Summer of...

I just don't know....

I have a lot of "goals" this summer.  First of all, spending time with my family!  Spending an extra week this visit since my dad has been pretty sick.  We were going to throw a road trip to Pennsylvania to visit my grandma, but Dad has been too sick...don't want to get too far away from his doctors...or be stuck in the middle of Amish country when his blood pressure hits 200/140.

Every summer I seem to get stuff done for my folks...which I totally don't mind, but I always come home a little frustrated because what I do at their house is what  Iwant to do at MY house...if I had 4 weeks off and 24/7 child care/entertainment and someone else doing the grocery shopping and cooking - my house would be sooooo organized and soooo revamped.  But I always come home to what I left...

I have had great success in getting projects done here ...but there is  never enough time...so...I am taking the girls' rag quilts that I was working on and finishing them at my mom's house...why should I bust my ass to get something done here when I am going to be looking for things to do while I am there (once I washed the entire outside of their house with a box of magic erasers)  I am also going to finish a scarf  I started crocheting and going to go wild on Pinterest and ship whatever I make back home.

I am going to try new recipes, visit old friends, go to a few low key 25 year class reunion events (yes, I am old) and maybe make some new friends and work with my children on a project called Brain Highways.

Bottom line, I am going to enjoy my parents, help them when they ask and get some things done for me and my girls.

I hope everyone has a great summer : )

Getting back on track

I have spent the last 4 days around the house in a bit of a blah mood...not sad, not mad, definitely not motivated...just kind of existing...until today....

The Mother in Law called and asked if she could take the girls out for lunch - YES!!!!!  Hubby was at work...again, the poor man, 31 hours of OT in 7 days...hope he lives to help spend it ; )

So with the house pretty much emptied...I sat on my ass and read a bit, then it hit me... my oldest is going to camp next week and I haven't done a damn thing to get ready for her room make over : (  I was going to take the week off, but since the "promotion" at work and more people counting on me, I can't take the whole week off...so  I started sorting fabric, checking my "likes" on pinterest and sewing together squares for the girls' rag quilts...I did buy the paint the other day...


Let the count down to make-over begin!!!

School's not quite out...

Sooooo, while I LOVE my girls' charter school...I do not love that they have 4 days off, 4 weeks before school gets out : ( 

Can't they just stay in during this time and get out 4 days early?!  On top of that - 6th grade camp is coming up so my 6th grader has Thrusday and Frieday off this week, Monday and Tuesday next week and then spends all of the following next week at camp to come back for 8 more days of school...only 1 full week on campus out of 5...i'm having a hard time keeping up....

Work is getting crazy...crazy good, but still crazy...I was asked to work even more hours and given a big ol' raise : ) Prayer works people!!!!!  AND on top of my raise, my husband applied for and got a manager's position...with...a big ol' raise!!!!!  This couldn't have come at a bettter time : )  I have not had a full time job (still don't) since February 2000 and while I have worked here are there in between...we have largely suplemented our income with Visa, Mastercard and American Express...and once the girls are out of school for the summer, I will stop working until they go back in August.  It's a choice we made, but it's going to be nice to try and fill our huge hole of debt with a small beach shovel instead of the teaspoon we have been using : )

Feeling a little heartsick for my tween : (

I know that bad things happen in the world, but right now, for me,  it comes in the form of an 11 year old little girl...

Yep, I said it - an 11 year old girl.

This little girl has been in our lives since she was in kindergarten with my oldest daughter...her mother and I are really good friends (girls sleep overs, family trips to Disneyland, BBQ's, joint family trick or treating)...but, I am afraid all of that is about to end...and part of it is my fault : (

I'm the one that told her mom what a great school my kids go to and how great it would be if her kids got in too...boy was I wrong...

Since my little unique offspring doesn't fit in with the "in" crowd, her old friend has been shunning her in public because SHE fits in...it started off a bit last year, but nothing too major...we went thru our usual summer...their pool, our pool, beach, blah, blah, blah...

Enter 6th grade...and she walks by my child as though she doesn't exist, words were spoken, tears shed, mom's texted and talked and things got a little better...

