Thursday, September 04, 2008

let me apologize up front

Not sure what's wrong with me lately. I'd say I'm in a bit of funk, but that's not quite it. Nothing is really wrong, and I certainly have nothing to complain about. Just been feeling disjointed and out of whack, if that makes sense. Can't seem to keep things organized, despite my compulsive list making. Anyway, I'm betting this post will reflect my general feelings of disorganization. So, I don't blame you one iota if you decide not to trudge your way through this one...seriously. (But I do hope you'll read the next paragraph.)

I just want to thank everyone for their incredibly sweet comments on the last post. You were all so very kind to one sappy old mom! And I so very much appreciated that. :) And I should tell you that this sappy old mom felt so much better when she talked to her daughter on the phone after her class. My goodness, the pure excitement in Annie's voice when she told me about how her class had gone knocked all those selfish "you can't grow up" thoughts right from my head. Her enthusiasm truly was priceless! And by the way, I'm sorry if I misled anyone. Annie hasn't started college full time or anything like that. She's just taking one class at the community college. Though it is an Honors Level Advanced Composition course that I think would kick my butt. Just hope it doesn't kick hers! She showed me the writing assignment they had to do in class that first day, and whew...all I can say is "better her than me!" I'll be anxious to see what her professor had to say about it (I think they're supposed to get them back today). I really hope she did okay, as I'd hate to see her get discouraged right off the bat.

*****

And what about my sweet little guys? I didn't have any back-to-school photos to post yesterday morning, because they wouldn't let me take their pictures. No, my little guys definitely do not have their sister's outgoing, try anything personality. Two very shy little boys who hate the unknown. They were extremely anxious yesterday morning, and the last thing I wanted to do was cause them any more stress by insisting they have their pictures taken. I even had to carry poor little Maxidoodle onto the bus, just as I did on the first day of kindergarten last year.

But their faces were lit by smiles when they arrived home. They'd both had a good first day. As Gray said, "It was good; it wasn't wonderful." Believe me, that's high praise coming from him! And they both allowed me to take their pictures after school, so technically we've still got those obligatory "first day of school" photos to be scrapbooked.




*****

And speaking of scrapbooking, I'm pretty darn sure I have the best husband on the planet. He's definitely the best husband for me! :) Anyway, he took over all kid duties on Saturday so I could spend the entire day scrapbooking. It's been a long time since I've spent any real time scrapping, so it was quite a treat. Maybe one of these days I'll even get my finished layouts posted on my craft blog.

*****

On the book front, I did something I rarely do...I gave up on a book. It was a book (Fiscal Pear and Shimmer in the Call of the River Whale) that I was reading to the boys. It started out okay. In fact, Gray was really loving it, in part due to the fact that he is a true fan of the pear (seriously, I think they rate above Smarties on his list of favorite treats) and having a book with a pear as a main character is definitely unique. But as we continued, we just found the story extremely hard to follow. Gray, Max, and I all eventually agreed that we just didn't want to stick with it. I honestly can't recommend reading it or avoiding it, because we didn't finish it and therefore don't have the full picture.

We didn't want to end our reading last night on a down note though, so we started a new book, The Witches by Roald Dahl. Oh my, and are we ever in love with this one!

I'm still working my way through The Stand: Complete and Uncut. Have finally passed the 1,000 page mark. Not sure why it's taking me so long to read it...just too little time to read lately, I guess. But hopefully I'll finish soon so I can jump into some of my RIP reads!

*****

Well, this is quite a day for me...for the first time since Annie was born, all my munchkins are off in school. (Actually, that's not quite true...Annie went to preschool 2 mornings a week during part of the time I was pregnant with Gray, but I was too sick to enjoy the alone time.) Anyway, it shall be that way every Tuesday and Thursday for the next few months. Maybe I can now get a bit caught up on lesson planning, and maybe my poor family won't have to live in such pig sty anymore. :) But on slate for today is painting the boys' bedroom. Ugh...I hate painting. They've decided that they want to share a room again, so we're going to turn Max's room into their bedroom and turn Gray's room into a playroom. We already went out and found some bunk beds that we could sort of afford. Heck, any price would be worth it if they'll actually sleep in them and aren't both sleeping on the floor of our room anymore. :)

*****

And thus concludes this even-more-rambling-than-usual post.

23 comments:

Ana S. said...

