I've Lost My Hands and Other Weekend Dramas...

The weekend; that two day period where we relax from the stresses of the week, right?  Wrong!    Or at least that seems to be the case for me.  The work week can be stressful, not just for me, the working mom, but for the whole family.  The kid who has tests, quizzes and homework and stresses out over EVERYTHING!  (You think I'm exaggerating?  Just a little.)  The stay at home husband who deals with the drama king kid and among other things.  (Although that Swiffer Wet Jet that I bought 2 weeks ago is STILL in the box in the bathroom.)  So it's no wonder we all look forward to the slower, relaxing pace of the weekend...Well maybe not!

The kid went to a friend's house after school on Friday, so no homework was done.  NOT that there was lots of homework; just everybody's favorite math.  So that needed to be done over the weekend.  Additionally, this upcoming Friday there is the weekly literacy quiz (which should be a breeze for the kid, but you never know), French quiz (followed by a French test the following Thursday), a math quiz AND the monthly Science current event is due.  With Thursday also being his music lesson day, I knew he'd have to get stuff done this weekend.  And somehow we'd have to get it shoved in between Halloween window painting (more on that later) and church choir.  (My son and I both sing in the church choir.  I am part of the weekly choir, while the children's choirs sing once a month.)

Since Saturday was a wretched day (wind, rain and general yuckiness), the painting was postponed.  Crappy day is the perfect day to stay in and get some work done.  Or so I hoped.  Once he got out of bed (he's already developing teen weekend sleep patterns as well as the weekday "I don't want to get out of bed and go to school" drama) and had breakfast (Count Chocula morning; at least they are only limited time sugary cereals.  After Halloween it will be back to raisin bran or oatmeal), my husband and I told him he could pretty much do whatever he wanted while we "ran" to Home Depot.  Once we got back the homework and studying had to begin.

As always, our Home Depot run took longer than I wanted.  The week before, on the coldest day of the week, our furnace did not want to come on.  Had the service person come out and take a look.  Wasn't the furnace, it was the thermostat.  Tech replaced the thermostat with a very basic model and took off.  This Friday, we got the bill for the service.  The labor was free (as was covered by our service agreement; which I had been very happy with until I saw this bill), but the cost for the thermostat was out of this world.  (Now I have been employed in the plumbing, heating and air service industry so I understand the cost of service. I also realize that in order to make a profit, as any company must, prices for equipment may be more than expected.  Having said this, the cost of this basic non-programmable unit was more than I would pay for the top of the line thermostat!)  Angry that the company that I had such faith in had installed the unit WITHOUT giving a price or options, we decided to purchase our own and have them take back the unit.  (Which, they have agreed to do.)  So it was off to Home Depot to find an appropriate replacement (that would work with our older home).  But as I said, it always takes longer than you think.  And you always get lured into other aisles and departments.  (Like the Christmas Wonderland that was set up...but that is DEFINITELY another blog post for this week.)  With all that said, we probably took a little over an hour.

Once at home, I told the boy he needed to get dressed and get started on math.  My husband went to replace the thermostat and I went to do an hour (give or take) of walk aerobics.  (With the weather getting colder and the days being darker, it's time to move inside for the morning routine.  Too many slick damp leaves that this klutzy woman could slip on.  If we get a warm snap on the weekend, maybe I'll be headed back out, but for right now my living room is my early morning walk station.) I cooled down, cleaned up and had a snack and STILL my son was working on his math.  I was worried that he was having problems.  WRONG, the kid just keeps getting distracted.  He's futzing around with Lego and such.  I just want him to get his homework done!  And I want him to move onto the next.

Finally, I was getting so frustrated that I went out.  It was nearly one by now and he'd supposedly been working on math since 10:30 or so.  (Can you see why I was losing my cool?)  I went to give an hour of my time to the church thrift shop.  (A place that is near and dear to my heart.)  When I got home after 2, he HAD finished math (sigh) and had lunch.  But now I "made" him work on his science.  (Yes, I know you have till Friday to do this, but I also know that daily homework and other stuff is going to come up and I don't want you to wait till the last minute!)  Drama!  (Especially after I told him that I wanted him to do it ALL and not just part of the assignment!  What an evil mom I am.)

By the time he'd finished everything it was nearly dinner time.  We did manage to have a nice family meal with relatively no stress. (Spaghetti is the calmer of many thing in our family.)  I even got him to practice his trumpet with little push back.  The evening was somewhat relaxing, as the boys watched some Ernie Kovacs video while I did some laundry (with spaghetti for dinner, you know laundry has to be in the cards) and then the three of us took in a few Big Bang Theory episodes before heading to bed. (I've just recently started watching the show.  I also knew I'd like it, I just never got around to watching it.  Now is the perfect time for viewing, as it makes my son and I giggle like crazy.  And the perfect way to say I'm sorry or to comfort someone in our family is now to sing "Soft Kitty.")

