The Rebel Housewife

Okay, I'm so relieved to be done with the telling of the Tenants in Foreclosure tale, as I'm sure you are, too. With the exception of (not yet) returned deposits, which I'm sure will all work out in the end, it's over and Life is Good in the new fabulous house. Of course, there are still boxes EVERYWHERE, but I managed to find a missing Social Studies Time Line Report for 5th grade Drama Queen AND a missing (expensive) Math textbook for 7th grade Puberty Angst Boy in the midst of the chaos last night, so we're getting there, on as As Needed basis.

I wanted to share the Tenants in Foreclosure story because it helps -- helps someone else who might find herself in the same situation; helps with general knowledge and understanding of a mysterious and frightening process; helps us all sometimes to know that nobody's life is perfect and stuff (good sh** and bad sh**) happens all the time -- that's The Adventure.

Speaking of the adventure, we are looking at ONLY THREE WEEKS OF SCHOOL left -- arrrgghhh!!
What are YOU doing this summer?

I have been working on summer plans, camps and programs to make it through with the three kids, who will be 13, 11 and 8 this summer. It is definitely getting easier than the old CAMP MOMMY days, but it takes a computerized planning & scheduling program, practically, to coordinate all the whos and whens, not to mention the registration paperwork, medical authorizations (which normally require a visit to the doctor), transportation, deposits and, of course, the how-are-we-going-to-pay-for-all-of-this?! And then even more intriguing: We're spending so much money sending kids to summer camps and programs, we don't have enough to go on a decent family vacation...one week in paradise with kids/nine weeks at home, or three or four weeks with the kids occupied and active, having fun/six weeks at home in-between?

I'm sorry I don't have an answer to any of those questions, I was just whining a little bit and throwing it out there for discussion -- 16 days and counting down!

It is almost 4pm Friday afternoon, the end of Week 3, and here we are...

I am halfway through my first TGIF 'scoop', trying to finish up to get out to my Reading Chair on the balcony for a bit. After an eventful, hectic, stressful, crazy morning that involved having lunch with My Mother, I have called it quits for the day, for the weekend: CAMP MOMMY is CLO-SED! (Will resume Monday...) The kids are, respectively:

• Watching a History Channel program on The Manhattan Project (yay!), while simultaneously playing his sister's Nintendo DS (because I accidentally smashed his DS on the tailgate of the Jeep today, long story...);
• Watching a DVD: HAPPILY N'EVER AFTER, snuggled up on my bed (she was at a busy day-camp all day, so she's entitled;
• Playing Dance, Dance Revolution on the PlayStation2, jumping all around, having a great time (yes, that would be the ADHD Phenom, high-energy guy).

We were all out & about all day, so it's good to have some downtime. We are thinking about going to the Drive-In tonight, to try and catch SURF'S UP and PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: AT WORLD'S END. It's going to be a nice, quiet weekend. We offered to take Dad camping for Father's Day, but his preference was to stay home and share some quality time hanging out by the pool. It's his Father's Day, so I think that's a great idea!

After busy yesterday, we tried to take it easier today.

Here's a tip: Whenever a grandparent offers to take children overnight -- GO FOR IT!!

My Mom, "Grammy" to the kids, age 71, and close to us here in Atlanta, keeps offering to take all 3 kids at once -- of course, they're "never any problem" for her (oh, that gentle, rosy glow of amnesia...senility?!). For everybody's sanity, survival and greater enjoyment, Divide & Conquer is still the way to go...until Mommy & Daddy can somehow plan and coordinate an overnight or weekend getaway...and then they are all on their own!

But for today, 9yo Daughter had Karate this afternoon, and camp tomorrow morning, so Grammy has the two boys tonight. 9yo Daughter finally had the condo, and Mom & Dad all to herself for one night. We ordered in for dinner and snuggled up to watch a movie, Girl's choice. When it came to bedtime: "I miss my brothers...(sad face)"

The Dance, Dance Revolution Game for the PlayStation2 (DDR) has been a huge hit! Instead of sneaking in to check, and finding them, usually watching TV after bedtime, with the sound down way low, last night they were on the DDR, lightly stepping, in socks, with the sound down way low. They were at it again first thing this morning! Which is terrific -- exercise!

You know what? We are suddenly at the end of Week 3! How did that happen?!

We had a great day today, not anything special, just a very long, busy, fun day:

1. Kids each did their Daily Chore this morning!
2. 9yo Daughter went to day-camp -- she's having a really good time this week.
3. I took 6yo Son (ADHD Phenom) to a doctor's appointment, which went really well.
4. After, we went to Sports Authority (looking for beach chairs) and ended up buying Daddy a bunch of nice shirts for Father's Day: nice t-shirts, polo shirts, even a funky casual button-up; not athletic stuff, team jerseys or workout wear, nice stuff he can wear to work -- 30% off!
5. Next, Target, which is always fun. I was looking at a $60 Lego set, ended up buying a $60 Dance, Dance Revolution Game & Dance Mat for PlayStation2, which will be a much more active diversion (especially great in our small space) -- and no little pieces to suck up with the vacuum!
6. Grocery Shopping (ho hum);
7. Picked up our Camper-Girl and went to our new Magical Woodsy Place for a couple of hours, hiking the trails and playing in the creek. It was beautiful.
8. Rushed home to shower everybody up and get to Daddy's office for a Fiesta (party for the whole building) on the top deck of their parking garage, followed by
   Flicks on 5th (outdoor movie): Night At The Museum.
9. I missed the movie, since I had my Midtown Book Group meeting, conveniently at the Barnes & Noble right there where they close off the street to show the movie. This month's book was THE INHERITANCE OF LOSS by Kiran Desai, which I didn't love, but I appreciate much more after having discussed, listened and learned more about Indian culture, tradition, colonialism and immigration. During the month, for comparison, I also read THE NAMESAKE by Jhumpa Lahiri, which I really did love (a very different kind of Indian immigrant experience). I can hardly wait to see the movie (on DVD, of course -- I can't remember how long it has been since I've been to a real (indoor) theatre)!
10. Now I'm home. It's almost midnight. I am exhausted.

