beach walk

our first walk on the beach, before the storms came
check out those clouds
and the red flag for dangerous surf
and no swimming

dampness

rain at the beach is just wrong. but of course it does happen. it rains sideways and it blows down the empty street. it makes all the decks and pools wet and slippery. it keeps everyone indoors or drags them to the movie theatres or the nature center or the outlet stores.

but me, i want to stay in the house and read. i want to watch the rain trickle down the roof onto the weathered wooden deck. i watch it pool at the bottom of the driveway. it bounces off the crystal blue pool water. the seabirds fly a little slower and shelter in the greenery on the dunes. some fish and fly regardless.

the sky is grey and hazy, but the spark of sun underneath those clouds gives me hope!

thoughts to think

i'm still working on putting back all the things i lost on my laptop when it crashed last month. my itunes is restored but i lost quite a few photos and links i had saved from the net. not a huge deal, but lost nonetheless. and i have to upload all our personal photos again. this is on my to do list for this fall when the boys are back at school.

supposedly i have more free time once the kids are in school. in reality, it's not so much more free time, as different free time. i will be driving children around more often and have no oldest son to babysit (since he's in school). but the weather won't be stiffling hot at least. and maybe girlchild and i can visit the playground more often and without the time constaints from kindergarten.

i volunteered to help in the library at the elementary school this year. i'm not sure now how feasible that will be, so i might back out and hold off another two years (when girlchild will be in full day school and i really WILL have more free time). i'm thinking on it right now. i loved volunteering the few months i did it in 2004 (my pregnancy issues took me out of the volunteer system). if i do it this year, i will have to put girlchild in an extended day at preschool, and i don't know if that's a good fit for her really (plus there's the financial side).

check up, check in

i just updated my reading list and realised how much i have been reading this summer. i think i have forgotten a few!! and i have at least half a dozen more that i want to read before the kids go back to school in a few weeks. at least i can finish the ones i have started :-)

we've been spending time in the pool, having game days, watching doctor who and i think, all in all, having a good summertime. we still have our week at the NC beach next week. hopefully the weather will be good for a couple of the days, enough for us to swim in a warm pool. but it's our end of summer week...and it makes me sad!

back to school is on the horizon. we have new school supplies, new shoes, one new school for one son, and one son who is actually anticipating an AP class (and who will graduate in 2 years).

i'm still facebooking, but feel strange putting too many bloggy details there.

happy july

have taken some time off from blogging. it just sort of happened and i'm now not sure what i will do with this blog. i spend more time on facebook, less on twitter and more reading books now. the summer is lovely, not so hot as last year. at least not yet. i haven't written anything in a while, i need to get back to that. i lost my writing mojo (lol) if there such a thing. i was jotting down things regularly for days and days. and then, nothing.

i came today to update my reading list. cos i have read a few books and am also going to review them on the moms book review site i am a part of.

random rainy day

spending today recording items off of the dvr. really need to claim back all those hours. and the only way to do that is to actually spend the time!! much to the dismay of girlchild, lol ;-) at some point we want to get rid of the dish for fios digital tv (or whatever it's called). but i need to record all these things first!! lol!!! now if i knew how to put them on a dvd-r that would be even better ;-)

another blah and rainy day....so spent indoors (see above). need to run errands all the time it seems, boring!!

have to pick up some things at trader joe's and get my driver's license photo taken. will try that this afternoon, with any luck it would only take an hour for both.

started reading a new book, one of many i'd like to finish this summer. it's diana gabaldon's lord john and the private matter. it's good, but i wouldn't expect anything less from diana gabaldon!!

randomthoughts

the whole air france crash is so sad. of course everyone sees the similarity with lost ("lost in the ocean" was the title of this last morning show special). this is why flying is so dicey, so scary, to me.

prince harry on the today show monday. he's finally grown up. and he has very ginger hair. his flushed cheeks remind me of my third son (who might as well be ginger).

