Excuses, Excuses...

...and a little this an' that
     Well, hello there...  I hope this finds you relaxing and enjoying this Labor Day weekend -- the last official long weekend of the summer!!!!  Something about the impending "trying to get back into a routine" is drawing me back to the blog.  So much has been going on...mostly "life", and I hope I can make the time to recapture some of it on the ol' blog!!!  If not for the love of you people, then at least for the sake of me and holding on to those memories of kids who grow up too fast (and some days not fast enough).  I am trying hard not to give you all my excuses because in the end, that's all they are, right!?  Excuses, excuses!!

Spent some time here in Ludington, MI #puremichigan



     First, and foremost, let me just say that my mom is doing okay!!!  I have received a handful of emails asking about my mom and the blog (some of you have your email settings set for "no reply" so if I didn't get back to you, that could be why!).  I never meant to leave y'all hanging!!!  I will be back with Monday Memories With My Mom, possibly as soon as tomorrow a/k/a Labor Day....  Oh, and of course I won't just jump right in to the "present" -- you know I have to start from where I left off and go through it all -- possibly in too much detail!!!

Mom, Me, Muffin

     Meanwhile, here's what's been on my radar...
     Senior 2015   I have learned that the junior/senior year is extra busy!!  On top of a normally loaded down class schedule filled with challenging classes, there are sports and activities and clubs, driving, ACTs, college visits and tours, job responsibilities, summer camps that go with their activities, online classes because you can't always fit everything in your normal school schedule, concerts you "have to" see, volunteering you must do (NHS), teachers who rely on your summer support, senior picture and yearbook deadlines, registrations and forms (as in "please print your name as you would like it to appear on your diploma"), college mail arriving daily, life decisions hanging over you...  It's a lot and I'm just the mom!!  Oh, and let's not forget the "are we having a graduation party at our house and if so, someone better work on the landscaping around here...and maybe paint the house while they're at it 'cause Lord knows we aren't going to have any more time in the Spring than we do now"!!!???

We Toured Some Colleges
Applications are a Work in Progress

    Two Freshmen   I am thrilled to announce that, for the first time in seven years, all three of my kids will be back in one school -- high school!!!  Not since elementary school have we enjoyed this luxury...  I would also like to mention that this means I will have...three teens in high school (insert look of panic).  Although, my oldest has always been highly responsible and taken charge of most of her own scholastic well being, at this point I am not sure "the twins" (I am trying not to name names here, but I think you can figure it out) know what they are in for and the importance of making the most out of these last few years of activities and learning!!!!  My husband is very much a "they'll figure it out" person while I tend to at least give some very strong "hints" about what needs to be done to go in prepared and ready for success.  That said, though, I do think that by this time (a/k/a high school) there needs to be waaaaaayyyy less or better yet no "mommy" reminders and way more initiative from within (time will tell).  I find it hard to make the gradual transition from the elementary days of being somewhat of a "helicopter parent" into more of a 24/7 "consultant" role. 

Photo Credit wikihow.com

     The Exchange Student   What did she say???  Yeah, that's right, we have a German exchange student coming to stay with us in about two weeks!!  I have secretly always wanted to host an exchange student and with Megan begging "can we get one" (as if asking for a goldfish) for three years and then her teacher, "Frau M", personally asking if we would host a student I hesitantly agreed to it this past Spring.  The only reason I hesitated was that life seems "pretty full" as it is and last Spring seemed pretty busy, too.  However, as they say "yolo"!!!  We look forward to meeting her and I would imagine I will introduce her to you all soon!  Megan has been in communication with her through "WhatsApp" over the summer.  There are about 27 students coming and the German Club and host families have a pretty good schedule of activities and field trips for everyone to take part in during their visit.  So, four high school teens -- no worries, right!??

photo credit dclibrary.org
 

 

     Vacations   Although we've had our share of great vacations, we did not get away at all last summer.  This year I had everyone block four days off on their calendar (last weekend) so that we could take some kind of family vacation.  As It turns out, that was a great idea because nobody made appointments or plans and those with jobs took the time off of work.  There was only one problem, nobody ever came up with a great plan of what we were going to do!!??  Embarrassing, but true.  In the back of my mind, however, was the realization that our kids are in high school yet seem to have no real memories of some of the best things there are to see and do in our home state of Michigan.  So, we booked our hotels in the morning and hit the road by noon.  By 5pm we were at the Mackinac Bridge.  The kids had been to most of these places before, but were too young to remember.  The kids schedules drag you down as they get older and more involved in sports. I knew we had failed as Michigan parents when our kids got to Mackinaw and Mackinac Island and said "this reminds me of Bar Harbor, Maine".  What should have happened was when they visited Bar Harbor, they should have said "this reminds me of Mackinac Island"...  The lesson here is, we need to slow everyone down and get some vacations planned and on the calendar. 

