Another - What Would You Say.....Do.....Text?

This past September we gave SuperStar a cell phone - I probably blogged about it - in fact I am fairly certain I have said something or another about how she has a twisted sense of what to text about and when to text......but this blog isn't about that - although there is a thought provoking one coming.

This blog is about MY cell phone. See when we gave SuperStar a phone we upgraded my phone too. I had a pay as you go phone. It worked fine, but I had gotten to the point of being in so many groups that I was using it more and more and paying more for minutes then a regular plan with the extra phone for SuperStar would have cost us a month (we don't have a data plan so our costs are relatively low). I have to admit that I was excited about getting a phone that I didn't have to say "hey I am paying for these minutes, can you please get to the point?" when I was talking with someone...........because let's face it my friends - some of you all ramble on and on (and yes that is the pot calling all you kettle's out).

When we got the phones we played with them - SuperStar more successfully, but still fun.

And I kid you not......the FIRST DAY that I had my brand new phone I received a phone call for the previous owner - ACK - who wants to field calls for someone that used to own the phone? Worse yet - it was a COLLECTION call!! 2 in the first day. And the companies didn't sound like they believed that I was not the person they were asking - who funny enough was named BJ!! Thought I was going to say HalfPint? Yeah, no.......BJ......great right? Barney's little friend used to own my phone (come on - get your mind out of the gutter - this is a family blog ;0) ).

The next few weeks I received many many many many collection calls. Some from the same few companies who promised over and over and over to take the number off their call list (and never did) and some from random companies. It was a true treat.

I also got a few calls from the Diabetic society. Who also didn't believe me. One day the woman asked at least 5 times if I were really sure there was NO ONE in my home who had diabetes. I assured her we did not, but to give us 10 years and call back. They gave me 2 days and called back.

So last night we were driving home from Christmas Caroling at a retirement village with our schools Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts. I got a text from a number that I did not have in my phone. It said, "Do u have any ideas for BigGuy for Christmas?? He need new boots or coat to wear around the barns?" Now this was different - not a collection agency - not the diabetics - just a number I didn't know who knew BigGuy. Nice change. But STALKER came to mind since I didn't know the number and they knew my husband.

Weird - we don't have a barn - and they wanted to buy BigGuy a gift. Who was this? I felt badly that I didn't recognize the number, so instead of admitting it I went fishing......."My BigGuy?" I asked.
"Yeah.....I don't know any other BigGuys's. Hahaha how u feeling?" they responded.

Hmmmm.......I have a really really bad cold - I think it might be turning into a sinus infection. This is totally someone I know. I would feel badly admitting I have no clue who they are.......so I responded with, "Well you threw me off with the barn & boots - why are you wanting to get him a gift - isn't he on the naughty list?"......I was thinking maybe it was one of his BS's. I added, "You really don't know any other Daves" and they said, "Not that I would buy a gift for......hahaha"...........

Hmmm......so I asked, "Why are you buying him a gift?" to which they responded, "For Christmas and bc we love him." ........sweet.......maybe it is a female stalker.........so I thought I should find out for certain who this was and said, "I need to put you in my phone - how do I spell your name?"

Then the person said, "BJ this is PumpkinHead (not her real name), your daughter in law." I texted back, "That is awesome, my oldest kids is 11, but my husbands name is BigGuy - oops - we don't have a barn - have a great holiday!".........then it hit me - wait she means BJ.......the collection callers from hell focus person.......BJ!! after a few other texts I sent, "Wait were you trying to get someone by the name BJ SuperStar?" (if you know SuperStar's real world name you get the reference. And they responded, "Yes, who is this?"........so I sent my real name and let her know that I get tons of calls for BJ SuperStar all the time - and she never texted me back.

BigGuy says that I should let her know that her mother in law is being searched for. I really really really do not like the collection calls I am still getting still 4 months later............

What would you do? Would you start forwarding the calls to BJ's family? Or ask the daughter-in-law how to get a hold of BJ.......or just keep fielding collection calls from rude people who think I am lying to them?

Occassionally I am the one making the Blunder

I post every once and again about being disappointed that someone has made a racial/social/personal blunder in my world. Honestly I know that I also post about things that I do myself that are Blundery.......but sometimes I amaze myself when they are back to back - Blunder Annoying Me - to - Blunder I Make .......generally if I am experiencing a blunder I can catch my own from happening.

This time I didn't.

So TheKing wants to have a birthday party to celebrate how fabulous he is and have people bring gifts showing him their adoration. Don't we all? You don't? Well them I am guessing that you are Jehovah Witness. Anyway that can be an entire other blog - back to the birthday adoration - this year TheKing wants a Curious George party. No biggie you say? Yes, well then I am guessing you are a white person.

TheKing is 4 - TheKing loves Curious George - it would seem fair that TheKing should have a Curious George party. TheKing is African American though. I mention TheKing's birthday party theme wish to a friend........she stares at me in horror and says, "You can't do that."

I know she is right - but it seems not fair - birthdays are about having it "your way". Since it seems not fair I ask another friend (you should know these friends are African American - and another friend who has adopted a son from Ethiopia as well - so I have 3 people weighing in on this). She takes a more sympathetic/empathetic stance - knows that I know what I am asking and that I am aware of the negative stereotypes attached to this theme. I start crying - she hugs me - all is good - but it is confirmed........no Curious George party. Not a good idea. I am told that any black parent who comes to the party will be offended and that basically when TheKing is older he will look back and wonder what the heck his parents were thinking.

TheKing and I talk and he changes his mind - no, we didn't talk about the subtle stereotypes and racist imaging that is causing the theme to change - more we talked about having a magician instead and maybe a Curious George party another time.

Where is the offensive blunder? Well there wasn't one.........but as TheKing would say "Keep it in your head" that I just went through this experience of race sensitivity.....

two days later........

TheMan is getting ready to go to a birthday party (hey, maybe the real problem in the world is all these birthday parties?! Get rid of birthdays and it is all good.). TheMan needs a birthday card to go with his gift. TheMan is too lazy to make the card like his sister would......hint hint if you are reading TheMan. So BigGuy asks if there are any cards that I have stashed to use with the gift. I go in search of an appropriate card - not too "little kid" - not too "girly" - not too "dorky". Find one - it seems perfect - safari like which will match a boy thing - has a zebra on it which is kinda cool - and I bring it up to BigGuy who looks at it and says, "You can't do that".

Why not you ask? Well the birthday boy has a white parent and a black parent. Negative stereotype imaging again. Will it seem like a big deal to me? No. To the birthday boy? Probably not yet as he is a little young. Would his parents notice? Maybe. Is it worth risking feelings? Absolutely not.

I go downstairs and dig another card out of my stash. Blunder outside of the house averted - but I am disappointed in myself and a bit amazed that I missed it. Is this over thinking? White Privilege would say "yes" I am over thinking it........but when was White Privilege ever right?

I Didn't Date 100 Guys for No Reason....

So SuperStar is now in Jr. High. I now know why parents cry when their child enters Jr. High. Before now I thought they cried because their kiddo's were getting older and that meant that time was slipping away..........in the hour glass that is our life.........

Now I know the Truth.

