Update to "I'm sexy and I know it" in a pin stipe vest.

First, I have to thank some of my friends who actually had the gumption to get their cameras out during this event and then shared their photos with me!!!  Otherwise, none of this would have been documented properly! :) Because this slacker mom was so enthralled in nerves, I never took out my camera.....crazy!!!  I didn't even manage to get one photo of the shindig as it unfolded before us. 

You may or may not remember hearing about from us or reading this post earlier this month concerning Elder Son and Middle Child participating in their school Campus King and Queen.  That particular post comes complete with interview dialogue, that will go down in our family as total keepers to talk about from here until the end of time.

Well, as it turns out, Middle Child was right to be his true self in the interview room--where his personality apparently was even higher than his GPA.  You will remember that I said he was very disappointed when he realized, as a 7th grader, he was not actually eligible to win Campus King...you must be in grades 10-12 to earn the title.  So, his next goal was focused intently on beating out his brother. 

And he did exactly that. By one spot. A fellow classmate of Elder Son won 3rd alternate.  Elder Son was happy to be announced a winner as 2nd alternate and I was a beaming proud mama!  But the excitement was short lived, when I realized there was only one place left that Middle Child could take, I'm not gonna lie....I was a bit sad for him.  I turned to my friends and said, "you know there are still several guys in the race, a couple of them seniors even, bless his heart, he is going to be so upset."  And then they announced Middle Child as 1st alternate!  I could have jumped out of my skin!!

• One of Middle Child's good friend, who is a senior, won Campus King....but I'm not so sure he wasn't as equally proud of the fact that Middle Child won 1st!!

• Amidst the excitement, and forgetting he was on stage in the spotlight for all to see, Middle Child "blew it up" on stage when his friend walked out:

• And of course, they had a picture made together where Middle Child was allowed to hold "the wand"....:)

• Elder Son and Middle Child are more like brothers to these girls, they are some of their best friends.

• This lovely lady placed won 1st alternate in Campus Queen and thus was coupled with Middle Child on stage and in the back for the photographer.....the yearbook photo of the two of them will look similar to Mutt and Jeff.

• This is the moment they announced he had won 1st alternate and he walked on stage to receive his plaque.....can you see just how shocked, excited and proud he was?  Priceless.

                                                 

I was so proud of both of our boys....and they were proud to have won, too. 

While I can't say Elder Son was exceedingly happy he was beaten out by his little brother, I can report that back home after the event, no one lost a limb or received a black eye.  And they weren't even miffed at their mom for forcing them to enter. Go figure. 

Maybe mamas really do know what they're talking about afterall. 

The day the super human growth spurt did not arrive

This entry is placed in blog archives because while I think I will remember it forever, I realize from conversations with my parents that sometimes as you age, your mind plays little tricks on you.  :)

For the past few days, Middle Child has complained of abdominal pain.  He's not normally a complainer, fortunately none of our kids are, but with stomach pains it's often hard to tell what's what. Kind of like when people talk about having headaches....you can tell they are in pain, even though you can't "see" their headache. 

Back last fall when I had an ovarian cyst to rupture, I complained about my back hurting prior to the event, which at the time I had no idea was a symptom.  Anyway, a couple of weeks later, Middle Child said his back was hurting and asked did I think he might have a cyst too.  :)  I told him no, I didn't think it was a cyst, and it certainly couldn't be what I had, as "you have no ovaries, son".   So, since Saturday, we've been going through all sorts of scenarios with him as to the cause behind this abdominal pain.  He has had no vomitting, no sudden rushes to the bathroom (although he has been regular), no nausea, has not lost his appetite, has been eating every day like usual, even spicy foods, drinking milk, no food seemed to help or hurt for that matter.  He described it as a cramping pain, like his stomach was twisted in knots.  The only way he could make it feel some better was to lay on his stomach with his arms underneath him applying pressure to his abdomen.  And even then, it still hurt. 

The true test of knowing he was not kidding about the pain came early this week.  On Monday he called before 9:30 a.m. needing to be checked out of school (I was unable to get him at the time, so he stuck it on out for the rest of the day) and then on Tuesday, he missed school completely.  This may not seem like much to the average person but those who know Middle Child will appreciate it.  You see, since beginning High School (our high school starts with 7th grade remember), Middle Child has loved every minute of his educational career.  He never wants to miss.  A far cry from his elementary days, where for years he tried to catch every cold, stomach bug, rotovirus, or pink eye that came his way to get a chance to stay home....he even went so far as to lay in the bed with his brother when he had the flu a couple of years ago begging him to breathe in his face, trying to get it.  And when Baby Girl had mono and was quarrantined at home for weeks, Middle Child was happy to be the delivery boy for her snacks and drinks.  Why?  Because he would drink after her hoping to catch it to give himself a month off from school!! 

