Saturday Smiles

[Lady Maverick]

Back from basketball camp with LO and DGD3.

I'm beginning to get weird ed out. think the new people that are insistent on their child & LO becoming buddies are something more than just clueless. This morning I was sitting up in the stands visiting with another Grandmother who is raising a classmate of LO. The new people come up and sat down next to me and almost demanded my attention. They totally ignored the other parent/grandparent of a classmate.

The dad : Is LO going to a birthday party this afternoon?
Me: yes, he is
The Dad : Whose birthday party is it?
Me: Cameron's
The Dad : My son didn't get an invite to it.
Me: Cameron's mom only invited 3 to his party this year. They had a BIG birthday party at C&C last year and invited the whole class. But she is just doing a small party this year in her home.
The Dad: Where do they live?
Me: On airport road.
The Dad : I could take my son to Cameron s party but I guess we aren't invited. Did LO receive an invitation to it?
Me: Cameron's mom didn't send out invitations this year since it is a small party. She just called the 3 mom's directly.
The Dad: I don't like my son being left out.
Me: I totally understand and I don't like it when everyone in the class is invited except 1 or 2. But this isn't like that, they are just having a small party for a couple of his closest friends. Cameron & LO have been best buddies since Pre-K.
The Dad: Well, LO and my son are friends and play together at recess.
Me: Smiling because I don't know what to say to him. Thankfully DGD3 needed my attention and I could get myself out of this conversation.

When we arrived home, LO got sick to his stomach. I first assumed it was from the sparring last night & running this morning. Then I felt of his forehead and he is warm DRAT! They almost closed LO school this past week because of 1/4 of the kids were out with the flu. I am hoping LO doesn't have the flu. Time will tell. I've given him Tylenol and he is down for a nap. Maaaybe it is just excessive exercise and he will be better after a rest. Maybe.....a very slim possibility.

[lucylee]

DEFINITELY would have done the same thing, LadyM. You know, one of my FB friends posted a thing the other day, an article that referenced Rev. James Dobson, but I don't know if it was written by him or not -- I think not, actually -- but anyway -- the title was something like Why Our Kids NEVER Sleep Over. It talked about the opportunites for sexual abuse, etc, but also other issues that can come up with other families that maybe doesn't go on at the child's home.
Personally, I know I am chief among paranoid personalities, but I find myself already worrying about such things with dgs -- b/c of all the things you hear re: accidents w/guns, swimming pools, and things like that. How do we know other parents supervise our children (grandchildren) as closely as we do.
(For goodness sake, after my episode at the drug store, how can ds/ddil trust ME to supervise???)
DS only went on a handful of "playdates" his whole life. That is not something to brag about, I know. I made him waaay too much of a hermit. And they may do the same w/dgs... which could be a bad thing... BUT... ds also had a good friend who was killed by another good friend, in 8th grade, when the two boys were playing with a gun in the home of the second boy, with his parents right there in the other room. So tragic. And of course the other boy had problems with the guilt for years and years afterwards -- possibly still does, I don't know.
I guess I think about things like that too much, but you just never know what other parents allow and don't allow, and you know what sort of safety measures and discipline measures are in control at your own home.
Hmmm... just saw the comment about these particular parents being jobless except for part-time McD's. They sound kinda immature to me, LadyM.
Unless maybe one of them is a musician? Then it would just LOOK like they were jobless...
Nah... just saw your latest post... nah... these people definitely have problems with cluelessness. What an awkward conversation. Good grief. How weird. I mean, it sounds like the dad has some sort of Asperger's or something... total social unawareness. Steer clear of these folks, LadyM... stay very far away...

I'm kinda having a day like Kathryn. Now I want to google people, LOL!

Also was thinking of MT recently... I miss you, too, MT!

Are y'all watching basketball, Twins? Your old coach/our new coach (Bruce Pearl) is back in TN today w/our AU Tigers. Just heard the announcers say the TN crowd gave him a standing ovation when he came into the arena. That's nice.

[Harriet]

BookSaver, so glad you are safe and didn't have a wreck!

I'm sure there are many Saturday Smiles at the Fancy Nancy party.

Both HRH and I awoke with headaches, so it is something in the air or barometer. We've each had an Exedrin Migraine when we couldn't wait any longer for it to "go away".

In truth, he was sleepless through the night, glanced at facebook and he and a cousin noticed each other online. They chatted in the middle of the night about sleeplessness and wondering what was causing it - chatted about health. I guess that's not the worst way in the world to catch up with your kinfolk.

A reds load of laundry is in right now. Otherwise Morning Daily Card Done. Tobias' toenails clipped.

Also some end-of-month record keeping.

Lynlee, words in headlines I have seen here regarding your vote: "stunning" ; "unthinkable". Gee, ya'll sure don't have boring elections.

blessed, nice to hear that ddyounger is finding success with some activities.