There is always so much to catch up on, but that's about all I can do for today:
"All you can do is all you can do, and all you can do is ENOUGH..."
(I love that.)

Just another day of CAMP MOMMY...

Today was a good day, much better than yesterday, which is a very good thing.

The kids all got up early this morning, and actually did their Daily Chore, more or less to standard, which was a wonderful way to start the day.

The oldest, 12yo Son, then went to work with Dad.
The girl, 9yo Daughter, had day-camp today, had a great time.
The youngest, 6yo Son, had a Date With Mom: We went to Zoo Atlanta, which is one of our favorite places. Today was the first time we've been to the zoo this summer.

What a difference a year makes:

I understand, the older two aren't as jazzed about a trip to the zoo as they used to be, and that's okay. That's why I took the youngest, just the two of us, so we could enjoy it and not have the pestering and whining and "Can we go now?!" following us around all day. (Not to mention the inevitable expense of Attraction Passes, sodas, ice cream, etc.) It really worked out very well.

Last year, all then-5yo Son wanted to do at the zoo was to climb the Rock Wall on an Unlimited Attraction Pass ($5 for Zoo Members), over and over and over, all day long. I'm not sure he even realized there were actually animals at the zoo...

We went to the Rock Wall first this morning (UAP is now $5.50 for Members!), and he climbed to the top 5 times...and then he was ready to go! Not leave the zoo, but go and explore: See the animals!! Well, kind of: We went to the Children's Playground (eh); then rode on the Miniature Train (wah wah wah); he rode the Carousel (yay); and then we walked through the Children's Area and visited the Alligator; the Kangaroos (curiously proximate to one another); and the Petting Zoo, which was really fun.

It was in the Petting Zoo that I found myself wishing I had brought the 12yo Son along. As we were hanging out with the sheep, goats and pigs in the Petting Zoo, I remembered a recent moment with 12yo Son: We enjoy watching America's Funniest Videos (AFV) in the evening as a family -- everyone loves it, especially the more recent shows with host Tom Bergeron (not Bob Saget, who we all loathe and make fun of constantly -- we skip most of his in-between-video moments, just too painfully un-funny. But Tom, we love. As a further aside, two of the new tadpoles are named "Tom" and "Bergeron" (by the kids), so there you go.)

Anyway, we were watching AFV one evening, and a quick clip came up, showing a SHEEP. Our 12yo Son, looks at the SHEEP and says, "Oh look, it's a GOAT!" OMG. Our little redneck City Boy obviously hasn't visited the country (as in the farm) near enough -- and we will all live never to let him forget it. Now it's a constant refrain, no matter what the situation: "Oh look, it's a GOAT!" (He even does it to himself, so I don't think we are damaging him irreparably -- the therapy later in life will fix him right up!)

So I probably should have taken him with me to the Petting Zoo today, and made sure we straighten out these urban misconceptions the child is suffering. Since he wasn't there (and 6yo Son can actually identify his barnyard animals), we took a picture of a SHEEP on the cellphone, and sent it to 12yo Son's cellphone, SUBJECT: LOOK, It's a GOAT!! (Of course we did.)

Note to Self: Must pick up a copy of Old MacDonald Had a Farm, with pictures and sounds...

After the Petting Zoo, we walked up through the Reptile House, which was AWESOME! I still think about that scene in the first Harry Potter book & movie, when he goes to the zoo with his Muggle aunt, uncle and cousin and disappears the glass in the huge snake display...remember? Ooh, gives me shivers!

After such a wonderful morning at the zoo, we picked 9yo Daughter up from camp, and discovered yet another little wooded oasis surrounding a 'clean' creek within the city limits, so we spent an hour or so back to nature, playing in the creek, which is always fun, until 9yo Daughter slipped on a stepping stone and fell in, bruising her hip on a rock, crying LOUDLY (this is the Drama Queen), as I half-carried her (with 6yo Son & Mocha The Dog in tow) over the river and through the woods, back up the trail to the Jeep. She milked sympathy and special treatment for her 'injury' the rest of the afternoon...

We did D.E.A.R. (Drop Everything And Read) Independent Reading, all together, between 4 and 5 o'clock, and then they played with Legos until it all went to hell and Dad finally got home... We did D.E.A.R. Together (currently reading The Sisters Grimm Book 1: The Fairy-Tale Detectives) after dinner, just before bedtime, and they each spun the Chore Wheel for tomorrow's Daily Chore.

All in all, a very good day...