Character

Yesterday, Laurel started to tell me about her day at preschool. Before she would cry the whole way home (because she didn't want to leave preschool) and was angry at me for picking her up. So I couldn't get a word out of her.

And you know what she told me about preschool?

That Madelene got hurt and cried, which she did. And she got a bright green bandaid.

She learns a lot there, I can tell.

Actually I went into the classroom and the teacher dismissed them one by one, as the parent came in, so they were all listening to the teacher. Which is really great. So she's starting to listen to other adults and respect them. (Yes very good.)

We just got into this huge thing about discipline just a couple weeks ago, (not with Laurel, with another parent) and it had to do with respecting the adult in the classroom. She didn't believe in discipline at all, and we do. It was really crazy to believe, and we had to stand firm in our belief, that children need to have those rules and guidelines, and when they step over those rules, the guidelines need to be re-enforced. How is it that God expects any less of us? If we let our kids run around without having rules and such, how is that helping their character? I guess building character just isn't important anymore. Well guess what, it is to me, so I'm going to be the one parent that stands out and protests and the other parents are going to hate me and not let their kids come over to our house because they might actually learn some of that so called "character."

I love what I heard the other day about the best parental advice. It was actually Judge Judy who said it, (and I don't exactly believe most things she believes, but the quote is good) And it was (paraphrased, since I don't know the actual words she used): Until your kids are 18, you need to be a parent to them; you have all the time after they become an adult to be their "friend." Your kids will have plenty of friends up until that point.

I know a lot of parents who want to be friends to their kids, and really I wish they could see what it does to their character. I love my kids, but I love the fact that they respect me, and when they leave my house they respect whoever the adult is. I don't have to worry if my kids are being bad by disrespecting who is in charge or the other kids in the class.

And I'm going to be totally jealous of their friends until they turn 18.

Everything

I know I haven't been consistant in blogging, and honestly, I keep looking at the blank blogger screen and sit here for a very long time thinking about what I can write, with my mind just as blank as the screen before me.

It's really chilly here today. I thought that I would welcome the cold for great running weather, but I've forgotten how much it goes straight to your bones and you never really warm up. No, I much prefer the rainy weather to this.

I love Laurel being at school. I love the fact that I have 2 kids to dedicate my time to and that at the end of the day, I get to take a breather, and mom watches the other 2 while I pick-up Laurel. Laurel cries right now when she leaves, because she doesn't want to leave preschool. But hey, there are downsides to everything.

Dar seems to be benifiting from this too, on Tuesdays and Thursdays, it's like she becomes the oldest sister and she's been helping me out and just growing up. It's been nice, actually. She is going to be so excited to go to preschool the year after, since she already plays with kids pretty well (for a two year old).

Yeah this is rather informational, but hey, I can't be everything to everybody.

It's "called" a supply line.

Yeah I forgot about this until mom and I were just talking about it. And my mom thought I was lying, but oh well I'll tell it anyways (it IS the truth, it really happened).

Josh and his dad were fixing the toilet, as I so told you a few days ago or so. So we had to pick up a part to fix it, which happened to be a hose for the water line. So we got it all measured out and found out how many hoses there are for these, which we thought it was standard, everyone we talked to did. (Just goes to show you can't do what everyone does.) We go to check out and this guy runs it across the scanner, and tells my mom the price and all that. Mom writes out a check. "Who do I make it out to?" she asks. "Lowe's." (Yes for 2 bucks and some obscure little cents....) "And what is that part called?" "A toilet hose!" I pipe out. The cashier looks at me and says, "It's "called" a supply line." He must of thought I was a really stupid blonde because he gave me a dumb look.

But I bet really stupid blondes who think they can fix toilets come into Lowe's all the time.

Okay, well it's funny to me and no one else.

So what else is new?

Bob series

We got a new Bob the Tomato baseball, so I decided to take some pictures of it.
 

Bob takes a shower in the morning.


He gets a cup of coffee...


Gets into the car and goes to work...


Joins the rest of the food family for some Preschool applesauce made by Laurel.

They all mourned for the loss of an apple friend, but the applesauce was good, so he wasn't so missed.


I thought that was fried GREEN tomatoes, Bob. You don't want to end up like the apple...


And after an exhausting day, he falls fast asleep.

Bonus

Well one really great thing came out of our weekend, and that is our toilet doesn't rock anymore. However, it leaks now, so it's been shut off for this week until we can get around to fixing it. Hopefully the other one will hold up to the pressure.

I've never been the type of person to make a huge thing out of something little. And I don't just ask for advice like I should, I am just too stubborn, (and proud for that matter.) But when it becomes a problem that could hurt many people, I start reacting and asking for advice.

I hate being an adult most times, I'd just rather sneak away from problems and forget they exist. Josh is not like that at all. Unless it has to do with housework, then he's all for the sneaking away part.

I think we all want to sneak away sometimes.