The Truth is that as a child enters Jr. High they begin to morph into this being that is more independent (good right?).......more sure of themselves (ahhhhh.....part of the time at least).......more likely to throw me under the bus of understanding (totally)........what do I mean by that?

Let's see - how to explain - ummmmm - well - errrrr

In Elementary school SuperStar believed that the world was fair - that homework was easy - that getting straight A's was just "who she was" - and that I knew most everything. So if she had a question about the world around her she came to me (or BigGuy - who at that stage in her life was also seen as Brilliant). We gave her the answers she needed and she skipped away reassured that life was good.

In Jr. High......ah - not so much.

Is she still an A student - yes - is the world fair - not nearly as much as it was in the past - is homework easy - well, yes, when she isn't crying due to the stress of having to get it ALL done - are BigGuy and I still BRILLIANT? - not a chance (although I think she still at least considers our input before dismissing it).

Recently SuperStar had her first crush. Okay, not her FIRST crush - really it was the same crush she has had for 2 years now - same boy - same crush - same same same. Only this time he asked her to "go out" with him. After some teasing about it from him that is.

Here is why I am a totally lucky mom - She Talked To Me About It Through The Whole Thing - she let me read texts - she let me read face book chats - she let me hear her thoughts - she talked to me about the whole thing.

Here is why I was not such a lucky mom - She Believes That I Know NOTHING About Romance - or any other kind of a relationship with a crush target.......

"It is totally different now" I was told. So I explained to her exactly how she felt............remember that feeling - the person you are crushing on is in the hallway at school - you can see that person - you are trying not to look, but you have to look to see if he/she is looking at you.....and OH MY GOODNESS if they are looking at you your head spins a bit and your stomach gets all fluttery and you can't help but giggle a bit and blush........and you know she said that is EXACTLY how she feels.

So I DO understand - right? Wrong.

I can't possibly understand. Or so SuperStar believes. She even said she wished she had a sister or a cousin who lived near by that could really understand how she feels and talk to her about it. I didn't date 100 guys for no reason.........it was total research so that I could talk to my daughter one day and commiserate no matter what the "romantic" situation she fell into......it was absolutely NOT because I was boy crazy and said "okay" every time some guy asked me to go on a date - or because I was hungry and needed a free meal. Yet here I stand after all that research and I have No Clue What So Ever as to how SuperStar feels.

The way I see it - the only difference between my romantic Jr. High life and SuperStar's romantic Jr. High life is that when her crush asked her to "go out" it was in a face book chat - and when my crush asked me to go out it was in a note that read like this:

Will you go out with me?

Circle One

Yes No Maybe

What was the "Maybe" about anyway? Now a days hand writing a note is considered too personal.........no cyber no love. How archaic that we would WRITE our questions down - pass it to another person and then ask them to give it to our crush. In the modern world they now text the person sitting next to their crush and ask them to ask the person if they like them and then wait for the answer via text. Yeah, that is sooooooooooooo different. Whatev's (as the cool Jr. High kids say these days).

So I know why those parents are crying when their Jr. High student climbs the bus or jumps out of the SUV that first day of 6th grade........it is because things are changing........their student is about to believe that they are not the center of the universe anymore.......and dating 100 guys was really for no reason at all........except maybe actually for a free meal.

Seriously......What Would You Say?

So you are standing having a conversation with a person that you have talked to various times over the course of more then a year, but less then two years. Hardly know them. Not trying to get to know them better......not avoiding it either........just not soliciting it.

They ask how many kiddo's you have. With your youngest child - who is adopted - and is clearly of a different race - standing next to you.........well not really standing - more like tripping over himself and dancing, skipping and making a mockery of balance.

Getting back on track - they ask you how many kiddo's you have. You say you have three. They say, "Are the other ones yours?"

Ahhhh......are my kids mine? Wait.......they mean are my OTHER kids mine......which means that one of my kids ISN'T mine.....which one isn't mine? Probably the person asking (not very tactfully I might add) is meaning the one making a mockery of balance in front of me.

So I say, "Yes, ALL my children are mine." And give the person a sweet smile.

Not to be defeated apparently the person then asks how old the others are. I tell the person. They asks again if "the older kids are yours?"..........sigh.........so I ask, "Do you mean are they adopted?" The person says "yes".......so I say, "No they aren't adopted." Which is true, my oldest kids are not adopted. I also point out that regardless of adoption a child is a parents child 100% - which the person readily agrees with.

However, that doesn't really answer the question the person is digging for and I know it. But the person is asking so rudely (see I am an upfront straight forward kinda girl) that I can't let them off the hook that easily - the person has basically said that adopted children are not "real" and is saying that my adopted child is not my child - which is wrong even if it is not what they meant to infer.

Say what you Mean and Mean what you Say.

Then the person says something about wondering if the child in front of us who is tripping on the level floor looks like his father. Sigh......well I could technically tell the person that "yes, my youngest does look like his father." without mentioning that in my head I mean his biological father. But I am tired of this game. I am tired of this digging. I am bored with the insensitivity.

I say, "You have met his dad a few times over the years. He is pretty tall, sandy blond hair and white." The person doesn't remember meeting my husband. Not surprising - I think the person really only noticed me last week when they kinda accused us of taking another child's kite - which was actually our kite and the person was mistaken. No biggie.

The person has their answer. My youngest is adopted. The person can move on.....maybe thinking things that I don't want to know about.......maybe not......hopefully thinking about the answers I gave in "every child a parent has is 100% their child - regardless of who did the creating".

Good Bad Luck - Forgotten Blog

SO HERE IS A BLOG THAT I TOTALLY FORGOT ABOUT.......TOTALLY!! APPARENTLY I WROTE IT AND THEN I WALKED AWAY FROM IT AND FORGOT TO SPELL CHECK IT AND POST IT.

THAT SAID - IT IS A FEW WEEKS OLD, BUT STILL WORTH A POSTING - RIGHT?

Very often I see people on Facebook complaining about the negative things that happen in their life. Yes, I also see people post about the positive things too, but honestly there tend to be more negative posts or posts about crazy things that bug people.

Yes I really do like to know when a friend needs some extra support. Also - I get that posting frustrations on Facebook are a nice "letting go" way of putting the feeling out of their own life and move forward. I get it. Sometimes I even do it. I also understand that for some people the obvious autonomy that Facebook offers (you can say it, but not have to look anyone in the eye while doing it)them makes them feel safer saying things out loud.

I get it.

Last week I found myself doing the opposite though. I decided to post that I was happy that even my bad luck was good luck.

* Tripped and almost dropped a cake that I was getting ready to decorate - but didn't drop it and didn't have to rebake it - good luck.
* Dropped a container of pirouette cookies that I was using and bashed the container - broke all, but 5 of them. I needed only 4 = good luck.

Then I was able to add -
* BigGuy's truck needed work that we were pretty sure would cost a chunk of dough - he had avoided fixing it for a good 10 months - we argued about it - all yuck stuff - then he took it in and it cost $65 to fix = good luck.

So bad luck - good luck - I am happy to have Bad Good Luck or Good Bad Luck - depending on how you want to look at it.

