First Week

Monday: Keith got up and got dressed ALL BY HIMSELF. It was a beautiful day, so after I put Mary on the bus (and verified the driver knew to pick up Keith later and that yes, they were being dropped off, too), I took Keith and Izzy to the park that's two blocks down the street. It was great--until Keith got upset that he couldn't swing himself high enough (he's still learning to swing himself) which culminated into a temper tantrum. This, of course, led to our hasty retrieval--which led to another fit from Izzy. Yeah. Real great job on the first day. After Keith went to school, and I put Izzy down for her nap, I spent two hours getting a ton of my work done for Girl Scouts (yes, I actually do have "work" I have to do in my little service team position). Got pretty disgusted at the inner-politics of it all and wondered if Campfire Girls were still around?

Tuesday: Keith got up and got dressed ALL BY HIMSELF! It turned out to be a rainy, overcast day, so I spent most of it working with Keith with his reading and working with Izzy and her letter recognition (she knows "W" and "O" and sometimes "H"). I spent the whole precious afternoon naptime getting acquainted with the 100 channels we just got from Dish Network. Getting Dish was probably a big mistake--spent all afternoon watching a movie and getting nothing done. Mary came home and complained that she had "nothing to read" for homework (She has to read 20 minutes every night. She just finished reading the first two Harry Potters, but I won't let her go any further than that for fear of recurring dementor nightmares. And everything else seems "boring" to her after being exposed to Harry Potter!). Took all three kids to library--giving them the "Rules of Going to the Library" along the way. 1) Be quiet. 2) NO RUNNING. 3) NO WHINING (this directed at Keith, the cranky boy). 4) LISTEN AND FOLLOW MOMMY'S INSTRUCTIONS. We hadn't been there two minutes and Keith had broken all four. After his "WARNING" was issued, he behaved, and we all got a bunch of new books to read--that hopefully aren't boring. Had more fun with G.S. politics at Service Unit meeting that night.

Wednesday: Keith got up at 6:30 for some strange reason. First day I actually had to goad him a little to get motivated (he was cranky from getting up too early). Another nice day. We played kickball outside and worked more on reading and letters. Naptime spent getting prepared for our first G.S. meeting that night. Thankfully new co-leader did most of the work. I wasn't in the mood after dealing with some immature, little leaders for the last couple of days. Fun meeting, though. Mary enjoyed herself, too.

Thursday: Keith got up and got dressed ALL BY HIMSELF (I'm sorry, but this is REALLY a big deal. When I was working, getting him up and dressed was teeth-clenching!). Another nice day outside. I took the kids for a surprise visit to see Leona, our friend and previous care-giver. Keith was so excited to see his best buddy, Jack. The kids all played while Leona and I caught up (and I got a sympathetic ear for all my G.S. troubles). Keith was filthy by the time we left, and I ended up having to change his shirt before the bus came.

Friday: The kids didn't have school. The whole day felt like a Saturday. I got some reading done and some laundry done. Friday night was the "Girl Scout Cookie Kick-Off." Tons of girls and leaders/moms in a stuffy/hot gymnasium for an hour. I was supposed to perform a song with the Service Team, but I left early. Mary was getting bored, and I was glad to get out of that hot gym. But at least I behaved myself.

Saturday: HOT! Mary and I spent an hour and a half going up and down the block trying to sell Girl Scout cookies. She sold about 12 boxes. Then, while talking to our next-door neighbor who was having a garage sale, a truck stops by--and it's the person who used to own our house (BEFORE the people who sold it to us)! We've heard from our neighbors what nice people they were, and had a treat meeting him and talking about the house with him. Only the thought of how cluttered the house was with TOYS EVERYWHERE prevented me from inviting him in. After putting Izzy down for a nap, I took Mary to a friend's house for a play date. I stayed for a while, getting acquainted with the Mom. I then went home and picked up the house feverishly. I straightened up the toy room, the den, the living room, and the kitchen--all in about an hour and a half. It was the most housework I'd gotten done ALL WEEK. We picked up Mary from her playdate and headed to a furniture store looking for a dining room table. The kids were going from chair to sofa to loveseat to bed "testing" them. John and I got frustrated with trying to keep the kids in check while looking at furniture. We threw in the towel, threw the kids back in the car, and headed home.