Monday, November 20, 2006

A No-Blow-Ups Weekend with the Boys

Whew! We made it through a whole weekend with no major meltdowns from either child. I wasn't so sure how the weekend would go because Boot was nasty within 5 minutes of me walking in the door Thursday. Sometimes, I wonder why I bother coming home. But, all was well Friday, with Pie giving me a great big hug when he got home from school and Boot apologizing to me out of the blue.

Friday night, Boot went to see the new Emma Thompson movie with friends. I find it odd that a group of 7th grade boys wanted to see it, but I guess it was the Will Ferrell factor that decided them. Boot says it was odd, but that he would definitely take us to see it. It made him think. While we waited for the call to pick him up, we got a little Christmas & birthday shopping done. We had take-out from Applebee's, riblets for me, a bruschetta burger for J and a plain cheeseburger for Pie.

Saturday morning found us running errands. I got to talk to my mom, planning our Thanksgiving menu. We had a great lunch at Dave's Cosmic Subs, then went to see "Happy Feet", which J loved, the kids liked just fine and I found profoundly depressing. Once home, I commenced making artichoke dip for our appetizer contribution for the church's monthly Dine & Discuss. It was our first time attending that and it was a good time. We're just getting to know people at the church & I think this was a good way to get to know them better, as was helping with the Mission Committee's Thanksgiving dinner last Monday. After a bit of noshing and visiting time, we split into two groups for discussions. We joined the group that was discussing whether people of different faiths are praying to the same god. The general consensus was that we are. I am happy to be part of a church in which that kind of thinking is acceptable. Wiccans and other neo-pagans were not mentioned, and I didn't bring them up, but I was comforted that they didn't only discuss the Abrahamic traditions, but mentioned Hinduism and Buddhism. The house where this event is held each month is absolutely enormous, the biggest private home I've ever been in. It felt more like a conference facility than like a home. I hear there's even a full-size basketball court in the basement. For all that, the hosts are genuinely warm and welcoming. After the meeting, J & I poked around Kohl's a bit before heading home. I got a cute pair of Hanukkah socks with a blue dreidel on them.

This morning, we went to church. There was a brass quartet playing during the service, which was just lovely. During coffee hour, we talked to the other lesbian couple and another woman about Thanksgiving. The other woman, whose name I am not sure of, was telling us she wants to have a party where everyone brings their orphan earrings and we create new jewelry from them. That sounds like so much fun! After church, we had lunch at The Winking Lizard (plain cheeseburger for Pie, garlic wings for J & Boot, a chili cheeseburger for me...and their amazingly good macaroni & cheese bites to share), then tried to join the local gay family group at the Great Lakes Science Center. Sadly, there was a game going on between the Browns & the Steelers, making parking hard to find and expensive! I am unwilling to pay $20 for Science Center parking, so we headed home instead. J went out Christmas & birthday shopping, while I studied & napped & the boys played video games. When J returned home, she made pork chops, mashed potatoes and broccoli for dinner. We had a family meeting during dinner, then it was homework & bed time.

1 comment:

Andi said...

There aren't enough strife-free weekends with teenagers, are there? I'm curious why you found Happy Feet depressing. I really want to see it. I made arrangements with K to watch the Sprout so I could see it without chasing her or having to leave in the middle.

Practice Thanksgiving on Saturday went well. Sprout was a big hit, as always. I found a local woman who makes Pumpkin Rolls for sale. Our recipe has more spice in it but even so it's worth buying them to have one less thing to make and clean up after.

My first puppet class last week went so well that I have one scheduled next week Tuesday and one the following Tuesday.