Apparently I should have kept my mouth shut......because this is how this week has gone -
* Monday.......well that was the day that the truck was fixed for $65 - not bad, but it was bad luck that it needed to be fixed - good luck that it was fixed cheap.

* Tuesday.......no meetings!! yea!! then I noticed TheMan scratching his head - and my head itched too......couldn't be......Yes It Was......Lice. Total Bad Luck. We spent the REST of the evening washing/rinsing/medicating/rinsing/combing hair - bagging stuffed animals - stripping beds - washing sheets - x's5 just to be sure.

* Wednesday.........followed up on the rest of the cleaning after the lice stuff - ugh. Then I finally calmed down a bit. I knew I was sick, but I didn't realize how sick I really was. Turns out I was REALLY SICK!! So I laid on the couch for the remainder of the day - except during piano lessons (which are in the living room) - I moved to the bedroom for a bit then, but it was so sunny in there (normally something I LOVE about my bedroom) that it made my headache double.

* Thursday.........woke with a fever - followed up on my plant to go to the doctor - took TheMan with me since he has been coughing for 2 weeks now. He had bronchitis (but was toward the end of healing - still ='s meds). I had a sinus infection and bronchitis starting. Great. Went to get meds before taking TheMan to school. His meds - $10 - my meds $130!! I got in the van and sat to think - which was hard because I had a terrible sinus headache and it was sunny (where is the rain when you wish it?). I was a bit freaked out - what is our insurance for anyway? Called BigGuy - he calmed me - called the pharmacy and asked if I could return the meds. Yes. Went inside to return them. Went back to the car to call the doctor to ask for a new script......only I had locked the keys in the car. The last time I locked the keys in the car was pre-kids during a float trip with BigGuy's friends and our (his) beer was in the trunk and we were 2 hours away from a town that could come to open the car. BigGuy was not happy.......I became OCD about checking and rechecking where my keys were after that. Dang sinus headache. We waited for BigGuy and TheKing to end swim class and come open the van. Peeking in I saw that I could just kinda see the number for the doctors office. Called and had the script changed. We waited. By the time everything worked out I was exhausted. TheMan was able to convince me to keep him home from school to "help" with his little brother TheKing.

Now let's review their "self-proclaimed" names - TheMan - TheKing - you can guess how well they listen to each other. Individually they are FABULOUS - left to work things out on their own - well.........they are brothers. I blame the headache for my lack of judgement on that.

So - recapping - I have Good Bad Luck - or - Bad Good Luck. Apparently I tempted a higher power to test my attitude on that and they passed me one hurdle after another to see if I could hack it.........

Okay - let's look at it -
* Monday........car was fixed - we had the money to cover it - BigGuy now drives in a car that isn't about to break down. Good Luck.

* Tuesday.........ack - lice stinks - but we didn't have a single meeting that night so I was able to notice that he had lice - we had the money to buy the kits needed to clean our hair (thank you car repair bill luck). None of the kids freaked out about it. We got it all done. No one had to shave their hair off (it was a fear).

* Wednesday.........I was able to turn everything off and just be sick. No meetings, no worries, the kids were helpful......

* Thursday......okay that was a test day - able to get into the doctors office - we have medical coverage - we have a car that I can lock myself out of - BigGuy was reasonably able to get to us in time to open the car - TheMan had chocolate milk and Pop-Tarts to eat while we waited - the pharmacists were helpful - the doctor was willing to switch the prescription and sent a voucher for a free sinus spray - BigGuy took over house duties after he got home from work - the boys didn't make me crazy while they stayed home.

Today is Friday - my kids have a half day of school - another hurdle? No...a blessing - extra time with my kids. Plus - I lost my voice (the new script meant that I went from a 4 day "quick feel" medicine to a 10 day "you get a bit worse before you get better" medicine - today I am feeling a bit worse physically.

However, since I was too exhausted to drive myself home after dropping TheKing off at preschool - I was easily convinced to meet for coffee with my good friend, KBS, and she invited a potential friend. We sat and talked and goofed off for 2 hours at the coffee shop. Probably why I lost my voice. Still - made the day worth whatever else might come about.

Good Luck - Bad Luck........they are all the same thing........I am convinced it is all in how you look at it.

Still I will keep crossing my fingers just in case.

How Fun Was That?

You know how you can't keep a calendar in your head all the time - so you aren't always certain what is going on, but you have a pretty clear idea of what is on the schedule as you sign up for things?

In general I can keep the flow of what the family is doing to a medium speed. We have faster days......for instance, TheMan has religion on Wed. and SuperStar has drama club after school on the same day and we have Piano for both of them at home that afternoon too - then there are Late Start days on Wed. for school (the district has school start 1 hour late on various Wed. for teacher planning - it is a smart plan that is mildly disruptive to the days schedule because I have to shuttle people about to get TheKing to preschool on time too).......I have no control over when religion is or when drama is scheduled or Late Start days - we have had piano on Wed FOREVER and Erin, our piano man, come here to our home to teach - moving that time around is close to impossible so we just work around that time - plus Erin is wonderful and he ebbs with us since we ebb with him when others on his schedule need it. Given that - Wednesdays can sometimes be a high speed day.

What is my point? Well it is that overall I do a pretty good job of managing how crazy we are. Still........it seems that no matter how gifted I am at this juggling of time to keep people from melting down in tears (primarily me, but sometimes the kids too).....there are those weeks when it doesn't matter what you do - EVERYTHING IN THE WORLD IS SCHEDULED AT THE SAME TIME!! I am sure everyone I know has this happen. We call it "When it rains it pours".....okay maybe that is just me.

So this weekend went like this:

Friday - finish decorating 6 cakes - 1 for delivery and the rest for a bake sale I signed on for

Friday - Family Fun Night at school - I was the organizer and helped set up and greet and clean up - my GirlScouts helped too - it went great

Saturday - Up at dawn to hit the Craft Fair for the Bake Sale - Did well - Enjoyed my time - cleared my costs and made money toward a charity we have at school for Holiday Meals

Saturday - BigGuy took kids to stores to pick up gifts for parties they were attending

Saturday - SuperStar was taking care of a neighbors pet by letting out the dog and feeding the horses 2x's that day

Saturday - Pick up from Hockey Party and hang a bit talking to friends - brought a friend home for TheMan to play with

Saturday - SuperStar went to a Sleepover Party

Sunday - Church

Sunday - Serve Meal at local food pantry

Sunday - Prep for week doing laundry and some cake planning for orders

There really wasn't much of a moment left - well Saturday eve we hung a bit and snuggled - that was a nice bonus time. It was a high speed weekend.

But it was fun!!

Funny Friend Story II

Okay so I was thinking maybe Funny Friend Story II should be saved for another day.......but I am thinking about it now....and avoiding making 30 fondant footballs........

So here it is.

This friend lives in a smallish town that its name start with a B. No, it is not New Bedford......TheMan just asked me this.....he is reading over my shoulder in awe at how quickly I can type. It is nice to AWE your children in some way right? My typing will be what he remembers I guess. Although he is still reading and he says it will not be what he remembers........he apparently will remember my Gooey Butter cake - nice. Needless to say - New Bedford does not start with the letter "B" - it would start with the letter "N".

