Welcome to a Fly on the Wall group post. Today 12 bloggers are inviting you to catch a glimpse of what you’d see if you were a fly on the wall in our homes. Come on in and buzz around my house.
As we were going through discussions as to where High School Senior should go to college, I had to admit that my first choice was 1000 miles away.
Me (to Hubs): You know if he goes that far away I will cry and cry and cry.
Hubs: You know what a lot of Moms do when their kids go far away?
Me: I’m going to move there with him and get an apartment.
Hubs: Ummm, no, that’s really not what I was getting at.
I hate to iron and I’m really, really bad at it. Many of my husband’s work shirts are passable without my ironing them if I look at them very quickly and without my contacts in.
He has a few shirts that are just beyond wrinkled and even my crappy ironing job would be an improvement.
I keep putting off ironing them because once I do he’s going to wear them and I’ll just go right back to ignoring them needing to iron them again.
I’ve been thinking of throwing them out. I mean, it’s just too much pressure, the whole wear, wash, ignore, iron, wear, wash, ignore, iron thing. I think the best thing would be to just throw them out and put me out of my misery. That’s a good plan, right?
The irony is not lost on me that when our refrigerator was leaking we went out to the store and bought a brand new stainless steel refrigerator . . . that leaks.
I have to give you the back story to this one. My son likes to come home from school and take a snack up to his room. Often he likes to take pistachios, cashews and almonds along with some cranraisins and dried blueberries. Sometimes I buy the nuts all in one can but sometimes I buy them individually.
Me: I bought cashews, almonds and pistachios separately, do you want me to mix them together and put them in a big jar?
High School Senior: Yes, please.
So I go into the kitchen and pour the nuts out all over the counter. I get them all mixed up and put into a jar. On the counter are the really tiny bits from the bottom of the cans. I sweep them into my hand from the counter and am about to eat them when my son comes into the kitchen.
Him: Watcha doin’, Mom?
Me (without thinking): Eating nut dust.
Him, looking at me: {{blink, blink}}
Me, looking at him: {{blink, blink}}
Him, looking at me: {{blink, blink}}
Me, looking at him: {{blink, blink}}
Both of us at the same time: BAAAAAAHAHAHAHA
I’m in the living room watching TV when High School Senior comes in and changes the channel. At this point I’m willing to watch what he wants to watch just to get him to sit and talk to me.
He lays down on the couch and covers his head with a pillow.
Me: What are you doing?
High School Senior: Taking a nap.
Me: You changed the channel and you’re not even going to watch the TV?
High School Senior: That’s the plan.
Smart a$$.
Chocolate Raspberry Cake Squares
High School Senior comes home from school.
Me: You have a black eye.
High School Senior: No I don’t.
Me: Yes, you do, your left eye.
High School Senior: No I don’t.
Me: Did you hit it at the gym last night?
High School Senior: No.
Me: Did you bump into something at school?
High School Senior: No.
Me: Does it hurt?
High School Senior: No.
Me: Well something happened you have a black eye.
High School Senior: No I don’t.
Me: Go look in the mirror.
High School Senior takes out his cell (of course), does something (I don’t know what) and says: Hey, I’ve got a black eye.
You know when kids are little and one does something wrong and the other threatens “I’m telling”. Well, we’ve got that going on in my house.
The boys don’t love that I write about them all the time. Honestly, I mostly leave their pictures and their names out of this blog but there’s no question that I talk about them more often than not. In fairness to them there is much more that I don’t and wouldn’t say here, and anything that I’m on the fence about I ask them and offer to allow them to read the piece to see if they approve.
But the little stuff, now that I see as fair game. So whenever they do something that only makes sense to a teenager but would aggravate any adult, I say “I’m telling” and they know they’re in trouble now. The next sound they’re gonna hear is the tap, tap, tap of laptop keys and another Fly on the Wall snippet is born.
High School Senior: You need to sign this permission sheet for me to go on a field trip tomorrow.
Me: What class?
High School Senior: AP Calculus.
Me: You’re not in AP Calculus.
High School Senior: I know, but I did take it.
Me: So you’re going on a field trip for a class you’re not in?
High School Senior: Yes.
Me: Do they know you’re going?
High School Senior: Just sign your name, Mom.
So apparently he decided to go on a field trip with a class he isn’t taking. I'm sure this makes sense to someone. Me, not so much. But I figured what the hell, if it’s a problem the school will call me. I’ll deal with it then.
College Boy is home for the summer and I keep encouraging (that’s a kind way of putting it) him to get a job. His education, room, board, books and the majority of his essentials are paid for but he’s responsible for most of his own spending money. He had 2 to 3 years worth saved up but he spent it all in his first year of college.
Me: You need to find a job, any job, you’ll need spending money next year.
College Boy: I’m not taking just any job, it has to be something I want to do.
Me: What do you want to do?
College Boy: Nothing.
Me: Looks like you found it.
High School Senior’s graduation is in two days.
Nothing funny about it.
I’ll have to think of something else to call him on this blog.
And I’ll have to figure out a way to stop crying.
Now click on the links below for a peek into some other homes:
Chocolate Raspberry Cake Squares
©www.BakingInATornado.com
Printable Recipe
Ingredients, cake:
1 stick butter, softened
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 ½ tsp vanilla
1 ½ cup flour
1 ¾ tsp baking powder
½ cup milk
Ingredients, fillings:
1 (3 oz) package raspberry jello mix
1 cup boiling water
½ cup cold water
1 (3 – 4 oz) package chocolate pudding mix
1½ cups milk
NOTE: Although you’ll be making a package of pudding, only half will be used in this recipe.
Ingredients, frosting:
1 1/2 cup heavy cream
2 tsp raspberry extract
3 TBSP powdered sugar
OPT: Red food coloring
Directions:
*Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour a 9 X 13 pan.
*Cream the butter and sugar. Beat in the eggs and vanilla.
*Mix in the flour and baking powder, then the beat in the milk.
*Spread evenly into the prepared pan.
*Bake 25 -30 minutes, until the top spring back to the touch.
*Remove from oven. Cool 20 minutes on the counter.
*Using bottom of a wooden spoon, make approximately 20 holes in the cake. Make the holes of different depths but not all the way to the bottom of the pan.
*Stir jello and 1 cup boiling water until the jello dissolves. Stir in the cold water. Slowly pour the jello over the cake allowing the holes in the cake to fill with the jello.
*Refrigerate a half an hour.
*Whisk the chocolate pudding mix with the milk until it starts to thicken.
*Make about 15 more holes in the cake in different spots. Slowly pour half of the pudding over the cake and distribute evenly with a spatula. Return to refrigerator while you make the frosting.
*Beat cream until soft peaks form. Beat in the raspberry extract and powdered sugar and continue beating until firm peaks hold.
*Frost cake. Cover and store in refrigerator.