Diary of a Metal Mommy

Irritating! I had this nice long entry about my weekend finished and as I was loading photos–*poof!*–gone. I hate that! As a result, this will mostly be a photo entry with captions. I’ll be damned if I’m writing all that again!!!

Here are the kiddos, up at Grammy’s in Park Rapids, Minnesota. Having a nice run in the sprinkler on a hot, hot day.
One of life’s simple pleasures. A disgusting giant lollipop that always looks better than it tastes. A souvenir from Vivian’s highlight of the trip–the candy store. (the bad part was that I had that bad rap song in my head for days after that–don’t know what it’s called, but it’s some nasty thing about coming to the candy shop and licking the dude’s lollipop. Not exactly a song you can absentmindedly start singing around the kids, or your Missouri Synod mother-in-law, for that matter.)

I came home to find Orlando waiting for me on my bed. Kim had finished with him, and then left him there for me on my pillow. A friend indeed. I’ll take her sloppy seconds, fo sho!

After a pleasant weekend of doing almost nothing, we came back and did nothing on the patio with the Billadeaus. A greel! (Brian, are you sticking out your tongue at me?!)

Today, a nice afternoon swim in Stephanie’s new pool! I should say, Stephanie swam. I stood and tried not to have a heart attack as my son kept insisting he could swim.

There it is, my suburban so-not-metal life of the past few days. Unless of course you count that I kept wanting to sing King Diamond’s “Welcome Home” from his album titled “Them” the whole time I was at Connie’s house. (Grandmaaaaa!)

Lookit that beautiful vehicle. You know you want it. Imagine the nice ride, the leather, the sunroof, your cheeks being warm and cozy via heated seats when it’s 30 below. And it CAN be yours!

2 weeks now I’ve had this listed on Car Soup, and not one call. Poop. Don’t get me wrong, I love this vehicle. I spent a long time researching, test-driving, searching high and low for just the right thing. But, we are trying to do our part and get a vehicle that is better for the environment, and easier on the old wallet. I know, I know, not very metal. I’m sorry to disappoint. But this is what I’d like:

Nice! A Scion xB. It may not be very Metal Mommy, but it could very well be Rapper Mommy. I’ll take that moniker, too. This thing is roomier than it looks and is actually pretty darn zippy. I took one for a test spin not long ago and was quite impressed. I think this is the perfect mid-life crisis-don’t-accept-your-age vehicle for me, don’t you? And a hell of a lot cheaper than a Corvette. I’ve been saying that I’m not going out of my 30’s quietly, and so far I’ve lived up to that motto. So help me out, people. Buy my Nissan Pathfinder so I can bust a rap in my Scion!

Sometimes things happen that just make you go Whoa. Today was the last full day of Sullivan’s preschool career at what was once Edina Morningside Preschool, now Wooddale Community Nursery School. Earlier in the year, teacher Virginia had been in the house to look over toys I was donating and saw that I collected Stangl pottery. It took her down Memory Lane, as she commented that her grandmother also had Stangl in the specific Blueberry pattern. Ding! A bell went off in my head: Good End of the Year Gift! I found a bowl in that pattern on ebay, and decided that the same bowl in different patterns would also be good for the other three teachers. Besides Virginia’s, I didn’t really think too much about the patterns, basically just bid on whatever came up on ebay. (those specific bowls, in good shape, aren’t that easy to find…) Eventually I did get my other 3, decided which one looked like what teacher, wrapped them up and brought them into school today.

Virginia was very happy to get that bowl, but the amazing thing was when Sandy unwrapped hers. Her eyes lit up and then filled with tears. She told me then that growing up she ate on Stangl pottery herself, on the exact Thistle pattern that was on the bowl I picked out for her! What are the odds?! I actually grew up eating on it, and the women in my family all collect it, but Stangl pottery is not exactly something that many people know about. Kismet indeed.

I bid a fond farewell to Wooddale Community Nursery School–or I should say to Virginia, Sandy, Sylvia and Sue–four of the most amazing teachers, amazing women I’ve ever known. They have made such a difference in both Sullivan and Vivian’s lives–my kids could not have had a better start. I am so thankful they’ve been a part of our lives! Tomorrow is the last day of school party, and I’ll try to hold it together…

At 8:00 AM this morning I welcomed the Direct TV installer with open arms. No no, not open legs. How dare you think such a thing?? I am no Desperate Housewife! (even tho I do like to pretend I’m Eva Longoria…) I considered greeting him in a pink chiffon nightie and feathered pumps, but nah. Just a pink t-shirt, jeans, and sleep-encrusted eyes. We are trading in Dish Network for Direct TV–which is actually kind of funny, since we did the complete opposite about 5 years ago. But we got a better deal, Coreman got the OLN network just in time for the Stanley Cup playoffs, and I get FREE MOVIE CHANNELS for a month! WOO! I won’t be doing anything for 30 days except staring at the TV. Shoot, just remembered Sullivan has his first soccer practice this evening and then I’m meeting my friend Darcie for coffee afterward. Damn, how can one be expected to have a social life when they have access to Starz??? It’s a rough life, I tell ya.

A lazy, hazy Sunday. A chill is back in the air! I dragged myself out of bed this morning and into the shower for contemporary choir practice and then of course, to sing it for real for the service. I must say, singing in that choir is quite fun. I haven’t had the gumption to go all-out and join the REAL church choir, but the contemporary one is my perfect amount of commitment and involvement right now. Where else would I get to sing about the fragrance of release? None of that this morning, but I did think about Stephanie and Kim whilst I sang something about playing the flute. They know exactly of what I speak. Sullivan went up and sang a couple of songs with his Sunday school class, and Vivian sang herself another solo, along with my choir. She brought many to tears, and I myself had to hold them back. It will be interesting to see what that girl does in the years to come.

So much for a day of rest–the rest of the day will be spent tidying up the house. Mother-In-Law Connie will be coming to spend the night tonight, and the goils are coming over later for another podcast. Am I lucky or what, getting this weekly visit with my peeps for a night of laughs??