September 17, 2014

  • School and Tools

    We are sort of back in the swing of things, about a month after Seph started 8th grade. Four weeks is about how long of a reaction time we need to a schedule change. When it's all shaken out--school schedule, sports schedules, lesson schedules, we are less hectic this fall than we were last year, but I still feel like we're all over the place. With Chance home, he's been able to lend a hand with The Running of the Kids, so that's been a big help.

    Seph is in theater and choir, and they're planning a big trip to NYC in June, so she's scheduling as much babysitting as possible to cover the costs. It's an exciting trip, but I'm not looking forward to the months to come as she worries about what outfit would be best for each activity, and how she'll pack it. She is also going to ACL this year, because in this town 13 years old is when you start going to festivals to hang with friends, it seems. I may go along to be home base. Home base is what you call the old lady sitting on the blanket texting her kid every 10 minutes to say, "Come check in with me right now."

    Cotton just signed up for tap class. That's all I have to say about that.

    Rone is my easygoing middle guy, as ever. Except about math, which he'd rather not do. He wants to learn about architecture this semester, so we're looking into resources for that.

    Last week we had a day where it didn't get over 72 degrees, a record low for a summer day. Cotton collected sticks all day because she wanted a fire, and all the kids were generally hilarious about the 'cold'. Chance wouldn't let me open the windows, and we kept the AC on all day, because he is also hilarious about the cold.

    Chance and I have started all kinds of projects. I've got a magazine to work on with the kids, and he's writing the computer game he's been thinking about for years. We attempted to fix the lights in the dining room, which have been eating lightbulbs for years and finally gave up. We got as far as taking the light off the wall and purchasing a light from Home Depot that will not go on the wall in its place. This is, for us, an amazing amount of handiwork. I'm hoping to get step 2: return light to Home Depot, by Halloween.

    photo 3