Anyway.....this friend lives in a town that starts with the letter B.

She and her kids are at a stop light - so that means they are in her car too. Her son is looking out the car window. My friend is probably just thinking about the millions of things that woman have to think about during every waking hour of their daily life. Certainly paying attention to her stop light and safe driving skills (we have to mention that), but not so much to what her kiddo is doing while sitting next to her in her car - she is on auto pilot in her head. You know that feeling right?

Her son asks, "What do BFD mean?"

My friend, not thinking about it much......and in her head still......doesn't question what he has asked and just says, "BFD means Big Fucking Deal". Then she thinks what she just said and wonders who in the world has introduced the term "BFD" to her precious son (they are all precious right?)!!! She turns to him to ask him exactly that and as she does looks out the car window that her son has been looking out and sees the fire truck with the BFD on the side. . . . . . . .and realizes that he was talking about the Bloomington Fire Department logo........

hehehehehehe - great parenting moment right?

Funny Friend Stories

Okay....yes I have been busy, but there is always time to actually blog....and I do sit down and do it...and I do think of fun things to write about......but then a kid comes by or the phone rings or I remember another something I have to do and it is literally like "Squirrel" from the movie UP.

Oh and then there is that cake blog that I have been actually posting at semi regularly. Which is really the other reason that I haven't been posting blogs here a bunch. If I am not volunteering for something by creating a newsletter or planning and event.....I find that when I am on the computer I am researching a cake - like just today I was researching Electric Guitar cakes....and licensing a bakery stuff........so while I have things to write about, by the time I really concentrate enough to write it I have completely forgotten what I was ever going to write!!

However, my friends are on my mind a lot because they are helping me through my current adventures. And due to that I am thinking about their stories.....and here is a Funny Friend Story.........

So this friend, we will call her TL, is totally put together. She dresses nice - like not just unwrinkled clothes, but unwrinkled matching clothes that are from the CURRENT style......so not me. TL goes fun places. TL has a great job she loves and 2 kiddo's - one is in TheMan's grade and the other is at SuperStar's school a few years above her - 8th grade. She is also a Volunteer-A-Holic.......which is kinda how we have gotten close - we are on everyone of the same committee's together - and she has a heart of gold - which I completely admire in a person.

Needless to say - she has it all together.

This summer TL had an emergency operation. I won't go "all into it", but basically she was like the dog, Marley, from the movie Marley & Me. Her intestines were too long and they twisted up. It was dangerous and serious and she was home from work for several weeks. When she was recovering she tells a story in which her daughter, MissK, was helping her get dinner. They had decided to order out. TL was too woozy to actually talk to the people at the restaurant they were ordering from so she wanted MissK to do it. MissK was whining a bit about it (as good 8th graders will) and said she was too nervous to do it. TL insisted. MissK whined. TL said - in a medicated haze and in a very strict and probably annoyed voice (as good mothers will), "MissK you have to do this, I am trying to teach you how to cook dinner for your family."

Get it........the joke apparently is not just that she was making her daughter cook dinner by ordering out at a take out restaurant........but also apparently TL really cooks this way. Or so she says - I bet if we ever have dinner there it will taste great.

Anyway......funny TL story. I have another.........

The Birthday Was an Up Hill Climb

Happy Birthday To TheMan!!

It has been a few weeks since the ACTUAL Birthday, but it is never too late to wish someone a Great Day and tell a Funny Story. And this is yet another one of our Adventurous Funny Stories.

There are days that I sometimes wonder........do you all have these stories and you just aren't tellin' 'em? Or do I just wander into a lot of Goofiness??

So what did TheMan want to do for his birthday this year? Rock Climbing. Easy enough. My first thought was YES!! - no responsibility for an entire 90 minutes of the party - WOOOO HOOOOO!!!! Energized by the thought of planning ZERO games - ZERO crafts and TONS of Fun supervised by someone paid............I called Upper Limits. Okay - I emailed Upper Limits. I should have called - but I emailed - BigGuy has finally gotten to me - "you can email much easier then you can look it up in the telephone book". Silly me forgetting that talking to someone in PERSON often works much better then email.

Still - even though I emailed and booked the event and then called a week later to find that I didn't actually have the party reserved because even though you email you still have to call. Make sense to you? Yeah, me either. But if I dwell on this glitch then the story will be WAY too long. We will move on.

Everything set - cake made and terribly impressive - and I do say so myself (but go look at the Wimpy Kid Cake by clicking here).

Kids arrived. Parents dropped off leaving us to supervise their lovelies.

Presents were opened - Cake was served - Pictures were taken......and then everyone went outside to bounce about in the yard......I was thinking "dang this is the easiest party yet - nothing can go wrong now!"

Famous Last Words right? Right. Dang the irony.

Within seconds of thinking that horribly comfortable thought it dawned on me that I needed to have each one of the 15 parents sign a release form for Upper Limits to allow their kiddo to climb. OHMYGOODNESS!! That had completely left my mind in the planning process. I mean at some point I had thought "When a parent drops off I will have them sign the form".......and then that thought left me forever. This is hard to admit - because I am a confessed perfectionist.

I explained the problem to BigGuy, SH, KBS and Nanny (BigGuy's mom). They all just looked at me like deer in headlights. Then I said, "We have to forge the signatures". The statement sat there - and no one looked happy with me. So I modified it, "We have to call each parent and get thier permission to forge their signatures." - that time everyone said "Good idea". We figured with 5 adults there we could each sign a few forms and the different hand writings would look random enough. BigGuy started printing out the release forms on line......yeah right.....so we can't make reservations online, but we can download and print the legal documents online. Make sense to you? Yeah, me either.

My job was to phone parents. Everyone else started filling out forms as parents said "go for it". We got all the parents, but 2. MO is a bestie and I knew she would let us sign for her kids. TL is another one of my nearest and dearest - she wouldn't mind either. We signed, filled, asked kids birthdays, signed more.......and then loaded everyone into the cars.

Now this is where disaster #2 happened. See one of the kiddo's had Aspergers. I was warned that sometimes he might wander off. His mom said he wouldn't wander far. My goal was to be his shadow and have him ride with us when we went from our house to Upper Limits. He had been great - having a fine time - getting along with everyone. The other boys were all great too - fine time - getting along (not a single fight!). We loaded them into our van, SH's monster SUV and then the little boys in KBS's van. We drove. We were about half way there when I realized that the boy I planned to shadow was NOT IN THE VAN!! Okay......no need to panic......he is in SH's monster SUV......thank goodness for cell phones right.......dialed her........."hey you have my shadow in your car right?".....she yelled back to see....."nope he ain't here".........crap.........panic now.

I had visions of him in my yard. Standing there like Home Alone. Crap.

BigGuy stopped the van - which stopped the 4 car caravan on its way to Upper Limits. I got out and ran the line - not in our van - not in Nanny's car - not in......wait KBS was smiling and rolling down her window and apologizing, "he is in here" - thank you thank you thank you was all I could think. She said he hopped in and she wasn't sure what to do - she didn't realize I wanted to be his shadow. All I could think was "who gives a crap stop apologizing!! you just saved my life!!"

