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We're decorating early this year. Our annual Christmas party is the first weekend in December and last year doing all the decorating between Thanksgiving and Christmas nearly killed us (and our marriage). So this year we skipped Thanksgiving in our house. As soon as the Halloween decorations came down, we pulled out the Christmas stuff and we've been working on it ever since. We have decided everything will be done; inside and out by the end of Thanksgiving weekend or else.
Last night we decided to put up the tree that goes above the front door. For the first time ever Brad decided to assemble it up there instead of down on the ground and then having to awkwardly carry it up the ladder and get it up there. This, however meant he had to climb all the way onto the ledge up there. It's a pretty big ledge, but it's also pretty high up. The first picture is of him up there will both pieces ready to assemble and arrange the branches. 
More arranging and spinning and arranging and spinning all to my specs. My husband is a very patient man, who is willing to put up with a lot of arranging and spinning.
Now we've gotten the last minute addition of the lighted tree topper installed and all the arranging and spinning is done.... but... well, um... Now to come down. "Boy it sure is a long way down..... Hmmm, I just have to reach around and put my foot on the ladder and I'll be all set..... It's going to be just a minute or two"
"Take your time, I've got the ladder whenever you're ready to come down."
"I'm almost ready."
"I know, just take your time."
"Okay, I'm coming down."
"Alright, whenever you're ready."
"Honey can you just have some food sent up?"
Camela
Bandit, our Jack Russell Terrier's, favorite game is treadmill fetch. While I'm on the treadmill, Bandit comes to the front of it with a tennis ball and drops it on the very front edge. The ball rolls down a little incline until it lands on the tread part and heads towards my feet. I then kick it, trying to get it out the door (I'm only mildly successful in the aim department). He retrieves it and we start again. No matter how long I'm on the treadmill, I always tire before he does.
Camela
So today is Teddy's first basketball practice. As I've discussed, Brad left me with a detailed list of who had to be where and Jackson's practice was yesterday and Teddy's was tonight; both at 7pm. Great. Run home get them dinner, talk to Brad a bunch of times, head out to the car, get seriously delayed because Jackson didn't like that I pointed out that finding things is just not his strong suit (his shoe was literally in the middle of the room he said he lost it on the way to - I had to take 2 steps from where he was bitterly complaining about the world and Teddy especially being against him in not letting him find his missing shoe, to see the shoe). I took the 2 steps and saw the shoe all alone in the middle of the room and sighed in frustration about how no one in this house but me can find a single thing... I was not that polite I think... Jackson thought this was even worse than the world conspiring together to hide the shoe, now he had a real villain. Hiding and crying and running ensued. Finally we got out of the house, made our way to the school, found the gym... only to discover his practice really started at 6 and not 7. Teddy was so bummed I checked the email from Brad. It said 6. I'm seriously a moron.Camela
Jackson had his first basketball practice today and had an absolute blast. He's on the Gonzaga team. I think it's so great they use college names; it helps me get them into the college basketball frenzy that happens in our house in late spring. The fact that he had no idea what he was doing on the court was completely lost on him. It's an instructional league and his coach seemed to be really great - just kept showing Jackson that he shouldn't be skipping and dancing and flailing his legs wildly around while dribbling the ball and telling him it was great that he could dribble with both hands but that he really should try to only use one at a time. Brad's going to take him next time.
On the way home I called Brad so he could talk to Jackson about the practice. I can tell by Jackson’s responses that Brad is asking lots of basketball related questions. Yes he likes his coach, he knows only 1 guy on his team. He "played" with him last year too. Jack interrupts Brad to say, "wait I have to tell you the best part. I figured something out today." There's a pause while Brad asks what. "I can sharpen my tooth, my snaggletooth, well all four of them actually." He was very excited by this. "All I do is grind them against each other and I can make them really, really sharp. Sharper than the point of a sword. Sharper than an arrow. Here, listen to this." silence. "Did you hear that click dad. That was me grinding them together, I tried to do it really loud so you could hear." We're very proud.Camela
The day started well enough; got up early, felt well rested... but then it started. I found Ridgely, the lab battling a neck problem, motionless on my bathroom floor. I had to check that she was breathing - she was. The poor thing couldn't even wag her tail, did I mention she's a lab. I ran downstairs and got her some aspirin and her steroids. She'd managed to rouse herself by the time I'd returned. She must have been extra stiff from the sleeping???
