My how Time Flies!

My time flies when you're busy. Thanksgiving has come and gone and it's almost Christmas! I'm not ready; and I'm not sure I'll be ready when it gets here.

We had a great Thanksgiving. The four of us went to Myrtle Beach. We went in two cars. That was a first. At midnight on Thanksgiving night, the four of us hit the outlets! That was also a first. I still can't believe how many people were doing the same thing. I truly thought we'd wander around almost empty stores and try and keep the help awake for a few minutes while we were in their store. The place was mobbed, parking was at a premium and the sales made it worth the trip. EJ was the first to make a purchase!

Around 1:30 AM we headed back to Mom and Daddy's. Chloe and I dropped of EJ and Kate and took the other car and headed out to the second outlet mall. I lucked out and was able to take the spot of someone leaving for the day so I didn't need to cirlce the parking lot looking for a place to park. Still can't believe how busy it was. Chloe and I went to bed about 4:50 AM Friday. I don't know that I need to make an annual event out of it, but it was fun.

Kate is wrapping up her semester. She was able to take two finals early. This weekend she is babysitting for her nanny family. Chloe is preparing for her District Honor band audition (12/13) and her Winter Concert (12/11). EJ is completing a Physics project, working at his senior project in AP Lit and getting ready for his interview with Representative Nathan Deal's Academy Selection Committee on 12/12. EJ and Chloe will also have mid-terms before the school holiday break. If we can all stay healthy, it will be a miracle. I think we are all ready for an extended break and looking forward to some down time.

It's Good to Have Choices!

This arrived yesterday and I wanted to share! EJ is still very much hoping for an appointment to Annapolis or West Point, but this a very nice option if neither of those work out.

Oh no, now I might have to do housework!

Friday night was Chloe's last football game/marching opportunity for the 2008/2009 school year. It was cold and it rained. But those kids are troopers and performed in the rain. They played in the stands with their ponchos and the rain beating down on them at several points of the evening. And they finally played "Hey Baby"; the band parents favorite stand music number.


Sunday evening, at 7 pm, was EJ's last league soccer game. Coach Chas, after 2 years, finally let EJ play defense again and he had a ball. I even heard a parent comment "Wow, having Eric back at defense on the right side has made a big difference." This comment was made by a new parent to the team so he didn't understand why I started laughing. EJ has played on the front line the past two seasons because the new coach decided he was big, fast and intimidating so that was where he needed to be. Never mind that EJ hadn't played offense in so long that he didn't really know what he was doing any more.


The team won 3-1 and it was a great way to end the season and, probably, EJ's HS soccer career. I don't think he has plans to try-out for the HS team this year. He may play on a rec league in the spring for fun.


So the question now is, what will I do with all my free time. I don't need to pick Chloe up at 7 Pm after marching band practice any more. EJ no longer has 8 - 10 PM practices two times a week. We can eat dinner together at a decent hour! Yeah. My Friday evenings are no longer booked and my Saturday and Sunday afternoons are no longer full with soccer games. And I no longer have a 'real' reason for not running the vacuum cleaner, dusting, mopping, or folding laundry on a regular basis. Yikes. Maybe it's time to rent a younger child?

Decisions, Decisions

Chloe has been invited to join Tri-M and will be inducted this evening.

The Tri-M Music Honor Society is the international music honor society for middle/junior high and high school students. It is designed to recognize students for their academic and musical achievements, reward them for their accomplishments and service activities, and to inspire other students to excel at music and leadership. (http://www.menc.org/resources/view/tri-m-music-honor-society)

The ceremony will begin at 7 PM and Chloe needs to be at the school by 6:30 PM. This has created a bit of a logistical nightmare. I think I've finally accepted that we can't all do everything we usually do on a Wednesday AND attend the induction ceremony. The good news is this is great progress for me. The bad news is I still need to let EJ in on this development and my other committments know that I have dropped them for the evening. I simply cannot be in 4 places at once.