Now, back to present day and the abdominal pain.  Jokingly, one night I suggested maybe he was having menstrual cramps.  Thinking he would know what I was referring to, and with his witty humor, I thought he would get a good laugh.  Instead he said, "maybe I do, what's menstrual cramps?".  Oy! So, after giving a brief explanation, we moved on to other suggestions for the pain.  Middle Child is still the shortest guy in his grade, although he is growing, he is still smallish. However his big heart and personality take over so no one notices as much.  But anyway, his father suggested maybe these were "growing pains"....stating that he might just be about to have a huge growth spurt and his abdomen was just stretching to get ready!!!!  We all giggled and thought no more about it. 

Which brings me to today.  Yesterday afternoon and evening, Middle Child and I spent almost three hours in the doctor's office trying to get to the bottom of this pain.  They were concerned as he had swollen lymph nodes in his neck even though he had no other symptoms at all except the abdominal pain.  They chose to do labwork, urine samples and a belly x-ray to check for things like Mono, Strep, H Pylori, Hernia, etc.etc.  I wish you all could have been in the small room with me when they came to take his blood, it was the ultimate viewing of complete shock if I've ever seen it.  He had no idea it was coming and when the sweet lab girl strolled in holding a needle and 3 vials for his blood, he was speechless.  I held his hand and he buried his face in my chest while she administered the needle and all was fine through the first two vials....then he loudly stated with some mild panic in his voice...."You're cutting off my CIRCULATION....I can't feel my arm, I tell you that thing is cutting off my CIRCULATION!".....never a dull moment while he's around. I explained the rubber tie at his upper arm was there to make the blood flow faster into the vials, if we untied it, the process would take longer and therefore the needle would have to stay in his arm longer.  The sweet lab girl did oblige him and loosened it a bit.....for fear we were cutting off his CIRCULATION.....for crying out loud, abdominal pain was enough, he didn't want to lose an arm!

I am happy to report that his arm survived and all of the urine and blood tests came back clear.  He had none of those infections they tested for and all they could see on the x-ray was some stool and gas in his stomach.  They suggested we monitor him for the next few days, if any fever, vomitting, nausea or anything else arises we are to take him back down where they will administer a Cat Scan for a more comprehensive look at his abdomen.  But for now, we are to increase his fiber intake and see if that helps.

Middle Child was happy he wouldn't be getting any shots.  Happy he was fine and nothing major was wrong.  If you've ever been around him for an ample amount of time, you know he can be just the funniest thing and has the quickest wit of anyone in any situation.  In the car heading to the pharmacy to pick up some fiber gummies, he said, "hey mom, what's it called when something is you know, not human?"  After failing to help him figure out what he was trying to convey on the first couple of tries, I finally came up with the word he was looking for "superhuman?". 

Smiling brightly with his mouth and eyes he replied:  "Yes, superhuman.  I was thinking that whole time in the doctor's office, all those blood tests and my urine sample and that x-ray....out of all of that I was just sure they were about to come in and tell us that this was a case of "superhuman growth" and I would probably be 6'1" by Friday.  And then all they did was come in and tell us it was a big ol' gas bubble......talk about a complete let down."

One day he may in fact grow to be 6'1", although it doesn't look like it will happen by Friday.

The mean old mom strikes again -- Episode 23

There are times in parenting where you just have to say, "because I said so" and leave it at that.  While I could come up with a million reasons to back myself up, I am the mother, I get the last say, and that's just the way the cards were dealt.  My boys are fully aware of this undisclosed rule, but they often like to challenge it, just to see if it still exists.  

It still exists.  It is. It was. It shall ever remain in existence. Amen.

Recently they tried to pull a fast one on me and thought, just maybe, they were going to get away with it this time.....no.such.luck.buck-o.   Their high school has a Campus King and Queen each spring.  It's nothing major, but does require contestants to fill out a resume of sorts and show up, dressed nicely, on a Sunday afternoon for an interview with real live judges.  Then, the results are tallied and a couple of weeks later on Saturday night they stroll across the high school stage, dressed nicely, and the winners are announced. 