I ran back to the van. Got in and life was good. SuperStar called up, "This is the worst party ever. We thought we lost a kid." To which I responded, "No this is the best party ever because we only temporarily misplaced a kid."

Everyone piled out of the vans, SUV's and various other cars....running faster then we could catch them into Upper Limits and lining up to turn in their forgery.....er I mean...signed release forms.

The first kid that I did paperwork for was tagged. I had signed the wrong dang line!! The man in charge said that the parent would need to come in and sign the correct line. Crap. I immediately went through and grabbed the papers I had signed and resigned the correct lines. I tried to encourage the man to let us phone the parent to have them give permission to us to sign the correct line. Nopers. This was our pennance. Fortunately the parent in question was one of my besties, TL. She was on her way out to pick up dinner and didn't mind running by.

Here is the kicker. She stopped in and as we are getting ready to sign the paperwork I point out to her that she can no longer sign her signature......she has to sign her signature to look like MY rendition of HER signature. So basically she had to forge my signature of the forgery of her signature. Follow that?

Now if you are following along you will notice that we have planned the Perfect Birthday Party...forgotten the paperwork that would make it seemless....received perimssion to forge signatures....forged them.......lost the one child that we were supposed to make certain was always safe.....found him.....mistakenly signed the wrong lines on the forms....corrected them and asked a parent to forge my signature forging their signature.

In the end everything worked out. So was it still the Perfect Birthday Party?

Name Change Alert!!

So Spidey had a birthday. He is now 9 years old!!

We were talking the other day about how we all had our blog names. A few years back Santa Claus gave us each a hoodie jacket with our blog name embroidered on it. SuperStar has grown out of hers. Spidey's is too small now too. TheKing was Babers when his was made and he has grown out of his too. BigGuy says his never fit that well - he is such a big guy that it is often hard to get anything to fit him for long after it is washed.

I asked SuperStar and Spidey if they wanted new jackets. SuperStar just wants to wear mine. She likes going around with a HalfPint jacket on. Cute right? Still she said that she would like to have a new jacket with her name.

Spidey wants a new jacket, but he doesn't want it to say "Spidey" on it. He said he wanted a new name. I asked him what his new name should be........he smiled and said.....

TheMan!!

So his new blog name is TheMan!!

SuperStar is looking over my shoulder saying "really??"

What Is Next?

What am I doing in my spare time you ask? Wait you didn't ask that? Oh........well how about I tell you anyway?

Baking Stuff

Yeah pretty much it is that simple. I have come to the realization that in about 10 months my 4 year old is going to 5 years old. He will start Kindergarten and the 12 year long hiatus from the "real world" (HA!! like anything will be harder then the 12 years I logged in as a SAHM)

of working will come to a close and I will be looking at What Is Next. With that thought

in my head I have been thinking about What Is Next. What is next? Well I could go back into the field of social work. I have even been recently tempted into apply back into that world with a WONDERFUL offer to apply for a counselor working with families who have adopted.

HELLO!! What am I waiting for right??

Well I am thinking about the other thing that I really enjoy. Baking. Even more so I am really getting a kick of Decorating stuff. Cupcakes, Cakes - for Birthdays, Anniversaries, Weddings, Showers.......whatever......I even find myself begging to give people cakes so that I could practice other types of cakes. Which is kinda how I ended up here.........

Baking. Decorating. Finding myself thinking about What Is Next?

Should I start a bakery? I thought about it outloud. Talked outloud about the thought to my friends - CB, TL, BigGuy and a few others. When I was testing flavors I began to give them away to BigGuy and CB to take to work to give to willing eaters. Suddenly they were both getting me jobs!! Real "will you make me this special order kinda deal" jobs!! CB is getting me so many jobs that I am thinking if I do start a business it should be called CB's Friend That Bakes Cakes!

Then here I am....apply for a job doing what I got all those degrees for.....or try for a different path altogether now and even though it would be way hard and time consuming go for the adventure? Help kids - which is my total calling - or Bake Cakes (and still help kids because let's all face it - I am a VolunteerAHolic and I volunteer for organizations that are child based - shoot I have been trying to figure out how to make cupcakes to give away to organizations for kids celebrations.........without going broke).

So In the decision making time period I am working on this stuff.....Ipsy Bipsy Bake Shop - check it out and let me know what you think.......

Always from the Backseat

Is Back Seat 2 words or 1 word? Backseat......Back seat? Hmmmmm.....well honestly trying to figure that out is really just procrastinating. Procrastination is BigGuy's thing usually, but today I am borrowing his procrastination skill because there was a topic I could not put to the side when it came up........while I would love to talk to someone about it that wasn't possible.......I did email with BigGuy about a bit, but can't think of who is available to really listen to me ramble - so I thought I should blog it out so to speak. Now I am finding it hard to talk about......but I should talk about it - or type about it - same thing kinda. Aren't there songs that say that - writing it down on paper keeps it from eating you up inside? I could go look for that song and the correct wording - I am sure I have the CD - I think it might be Breathe by Anna Nalick.........but really looking would be procrastinating more....so I won't.

What is my problem? I knew this issue would come eventually? This isn't even the start of it. This has come up several times before. Always from the backseat. BigGuy put it well, "Why does this make me so uncomfortable? I’ve known for more than 5 years that we can’t hide the fact that he is adopted. I’m regularly reminded by others of how obvious it is. In my heart I want to protect him from any form of difficulty, but in my head I know I have to be prepared for the reality. His story will not be like SuperStar’s and Spidey’s. But SuperStar’s and Spidey’s won’t be exactly alike either."

TheKing is getting to that age. He is noticing the differences. He started by making the obvious statements of color. He said he was "black" and I was "white". Then the questions started, "Why am I the only brown kid?".

Each question seems to be stated when he is sitting in the backseat of the car. Funny he has figured out that it is easier to deal with things when you aren't looking them directly in the eye.

We were riding home from school today and from the backseat he asked me why he is the brown kid and I am the tan mom. See for TheKing BigGuy is "white" and he says that I am "tan". He has told me that I could be "brown", but that I am not. I am "tan". Today I asked him what he meant trying to draw the conversation out until we could get out of the car and sit and talk face to face. He wanted to know why he is a different color. So I went straight for the truth. "I didn't give birth to you." "What is birth, Maudy?".......perhaps I stepped into that, but honestly the way I see it the first step to understanding it all for real is understanding where babies come from. Explaining "birth" to him wasn't so easy though. There was my explanation of a baby growing in a woman's belly......there was his questions of the difference between a baby and a toddler....there was his segue into why you call a toddler a toddler....my explaining the learning to walk part of toddle....and his talking about how he wondered if a baby would be scared to fall down a staircase or about having a monster eat it. Both of which I agreed a baby should be frightened of.

and then we were home.

I remembered the handy Usborne book that has tons of stories of "firsts" in a childs life. A baby coming home being one of the stories. So we sat down to read it and better understand where babies come from. I don't think TheKing has ever watched a woman through pregnancy like SuperStar and Spidey did. He found the pictures of Mrs. Usborne pregnant and then after giving birth to Susie very interesting. We flipped back and forth and back and forth looking at the difference. Then we flipped to the page where Susie's brother and sister come to visit her for the first time.......in a shared hospital room (must have been in Europe)........and the couple next to Mrs. Usborne's bed (who was caucasian) was a African American couple. TheKing pointed to Mrs. Usborne and said she was me, her husband in the picture was BigGuy, the brother and sister were Spidey and SuperStar, but the baby was not TheKing. TheKing pointed to the baby in the family next to them and said, "I am that brown baby."