Then we all went to see the Lorax together and it looked as though our little friend had been handed a poop sandwich when my daughter walked in...her mother was embarrassed about how her daughter behaved...and I told mommy how much I was actually bothered by the behavior...they weren't at school...what was the big deal..fortunately my child was pretty oblivious...or so I thought...

Enter last Friday...Mother's Day Tea before school started...

I saw their mini-van behind me at the light, my kids turned and waved and apparently a poo sandwich was served...they followed us thru the parking lot, out onto the street (everyone showed up early!) and we parked...he's where I fucked it up...we waited for them...

Nothing was "said" although I thought I witnessed something that I am not even going to go into even here...I may have been wrong...but I started observing my little love...who went from bubbly, chatty girl in the car to a hunched over, head down, mute that started walking beside us all, then out 4 feet from us, then behind us...I asked if she was ok, she shrugged...we got inside the gym, got my gerber daisy, some food and the three of us chatted and found a place to stand...all good...then my friend sees me, brings her brood over and my love clams up again...so I dry swallowed my danish and we high-tailed it out of there...visited classrooms, she assured me she was ok that everything with her friend was "normal"and I left...and cried...

"Normal" for her was accepting that her previous best friend would stand there and ignore her with a look of utter disgust on her face...I wish I was exaggerating, but I am not...I have known this girl for 7 years, wiped her tears, had her brothers and sisters puke in my presence and in containers I was holding(not just when they were babies) she wears her feelings on her face, in an obvious display for all to see...While my littlest love told me nothing was wrong, her body language was telling my something much different...she was defeated, she was sad,  she was hurting...

I know that everyone knows their child is the greatest and they are!  But I would have to challenge anyone who thinks their kid had a bigger hear t than mine does...and that's what kills me the most and makes me the most proud...she would help this little snit if she needed it and be her friend if she asked...no questions, no judgements...she would just do it.   (Not quite sure how I raised a loving, nurturing child - those who actually know me, will know that this is true - I LOVE those that are IN my life, physically and electronically, but the guest list is short)  I hope that this is a part of her character that she never loses even tho it  will be a giant burden for her to bear in this world...it is hard for me to accept that the struggles she has with learning are nothing compared to the lifelong struggle she will have just being who she is...

Getting this done!

So, I am almost finished with the "Pinkalicious" room...here it is before:

And after:

removal of wall border

Pepto bismol paint on the walls

painted the closet

primed and painted head and foot boards

2 coats of primer and spray paint on shelves

2 coats of primer and 2 coats of paint & fabric on drawer/door fronts of armoire

2 coats of primer and 1 coat of paint on bookshelf

2 under amoire boxes made out of our Nikon box cut in half for Lalaloopsy & Build a Bear clothes

Here she is taken at about the same angle

Still have a pile of crap in the center of the room to sort, the closet to finish, purchase, paint and install crown moulding and I have started a rag quilt for both of the girls...sleepy time now...

Operation Redecoration - day 2...

So far....

Bedroom is 90% painted pepto bismol pink
IKEA floating shelves - 2 coats of primer then spray painted white
Armoire - 2 coats of primer, 2 coats hi-gloss bright white - 1 door covered in fabric...3 more to go
Closet painted with left over paint from past, at least now the holes are filled in and it's not navajo white
Head and foot board of bed, primed and spray painted white
thrift store bookcase - 2 coats of primer and 1 coat of hi-gloss white

I am tired...but trying to beat the rain that is supposedly on the agenda for tomorrow

Whose idea was it to redecorate? oh yeah...mine...

Stupid girl...I blame it all on pinterest.  That and the fact that my 12 year old "tween" now wants a new room design...which means the 6 year old wants her a piece of that as well...and hey, doesn't the raggedy old shelf in the bathroom need a new coat of paint...what about the bright yellow and blue bins I swore I would paint black, etc., etc...

I am still, sorting, organizing and purging...now decorating and I have been working 30 hours weeks at my "part time" job...this is a bit of a bonus tho since I have not had a car payment since 2002...and I would like to get out of the self-induced, stay at home mommy, living in southern California financial HELL we managed to get ourselves into...our choice...we will always have some form of debt, but only get one chance to really raise  mess up our kids up ourselves...

I should take "before" pictures, but that ain't gonna happen...just have to refer to previous posts : )