Friday, February 19, 2010

Who are you and what have you done with my daughter???

I just have to take a moment to brag on my beautiful Brenna. Mainly because I'm so amazed by her and partially to give those of you who have a teenage daughter hope.... My mom told me, when Brenna was about 12-13yrs old, that I just had to wait about 8 years and I'd like her again and eventually we'd be good friends. I know "thanks mom" that helps. Of course it didn't help that my mom gave me this sage advice between bouts of hysterical laughter!

There were all the times I wanted to superglue her mouth shut and duct tape the eyelids so I didn't have to hear "Whatever" and see that infuriating eye roll... ONE. MORE. TIME....
There was the $600 cell phone bill, the time she hid the butter tub under the futon upstairs because it was too much effort to take it back downstairs and but it in the refrigerator - even when I stood in the kitchen THAT NIGHT and said, "Where's the butter? I know I had a full tub in here?" I found it two weeks later.... How about the times we struggled to do homework, projects or whatever and she'd "forget" to turn them in, got zeros on homework because she didn't know which basket to put it in and God Forbid she ASK THE TEACHER! Or one of my favorites.... Scene: 10:00am dropping off at school after a dentist appointment...Me: "Remember, DO NOT text or use your phone for ANY reason today at school. I will check the bill." Her: eye roll and shoulder shrug.... Scene 2: Our house the next day...Me (to myself)... "I think I'll check the phone bill... just because I said I would." Pause while I log on and surf around the site... W.T.F!!!!!! There is was in black and white... starting at 10:08....texting every 5 minutes ALL DAY LONG....AT SCHOOL.... at 10:08am....
Anyway, I don't tell you all this to illustrate how bad she was, she was never a bad girl... we've always been very thankful that she' just a normal teenager... but as anyone who has a teenage girl knows... normal teenager can be very....trying....

Where am I going with all this.... Something happened this year... something happened between 10th and 11th grade and I don't know what it was... maturity, good genes, great parenting (snicker, snicker...), alien abduction, substitution by a pod person... I don't know, but something happened...
1. We got her report card.... ALL freaking A's and one B in honors Chemistry!!!!
2. She did very nicely on her SAT and agreed happily.... I repeat happily to take an SAT prep class and take it again to see if we can improve.
3. She took it upon HERSELF... to go to the school's curriculum fair and talk to a bunch of different teachers to decide what she wants to take next year. She did this ON HER OWN... I didn't even know they were having this fair... remember this is the girl who would rather take a ZERO that ask where to put her homework.
4. And last night she backed the van into the driveway!

She's pleasant, she's funny... I would venture to say she's delightful and I enjoy being with her when I'm allowed. I see glimpses of what an amazing young woman she's going to be...

So those of you with teenage or preteenage daughters there is light at the end of the tunnel... and it didn't take 8 years... it's only take 4-5 years!!!

I just hope this change isn't because she's doing drugs and having sex! :o)

Sunday, February 14, 2010

Happy Valentines Day....Whatever...

I hate Valentines Day... I think it's a stupid, nonsensical holiday - invented to suck our wallets dry and make most of us feel inadequate. I don't know where my hatred of V-day started, actually that's a big fat lie... I can tell you where it started... All those years in Middle School and High School. You know the scenario, 1st period, homeroom... whatever, sitting through the same daily minutiae and in walks "Buffy" decked out in her cheerleading uniform with an armload of carnations.... "Susie, here's a flower for you." Up pops Susie in... surprise... her cheerleading uniform and grabs her flower and prances back to her seat. "Oh.. oops... here's ANOTHER one for Susie!" giggle, giggle, giggle...And so it goes over and over again... until Susie and Buffy and Candy are holding armloads of flowers and I'm holding my math notebook. The only thing worse would have been receiving the one token flower from your MOTHER! Thank goodness my mother was smart enough or kind enough not to put me through that crap. So, from then on... Valentines Day not so much... It wasn't until I had kids that I felt compelled to recognize V-day, afterall it wouldn't be fair to perpetuate my feeling on them.
I must add in my hubby's defense, that he has always remembered and given me something on Valentines Day. This year I got gummi worms, sour patch kids and best of all he did my vaccuming chores for me. It doesn't get much better than that for me. But really, no amount of gift-giving can conquer those bitter feelings - hardened in the fires of middle and high school. Valentines will always be for me a non-event.

