Lullaby on Broadway by MHS Womens Concert Choir

Rea's choir had one of their biggest nights of the year as they held "Broadway Night". All of the choirs (including Jr. High) sing songs from Broadway musicals. There were a few solos as well. Rea is a member of the MHS Women's Concert Choir, the next to the top choir. I think that if she had been in MHS last year she would definately have been in the top choir. But, she is happy where she is. They performed Lullaby on Broadway from 42nd Street and as you can see, they were dressed as Flappers. They did a spectacular job and she did extremely well being that she had only been to choir class 4 times before the performance. She is the third girl from the left that is on the riser. Enjoy the show!!

Run Bubsy, Run!

Bubsy placed 48th today at the CC meet out of about 65! Not too shabby considering he was running on an injured ankle that was in a splint!

Huh? You're Kidding Me, Right?

Well, not even a week had passed since the golf cart incident when Bubsy got a call from one of the two girls involved in the fiasco. She wanted to know if he wanted to go joy riding on the GOLF CART!!

I was stunned, to say the least. He laughed her off and didn't even bother asking me as he knew what my answer would be. I can't believe after all they had done and all the trouble they caused, that their grandparents would allow them near the cart for a very long while. I guess I was wrong.

Then, to top it off, Rea was on MySpace chatting with friends when she came across a post from one of the girls. The post claimed that they were going to go "egg" 2 kids houses here in the neighborhood that they didn't like. WHAT?!?

Honestly, I wish they would egg my house because I would call the cops on them so that maybe they could finally get some well needed discipline!

The Golf Cart Incident

Today was a very boring day of laundry and house cleaning, until I remembered that I had promised my friend Jee Jee that we would attend her son's Jr. High football game. It was 2:00 when I had remembered and the game started at four. Even though I still had to make a trip into town to get Bubsy a new box of contact lenses (he lost one yesterday), I was adamant that I make the game so I could see my friend, whom I hadn't seen since July 4th.

I left the big kids a note and told them to be ready to go when I got home because we had to pick up little Piggy at school 20 minutes later.

After I rounded up all the kids, and one of their friends who joined us, we headed out for the ballgame which ended with a 0-0 finish. Nothing spectacular, but Jee Jee's son played both offense and defense and did a great job!

After we all went to dinner at the favorite local Mexican joint and were on our way home, Bubsy got a call on his cell phone from a couple of girls in the neighborhood. They had a problem. Their golf cart was stuck on a hill in the woods behind the park and they couldn't get it loose. Apparently it was only sitting on one of the 4 wheels it was attached to. They had called Bubsy for help because they didn't want to call their grandparents.

These two girls live with their grandparents in the most exclusive part of our neighborhood, "The Estates". I'm not really sure what their story is, but I know that have had some problems in the past. The very near past.

Last week one of Bubsy and Rea's friends came over to the house on his golf cart. He and Bubsy went for a ride and met up with these girls, who were on their own golf cart. When the boys decided it was too hot to ride around, they came back to the house for dinner. After dinner was over, they went back outside to take a nice leisurely ride in the cooler weather. The only problem was... the golf cart that was parked in our circle driveway was MISSING!!

GONE!!

Arivaderce!!

Now, this friend of Bubsy and Rea's has a Mom who is very strict and doesn't tolerate any monkey business. The friend was worried that his Mom would find out and he would be in trouble.

The boys had a good idea of who took the golf cart, so we went in search of them.

After looking for a half hour, we finally found them... Just about the time that the friend's Mom saw them on their golf cart. As I was chasing them down in the car, his Mom called and proceeded to fuss at him for letting someone drive their golf cart. He was really upset and had every reason to be. He had done nothing wrong and the golf cart had been "stolen" from our driveway by a couple of teenage girls.

Once we caught up with them, I gave them a good stern talking to. I knew they were embarrassed and they had every reason to be. I went to the friend's house and explained the whole situation to his Mom, who immediately called the girls' grandparents. It wasn't an hour later that I got an apology from one of the girls for her behavior.

End of story... Well, no.

After the desperate call from them tonight, we went looking for them to see if we could help get the golf cart dislodged from where it was so that they could go home. I wasn't sure at the time if I was going to call the grandparents or not about their most recent problematic adventure. I knew first hand of the trouble they had been in the week before, but knowing they had taken the golf cart into the woods created more of a dilemma for me. I don't think they had learned their lesson.

