FINALLY! A Weekend That Didn't Suck!

For some reason, over the last several days I've had a recurring image in my head of Oprah heating up a can of Spaghetti-O's on the stove.


This is just really funny to me.
Oprah poops too!


Ok, so let me summarize the weekend for you. It actually didn't suck!

Friday night I went to a church rummage sale and did fairly well for myself. I got a vintage knitting magazine (can't remember the name of it), and a sweater that looked froggable. After attempting to frog it, however, I realize that it's a really fragile cotton that keeps splitting. I also found a like-new level one Hooked On Phonics set for $10. Ry seems to be diggin on it! He gets easily frustrated, so I'm hoping this will encourage him. So far he's read me three books!

Saturday the kids were fairly good and reasonably helpful. Beeb had to go to a birthday party, so we went to WalMart to get her friend a gift. Normally, taking the three kids to WalMart on a Saturday is a nightmare, but this time everyone did pretty well. I made it very clear in the car that we were not buying anything except a present for Beeb's party. They pressed me a little, but really much better than the usual drama.

Beeb learned what CREDIT means last week. We've started a new chores system, and Tommy and Pie each earned a dollar for cleaning their room (with my supervision), and Ry wanted to go to the Dollar Store immediately, so we went. Beeb didn't have any money, so I told her that I'd lend her a dollar if she found something she wanted. Never say that to a kid in a Dollar Store, because I guarantee you, they'll find something they want. And it'll be utter crap. She chose blue hair glue.

Then, the next day I got an envelope in her take-home folder from the school cafeteria saying that she'd charged $1.50 and I needed to pay it by the last school day. Beeb KNOWS she's not allowed to charge food. I've even written a note to the cafeteria stating that she does NOT have my permission to charge food unless she has a note from me stating otherwise. So I was pretty upset with her. I told her she was going to have to pay me back the $1.50, and she whined because now the job of cleaning her room for $3 was only going to net her fifty cents. I explained that she borrowed the money and she's already spent it and tied in a lesson about how easy it is to borrow more than you have and that's how people get into credit card debt.

She still hasn't cleaned her room. Her next lesson will be INTEREST.

I received the Mason-Dixon Knitting book on Saturday and I've already started working on a pattern. I'm a bit of a knitting lemming, and I want what everyone else wants. I'd heard good things about this book. This is the first pattern book I've ever gotten where I've actually felt pretty confident that I could do just about everything in it. A lot of the patterns were for rugs and afghans and things that are a lot more of a time commitment than I'm willing to put forth at this point in my life, but they're not ridiculously intimidating, and they're made from inexpensive yarns, which is nice. I've started making a cotton baby bib for a shower I've been invited to. I'm a little nervous about knitting a gift when the baby's grandmother is also a knitter. I'm a lot more comfortable knitting around non-knitters who are blown away by my garter-stitch scarves.

So Saturday went all right, and then Sunday we planned what we called a Spirit of Adventure day. We packed a picnic and took the kids to walk across the Old Chain Of Rocks Bridge which crosses the Mississippi River just north of St. Louis. It's a mile each way, and it is a really pleasant walk. Ry was cranky at first, but he was the first one to make it to Illinois! Tommy wanted to be carried part of the way back, but he walked about a mile and a half, rather impressive. Then we went up the River Road to Pere Marquette and BBQ'd hot dogs while the kids played on a playground. We came back to Missouri via two ferry boats. The kids LOVED that. It was a beautiful day, the kids got along, and everybody had a good time.

When we got home, I let the kids play outside while R made his weekly call to his parents. And what happened next, my friends, you will NOT believe.

R hung up the phone with MIL and FIL and told me that they had offered to come get the kids on Saturday morning and take them for the afternoon, then R and I would pick them up later on, after dinner.

I haven't had a Saturday Afternoon to myself in YEARS.

It was FIL's idea, apparently. Can you believe that???? I rescind almost all of the smack I've talked about him. Now I just hope the apes behave themselves or I'll never hear the end of it.

If there's a downside to this extremely generous offer, it's that A) now I have to clean the house; B) I have no idea what I'm going to do with myself since I really have no local friends anymore; and C) no matter what I decide to do I'm going to be worried the whole time that the kids are acting like idiots and/or telling Family Secrets (such as Mommy hates you, Grampa!).

I had a wickedly clever idea to whip up some Homemade Rice Krispie Treats for the kids to take to him as a little "Thank You" from me. Y'know, since he was so appalled and permanently scarred by the Second-Rate Prepackaged ones at the Mother's Day Brunch.

Sunday night, right before the Desperate Housewives Finale, I learned that the Cavaliers lost to the Pistons in Game 7 in the NBA Playoffs. I'm so bitter that we get like, zero NBA coverage in St. Louis. I'd love to see the Spurs play every once in a while, or even just hear the scores read on the local news. Seriously, it's pathetic. Yeah, I know I should get cable, but no thanks, I can think of about a hundred things I'd rather spend the money on instead.

Like yarn. Duh!