The White House

The White House

Monday, January 18, 2010

Today Stinks; Tomorrow Will Be Better

Woke up to cold. Imagine that. Of course, Elijah wanted to go snowboarding. He doesn't care if it is -14 at the hill. He has to go, go, go and it is getting old, old, old. So, of course, being the Mom that never says no I took him to Birch Hill.

On the way home it was grey, cold skies.

At home I had to chop wood as we had run out. I know you are wondering why I'm chopping wood when I have two teenage sons, but I guess you'll have to ask them. That among other things has been a big topic of the day, but no worries. I don't need them to chop wood or take out trash or even clean up after themselves. And apparently, they no longer need access to my wallet. Works for me.

On the way to get Elijah I had to put some gas in the van. That's all she got. It was -14 and I didn't have any gloves. I tried to get a photo of the temperature, but kept getting the time so I gave up. It really was -14 at the gas station.

Birch Hill is on Ft. Wainwright which is an army base so you have to get a day pass and go through security. It's a real pain and takes a lot of time, but it is the only ski hill with jumps for the snowboarders. We have two other hills, but no jumps. It's $30 for a ski pass and as a civilian we can't buy the cheaper season pass. It just doesn't seem right. I am penalized for not being military, yet the military get a 10% discount at many businesses off base in town. I don't get that discount and I've lived my entire 42 years in the state of Alaska. Don't get me wrong, I do appreciate the military, but it is a job just as any other job....no one makes them take the job yet they get special treatment for doing so. (FYI my brother retired from the Army and my nephew spent ten or so years in the army and my dad was in the Navy for a few years so I don't hate military). Such a debatable concept, and I'm sure I'll catch shit for my comments.

Today has been one of those days where it's rough being the mom. Elijah, the middle child, is a handful beyond belief. I could talk for days about the struggles and heartache he causes yet he is the most spoiled of our five kids. How is that? Emily leaves tomorrow for two weeks to Arizona with her father. Two weeks! I will miss my little Sassy Mouth while she is gone. I'm sure she'll have a blast and won't miss us a bit. Nick is Nick. He's mellow and an easy kid. Olivia needs more time from me and needs to be challenged. She's a gold mine waiting to be tapped. Lukey is the baby of the family and such a joy.

Here's to a better tomorrow for us all.

4 comments:

gpc said...

I always felt the same way about senior discounts when I was young and poor and living in an area where all the seniors had five times my income. The whole idea of class discounts is a little nutty.

Unconditional love does not mean putting up with crap, I think. In fact, letting kids get away with bad behavior might be the most UNloving thing we can do. I did lots of it so I'm no expert, but now, in retrospect, I can see that I didn't do anyone any good by sucking it all in with my one difficult child. I'm afraid we raise our kids to expect that their adult relationships should put up with the same behavior we put up with, which can either prepare them for a good life or doom them to disappointment. Finding that parenting balance between giving and demanding must be the hardest job in the world.

Queen-Size funny bone said...

wow she is going to love the warmth of Arizona.

Little Black Scrap Cat said...

HA! It isn't exactly summer in AZ. I know it's not cold like Alaska, but it's pretty chilly down here for us locals. And we have rain in the forecast for the entire week. But I'm sure Emily will have fun!!

Parenting.... well, I've had days like that. And I imagine I'll have a few more. If I ever get it figured out I'll let you know! But try as I might, with all I give, give, give, I'm still "the meanest mom in the galaxy!!!" I just try to keep on smiling!!

sue in mexico mo said...

You had better learn how to knit gloves to go with all those hats you have been knitting! LOL I can't believe you didn't wear gloves. Brrrrr