We searched and searched for them, and even had them flash their lights so we could find them. When we finally spotted them, they were so far back into the woods that there was NO WAY that we could get to them. I pulled the truck as far back into the woods as I was willing to go, but still they were a good 500 feet from us at least. There was a mass of trees and brush separating us from them.

They were scared and I felt sorry for them.

There was no way in hell that I was going to be able to help them. It was dark and they were so far back in the brush that the only sign of them was the flickering light of the cart and the screams we heard as they tried to make their way through the brush.

I told Bubsy to call them on their cell phone and tell them to come towards the truck lights so that I could take them home. There was no way we could get this golf cart out in the dark.

After about ten minutes of hearing their screams, they finally emerged with a tiny miniature Schnauzer in tow.

They informed us that they had been there for about an hour and a half, and a third girl (one who I know very well) had been with them and bolted for home when they got stuck. She must have walked a good 3 miles to get home.

Just about the time the girls reached us their Grandmother called. I urged them to tell the truth, that their golf cart was stuck in the woods. I also encouraged them to tell their grandparents that there was no way to get it out until sunlight. But the grandparents were insistent and decided to come and see for themselves.

When they arrived in their Mercedes SUV and finally found their way through the brush to us, they were very upset. The golf cart could not be seen without the key in the ignition turning on the lights. It had succumbed to the night.

The grandparents thanked me for my help and I told them how sorry I was that this had happened. Not that I had been a part of it, I was only trying to help after they had phoned Bubsy. They had been in enough trouble and I was trying to save them from getting into more.

Do you know what the grandmother's reaction was? She said, "If you ever bring home the golf cart with mud on it again, you will never drive it again. We'll sell it!"

Hello!! They stole one golf cart and got the other one stuck so far in the woods that I'm not sure it's retrievable without a tow truck!!

Note to the Grandparents: SELL IT NOW!!! Before someone gets hurt!!

The Shot

Rea started back at MHS last Friday. She was so excited when we got to the school to re-enroll. She was hoping to be able to go to the Homecoming pep rally during 2nd period, so she was anxious to get through the formalities and get to class.

After waiting about 30 minutes (believe me... she was watching the clock!) we finally got to see the Registrar. As we got comfortable in the crappy office chairs, the Registrar alerted us right off the bat that Rea needed a Tetanus shot and would not be allowed enroll until she got one.

Damn. Now I've got to go all the way home for her shot record and try to get her an appointment.

Double Damn. She's gonna miss the pep rally.

So we go all the way home and get the shot record. Meanwhile, I call her doctor's office to see about getting her an appointment for the shot.

Her doctor. The man who has seen every cough, spider bite, sprained ankle, sore throat, twisted knee, ear infection, and acid reflux incident for our entire family for the past 5 years. The doctor, who's old receptionist knew me by voice and greeted me with "which one is it this time?"

There was never a wait, you see, as the old receptionist always told me to "come on in and we'll work you in right away." The old receptionist made sure that we never had to wait more than 5 minutes before being called by the nurse to "come on back". As she waited for us to sashay our way across the waiting room floor, she never failed to ask us about personal things that were going on ("Bubsy, are you playing football this year?", "Piggy, how's softball going?"). You couldn't help but feel special and a bit smug knowing that the others who were still waiting their turn must have felt a little bit envious of the greeting we received.

Well, the old receptionist, Miss S, left a year ago to spend more time with her grandchild and has left me desperate for some kind of comfort when I have to make a call to the doctor. Instead of being greeted by the caring voice of Miss S, you are greeted by a very formal voice who shows absolutely no concern for who you are or why you are calling. She simply takes your information and, with a few strokes on the keyboard, tells the computer who you are and what you want and waits for it to tell her when you can be "scheduled", which is usually, on average, about 2 days away (add 2 days if you call before the weekend). No matter how hard you try to plead your case (ex: "My child is sick with 103 fever"), the answer is always the same, "I'm sorry, we just can't see you until then. We are booked solid."

Now, you can only imagine what went through my mind when I knew I had to take Rea for a shot. A shot which she had to have before going back to school. I was desperate and really wished Miss S was there to help me out. Instead, when I called I was met with the same cold, lackluster voice that had answered the phone each time I called in the past 12 months.

When I explained my situation to her, her response didn't surprise me. "I'm sorry, but we can't 'work her in' until next week."

Work her in?? Work her in?? Working someone in means, working them in between appointments NOW. Not Tuesday! Are you kidding me?