Then I'm all ready, I've given Teddy his five minute warning. I head downstairs to start breakfast and get Jackson to put his shoes on only to see our neighbor peering in our window. Why? you might ask. Because it's Tuesday and every Tuesday she shows up at 7:15 to take Teddy to chorus. I apologize and tell her I thought it was canceled this week. Why? she asks..... why indeed... well it turns out it's because I'm a moron who can't think for herself. I tell her, actually said the words out loud "Because Brad gave me a detailed schedule of who had to be where when before he left for North Carolina and this wasn't on it." The sad part is that it's true. I know exactly where and when both boys' basketball practices are and on which days because he left me a list, but the thing that happens every single week... uh no idea. Even worse than all that is that later when I told Brad, he apologized for forgetting to put it on the list. Seriously pitiful.... But back to the morning, I send the neighbor on her way and yell to the kids RUUUUUN!!!! Teddy's got to go. Ted get dressed! Dry cereal for breakfast! Run to the car! Fly to school! We make it, only five minutes late. Totally forgot lunch.... oops.
The highlight of the work day was learning that the CEO is heading out of the country again and wants the budgets done before he leaves. I'm still a man down and I've got statements for three companies, and budgets for two companies, untold bank recs and all the other day to day stuff I normally do to get done in the next couple of weeks - oh and Thanksgiving is in there too.
I run out the door at 5:00 on the dot, stop at Chick-Fil-A to get dinner for the boys so I can get something in them before we have to be at Jackson's first basketball practice. I get to school to pick them up... only to learn they've pulled down and broken one of the blinds that cover the cafeteria windows and got to have the assistant principal have a discussion with them - yippee. On the way home, Jackson is trying to guess his punishment; will I be grounded? will I? will I? He's never been grounded in his life, I swear this child was bating me. I really don't have time to deal with this, because I'm likely to freak out and that's never pretty. We get home, I get their completely nutritious dinner in front of them and run upstairs to change my clothes.... homework, what homework?
Then I hear maniacle laughter and squealing and Teddy running up to me and a thunk and then crying. It turns out Jackson thought it would be a good idea to take his perscription nose spray and spray it on Teddy's hair and then when Teddy was going to come up and tattle on him (my favorite thing) Jack threw the glass medicine bottle at Ted and caught him on the leg. He's got good aim. I'm very proud of myself for not killing anyone. Seriously I think I should win something for that. I went down and told Jackson that now he was grounded. For a week. No friends, no TV or anything with a screen, no dessert. I told him he'd get plenty of reading in and that I still hadn't decided how I was going to punish him for the incident at the school. Jack said... "This is the worst day ever." I told him I couldn't agree more.
Camela
We are watching The Princess Bride for the second time in a few days. The boys love it as much as I do; especially Jackson. He's been running around saying "my name is Inigo Montoya, you killed my father, PREPARE TO DIE" all said with a really bad Spanish accent.
At the point where Dread Pirate Robert and Princess Buttercup are making their way through the big scary forest that has a real live name that I can't think of and they have survived the shooting flames and the lightening sand and are talking about the unusually large rodents (Jackson says they are a cross between a wart hog and a large rat-perceptive boy I think) and Dread Pirate Robert is telling Buttercup that he doesn't believe they exist. So, of course the rodent attacks just at that point. And both times we've watched that Jackson says to the screen, "dude, you were schooled!"
And each time it made me laugh.
Camela
Breakfast is over and Brad is trying to get Teddy to clean up some candy mess he made before we woke up and the attitude was starting already.
Brad: "Ted, you need to pick up that trash right now."
Ted: (absently as he heads, as if in a trance, towards the computer) "I'll be there in a minute!"
Brad: "No son, I mean right now. Don't sit down!"
Ted: "I said I'll be there in a minute."
Brad: "No. Ted. Now."
Begrudgingly, Ted got up moaning and groaning the whole way with half the trash in question to put it in the trash can. Brad hot on his heels with the part he missed to which Teddy mumbled indignantly again as he threw away the final piece.
Me: "Teddy, none of these requests are unreasonable; chill out."
Ted with an attitude laced voice: "Some of them are!"
Me: "Teddy go up to your room right now and write down all the requests that were unreasonable. I'll be happy to discuss them with you when you're done."
There was a bit more.. 'aww mom, come on', and 'stop talking, keep your mouth closed and get your butt upstairs' -- and up he went.
A few minutes later he called down. "Mom, I'm all done."
"Okay, bring it down." I can't wait to see what he's come up with. I'm totally expecting a list that is going to completely annoy me. But I'm ready, bring it on little boy.
He hands me a piece of paper that has one sentence on it:
"What I meant was that some requests are unreasonable but you have never asked me to do one."