My boys know they are required to participate in such school activities....it's not a question at our house.  I expect them to do it, and no, not just "because I said so", even though I can enforce that rule if needed.  But rather, because it's character building, it's a great start to learning communication skills and the interview process, properly speaking about yourself, your future, your ambitions in life, it's fun to dress up and look all spiffy for a change, it's an awesome opportunity to build up your resume from year to year so that when the time comes for college...presto! you have already done the hard research to make YOU look your best on paper!

This year, both of my boys elected to forego informing me of the upcoming Campus King and Queen.  They thought their silence would win in the end.  They were wrong.  Bless their immature hearts, their mama is always going to find out.  Fortunately, a good friend asked, "why didn't the boys sign up for Campus King this year, I thought for sure they'd be in it."  That was all the fuel I needed to light a fire under their unassuming tails. And so, I promptly got in touch with the sponsor and said, "add their names to the list, they are in.  In fact, just keep their names on the list from now until they graduate, there is no need to ask them or me, just always know they will be participating, I don't care what they try to tell you at school."

And so, we raced around for the next 36 hours acquiring their interview attire.  Amidst the moans and groans and repititious  "I can't believe you are making us do this", we managed to pull it together.  I said, "guys, this is easy, it's an interview all about you, all the questions are going to be about your life, you can't get any of the answers wrong, it's the best process ever".   However, on the drive to the school building for interviews, I did give only a couple of instructions: 

• Try to remember they are not asking for yes or no answers, expound on your answers. If they ask what your favorite subject is in school, please do not say P.E., and DO NOT, under any circumstances, say something mean about your brother during your interview.

Campus King can only be awarded to a guy in grades 10-12, Elder Son and Middle Child are in grades 9 and 7.  So, they can't win, but they can try to secure an alternate position.  Elder Son has placed the last two years he has entered.  This is Middle Child's first year, and while his first goal was to be crowned King, once he realized that was not a possibility, his primary goal changed to just beating his brother. Oh, the love.   Anyway, interview day arrives, met with much anticipation.  They waited in the classroom until their time slot opened for them to be escorted to the interview room and stand alone before the judges. 

Elder Son did fantastic.  He's calm, cool and collected.  He answers his questions with ease.  When asked to name a song that describes him, he said "Dirt Road Anthem"....we live on a dirt road, he's pretty laidback, so "chillin' on a dirt road" does speak to his life right now.  When asked what he would do with a million dollars,  he answered he'd like to get a lakehouse (he loves the water, loves floating a river and fishing with his Daddy, loves family time on the lake) bless his sweet heart, I'll buy one for him if I get a million dollars one day too.  When asked about his community volunteer work, he responded by telling of how he helped deliver meals to our tornado victims last April.  When asked, besides a family member, tell us someone you admire most, he answered that his principal had great leadership abilities, was also an excellent coach, cared about every kid at the school and showed that on a daily basis, in and out of the classroom, on and off campus.  He's my more reserved child, the oldest, the reponsible one. 

Now, I'm going to give you a dialogue of just part of Middle Child's interview:

~So, what's your favorite subject in school?

• "well, I really want to say P.E., but I guess I'll say History or Reading. Right now I'm reading a book that took place in 793 A.D. and it's about these Anglo-Saxon siblings who are kidnapped by vikings...."....and he rambles on for a minute or two giving his complete dissertation of the current book he's reading.   

~What song best describes you?

• "I'm sexy and I know it" ---  yes, he really said that. And he didn't pause a second before answering.  And afterwards, bursts of laughter erupted from the interview room and the judges informed him he was the first one that day who had an immediate answer , many said they couldn't think of one.  Oh, a fine, shining, proud moment as a mother.  He answered with "I'm sexy and I know it"....He's 12. 

~Who do you think is the coolest girl, it can be a celebrity, a family member, a fellow student, anyone...

• (pointing to the table of  female judges, he cleverly answers) "If I choose one of you do I get extra points?"  Laughter erupts again and he knows he's got them reeled in with his undeniable charm.  But he continues on to give a real answer, "I'd have to say Betty White." (what? you've got to be kidding me, he said Betty White?) 
• Well, that's a great answer, but why did you choose her?  "Well, is really funny even though she's old, she's like 90 or something, and she's still working, I mean she's just really cool like that"  (More laughter)

~Why do you think you should be chosen over your brother for Campus King?

