HAve I mentioned that we are having our basement finished? The other day I was in Lowes. I HATE going in there for the very reason that I am about to relate.
It was in the morning, and I was waiting on our contractor. He was shuckin' and jivin' the Lowes kid, and trying to be sure that the ENTIRE delivery actually made it out to the house. I was just standing around waiting to swipe my card to PAY for the aformentioned delivery. We were at the "Contractors Entrance".
Allow me to set the scene: I am bored to tears, having already perused all the various cuts of lumber and sheetrock that I can stand for one day. I am sensing that it is almost time for us to check out and for me to perform my card-swiping act, so I am standing at the desk. I am wearing my oldest-should-have-been-thrown-out-long-ago-ripped-holey-jeans, my "Moosejaw" t-shirt, flip-flops, and a baseball cap. My short blonde hair pokes out about 2 inches from underneath it.
In a word: gross.
But many of the men coming in that morning, apparently LIKE gross. How do I even explain this? Is it because I am the only female IN the "Contractors Entrance"? Is there some unwritten rule that I don't know about? Seriously, I would NOT get that kind of unwanted attention in a nightclub........not even close. This is an area that is truly a mystery to me. Much like the mechanics garage. And while I HATE the deep gutteral sounds uttered JUST within my(and his buddies) hearing range , the one I TRULY do not understand is the "intimidation come-on". Yes. That one is a mystery to me. You know what I'm talking about. The one where some construction-booted yahoo walks 1/2 a mile out of his way, staring you down, just so he can ALMOST brush up against you. WHAT IS THAT? ANd that is exactly what I asked Mr. Construction Boot when he pulled this one. I had been standing there for about 30 minutes, and judging from the reaction I was getting was begining to think one of 2 things had happened: Either the old bra that I had on had finally ripped into 2 pieces, and someone had accidently, and without my knowing, sprayed my front with a water hose, OR the butt of my jeans had finally given way, and was exposing all I had to the world. It was at this time that Mr. Costruction Boot came in and did his thing. If he had known of my Past he would have chosen some other girl. Anyway, what is that?. I mean really........what is it they WANT you to do??? Look away? ASk for their number? What is it?
And here's an even better question. What would happen if some psycho gal (not me) actually strode into the Lowes "Contactors Entrance" wearing nothing but a wet T-shirt and a thong? WHat would happen then? Would all those guys just automatically implode?? Something like this could destroy the housing market. Something to think about.
Wednesday, July 18, 2007
Sunday, July 15, 2007
Happy Birthday Jackson!
My baby turned 10 today. (I know, I know........I look so young.) He had a great day and collapsed happily into bed tonight. Of course, we over-indulged in toys and action figures for him to make up for the fact that the kids dad is on the other side of the world for yet ANOTHER of his birthdays. We are only human. And I am actually aware that this will probably be the last year that he truly enjoys just "playing" with those kinds of things. ANd I have to admit that it actually makes me a teeny bit sad. (Huh- didn't see that one coming...not from me, anyway.)
Jack never fails to dissapoint. He came downstairs this morning absolutely THRILLED with the Happy Birthday banner that Savannah and I made for him. I fixed pancakes for breakfast to commemorate the day. (This was a special treat, because to me this is the equivalent of handing your kids the sugar bowl, and a stick of butter and saying,"go for it"). It was while he was eating his pancakes that I noticed his hands. He had painted them silver. Yes, that's right. He had painted both hands entirely with silvery metallic craft paint. He had sensed that I would question the sanity of this move and had attempted to shield them somewhat. And while I DID question the sanity of this move, I let it slide, and merely asked that all body painting be done outside from now on. And I also stated once again, for the record, that the upstairs bathroom is NOT "Jack's Personal Laboratory". I believe that the hand painting has something to do with the Fantastic Four. Which I have not seen, and neither has he, but...........none the less.
Happy Birthday Jackson. We love you!
Jack never fails to dissapoint. He came downstairs this morning absolutely THRILLED with the Happy Birthday banner that Savannah and I made for him. I fixed pancakes for breakfast to commemorate the day. (This was a special treat, because to me this is the equivalent of handing your kids the sugar bowl, and a stick of butter and saying,"go for it"). It was while he was eating his pancakes that I noticed his hands. He had painted them silver. Yes, that's right. He had painted both hands entirely with silvery metallic craft paint. He had sensed that I would question the sanity of this move and had attempted to shield them somewhat. And while I DID question the sanity of this move, I let it slide, and merely asked that all body painting be done outside from now on. And I also stated once again, for the record, that the upstairs bathroom is NOT "Jack's Personal Laboratory". I believe that the hand painting has something to do with the Fantastic Four. Which I have not seen, and neither has he, but...........none the less.
Happy Birthday Jackson. We love you!
back on!
Hey! Look at me! I remembered how to log in!
The kids are in bed, the laundry is tamed for now, the kitchen is cleaned, the stories have been read, the dogs have been fed, I worked out, and am now settled in with a glass of Cabernet and my laptop.
