Eat Them Up Yum

D caught a fish today. He went to the Ole Fishing Hole with summer latchkey. I was not expecting anything to come back with him. I thought they'd release anything they caught. Surprise! And he wanted to eat it. He was acting all brave about preparing it until the time came to actually do it.
So this is why I became a vegetarian 10 yrs ago. I could not bear to touch raw, unprocessed meat, so I figured I might as well not eat it either. And though I have eaten the odd hamburger or hot dog in the past couple of years, I was not looking to take knife to flesh. But at least they gutted it before sending it home.
After making a few phone calls looking for advice, I just went ahead and did it. It turned out pretty good, I think. I hate fish, so didn't taste it, but it looked ok. He ended up taking a few bites, and gave it a thumbs up. Then the dogs ate a few bites.
BEING A MOM CAN BE SOOOO GROSS!!!

I Feel Pretty! Oh So Pretty!

Thursday we had a celebration for the end of D's in-home therapy. We went bowling with his therapist and case manager and had a lot of fun. And as much as everyone's so proud of how he's done, it is still one more loss for him. He and his cutie little therapist boy wrote letters to each other about what they've learned, fun times they had, what they hope for his future. The letter D got was wonderful and I told him he needs to keep it and read it sometimes when he's feeling down. Two more people that he learned to trust are gone. That's why I wasn't really sure that I would start him with a new therapist now that this is over. He said that he wants to, though. Why? To talk. I can't imagine him talking about anything much, just chattering. So far, I have not gotten the feeling that any of these people know any more than I do. And man, it's a pain to always have appointments. We'll give it a try and see how it goes.
Today, he went for a surprise visit with my sister and her boyfriend. He's going to stay for a couple of nights and I'll go pick him up (about 2 1/2 hours away) after court on Tuesday. He's been kinda crabby the past few days, I think mostly because of therapy ending. Hopefully he won't be to hard to get along with while he's there.
At the church we go to, the kids leave during the service and have a mini sunday school during the sermon. In the summer, different people take turns going out and hanging with them. Today a woman and her teenage daughter were taking care of them I think for the first time. When another mom asked how the kids were for them, they said some of them were good while giving the eye to D and his partner in crime. D giggled a little and whispered to me that he locked them out of the room!!!! Not funny. Ok, kinda funny, but still bad little boy thing to do.

First Thing This Morning...

D (sleepily coming down the stairs): Can we go to the dentist today? What day is it?
Mom: Saturday. Why do you want to go to the dentist?
D: To get my braces.

Thank you Dr. R for telling my kid that he is going to have braces. And on the same day I spent $200+ on fillings.

Durable Goods

My kitchen has a very bad odor. I've cleaned and cleaned. Thrown away produce, mopped the floor, done the dishes and cleaned the drains, even scrubbed the door frame. It is coming from the refrigerator. Mind you, this has not been an easy conclusion to come to. The smell is bad. Bad especially in light of the extreme August heat and humidity. Bad enough that even though I was determined to find the culprit, I did not want to sniff it directly. So find the bad smell, but try not to smell it. Right. Initial whiffs of the inside of the fridge revealed nothing unusual. It's coming from behind the grate on the bottom. Common sense would tell you to get in there and clean and/or fix the problem. Instead, my craving to buy a major appliance was triggered. Yes, I harbor fantasies of picking out my very own washing machine, stove, or refrigerator. Not one that came with the house or was a donation from the cousin of this guy my uncle works with. Is it because I'm so hopelessly broke right now that only a huge, major purchase could make me feel better? Don't know, but I spent the day wiping my drool off of beautiful, stainless steel, french door, freezer on the bottom iceboxes with humidity controlled crispers, doors that can hold gallon jugs, and a choice of crushed or cubed ice in your filtered water which is dispensed perfectly from the outside. I went home to vacuum off the condenser coils and clean the drain pan of my ancient avocado abomination and pout about its lack of digital temp control.

The Shortest Year

It has been exactly one year since we became a full-time family. The other day as we got ready in the morning, D said something about how he loves being in a family with two dogs and a beautiful mom!!!! Things are so different from the day he moved in. I am not constantly waiting for an outburst, attack, tantrum, or destructive rage. There are definitely still very rough moments, but they are moments and not a constant. About a week ago, we had a super milestone in anger management terms. I wanted D to take a shower before bed. He was busy watching cartoons. This could easily have been the start of an evening long battle had it happened a few months ago. And though he did come up to me aggressively, he was able to stop when I told him to slow down and think about what was happening. He went over to the dog and lay down next to him on the floor and hugged him for a while instead of hitting him in frustration. This helped him calm down and get it together a bit. I told him if he starts a fight every time he watches tv, something I've been noticing, we will have to rethink the whole tv privilege. He said he wasn't starting a fight, he was just ANGRY AT ME!!!!!! He used words!! To express his anger!!! And then did what I asked him to do!!!!!!! We are both proud of the self-control he showed. Here's hoping it will happen more and more frequently...

I'm still getting used to being a mom and everything that goes with it. I would never consider going back, though.