• "Um, my mother said we were not allowed to talk about my brother during the interview"

~(amidst giggling again) Okay then, why don't you just tell us why YOU should win Campus King? 

• "Well, (combing his hand through his hair), because I'm "me" and I'm wearing this pin stripe vest...and we all know pin stripes are awesome"

Win, lose or draw....pin stripe vests are awesome indeed.  Now, I guess I need to sign him up for a self-esteem class to build his confidence a little, huh?  I'm sexy and I know it.....oh. my. lands.   He doesn't meet a stranger.  He doesn't stress out about much, if anything.  He is bright, witty, a clear thinker, an intelligent old soul inside a young little body.  As my brother-in-law always says, "he's never going to need blood pressure medication in his life."  He rolls with the punches and smiles the whole way.

We don't know the results yet, that's still many days away, but I do know that I am proud of both Elder Son and Middle Child.  They rocked their interviews in their Sunday attire and they didn't even complain one minute afterwards.  Secretly, I think they enjoyed it although you will never get them to admit it.  I did however, kiss Elder Son on the cheek back at home and quietly whispered..."thanks for doing Campus King", he smiled sweetly at me and replied "I didn't mind, it wasn't that bad"  which is cool guy speak for "mama, you are the best, I am so glad you make us do this stuff that we really don't want to do because no one else's mama is making them do it, but in the end I know it's going to help us and it's really fun when you get down to it and when I'm all grown up I will look back on this and be even more appreciative" -- or something along those lines.  :)

My boys of fall....

It's not that I'm a slacker...no, really, it's not.  I lost an entire laptop.  A spare laptop that I had been using after mine perished back in August.  And it was the laptop that I had saved pics from their Junior Varsity football games.  We've been searching for weeks...and finally, I found it! So, here they are, some very overdue football pics of my boys:

Denial. It's where I'll be living the next few days.

So this week you'll be knee deep in denial with me.  Like it or not.  Beginning with this post.

Which should have been posted back in May, on the last day of school....but in my state of denial, I chose to keep putting it off in an attempt to prolong the inevitable. 

Middle Child begins high school next week (which begins in 7th grade here).  And I just can't help but think he should still be in maybe, 2nd grade? Another year with the fabulous Mrs. Davis would be just fine with me. And he would be excited about my packing his cute little football snack bag.  

But no.  Apparently, they grow up and you have to let them be promoted if they make the grades. Or some hogwash like that. 

So off to the wolves high school he goes!!

But not before I made him suffer through these last snapshots of walking down the elementary halls one last time....when all was right in my little world.

Breaking Free.....

Middle Child is no longer an Elementary Kid.  An achievement he's super proud to have behind him. In fact, it'd be just fine with him if school ended entirely when you completed elementary school....but alas, there's more educating to do yet, so he'll be forced to attend high school next year.  

He had a WONDERFUL teacher this year....who also happened to be 9 months pregnant at their class night ceremony. Bless her heart, but she looks great!

A few of his best friends:

Family who came to see the big guy on campus:

His class recently toured the high school and on another day had the high school guidance counselor along with some students visit their classroom to help prepare them for the change. Once the floor was opened up for questions, not being shy to speak up, Middle Child proceeded to pull out his list of impoortant inquiries.  

• Is it hard to open your lockers?
• Is lunch better at the high school?
• How long are the classes?
• Do you get bathroom breaks?
• Do 7th graders really get shoved in trash cans?

Clearly, he's as prepared as he's ever going to be.   

 

(There is no picture of Middle Child with his mother.....because my eyes were red from the crying.)

No, really, it was the sweetest moment....and showcased the epitome of the tender heart Middle Child has.  During their class night, they sang songs, Miley Cyrus' The Climb, they had a video presentation and they all came down from the risers one at a time to retrieve a single stem rose and bring to their mother in the audience. I had my long lens on so Temple couldn't use my camera real quick to get our picture, but friends of ours sitting behind us were ready to capture the moment.  

