SCHOOL IS OUT! Yeah! I think I get as excited about it as my children do. (Christian has six more school days, but for all intents and purposes... SCHOOL IS OUT!) I look so forward to 10 weeks of sheer unscheduled chaos. Not that this is so drastically different from our normal operational mode, but we definitely step up the chaos a notch or two. Of course, after 10 weeks of this, I will be longing for my "routine" (it's all relative) again!

I have attempted to come up with a summer schedule for the family. You see, on paper, I am an organizational wonder. If one could look at my graphically pleasing lists and schedules, they'd be so impressed. My kid's have some of the best looking chore charts I've ever seen. If I could remember to print them out and post them, we'd really have something! I've come up with a list that I think is reasonable and workable, delegating a host of chores to each child. I've allowed for a modest amount of flexibility and negotiation, added a reward/bribery feature, and all in all, I'd say we're good to go! I've put the printing and posting of the schedule on my "to do" list, which I will get to as soon as I print that out! Again, the well-oiled machine I call home...

Well, for those who have never actually seen "golf-ball sized hail"--feast your eyes on this... We had a doozey of a storm yesterday! Christian and I were home alone when the worst hit. I immediately sent him into my walk-in closet while I made some quick calls to Jeff and David (ironically enough, on their way to David's baseball game) and Brittany who was with friends. Just mere minutes later I realized Christian was NOT in the closet as I had supposed, and rather was running around in the front yard trying to collect a bowl of hail! I sure hope the neighbors were able to witness this bit of stellar parenting. Probably not, I'm sure they had all heeded the warning of the tornado sirens screaming through town and had the sense to hole up in a windowless room. We just like to maintain our "crazy Californian's" image. Christian is always coming up with clever ways to do that.

Aside from some damage to my geraniums and marigolds, which really just hastened their death before I could kill them myself, we came through the storm unscathed. Today the sun is out, there is a nice gentle breeze and just a hint of the blistering humidity that is to come! Ahhh, midwest living, predictably unpredictable!

Well I hope you all had a delightful Mother's Day! Mine was quite nice. Jeff and Brittany prepared a tasty lunch (bbq steak, corn, asparagus, mashed potatoes and perhaps the most delicious bread ever!) and even better, the whole gang cleaned up the kitchen while I sat comfortably in the recliner, perusing through a host of television shows. I believe I'd like to celebrate Mother's Day more often.

Brittany is turning into a pretty good cook. We've come up with a good working arrangement several nights a week where she cooks, I clean up! This is agreeable to all involved since she HATES doing dishes which I don't mind much at all, while I am not a big fan of cooking and she enjoys it a great deal. I am happy that she will go into adulthood better equipped to feed her family than I was (although, evidence would show that we've done alright!) I remember my mother as a pretty good cook (with exception to her stroganoff and the spam and pineapple number!) but she didn't pass these skills on much. I have a distinct memory of calling her about a month after I got married to find out how to hard boil eggs. There was a salmon casserole incident early on that Jeff still likes to bring up and I have not fried chicken since I was 19 due to some lasting emotional scarring I received from the experience. It took nearly five years before my in-laws asked me to contribute anything more than a relish tray and soda pop for holiday gatherings.

We have been in the process of painting Brittany's room a lovely, sunny yellow. Home improvement projects are always a bit of an adventure around our home. I am a terrible perfectionist, without the skills to accomplish what I desire. Jeff is neither a perfectionist nor a skilled carpenter, but he has a willing heart! We ran into a bit of a snag with the taping. Brittany's room has high ceilings, and Jeff was the only one who could get high enough on the ladder to reach them. I think I am pretty lucky I didn't get paint poured on my head as I stood below him critiquing his tape alignment. We haven't removed the tape as of yet, but I am determined to hold my tongue should the paint line be less than perfect.

If we stay on track from here on out, I believe Christian will complete the 4th grade on June 6, a mere 6 days behind schedule. I have been having a rough homeschooling month, however I've been assured by homeschool veterans, that the last month of the school year is notoriously challenging. I seem to be spending a good deal of my time getting after the boy, and often fear that his memories of his mother will forever be accompanied by the sound of a cracking whip! Or perhaps worse, a hissing cat!

Well, were off to another baseball game tonight. Between baseball, golf, tennis, both David and Brittany working, and orthodontist appointments, it seems I'm wearing my chauffer hat a lot lately. I've stocked the car with a selection of scrapbooking magazines to amuse myself with between pick-ups! Now if I could just figure out a way to set up a work station in there too, I could really be productive! I believe there might be some potential profit in this idea. For the dedicated gal in last month's issue who spends 6-7 hours a day scrapbooking, this might enable her to really commit herself to the craft!

I'm off for now. I am going to attempt to get a load of laundry actually folded and put away! I am setting high goals for myself these days!

Hello All...

I am sure I have probably lost my readership after this unexcusable absence. I have been busy, yes, I know, a terribly overused excuse, but true nontheless. I have not been feeling particularly witty either. I'm dieting, and I suppose this drains a bit of my jolliness right out of me!

I now sport a really cool hairdo though! I lost patience with my bangs and in a rash moment, I hacked off an inch or so with Christian's school scissors. I instantly regretted it, but alas, it was a bit too late! Now, as my mother-in-law can attest, I am usually quite adept with the hair/scissor combo, but I must have had an off day. Okay, this is not quite the truth. The only time I have ever heard my mother-in-law be mean was when commenting on my hairdressing skills, something about Jeff looking like he'd escaped from an institution... but this was bad even for me! I am now doing that 80's satelite dish thing with my bangs, you know, the big curl and pouf thing, in an attempt to camoflauge the damage. Now would be a good time for me to scrapbook about my inner beauty!

We are nearing the end of the school year, and we're getting antsy for summer to arrive. The kid's have all but checked out already. We are getting lax about adhering to bedtimes, and often find ourselves remembering to shuffle the kids off to bed when we ourselves realize we're tired. We are also smack-dab in the middle of baseball season, when I once again find myself barely able to keep up with the demand for clean uniforms. David is also playing on the golf team as well, which adds to the chaos. I think Christian had popcorn and gatorade for dinner last night, but I can't even definitely confirm that!

We are planting our garden tonight. We're trying to beat a thunderstorm moving in. We hope to have a bounty of tomatoes, cucumbers, jalapenos, zucchini and banana peppers. I had to laugh when we went to buy our triple-12 fertilizer and were asked if the one bag which covers 1100 sq. feet of garden would be enough. I felt momentarily ashamed of our little 5' x 8' plot. Perhaps next year I'll bring a ziplock baggie with me and just ask for a scoop! They take their gardening seriously here. Several times I've been asked how many jars I plan to put back. I don't know what this means, but am going to venture that perhaps they assume I'll be canning! What gardening means to me is... a chance to use all the cute little gardening decorations on a scrapbook page. Oh, I do enjoy the vegetation as well, but that's really just a bonus!

Well, I've got to run. The mail just arrived and around here that has become a bit of a challenge. Our 2-year-old neighbor, Oscar, has beaten us to the punch a couple of times, and he enjoys transferring our mail to his own mailbox. Now I'm happy to pass off any bills, but in the event that I've won a big sweepstakes or such, I'd like first stab at it!