A musical weekend
and that it was.
My 16 year old son's school held a talent show this weekend. Phillip and my 13 year old, J and J's friend, Matt were one of the performers playing a song that Phillip wrote last month. This talent show was put together by a senior at my son's school for her Capstone Project. The talent show was to be just that - a talent show. There wasn't any judging or winners, just performers entertaining their peers and a large audience of very supportive friends and family. It was a lot of fun and there was some great talent that evening for sure. Even though my guys have entertained in the past, they were a bit nervous at first, being they were playing for such a large crowd this time around. They loved it and we thank Jordan for putting together this awesome show and for my guys to have the opportunity to play along with many other talented young students :)
My guys are ready for more!
Hope you have a sunny Sunday,
Paula
Mercy and the audition
SO this afternoon was day 3 of auditions for our local talent show at our high school. Phillip, my 16 year old, Joseph, my 13 year old and Joseph's friend, Matt, also 13 had their audition at 4:45 with two songs that Phillip wrote and they said it was COOL. The show is the end of March and from what I hear, there will be some great talent performing here in our community that night. The boys have two more weeks to practice their performance in our basement AND two more weeks to decide on a name for their band (they change band names as much as they change their ring-tones).
I'm now reading Jodi Picoult's novel Mercy. The hubby read it before me and warned me that I probably will not be a big fan of this book. HA! How could that be, I love all of Jodi's books so far. Well, he may be right. So far, there is one major male jerk-off in the story and I am not happy with him. I'm hoping he gets what he deserves in this story - that or drops dead. I bought Jodi's new novel Change of Heart and that is my next read, however, to date, My Sister's Keeper is at the top of my list.
Easter is quickly approaching...we are really looking forward to some R&R in Boston :)
Time for this mom to go to sleep. Nicholas, it was so good to have you home the past three days and have fun in Montreal the rest of the week with your friends - oh, and when you talk to Jen again, tell her we said "HI!" and Tony, have a good time in Florida next week and give Meghan a hug for us :)
~Paula
Thanksgiving memories
Happy Blitz Day (or Black Friday)! Has everyone done their shopping today with the Day After Thanksgiving sales? Not I. I don't get anywhere near the mall on this day. I simply don't like crowds and standing in long lines. I find it much easier, and cozier, to sit at my desk and click away at online sales ;) Well, I am almost finished with my holiday shopping so I'm not doing too bad this year...
How was everyone's Thanksgiving? Filling I hope :) We had a terrific turkey day at Sturbridge Village, Massachusetts. The food was divine and the day was perfect - 60 degrees - who would have thought we would have 60's in mid November?
Here are some pics of my gang from Thanksgiving 2007
Food was yummy!
Phil, Nick, Anna, Tony & Joseph
Guess Dad was the only one ready for this shot
Phil, Tony, Joseph, Anna & Nick
Phil, Nick, Anna, Joseph & Tony
Me and the kids hanging at the village bank
Hope you had a wonderful day with your friends and family! I'm off now - back to a busy day of taxiing. Joseph found out he made the middle school A (Red) team and he has a practice, Phillip has bb practice, Tony has a doctor appointment and I've got to get some groceries so we have food in this house again.
Have a super weekend!
Paula
Hanging with the Governor
Governor Jim Douglas of Vermont that is. It was so cool. My 7th grade son Joseph and his friend Randy were chosen from their school to lead the fall festival parade in our town and hold the sign for Governor Douglas (with the Gov and his wife following them). Check it out - J is the one smiling at the camera behind the big green guy.
Anyhoo, that was fun. And Governor Douglas is a very nice gentleman - after the parade he had his security/bodyguard drive Joseph and Randy back to our house, and of course as a mother, my first question to J was, "Did you say thank you?"
So that was our excitement for the weekend.
Anybody reading a good book lately? Let me know. I love chatting about books and authors.
Time to scoot - I have a haircut today AND it is gorgeous today - 60 and so fall like.....FINALLY!
Cheers,
Paula
A Mama's Rant and the Superbowl
is my topic of discussion today.
First of all, Boo Hoo for the Chicago Bears! Chicago, my birthplace, although I haven't stepped foot in that city for years. I was rooting for the Bears, our whole family was. Oh well. Another football season come and gone.
While we are on the subject of sports...Yay for the Hilltoppers!!! You are asking right now, who the hell are the Hilltoppers correct?? My 9th grade son's basketball team, that's who. They played this past week in a tounament and beat Spaulding 53-30 to come in 1st place!!! What a great way to end the season St J :) Congratulations boys!!
Now on to more serious matters...