Petoskey, Michigan Sunset (photo credit me!)
(to think we almost didn't take a vacation) #puremichigan

     The "Volunteer(ed)"  Last year I was approached by the high school music director and asked to consider volunteering for one of the many board positions available with the music boosters.  My comment was something like, "sure is the secretary position open" and she was like, "yes, we have two secretary positions", contact so and so...  Long story short, the positions I felt comfortable filling were not open (which was fine with me!) and, as is always the case, I soon got a call saying "I heard you were looking to volunteer"...  Ummm, not really...uh, uh.  Fast forward and much to my surprise I am now listed as "Co-Chair" of concert uniforms!!??  For the past year me and two other ladies got conned  volunteered to sort, label, get dry cleaned, inventory, make alterations and process uniform contracts for over 450 students.  Dresses, jackets, pants, cummerbunds...  It's hard tedious work and unfortunately comes at the beginning and end of the school years which always seem to be extra busy.

Photo Credit www.run2health.com

     Oprah  I'm going to see her September 12-13th!!!!!  It's a bucket list thing for me and her "Life You Want" tour is coming to my neck of the woods!!!  My friend Alyce and I are so excited about it -- and yes there will be a blog post!!

Photo Credit Oprah Life You Want Tour



     Health  I am long overdue for taking care of my own health.  Gotta schedule some appointments for me...  Although I have been to several doctors and dentists with my kids and my mom, I haven't made any appointments for me in awhile!!!  Heck, the dog has a better track record of going to the vet than I do at this point!!!  That's gotta change!!



Photo Credit www.intl.kit.edu



    Fall, High School Football and Marching Bands  This year all three of my kids are in marching band!!!  As a former high school marching band member -- this makes me very happy and proud as I have great memories and friends from those days!  I can honestly say I wasn't expecting them to all be together in this, and I'm excited to see our 220 member marching band take the field this year.  They've have been to camp and have been training since July and are looking good!!  The football team is off to a 1-0 start having our first away game this past Friday!  Sitting in the stands without the kids will be one of the closest things to an "empty nest" we have had in awhile!!

Marching Band's First Performance After Band Camp

     Family, Home, Holidays  Although I don't want to be overly dramatic (ok, maybe I do!), knowing that there will be a lot of "lasts" for us with Megan in her senior year already feels bittersweet.  I hope we can make the most of our family time together as we always should!  I can already feel the holidays sneaking up on us and I fear I'll be feeling a bit melancholy (there's a word I don't use every day!) through it all.  Hoping to tackle my "to do" list early and get some stuff done before...dare I say...the snow starts flying!!!



Photo Credit www.arizonaliferealestate.com

    So, you see, I must go and enjoy this last day of summer and I hope you do the same!!

    

      

 

Monday Memories With My Mom

The Labor Day Edition
     Time to catch up...  It's been a couple of weeks since I posted about my mom.  For my new followers (insert cheers and applause!), my mom is 69 years old and has Alzheimer's disease which has greatly affected my life and my relationship with her as I have sort of switched roles and am now her mom and caregiver.  She is currently living in a senior apartment complex and receives extra medical assistance with things such as escorts to and from meals, medication, showering, dressing, laundry and cleaning.  Some people who live there still drive and can take care of themselves and others, like my mom, need assistance with many things, some of them being perhaps worse off than my mom.
     After promising for weeks, I finally washed that "Muffin" dog that my mom is so very attached to.  My brother hates the thing, but my mom would definitely be lost with out "her".  It is a comfort to her.  "Where is Muffin and my keys?" she asks every day, many times per day.  So, while visiting with Kristin I threw that dirty dog into a pillow case and then into the community coin laundry machine down the hall from my mom's apartment.  I think we got lucky, as my mom was napping on the couch when we arrived and when I told her we were going to wash Muffin she was kind of groggy and didn't say much.  I had visions of both of us having to sit in the laundry room and watching the whole process.  Luckily, that didn't happen.  Yay! -- that dirty dog is sooo much cleaner now!!!!!!  Cross that off the list!

     My mom was very sleepy that day so it wasn't much of a visit.  Kristin kept my mom occupied whenever I checked up on the laundry.  (I was a little afraid one of the other residents would take Muffin out of the washer and then I'd have some trouble!)  So, when Muffin was done we quietly placed her on my mom's lap and left.  My mom did awaken slightly, but we just said our goodbyes.