we are counting down to the end of the school. i'm not sure who is more excited, me or the kids! we're rolling to the end. third grade class picnics are this week, which might be difficult since it's supposed to rain on thursday and friday. it was postponed to the rain date, which is also rainy!

next week are the also the third grade and kindergarten end of the year programmes. not the same day, hurray! and a kindy class picnic, hopefully no rain that day. i can bring girlchild to that one, as well. it's outside, what can they say! ;-)

i finally got the forms for library volunteer for next year. am very excited about getting back into this. i started back in 2004, signed up that summer, then i was pregnant and was unable to continue. in the fall i will have 3 free mornings. the school librarian mentions my coming back every time i see her. i think she liked me. i know i like her and she knows as much as i do how much i loved doing it. and i was good at it. how much fun would it be to BE a librarian. i know it's heaps lots more work than just shelving books, but just that aspect is enjoyable to me. i see a future for me in the local library (volunteering).

annoyed that the ants are back in my house. i detest ants. i look at the walls and floor and imagine i see dark specs moving. hate them!!!

happy june

everyday i think of sitting down to write here. it's not working out. i am finally feeling better, so maybe that will help some.

felt very accomplished today, got some errands run and spent some time outside with girlchild. we picked up son-two's meds at the pharmacy, just a refill, but he was down to zero puffs! then we stopped by church so i could copy down the info for the book sale / breakfast details for the website (which i'm supposed to update but no one seems able to keep me updated with new info), then to school to search for the missing baseball cap belonging to son-three. that was a bust though, no hat!! :-( then to the library, returned books and spent the better part of 45 mins reading and looking thru books in the children's library. the boys never had that sort of library love at age four!! she chose five books and has been sat down reading them quite often this afternoon!!

then we trekked the short distance home (lol, i drove actually) and played outside till son-four got off the bus. then the two of them played their version of catch while i finished up with the weeding.

so now it's two weeks left of school for the younger boys (less for the oldest). i cannot wait till school is over. cannot wait!! they're done on my birthday, so i'm thinking of making homemade icecream as their treat. and that will go well with whatever cake hubby makes me (which is usually chocolate). i'm not expecting much though (mother's day was sad, no effort at all).

thursday already

happy with good renal test results for girlchild. thrilled in fact. it was a bit of a harrowing day, but she did amazing with the tests, all things considered. we return again in july, for a renal ultrasound, some blood tests and another nephrology appointment.

such an absolute relief to all of us.

less than two weeks left of school for the big boys. two end of the year class programmes, one for kindergarten, one for 3rd grade. thankfully NOT on the same day anymore! just having the boys practise what they are saying.

i'm hoping to go out tonight with my moms club to our moms night out. i haven't been to one in ages, usually since they meet at a restaurant bar a few miles away. and bars are not my thing, too noisy, too crowded and i just don't drink if i'm driving (and i always drive myself). but tonight they have gotten a room, above a nice restaurant, so we can have snacks and drinks, and it will be quieter. so i want to go! plus i think perhaps i might have been noticeably absent from the MNO lately, and someone asked me about it. i was honest though.

the weather was really nice at the weekend, enough to sit on the back deck and enjoy the outdoors. i'll be glad when the pollen is gone for good off the trees, as i have to sweep the deck floor each time. and then wipe down the railings, esp if we have company. and we had company at the weekend.

another weekend of company too, oldest son will be 16 on saturday. hard to believe so much time has passed since i was first pregnant and we brought him home, in the rain! the weekend forecast is for good weather, which is unusual for his birthday weekend. it tends to be chilly or cloudy or just plain wet! he's doing something with friends on saturday and our family party on sunday, after church.

oh and hello kitty? all the rage for girlchild atm. found a dvd at target for $5.50, 50 minutes of hello kitty princesses, it's kinda cute in an 80s kinda way! but harmless. and hello kitty is now all the rage at the target. i see there are hello kitty sheets and a comforter (although i just got her a disney princess comforter, with princess crowns and a princess castle and lots of pink on it).

