School's Out

Kitty finished Kindergarten way back in June and since we're almost ready to start 1st grade, I figure now is the time to talk about the last day of school.

It was sad and exciting and super hot outside.

It was super hot outside because I volunteered for Field Day.  Had I not volunteered, it would have been a perfect 72°.  I guarantee it. 

Here's Kitty on the first and last day of school.

The biggest change is all those missing teeth!  She lost a lot this year.  What a cute Kitty I have.

Here we are at Field Day.  I was in charge of a game called the Fireman's relay.  The kids had to fill a pail with water, pass it down the line, and dump it into a bucket at the end.  The first team to fill their bucket won.  It was a fun game but involved a lot of cheering  and herding on my part.  My froat hurt at the end.

And here's her teacher, Mrs. Nielsen.  She was amazing and I'm incredibly grateful for the way she watched out for Kitty all year. She gave Kitty a fantastic start to her school career.  I'm so sad Kindergarten is over.

Now on to 1st grade! (I'm wailing inside)

Fahja's Day

Ah, Father's Day.  That wonderful day dedicated to the glorious fathers of the world.  I went all out this year. (Wink, wink)

I didn't get Michael a present because he said he didn't need anything.  I was too lazy to think up a gift on my own.

I didn't make him a dessert because we were off sugar.

I didn't remember the steaks on the grill and incinerated them.  Whoops.

But before you start feeling bad for Michael, it was still a wonderful day.

I did cook the cheesy potatoes to perfection.

I did write him a love letter.  Don't ask to see proof - it's private you perv.

I did watch Superman and Superman II with him.

I did birth him a beautiful daughter who wrote him a sweet book at school.

See?  A wonderful day indeed.  Happy Father's Day to Michael!

Dancin' till Dawn

Once upon a time, Kitty danced in a recital.  She danced as a caterpillar and was the cutest caterpillar you ever did see. 

Her mother volunteered backstage for the first night's performance.  Her mother wasn't the cutest volunteer you ever did see, but she was the most indignant.  You see, Kitty's mother didn't actually want to volunteer because that constitutes work, and Kitty's mother always errs on the side of lazy.  However, Kitty's mother felt obligated to volunteer since Kitty's dance teacher is a friend.

This is why Kitty's mother shouldn't have friends. 

The recital was long.  Too long.  The children were tired and bored.  Very tired and bored.  The rooms backstage didn't have air conditioning and were sweltering.  Very sweltering.  Kitty's mother wasn't happy.  Very not happy.  The entire volunteering ordeal ended up lasting 5 and one half hours.  5 and a half hours!  Kitty's mother may have snapped near the end and raised her voice at the studio's office manager, when said office manager was all up in her business about misplacing a piece of paper.  Kitty's mother may have done that.  And she was justified.

Kitty danced beautifully and then cried all the way home.  Kitty said she never wanted to do a recital again.

Kitty's mother agreed.

But...there were a few fun moments.

Like playing with the tablet.  What happens when you give a kid a tablet?  Ten other kids swarm over.

 And the second night Kitty's mother got to be in the audience and not worry about the chaos swirling backstage.  She watched the cutest little caterpillar you ever did see dance beautifully, and then she took her caterpillar home at intermission.

It was the right decision.

Kitty may never dance in another recital again and that's okay with her mother.  If Kitty opts out of recitals, her mother won't have to worry about volunteering anymore.

And they will all live happily ever after.

How many more?

Ten hundred million.

That's the number of dollars the Tooth Fairy has spent on Kitty thus far.

And then she went ahead and lost another tooth. It was number 6 and her second front tooth.  She looks like a real-live kid without her 2 front teeth.  The good news is that her teeth will likely grow in as giant beaver teeth.  It's one of those genetic gifts I've given her.

You're welcome.

Kitty starts planning her requests for the Tooth Fairy long before her teeth are even loose.  I chalk this up to greed.  Another genetic gift I've given her.

Again, You're welcome.

I moved this note and cleaned around it for weeks leading up to the actual day of tooth ejection.

I also scoured the internet looking for a velvet cat statue so I wouldn't be caught off-guard when the day actually arrived.  Do you know how hard it is to find a velvet cat statue?  It's hard!  Even the internet doesn't know where to find one.  I finally found a flocked bobble head of the cat from the new Captain Marvel movie.  I was extraordinarily pleased with myself and congratulated this old mama on her resourcefulness and preparedness.