     I was a little concerned that my mom seemed so tired, but decided the best thing to do was to let her rest since she apparently needed it.
     I believe it was the next day, approximately August 19th, that I contacted the staff noticing my mom was not at lunch (because I called and she was still in her apartment).  They said they brought her lunch because my mom said her back was hurting.  Ugh!  Becky said she was going to order an x-ray for her to rule out any issues.  I was surprised they could do that as I am not used to the medical staff taking a proactive approach (as you know from the recent problems I had with them).  One thing I have noticed is that Becky is "good" at keeping me advised and seems to know what to do.  I was not too concerned as they said my mom was still able to walk, just sore.  They also ordered some Icy Hot and ibuprofen for her.  I was surprised by that, and grateful, as well!!!  Now, although I'm grateful, I was still concerned about why her back was hurting, particularly since I had just visited her the day before.  I then also realized, however, that although I had visited my mom the day before, she never left the couch so I would not know if she was sore or walking well. 
     We visited again a couple days later and brought her a plastic mason jar drinking cup.  My mom loves that kind of stuff, so I was hoping to promote keeping her hydrated by getting this new cup.

     Again, she seemed very tired and was not too much fun to visit with.  I checked her out to make sure I didn't see any obvious injuries, had her walk a bit, and felt fairly comfortable that the staff was looking out for her.  Of course, I always do my usual throwing stuff away tidying up around the apartment.

 

     I left once I saw that the staff escorted her to dinner, as I spied on her from my secret lookout, she arrived safely and seemed to be walking okay, perhaps a bit slower.  The dinner crowd is definitely a lot smaller than the lunch crowd.

 

     This past Saturday night, August 31st, we were in the car on our way home from a party and I received a call on my cell phone from the Med Team.  They said they found my mom laying flat on her back on her kitchen floor.  Apparently, she also had a magazine and pen in her hand.  She said she was going to get a pop from the refrigerator and fell.  They helped her up and got her ready for bed.  She did not appear hurt.  I am not sure whether she pushed her "life alert" bracelet or not.  I don't think she did.  I don't think she has used it when she should for a long time.  That means she could have be laying there for awhile.
     Kristin and I visited yesterday to see for ourselves if she was ok.  She seemed ok, but again never left the couch and seemed sleepy.  I think between lunch and dinner she normally does nap on the couch.  We reminded my mom that anytime she is on the floor, she should push her life alert button.  We quizzed her about it several times.  She seems to understand, but I am not convinced she will do so when she should.  I continue to be bothered by the way she slouches down on the couch -- no wonder her back hurts if she sleeps like that for long periods of time.  I'm convinced she does.  I have thought about getting some kind of recliner or chair, but for every solution that would bring, I can think of a problem it would also bring.
     Kristin chatted with her and showed her pictures on her phone while I did my tidying up.  My mom watches me like a hawk when I do this.  When I "rip" up junk mail (so she won't dig it back out of the garbage), she says "what is that" and whispers to Kristin that I am "so bossy".  It used to bother me...  I'm definitely way past that now.  Sometimes, I just take the junk home and throw it away at my house to avoid the drama.
     You can see from the picture below why she sometimes has mysterious stains on her clothing!!??  (See the cup?)

 

     Then while I was there I decided to write up another list of phone numbers for my mom.  She has not called me in several months.  The many lists I have typed up for her of friends and family phone numbers she scribbled wrote on so much that you could no longer read the names and numbers.  Not sure what drives her constant need to feel like she is "correcting" or rewriting stuff, but I guess it's all just part of trying to feel she has a handle on things when, in reality, she barely does.  I can't really show a picture because there are some barely legible names and phone numbers on it.  It was a mess.

     Then, we did an experiment.  Kristin supervised to see if my mom was capable of calling her BFF, Jane, without assistance.  It did not go too well, but with a couple of tries she got through.  Unfortunately, we got her voicemail and hung up.  Anyone who knows my mom knows she LOVED to talk on the phone.  Now, she can barely make a call and does not usually have much to say.  If she is talkative, there is, of course, a lot of repetition and questions.  Sadly, many of her friends and family have no patience for that.

 

 

     Kristin got a HUGE kick out of making videos of grandma.  My mom DOES still have her sense of humor.  Kristin asked her if she thinks Justin Bieber is "hot".  My mom says that she thinks he is "very hot" and that she "watches him on Channel 4".  Kristin got the whole thing on video and put it on her Instagram.  It is quite funny, and Kristin had the best time asking grandma questions and they would both laugh and laugh together.  I am all for it as they both seemed to be having a great time!!  My mom always asks the kids what grade they are in or how many boyfriends or girlfriends they have.  Somehow, she always remembers that Justin Bieber is popular and asks my girls if they like him.  It is how they connect.  I am all for connections of any kind these days.