Race is gone and I am trying to acclimate myself to being a one man...er....woman team again. I sometimes throw around the "single parent" term on this blog, when referring to myself after Race leaves. The fact is it's not even close to that. Even though Race is away and out of contact for long periods of time, he is a wonderful provider for us. I don't have to worry about MAKING the bucks. That's pretty huge don't ya think? Also, Race prays for us daily. And we pray for him. And that is one of the ways that we manage this. God hears our prayers and He is merciful to us, and grants us unmeasurable grace. And that's how we make it. And I am so thankful.
I am up to my eyeballs in school planning right now. I will be glad to get it all done. Austin is going to a local classical school part-time this year, and Savannah is taking on Calvert again, and Jack is going for some evaluations this week that will hopefully clear up a few things with him. So, I will be glad to finish up these final loose ends for the school year.
I am afraid that Races' few weeks at home weren't very relaxing. But we tried to make the best of it. We did do a couple of fun things. We took a bunch of Brits to a National's baseball game, and that was a riot. We also went to a water park for the day just before Race pulled out. (And Jess, I DID get him back......I'll tell the whole thing in another post) But other than that things were pretty hectic around here. Lets' see...........
We are having our basement finished,(insert hallelujah chorus) so while that is exciting beyond belief, it is also super loud and noisy every day.
Our mattress was maiming us both, so we went for a new set. To make a long story short-our new set arrived LATE. REALLY LATE. Race and I slept the whole time on a sort of make-shift mattress that we made from memory-foam and a box spring. Which was a lot more comfortable than the OLD mattress. He got to sleep one night in total comfort before he left. ugh.
Austin was away at scout camp for a week, and Savannah has been busy for several weeks at Encore' (the theatre production at the Fine Arts Academy). Race really missed spending all his time with them. Watch out, cause I think that they might be growing up. EEK! He was so upset that he would miss Savannah's performance.
Jackson was with us the whole time, and that was great. He and Race connected in a big way this time. And that warmed my heart. It is absolutely KILLING Race that he won't be here for the start of football. Race went to college on a full scholarship for football, and it was his life for many,many years. This will be our family's first introduction to football, and Race wants so badly to be here for Jack.
But alas, Here we are. And it's where we're supposed to be.
And I am so thankful that I've heard from Race. He is where he is supposed to be. I am so thankful for our wonderful family who have helped to fill in the gaps for our kids. I am so thankful that we have the resources to provide enriching opportunities for the kids to stretch their wings and try out their gifts and talents. And I'm just thankful to be a part of it all.
It's good to be back!
g'night,
Melissa
The kids are in bed, the laundry is tamed for now, the kitchen is cleaned, the stories have been read, the dogs have been fed, I worked out, and am now settled in with a glass of Cabernet and my laptop.
Race is gone and I am trying to acclimate myself to being a one man...er....woman team again. I sometimes throw around the "single parent" term on this blog, when referring to myself after Race leaves. The fact is it's not even close to that. Even though Race is away and out of contact for long periods of time, he is a wonderful provider for us. I don't have to worry about MAKING the bucks. That's pretty huge don't ya think? Also, Race prays for us daily. And we pray for him. And that is one of the ways that we manage this. God hears our prayers and He is merciful to us, and grants us unmeasurable grace. And that's how we make it. And I am so thankful.
I am up to my eyeballs in school planning right now. I will be glad to get it all done. Austin is going to a local classical school part-time this year, and Savannah is taking on Calvert again, and Jack is going for some evaluations this week that will hopefully clear up a few things with him. So, I will be glad to finish up these final loose ends for the school year.
I am afraid that Races' few weeks at home weren't very relaxing. But we tried to make the best of it. We did do a couple of fun things. We took a bunch of Brits to a National's baseball game, and that was a riot. We also went to a water park for the day just before Race pulled out. (And Jess, I DID get him back......I'll tell the whole thing in another post) But other than that things were pretty hectic around here. Lets' see...........
We are having our basement finished,(insert hallelujah chorus) so while that is exciting beyond belief, it is also super loud and noisy every day.
Our mattress was maiming us both, so we went for a new set. To make a long story short-our new set arrived LATE. REALLY LATE. Race and I slept the whole time on a sort of make-shift mattress that we made from memory-foam and a box spring. Which was a lot more comfortable than the OLD mattress. He got to sleep one night in total comfort before he left. ugh.
Austin was away at scout camp for a week, and Savannah has been busy for several weeks at Encore' (the theatre production at the Fine Arts Academy). Race really missed spending all his time with them. Watch out, cause I think that they might be growing up. EEK! He was so upset that he would miss Savannah's performance.
Jackson was with us the whole time, and that was great. He and Race connected in a big way this time. And that warmed my heart. It is absolutely KILLING Race that he won't be here for the start of football. Race went to college on a full scholarship for football, and it was his life for many,many years. This will be our family's first introduction to football, and Race wants so badly to be here for Jack.
But alas, Here we are. And it's where we're supposed to be.
And I am so thankful that I've heard from Race. He is where he is supposed to be. I am so thankful for our wonderful family who have helped to fill in the gaps for our kids. I am so thankful that we have the resources to provide enriching opportunities for the kids to stretch their wings and try out their gifts and talents. And I'm just thankful to be a part of it all.
It's good to be back!
g'night,
Melissa
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