Another busy week....

This week has just begun, and I am looking for ways to buy some more time!

Hongo will be home early today , and so that means I lose 4 hours to be productive because he needs to be entertained. *sigh* I love him being with me, just not during my "workday"
So this morning we have tried to be focused - I keep getting distracted because the to-do list just keeps getting longer. Right now I am on the computer off-loading all of my camera cards so that I have room for the games this week. The picture I have up today is of LegoQueen from last Thursday. My computer is working slower than molasses today as far as uploading pictures to the internet.
LegoQueen has practice tonight, so I will probably make dinner before we go and everyone can eat at the same time. Hongo has a meeting tonight for our softball teams - he is running a mens and a coed this season.
On a positive note- baseball season has started, so we will be able to catch some games while I fold laundry or vacuum.
Only 1 1/2 hours until Hongo arrives....maybe I will make him take me to the bank and grocery store.

T-Ball is very serious....

Going through my pictures from today's game, I came across this one. The Hairy One looks so tough! He was waiting for his turn at bat, and I caught him just as he was looking at me. Oh, and the scratch under his eye is not from playing ball - he was playing with sticks and his friend scratched him on the face.

Feeling better...

Yesterday ended up being really nice. I had a nice time at Park chatting with my friends and watching the kids play. On the way back home we were talking in the car, and LQ told me that some new kid asked her for her number. In front of all of her friends. She was so embarrassed! We had a good laugh about it on the way home.

The softball game was nice. They finally won, and LQ got her first hit. Before the game, I helped the girls warm up and the attitudes were put on ice. The bossy girls were trying to make everything look good during stretching and were yelling at everyone else. I finally spoke up and said "Hey - the more time you spend yelling and worrying about how good you look, you cut into the time for batting practice. So you all need to relax and just stretch!"
Silence...and some glares. But they did exactly as they were told.

The meanest girl struck out. You could see the head deflate ever so slightly. But it expanded when she hit a home run at the next at bat. *sigh*

I took some pictures, but I still haven't offloaded the ones from Opening Day two weeks ago, so don't expect to see any soon, lol.

Then we went to Hongo's game. The guys lost. But we all had a good time. I forgot my score book, so I spent the evening chatting with the other wives. Due to Spring Break, all the kids were out late and playing at the playground. We found frogs in the grass and the girls were squealing. One touched me and i squealed too, lol.

Today we are getting ready to leave the house. We are going to see one of the families from Park, and then we are heading over for Lego Club with our friends. Tomorrow all the kids have games, and then we have playoffs for adult softball on Sunday!

Its Thursday...

And I really should be on the treadmill, but I am going to sit and write this out before I go on, so I can concentrate. Although most problems get worked out while I am on the treadmill, I don't think this one is going to be solved anytime soon.

There is this lady (if you can even call her that - she certainly isn't being lady-like) that I know of. I've never met her, never talked to her online - nothing. But she insists on putting me down to everyone who has ears. I'm a bad mom, I'm stuck up, my softball team sucks, I only have one friend...etc.
I don't know where she gets this! I was talking to my friend yesterday at lunch, and she told me that this woman is probably jealous because she knows that I am not any of those things.
But why me? Pick someone else! At least pick someone that you know in person, or have at least met once. All this woman knows is what she has seen on a local forum that I hardly post on anyway, unless I am replying to one of my friends.

So for about 2 months now, I have been trying to be the better person and ignore it, but this morning it has just been really bugging me. I guess she didn't see anything posted from me lately, so she is casually fishing for info from one of my aquaintences. The aquaintence didn't know any better, so she sent me a message saying that this woman was wondering about me. I told her straight out that I don't even know this person, so she was not concerned about me in the least.

So....at least I know in my heart that I am not doing anything wrong, and just trying to live my life. I have so many things to be thinking about, and so many more pressing issues at this time, she needs to get out of my head.

Speaking of pressing issues - today is Thursday and that is, as my non-home schooling friends call it: Kim's Park Whore Day. We always go to the park with our group on Thursdays to play and hang out. Then LegoQueen has a game tonight, and then Hongo has a game tonight as well. Three parks in one day. So I have my car packed with stuff for the first two parks, and when we come home for dinner I will re-stock for the third park.
And I got a message from LegoQueens coach this morning, checking to make sure she was coming. They are down three girls and he wanted to make sure he had enough. But with 3 girls gone, it means LQ gets to play the whole game. She is nervous and scared. But I try my hardest to assure her that she will do just fine.
Tonight is Hongo's last game for the season, so we get a couple of weeks off before he starts up again.
Ack! I better go, or there won't be time for treadmill!

Venting...