First of all, awww, could those pictures be any more adorable?

I'm glad Annie is enjoying her class so far! I'm sure she's going to do very well. And I'm glad the boys had a good first day too. It must feel strange to have the house empty, but those Tuesday and Thursday will come in handy to get things done and to have a little bit of "you" time. And before you know it, they'll be back home :)

Anonymous said...

I love those pictures! They are fabulous. :-)

I am SO happy everything turned out well in the end. I can't wait to hear more about Annie's class!!

Eva said...

I hope your funk clears up soon! You do have adorable kids. :)

I've been on a rollercoaster of emotions w/ moving and starting a new school and all that fun stuff. Pretty exhausting!

Thoughts of Joy said...

It's great to know that you all had a successful day! As for the days of alone time, you'll get used to it real quick and wonder where that time goes! :)

I love the pictures of your boys! Speaking of scrapping, though, the 2nd picture (Max?) would be great cropped just around his body and the fence. I love the angle and such a cutie-pie!

Carl V. Anderson said...

Oh, so she's only taking *one* college class...at 11! ;) Ever the modest mother.

You can't go wrong with Roald Dahl. That will count as a R.I.P. read as well!

I look forward to hearing more about Annie's class experience and hope you are out of your funk soon.

chrisa511 said...

I love your rambling Debi :) You never have to apologize for it! Sorry to hear that you're stuck in a funk right now :( I was in one all summer and I know that they're just miserable. I really hope things get better for you Debi.

I'm so happy to hear about Annie's excitement! That's wonderful! If she finds it a little tough at first tell her to hang in there and she'll get into the flow of things. But knowing her, she'll just zip on in to things with no problem!

Also glad to hear that the boys had a good first day :) They sure look like they did!

Take care of yourself right now Debi and just do things that you enjoy and give you a little bit of peace...like your scrapbooking! You'll get out of this funk!!

Rich said...

You DO have the best husband around.

Jean said...

I'd be surprised if you weren't in a funk, Debi. Lots of changes. And days by yourself can be awkward to deal with. I used to feel guilty, especially if I used the day apart to nurture myself, to be creative, to escape. I would feel as though I should be cleaning the house, or doing something for the family. It's taken a long time, and I still don't succeed all the time, to realize that I have to nurture myself to nurture others. If I were closer, we'd go for coffee/tea/whatever, and I'd explain it to you, girlfriend like. :-)

Anonymous said...

Hey Debi,

I didn't get round to commenting on your post yesterday, but I'm really happy to read that Annie is enjoying her college class! I bet she'll do really well. :)

Cute pics of the boys (and the one of Annie from yesterday)! I'm glad their day ended up being a good one.

Yay for crafting time. :)

Melody said...

Debi, you know I'm in awed of Annie's intelligence! I'm hoping my daughter will grow up to be like her in the near future!!!

I love the pics; your boys are so adorable! And I'm glad they enjoyed their first day in school. I remember during my school days, I didn't really anticipate my first day in school... too stressful!

I'm looking forward to hearing more posts on Annie and how she is doing in her classes! :) Hope everyone has a great weekend ahead!

kreed said...

I am glad the first days of school went well for all three kiddos - they are all so grown up!

Better you than me with the painting - ugh! We already need some new paiint in a couple of areas and I just can't amke myslef do it!

kreed said...

Nice typos in my last comment...sorry!

Trish @ Love, Laughter, Insanity said...

I loved Roald Dahl when I was younger--I really should revisit his works! I haven't read The Witches, but I can imagine it is fantastic. You are such a caring mother, Debi. And your kids are precious!

Anonymous said...

oh, i'm so glad they all had good first days!

and i'm so glad you're reading "the witches". its the first book that was my favourite. i remember being half-way through it and loving it so much that i just looked at it and thought "this is the best book i've ever read! wow."

i hope you enjoy it as much as i did!

Debi said...

Nymeth,
You're so sweet...thank you!
And you're right, despite the fact that I just miss them when they're not here, it will be nice to get some things done without constant interruption. And hey, maybe I'll even just take some time for reading now and then. Yeah, like that just now occurred to me. ;)

Melissa,
Thanks! Now if the boys would just learn how to smile. :)

Eva,
I can imagine you've been on quite the roller-coaster. So many huge changes all at once. And even when huge these huge events are exactly what you want, they're still stressful. I hope things settle down for you here soon!

