A Card From Somewhere

Usually I write a blog post about what I'm thankful for the week of Thanksgiving.  And well, we were busy.  And Thanksgiving came and went.  It's a tornado of chaos of kids out of school, kids in school, 4-H meetings, karate classes.  And then of course, there's Thanksgiving at two different places.  And our Anniversary.   And honestly, you can only post so many blog posts about being thankful for my family and friends and church and our possessions.

So here is a partial thankfulness post.  Every year, we always receive an anniversary card.  From our realtor.  We've been together for what seems like forever.  A short forever.  But forever.  And I wouldn't have it any other way.  But the way we started caused all kinds of drama and family feuds.  And things have improved over the years.  But it's not 100%.  And I'm not sure it will ever be in the near future.

But there has always been a constant.  You see we bought our house before we got married.  And we got married the next year.  The way our realtor works, she does things by referral only. And she throws a big holiday party every year and invites everyone she's ever worked with.  It's great.  It's like family.  This year our anniversary landed on the Sunday after Thanksgiving.  And we got our happy Anniversary card like usual.  It came.  And we've been to my family and the inlaw's houses.  No one said a word.  We did get everyone's crap that they are tired of.   But no happy anniversary.  Which I know is no big deal.  It shouldn't be a big deal.  And we did have a bit of a family emergency at the inlaws.  But zip.   So it was refreshing to get that card.  This year was hard.   I'm still waiting for a chance to breathe.

So here's to us and another year.   And to another 50.  And I'll be looking forward to that card from a very unexpected place.

What? You Don't Sit All Day?

There are many thoughts and ideas about stay at home moms.  The common idea around our town is that stay at home moms sit around and do nothing but eat and watch t.v. all day.  I really wish this was the case.  This week has been fall break for the big kid.  And boy did he have big plans.  Big plans of doing nothing.  But unlike traditional school, the tot still had speech therapy and preschool.  So we were out running errands.  And of course, getting ready for Thanksgiving.  It was a busy week.  But not anymore busy than normal.

So I got asked several times this week if we had somewhere to be and had something to do.  And everything was answered with a yes.  And then I replied that at least we didn't have to rush around in the morning like chickens with our heads cut off because school was out for him.  He looked shocked.  Then he asked with the best puzzled look on his face and asked if we(meaning the tot and I) sat around all day.  I just laughed.

He learned the value of respecting his mother.  And respecting his brother.  He was on the other end.  Usually it's Jet and I sitting quietly while he is off at karate or 4-H events.  This week, he's been sitting quietly while Jet was in preschool and speech.  And next week we venture down to Los Angeles for Jet too.  That will hopefully be a happy post.  So I will go back to my Thanksgiving dinner prep.  And I'll let this week sink into the tween.

The New Coffee Date

When my oldest kid was little, my friend's and I used to have coffee dates.  While the kids were in school.  After the kids went to bed.   Now they are so busy, and some of us have started over in having kids.   So the few of us with tots go to the park or the fast food place with an indoor playground.  Right now, I'm in that world.  But with an 8 year difference, I have a foot on the other side still too.  But with all the 4-H and karate activities we have, I'm going to take a coffee date where I can get it.  Most mother's crave adult conversation.  I am married to that guy who is rarely home and when he is, he isn't a big talker.  He spends his hours at work on the phone and talking to people all the time.  So if I'm not leading a project meeting, I'm attending one.  And I'm going to let the kids do their thing.  The rest of the parents are there and always talking.  So this past week, I've joined in.  We usually talk about adult stuff.  And its fun.  It's nice to have that hour of just letting things go for a minute.  And it's nice to be listened to.  I'm not really sure that they are listening.  But they are playing video games, or begging you to help with trains, cars, snacks, or potty time.