He got it. Kinda.

We talked about how tan people usually have tan babies. Brown people usually have brown babies. White people usually have white babies. That babies often look like the woman and the man who created them and grew them in their belly. I told TheKing that there was a brown woman who grew him in her belly. He said he would like to be in her belly again. He curled up. I told him that the woman who grew him couldn't be his mommy and looked for another mommy. I picked him up and held him like a baby. He snuggled in. TheKing told me that if I saw a little kid on the side of the road walking alone I should get him and bring him home to take care of him. I asked him how why he thought his skin was brown and mine was tan. He said because I found him on the road. I told him that sometimes when a mommy is tan and a baby is brown they are different colors because the baby was adopted into the family.

Then he changed the subject.

TheKing asked if we could read a book about dinosaurs. I asked if he wanted to see the pictures of the day he was born and brought to our house. He picked up the dinosaur book and handed it to me. We read that book. Then we read another book. And another book.

I expect that there will be another day where he asks another question - from the backseat.

That is Sooooooooo NOT what we bought that phone for!!

So for SuperStar's birthday we gifted her a very nice phone. Yes she is 11 years old. Yes I was totally opposed for years to the thought that we would purchase one of our children a cell phone. No I didn't cave. Well yes I did cave. Wait....did I cave? Maybe not so much "caved" as Peer Pressure sank into the equation of it all.

SuperStar + Jr. High being really far away + other Parents purchasing cell phones for their kid's starting Jr. High + other Parents agreeing it is helpful if they are involved in school activities + a lot of "Can I PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE" ='s BigBuy and I CAVED.

Okay - yeah - I caved.

So now she has a phone. This is how it is generally used.

Texting

We were driving the other day - whole family - and BigGuy gets a text. He reads it at a stop sign and shows me.....it says "I am in the back seat"............it is from SuperStar.

It is 10pm. I am downstairs watching CupCake Wars. I get a text.......it says, "What Up"........it is from SuperStar who is supposed to be sleeping.

Now I will give you I am actually having some interesting conversations through texts with her. Things that we can say when we aren't together. She sent a text announcing that she made it for Treble Makers......she was very excited!! She sent me a text letting me know she was on her way home from school on the bus. Nice to know. She sent me a text letting me know she was a little down. We texted that through a bit.

Then came the day that she wanted to stay after for a Student Council election meeting. She called - I am staying. There was no ride set up and I couldn't leave to get her. She should have called to say....."can I stay" before the bus left. That was not the best way of using her phone, but lucky for us CB's son was doing something similar and she saved SuperStar's bacon by being on her way to pick up her own son who surprise stayed for the meeting.

Then came the day that SuperStar was staying after to attend a Speech Team information meeting. It was planned though. No worries. I woke TheKing up and made my way across town to pick her up. Only........she wasn't there. She forgot and took the bus home. Realized the goof half way, but didn't have her cell phone (which she should have because it was purchased for this reason) with her and didn't think to use one of the MILLION OTHER cell phones her friends on the bus had. Again - CB saved her bacon because NB noticed that SuperStar was crying from fear on the bus....CB let me know that my panicked search of the Jr. High school was in vain and called me - WITH HER OWN CELL PHONE - to let me know I should come home. This is exactly what we DID buy the cell phone for and again it wasn't used.

So after that SuperStar's privileges for texting and computer were taken for a few days.

Then the next day there was a Girl Scout event that SuperStar was working as a greeter for. She stood in front of me with her cell phone as she was preparing to leave. Now....going to an event without one of her parents is EXACTLY what the cell phone is for. Yea - she has it in her hands - and then she put it down and said, "Well guess I will leave this here since I can't text anyone until Friday"........

That is SOOOOOO exactly what we bought that phone for!!!

We Don't Need to Tell Them........They Learn It Themselves

Today TheKing and I were both working on the computer. Crazy right? My 4 year old son knows how to navigate the computer. Plus he is super good at it. We can turn the computer off and he can still figure out how to turn it on, find his way into the user that belongs to the kiddo's and on top of that all find his way into the websites that have his favorite games. Geez Louise.....

Today though he was on the home computer and I was on the laptop. Honest I was paying attention, but honestly it was half hearted. I didn't notice that he stopped playing his game because that music drones on over and over regardless of it you are playing the game or not. Suddenly he was standing next to me holding a Bella Sara card. The card isn't anything important. It is something similar to a baseball card that SuperStar collected for awhile. Each card has a mythical creature on it. This particular card has been sitting in the computer hutch forever, but was just now being noticed by someone.

The card that the TheKing was holding had a unicorn on either side. On one side the unicorn pictured had white hair. On the other side the unicorn pictured had black hair.

The King said, "What is this Maudy?" holding the card up for me to see.
"Looks like one of SuperStar's old Bella Sara cards." was my response after looking quickly at the unicorns.
"Is this one a good guy and this one is a bad guy?" he asked flipping the card back and forth between the two pictures.
"No I think all the characters are good in that series." I said - and then began to think about what he asked. "Why do you think one of the unicorns is a 'bad' one?" I added.
"This one is a bad one." and he pointed to the unicorn with black hair.
"Why do you think that one is the bad one?" I asked.
"Because the white one is always good." he added matter of fact.
"Well a black unicorn is just as good as a white unicorn and this one is a superhero." (TheKing is currently IN LOVE with superheros of all types so adding "SuperHero" makes a big point for him) I said pointing to the unicorn with the black hair. "There is nothing a black unicorn can't do."
TheKing put the card down and said, "Can I have a cookie now?"

I am realistic enough that I "get" he wasn't having this conversation to talk about racism or diversity. Yet at the same time we were. BigGuy and I have never told any of our kiddo's that white means good and black means bad. Just the opposite actually. We (okay maybe it is more ME) make a point to stress that there are stereotypes hidden in everything and to always be certain to Look Closely at everything before making a judgement on it.

Yet these messages of black meaning bad and white meaning good are there in my 4 year old sons head. This isn't a new message. I have had similar conversations with SuperStar and Spidey. All TheKing needs to do is watch a cartoon, a harmless Disney movie or in some cases read a book and he can learn that message.

We don't need to tell them..........they learn it themselves through our worlds subliminal messaging.

We do need to change it...........by talking to them even when it is not so simple or so comfortable. If we don't then they will continue to believe what they learn.

Spidey the World Changer

Spidey started school this past Tuesday. This year our school is BRAND NEW and huge. While we have only been in this neck of the woods for 3 years.......the fact that the age of our former school was old and run down was well known throughout the district families. The hardwork and joy that went into building our new school (and 2 more) was really cool to be a part of. So being a part of all the BIG events that have had to do with opening our new school has been really exciting and gives you goose bumps.