It was neat watching all the kids walk all over the gym floor to find their parents.....a sweet gesture by everyone, and I was fine...completely fine, okay maybe I already had a tear in my eye, but I wasn't crying....until Middle Child was about 2 feet away from me, stretched out his one hand to hug me and with the other he offered the rose and said, "thank you for being the greatest mother ever".....and then he proceeded to cry. I hugged him tight. And it didn't matter one bit that I didn't get my picture made with him, it was forever etched in my mind and more deeply engraved in my heart.

Birthday Bowling...(aka the night I put the boys to shame).

To celebrate his brithday, Middle Boy wanted to go bowling.

With a few of his close friends....plus a little sister.

We screamed and shouted and jumped around and laughed like crazy all night long.

Baby Girl even found some creative bowling manuevers to help boost her score.

It's always more fun when Daddy's around to watch the excitement.

And by the end of our little birthday bowl-a-rama, I had proudly beaten the whole bunch....3 times. And I don't mean "sort-of", "by just a hair", or "barely"....I mean I put the SMACK DOWN on those kids. 

I came.
I bowled.
I kicked some 12 year old fanny!
I showed them who rules this joint. The mama.

But they look pretty cute, so I brought them all home with me, and tried to keep the taunting to a minimum....as this is the only sport I can school them in for now. 

Middle Boy got a hoot out of the trick candles....that continued to relight themselves every time he blew them out. I had to threaten him not to spit on the cake....because a piece of saliva coated icing is just not yummy if you ask me.  

My birthday brain is on it's last leg....after 34 total birthday parties over the last few years, it's fried. However, I couldn't have a birthday gathering without a cake.  So, at the very last minute on Friday morning (when I had guilted myself all night, even in my dreams) I baked a birthay cake for the candle blowing ceremony. 

It's a guitar....has nothing to do with bowling, but Middle Boy does enjoy his guitar, so thus, it's the best I could do....with what I had on hand. A yellow cake mix, some frosting and a few m&m's.  Don't think I'm real creative....I've just pulled enough pages from Family Fun magazine over the course of the last decade!  And look, I realize that cake decorating is not my claim to fame (obviously, it's bowling!! I WON!!), so if you don't have anything nice to say about the guitar cake (or the fact that I beat a bunch of elementary age kids), then remember what your mama told you. Otherwise you'll be in the doghouse with my husband, who, when I sent a picture of the cake and asked if it looked like a guitar, replied with the following sentiment: "yes or a hammerhead shark". 

All I know is we had a fantastic birthday bash, complete with a cake and festivities that made Middle Boy HAPPY....and his mama too. 

Who knows, they may be on a stage in Vegas one day.....

Earlier last month, Middle Child's school held a talent contest.  Middle Child is ALL ABOUT a talent show.  He, along with ,decided to enter the group competition with a gravity act. 

But let me back up.... Last summer we were all enamored here at House of Bowling with the popular show "America's Got Talent".  One act in particular that we enjoyed was from a group called Fighting Gravity.   A group of engineering students from Virginia Tech (I think it was VA Tech), who placed 3rd in the national show and went on to have a national tour afterwards. Seriously, if you didn't see them, you should click that link and take a look....or google their acts on youtube....super NEAT stuff.

This is Middle Child's group.  Blurry much?

So, Middle Child and friends, along with their teacher, set out to produce a great blacklight gravity show for the talent competition.  And that they did.  For a bunch of 11 year olds, in rural Alabama, with not a lot of props or practice time, they pulled off a real crowd pleaser.....in fact, they brought the house down.

They named their group GRAVITRON.  And Gravitron showed out on that small school stage.

Sorry his mother does not have the knowledge of how to take photos in the dark properly....but at least you can get the idea.  Clearly, when they strike out on the big stage, we'll seek professional help. :)

Needless to say, Gravitron won the group portion of the talent show.  And they are anxiously waiting a call to take it national...maybe they can be an opening act for Fighting Gravity one day.....America won't know what hit them when this bunch rolls in....

A special thanks to their teacher, who stayed after school to practice for hours, several days each week, to guide them to a victory.....a special teacher.....who really cares about her students and their interests! Congratulations to Middle Child and Gravitron...you made us all proud!

Real men wear PINK.....

.....in honor of Breast Cancer awareness.   

A couple of weeks ago, many of our football players showed up on the field wearing PINK.  Obviously, they couldn't change their jerseys, but they could put in pink shoelaces, and pink pants strings, and pink sweatbands and such to show their support during October, this month of breast cancer awareness.

And they even share their laces with the ball/water boy on the sideline.