Honestly, how long does it take to get a tetanus shot? 3 minutes? Rea's records are on file and the only thing I was asking for was a simple shot. Tuesday...that's 4 days away!

I was disgusted and frustrated and immediately vowed not to EVER go back to the doctor and his nurses that we have trusted and admired for 5 years. These are people that we stop and talk to at the grocery store, or on the sidewalk. All because of his new receptionist, who's icy personality and inability to make a decision for herself without consulting her trusted computer, has made my life a living hell whenever one of my children is in need of medical care.

Knowing we needed the shot immediately, we were forced to wait until 10:00 when the local Urgent Care clinic opened. It cost me $200 for the shot and office visit (they don't accept my insurance) and the office visit took more than an hour because the doctor decided that he was going to give me my money's worth and give Rea a full physical, even though I told him that she didn't need one. He asked her every question in the book, the proceeded to ask me to give him a FULL medical history on her father and me, since we were her parents, after all. He then checked her spine, heart, lungs, reflexes, balance, agility, muscular activity, bowels, and eyes, ears, nose and throat. Whew! And imagine, all we needed was a tetanus shot!

When the doctor got finished with his unnecessary exam, he left the room, told the nurse to prepare the shot, and VOILA! Within 3 minutes the nurse had prepared the shot, administered it, and we were out the door and on our way to the parking lot.

AAARRRGGGHH! was all I could think as we drove back to the damn school with the damn shot record, signed by the damn doctor who charged me $200 damn dollars and took so damn long because he insisted on a damn physical, all because of the damn icy receptionist that replaced Miss S. couldn't work us into her damn schedule because her damn computer told her they were too damn busy.

Damn it Miss S, why did you have to go?

Spice Cake

One of the things that I love about Fall is the smell of spices! I have been burning a spice candle for a week now, which has gotten me in the mood to bake a spice cake. I found this recipe in Country Living and it looks delicious. I can't wait to smell the fragrant spices wafting from the hot oven as the smell fills the house!!



Grandma Stonesifier's Spice Cake

Ingredients

• Vegetable oil cooking spray
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
• 1/2 cup vegetable shortening
• 1 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 4 large eggs
• 1 1/4 cups buttermilk
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 2 tsp. baking powder
• 1 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg
• 1/2 tsp. ground allspice
• 1 tsp. Dutch processed cocoa
• 1/4 tsp. ground cloves
• 2 cups all-purpose flour

Directions

1. Prepare the cake pans: Lightly coat two 9-inch pans with cooking spray. Cut two 9-inch circles of parchment or waxed paper and fit them into the bottom of the cake pans. Lightly coat the paper circles with cooking spray and set aside.
2. Make the batter: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. In a large bowl, using an electric mixer on medium speed, cream butter and shortening until smooth. Add the sugars and mix until well blended. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition, until the mixture is smooth and light. Set aside. In a 2-cup glass measure, stir the buttermilk and vanilla extract together. In another large bowl, sift to combine the baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, cocoa, cloves, and flour. Set aside. By thirds, alternately add the flour mixture and buttermilk to the creamed butter mixture, blending well after each addition.
3. Bake the cake: Pour batter into the pans and bake until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean -- 30 to 40 minutes. Cool the cakes completely on wire racks. Remove parchment from each layer.
4. Serve the cake: Frost with Orange Cream-Cheese Frosting and serve.

Orange Cream-Cheese Frosting

Ingredients

• One 8-oz package cream cheese, softened
• 1/4 cup unsalted butter (1/2 stick), softened
• 1 tbsp. fresh orange juice
• 1 tsp. grated orange zest
• 1/2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
• 4 cups confectioners' sugar
• 1/4 tsp. orange food coloring (optional)

Directions

1. Make the frosting: Blend the cream cheese, butter, orange juice, orange zest, and vanilla in a large bowl, using an electric mixer set at medium speed, until smooth. Add the sugar and continue to beat until light and creamy - about three more minutes. Add the food coloring and gently stir until the color is uniform.
2. Chill the frosting: Chill until ready to ice your cake.

Fall is in the Air

The temperature is starting to get cooler and the days are getting shorter and I am cooking more than ever. There is only one explaination for this... Autumn is upon us!

I love Autumn!! It is my favorite time of the year! I hate cooking with a passion in the Spring and Summer months, but when Fall arrives, I cook like a madwoman! I made a HUGE pot of beef stew today and yesterday I made a batch of blueberry muffins and a batch of cinnamon streussel muffins. The kids are in hog heaven right now!

