Top Ten

Top Ten Items that I Can't Seem to Keep Enough of in the House

Closely related to a year round list, but special because with the exception of some working teenagers, the kids are home 24/7:

10. Lemon juice
We have kids who make their own lemonade.

9. Sugar
See number 10.

8. Pool Towels
Really, people. We have towels with your names on them. We have a clothes line. Where could the towels be going?
(Note: There is no shortage of laundry this summer.)

7. Fruit
This is actually a year-round item, but always in such short supply. My kids eat 4-5 pieces of fruit EACH each day. I kid you not. A little summer math: 5 pieces of fruit times 5 kids home = 25 pieces of fruit/day....never mind the cost of a good apple...

6. Coffee
I am finding that I am drinking more coffee in order to stay up later and play games with the kids. And truly, is there ever enough coffee to keep up with teenagers?

5. Houseguests
The kids love having company. Friends all hours of day and night. This is a good thing --- and they keep wanting more. Today alone: 17 year old has two friends coming to swim in the pool. 19 year old is running a group counseling session at our house today. Neighbors coming over to play volleyball.

4. Ice cream
How can we possibly be out of ice cream again!!

3. Clean glasses
The cabinets are empty of glasses, but the kitchen island seems to grow them. Hummmmm......

2. Toilet PaperReally. I'm going to take them to school every day just to use the rest rooms. I had no idea how much money I was saving every day because they use the potties there.

1. Summer Days Truly. I need more. It's July 1st already and I want to have an infinite number of these wonderful days home with my kids.

Sink

That time again...

#4 is heading off to college this week. Yup.



I'm okay...but doggone it, there is something wrong with the kleenex around here ... there is just never enough.

sink

Going Green

Going green...and white...at our house:

While everyone else has hot summer, burnt out lawns, ours is lush and green.

No, we don't use chemicals, fertilizers, or automatic sprinklers.

We use clover.

Or rather, we let the clover grow.

While other men in the neighborhood struggle with "lawn envy" and work and slave to have the perfect blade lawn, we let it grow a little long, enjoy the clovers, and the bunnies that follow it.

I love our green lawn.

Come See Me...

...and other Manic Mamas at Mad Manic Mamas.

Great laughs and poignant truths are shared.

I have a post there today.

The Joy of Socks

I don't have much time to blog during the school year -- between teaching, helping with homework, tutoring, pretending to clean, grocery shopping, laundry....did I say laundry?

But I do occasionally post a status on facebook. Sigh...yes, somehow I have fallen prey to using electronic posts from my phone to attempt to stay in touch with friends around the country.

The following status report is somewhat routine. What I enjoyed most was the volley of comments from my friends:


Window into my life: kids are packing for camp, and 3 out of 4 of them say they don't have any socks. How can they "not have any socks while two BASKETS of unclaimed socks sit at the bottom of the stairs? These socks don't belong to anyone. I'm thinking that we must have somehow grabbed all the neighbor's socks.

They are in sock heaven.

Oh, that is my life!

That's hysterical!

There is a portal between all the dryers in the world. YOur kid's socks are probably in a laundry basket half way around the world in the house of another sockless teenager.

Well, there has been a population explosion of Sock Monkeys recently.

I have a box of mismatched socks in my closet. Maybe all the mates ran away to your house?!

I am running a homeless sock shelter, too!

This is exactly why I only buy the same color sock - so I don't ever again put on two different colored socks and believe no one will notice!

We should have a huge sock matching party and offer prizes to the kids for each pair they make.

And all the leftovers will be made into puppets!

(And from my 22 year old's live-in girl friend: That's where all of K's missing socks are! lol! I think the sock party followed by puppet arts and crafts sounds like a good plan.

And my response to this other woman in my son's life:Ahhh, Layla, you now know one of K's secrets!! He is the king of missing socks - both in the losing and the borrowing!

Life is so much easier knowing we all share a tidbit of the same chaos!

Empty Nester in Training

I should have made a list of things to do for myself while the 4 Littles are away at summer camp for the next 5 days. I'm wandering around the house (that really needs to be cleaned, by the way) wondering what to do.

Wandering and wondering....

No, I don't want to clean.

Even Drain is gone tonight. It's just me and the biggest boy at home...

Maybe he wants to spend some time with me?

No, he's tied to his movies, computer, texting, phone calls, and leftover pizza.

I could take a walk.

Nah, I ran a 5K yesterday and my body is still recovering.

Maybe I could do some of the massive pile of laundry?

Good grief, can I only think of chores to do?

HOLY CATS, I've become one of those women who doesn't know what to do when she has free time?

Nah, not possible! I'm changing my clothes and going for a bike ride...

See you tomorrow when I have a list prepared of wanna dos and have-to-dos for this wonderful week with only one son at home.

Moving, Moving, Moving

I wish I could find a way to write and move at the same time....

I think a lot while I'm running, but I never put it down afterward.

But I feel so much healthier, lighter, happier, when I am moving.

It is all about balance...

Sink