other budding playwrights working on scripts!

After the play the kids got involved in a drama about school, ironically enough, while the rest of us visited around the bar. It's so fun to get together with friends!

Computer Time

I used to ask the girls to limit themselves to an hour on the computer at a time. I heard weird stories about kids having seizures after sitting in front of a computer screen for too long. Besides, there are 6 of us, and one computer, so a time limit seemed like the only way to ensure everyone a turn. In the interests of limiting limits, and being a more laid back parent, I quit enforcing the one hour rule this month. Now, between the kids' blogs, games, email, and instant messaging, I can't get onto the computer!

I don't feel I have the right to claim priority just because I'm the parent, although I do that when I have to WORK on the computer. I haven't had much computer work lately...I guess that's why I've had time to start a blog! After they're in bed I want to hang out with my hubby. Before they're up I'm off to the club to work out (I have to get in shape for birthday #40!). So when am I going to get my turn??!!

Now here I am, posting to my blog while they wait downstairs for me to come read "Little Women". Enough said.

Blog Crazy

Everyone wants a blog! After seeing my blog, Shelby, Rhiannon and Gillian couldn't wait to try it, too. Who am I to argue with a burning desire to write?! So we spent the afternoon setting them up. The girls know as much about html as I do, probably more, from all the time they've spent on Horseland and Neopets. They even gave me some tips on changing colors on my blog! But I figured out how to do a link all by myself!

Kid at Heart

Played any Hide-and-Go-Seek lately? Clint and I engaged in a rockin' game of it with the kids. I forgot how fun it could be! Running madly for base, sneaking around the house trying to avoid "It", hiding in small spaces... I sucked at first. Totally underestimated the finding skills of daughter #1(Shelby), and was the first one found. I got better fast and beat Gillian and Tamzin, although not Clint or Rhiannon. So I guess that means my hide and seek skills are somewhere in the range of a 10 year old. I'd better keep practicing!

Friends

I have such cool friends. Thanks for helping me figure out how to blog, Mary Ellen and Chelee!

Closet Space

I love my closet! Clint put up the last rod and shelf in my deluxe, private walk in closet. Now it has 3 bookcase sized shelf units, four hanging rods, shoe storage, and a dresser! It's so big, it's almost as big as my old bedroom. I am so damn lucky! Not only can it hold the 3 boxes of clothes I had stored in the garage (because they wouldn't fit in the micro closet I shared with Clint), but I can store my special craft stuff(no more sharing with the kids!), and my sewing stuff and fabrics(also previously stored in the garage). What more could a girl ask for? It's strange, because I'm not a clothes freak. In fact, I wear the same three outfits all the time! I'm just a fool for organization, and now everything has a place, and it won't get moved, taken, spoiled, or ruined, because it's all in my own private space. One day I even sat in the corner and read my book when I was trying to hide from my family. I must be related to the guy parked in Mary Ellen's neighborhood!

Work That Body!

Exersise is so awesome. After a workout, I am energetic, upbeat, and feeling great! During a workout, I feel strong. I can feel my body becoming more fit, and it feels great! So the big question is, why is it SO hard to make myself do it? I have to talk myself into it every time, and my alter ego, the lazy couch potato, is REALLY good at convincing me that working out is a bad idea!

I Have Comments!

Now that I have functioning comments, I can tell everyone about my blog! Yipee!!! I suppose I should probably post something, too.

OK. Let's give this blog thing a whirl!