Today was about as perfect a day as I've ever seen. The temperature was PERFECT, the stew was delicious, the kids were all calm today, I only had to break up one argument between them, and the Cowboys beat the Dolphins 37-20! Boy, I love Autumn!

I have been looking for some fall wreaths for the past few weeks to put on my front doors and hadn't found anything until a few days ago. I was at Garden Ridge looking for ribbon for a Homecoming mum I was making for Bubsy's date, when I came across their wreaths. They had rows and rows of beautiful fall decorations and the wreaths were HALF PRICE! I got two of these wreaths for $10 each! I am going to break out the rest of my fall decorations tomorrow.

Asshole Coach

I'm sure that most everyone feels the same way I do when you encounter someone who really hates their job, especially someone in a customer service position. It is so annoying when they let their hatred for their job completely overtake their attitude towards the people that they are supposed to be serving. Coming across someone like this is bad enough when you are trying to order a pizza or after you have pressed "1 for English" and after holding for a half-hour you finally get to speak to someone who has such a crappy attitude that you wish you hadn't wasted your time in the first place. But what really irks me is when you come across a teacher like this.

Bubsy had a CC meet this weekend and they were not given a return time by their coach, so Bubsy said he would call me when they were on their way so I could pick him up at the school. No big deal.

Bubsy's coach has been a real jerk since Day 1 of Jr. High. He has had the attitude that he doesn't enjoy what he is doing and he has constantly taken it out on the boys. Perhaps he is upset that he is stuck coaching CC instead of football. Who knows. None of the boys like him and he doesn't say much of anything unless it is critical. There is no pep talks, no compliments, no anything but a scowl on his face.

After I dropped Bubsy off at the school at 5:30am, I came home and went back to bed because I was totally exhausted. At 10:00 he called and said that they were only a few minutes away from the school. I jumped out of bed, grabbed my keys and took off for the school. I was there 15 minutes later. When I arrived, Bubsy was sitting on the sidewalk. Everyone else had been picked up and it was only Bubsy and the crabby coach who were left. When I pulled up the coach gave me a look that could ice a volcano. I'm like, "what the hell?"

When Bubsy got in the car, I asked him how long it how long it had been since everyone else had left. He said it had been quite a while. I'm thinking "what am I missing here? I came as soon as he called". Bizarre. Then Bubsy tells me that the coach was really upset that he had to sit and wait until I arrived. He told Bubsy to call me and tell me to "hurry up" because he was tired of waiting. WHAT???

Apparently, Bubsy didn't realize how close they were to the school when he called, so I didn't get the heads up as soon as the other parents, which is why it took me longer to get there. Not to mention the fact that we live the farthest far from the school, so I was probably going to be one of the last to get there anyway. Honestly, the coach should have told everyone to call their parents when they were about 10 miles from the school, but NO, he left it up to the kids (honestly, do you really think a bus full of Junior High boys are paying ANY attention to where they are at or anything that is going on outside the bus?). Then he wanted to complain that not everyone was picked up as expediently as he would have liked and then wanted to take his frustration out on MY son and make him feel like he had losers for parents. I WAS PISSED OFF!!!

Being a coach is an important job that involves being a mentor, a leader, a teacher, a cheerleader, a spirit lifter, a confidence builder, and a protector. This guy is NONE of those things. He sits on his fat ass on the side instead of running with the boys, he criticizes, he NEVER gives compliments, he berates the kids (and their parents), and he makes them feel like inferior. I think this asshole needs to find another job that has NOTHING to do with children.

Firsts

This weekend was one full of firsts. I am realizing that the kids are growing up, and need to have a little space to do things on their own. I guess I came to this realization when I remembered that Rea will be turning 16 in 2 months! When I turned 16 I got my drivers license and my own set of keys to the car I shared with my big sister. Right now I can't even imagine Rea driving, let alone in as quick as 2 months!
So now that I realize that I need to start letting go, I made a very hard decision on Friday night. It was a HUGE step for me! Friday night was Homecoming and Rea asked me if she could ride to the ballgame with some friends. Yes, she asked to be turned loose to get in a car with 3 other teenagers and be driven 10 miles down a farm to market road in a car driven by a 17 year old!

SHIT!! That was all I could think for a few minutes as my mind temporarily froze up, not unlike my computer does at times when I really need to do something important, but then are forced to reboot it and start over. Well after I finally rebooted my brain I realized that I had to let her go. Needless to say, I didn't like my decision, but I was proud that I made the first step to what I know would be an endless string of hard decisions.