Like the people I love who turn the other direction when they see Josh and I coming. I find it kind of funny, in a way, and I wonder if it's me or Josh they are avoiding. Why not face us and say I don't want to talk to or see you ever again, or something solid and blunt like that. I doubt I'll cry when I've been slammed like that, but it makes the situation a lot easier, instead of the whole crowd parting like the red sea to avoid us. It gets a little obvious after a while.

And that would be why I want nothing to do with people. I really don't give them a chance to find out who I am, because I find most are too caught up in their own worlds to have room for me. So why bother? I'm just too huge and complicated to be separated into the "friends" category. I'll be honest, you are going to hate me, you'll love me, you'll want to spit at me, and at the same time want to know what I think about something. I just am not a simple person. I belong in the "friends" "enemies" "listener" "You're going to hate me advice giver," well pretty much anywhere, I just have a lot of different things about me. And oh did I mention "hand me over to the devil on a platter, so he can kill me" kind of "friend".

And somehow, the idea of being a hermit still appeals to me. I like me. If someone else does too, hey, bonus.

Yeah, by the way, this isn't a plea for everyone to tell me they like me, (so don't line up all at once) just let me know if you don't, it'll make it easier on both of us.

LOL

Whatever.

Oh that was fun.

To be continued rant

I finally got Josh out to bike ride with me early this morning. We will see how he feels later today. (To be continued)

Don't you just hate to be continues? You wait for so long anyways to see some show and then it has to be continued and you never see the next part until you've seen the first part like 10 times, and finally get to see the second part at the most inconvenient time, but you sit down anyways because you haven't seen it and you want to just get the whole thing over with.

Most times it's just not worth it.

Not that I really watch much tv, because I really don't, but to be continues are just annoying, why not just make a movie instead?!

I can remember going for weeks with 5 to be continues, and that was the summer that my brother and I spent in my mom's boyfriends basement, watching tv and drinking a ton of his pop. And let me tell you, he got off cheap, we were just that easy to please. Anyways, that was probably the most relaxing summer I ever had, watching re-runs of Welcome back, Kotter. And any Nickelodeon show we could get our hands on, (and that was the In Living Color and Saved by the Bell era, which we actually didn't watch, but that's just how long ago it was...)

Yeah I feel old, just for the pure fact that, that particular summer was 10 years ago.

I'm really not that old yet. And I don't plan on feeling old until I hit 80, then I just deserve to feel my age.

I'm done. No to be continued's here.

Phases

Everything I do is in phases. It's so odd. I'm not sure if it's because I just can't focus for more than days at a time on one thing, or I just need to change what I do just that often.

A week ago I was writing out song ideas like mad. Then a couple days later I got into trying to play someone else's music, somewhat proficiently. Yesterday I started listening to new songs, and the songwriting went down the tubes, however I still want to play, so hey, whatever. I always want to play music, so at least that's something consistent.

Craziness.

It is so weird that it is 130 right now, it seems like I just got out of bed, at 8 something this morning. The day has been just that way today.

Oh and I feel so much better today too. I wasn't really feeling myself these last few days, I was half sick, half suffering from a bee sting that encompassed my whole upper arm. Not that everyone wants to hear the story but hey, that's the shortest version I've got. The bee got what he wanted. I suffered. It's all good. Now. I wasn't too thrilled about it 2 days ago.

Wow. I better stop writing before I start ranting or something crazy like that.

Everything today.

Well today is my brother's birthday, you'd think with how far back I can remember, that I would remember when he came home with us. But I don't. Maybe I just didn't want him.

I can remember what our house looked like when I was a year old. Who knows why I decided to take a picture of our living room in my head and my sister coming down the hall. For whatever reason, it stuck.

I always have to get up in the middle of a blog, and this time I danced across the room and got the girls going.

Oh! Laurels first day of preschool is today, so I only have Dar and Cassie. So weird not having Laurel here, but I could get used to it. Josh had a harder time dropping her off than Laurel did. I guess Laurel walked into the room and one of the little girls came up to her and said, Hi Laurel! I saw you yesterday! And they started playing together, talking about how the other girl got to ride a bus. Then another girl came into the classroom and she ran up to Laurel and hugged her. And the three started playing, and I guess the little boy that used to be our next door neighbor was following Laurel around. What a socialite, without even trying! I wish I was so effortless!

Cassie started singing today, it's a lot of muffled words, but at least she is giving it a try. And I can recognize her words, somewhat.

That's it for today.

Hey wait a minute.

Okay this isn't from my running route, but she's so cute, even when spagettified. 

Highlights of my running route, Part 3: The story of Ransom Reed.

Here's the story of Ransom Reed. 


Ransom Reed is the poor man that now lives on the corner of a busy intersection. His body lays in the path of oncoming cars, and his feet get run over every single time a car passes by. I even managed to step on him, last week, quite accidently when I stepped off the road for a car to pass by. Sorry Ransom.

I've heard it told that even way back when, (in the 70s) his headstone (we hope his head isn't getting run over.) kept getting busted because drunk drivers would run into it. I hope Ransom had a really easy life, because his afterlife hasn't looked too good.

However he gets a new tombstone every few years or so, how's that for nice???