happy memorial day

we had a really lovely visit with some friends from hubby's work this evening. hubby outdid himself with the bbq meal, it was so tasty! i made pasta salad and cookies. and it was fun for me, they wanted coffee after our meal, so i was able to set it all out and it looked NICE. i used my sugar bowl and creamer and the new coffee carafe. and the new fancy trays and plates i have collected.
the kids were happy and calm this evening. girlchild entertained with her tea set and chatter.
a fun time!! :-)

a revelation

and this is so why i do not eat red meat anymore. and why i'm on the edge on any other meat. there's just too much out there. and the fact that it all makes me feel physically sick. what a way to go to the veggie side :-)

fall out

another beautiful day in the neighbourhood. girlchild's last day of preschool, had to get her earlier than usual in order to be home for kindergarten bus (and fourth boychild). they played outside later in the early evening, it was downright HOT at noontime!
i managed to run some errands -- birthday shopping, dropped off "need to order" script at cvs and dropped off library book too!
and while i was at the library, i saw the library van! we are able to loan books from any of the local county libraries (there are about 15 or more), and they will bring the book to our local library for pick up (and we get a phone call). i know they do all this by hand and with little slips of paper, but the man who drives the van is nearing retiring age (as are most of our local volunteer librarians). i have a love/hate relation with our library, i prefer the one a few mile away, but i am trying to make nice with the more local one. which means i TALK to the librarians (nearly all volunteers) and try to understand them. i realised i would love to work there. and now one of the local moms i know works in the children's library!

lovely weekend coming up, kids and hubby off monday. finally i think spring has arrived!!!


ETA - i have no idea why this didn't post yesterday. apparently i'm missing the gene that allows me to save the posts for later, at least on blogger!!

feeling happy

spent a lovely morning at the playground today. it's good to be out and about in the sunshine and warmer temps again. got to chat to a couple moms from my moms club too :-) still wishing i had more energy by the day's end, so i need to do something about that at some point. but there are too many other things to deal with right now.

almost a day of rest

just starting a quiet day at home today. the kids are off school (it's election day and the schools are polling places). son-one has a friend over, i'll send him home later today when his parents are back from work. there was one more last night, but his mom already came for him!

the rest of them are happily entertaining themselves and the tv is off (hurray).

plus the sun came out :-)

i've started my next book club selection, the senator's wife. it seems good so far. i'm always hesitant to start reading since of the 10 or so books we've read, i've really only liked 3 of them. and a few i had to struggle to complete.

back on track??

i've been visibly absent from the land of blogging for some time. i already know that i cannot keep up reading all my favourite bloggers. i skip thru them from time to time, and sometimes i leave a comment. sadly, most of the time, i just hit the reader and move along (sorry).

the last few weeks here have been a little bit more wild than our usual. girlchild was very sick and ended up in hospital for 3 nights with dehydration (from strep) and renal insufficiency. in the midst of making her better, it was found that she has an underlying kidney issue that will require more tests. those are scheduled for 26 may in an all day appointment.

while trying to make those tests and the whole process seem more low key than it is, i am also in the midst of the end of the year events for the four boys. last week we had son-two's choral and orchestra concert in which he did so well. i was so proud of him!! they have an of the year music department pool party in a few weeks, and i know he's really anticipating that. i hope i can check it out for a little while. son-one got his second degree black belt last week as well. we were all extremely proud of his hard work and perseverence. esp since his he sprained his knee back in april.

the younger boys have year end programmes, both on the same day at the same time. i am in a dilemma over whose to attend, and will wrangle hubby to attend the other (i tend to the daytime events while we switch off on evening events).

girlchild is slowly improving since her release from hospital. she is less wobbly on her legs and less tired too. and she's feisty again too! ;-)