The day Kitty actually lost her tooth, I giggled that I indeed had a velvet cat statue waiting in the closet.  Then she informed me that she would be asking the Tooth Fairy for something else.  Something like this:

A Marble Wubble and a stuffed skunk?  What?  Oh, heck no.  Kitty was getting a velvet cat statue.  THE velvet cat statue sitting on the closet shelf that I painstakingly found on the interweb.  She threw a bit of a fit when I prepped her for the possibility that the Tooth Fairy had already purchased her gift.  I crossed my fingers and hoped for the best.

Thankfully, Kitty was appeased by the Tooth Fairy's explanation as to why she was getting a cat and not a skunk.  Myke's good at those explanation letters.  I did not contribute to his genetic ability.

Sorry.

It all turned out ok in the end.  I don't care what the Boy Scouts say, it did not benefit me to be prepared.  I will go back to sending Michael to Walgreens at an obscene hour from now on.

You're welcome.

Infestation

I think we have a vermin problem.

Vermin of the feline variety.

The human Kitty has carefully named them all.  I'll tell you their names.  From L to R:

Shyrie, Duchess, Sophie, Princess, Fantasia, Itty Bitty Kitty - she's the one leaning against Fantasia.  She really is itty-bitty - Alassia, Rainbow, Mother Cat with her nursing kitties: Isabella, Luna, and Calissa, Moonlight, Tasha, and Princess Fifi.  Bebe the Cat is in my Kitty's lap.

That’s 16 pet cats at our house.

Isn’t there some kind of law against such recklessness?  Well, there should be.

Somebody please turn us in.

Mama's Day

There once was a month called May, and a day in May called "Mother's Day."  Let me tell you about mine, because I had a glorious Mother's Day!  I must first admit that I've been a jerk about this holiday for the past couple of years.  I have impossible expectations - it's a problem.  Unfortunately, I have scarred my poor old husband by acting like a buffoon every year.  He needs thicker skin.  Or I need less buffoon-ness.  It's debatable who needs to change.  BUT - I set this point aside and decided  not to be a jerk this year, but to appreciate any effort that my family put into celebrating instead.

It's amazing how pleasant things are when I'm not a jerk.

I received a book from my sweet Kitty that she made at school.  Here's the front cover:

And the pages inside:

The way she spelled my name is actually kind of brilliant.  There is a girl in her class named Yanna, with the ä sound.  Put it with the Bre, and there ya go.  I would also like to point out that Kitty is accusing me of not being good at keeping track of time.  Um, excuse me, but I'm always harping on her that we need to hurry and we're going to be late BECAUSE SHE HAS NO CONCEPT OF TIME.  I always know exactly what time it is and exactly how many minutes we have until I sweat completely through my clothes from attempting to corral Kitty into our vehicle.

Not good at keeping track of time?  Psssh. 

At least she made up for the insult with these valuable coupons.  Which reminds me, I need to redeem that massage.

And here's the back cover.  A beautiful piece of artwork indeed.  That's the genie from Aladdin coming out of his bottle - with a kitty, of course.

Mykey bought me a fancy new blow dryer and made me Costco ravioli lasagna with garlic bread for dinner.  It was delicious!  And ice cream bars for dessert.  I may have eaten 2 within 5 minutes.  Maybe.  I'm not so good at keeping track of time.

The day was topped off with a bouquet of flowers that Kitty made at church out of her hand prints.

My, what a spectacular day!  I'm so glad I wasn't a jerk this year!

43 Smackers

This guy had another birthday.

Now he's 43.  Yikes!  In the words of my dear Mother, "I didn't think people lived that long."

Hear, hear.

He may be old and moldy, but we still like him.  Most of the time.  Except when we're having hormonal surges.  But we don't talk about those times.

We can, however, talk about the delicious prime rib we had for dinner.

And the divine annual chocolate cream pie.

Eva made him a card and a drew a picture of the two of them together.  It was adorable.

I gave him a gift certificate to have his car detailed.  Not quite as adorable, but very needed.

It was a wonderful day and we sure are glad to have this old man in our family.

Happy birthday, Mykey!