What do you say to that?
Camela
Teddy's teacher is about to have back surgery and will be out of school for several months. She wanted to touch base with all the parents before she left since she will miss the parent - teacher conferences. She called one evening and the wildly paraphrased version of what she said was that he's doing great academically, though it would be nice if he remembered to follow through and turn his stuff in more often. But socially... well... if he doesn't learn to tone down his strong personality and start using better basic social skills he's going to get picked on by bullies in middle school next year.
Okay, I might be exaggerating, but really -- not by too much. And I can't say I disagree with her. Teddy comes across as an extremely confident kid. He is very assertive. If we're in a store, for example, and he has a question, he doesn't have the slightest issue finding an employee and asking whatever series of questions he needs to figure out what he wants to know - up to and including asking who else would know if the one he asked doesn't know enough. Adults absolutely love him - they think he's so mature and that it's so cute coming out of his little body. But the reality is Teddy is very sensitive and unsure of himself. He masks this by coming across so confidently - which works better with adults than with kids. With kids; sometimes it works, but sometimes not as much. (This is yet another example of how Teddy got all of Brad's good qualities and all of my bad ones. I continue to hope that the good will outweigh the bad in his case).
He sort of walks in with the assumption that people want to talk to him and want to hear what he has to say and he doesn't do a good job of laying some of the groundwork needed to make friends and connect with people - he's just magically already there. When that doesn't work out and the kids don't want to play with him or aren't just exactly on the same page as him - he not only has his feelings hurt, but he's just plain confused. Brad and I are working on basic social cues with him.
Anyway - this post took an odd turn along the way... Now back to the heredity thing...
So his teacher was trying to give me an example of how he is unbending and so sure of himself, but unknowingly for her the example she used is Teddy's poor (or wonderful depending on the day) genes and nothing more.
She told me that the class was broken into groups and were to be pantomiming different ways people react when they are stressed. So it gets to be Teddy's turn and he just sits in his chair and doesn't do a thing. He's not moving in any way, just sitting there doing absolutely nothing. The kids in his group were guessing things like 'you don't care about things' and 'you are tired and don't want to do anything'. Teddy just sat there saying 'no, that's not it', 'nope', 'no', 'uh un' - but he never did another thing, just kept sitting there in that chair, not giving the other kids a single thing to help them out. Finally she called him over and found out from him that he was trying to show "losing your appetite". They discussed things he could have done and ultimately he picked something else more demonstrative and went back and did it and they guessed it with no problem.
The problem with this story being an example of his overall social cluelessness is that he gets that particular trait so darn honestly..... A story from my past.
One Christmas many, many moons ago, we were at my paternal grandparents house and after dinner we were all downstairs playing pictionary. My grandparents had pulled out all the stops with this game. There were easels and colored markers and we broke into two teams and off we went. So at some point it was my Grandma's turn and she looked at her word and her face showed pure confidence - whew this would be easy, if she looked so confident. She got up and grabbed a yellow marker as she commented conspiriatorily that having the colors would make this one really easy and drew a very small yellow rectangle in the middle of the huge piece of paper stuck to the easel. She took a few steps back so we could all be awed by her masterpiece while she waited for us to all shout the answer out in unison.... uh. hmmmm. "rectangle?"
She looked at us like we were morons. She pointed to it, "it's so clear." Ok, what could that be. uh. yeah. I got nothing. There were 4 or 5 of us guessing, but it was pretty consistent across the board. "Grandma, we're obviously not getting it. I understand we're the stupid ones, but we need something else, anything else." "But Cammy, that's it. There's nothing else I can draw. That's what it is." And she sat there mutely for long minutes as we struggled with what on earth this little yellow rectangle was possibley the exact replica of. Luckily the other team was also struggling, though don't think we weren't hopeing to gleen clues from their guesses. Finally my dad looks up at his mom with confidence and says "Gold Brick", and my grandma looked at the rest of us - her moronic opinion of us all proven correct as her beloved son proved her point that her masterpiece was all that was needed.
So poor Teddy never had a chance with 'loss of appitite'.
Camela
More arranging and spinning and arranging and spinning all to my specs. My husband is a very patient man, who is willing to put up with a lot of arranging and spinning.
Now we've gotten the last minute addition of the lighted tree topper installed and all the arranging and spinning is done.... but... well, um... Now to come down. "Boy it sure is a long way down..... Hmmm, I just have to reach around and put my foot on the ladder and I'll be all set..... It's going to be just a minute or two"
