10 Things for Memorial Day Sunday
May 25, 2008 The Story of My Life
- Brett is working today. In honor of his new job, he bought jeans. The last time I saw Brett in jeans I was pregnant with Noah. I don’t recognize him. He’s more of a khakis guy.
- Madison is digging in an enamel pan full of stale grains from the back of my cupboard. Bulgar, stoneground oats, something else I don’t recognize and some left-over alphabet noodles. I keep a pack of cheap plastic animals for these kinds of activities. Plastic dinosaurs and their ilk go well with dried beans, playdough or water play. This pack has been around since Noah was digging in stale grains.
- I got a weird phone call last night at 9pm from someone who wanted to talk to me about my Salon essay only she referred to it by the name Adoptive Families gave it when they reprinted it. I don’t know how she got my home number (my work number is on my web sites) and she didn’t exactly explain why she wanted to talk to me either. I’ll call her back because I’m curious but I feel a little odd about it.
- I got a very new-to-me assignment last week — something I’d never done before — and it was a total kick. The client seems happy so I hope I get some more like that. Did I mention it was a kick? Said client says that they can keep me busy and busy I like. Also got contacted by two other possible clients. Am feeling potentially wealthy.
- Brett got a new-to-us BBQ yesterday courtesy of this family. (Their neighbors had it out on the curb.) Between you and me it’s pretty beat down but what do we care as long as it works?
- We can’t decide on a new color for our living room. I’m tired of the red wall and want to paint a stronger color on the rest of the room because our couch is just about the same color as what’s currently up there. I enjoy taping paint chips to the wall and wandering around trying to figure out which one works. Seriously.
- I’m missing some Memorial Day Weekend events because of our gas hog of a van. Such is life in 2008 (and beyond).
- My mom came and got Noah yesterday to try out her Wii Fit. Then he’s off to a sleepover tonight with friends. Tomorrow we’re hitting the Clippers game to see fireworks.
- We’re thinking of giving up cable because we’re watching too much television. We’ll keep Tivo because we already paid for it (and because it allows us to watch Lost after the children go to bed). When we bring this up the kids weep — especially the big one. We’ll see.
- Sometimes I wake up in the morning and just know it’s going to be a great day. Today was one of those mornings. Now I’m off to go play in it!
May 25th, 2008 at 10:24 am
this is very minor comment, but:
it does amuse me that your mom has a wii! nintendo’s marketting efforts to try to get gaming systems to a broader audience must’ve worked well!
May 25th, 2008 at 11:00 am
Great day to be alive!
May 25th, 2008 at 2:22 pm
Dave, the truth is my mom keeps up with the video games to entice the grandkids to come over more often!!
May 25th, 2008 at 4:29 pm
we just got cable, and i am on the verge of regretting it…. but instead i’m getting serious about the limits i have in the past been fairly lax in enforcing: no tv whatsoever from monday through thursday, and limited amounts on the weekend. i’ve also decided that screen time is a privilege in our house that has to be earned — by completing chores independently and without complaining, and by generally being pleasant most of the time. both my kids failed to earn the privilege this weekend, which has not turned out as tragically as all of us feared. hopefully i’m going to stick to my resolve, but cable was only ever an experiment, and we will definitely get rid of it if it becomes more of a hassle than it’s worth!
May 25th, 2008 at 4:49 pm
“I enjoy taping paint chips to the wall and wandering around trying to figure out which one works. Seriously. ”
I’m the opposite…I end up so darn overwhelmed because I like them all, like none, too many colors, etc., and that is how we once ended up with a burgundy bedroom (because J got fed up and chose a color blindly!LOL)
May 25th, 2008 at 4:57 pm
“I enjoy taping paint chips to the wall and wandering around trying to figure out which one works. Seriously. ”
I like this too. It’s just the actual painting of the wall that I procrastinate on…
May 25th, 2008 at 4:58 pm
The weird phone call is curious. Will you up date us when you find out more?
May 25th, 2008 at 5:14 pm
That Salon article was great.
May 26th, 2008 at 12:03 pm
Dawn — ha, that’s brilliant! ^_^ lol, but, I mean, isn’t that what grandmothers DO?
My own Grandma, she used to treat me with all kinds of things. And it wasn’t just about the things, it was how /special/ it felt in her house! She always would say that when I was really really small, she would wrap me up in a blanket and I’d watch cartoons. And though I can’t remember the details, I have this vague feeling — one of contentedness and feeling warm and taken care of … in my special Grandma’s house.
You know, Dawn, it’s so awesome that your kids’ family is so rich and extended! It sounds wonderful to have access to knowing that you /belong/ with people who know you and love you and that you’re somehow connected with them… .