My Anna Banana took a serious spill on the stairwell this past Saturday night and ended up with a bloody mouth, swollen lip, bruised upper gums and a loose tooth. And a very scared and sad mama. After holding Anna and holding an ice pack to her mouth (and having her chew up some tylenol tabs) for an hour or so, she wanted to go to bed as she was tired in the first place. My heart sank when while I was holding her, wiping her tears she looked up at me and said "Mama, I wish that wouldn't have happened to me..." By Sunday she was feeling better and was able to eat soft foods just fine and today, well, she announced to me that her mouth feels good enough to eat a chewy granola bar -
That is great news to this mama's ears :)
The Queen Bee Stings Again...or So She Thinks
Personally, I think it's quite comical. Most of you don't know what or who I am talking about so let me fill you in...
I live in a small town - a very small town. It's a pretty village - and there are some really great people here that my family and I are friends with. However, ever since moving here five years ago, we have come to know some of the town folk who are, shall we say, bad news. I would say there are a handful or so of these town folk, so, we are polite if need be, but just mind our own business and do not mingle with them.
Up until today I have kept quiet and just laughed off this one mom in particular, however, starting today - I'm going to say what I feel like saying about her and you know what? I don't give a shit.
This mom that I am speaking of is very insecure, seethingly jealous and I do believe has serious mental problems. She enjoys being negative, she enjoys trying to hurt others and she is just plain miserable - so, she takes it out on others. Basically, she is a bitch and enjoys it. She tries to control all of her family and the few friends that she has and I have talked to others about grown women with this disorder - and guess what?! There actually is a name for it! "Queen Bee Syndrome" A friend of mine told me to check out this book entitled Mean Girls Grown Up by Cheryl Dellasega, Ph.D so I picked it up and read it. Bingo! I have diagnosed (let's just call her Kat) Kat's problem - or at least part of it. (Part of her issues may go back deeper in her childhood as she told me when I moved here that her father left her family for a neighbor mom he was hot after - great dad!) Kat is a CATTY MOM. She grew up a CATTY GIRL and now she continues her role as "The Queen Bee" (or so she thinks she is). As Cheryl states in her wonderful book - "The Queen Bee is all grown up and ready to sting - mean girls grow up to be mean women." In other words - she is a female BULLY (also called Relational Aggression). She has to lie to get where she wants to be, to have that control that she desires. She back stabs others continuously, even her so called friends. I remember when we moved to this town she was all over me - friendly, filling me in on everyone in the town, negative and positive, but mostly negative about her so called friends. She denies it to this day - but she forgets - there was a witness to her words - my husband, and he remembers very well her mean, negative words she had on some of our great friends here today. And what is very sad about the whole thing is that she is raising her two kids to be exactly like her.
I have told her in the past that jealousy is not a pretty thing and it is not becoming on her. You know what? She gets uglier by the minute.
So there. I have gotten that off my chest and boy do I feel better. Now, to get back to work and stop wasting anymore of my time on her.
I think I have just stomped on a bee.
Happy Mother's Day and Oh, My Boys are Famous...
well, not really - YET.
Tonight our town had a local Battle of the Bands held at the Town Hall and three of my four sons were in it with their bands. My youngest son, Joseph has been waiting for this nght for two months now and the poor kid ends up sicker than a dog, staying home from school sleeping it off - there was no way in hell he was missing this event. I can understand why - he is the band's drummer baby!
So we have my sons Joseph (11) who plays the drums, Phillip (14) on the bass guitar and Nick (17) on the electric guitar and they all sing as well. The three are in a band called - get this....Petting Zoo. They just came up with that name last week. You gotta love it. They played a couple songs and were awesome - this mama was proud :) Then my son Nick (electric guitar) is in another band with three other friends and they have officially chosen a name.....ready.....The Picks. Hmmmmmm. They played three songs and the crowd went wild! There were others involved in the event, and they were all great, however, in the end, the crowd was asked to vote on the best of the best - by screaming and cheering (good GOD), and the lucky winners were......The Picks! I was proud of all my guys :)
So, my 17 year old teenage son, Nick, from The Picks, who drove seperate from us in the truck, must have been so excited because he arrives home about five minutes after us and he comes in and annouces he has just realized that he left his guitar somewhere.....WHAT? He thinks he remembers leaving it leaning on the truck as he was loading his other gear into the back and then with all the excitement drove off and left his "baby" behind, possibly run over and crushed. Can you say, DUH?
Guess that was a little to much excitement for him in one night.
