Did I Really Just Do That?

I'm having buyer's remorse in a huge, huge way right now. In a moment of pure weakness, I volunteered to manage William's t-ball team. Which also means that for all intents and purposes, I volunteered to coach William's t-ball team. WHAT IS WRONG WITH ME????

I got my team roster today. Ten kids. Who have never played t-ball before. Twenty parents who are hoping that their kids will have a great experience and will learn a lot. Poor, unsuspecting parents. LOL. What was I thinking? Hopefully there will be at least one other mom or dad who knows a little something about t-ball and will help me teach the fundamentals. My neighbor also loaned me a DVD set that covers Little League basics. And the t-ball coordinator said he'll send a manual that has practices all mapped out with step-by-step instructions. How hard can it be, right? So right now, the back of my car contains practice balls, game balls, a tee, bats, and batting helmets. *Sigh*

My only other apprehension is that I signed William up for the t-ball "rookies" instead of the t-ball "sluggers." It was a hard call because he's 6, almost 7, which means he's older than the other kids on his team (and one of the oldest in this league), and not in the same league as some of his friends (who are either in sluggers or single-A). But he's never played before, other than the fall clinic we participated in. So I wanted to make sure his skill level matched the other players. He's also pretty small compared to other first graders, so hopefully, he won't care that his team is mostly kindergarteners. I'm more concerned with his level of confidence. Nevermind the look of utter confusion that crossed his face when I told him I would be managing his team. He still didn't get it when we loaded all the gear in the back of the van.

Will: "Why are we putting this stuff in our car?"
Me: "Because I'm coaching your team."
Will: "What team?"
Me: "Your t-ball team."
Will: "What do you mean, coaching?"
Me: "I'm gonna be the coach."
Will: "But what are you coaching?"

Bawhahahahah.

In other news, we survived another weekend, intact and with laundry done. Saturday turned out to be a nice day with mild temperatures, so the boys spent most of the day playing outside with all the neighbors. They rode bikes and scooters and ran around. The dads started playing stick ball. It was a lot of fun and tired the boys out. I didn't realize how tired they were until after dinner, however. William got sent to his room during dinner for acting up, so while I cleaned up in the kitchen, Ed made William put on his pajamas and brush his teeth and wait for me to come upstairs to read to him. In the meantime, I gave Seth a bath and got him in his pajamas. At 7:00 I checked on William, only to find him sound asleep in his bed. He slept until 6:40 a.m. the next morning. I don't think he's ever slept for that many consecutive hours before. Ever. And today he was hungry all day. Maybe a growth spurt is coming on?

So that's my news. Two months--I just gotta make it through the next two months. Thankfully, there are two weekends before our season officially starts. And for one of those weekends, I'll be at the beach for a girls' weekend! And then we've got spring break, and think a trip to see Baba and Uncle Chris. Haven't worked out the details yet. But regardless, it's a week off.

Crap. I just realized how much I need to get done in the next week. Aghhhh! Stay tuned!

Sick Day . . . Snow Day . . . Sick Day

What a week. Mostly unremarkable, but a week all the same. On Monday, I got a call at work that William had been in the nurse's office twice complaining of a bad headache. After the third call, I finally left work to pick him up, only to have him act perfectly normal and healthy for the rest of the afternoon. Kid: one. Mom: zero.

On Wednesday, we had the Snowquester,which turned into the Snowbuster. Such a disappointment! We got a bit of snow, and the boys played outside for a while in the morning. But when they came in, they were completely, soaking wet. As if they had been outside swimming. I'm talking coats, snow mittens, boots--soaked completely through. By afternoon, it was basically just raining. I did manage to catch a few pictures:

For a brief time in the morning, Seth was over at one neighbor's house and William was at another's. PEACE!!! It was beautiful. And then they ALL came over to our house. Seven kids between the ages of 2 and 10. Fun stuff. This is what they spent much of the afternoon doing:

 

By the end of the days, the boys were exhausted. So was I!

