Friday it’s Friday hooray

[librarychica]

Happy Friday! What’s on the calendar for the weekend?

[rere]

Yay Friday! I get to go to one of our small counties to get people signed up for mobile mammograms, so feeling good about the work today and it's a nice drive.

We have Dds softball tournament tomorrow. They are good, so I anticipate that being most of the day. But they are predicting storms, so it could be a wash.

Nothing Sunday, which will be nice.

[librarychica]

I woke up with a hangover, which is impressive as I had all of 2 glasses of wine last night. And I had supper with my parents so it definitely was not on an empty stomach.

I have an exciting day at work today, exciting in that I am doing things that interest me not in that anything actually exciting is happening. DD2’s best friend is coming over because we were unable to make her bday gathering (a Thursday at 11AM and a parent must attend?) so they’ll play, DD1 will keep an eye out, and then I’ll take everyone for twisty treat after work.

This weekend is pretty quiet. DD2 has a different birthday party Saturday afternoon, DD1 and I will probably go kayaking and swimming in a spring even though we will need to leave at the crack of dawn to get in on a weekend, H is working on a presentation and has an old friend visiting from out of the country so he’ll be occupied most of the weekend.

[twinmomma]

Hooray for Friday!

Our house is back to empty for the weekend. Kids are gone, SIL's crew is staying with MIL for the weekend, so beau and I have a quiet house to recover from the chaos. Tonight and tomorrow I'll be attending the girls' performance for theater camp. Beau was going to join me tomorrow but now he has to work. I know the girls will be disappointed he doesn't get to see it, but his main person called out sick so that's what happens when you are the owner.

On Sunday we'll run around doing all our last minute wedding errands. We need to go buy rings, write our vows, buy the food, etc. I can't believe we're getting married in a week! Yikes!

[dglvrk2]

I'm off work for the summer.... except it's a switch to full mom mode.
DD1 is being a pre-teen. If I don't structure her days, she'll just fart around on her phone. (Anyone else have a middle schooler like this?) Fortunately, she knows this and has been pretty amiable this last week. She was more of a challenge the prior week, her first week of summer break. My in-laws were here that week and she was not on her best behavior then
She goes to sleep away music camp this coming week. Today we are packing her up.
We are getting together with one of DD2's good friends and his parents tomorrow. We drive DD1 and her bestie to music camp Sunday. DD2 will be in a day camp next week. I'll finally get the time off H thinks I constantly have when I'm not in my office 🤪

[sandandsea]

This short week has been long for me so I’m ready for the weekend! I’m on day 3 of antibiotics and my ear and throat still hurt just as much. Hoping it’s better by evening. I have mountains of laundry to do this weekend as we were gone 2 weeks and I’ve gotten half of it through the machine but none is folded. We still have to finish unpacking, get the house back in order, get groceries, get ready for soccer camp next week and I want to relax a bit, maybe take the kids to the pool, and enjoy being home.

[librarychica]

Jul 7, 2023 10:18:11 GMT -5 dglvrk2 said:

I'm off work for the summer.... except it's a switch to full mom mode.
DD1 is being a pre-teen. If I don't structure her days, she'll just fart around on her phone. (Anyone else have a middle schooler like this?) Fortunately, she knows this and has been pretty amiable this last week. She was more of a challenge the prior week, her first week of summer break. My in-laws were here that week and she was not on her best behavior then
She goes to sleep away music camp this coming week. Today we are packing her up.
We are getting together with one of DD2's good friends and his parents tomorrow. We drive DD1 and her bestie to music camp Sunday. DD2 will be in a day camp next week. I'll finally get the time off H thinks I constantly have when I'm not in my office 🤪

I have a middle schooler like this but we are half way through her summer break already, gone and back from her week of sleepaway camp, and she has largely detoxed from the change in routine. So there is hope! She was much harder last summer.

Removing YouTube from her phone after a brief I’ll-advised flirtation with allowing it made a huge difference. We have a cap on phone time but I do let her exceed it pretty regularly. I figure I watched plenty of TV and farted around on AOL in middle school and I’m working so as long as she does her chores, keeps an ear on her sister when sister isn’t in daycamp, and isn’t a butt I allow some lazing. Redirecting the YouTube time to Spark art app and Duolingo has helped the attitude problem.

[supertrooper1]

I only worked 3 days this week but I'm also glad it's Friday. I have a pedicure appointment tonight and then we have to leave at 3am for the airport Saturday morning, headed to Las Vegas. I'm excited for the concert we have tickets for on Saturday night and then nothing planned. Tentatively, we want to go to a fancy steakhouse and Top Golf while we're there. We fly home on Tuesday.

[campermom]

Update on ML
This one’s a lot

[waverly]

dglvrk2 , last year DS was 11 almost 12, he stole DH's iPad and had figured out the password. Then he stayed up all night playing video games on it mostly FIFA soccer type stuff. This went on for a while in May/ June until DH randomly opened the door to his bedroom to check on him and found the missing iPad.