As our school opened our schools dynamic changed. Our former school was small, but we had as many students as it would hold. The new school is not small at all!! The school district redrew the lines for each of the schools as they built and expanded the schools we are moving into. Thus the face of our school community is changing. We have more diversity. We have an even higher population of families who qualify for services. We also have a new element of mainstreaming kids into the class with different abilities. While each of these new pieces of our school come with excitement of challenge.........they can also be a frustrating challenge. One I know our teachers and principal are up for, but one I wondered about in terms of our students interacting - and considered how Spidey would respond. Now I know he will be fine.

One new student in Ben's class is James. James is Spidey's age, but just under my size. Spidey has been talking about James - he seems genuinely concerned about him. Described him to me as "not so bright", but very nice and that he cries when he gets frustrated and needs a lot of help in class, but tries really hard and has a lady who helps him all the time. My guess was James had a TA in the class. Given our districts financial cut backs I know that a TA these days is generally attached to an IEP. I asked Spidey's teacher about James because he wanted to have a playdate and I would need to contact Jame's parent. I also asked his teacher why Spidey would keep describing James as "not so bright" and she explained. James has Asperger's. She also shared that James is apt to just stand up and wander out of the class room. Which is the norm for kids with Asperger's. So I figured that first we would get to know James better and make sure that his parents would be ccomfortable with us asking him for a playdate.

Spidey's teacher has used the bond the boys are building to help James get comfortable - remember he is new to our school and new to our classroom. Spidey is not - there are a lot of kids that are new and that alone is something for Spidey to adjust to, but his teacher was his sisters 3rd grade teacher. His principal has been the same great guy since Kindergarten. Spidey was a part of everything that is our new school. Spidey's teacher now has the boys in the same desk group and Spidey has talked about trying to get James to be part of the fun at recess, but so far he hasn't joined.

Spidey broke down in tears one day after school while he was telling me all about how some of the other kids were teasing James for crying. He made me cry too I was so touched by his concern. Spidey felt so badly for James that he stuck up for him with the developing class bully. This is a big deal for Spidey because he wants to be part of the "in crowd"........so going against them is NOT something he ever did in prior years.

All of this also struck a cord with me that so often we judge people by how we look. James is a big kid. Normally James would be the kid that stuck up for the littler kids - or bullied them. James is being judged wrongly by the other kids and will easily become a target.

This Friday night we had one of our family movie nights. We watched Blind Side. Not my favorite movie because I think it is an overly sugary sweet version of what people should be doing - plus the movie made it look like once again a white family was saving the world of people in other races (yes I do understand the irony of what I say - but I would have made the movie differently) - and I think the excessive money the family portrayed has give's the rest of the adult world an excuse to say "well if we had money we could help, but......." (I have seen people post exactly this on facebook - and heard them say it in conversations) - Still their story is wonderful because they did these things because they felt the need to - not because any of the rest of us were making them - they felt a love to do it. Hopefully their story is inspirational enough to others that some will reach out and touch a life of another person in a positive way. Because that is what our world needs.

Anyway - I wanted to watch Blind Side with the kids to give them an idea of remembering to LOOK at people - really LOOK at them and realize that the package is not always what it looks like (especially given that they are both starting schools that are different in many ways then our former elementary was). In the movie Michael originally looked like a tall, dirty, scary kid who didn't belong - but when people took the time to get to know him they realized that he was just a another person - like themselves - who needed help and once they really got to know him they found that he was a sweet person who truly cared for others.

After the movie I tried to start a conversation........but there were no takers and we all kinda forgot about it.

This morning before school Spidey qouted the movie. I asked him what he thought about the movie. He said he didn't like the movie because it had so many sad parts to it. That statement to me was a total open door. We talked about how life for many people is hard and can be sad. We talked about how some of his classmates may be in situations similar to Michael and some may even be homeless (which I learned is a reality for our school population last year while working with some of our students). We talked about how at some point in everyone's life there will be hurdles that we all have to get over and it is sometimes only with the help of other people who wander into our lives that we make it over those hurdles. The character of David (the gang member who dies) was especially hard for Spidey. He said he didn't like that David died. He wanted to know if that part of the movie was also true. So I tried to explain how the story teller used David and Michael as mirrors of what "could happen" if no one helped a kid who needs them - and what "can happen" when someone does help the kid wno needs them.

We also talked about how helping does not mean bringing them into your home - sometimes it means working to collect food with your religion class - helping the community through your Boy Scouts - Christmas caroling - donating your clothes or toys in good condition - or it just means being a friend that listens and spends time doing fun things someone else.

Spidey is killing me these days because he looked up at me and then just started to cry. Then I started to cry. Then he asked me, "Do you think James can jump on our trampoline?"

I think we will be having a playdate soon.

Fantastic Miss SuperStar

Fantastic Mr. Fox is what is on the menu at our house right now. Rehearsals started in June.....every Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday from 7pm - 9pm.....then tec week bumped it up to 6:30pm - 9pm and Fridays added in. Not too too bad, but it does seem to be taking up a good chunk of evening time.

Performances started last weekend - Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday for 3 weeks - with one pickup rehearsal on Wednesday. That is a lot of Fantastic Mr. Fox. I know all the lines.....I know all the songs.....I know that SuperStar is loving every minute of it. She has had a few friends show up and she is loving showing them about the theatre - telling them what is what - but she is being kinda shy with her co-stars. I think I talk to them more then she does - which is so out of character for her......but they are kinda older then her. The kids more her age are in the animal characters. She is in the ensemble where they play a few different characters and switch to different positions. At first she was very disappointed........she didn't get to be an animal.........then she realized the animals sit on stage the entire production and don't move - so she embraced being a Villager, Chicken, Stage mover abouter and various other things as assigned.

The thing I find very interesting is that hanging with the older kids has SuperStar thinking she is one. The boys in this photo are 14, 15 & 16. The girls are 13, 14, 15 & 18. I asked SuperStar at one point how she gets along hanging out with the kids - she told me a few stories - I can see how the boys are sweet and helpful to her (like big brothers) and that she goofs around with the girls, but she said they were all good except one rat (the boys dress as rats) can be kinda inappropriate. So I asked her what she meant and she said that the said rat (center of photo)- keep in mind the dressing rooms are in the basement of the building and there are the usual support beams holding the floor up - well said rat was teasing one of the girls as she twirled about a support beam and saying that she was doing a pole dance. As SuperStar told me the story I agreed with her that it was kinda inappropriate ........ then SuperStar ASSURED me that he NEVER did stuff like that around the "little kids".......so I pointed out that at 10 years old she IS one of the little kids!!

Even then......said rat is not a "bad boy"....he really does seem sweet and helpful - just maybe a little "showy" - of course I imagine that is why every one of those kids is there.....you should hear the stories they tell about their parents - forgetting they are there....drinking....never feeding them....not making smart choices pertaining to child care.....geez louise if I didn't know their parents I would worry....the drama of it all!!!

So if you are in the area catch a show -
Friday - Saturday - Sunday and then again next week on Thursday - Friday - Saturday and Sunday........but then it is gone.......so don't miss it!!

You Would Have Thought I Bought Them Gold

Hasn't it be 20 Years??