Just letting off steam this morning....(or afternoon)

#1 My brother in law is such an A$$. I don't know how all of us managed to fit in my inlaw's house with his gigantic head floating around. All day I had to hear about what a great cook he is, and how much money he has. Yes, you have money - now when are you going to re-pay the $500 you owe MY family???? Perhaps if you are such a great cook, we should all squeeze ourselves into your 900 sq ft apartment for family gatherings?
We were at the dinner table and his son asked for pepper. So LegoQueen hands him pepper. BIL says " No...he wants the good pepper. He has distinctive taste."
GIVE ME AN F-ING BREAK! He is EIGHT, and the pickiest little brat on the planet.
So BIL got up to get another soda, and when he was gone, his son asked for ketchup to dip his filet mignon in. I said out loud "How distinctive...."
I did not eat the filet mignon - my brother in law the chef insisted on not cooking them all the way through, and I get sick eating pink meat. So I helped myself to ham instead.
I couldn't stand him so much that I opted not to go on the hike with the kids. I sent Hongo instead. Hongo sat on the couch and watched TV the entire time. BIL brought an air rifle and he and FIL were playing with it. FIL was a little sad that both of his sons were not getting along, I think.

#2 - My stupid neighbor's dog kept me up all night. The little bugger is lucky to be alive, and better not step foot in my yard again. EVER.

#3 - My oldest daughter is quite possibly the messiest kid ever. I had to tell her 3 times this morning to take her laundry. Last night I asked her many times to give me her dirty clothes, and this morning I walk into her room and there are dirty clothes all over...

#4 I called to find out how much money my T-Ball team is getting from the sponsor, and its $100. which works out to about $8.33 per kid.What am I going to buy each kid for $8?? I may have to come in with a little cash to supplement it.

On a more positive note....

I got the entire upstairs picked up, dusted, and vacuumed...thanks in part to my little cleaning sidekick - DramaQueen. With her help, I will finish the downstairs this afternoon.

My friend told me she is pregnant again today - I am very happy for her.

Tomorrow I go to register a Friday night co-ed softball team. So now I will play on Fridays and Sundays. Hongo will play Thur. Fr. and Sun.

So life is really pretty good - just can't let the stupid stuff get me down.

Wow, twice in 3 days...

I'm on a serious roll right now.

Its late at night and I am having a little "me" time. Actually, I just spent the past hour making and testing laundry detergent. We seem to be having skin problems with my son, so I decided a while ago that I would give homemade detergent a try. I bought all the stuff, and tonight I finally got around to making it and putting it in the washer. Fingers crossed that it works, and that I didn't just inadvertently ruin an entire load of clothing, lol.

I chose the simplest recipe, because hey - I am a simple woman and anything easy is good for me. Results will be posted in the morning if I have time- we are spending Easter at my in-laws' house. I have been informed by my children that we absolutely MUST go searching for bull-frogs and play in the stream. I'm looking forward to it! What I am NOT looking forward to is seeing my BIL. ugh.

Oh, about the skin problems - he has a patch on red dry and flaky skin that is on his neck area, and well as his back. I am thinking it is a laundry detergent problem because when he wears clothing that has been washed by my MIL it is worse.

So adult softball is coming to a close. But we start right back up after a week of rest, so all is good and right with the world. Legoqueen's team lost their first game last week 10-4. I took LQ to the park on Friday and we worked on all the things that I wish they had time to cover with all the girls in practice. We worked out, and then I told her we would do another workout tomorrow or Monday, depending on how our schedule goes. Her next game is Monday night, so I would really like to see her do SOMETHING besides walk or strikeout.

Let's see...what else....oh - I mowed my lawn and discovered that it is actually green. Sometime this week I will manage to weed the flower beds and finish trimming the tree.

We are also starting to plan DramaQueen's birthday party. It will probably be later on Saturday, or perhaps even Sunday. If we have to take extreme measures, we will have it the following week. All the kids have games that Saturday, and LQ's happens to be in another town. So far the theme is "poodles". Pink, fluffy poodles to be exact. Don't ask- I have no idea what is going in that child's mind, lol.

That seems to be all for tonight...I'm glad that I was able to go out and prove that I really am still alive. I do miss you guys that I don't get to talk to too often, but I'm getting better with my schedule and time management. I promise.

Long time, no blog....

My computer time has been suffering lately - there has been so much going on here.

Softball has officially started - we had Opening Day on March 15th and it was a very busy day. I was kind of bummed, I didn't get all the photos that I wanted because everything was so chaotic. I really wanted a picture of Hongo and I with the kids in their uniforms, and I also wanted one of my daughter and my friends' daughters all in their different uniforms. I'll probably get that first photo on the 29th of this month, but I'm not sure when I will get the 2nd.

Yesterday we had our spring/Easter party with our home schooling group. Now can you say FUN??? It really was. There were lots of games, and the woman who put it all together did a fantastic job.

