October 28, 2012
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We stayed up until past 1am last Friday for dinner and games with Melissa’s family. The adults played a new (very complicated) game while the kids had a “sleepover.” (In quotes because they were actually dragged up and taken home at 1am). It took every ounce of discipline to pull myself out of bed at 7am for a 10k run with my coworkers. And between dance, and a later soccer game, James and I prepped for our Halloween party. Speaking of soccer … did you know that baseball cleats and soccer cleats are different? We didn’t. I thought I got a great deal at Walmart ($7.50!) for soccer shoes beginning of this season. The referee noticed and disqualified Zach from the game. (James had to run home and bring back sneakers.) With only a few games left this season, instead of buying new shoes, we just sawed off the front cleat.
On the school front, I had to have a talk with Zach about classwork. He aces all the exams, but struggles with getting his classwork done. We talked about how on a multi-step project, it was better to get 90% (even 80%) on all the steps instead of over-perfecting a few sections but not having enough time to even start on some other sections. I also asked him for ways to calculate whether he was on track to finish an assignment on time. Then I added that it was good to get assignments done early instead of waiting until the last minute, in case a new assignment (or some fun activity) came up midweek. I compared kids playing before doing school work to adults buying toys before paying utility and mortgage bills. And I reminded him that he belonged in a family with strong discipline – when James and I don’t ‘finish’ our work, we log in at night when the kids are in bed. The next morning, I woke up at 7am and did not hear any Wii games (he plays Saturday and Sunday mornings until everyone else gets up … the modern day version of Saturday morning cartoons, I suppose) I went to Zach’s room and he was doing the classwork he didn’t finish the previous week. He said he was up since 5:58am, and he only had 1 more page left. I have no idea how long this will last, but I’m hopeful.
Saturday evening was our annual Halloween party. We had some crafts put out: fuzzy Halloween bookmarks and magnets to color. But mostly the kids played soccer and on the play structure outside. The weather was ideal. When it got dark, we played a balloon popping game I made up (but was a hit!) There were 30 balloons all over the yard and 5 of them had dollar bills inside. The kids ran around running popping balloons and screaming! (I wonder what the neighbors thought?)
I tried to make the food options a bit more healthy this year … changes included using whole wheat pasta, nothing with icing, and veggie chips. That was a mistake, as a lot of the food was leftover (vs. running out last year!) Fortunately Chigme brought a huge platter of sushi, and my cheese platter (love that triple cream brie!) was a crowd pleaser. Winners of the People’s Choice Costume Contest were the Clue Family (best overall), Spidergirl (cutest), and sleepover zombie (scariest.) Thanks to everyone who came and contributed to the Halloween *spirit*!
Sunday, I woke up with a sore throat, which quickly turned into a cold. We had a low key day. I took the kids to swim class. Calie now willingly jumps in and glides with her head underwater … this is a big deal because for the longest time, she despised getting her face wet. She did complain that her eyes got “soggy” afterwards though. Zach worked on his book report poster a little more, and then I took the kids to a Harvest festival at a local outdoor mall.
The kids made ceramic handprints and decorated pumpkins, but we opted out of face painting, balloon animals, and the hay ride due to long lines. I convinced them that playing in the Whole Foods kids’ area would be more fun.
In the evening, we went to Sellend’s for dinner. I love The Kitchen and Ella, from the same chain of restaurants. The ambiance was great … I liked the casual, artisan market feel. And my tuna sandwich was pretty tasty. But the kids gave their mac cheese and cupcake a thumbs down, and James found the turkey sandwich bland. Zach did a Haunted House walk-through, that my friend Bev’s sons helped put together. The tickets were $7 and went to a local charity. He said it was pretty scary!
This Friday, both Zachary and Calista’s schools held Harvest Festivals. Bounce houses, carnival games, face painting (yuck), cake walks, dancing and singing, and just general running around in costumes with friends.
After the school event, we went to the city’s celebration. The streets were lined with jack-o-lanterns, and stores along the road handed out candy to trick-or-treaters. We had dinner at Chicago Fire (it seems to be a tradition) before heading back home close to 10pm. When we got to the garage, there were only a few cars left, ours being one of them. And the passenger door was wide open! And guess what? James’ briefcase with work laptop was untouched. Whew. And wow, either we live in a really safe city or no one wants laptops anymore.
Between the school and city event, the kids brought home lots of trinkets and candy. Way too much for kids to consume, and I’m anti chewy/sticky candies which are terrible for teeth. Overhead Calie complain to Zach,”I don’t know why we even go trick-or-treating because mom just takes away our candy!” That’s exactly what siblings are for. Commiserating with. Who else could truly understand what it’s like to live with such an evil mom.
This morning, I took Calie to her dance class. She was able to invite a friend, so she picked Abigail … who might be signing up and joining her in future classes … yay! While I was out, Zach finished his book report poster, and I think it looks pretty good!
Then I took both kids to a local outdoor mall for a safety fair. The kids won 3 Chick-Fil-A sandwiches playing a plinko game, built/painted Home Depot helicopters, jumped in bounce houses, and played with rubber-band guns. (Whether guns are really ‘safety’ items is debatable.)
I also got in a quick cardio workout (2.7 mile jog) and an hour of core strengthening/stretching (vinyasa flow yoga) today … so I’m as ready as I can be for my 3-person half marathon relay tomorrow! My leg of the race is the last 5 mile uphill climb, so wish me luck!
Ending this post with deep thoughts from Calista. While folding laundry/clothes: “Some cookies also have tags. But they are on the inside. And they don’t tell you what size they are.”
