The Beginning of Summer

QUOTE OF THE DAY: “I will eviscerate you in fiction…I was naked for a day, but you will be naked for Eternity.”—Chaucer, A Knight’s Tale

Random question of the day: Why is it that your kids play their WORST soccer when you’re filming them for posterity, and as soon as you put the video camera away in embarrassment, they go on to score two goals and five major assists and play the best they ever have?

It's all a mystery.

A few fellow soccer moms and I were lamenting that fact on Saturday, during Thing One’s last soccer game of the season. To put it kindly, all of the girls on her team were playing horribly bad, and at one point their coach yelled out at the field in exasperation: “Did you girls all have a sleepover or something? WAKE UP!!” Thank heaven they did wake up (AFTER I put the camera away) and won the game. Close one, if you ask me. (At least Thing One did well in the water balloon fight afterwards-- I did get some stellar footage of her braining one of her coaches with a major water bomb).

Weekend was busy, I got absolutely no writing done, but my goal is about 1000 words a day every day this week. Going to make myself sit down and do it. I also have a lot of running around to do, which should be interesting to do with all of my children since school is now out for summer.

I have decided that my kids are officially old enough for (drum roll please) CHORES. Granted they have been doing chores sporadically for a few years now, so the concept of chores isn’t entirely foreign to them, but I think until they get into the “swing” of doing chores on a routine basis, said chores will be right up there on the Enjoyment Factor List with…say, going to the Dentist and taking cough medicine.
But I’m determined to do it. I’m making up these cute chore charts too. And I’ll go to Walmart and buy a bunch of dollar toys, and put them into a huge basket. Every Saturday, if they’ve done their chores for the week, they will get to pick out of the basket. I’ll let you know if it works.

I have about 6 men currently in my yard—they’re trenching out our downspouts, re-mulching our flower beds, replacing our shrubs and trees that died in the winter (all of my shrub roses perished—wahhhh!) and so I guess we won’t be playing on our playground for a couple of days. My kids are already whining, so I guess we’ll be having lunch at the neighborhood park today.

Ah, the beginning of Summer…