A Spring of Joy

Some random thoughts, stories, musings and catching up, because life has been so busy.

1. The boys went on a camping trip with Brian and Asher’s school last Friday. The days leading up to it were exciting as they discussed sleeping bags and tents and made Bella cry every time they talked about it because she couldn’t go. Every day Bear would ask me if the camping trip was tomorrow. Finally on Thursday, I was able to say, “Yes, Bear, you’ll go camping tomorrow.” Friday dawned crisp and cool. Bear emerged from his nightly hibernation, rubbing his eyes, and shuffled over to lean against my leg, little green blankie in tow. “Mom,” he looked up, sleepy green eyes filled with excitement, “Today is tomorrow.” Oh, how I love that bear!

2. Due to the camping trip, Bella and I got to have a girls’ night, and no girls’ night is complete without painted toenails. So, after pizza with friends, jammy-time (complete with my “jammy-time” break-down thanks to MC Hammer), and snuggling, we curled up together and polished away. She’s pink and I’m purple, her two favorite colors.

3. The car talk in our carpool is quite interesting and pretty much constant; however, whenever Bri drives he informs me the kids don’t talk. Of course, that afternoon I got in the van and found the radio blaring NPR. Great. So, my hubby keeps the kids quiet by filling their minds with liberal garbage. However, Courtney (one of the other moms in our carpool) is okay with this, because she has a great documentary on Ronald Reagan we can make all the kids sit through in order to deprogram them.

4. While we’re on the topic of car talk, can anyone tell me if unicorns fly or not? I claim they cannot. That pegasus (just what is the plural of pegasus? pegasi? pegasuses?) are the winged horses that can fly. However, I was promptly scolded with, “MOOOOM, unicorns are magical creatures that have a horn and wings and they fly, too. I saw it on Dora.” Well, apparently, I am letting my kids play too many Dora computer games.

5. As for Dora. Poor Bear learned the hard way that he’s the little guy when he was informed by our carpool buddies that Dora was too babyish to watch anymore. Being 4 years old is rough. So this afternoon he asked me if he could watch TeleTubbies. WHAT?! How does he know these things? And better yet, WHY? Please, tell me WHY would anyone allow their kids to suffer through that show?

6. Labor Day weekend which was way too many weeks ago we spent the weekend with Bri’s family in WVA near the New River Gorge. Nine grandchildren, of which our Ash is the oldest. Does that tell you anything? It really was a wonderful time.

7. Yet another wedding of one of my Bible study girls, and it was so sweet. Outdoors on a farm complete with an indoor barn reception, it had the Martha flair. And the Martha beauty. I boo-hooed like a baby (so what else is new?).

8. Y’all know how much I love to drive Bri’s monstrosity, er, redneck truck jeep. Today I was given the pleasure yet again. Nothing like bouncing down the road, kids in tow, trying to figure out how to work the stereo without taking a hand off the steering wheel, because y’all, I am terrified of driving that vehicle with one hand. I finally get the radio on and start scanning, because I refuse to listen to NPR’s liberal garbage (see point #3 above).

Unfortunately, concentrating on keeping the beast from overturning because I’m so high off the ground, left me forgetting the radio, and it wound up on some station I never listen to. Then I heard “Hungry Eyes” from Dirty Dancing start playing. And I couldn’t figure out how to turn the station! All I could think about were the little ears in the back seat asking me what it meant to fantasize. When I finally figured out how to change the station (at the end of the song!), I heard the DJ come on and say, “Family friendly music you can listen to anytime. Light rock that won’t embarrass you or your kids.” WHAT the heck? Then I heard Bear’s voice from the back say, “Mom, was that song about a tiger? He had hungry eyes.” Yeah. Something like that.

9. Ash is learning so much in school, and every day he comes home and tells me all about it in 5 words or less. Oh, he’s a talker, that one. But he still loves school. Well, now he only likes school. He informed me on Monday that he misses me too much during the day to love school anymore. He sure knows how to win this momma’s heart!

10. I am now wearing mascara. Yes, there are some lashes finally, and that makes me a very happy woman.