Tired Mama.com

What made me smile today.

Go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.

It's the only way you'll ever get any peace and quiet.

(Author Unknown)

My Sally Brown

My youngest daughter informed me today that I didn't blog about her musical performance last week.

She's right.

So, everyone? I just wanted to let you know that my youngest played the part of Sally Brown in her school production of 'Snoopy - the musical' this past week.

What can I say? *

She looked beautiful, sang like an angel, performed beyond her years and was funny. She was actually very funny and it was a good funny, the type of funny that made the show better.

The most important thing? She had the time of her life.

She was extremely happy being on that stage and her being that happy? That made me happy.

Extremely happy.

Baby girl? You were amazing in the musical and you know what?

Even when you're not on stage, you're still amazing.

I love you, sunshine.

* Yes, it's my blog and I'll brag if I want to. :)

What's the difference?

I have a daughter who loves theater and a son who loves hockey.

I do everything I can to support both my children as they pursue their activity of choice.

As I was watching my son play in his hockey play-offs today all the parents were yelling directions at their kids from the stands telling their offspring what to do and how to play better.

They were uh, lunatics.

As I was listening to my fellow hockey parents 'coach' their off-spring  I started wondering what would happen if I was to yell directions at my daughter when she was on stage performing in her school musical.

Could you imagine me acting like a hockey Mom at the theater while she was on stage? I could have directed her from my seat, telling her where to stand and how to sing. I could have helped her!

Ah, no.

And no, of course I didn't do it.

If I had several people would have wanted to kill me. Actually had I yelled at any of the young thespians I would have been escorted from the building.

And you know what?

I think we should start considering doing this to those helpful parents at the hockey rinks too. 

Just sayin'.

Please, just get in the house.

It's been busy around our castle lately.

Youngest daughter is performing in her school musical this week, my son has started hockey play-offs, we're progressing the house renovations and my classes are demanding this term.

Lately things have been very uh, busy crazy chaotic.

Yesterday, when my youngest daughter and I had just gotten home from an all day musical practice she decided to try out some Olympic type figure skating moves on the driveway as she waited for me to untangle the groceries and assorted costume paraphernalia from the back of our van.

As I was handing her things to carry into the house she turned to me with a grin. 

"Everyone keeps telling me to break a leg," she informed me.

"Yep," I replied, "that's a theatrical way of wishing you good luck."

"Wouldn't it be really funny if I actually did fall and break my leg?" she asked grinning, then ran off again to slide around some more on the ice in her winter boots.  

Ah, sweetheart?

No.

Just, no.

Sigh.

A gold medal performance

I'm an Olympic junkie.

I love cheering for my country and I am thrilled when the athletes representing it do well.

I am very patriotic and I truly believe that I live in the best country in the world.

I do.

I also have huge amounts of appreciation for the skill, dedication and perseverance of everyone who is at the Olympics competing.

We are only two days into the competitions but I have already explained to my children how winning a bronze medal is a great accomplishment. 

I have explained to my kids how you don't lose gold when you win silver.

I've explained how just making it onto an Olympic team is a lot of work and is a privilege that few people achieve. 

I think all my talking is falling on deaf ears however.

Oh well, I will keep talking because I think telling them this stuff is important.

And you know what? If lecturing my kids was an Olympic event?

I'd win the gold every time. 

Just sayin'.

More rules

At six-thirty this morning my younger daughter marched into the kitchen and announced to me that her older brother was out shoveling the snow off the driveway in his pajamas.

Youngest daughter had gotten a lecture from me this past summer for going out to play one morning in her nightgown and I guess she wanted to make sure the lectures were going to be fairly distributed.

'That's okay,' I replied. 'It's still dark out and he has a coat over top of them.'

'So, it's okay to be outside in your pajamas when it's dark out?' she asked.

'Yes,' I replied, 'but only in the mornings before seven and only when you're working and have a coat on.'

'Oh,' she replied. She left the kitchen satisfied with my answer.

My baby is now almost ten years old, I wonder how much longer I have before she realizes that I'm just making this stuff up as I go along?

Ah well, at least the walkway is cleared.

Hockey Nights in Canada

Over the Christmas holidays Tired Papa and our son built themselves a hockey rink in our backyard.

It's nice. They built boards and put a heater in the pool house to work as a little warm change room and they even put up nets to stop all the pucks from breaking my kitchen windows.

My hubby and our boy go out there when it's dark and cold and they shovel, sweep and flood their rink.

The kids of the neighborhood and my younger children have been using the rink a lot. It's great exercise for everyone and they all have a great time outside.

Me? I've been making a lot of hot chocolate and popcorn this winter.

Do you know what I like most about the ice rink though?

I like looking out my kitchen window and watching my two boys working on the rink and then playing hockey together.

They're not just making an ice rink, they are creating memories. Memories of a father and son working together, creating something together. 

It's good.

Really, really good.

And all the dead grass I'm gonna have back there in the spring?

Totally worth it.