Northern Noise

I'm a dork. I've been married for 9 years, with him for almost 13 and still my tummy flip-flops when I know he's on his way home. He's been gone a week and tonight he comes home. Once he came home early from a trip and thought he'd surprise me. He took a taxi and then walked the last bit up the driveway. All I knew was that I woke up to the dogs growling. A low, throaty growl that means something is out there that shouldn't be. I could hear footsteps crunching on the snow, I got out the shotgun and went outside yelling. Luckily for us both he identified himself and all was well. He doesn't surprise me any more. Tonight, I'll be expecting him. :-)

I don't understand why young boys like to pick their noses, are obsessed with picking their noses, and not at all chagrined by the disgusting reaction of loved ones when they eat their pickings. It's beyond something I can handle at this point, and nothing seems to be getting through. So does this mean I need to learn to deal with it? On a positive note, when his fingers are up his nose it means he's not playing with his penis!!

Okay, so it's Monday and I'm wiped out. The boy is cranky, I've got way too much to do, and no energy to do it. I guess it's because I played all weekend with the boy and cleaned house a bit too. This is the kind of day I would rather not be single parenting. I still need to make him dinner, read with him, and feed the dogs. That's a minimum, not even covering laundry or washing dishes. It's also not covering the school work I brought home. Early to bed and maybe tomorrow will be better.

Today was a good day. Jed slept in, and snuggled his mama all morning. Got some sorely needed cleaning done, put away most of the huge pile of laundry, even balanced the checkbook. Tonight Jed and I went out for dinner, which was fun. Went to Creamer's Field and scoped out the birds. Cranes, swans, geese, and some sort of orange-footed bird. It was cool and Jed loved it. Then we headed to LHS to see the production of You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown. What a fantastic show! The music was great and the boy really enjoyed it also. Today wasn't too painful as far as the single parenting piece went. I didn't have to be anywhere until 7:00, so the pressure was off. I'm lonely though. I miss my friend. It's not as much fun to do things without him. But the sanity level is holding, the house cleaning number went up, and the boy is still healthy - although he's been up way late for 2 nights in a row.

I came home and cleaned house a bit. The dishes that have been in the sink all week were starting to smell. They're washed, but not yet put away. Laundry from the week is folded and put away, the living room is straightened, the dogs are fed, and Jed's asleep in my bed. I'm tired tonight. The day wasn't bad; got some errands done and went to Jed's school's Up With Art evening. All in all, I think I did okay on the mom duties. So my house cleaning score went up a bit, and my children's health score went up a bit too. Jed got veggies, and milk. The girls went back to their mom's so they're not my feeding responsibility right now. (Don't get me wrong. I miss them horribly, but appreciate their independance!) The sanity quotient may have gone down a bit. Teenagers are a bit nuts as school winds down, and I'm missing my hubby on this Friday night. Tomorrow the plan is to enter my grades, clean some more house, and enjoy the boy. Single...

House is the same. I cleaned only what I messed up today - will deal with rest this weekend. Jed got McDonald's for dinner 2 days in a row; that can't be healthy. I'll need to make sure he gets vegetables tomorrow. The sanity factor is holding steady.... school was crazy today but kids at home were actually mellow. Or tired. Or suffering the soporific effects of a fast food lifestyle. And tomorrow is Friday - so this might all be a piece of proverbial cake!! (crap - did I just jinx myself???)

Okay - the test begins. Hubby left today for an 8 day business trip. Right now the house is pretty clean. The laundry is put away and dishes are (mostly done). Dogs fed, kids fed, boy brushed his teeth, story is read, middle did her homework. So far so good. I even managed to stop by Sam's Club to get cupcakes for our class celebration of Shakespeare's birthday. (So I didn't make 'em myself, that's -1 pt. for me.) My goal is to maintain minimum health and safety standards for the next 8 days. Let the games begin!