Lilac, what a disappointment to your dh about his ear that there has been something else going on that wasn't suspected. I know he is frustrated.

Hmmm.. ... LadyM... ... it's a good time to stop giving additional information. This father does not respond well to details; even the word "birthday" makes him think it's his business. Use the word "family" or place-names more often, if pressed, but not personal names. As in just, "Our family is headed over to Citytown tomorrow." no matter what the actual purpose. Btw, if someone in our community was waiting for me to give a whole-class party, they would have been waiting 30 years. The majority of people don't do that, IMHO.

[DeeClutter]

I'd be "weirded" out too, LadyM! Steer as clear as you can.

Glad for no accident, Booksaver!

[Dove]

Kathryn, I like both openings

The word for the day around here is COLD. Even ddog, who usually takes her sweet time when going out to the bathroom, has been peeing & immediately turning around to run back into the house. The wind doesn't help any. Brrrrrrr ...

Lucylee, I laughed at one of the items on your list from the other day -- Bug people. For a moment I thought you wanted to "bug" people as in bother people.

Feline Friend mentioned Shepherd's Pie. Now I want some . I see that on our dinner table in the near future. (Thanks for the idea!)

Hope the library party is going well, Bookie. How nice your decorations look.

Hi Blessed. Wonderful news about dd younger.

Hi Dee. I miss MT too. Whenever I see an RV on the highway I think of her. Glad to read that she stopped by recently.

Hi Lynlee. I hope the new leaders do good things for their people.

Hi Lady M. Echoing others comments that red flags were popping up all over the place when I read how adamantly these people were trying to get LO for an overnight. Knowing that sil is in your area, maybe it's a good idea to remind adults at LO activities (where you drop him off) to not let him get picked up by anyone except you or dh. Not even dd, as he has manipulated her in the past.

Hi Nancy. How funny that you had a knitting dream

Hi Harriet, hope the headaches have disappeared for you & dh.

Hi Kally! It's so good to see you

Dryer timer buzzed a while ago. Time to flip the laundry, vacuum seal several wedges of cheese, then make lunch.

Waving ~~~ to everyone -- hope you all have a wonderful day!

[helia]

Good afternoon all! It is a beautiful day, 34*, sunny and clear blue skies!! I am going to try to get a jog in later this afternoon. This is the beauty before the storm. We are forecast to get 8 - 12" of snow tomorrow. It is supposed to start snowing at 2 a.m. and continue until 5 a.m. on Monday. I don't think I've ever seen such a huge snowfall forecast here since we moved here. It may not be accurate. Of course, dh is leaving town tonight before the storm, so any snow clearing or power outages that occur, I'll get to deal with by myself. This was the mo for us for many years; dh would be traveling and miss the big snowstorms and ice storms with lost electricity. Then, for a long time, that trend was reversed. We'll see what happens tomorrow. . . .

LadyM, it sounds like this father/family has boundary issues. Maybe they just don't understand them - some people really don't, maybe they're socially challenged - or maybe there is something more sinister going on. . . . Either way, I completely resonate with your feeling weirded out. I don't think I let my kids sleep over until maybe age 8? I can't even remember! And then it was only with families we knew well. Dd19 did sleep over at a friend's house at age 6 or 7, but this was a family we knew from church and dh's dept., our skiing friends. Also, the girls had had many many non-sleepover playdates together before this first sleepover. We trusted (and still trust) this family explicitly. Even so, we were called around 10 pm to come pick an anxious and teary dd.

I am not going to the memorial service after all. I knew it would be tight. By the time I got home with dd16, had a minimal amount of lunch, and printed out a map to the location, it was 12:45, and I still needed to change my clothes and hopefully bring more lunch with me in the car. . . Then, dh called. And that was the death knell to the memorial service. . . You can't really walk in late.

Solo/ensemble festival ramblings: Dd16 did very well at solo/ensemble festival! I, however, didn't do so well getting to her performance rooms on time. I was allowed in last minute after the door was closed for her duet. I didn't even make it into the room for her trio, but one wall was a window, so I could stand in the hallway and watch and hear pretty well. I did make it into the room on time for the solo, having learned my lesson. The judge didn't have much to say about the duet. She did recommend a different duet book. Dd16 and friend were using a series that doesn't publish oboe duets, so they used a flute book instead. The judge recommended using the saxophone book. The judge didn't have too much to say about her solo either, except to slow it down a little. LOL! Dd16 said they (she and her accompanist - my tutte R!) did play it a bit faster than usual. Maybe that was nerves. It was still very well done. We didn't hear the comments re: the trio b/c dd16's solo was soon after. She got all 1s, the highest rating, and can take these performances to the state festival in March.