If I thought Sunday would be calmer and/or less drama, I was wrong.  It was off to church to sing.  While most of the service is lovely and reflective, getting there early for rehearsal can be a challenge, especially with an 11 year old in tow.  (He had to come with me early every week.)  Then finding him when it was his time to rehearse was fun (NOT).  As was getting him not to yawn or fidget when he was singing.  

Sunday, unlike Saturday was a beautiful day, but VERY WINDY.  We ran home after church and changed so that he could go do his window painting.  Every year in October, middle school aged kids can submit a picture that they want to paint on a local businesses window.  The pictures need to be autumn or Halloween themed.  Last year my son did it with some of his friends (maximum three people per group), but this year he did it on his own.  He was assigned a window in the same group of stores as he was last year (but a different store).  We grabbed all our supplies (and you need A LOT of supplies) and headed out.  First stop was the school to get the paint.  (Which is supplied at no cost.)  Then we headed to our window. The area my son was supposed to paint was outlined with masking tape. Fighting against the wind, my husband and I put up newspaper to protect the rest of the window area and sill.  (Arguing all the way over the tape that I had brought.)  Finally got everything up and the drop cloth down and my son begins to do his outline in soap before beginning the actual painting.

That's when the manager(?)/co-owner(?)/head employee (?) of the store comes out and tells us that he never gave permission for painting.  We stood there stunned for a minute.  Then he said we COULD paint, but not in the area outlined.  He wanted it lower.  So we took off the newspaper, carefully moved the masking tape outline down, re-taped the newspaper area and cleaned off the soaped area.  Now my son was hesitant to paint.  We assured him it was ok and he went ahead.  (Whoever the worker was came out and "checked" on us several times which was unnerving.)  He did a great job and was finished within half an hour or so.  We carefully cleaned up and headed home.  (Note:  I did email the person in charge of the project and she was shocked.  She DID have a signature on a permission form to paint.  She even went by later in the day to speak to the manager, who, it turns out had NOT been working in the store when we were there. He had no problem with the paint job.  Obviously, there is dissent among the ranks here.)

Now we are ready for a relaxing afternoon; EXCEPT it was so windy that anything I had outside was blowing all over the place.  I *thought* I had secured things and went upstairs to do some work ("work" work as well as some church related publicity work).  Half an hour later I peek out the window and see that my of my skulls has made its way into the street.  Run downstairs to get it and notice the "hands" that go with it are missing.  Search up and down the street.  Nothing.  I've lost my hands!  Put the skull back.  Put our standing "Mr. Bones" back up (he's blown over again.  Poor Mr. Bones, he just doesn't want to keep standing).  Go back upstairs with the intention of doing some work but happen to peer outside again.  The skull that I had just placed on my lawn is back in the street again!  

So it's back downstairs and outside.  Grab the skull and find ANOTHER one has blown into the bushes.  Still no sign of my hands!  And poor Mr. Bones is flat on his face again.  I give up!  Prop Mr. Bones up against a bush and take the moving items and put them together on a chair with a cushion folded down so they won't move.  Go back upstairs.

Do some more work for about a half an hour and look outside.  Now my garbage can has blown over and so has my plant.  A girl can't win!  I put the rest of the garbage out (which will weigh down the can some more) and pick up the can.  I put the plant closer to the house (so that it will be protected) and put the car away in the garage (so IT won't blow away!  Ok, so maybe it wouldn't have...)  

Finally reach the end of the day and am wondering where the weekend has gone.  Getting the kid ready for bed and I realize that this is a "theme" week at school.  I have put on my calendar that Monday is PJ day; Tuesday is Jeans day, etc.  Because my son is growing faster than a weed (and the weeds grow pretty fast around my house), I had purchased him some new pajamas specifically for this event.  (And being the paranoid mom that I am, I double checked with several other moms before telling him it was PJ day.  Life as we know it would end if he went to school in PJs on a non-PJ day!) We all watch "The Simpsons" together (our standard way to end the week) and being exhausted we all go to bed shortly thereafter.  (Neither my husband or I ever had any coffee or caffeine during the day; boy did we feel it.)

This ENDS the drama filled weekend.  But now a new week begins.  And when I get my son up this morning, he informs me he DOES NOT want to wear his PJs to school today.  (Never mind that he has participated in this "day" in the past.)  Hence, a new week of drama begins...

(Ok, I managed a compromise with my son this morning, which I feel is a big win all around.  He didn't wear his PJs, but he did wear a something he COULD sleep in.  A casual long sleeve top and school branded lounge pants.  Of course he's grown since he last wore them, so they barely reach his ankles, but...I'm still counting this a win.  I got him up, I got him to compromise and I got him to school in time for his early morning chorus sectional.  I call that winning.  Now onto work and the rest of the week!)