I will say he has been better since then. DS has a Gabb phone so there is no incentive to play on the phone since it has no games, internet, or apps. We took the iPads and removed most games and changed the passwords. We had just introduced the switch at Christmas, and he was overriding parental controls on it, so we decided we would take the Switch during the week and he could only play on weekends (especially helpful during the school year). We also removed You Tube from the TV's and they don't have their school issued chromebooks for the summer as the school wanted them returned.

So he has been much better this summer, but the main issue still being the Switch and secondary the TV, but I don't think TV is as addictive as video games. He still does more screen time then we would like, but is doing a few camps, horseback riding, and chores/ walking the dog. If he gets out of line I told him that I would send him back to day camp which he really doesn't want to do.

I made sure to have his summer be more structured this year.  They do have 3 weeks of not much at the end of the summer, so not sure what will happen then.  It could be mad chaos, who knows, but I am out of camp ideas and money.  

[librarychica]

campermom. That is some crazy shit. I wonder about his mental stability at this point. Oooof.

[k3am]

Jul 7, 2023 14:02:54 GMT -5 librarychica said:

campermom . That is some crazy shit. I wonder about his mental stability at this point. Oooof.

I have wondered about it for... a really long time. None of this is even close to being normal. 

[sandandsea]

Jul 7, 2023 14:26:48 GMT -5 k3am said:

Jul 7, 2023 14:02:54 GMT -5 librarychica said:

campermom . That is some crazy shit. I wonder about his mental stability at this point. Oooof.

I have wondered about it for... a really long time. None of this is even close to being normal. 

Agree. If he is spying on here I hope he sees how messed up he is and how everyone is against him all the time because he’s being crazy. I also love that he has no power or control over the narrative here and that we are all on your side.

[waverly]

I never said my weekend plans. Kids are at sleepaway camp, and we pick them up tomorrow. Unfortunately a time zone ahead of us, and pick up is 8-9:30. Aiming for 9 still makes us leave the house by 5:30 am because it is 2.5 hours away. Going to be a fun morning!

The rest of the day will be driving back and recuperating.

Sunday, I am seeing the friend that ghosted me because of extreme pandemic anxiety. This is the one that in post pandemic "normal times", judged me for not being available as much, even though she was the one that ghosted me for two years, then cancelled 2 times with long lengthy reasons. What's the over under that we actually see these people?

[dglvrk2]

waverly and librarychica, DD1 does have access to YouTube, but no social media. She's been good about not using her phone at night. Today, she's been off of it except for texting a few friends. We went on a short hike and she's been busy packing for camp.
Thanks for the art app recommendations. I want to install a few of those on her phone. She also has Rosetta Stone and sometimes practices Russian, which she started learning pre- pandemic.

[campermom]

I truly believe he has not found this place. He would NEVER be able to hold on to that for this long.

I still do PDQs bc I feel “paranoid” but again-it’s kind of validated paranoia at this point

Just a little bit more longer to go until this round is over.

[186momx]

Took DD to get air this morning and she did a standing back tuck into the oits and a standing back layout into the pit. 1st time doing either of these skills without a spot and not skills she normally gets to work on at practice. She was so proud of herself.

Weekend is quiet and we need it. DD may ride. I've started washing all the blankets and bedding as the air quality and pollen counts are more normal so I can hang them outside.

[waverly]

Sleepaway camp was a success but we are exhausted from the 4:40 am wake up time.

[mommyatty]

I’m pretty sure He Who Shall Not Be Named would have had to jump in to defend the poor downtrodden ex under an alias by now. Couldn’t help himself.

[librarychica]

I’m stuck at a monkey Joe’s for a birthday party, it’s the first day of my period, I don’t know anyone, and I can’t finish my book because the ending is sad and I will end up crying in grimy kids bounce house place.

I’m laughing at myself.

[campermom]

Yeah there’s no way. None.

[waverly]

Update to friend visit. I was extremely anxious. The visit itself was OK. But, afterwards, we both just didn't feel good about it. They came across very smug and complainy at the same time. Unfortunately, they think everything is great and want to get together again, and we aren't feeling it. I hate to look at a friend that is initiating invites (since I complain so much about not getting invited) and say no, but it was very stressful for me. They've changed and not for the better. We've changed and are in a different place with our kids. They are asking me parenting questions, did you try google? I bit my tongue a lot.  Clearly they had no interest in what we had to say before, why ask now.  I think almost every time it was my time to respond I had to edit my response to something "neutral".  I don't want to be the a-hole know it all, but I went through that kid age twice, and I am over it.  So my internal answers were all snarky or don't care or this is obvious why are you asking ha ha.  It took a lot of effort to keep myself on track to be polite.  Lots of smiling and nodding and some, hmmm.  Some silences, I really didn't know how to respond.