Well, Mother's Day is just around the corner. For dessert I am getting homemade Banana pudding with Nilla Wafers - oh yeah! I also will be walking on my new treadmill - can't wait. I will be the ultimate multi-tasking mama - walking, reading and listening to my podshow :)
Come check out my special Mother's Day show with Bestselling Author Jacquelyn Mitchard and Hollywood Actress from ABC's Desperate Housewives, Brenda Strong. This is a show you won't want to miss! www.momwriterstalkradio.com
Chatting with actress Brenda Strong and a migraine check up for J
Well, today has been some kind of day for this mom let me tell you.
For starters, I took my youngest son, Joseph, to a pediatric neurologist to get his head checked - for MIGRAINES. The poor guy, he is only 11 years old and he has inherited his mother's head problems!! He has had headaches on and off for the past two years, however, they have gotten worse - much worse. So, it was time to see the doc about it all. Joseph was very comfortable with the physician, and so was I, and we now have a LOG to keep track of all J's headaches and everything he ate and did the day he got the headache....should be interesting - but we need to track down the triggers so J can stop kneeling down at the toilet feeling like his insides are going to come gushing out and the throbbing pain behind his eyes goes away! It is not a good feeling, I know. So, we have a plan and Joseph is happy and so is his mama...
After being gone today from 11am to 4pm, it was time to prepare for a phone chat (Mom Writer's Talk Radio interview) with actress and mom writer Brenda Strong!!! OMG!! I was so happy and nervous at the same time. I just want to say that Brenda (who is on the TV series Desperate Housewives and was in the movie The Deep End of the Ocean, and in gobs of other movies and TV shows) is one amazing lady!! She was so easy to talk with and fun and so down-to-earth - Please check out this special Mother's Day show with Brenda Strong and Jackie Mitchard the week of May 12th at Mom Writer's Talk Radio www.momwriterstalkradio.com :)
My kids are growing up...
Am I getting old?
Nah!!! Some days I just feel like I am, but, I see my children getting bigger and older, which means I am getting older too. The hubby says no worries Paula, you are still 29...he knows the right thing to say. Well, at least my hair is still its natural color.
My oldest son, Tony, is about to end his first year of college already. Where the hell did his first year go? He will be 19 before I know it...Nineteen!!
My next son, Nick, is 17 and graduating high school in a month or so and then after summer he is off to college which is over 3 hours away...how will that one ever manage without me?
Phillip, son number three, (14) is entering high school in the fall. Seems as though he was just a chubby little tike, smiling and puking all the time (one of his all time favs) and now he is entering 9th grade!
My fourth son, Joseph, just turned 11 and will be going into middle school next year - good God, middle school?! Seems we were just doing the potty training and teaching him how to tie his shoes...now this kid is doing everything - he plays all sports, does gymnastics, can play the piano, guitar and the drums, he loves to write stories and can create the most amazing drawings. We went for a conference the other day to chat with his 5th grade teacher and we were surprised when he recommended "Julliard" for Joseph. Swell guy. Maybe Joseph will make it to Julliard some day, I have no doubt that he will.
Okay, my fifth child, Anna Grace is 4 now. She will be driving before I know it, the way time is slipping away. And by the time Anna is driving, I will need to color my hair!
Ok, ok, I need to snap out of it and stop being so depressing already. This is Easter weekend and we are planning to devour one of our own home grown hams and eat all of our own eggs (that's right from our own piggies and chicks), there's nothing better.
Happy Easter to all!
My Daughter's Mouth...
is now all shiny.
The poor gal needed some major dental work and today was the day. We left this morning with our 4 year old Anna and drove an hour and 20 minutes to the hospital arriving at 10:45am. We were so proud of her, she was such a trooper. After prepping and drinking the loopey sedative drink, within 15 minutes our daughter was seeing two moms and two dads (loopey loopey). Then she was out - we kissed her and we were sent to the waiting area for the next few hours. The poor kid needed 5 crowns, 3 pulpotomies, 2 fillings and a cleaning...Yikes.
The time came when the surgery was over and the doctor came to chat with us - Phew, relief. All went well. It was time to go to recovery....
Back to loopey space cadet - Yay! She was awake and her mouth was shining, perfect and beautiful...and no more bad breath :)
Thank you Dr. Diner.
I Am Off....
AGAIN.
I only have a few minutes as I am heading out the door for my two younger sons music lessons - Phillip plays bass guitar and Joseph the drums. Mind you I left the house at 9 this morning to take my oldest son Tony who is home from college to a doctor appointment AND my youngest Joseph to a doctor appointment AND to run several other errands while I was out, returning at 2:30pm.
I have a pounding headache, however, I shall go on.
