The Family goes to see Jack Johnson

The first time the Dad and I saw Jack Johnson in concert was on my 30th birthday. Since then we have made it a family tradition to take in a concert every year around my birthday. Last year the Boy joined the tradition with his first concert- Jimmy Buffet. This year we were fortunate enough to see Jack Johnson again (the Mom and Dad) and for the first time (the Boy).
It was everything an outdoor concert should be. Beautiful weather, clear sky and bug free! Jack goes above and beyond to make his concerts as eco friendly as possible. This year Jack created a area called the "Village Green" were concert goers could learn about eco causes, register to vote and donate to various charities. We all had a blast and can't wait to pick our concert for next year.

It's My Birthday!

Today is my 33rd birthday- I am here to tell you that I got sh*t for my birthday!. Told the Dad I was going to say that because he bought me a compost machine for my birthday. Given our growing commitment to a green lifestyle it is a welcome present.
Even more touching is the fact that the Dad used the money he earned by selling his comics and brewing equipment for my present. Previously the money had been earmarked for a new laptop so he sacrifice is very touching.
The Boy had a modified day at school today (half day) and he made me a grilled cheese for lunch. So sweet of him. He is all about helping out in the kitchen these days and learning how to cook.
It was such a treat today to get happy birthday wishes from my CS friends across the country.
I received a wonderful phone call from Elle and Pants as well as cards and pictures in the mail from them. Pants sang me a beautiful rendition of "Happy Happy" which is her version of the Happy Birthday song.
S.R. my sister in law also called to wish me a happy birthday. It was fun hearing about how big my goddaughter is getting.
Sadly tomorrow marks the end of my birthday-palooza until next year.

Squirrel on the Loose

The events of today provided me with further proof of the theory of karma. Not sure exactly what I have done recently to deserve all of the events that happened today. I have some ideas- nothing major but I have probably been a wee bit too snarky this week for my own good.

The day started off with the discovery that $445 worth of debit charges that weren't mine on my account. 4 charges to Target and one to Toys R Us. The result was a couple of hours worth of phone calls to the bank, Target and Toys R Us. The lovely people on the WIR gave me a few suggestions on steps to take to protect my bank accounts.

Just as I was finally able to control the panic attacks from the banking mess, my partner Derek yelled "shut your door!" So of course I left my office to find out why I should shut my door. Lucky me I was just in time to see our new friend scurry across the floor.

You know it's never good with the word "scurry" is used in a sentence. Seems some wayward squirrel has decided that my place of business makes an excellent rodent hotel. A quick Google search on "squirrel trapping" answered most of the questions that I had on evicting my new friend.

Awaiting to see the effectiveness of our attempts-- one live trap cage baited with a Reece's peanut butter cup. Not sure why we landed on a candy bar to lure the squirrel but the convenience store was much closer than the grocery store.

Fingers crossed in the hopes that the squirrel likes chocolate and has his bags packed for his new home (at least 3 miles from the office as per Google)

The Mom likes to Brag

So far the new school year is off to a smashing success. The Boy proudly came home with his first two tests of the school year- both A+. It is wonderful to have the Boy so proud of school and happy to be back in the swing of things.
What a relief to have us in the third week of school with no breakdowns, no arguments, temper tantrums etc. He is still showering without much complaint, doing his homework and going to bed without a fight. It is so great to see him growing up and getting older but it is a little sad to know that my baby is nearly a teenager.

The Dad is feeling a bit guilty about the Date Night that never was and has some secret plans for my birthday on Wednesday. Since we have virtually eliminated eating out from our lives I have been having a terrible time trying to pick a restaurant to have my birthday dinner at. I solved that little problem quite easily tonight.
The Boy is now scheduled to make dinner (with supervision) one night per week- he has decided to make dinner on Wednesday for my birthday!

I realize it's only Monday but I really hope the rest of this week flies by.

The Date Night that Never Was

After surviving the work week I can home from work on Friday ready to enjoy the weekend. The Boy was invited to a sleep over at J-Dog's house. So like any reasonably minded female I started thinking- woo hoo date night!
I should have known from experience that when The Mom comes up with a little mental plan things always go awry. The nerve of the men/boys that live at my house with me!
The Boy decided I should feed him before his sleepover so The Dad decided was should have dinner a a family. Ok- nice family time but that canceled any opportunity to have a nice quiet meal at a restaurant with the Dad. No big deal.
So I get back from dropping the Boy off at J-Dog's and start thinking- "Ok maybe now we can go out and do something". What a fool I was.
While I was driving the 4 blocks to J-Dog's the Dad was putting on his pajamas and getting comfortable for the night. Ok- cancel leaving the house. So I start thinking- Oh maybe we can watch a nice movie together. Again- what a fool (you would think I would learn my lesson).
The Dad claims the remote and suggests we watch Zodiac. No big deal- not my first choice but I can deal.
All was going along smoothly until I scolded the dogs for snoring so loudly and found out it was my "date" aka The Dad who was snoring!
So my Date Night schedule was as follows:
6:00 Made dinner for the family
6:30 Drove the Boy to J-Dog's
7:00 Started watching Zodiac
8:00 the Dad fell asleep on the sofa.
10:00 Zodiac ended and I woke up the Dad and sent him to bed.

I tell you what- he owes me do-over on Date Night!

A Case of the Blah's

Today I am experiencing a small case of the Blah's. No discernible reason for it other than "because". I'd like to imagine that I am not the only one out there that just wants to stomp there feet and march back to bed.
I heard today that our own Miss Pants had a case of the "my day is going terribles" and voluntarily went off to take a nap. As I sit here and type this I am pretty jealous of Miss Pants. She had a horrible, terrible, no good, very bad day and sulked in her playroom until Elle came home from work. As a grown up I don't really get that option.
I fought the urge to go shopping today since the "I wants" go hand in hand with the Blah's. I want new clothes because all of my old ones are ugly. I want new books because the ones I checked out from the library are boring. The list can go on and on but you get the basic idea.
I text The Dad to warn him and tell him to not let me go shopping under any circumstances. His solution "You can always go to the store and buy me a graphing calculator". Not sure how driving to the store to buy him something for school is supposed to cheer me up.
So I am resigned to the fact that I can't very well get away with a croppy flop of a temper tantrum. When I get home from work I won't be able to take a nap since the Boy needs to do his homework and will want to have dinner.
You know, it's days like this when being a grown up is no fun at all. I am calling this current mood "Frugal Fatigue" I am tired of being responsible and mature dammit. I want to...... honestly, I don't know what I want. I think I mostly just want it to be Friday.

The Boy Goes Swimming

On Saturday we spent the day hanging out with The Boy's Nana and Papa (The Mom's parents) at their vacation home in Palm Springs. As with most of our visits at their house- the day wouldn't have been complete without a quick dip in the swimming pool.






Nothing says afternoon fun with your grandpa quite like using him as a diving board!

Of course with the temps hovering well above the triple digits a trip to the pool becomes all most mandatory.
Sadly the weekend came to an end and Nana and Papa have flown back to MN.