This is a cake that I made for MrK.........he turned 4 yesterday and yesterday was his birthday!! I was asked to do a Millineum Falcon.........remember those? From like 30 years ago? At first I was thinking 20, but it must be 30 or more - I was about 10 I think when I saw Star Wars.....





















When we first talked about my making this cake (it was our gift to the bday boy to help out with "getting things done" and how many toys does a kid need really? So we gave him a few books and this cake) - anyway - when we first talked about my making this cake we googled Millineum Falcon cakes and came up withe quite a few. Some that were SUPER cool looking and that I will NEVER be able to emulate from my kitchen.....and some that were EPIC fails and looked more like a soccer ball then a space craft.















Now I personally see many flaws in this cake. Like these pointy things that jut out of the ship......they are totally cut uneven. They looked even, until I added the icing and that just seemed to make them go all wonky. Did the 4 year old notice it? Nah....in fact I am faily sure that most people looked at this cake and thought "I will never want to do this" and didn't notice the Billboard sign size flas I can see at all.



















Sometimes I need to step away from whatever I am creating and stop looking at it. Then when I come back it looks WAY WAY WAY more amazing then it did when I left it.

















So where I was cringing at the sight of this cake right after I completed it - after putting it up for the night.......sleeping for 8 hours.....and then returning to it the next morning - I loved it all that much more. Then after looking at the cake through the eyes of a 4 year old, the relieved mom and all the guests - I felt like my mild success turned into a Splendid Success. Yea!!

The Gray Kitchen

Here is a very fun New Blog to follow.....especially if you know the family. Since they are using all first and last names I guess it is okay for me too also. The Gray's bid out their kitchen. Home Depot cost a good chunk of money.......the guy who was going to make the cabinets cost 2x's the amount Home Depot would and he was going to use THEIR wood!!.....then Lowe's bid out somewhere in another disappointing realm. So Bill is making the kitchen cabinets himself and they (Bill and company) are doing the work too......I am so putting a bid in to do demo work when it happens!!

check it out ~
The Gray Kitchen

We Forgot GS Bridging!!

SuperStar pointed out to me that we COMPLETELY forgot to post some of the events that we participated in all the way back in May!! So here is a catch up slide of our school troops bridging ceremony. SuperStar is now an official Cadette!!

Deck Furniture

I couldn't decide where to post this BEAUTIFULLY done piece of refurbishing that I accomplished..........craft or personal blog? Finally I went craft......IpsyBipsy....but then I thought.......well no one goes there much what if they miss it?

Of course this last thought was with the delusion that anyone actually ever comes here to read.....so yes, I am delusional.....

Still......this turned out SOOOOO COOL!! Go to the link -
Ipsy Bipsy

and then look at this other work we have done:

Summer Fun MakeOvers

So Summer Time is for fun. It is for not worrying about getting up early in the morning and getting ready for school. It is for wearing plastic bracelets like Bendeaz and not worrying about getting a 7th hour (or detention for those who have no idea what I am talking about).....and it is for letting your hair down....or cutting it off.....or basically becoming whatever you want to become.

Since recently I have become mildly "anti" spending that much money for a hair cut I never described......I have been more open to catering to Spidey's want for me to cut his hair - and that of course leads us to TheKing wanting his hair cut (although he then cries through the whole thing) and SuperStar is still on her "don't touch my hair" kick - although she is lessening up on this as people are now saying to her "oh my goodness look how long your hair has gotten!" - 2 years without much of a hair cut will do that.

Given all these factors.....Monday we had a Make Over Day. And it was pretty fun....and it was not nearly as difficult as I would have thought it would be! Plus....it cost all of the $16 in product I purchased at Sally's (highlight bleach, coloring and correct combs).














SuperStar was actually the LAST person to go - but she wanted the LEAST done and on top of that she was going to be the MOST critical of her cut. The cut went surprisingly well. Not a single complaint.....she did consider measuring he length of the pieces that I cut, but in the end since it looked good and she found even herself surprised that her hair came half way down her back - she did not get the ruler out. The Highlighting portion didn't go quite as smoothly though. I did the highlights (first time ever) using one of those caps. It would have went just fine, but I was worried that I would lift her hair color too much and washed the bleach out too early for SuperStar's liking. I felt good, I thought it looked good too, but she was the customer and she wanted a blonde close to white. Later I coaxed her into letting me try again. This time I did it like a foil......MUCH easier surprisingly and MUCH better. She was so happy with the results she came up behind me and bear hugged me. Then she spent the rest of the evening glancing at herself as she found reasons to pass by the mirror. So....hardest customer totally pleased!! Great result!










TheKing was next. His hair had grown out quite a bit. A few months ago I switched products on his hair. I have to say that going to Sally's was a bit better for me in the end that going to a local store that catered to African American hair. Perhaps it was a bad day for the shop keeper the day I went, but she had no interest in helping me find something to tame TheKing's hair. Sally's shop keepers are always up for teaching me a lesson in hair product. I learned about the use of cholestrol from them and the products by Pink (not the singer). Using these has made TheKing's brittle hair go super soft and much much more manageable at a long length as he likes to keep it..
For this adventure he said he wanted "Spidey's" hair. Which meant he wanted a true mohawk like Spidey had last year. TheKing had seen a picture of Mr.T from back in "my childhood's day" and remembered Spidey's hair from last summer. And a decision was born. All it took was his sitting still (not his forte) and some shakey lines to be straightened out after I cut his mohawk. He was so excited......and SuperStar and Spidey were just as excited too - it was so cute to see them all prancing around about his hair!









The final customer of the day was actually the first one in for the cut. Very much like me he does not like to have his hair cut. He has been trying to grow it long on top and cut short in back for a year. Each time he goes in he gets short and short and sometimes even shorter. He usually wants me to cut it ..... BigGuy usually wants Spidey to have it cut professionally - who knows why for both of them. Recently it is just easier to cut it myself.
After we had him cut he waited through the other 2 kids cuts. Then we dyed his hair with the product that we bought to make it green. The woman at Sally's told us that his hair was dark enough that most likely the color would not show up all that well. We thought we would give it a go though as the alternative was lifting the color off of his hair to blonde and then dying it. The sales woman at Sally's was right. Spidey was not impressed with the results. So we had all the remaining bleach from SuperStar's highlights. Hmmmm......could it be that easy? I called up to Sally's....she said it should be fine to use that product to lift his hair lighter. Spidey sat down, we covered his hair in the bleach and waited......and waited. The first go round went exactly as the sales woman said - his hair was dark enough that the roots were blonde, but his tips were still orange. So we washed the bleach off and reapplied more to the tips and not to the base of the hair. Then we waited......and waited. I read up that you can leave bleach on your hair up to 50 minutes. We didn't come near that so we were okay. In the end he was close to a very high light color of blonde. He thought he was very cool. SuperStar no longer wanted anything to do with dying her hair a color given all the processing. Win Win.
The next day we pulled the green dye back out and applied. We waited.....and waited.....and the results were AMAZING!! Spidey was super excited that his hair was/is green. SuperStar was super excited that it turned out looking so nice - and she wanted to drag him around like a Show & Tell doll - and I was just personally impressed that he wasn't bald!! I had bleached and colored my first head. Maybe the teen years weren't going to be as expensive as I thought!!