I've my blog! You can keep up with our family here at http://ourfamilythelooneybin.blogspot.com/.

This happened last week.

 

KJ and I had been eating sandwiches for lunch for several days, and I was hungry for a hot meal. I looked around the kitchen and found 1/2 lb. of ground beef and a box of 3 Cheese Hamburger Helper...actually it was the generic Panburger Helper. No, this is not organic, but it IS cheap and KJ and I really love it. If we have this for supper with David, I use a whole pound of meat and stretch it by adding a box of regular mac and cheese (which IS organic). But since it was just me and KJ, I fixed a small amount for the two of us. I even added a little leftover chicken broth to give it some more flavor. It looked and smelled soooo good even before I added some Bacon Ranch dressing to my plateful. We flopped on the couch to eat and talk. KJ had his plate on the coffee table, but I had mine in my lap, sort of balanced on one knee though I was holding it with one hand.  We ate and discussed Napolean Dynamite while Fuller and Emily (2 of the cats) played chase through the house.

 

{The stage has now been set}

 

I had eaten about half my plate when Fuller ran into the room, leaped over my head, landed on the back of the couch, and ran to the other end. Emily was right on her tail, but unfortunately when Emily leaped, she crashed into the bottom of my plate... There was Hamburger Helper mixed with Ranch dressing in my lap, on my shirt, in my hair, on the couch, on the wall behind the couch, on the remote controls on the coffee table, and on the floor. I put my plate on the table and proceeded to have a hissy fit. KJ said that I was cursing at the cats. I honestly have no recollection of what I said. I do remember chasing the cats around trying to beat them, stomping my feet and yelling. Then I burst into tears over throwing a fit. KJ was saying, "It's okay Mom. You just go clean yourself up. I'll clean up in here. Just go into the bathroom. It's okay." I was blubbering, "I'm sorry. It's not your fault. I'll clean up. Just finish eating." Repeat this exchange several times.

 

Eventually, I hopped in the shower and changed clothes. When I got out, KJ had stripped the couch, moved my plate to the sink, wiped the wall and remotes, and hidden the cats in his room.

 

The cats have since been forgiven.

 

 

 

KJ performed in a fighting demonstration today with a local Renaissance group. David took the picture since I was at docent training at the zoo.  Doesn't KJ look cute? KJ mainly fenced, but he did work the broad swords some too. They have a whole back story as to why his hair is pink. He was trying to stop some men from vandalizing the local dyers shop and they shoved his head in a vat of dye. He attended practice last week and since he enjoyed it so much, he plans to perform with them regularly.

This happened during the big motherboard crash and I forgot to blog about it until now.

 

The scene: a lovely Friday night around 10:30. It's not a school night so KJ is up playing on the computer. David has already gone to sleep, and I'm just lying in bed reading a book.

 

While reading, I happened to see something right at the edge of my vision. I looked down just in time to see a small spider crawling across the sheet covering my chest. Now, I don't know about you, but my first reaction to seeing a spider on me is to get it off NOW. I ripped the sheet from my body and went from prone to standing on the bed in .0025 of a second.

 

Problem #1: I don't know where the spider is. I began to shake out the sheet, blankets, pillows...no spider. I looked around on the floor by my side of the bed...no spider. I should mention here that we only have a queen size bed and David had not even moved and was still sound asleep.

 

Problem #2: There is no way I'll be able to stay in the bed knowing we have a renegade spider.

 

Solution: I get a blanket from KJ's bed and move to the couch. KJ decided that I could not be content stretched out on the couch alone (with leg room), and must need company. He managed to squish his large body in by my feet leaving me to try and sleep with my knees up by my chest.

 

After about 20 minutes or so, KJ who could see into the bedroom from his end, said "I think David found the spider."  I turned to see David standing next to the bed frantically brushing at his head. I said, "Oh good, you found the spider." (In hindsight, that wasn't the best thing I could have said.) David said he woke up to something crawling on his forehead. I found the spider sitting on David's pillow. I swear the thing was smiling at me. It was sent for a swim in the toilet, KJ went to his bed, and David and I both returned to our bed.

 

Conclusion: All was once again quiet and calm when David said, "Next time you find a spider, wake me up."

Lots of interesting things have been happening around here. Unfortunately, most of them involve KJ and things he prefers not to have discussed on the internet. Think overly analytical male teenager and girls and you can surmise the rest.

 

In other news, I massively overscheduled last week and this week. I feel like I'm meeting myself coming and going. We've added in a weekly drum lesson...taught by someone else...an expensive someone else, and yes, I realize that I have a degree in music with a percussion concentration. KJ has decided that he can not possibly learn to read music from me. I am just too confusing. I listened in on last weeks lesson and expensive someone else taught KJ EXACTLY THE SAME WAY that I did! Of course, KJ picked it right up. Admittedly, they have a good rapport and KJ is estatic about the lessons, whereas KJ and I usually argue all the way through one.

 

We've also added in a weekly group walk/hike which will start next week. KJ keeper shadowed mammals at the zoo last week and is doing birds today. No, we don't unschool...it just seems that way lately.

 

The rest of KJ's schoolwork is coming along okay. He likes the math class at the community college. Our professor is pretty laid back and there are some interesting (weird) characters in our class. His Latin tutor says he is fine there, and his writing and drafting teacher says the same. Sign language has slowed down, but we're still learning. The same can be said for history and science. I DO need to get KJ moving along on his reading though. He has stalled out.

 

I had my first day of docent training at the zoo last Saturday. I have two more Saturdays of training and six docent shadowings before I'm ready to be on my own. So far, I'm loving it! If KJ is accepted into Zoo Crew, we'll both be working camps this summer.

 

David and I went up to Fort Worth for a quick visit and to deliver some stuff for my nieces. I'll post pics here.