Yes, I will drive for a half hour with my two sons to their lessons with the radio blaring rock music and then go to their lessons and listen to the bass guitar and the rockin' drums and then I will get back into the car, drive home while listening to the radio blaring rock music...sounds like a good time don't ya think?
Ok, I guess I should get my butt up off this chair and go...
Maybe the hubby will offer to tote this week and I will stay home and make the family dinner!
Can you say FROZEN PIZZAS...?!
A Houseful of Boys...
Just shoot me.
How I ever agreed with my 11 year old son, Joseph, to invite a bunch of 10 and 11 year old boys for a (belated) birthday sleepover is beyond me. Don't get me wrong - these are good kids and I love having them over - but all at once?! What the hell was I thinking? I wasn't, that's the problem.
After some pizza and garlic knots they decided to head down to the game room for some music - Blaring Punk Rock Music. I guess that got my son Joseph in the mood to entertain his guests, so the drums were rockin'-and-rollin' for the next, oh..., HOUR.
Where the hell were my earplugs?
Then everyone up for an ice cream treat - Yay! Five minutes later - back down to the game room where not only Joseph entertained his friends, but his older brothers decided to join in on their electric and bass guitars for the next ...HOUR.
Tylenol before bed did the trick.
One last check to say goodnight - I found them playing video games and listening to... more music, their heads bobbing up and down to the beat.
As I stood there quietly at the door unnoticed, I had to smile. What an awesome bunch of boys who have a great friendship together. I am one lucky mom who will get to watch these kids grow up and become fine young men...
By the way, I never did find the damn earplugs.
Who Ate All The Pizzas?!
OK, so it has happened again - I was planning all day to have pizza for dinner tonight(knew that we had pizzas in the freezer as I checked this morning) and I just whipped open the freezer door (as the stomach is grumbling and I need to feed my family something) to see an empty shelf! I just couldn't contain myself and yelled at the top of my lungs, "Who ate all the damn pizzas?! Where the hell did they go?!"
I buy at least 10 frozen pizzas a week and on the night that I want to have one they are no where to be found!
So, I track my 14 year old teenage son Phillip down and just give him the look (you know the look) and he looks back at me and just says, "What?" Then my 17 year old teenage son Nick walks in, looks at us and says, "What?" with his arrogant smirk.
Enough is enough. This mom needs to find a hiding spot for the damn pizza - either that or buy more pizzas every week. And I thought once my oldest son, Tony left for college that the pizza issue would disappear - wrong. That kid could put down 2 pizzas a day for God sake!
OK Paula, get over the fact that you are NOT enjoying a nice cheese and pepperoni pizza tonight.
Now, to top it all off, I am scrambling to figure out what to have for dinner tonight and my 10 year old son, Joseph and 4 year old daughter, Anna enter the kitchen and ask, "Can we have pizza tonight?"
Kids.
Winter Break Blues
Hello all you awesome mamas out there in weblog land! My blog - What Did You Do All Day? is fiiiiinnnnaaaallly here! It took some time to get here - like, crazy me, sitting up until 2 am last night to bring this thing to life, but hey, I'm happy - Tired as hell, but happy...
So, I wake up this morning and wipe the sleep from my eyes, stagger down the hall to the bathroom, which by the way could pass for a meat freezer, splash some ice cold water on my face to help wake my tired eyes and as I start my morning shower I realize that it is STILL WINTER BREAK. Another day with the kids home from school, fighting and whining, complaining and nagging at each other until this mom is about to explode! I don't get it - when they are in school all I hear is that they want and need a vacation at home. Then when they are on vacation at home, they are freekin BORED!
It's neverending.
I've decided to take time off from work tomorrow ( I'm a writermama and I have a home office for those who don't know me) and take the gang out to see a matinee - God only knows what's playing these days...I did hear Curious George is out - How cool is that? That will have to do for my 4 year old daughter as the boys will want to see a bit more action while shoveling the popcorn. Then on the drive home I will get to listen to the boys rehashing the movie and arguing over what was the coolest scene and what was the dumbest (usually the kissy face love scene wins here). I'll keep my mouth shut as I'm sure my guys won't care to hear about how Curious George likes to eat bananas and swing from tree to tree...
So, NO basketball this week for the boys - That sucks. It's winter break for crying out loud! Personally, I miss it. Actually the season is over for my younger boys (their middle school team won the championship - Yay!) however my senior, Nick, has playoff games starting next week - Go Red Devils!
OK, OK, so that's this mama's rant for the day - I feel much better now, thank you very much.
And as for winter break...3 days left and counting for this mama's sanity......
