Hump Day

This has been an exhausting week, and its only Wednesday.
The kids all started school this week, which went great for them, but has proved to be exhausting for me.
Pick-up and drop-off at pre-k is like being in school all over again myself as all the parents have to wait outside on lines as we wait for our kids' classes to be called. Drop off has been ok, but pick-up, that's a different story. First, I get there 10-15 min before just so I can be toward the front of the line and wait in the shady area instead of in the blazing hot sun as summer has made a very unwelcome return the past couple of days.. Then, finally, they start calling everyone in, but start with the higher number classrooms first. And where are my kids? Yes, that's right, in two of the lowest-number classrooms. So, then after a whole lot of waiting (with an impatient two-year old, to boot) I have to figure out how to get my two kids. The first two days I went in when they called J's room, and was able to pick M up on the way. So she was first out of her room, but then I'm last on the line for J's room, and I feel terrible he's the last one out, like he's thinking I forgot about him, when the reality is I've been at the school for a freaking half an hour already. So, today, I cheated. I went in when they called the room before J's room and got them both out of their rooms first! No one seemed to care, but I'm sure at some point I'll be yelled at for breaking the rules.

A Fall Tease

I hate summer. Everyone I know knows this. Heat, humidity, bugs.. ugh, its not for me. At all. My hair is a huge frizzy ball and my clothes stick to my body. I seem to move in slow motion against the wall of moisture-filled air that is a staple of a Long Island Summer. Did I mention I also despise yard work?
So, while some people break out the mourning gear as Labor Day weekend comes to an end, I begin to come out of hibernation. The promise of cool air, the crunch of leaves under my boots, and the scent of cinnamon-y candles filling my house just makes me giddy. Oh, and let's not forget the grass stops growing.
With a cold front rolling through the area last night, we left behind the humid, sticky mess we'd been in fore several weeks and welcomed a hint of fall. It might just be a tease, since its supposed to be in the 80's again next week, but for the first time in months I slept without an air conditioner last night. I took the kids to the playground today without leaving with everyone drenched in sweat. And, I started to think about fall clothes and autumn decorations for the house. Cozy sweaters! Riding Boots! They're just waiting to be broken out. I'm tired of maintaining a pedicure. Let's hide these toes in some boots and let the polish chip off.
So let's all wave goodbye to summer. I do apologize if you love it, but it will be back next year, and then you can do your own happy dance as my hair explodes in volume.

It's That Time of Year

 I can't believe Labor Day has come and gone and it is now officially unofficially fall. What I can't believe even more is that the kids are all going to be in school next week. Where have my babies gone? J&M are off to pre-k in "real school." By "real school" I mean in public school, not in a preschool where I need to shell out money every month to educate my children. It is still only 2.5 hours a day but they are going to be going to a school that is funded by tax dollars and where the teachers are referred to as Ms. Last Name instead of Miss First Name.

There was some confusion last week when the long-anticipated packets finally came from the school last week and I found out that J&M were in different classes. I had expected them to be in the same class due to information I had been told at registration back in April that was, apparently, wrong. So there was a lot of "should they be together or separate?" Ultimately I (because T was really not much of a help in this decision) decided that we will keep them separated. It is making me kind of sad because they have been together in everything... including my uterus. But my hope is that it will help them to develop as individuals because let's face it, they are not "the twins," they are J and M. Two different kids with different interests and personalities. Sigh. Tomorrow we're going to meet the teachers. That means they can find out how crazy I am because I won't let my kids drink the milk they provide because it is not organic. I'm not really thrilled with the snacks they are providing either but I'm not sure how militant I should be with this stuff. The milk is not debatable though.

Tonight was A's meet the teacher night. She's only going to be in a toddler class twice a week, but it will be the first time she is separated from me and that is giving me some anxiety because I know she's going to freak. Also I feel a little guilty because J&M didn't go to a toddler class, they started in the 3-year old class. I don't feel guilty because J&M didn't go, but because A is going. Almost like I'm trying to push her out or something. I know this probably sounds silly but I feel like I'm doing everything so much earlier with her on one hand, but on the other I treat her a lot more like a baby than I did when J&M were 2.5. I guess that's where the whole "baby of the family" thing comes from.

Well, that's it for today.

Lazy, oh yeah and the VMAs.

Could I be any lazier today? I'm being the most terrible mom ever, letting the kids watch tv and play games on the xbox the entire day, but I just can't motivate myself to get off the couch. They are fighting over whether to watch Dora or Elmo while I just shrug my shoulders and let them figure it out.
I could have been using this time constructively, perhaps getting some work done, but no, I'm too busy reading articles about the train wreck that was Miley Cyrus at the VMAs last night.

Seriously, what was up with her? Some people are calling her a whore or a skank, or whatever synonym you choose for that general idea, but I think she was trying to make some kind of desperate attempt at ditching the "Hannah Montana" image of her teen days. It's like she was saying "Yeah would Hannah Montana do this ?(as she masturbates with a big foam finger) and this? (as she twerks up against Robin Thicke's crotch) Fuck you all!"

And so, not only did I already dislike the song "Don't Stop," but she also ruined "Blurred Lines" for me, which had been my favorite song of the summer. I found the video for "Blurred Lines," tons of boobies and all, less offensive than Miley's performance last night. Robin Thicke could have done a live performance of the video and I think there would be less controversy.


So let me get of the Miley/Robin rant for a minute and talk about the awesomeness of Justin Timberlake. I already have a not-so-secret crush on him, and his performance last night made me love him all that much more. And the N*Sync reunion made me smile from ear-to-ear. When N*Sync was popular, I was in college, so I really wasn't supposed to like boy bands. But now that it's 15 years later, I'm not ashamed to say I was a fan. I wasn't screaming at their concerts or anything, but I was blasting "Dirty Pop" in my car.
We have tickets to see Justin in November and after watching him last night, I can't wait!

I'd also like to give out props to Gaga for her creativity and Mermaid thong. And Macklemore, because I have a lot of respect for him in writing, releasing, and performing 'Same Love." It brought a tear to my eye when he won the VMA for Best Video with a Message. If you haven't seen the video for this song, you absolutely need to check it out.

So that's my take on the VMAs. I kind of wanted to see Katy Perry close the show but I'd had enough before we got that far. I enjoyed episode 7 of season two of "Downton Abbey" much more. Where have I been the past few years this show has been on? I'll save that for next time. I need to go back to being lazy now.

I suck at blogs

Why am I doing this yet again? I am probably the worst offender of staring blogs and then not writing anything. Time is not something I have a lot of. If I had more of it, there wouldn't be piles of laundry in every bedroom or baskets full of laundry waiting to be put away. I wouldn't have to dig through the mountain of clothes on top of my kids' train table when they need pajamas (maybe getting rid of the train table will motivate me - not like its actually used for the train anymore).

Maybe I want to chronicle my life.. or more accurately, my kids' lives. It is gong so fast. I say to myself in the moment, "I will never forget this," but then as time marches on, the memories start to fade until they are just warm fuzzy thoughts. I can't remember anything specific, just general things. I never kept a baby book so I didn't keep track of their first anything. I thought I'd remember the age they were when they first smiled at me, cut a tooth or said their first words, but it all just blurs together.

The other blogs I've tried have all been about specific things, something I was trying at the time - like running, or crocheting, or trying to cut sugar out of my diet (now what was I thinking with that one?). If I just wanted to write something about what happened that day - whether funny, or cute, or just downright frustrating, I didn't feel like it was the right place.

So maybe now, maybe with this venture, I'll be more committed. Ask me again in three months.