     But, as you can see, my mom was barely able to keep her eyes open.  So, we said our goodbyes again.

 

     Wouldn't you know it, just when I was feeling the despair of my mom's seemingly constant "falls" these days and coming more and more to terms with the fact that her days of making a phone call may finally be over....  And just as we were getting ready to sit down to dinner...  The phone rang and it was my mom!!!!  (Her timing has always been this good!)  Lord knows how many tries it took her, but she called us up and we chatted for awhile.  Then, I gave the phone to Kristin who has always been sooooooo good at making small talk with grandma.*******

     So, again, I have learned to never give up too soon.  My mom is full of surprises and a bad day or week or couple of months is not always a permanent change.  Although it appears in many ways my mom is fading, she also still has many colorful moments that sometimes come up when you least expect them!!!

 

 

 

 

 

******My mom literally just left a message on my machine as I was trying to wrap up this post!  Be careful what you wish for!!!

 

 



 

Pure Michigan

     I wanted to do this post a few weeks ago, but I thought I better not.  You see, I was noticing that many of you were getting your last days of summer vacation in, and scrambling for school supplies and just busy busy!!  Well, truth is, I was too!!  But, I had a little secret. 

 

 

 

     As many of you may or may not know, here in Michigan our public schools do not start classes until the day after Labor Day...thanks to this little law passed starting with the 2006-2007 school year.

Labor Day

Beginning in the 2006-2007 school year, public schools are prohibited from holding classes before Labor Day [MCL 380.1284b]. The law does not prohibit a public school from offering or requiring professional development for its personnel before Labor Day.

The provisions of the law would not apply in a district where a collective bargaining agreement providing a complete school calendar was in effect as of September 29, 2005, if that school calendar did not comply with the law. The prohibition, however, against holding classes before Labor Day would apply in that district after the terms of the collective bargaining agreement expired.

 

The requirement to start school after Labor Day would not apply to districts that are already operating a year-round school or program or an international baccalaureate academy that provides 1,160 hours of pupil instruction. If a district begins operating a year-round school or program after September 29, 2005, the district may apply to the superintendent of public instruction for a waiver from the requirement to start after Labor Day. The superintendent of public instruction would grant the waiver if it is determined that the school or program is a bona fide year-round school or program established for educational  purposes. The standards for determining a bona fide year-round school or program for the purposes of the waiver would be determined by the superintendent of public instruction.

An intermediate school district is also exempt from the requirement to start school after Labor Day if the intermediate school district (1) contracts with a constituent district or public school academy to provide programs and services for pupils; (2) operates a program or service within a school building owned by a constituent district or public school academy within the boundaries of the intermediate school district; or (3) provides instructional programs or services to pupils of a constituent district or public school academy. The constituent district or public school academy must also be exempt from the requirement by either obtaining a waiver, having a collective bargaining agreement that does not comply with the requirement to start after Labor Day, or by being an international baccalaureate academy. The programs or services provided by the intermediate school district must be provided according to the school district's or public school academy's calendar.

In addition, a public school that operates all of grades 6-12 at a single site, that aligns its high school curriculum with advanced placement courses as the capstone curriculum, and that ends the second semester concurrently with the end of the advanced placement examination period is exempt from the requirement to start school after Labor Day.

Michigan Department of Education http://www.michigan.gov/studentissues

 

     When I was a kid, I am quite sure school always started after Labor Day.  Then, somewhere along the way, things changed and I know even my kids were starting the last week or two of August when they were in elementary school.  I remember thinking...this is "not cool"!!!!!!  To me, summer's official end is Labor Day!!

 

 

Jacob and Kristin

Lexington, Michigan

(forced to hold hands)

     I felt bad that many of you start earlier...  I think most of us would agree summer is just too short!!  So, might I suggest you just consider perhaps -- moving to Michigan!!!???  Apparently, from what I understand, this law mandates the later start in an effort to give our Michigan tourism that extra boost of a week or two.  I, for one, think it's a good idea and think it should have always been that way -- but I didn't want those of you who started last week all "hating on me"!!!  Ha! 
     So, now that you all are hopefully relaxed and enjoying your Labor Day weekend what do you say!!???  Does Michigan have it right on the end of summer??? 

I know we have enjoyed having that extra time!!!!  Happy Labor Day weekend!!

 

 

 

 

 

Enjoy Your Labor Day!!

 

Hope this find you spending your (unofficial) last day

 of summer enjoying whatever it is that makes you happy!!!*

* Back with Monday Memories With My Mom next week....

Enjoy the Last Days of...