So, I find myself - schlepping through the Valentines section trying to find something to surprise the kids with. I used to love Target the best because for years it had an Anti-Valentines Day card section, but I couldn't find it this year. :o( Got the required candy, cards, everyone got a special V-day glass to drink out of today and that's it... I'm done...
I even got the dogs treats this year... I must be getting soft and mushy in my old age.

Tuesday, February 9, 2010

We have SO MUCH snow I can't get to my computer...Honest!

At least that's my excuse right now. Really it's my excuse for everything right now... Skipping Tae Kwon Do, canceling guitar lessons, not leaving the house, avoiding laundry, mac and cheese for dinner... you name it - if I don't want to do it... it's too snowy! We are going on Day 5 of not leaving the house. We got 25-30 inches this weekend, tonight we're suppose to get 10-15 inches more. This place is paralyzed! It really hasn't been too bad. We are at the stage in our lives where the kids are pretty self-sufficient. They sleep until 1200, they can get their own food and snacks, they put their own snow gear on and can entertain themselves with very little interaction from the parental units. So it puts a whole new spin on snow days. Today is going to be traumatic for them because I am actually going to make them wake up early (1130am) and make them walk with me to Blockbuster. We have movies to return and trade in and I think they actually need to get up and get out, plus the dogs need exercise so I need someone to hold them outside while I get the movies, and since if I only wake one up then the screams of "unfairness and favoritism" will ring through the house. The grumbling that will ensue about having to get up "early" and having to put the Xbox controller down will become legendary, but I'm going to be firm!....And bribe them with the promise of $5 for candy if they go!
Snow bunnies extratrodiniare. We had Melanie with us for 3 days until we could get her home.
Trying to clear the cars off, in case we were able to get out. John actually can get his car out. Unfortunately my van is too long to make the turn between our middle median and the snow banks that are piled up on either side. I was smart enough to back in before the first snow, so technically I could probably get out, but I would not be able to get back into the driveway and if I did get back into the driveway, then I'd be facing the wrong way and I wouldn't be able to get out until Spring! Backing the van out is a logistical nightmare. So, it's like I have to decide which trip out is "THE TRIP". So far, we've just walked to the grocery store if we needed something (Beer, Syrup and Chips - those were our necessities, not sure what that says about us)

Trying to keep the birds fed. It's an ongoing battle. I worry about the birds.... Otherwise, we are sitting pretty. We haven't lost any power, I guess our "stuff" is underground. We've lost some tree limbs and poor John's hockey rink collapsed under the weight of the snow. So the hockey season is a total loss. He is so disappointed, especially because he just "saved us so much money" by buying his uniform matching socks on Ebay. We all have our hardships to bear.
Other than that, we are surviving fine - just wondering what all the snow days will mean for summer vacation.

Wednesday, February 3, 2010

19 years and counting....

I cannot flipping believe that yesterday John and I had been married 19 years! 19 YEARS!!! I don't feel old enough to have done anything for 19 years. Old people are married for 19 years, my parents were married for 19 years... not me.

At some times it seems like just yesterday we were hanging out at the O'club for Happy Hour and free food. Many nights of chicken wings and chips for dinner. I remember walking around our first home and feeling like we were house-sitting and wondering when the owners would be home. Now I walk around the house and wish the "owners" would come home, especially when the heater goes out or the deck needs to be replaced. Damn those owners... can't the take better care of their shit.

It's been a great 19 years, some rough spots - like the time I told John I would stab him through the heart with a knife while he was sleeping if he didn't stop sniffing (can anyone say PMS). Mostly it's been smooth spots and fun times.

Sometimes I wonder how John puts up with all my moods, obsessions and neuroses and sometimes I wonder why I don't plug his nose while he's sleeping (I did that once - just in jest people!)

Who knew that night when I walked into Confetti's in Albuquerque in my Khaki shorts, matching animal print shirt with my two pairs of accent colored socks and my Reebok hightops (don't you judge!!!!) that the "cutest little nerdly guy" that I met would still be around 22 years later!

Now it's another snow day and we're all home together and we may not make it to 19 years and 2 days! But it's been a good run!