This is the Story of my Life

It was the story when my boys were toddlers.

It was the story when my boys were preschoolers.

It was the story when my boys were "little boys."

It was the story when my boys were "Big Boys."

It was the story in their "Tweens."

And, believe it or not, It's STILL the story of 15 1/2 and almost-12 yr. old "Young Men!"

When does this story end?!?

It's really great for trying to sell a home, let me tell ya! @$%&*?! New damages all the time!

******
NO LIE....just as I was about to hit "publish post".... Kyle bobbled his football he was tossing about in the Living Room and it went right into the plant cart!
GO get the broom!!

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P.S. I LOVE Family Circus comic strip

I decorate with newspaper clippings taped to my door. I DECORATE with NEWSPAPER clippings TAPED to my door??

I walked down the hall to my bedroom this week, and this is what I saw...

Here's a closer look...

Can you guess who it was from?!?

I knew right away that this was a "friendly" gesture from our own resident High Schooler, a Viewmont Viking (I can hardly utter the words!), to his mother, a Bountiful Braves Alumni.

(The two schools happened to have the biggest rivalry going on back in my day.)
I hear things are a little different today, though.

His siblings also experienced great delight in the joke that was played on Mom! A good ol' Rub in the Face. (Notice how he underlined the word, "again.")

I ask -- WHERE have I gone wrong as a Mother?!? Apparently I have not passed on to my offspring a proper love of "the mighty Red and Gray." WHY are they not bowing down three times and singing the praises of BHS every time we're in the neighborhood and drive by my awesome High School? And, even worse, WHY are they fond of the enemy?

I tried to tell them when I was doing my recent Triathlon, the running route took me right up the street in front of that other school (Viewmont), and it was like Kryptonite to my body. While VHS was in sight, I. COULD. NOT. RUN. FAST(ER). Walkers were passing me!
Seriously, it was the slowest leg of my run. My feet were in cement - all the positive energy was drained right out of me.

They didn't believe me one bit.

They attributed my weakness to a myriad of other things (age, uphill conditions, improper breakfast, the weather, a Monday morning, weight, inexperience, non-athleticism, bad hair day, Facebook illiterate, etc.)

But that's my story and I'm stickin' to it.

The newspaper clipping "accidentally" ended up in the garbage.
Tragic! :)

I Can't Plug my Nose for That Long

Dear Lady with the Stinky Feet sitting next to me at the Theatre last night,

PLEASE....You can't do that to people!!
The smell fills up the whole row!
(and it was my birthday.)

May I suggest you either:

• wash your feet
• launder your socks
• don't shower in your socks (like my nephew did!)
  
• refrain from walking in gutters with running water/snow/streams in your sneakers and then not airing them out properly
• put your shoes through a washing machine cycle
• spray febreeze all over the insides of your shoes
  
• get new sneakers
• and if you can't afford to buy a new pair, enter this contest for the prize money - you're sure to win! (since the contest is only for children ages 5-15, you'll have to have one of them use YOUR sneakers in your behalf! But it's also proof this should be MORE of a "child's problem.")
  
• wear a different pair of shoes out in public
  
• give me your address and I will personally ship you some of these
• find a new [honest] "Theatre friend" -- Friends don't let friends come to the Theatre with stinky feet!
  

Thank you for your consideration.

Sincerely,
Tender Nostrils

Tuesday

With a new High Schooler this year, who has to catch the bus at 6:50a.m. - yes, as in 6:50 in the morning - we've had to move our family scripture reading time up to 6:30a.m. now.

Oh...it's painful to get up so early (with my late nights @ work)...my eyes hardly even work to read properly!

BUT, one day a week, TUESDAY, the High School has "late start" where they start a whole hour later than normal. So, we get to "sleep in" that one day, and we move scripture reading time until 7:30a.m. But, that also doesn't give Kyle enough time to walk/ride his bike to Jr. High School on time, so I agreed to drive him on Tuesdays since I've gotta PROTECT my one sleeping in day!

Today is Tuesday - which meant I drove Kyle, my 7th Grader to school. This is now the 4th week of school, but the emotion that rises to the surface as I watch him leave my car and head into the [big, bad] Jr. High on those days hasn't gone away yet. It totally surprised me on the first day of school when I actually felt SAD when I dropped him off!

What was happening?

Usually, in the past, I didn't have one ounce of understanding for mothers who cried or freaked out on the first day of school. I have always referred to it as "The Most Wonderful Time of the Year!" Have I turned into One of THEM?!!?

I think the big issue is that Kyle seems so little.

So innocent.

So young.

So nice.

So NOT a Jr. High student.

It doesn't just seem this way - it is this way, because technically, he isn't old enough to be in Jr. High since way back when he skipped a grade. He's only 11 yrs. old - his age difference compared to his grade has never been blatantly obvious to me until this year -- and the truth is I feel scared and stressed for him when I see him heading in to the "lone and dreary world." Because Jr. High can be a terrifying interesting place. Every time I've driven him to school, I think silently in my mind, "You're Not in Kansas Elementary School anymore!" and then I'm hit with a wave of sadness. This doesn't happen to me when I say good-bye to him from our home, it's just those few times, so far, that I've actually witnessed him going into the lion's den. And I stay parked in front of the school (he doesn't know this, because he never gives me another look back) until I see him run up to the building, (a sure sign of a little 7th grader!) and go inside the doors, all the way out of my sight -- feeling I should save him, but knowing I have to let him go.

I asked him if there were some tall 9th graders at his school.

YES!! Some are as big as Dad!

So, picture this:

9th Grader - 6'3" & 205 lbs.

Kyle - 4'10" & 80 lbs.


Got the picture? Maybe this will help.

9th Grader:

Kyle:

Tuesdays do weird things to me!

For the record, he claims everything is "OK." (Still not a man of many words!)

Lo, and Behold!

An old lady with a non-athletic looking body,
who is laden with foot/knee/hip/back ailments
went and got herself 3rd Place in the triathlon today, female age 30-49 division.

(And, for the record, it's totally not fair to be grouped together with those 30 yr. old young chicks!!!)

{Instead of trophies or ribbons, they gave out hard hats with your place printed on it -- because it's LABOR DAY -- ya get it?!?}

Kinda cute...and interesting, but definitely an addition to our costume box! :)

This should be a TESTAMENT to everyone....ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE!!!