Joy,
:) There's no mistaking a fellow scrapbooker! You're so right, that gourd hanging over his back definitely needs to go.

Carl,
Thank you!
And of my gosh, can you believe this is the first Dahl I've ever read?!! I know, I know, I should be smacked upside the head. I am absolutely LOVING this book, and the boys are as well! I actually had both The Witches and The BFG sitting on a shelf here, but of course we had to go with The Witches because of RIP! And I'm so glad we did, as I can't imagine The BFG could possibly be any better than this!

Chris,
Thank you so much! I have a feeling this isn't a major funk or anything, hopefully just a mini one due to all the back-to-school stuff. Like I said, I'm so lucky to have the life I do that I really have no business complaining anyway.

Rich,
Yeah, suppose you're right. Though he surely isn't the modest husband around.

Jean,
"I used to feel guilty, especially if I used the day apart to nurture myself, to be creative, to escape. I would feel as though I should be cleaning the house, or doing something for the family."...Oh yes, I can most definitely see me feeling this way, too! Is the inescapable price of being a woman to feel that way? I don't know...I'm really hoping that I can find some sort of balance. As Rich has said, I've more than earned a little free time after all these years. But believing it and believing it are two different things. (And I'm guessing you actually understood that nonsensical assertion there.)

Stephanie said...

You are allowed to ramble on!! It's a mom thing. I'm really glad Annie is enjoying her class. I've read her writing. She'll do awesome!!

Ah, The Stand. My favorite. Maybe it's time for another re-read!! I think I loved it even more the second time. I should see what a third will bring!

Debi said...

Quixotic,
Couldn't agree more on the hooray for crafting! I'd be hard pressed to choose between that and reading time!

Melody,
As usual, you're too sweet! Thank you! And I hope you all have a wonderful weekend as well!

Thoughts of Joy said...

Oh Debi, I'm embarrassed. I may not be the scrapper that you think I am! I didn't mean to insinuate that I wanted you to remove the backpack. It is a first day of school picture, he needs a backpack! :) I was just trying to convey that I thought the subject (Max) and the angle in which he was leaning was adorable. I considered the backpack as part of his body, which of course, it is not. I can understand how you came to that conclusion and I'm sorry for the confusion.

Debi said...

Joy,
Oh my goodness, we seem to be having quite the comedy of misunderstanding here this morning! I never thought you meant to crop out his backpack. I thought it might be good to crop out that darn gourd birdhouse thing that looks like it's flying over top of his backpack though.
I like the way the picture came out too...and it's funny, because he was trying to be a little goofball by refusing to stand up and let me take his picture. Haha...showed him by getting an adorable shot without his cooperation. :)

Kara,
"they are all so grown up!"...I know :(
Sounds like you're not going to volunteer to paint for me, huh? ;)

Trish,
What an incredibly sweet thing to say...thank you!
And as I was telling Carl, this is actually the first Roald Dahl I've ever read. Isn't that dreadful of me?!! I have no way to compare to his other books, but this one is absolutely delightful!

JP,
"its the first book that was my favourite."...that is so cool! And I can certainly understand it. I really wish I'd read it as a kid, I know I would have loved it! Oh well, better late than never, huh? It's absolutely pathetic that I have never read any of his books before...I have really been missing out if The Witches is any indication.

Stephanie,
"You are allowed to ramble on!! It's a mom thing."...Ah, so that explains it. I fully intend to use that as my excuse from now on. :)
I think you're right, The Stand does nothing but get better with each reading!

Dawn said...

I think we all go through some kind of funk or another! I get that way and don't always know how to get out!

Your boys pictures are just wonderful!! I'm glad they came home with smiles!

I'm glad to hear that Annie is enjoying her class. You are probably just beaming with pride.

I'm glad you are getting little me time now.

take care,
Dawn

Thoughts of Joy said...

LOL Okay, I think we're on the same page now. :) I love that you got a great picture, even without his cooperation!

Anonymous said...

I hope you feel better soon. I have been in a major funk lately as well, perhaps it is the shift to autumn/winter and less sunlight. Your husband sounds great letting you scrap book :)

gail@more than a song said...

Those are adorable boy pictures! Cute little guys, glad you still got those first day pictures. Bunk beds will be great, my boys had them too. Hope you're doing pictures of your room painting! Enjoy your 2 days a week when the kiddos are gone!