My fashion mullet.

Evil Strep Mother?

Nope, not strep--just a nasty, painful sore throat that kept me in bed (actually on the couch) on Mother's Day.  Not only did it hurt REALLY BAD, but I didn't get to participate in all the day's festivities.

What I missed out on:

• The peace I feel when I go to church.  Instead, I got a healthy dose of the neighbor's acid rock blasting through the open window.
• Listening to the children sing to all the moms during Sacrament meeting.
• Hearing Andrew give a talk in Primary.
• Hanging out with the family at the Franklin's.

What I didn't miss out on:

• A lovely gift and thoughtful cards from Glenn and the kids.
• The delicious desserts the men provided us ladies at church.  Glenn brought home a heaping plate of chocolate cake and cheesecake.
• The yummy meal the guys made for dinner.  Again, a tasty plate magically appeared before me and I gobbled it down.
• The beautiful sunny weather.  Right there out the window.
• A couple naps.  Always good to catch up on sleep.

If there's one thing we learn when we become mothers, it's that we've got to learn to go with the flow.  You have an idea of how things are going to go, and then it doesn't work out the way you expected it.  But if you can open your mind to the possibilities,  the end result might be better than what you had originally anticipated.

Because in all reality, what I got for Mother's Day was the entire day to myself.  Doing nothing.  Isn't that really all we ever want on our Big Day?

On the right track.

As a compliment to cross country, the girls decided to give track a try.  I think we've all kind of agreed that we like cross country a lot more.

At the starting line...

CC meets are short and sweet and held on Saturdays.  Track meets are long and drawn out and are held after school.

CC meets take place in the lingering warmth of autumn.  Track meets take place in the frigid cold and blustery, biting winds of spring.

There is a small, tight-knit group of girls who run CC.  It seems like every girl in the school runs track.

All runners compete in CC meets.  Unless you are one of the top 4 (and in the case of conferences, top 2) runners, you only get to compete in the home track meets.

CC meets are free.  Track meets charged admission.  Never understood that.

CC is distance.  Track is sprinting.  'Nuff said.

 

But Emma and Leah were smart enough to stay away from any events involving jumping or throwing, got a cool hoodie with "FRANKLIN" on the back, and gave it a good run (so to speak).  I'm proud of them for going outside of their comfort zone and trying something new.   And besides, who is not impressed with running a mile in under 7 minutes?

Cross country, here they come!

Is there a teenager in the house?

 

obsessed with Harry Potter, American Idol, Survivor, Hunger Games, and Friday?

check.

prone to emotional outbursts, huffing and puffing, and stomping up the stairs?

check.

spends way too much time on iPod?

check.

new cell phone owner?

check.

would rather text friends than call on the phone?

check.

loves to babysit little kiddos?

check.

suddenly taller than one parent?

just about.

busier than all get out with school, activities, church, and friends?

check.

responsible for own laundry?

check.

cleans up entire kitchen the way Mom would?

check.

stays up way too late at night and sleeps in way too long in the morning?

check.

yep, we've got teenagers alright.

TWO of them.

buckle up and hold on tight!

Happy 13th Birthday, Emma and Leah!

I believe.

I know you're sick of hearing about this, but seriously, we are on overload around here.  There has been lots of subbing, track practice, track meets, the start of the baseball season, a 5K, Les Mis with Emma and Leah, a ward activity, a family birthday dinner, 6+ hour long school board meetings (ok, I was only there for 3 of it), and oh yeah, some siding that blew off the side of the house in this absolutely ridiculous weather we've been having (more on that later).

Today on my way to my eighth school day in a row of working (a record!), I was having a mild panic attack.  There was another filled-to-the-brim afternoon ahead of me, and I just wasn't sure I could pull it off this time.  In comparison to the miraculous complex maneuvering my sisters and I pulled off this weekend to make sure everyone got to where they were supposed to go, today was nothing--still, for some reason I wasn't sure I was up for today's challenge.

I drove home from work, ready to meet Andrew head on with his book report and three staff appreciation cards that are due tomorrow, prepared to change into jeans, boots, and my winter coat for helping at the track meet, and still not sure how we were going to get Brooke to Activity Days, Emma and Leah to mutual (would the meet even be over yet???), and Andrew home from baseball all at 7:00. 

And then the blessings started rolling in.

First email:  Track meet postponed until next week.  Strong(er) possibility that winter coat will not be needed.

Next email:  Baseball practice canceled due to muddy fields and that lovely freezing cold rain. 

Now while Andrew has been avoiding his homework like the plague, I can tackle this from home.  In sweats.  And all I have to do is go out and have Glenn pick up Brooke from her activity tonight.

Some one up there loves me.

What's your definition of Spring Break?

a) Taking a break from the daily grind of school to enjoy a week of spring-like weather?

b) Taking a break from the daily grind of school for a week during what is technically considered to be spring according to the calendar while experiencing wintry-like conditions?

If you were in our school district a couple weeks ago, your answer, unfortunately, was b).

Yes, our "Spring Break" really had nothing at all to do with spring.  We had some of this:

...and then more of this:

What was predicted to be a "dusting" turned into 3 to 4 inches.  Spring, my foot.

But we made do.  And I have to say that if it weren't for my parents (who came here from Sunny California), I would have been going craaaazy with these kids cooped up in the house all week.  They took the kids to see the new Wimpy Kid movie, organized a "Minute-To-Win-It" competition,

and took us all downtown to the science center.

We also managed to fit in staying up to watch American Idol and voting for our favorites, a baptism, and a couple games of bowling.

And, of course, we got to watch General Conference. And Conference weekend is never complete without pizza and wings.

So we did get a good--no, a GREAT--break with Grandma and Grandpa Brooks.  And I think, a week and a half later, may finally have gotten the spring.

Andrew's shining moment.

I was upstairs, in my room, with the door closed, when I hear a loud whoop downstairs.  It could only be one thing...

Andrew, shouting for joy.

Because he picked the NCAA basketball champion this year.

At 7:00 this morning, Andrew was sound asleep.  Glenn went in to wake him up and share the news that UConn was victorious late last night, and that if Andrew got up and got dressed, he could watch "One Shining Moment."

At 7:01 Andrew was at our door, dressed and ready to go.  He has never gotten dressed so fast in his life.

This year most everyone in our bracket lost their final four teams and their champions (thanks a lot Ohio State) in the third round.  There we all were, basically done for the rest of the tournament, and there was Andrew, convinced that UConn would be the last team standing.  Each round that followed, I braced myself for the reaction we would get from our ever-so-slightly-intense young son once UConn was knocked out.

But it never happened.  Instead, we got a cheer, a huge smile, and a declaration that he knew it all along.

So despite a disappointing tournament (BYU falling short, losing our number one picks, a lame final game), there was some good.  I am always happy for my boy when he has something in sports to be happy about.

Oh, and "One Shining Moment" went back to the Luther Vandross version!  Jennifer Hudson sang it last year, and while I love me some J-Hud in all her Weight Watchers glory, there is nothing like the original as the crowning tribute to college basketball.

Now Andrew is convinced the Cavs will be getting Kemba Walker in the draft.  How long will his streak of correct predictions last? Let's hope at least through June.

(And can Cleveland please get Jimmer, too?)