The kids and I got to the game about 30 minutes before Rea and her friends. My nerves were ragged as I sat in the bleachers waiting for her to arrive. I only called her 4 times! When she did arrive, I breathed a sigh of relief and tried to act "normal" when I saw her. I pushed away the tears that were welling up in my eyes (I've been doing a lot of that lately!) and restrained myself from throwing my arms around her! So she (and I) survived her first joy ride with the teenage species! Whew!
Rea wasn't alone in getting some freedom that night from this awfully overprotective mother. For the first time in the history of our town, the Friday night Homecoming game was SOLD OUT! They had to start seating our spectators on the visitors side because the bleachers were packed like sardines. Well, just barely into the 2nd quarter, Piggy got thirsty and asked if she could go down to the concession stand and get a drink. Well, we have been to many High School football games and have stood in line at the concession stand waiting for our chance to buy those cheesy nachos, artery clogging Frito pie, and giant pickles, but NEVER have we allowed Piggy to go by herself.

After she asked me about a dozen times if she could go by herself, I finally relented and said "Yes". I immediately felt a bit sick about my decision, but I really didn't want to get up and push my fat self out of the crammed row I was on, saying "excuse me" to the 12 people that I would have to squeeze past to get to the stairs and then not know if I would have a seat when I returned. Now, it's not like Piggy was going across a busy street to the convenience store. She was going down about 10 steps to the concession stand directly below us. Not to mention that I knew about 78% of the people at the game, ALL of whom know Piggy. So she went on her journey with a 5 dollar bill and returned safe and sound a few minutes later with a Sprite and a giant pixie stick. Whew! Again with the tears when I saw her. I pushed them back down and told her how proud I was of her. We both survived! Two points for Mom and ten points for Shelby!

Now that I was dishing out independence, I decided to give Bubsy a serving as well. Bubsy had a cross country meet about an hour away on Saturday morning. He had to be at the school at 5:30am and I was completely exhausted since we didn't get in from the ball game until nearly midnight the night before.
I have been to EVERY sporting event that my kids have been involved in with the exception of one when my little sister was in labor with her first child and maybe one or two others for various reasons. I actually sat down and calculated how many sporting events I have been to over the past 10 years (that's really pathetic, right?) and I figured that I been to approximately 600 games and practices. Even though that number sounds quite impressive, it is really no different that most parents.

I am the typical team mom and have volunteered many, many hours to the leagues that the kids are involved in. I am the type that makes those stupid "team shirts" with my kids' names and jersey numbers on the back. I am, and will always be, their greatest fan, biggest supporter, and loudest cheerleader (well, that's debatable as restrictions have been set... read on). Now that Bubsy is in Junior High, I don't have to be the taxi driver when he has sporting events. He rides the bus with the rest of the team. And I have promised not to make stupid shirts and to keep my voice down to a modest cheer as I root him on. Oh, and I was told by Bubsy a few years ago, NOT to run out and check on him if he gets hurt... at least not until the coach asks me to. I learned that lesson after he got hurt in football and didn't get up off the field right away. When he finally sat up and looked around all he saw was his mother's fat ass running across the football field with her stupid shirt on, boobs flapping up and down with every step!! Yeah, I learned my lesson on that one!

Anyway (get to the point, right?), Bubsy had the CC meet real early and far away, so I decided to let him go BY HIMSELF! I took him up to the school and it was still dark outside. He had his gym bag (which I packed for him with a pillow, extra shorts, an energy bar, energy water and some money - he rolled his eyes when I gave it to him and told him what was in it!) as he climbed the three big steps up the bus. They were big steps, for both of us.

As I pulled out of the parking lot, leaving him to embark on his own journey and create his own memories, which I will not be fortunate enough to share with him, I felt the tears welling up again. This time I just let them flow. I was alone, it was dark outside, and as I traveled down that lonely farm road, further and further away from my baby boy, I had a good old fashioned cry. The likes of which hadn't been seen in quite some time. I knew at that point that I was letting go of a sliver of my control in their lives. Inch by inch, piece by piece, they will gain their freedom and I will realize that I can't be there to mend every skinned knee or wipe every nose. That's not my job now. My job has become more important and, likewise, more difficult. My job is to let go. I will do it little by little and I will not enjoy it, but I will get it done.