Today my in-laws are coming to pick up my kids. They are going to a birthday party tomorrow. Then they will come back and we are all going to my in-laws house for Easter tomorrow. Hongo and I don't have anything planned....but I am sure we will find something to do.

So life is pretty good- just really busy. Every week I look at the calendar for the coming week and say, " This week doesn't look too busy." and when the week is over I look back and say, "OMG how did we ever fit all that stuff in one week???"

My kids are awesome...

This week I decided that I was going to catch up on as much as possible so that I can balance our schedule and obligations more efficiently. So this morning it has been the front yard and the laundry.
The kids helped me pick up all the dry sticks from the front yard until the can was full. Good, because with my leg being all bruised up, bending and lifting is a chore.
Then there is the laundry. I have to do at least a load a day, but it never all gets put away. Especially socks.
So it was 11:30 and LegoQueen started making lunch for herself and her siblings. She asked what I wanted her to make for me. I told her nothing, and that I would eat later after I finished the basket I was working on.
A few minutes later, a "waitress" brought up a plate of cubed cheese and told me it was not good to skip lunch and my body needed energy to do my chores. I thanked her and the cheese was easy to just pop in my mouth here and there while I finished the basket up.
I am glad to say that we all have socks now in our drawers~
Then I went downstairs and the two little ones are "fixing the pantry" Basically what they do is pack everything tightly together so that I can't find anything. Last week I was looking for corn tortillas that I was sure that I had, and didn't find them until 3 days later when I was hunting for something else.
LegoQueen threw out a few experiments that were in the back of the fridge, and now everyone is happily eating their lunch, knowing that there are clean clothes to put away when they are finished.

Its been a tough couple of weeks, and I appreciate that they all pitch in to help out when I really need it.

PLanning a party...

One of my friends brought up this issue on a forum so it got me thinking...
Some thoughts about my next birthday party to be planned:

DramaQueen wants a "themed" party. Something with a theme and dress up and games, etc.
SO different from LegoQuee, who just wanted her friends to come over and hang out and eat cake, lol.
A few weeks ago DQ announced that she would like a puppy party. I checked with the cake goddess (my MIL) and she said she could do a puppy cake. Great! Then my friend said she had some ideas for the theme as well.
So Saturday we are in the party store and DQ re-announces that she would like a princess party. I asked her "What about the boys?" and she pointed to the crown hats that were for sale. Hmmmm....
And she wants every one to have a costume. Actually she wants me to provide the costume. I have several yards of tulle that were supposed to become fairy skirts long ago, but haven't yet. So I am supposed to make 3 fairy skirts, and then 3 capes for the boys. Oh and flower crowns for the girls.
She was also very kind - she said it was okay that the older boys (and LegoQueen) didn't have to wear costumes. That is good, because I can't see myself being able to convince the older boys to dress up in capes and crowns. And LegoQueen in a fairy skirt? Not happening.
Going to check with the MIL, to see if she can make a cake in the shape of a crown.

Now this is all fine and good, but I sure hope she doesn't change her mind after I've made 3 skirts and sewed 3 capes! I am also a little hesitant to buy Disney princess cups and plates - I am thinking if I buy pink and baby blue cups and plates then I can still use them for a puppy party if she changes her mind.

So mark your calendars for the 19th of April - party at the N house! The usual crew is invited, and we will have at least two extra invitees from the HDH group.

Oh Kim...you did it again....

*sigh* what am I going to do with myself?

I got hit with a ball again yesterday. This time my calf. I was playing first and Hongo threw the ball and I didn't get both legs out of the way fast enough. He was making terrible throws, and in the first inning I was yelling at him from across the field. Someone even yelled "Looks like the honeymoon is over for those two!"
Well the reason I was so pissed off at him was because in the very first inning I hit the ball and when they were trying to get me out, the shortstop made a bad throw and hit the first baseman in the mouth. I grabbed her and steered her straight to the dugout because you could see the blood coming from her mouth. Turns out her tooth went through her lip.
So naturally I was a little on edge, having been in the mouth before.
I can't even post a picture, everyone would cringe and call me insane, lol.

So ANYWAY....we had a good weekend. LegoQueen went to the movies with her friends to see the SpiderWick Chronicles. She said it was pretty good, but she ended up with a headache because the movie theater is so loud. Afterwards we went to the birthday boy's house for cake and presents.
Then on Sunday we had softball - we stayed all day and then some. We played two games and then watched the other two. Then Hongo played baseball after that with his friends. I was beat, so we had In-N Out for dinner.
We never managed to get to the sporting goods store for the equipment that LegoQueen needs, so that will have to be done some time this week.

This week I hope it is less chaotic than last week. Hopefully we will fall into a good routine and things will go smoothly. Speaking of which, I had better check on the kids and their lessons....