On Thursday, William woke up complaining of a sore throat. He didn't have a fever, so I made him get dressed and get ready for school. He was still complaining that he didn't feel well, but when I told him he'd have to stay in his room all day and rest, with no TV, Kindle, or DS, he decided he wanted to go to school. I gave him some Motrin and sent him on his way.

Guess who called at 11:30? Ed was in meetings for the whole day and I was dealing with call after call asking for info on filibusters (thanks to Rand Paul's 13-hour filibuster on Wednesday). My boss asked me to add descriptions to our list of longest Senate speeches, which would take a while, so I told William to go back to class, told the nurse I would be there as soon as I could, but probably not for an hour at least, and then hustled. Luckily, a co-worker came to my rescue and I left to pick up Seth (his daycare is on the Hill, so when I leave, he leaves) and finally picked William up at 1:45 p.m. He ended up running a low-grade fever for the afternoon and night. The school nurse hates me! (Or at least moms like me.) William told her he had taken Motrin, and the nurse told him that Motrin "always wears off." Ouch! I swear I didn't give it to him to cover up a fever! I do have a history of sending him to school when he says he doesn't feel well. *Sigh*

So today is another sick day--although William seems to be fine. That's the story of my life! I'm taking them to the library and then to McDonald's. We really live it up here at Casa Hahn. Before I go, I thought I'd leave you with a picture of William's $60 shoes. He looks like such a big kid in them. And he loves them. And no--he can't tie his own shoes quite yet. But he's trying.

And not to be outdone in the style department, here's one of Seth's favorite outfits:

Does that answer the question of whether or not I let my kids choose their own clothes? :-)

Save-the-day Music, Life Lessons, and Other Stuff

On the way to school this morning, Seth was playing the Arthur Christmas app on my iPhone. It starts out with the movie's score, which Seth enjoys. He said, "I like this save-the-day music, Mommy!" He is really quite good at describing things, wouldn't you say?

Instead of "Cat in the Hat," Seth calls him "Captain in the Hat." Cracks me up every time.

Instead of asking, "What in the world are you doing?" Both boys say, "What are you in the world doing?" I love it.

We've started giving the boys an allowance. They get $1 a week, and they can earn extra money by helping out around the house. (They already have their own responsibilities, which they don't get paid for, but they can take on more jobs to earn money.) Over the weekend, William was messing with my lip balm in the car and he twisted it all the way up and it wouldn't go back in the tube. He basically ruined my lip balm. So he had to buy me a new tube of lip balm. He was distraught when he didn't get his dollar allowance this weekend. It's a tough lesson, but when you ruin someone's stuff, you gotta replace it.

The boys continue to have completely opposite tastes. William usually likes meatloaf a lot. Seth usually hates it. On Saturday night, I made meatloaf. Seth ate two and a half pieces. William ate one bite. I can't win!

We went to the mall on Saturday to buy new shoes. I paid $90 for two pairs of shoes that will last maybe six months. How is it that I balk at spending more than $50 on a pair of shoes for myself that will likely last me at least  three years, yet I'm willing to shell out $60 for a pair of kids' shoes? Do they lace the air with crack at the kids' shoe store?

We're supposed to get measureable snow on Wednesday. (5-6 inches maybe) I would have been happy for snow a month ago. Now? With the daffodils about to bloom and the peak days for cherry blossoms just announced? Not so much. But thank goodness I have kids. Kids make you enjoy stuff even when you feel grumpy about it. So bring on the Snowquester! (As the local media have hilariously -not- named the pending storm.

William got his report card. (Our school does progress reports three times during the year.) They assess whether or not the child meets certain expectations most of the time (M), part of the time (P),  or not yet (NY). William scored all Ms except in two areas: Uses time constructively and Keeps desk and supplies neat and orderly (scored Ps for both of those). The apple doesn't fall far from the tree, does it? Way to go, William!

That about wraps things up. I'm off to read. If you haven't read Tiny Beautiful Things yet, go do it. It will make you really, really think about your life. It's the kind of book that stays with you. I borrowed it from the library but I'm thinking I need my own copy to hang onto. It's that good.