I'm going to go to the groc. store to stock up on some things before the storm - unless the store is an absolute zoo. We can actually manage just fine until Tuesday; I have some leftover meals frozen and plenty of fresh fruit, milk, and eggs. I would just feel better with some other meal options on hand.

OK, off I go! And now our sunshine has disappeared and there are clouds. Dh has left to get in his long run. Last week, it was 12 miles.

[Twins' Mom]

DEFINITELY would have done the same thing, LadyM. You know, one of my FB friends posted a thing the other day, an article that referenced Rev. James Dobson, but I don't know if it was written by him or not -- I think not, actually -- but anyway -- the title was something like Why Our Kids NEVER Sleep Over. It talked about the opportunites for sexual abuse, etc, but also other issues that can come up with other families that maybe doesn't go on at the child's home.
Personally, I know I am chief among paranoid personalities, but I find myself already worrying about such things with dgs -- b/c of all the things you hear re: accidents w/guns, swimming pools, and things like that. How do we know other parents supervise our children (grandchildren) as closely as we do.
(For goodness sake, after my episode at the drug store, how can ds/ddil trust ME to supervise???)
DS only went on a handful of "playdates" his whole life. That is not something to brag about, I know. I made him waaay too much of a hermit. And they may do the same w/dgs... which could be a bad thing... BUT... ds also had a good friend who was killed by another good friend, in 8th grade, when the two boys were playing with a gun in the home of the second boy, with his parents right there in the other room. So tragic. And of course the other boy had problems with the guilt for years and years afterwards -- possibly still does, I don't know.
I guess I think about things like that too much, but you just never know what other parents allow and don't allow, and you know what sort of safety measures and discipline measures are in control at your own home.
Hmmm... just saw the comment about these particular parents being jobless except for part-time McD's. They sound kinda immature to me, LadyM.
Unless maybe one of them is a musician? Then it would just LOOK like they were jobless...
Nah... just saw your latest post... nah... these people definitely have problems with cluelessness. What an awkward conversation. Good grief. How weird. I mean, it sounds like the dad has some sort of Asperger's or something... total social unawareness. Steer clear of these folks, LadyM... stay very far away...

I'm kinda having a day like Kathryn. Now I want to google people, LOL!

Also was thinking of MT recently... I miss you, too, MT!

Are y'all watching basketball, Twins? Your old coach/our new coach (Bruce Pearl) is back in TN today w/our AU Tigers. Just heard the announcers say the TN crowd gave him a standing ovation when he came into the arena. That's nice.

[Lady Maverick]

LucyLee - I have made the same decision. LO will not be attending sleep overs. I think it is sad to lose that childhood experience, but it is just too risky now days. Even in a known trusted home. Not only is LO not allowed to sleep over, but now we have recently enlarged our protection mode to not allowing LO to be alone unobserved with another child during daylight hours. We recently had an incident occur between a VERY close minor child and LO. The incident happened while we were in their home during the day. LO and the other child were in another part of the home playing together when the older child did improper acts with LO. It was days later when LO told me about it. I told the other parent what occurred and they were shocked (and mortified). We both immediately sought therapists to help us handle the incident. Prevention is the key!

I took the birthday gift to LO classmate home and told them why LO wouldn't be attending the party. Then I went to the grocery store and stocked up on crackers, 7-up, Sprite and Cream Soda. We only buy sodas when someone is sick. LO is on the couch with a drink nearby. Yug......I suspect DGD3 will get this too. I'll be checking her for fever frequently.

[cats]

morning I have to agree with everyone LadyM.i would not give them any information from now on and I would totally avoided them something is not right. Red Flags are waving very hard. also no one picks up Lo unless its you or your husband. have a safe and wonderful weekend.

Havent posted much but have read. Our Year started off with a bang in the wrong direction. we had a awater leak that went that came from the roof into the ceiling so took part of it down and have fixed it then a bathroom faucet started leaking . getting tired of putting out fires . now trying to catch up on bills.

have a great weekend

[Harriet]

hi, cats! Ugh, ceiling troubles and then plumbing. Hoping that is the extent of your household's 2015 repair jobs!

On the subject of 16-year-olds - from the sublime (helia's dd's magnificent performance at festival - Bravo, Bravo!)

... to the ridiculous. Here, the father of the 16-year-old can hardly bear to greet the young man who came to take her to a movie. I don't know how much more wholesome we can make it. We insisted on a matinee, rated PG, about 15 minutes away. The young man comes in his grandfather's old pickup, not exactly a playboy's sportscar. He is obviously nervous as a mouse, and far from sophisticated or worldly in any way. But this is VERY hard on HRH. I walked them out and suggested dd go back and hug her Daddy, which she did. But he is a grumpy old man now. Sigh.