At A Fork In The Road

Almost 4 years ago, I became a stay at home mom.  And now that time is coming to an end.  I would love to just be home.  I would love to be that class mom.  Or be able to work from home.  Jet is coming to that age where he is going to start school.  This coming August he'll eligible(maybe, he still might have to qualify financially or with delays) for preschool.  Real preschool at a real elementary school.  And it's within walking distance to our house.  And while it's only 3 hours and most places won't let me work from drop off to pick up time, I will have that year to decide.  To decide whether my heart can handle being a working parent again.  Or if my brain decides that it's ok to take a risk and start my own business and work from home.  Or be the perfect ideal mom in my head.  That mom who is there fully for her kids and husband.  That mom that when the teacher needs a last minute volunteer, can be there to help.  The mom who won't have to rush dinner and homework because she had a pressing business ordeal or had to work late.  The mom that isn't smelling clothes to make sure her kids are presentable at school.  Or that her clothes are too wrinkled to be working in. I've lived that life once.  And I was a very unhappy person.  I, by nature, am a people pleaser.  And being a working mom to 1 child was enough to pull me in every direction and into place of unhappiness.  So here I stand.  Watching this fork in the road just come at a high rate of speed, it brings me anxiety.  And sadness.  The end of an era.  Our last baby isn't a baby.  He's almost of age to walk into that school.  That means saying goodbyes to the snuggles and park lunch dates.  To the being the person that most relied on.  When we hit kindergarten age, I will have teenager and a kindergartner.  I'm terrified.  One foot just starting school, and one foot heading to adulthood.  A mother's heart is a tender thing.  It's a good thing it's always filled to the brim with love so it can withstand the blows of life.

Food Fiesta

This year, the big kid competed in his first ever Food Fiesta competition in 4-H.  I would like to say that this event has been around forever, since it was going on when I was in 4-H.  But I don't want to make myself sound old.  That being said, I never went to Food Fiesta.  We didn't have a foods/cooking/cake decorating project in my club.  I was more into being a club officer and showing my dog and horse anyways.   But the kiddo's club, we have a lot of projects.  In fact, he's currently doing 13 projects and an emerald star service project this year.

Anyways, back to Food Fiesta.  It usually falls on the same day as his martial arts's studio tournament and the school fall festival.  But this year they all landed on different days.  So we went to all three.  So Food Fiesta has place setting competition, menu planning, cooking, baking, and food art competitions.  However the last couple years, they've added food jeopardy, blind taste test, cupcake wars, and chopped.

He went easy this year since it was his first year going.  And easy still took a car load of stuff to get the job done.  He entered chicken and wild rice soup and got 3rd place.  They said that it needed more seasonings.  But he likes bland food.  So he thought it was perfect.  And it was more edible than some of the other soups kids made.  I was just proud that he did a whole crock pot full of soup by himself.
He also entered the family famous pumpkin bread recipe.  However, he didn't do that one very well.  If he walked away with anything, it was that cooking is hard and long and tedious and there is no half effort work.  He got 3rd place for his bread too.  And finally he made pumpkin butter.  He got 1st place for that one.  And it does taste pretty good.  We've already gone through 2 jars of it at home.

And then he and another friend from our club joined up and did the food jeopardy and blind taste test.  I will say that I was a little nervous when he signed up.  The kid has so many allergies and triggers that I like to know what goes in his mouth.  Our club had a group for chopped.  They are a little easier on the judging than the show is.  Every stays for all the rounds.  They placed 1st for presentation.  And the prize was Barnes and Nobles gift cards.  Which my kid loved because he's a reader.

And then there was cupcake wars.  Rionn and I love the show.  He's been asking when we're going to be on there ourselves.  I doubt we will ever.  I love to bake.  But I definitely don't want to do it for a living.  Anyways, it's not quite like the show either.  They decorate 4 cupcakes that are already baked.  And each cupcake has a different theme.  This year the themes were: favorite book, favorite movie, 4-H, and Mother's day.  So we planned and practiced.   And he did well.  He placed first and was in the running for county winner.  I didn't get many pictures.  I make Rionn nervous.  And I'm nervous enough for him myself.  HAHA.  Curse of a mother I suppose.  

So here are some pictures of cupcake wars.  He is so jazzed about how the day went, he is looking forward to next year.