We may have a winner

(See the post below, if you haven't read it yet.)

It looks like we may have a keeper in the quest for new friends. Today's playdate went really well. Violet and Cookie (she's already got a blog nickname) hit it off right away. Immediately they were talking and laughing as if they'd played together every day of their lives. Cookie was nice and friendly, respectful of our house, me and our pets.

When her mom picked her up she suggested we compare calendars when we see them next week at a homeschool event we'll all be attending to see when Violet can play at their house. As they walked to the car I heard Cookie say, "I want to play there again."

We've known them for ages. Just never got the girls together before now. I hope it works out. But we've been through enough bad situations to have learned not to force it. It will or it won't work out. They'll become friends or they won't. Either way, ultimately, is fine. But things are looking good so far.

New friend auditions

We are auditioning new friends for Violet. She has a couple of really good friends. But she has a few that could stand replacing. We've been having new kids over for a playdate so Violet can try them out and see if she likes them. One came over last week and passed part one. Another new friend is coming over this afternoon. We have the name and number of a third to try.

Once they pass the playing at our house test, there is still a second test. That is the reciprocal invite to their house. I'm tired of one sided friendships. All playdates do not have to be at our house with me supervising. There's no reason other moms can't host them. They get one invite here. If they don't invite Violet to their house, forget it.

I'm tired of being walked on. I'm tired of Violet's "friends" ignoring her. I know there are some good kids out there. Now to find them. There's a sign up sheet in the hallway.

Did someone order a doggy?

Remember how Violet was waiting and waiting and waiting for her incentives from the cookie sale? She finally got them today! Including the prized stuffed dog! I hadn't heard anything from the cookie chair, so last Friday I called and asked her if there was any word on them. She said she'd just gotten them. Today I drove over to her business and picked them up. I left Violet with Mr. Incredible and didn't tell her where I was going (she was just happy not to have to go with). Partly I wanted to surprise her, partly I didn't want to disappoint her just in case anything was missing. It wasn't. She was. (Nothing missing, she was surprised, it made sense in my head, but I wasn't sure it would to anyone else).

I sat and talked with cookie chair for a while, trying to come up with better ideas for monitoring the process since the troop leaders input their own orders now. They make mistakes and we have to catch it. And complaining about leaders who can't follow simple rules (like only girls officially registered as Girl Scouts may sell cookies). We sympathize that they are busy, but as cookie chair put it, "enough is enough, get with it." We were both ready to slap a few leaders to get them to straighten up. But unfortunately, Council frowns upon us hitting other volunteers.

My filling over my root canal went really smoothly. He didn't even have to numb it which meant no after anesthetic headache.

Super Grandpa left after lunch. We had a nice time with him here. We did get over to the Girl Scout camp open house. I think we all enjoyed seeing the camp, the tents, hiking the trails and talking to a few of the staff.

I am so glad the cookie incentives are here, that the tooth repair is over with, and that it is almost May! It almost makes up for the fact that it was snowing this afternoon.

Yep. Snow. Sigh.

Hanging in there

This has been an absolutely insane week. I had the root canal on Monday. The volunteer banquet on Wednesday. So far this week I've put in 27 hours for work (15 hours is my comfortable level). Hosted a playdate with a new girl Violet met recently. Did all the regular cooking, cleaning, errands, etc. (Well most all the regular cooking, we had a few easy meals like frozen pizzas).

Is it any wonder I completely forgot about open gymnastics yesterday?

I meant to ask Violet if she wanted to go. I really didn't think she would. She's been in a stay home and play outside mood all week. But I meant to ask.

Tonight Super Grandpa arrives to stay with us 2 nights. We still have to decide what to do tomorrow. I'd like to go someplace so I don't sit home and work. I need a break. There is an open house at one of the camps Violet and I are going to this summer. I suggested we go there, then go hiking somewhere nearby. Hiking is one of Super Grandpa's all time favorite activities. The camp is right on a big river and there are a lot of parks and forests within a few minutes of it that we could go to. We'll see what happens.

The flowers are starting to bloom and the leaves are popping open. I can feel spring down in my lungs. Must take more allergy tablets....

All I could say was "Wow"

Last night we had our Girl Scout volunteer banquet. I knew I was going to receive a recognition. I was expecting the Bronze Charm, the entry level award that was created by our Council. We had our dinner (pretty good pasta primavera) and they recognized the volunteers who had just completed their train the trainer course, and a few retiring volunteers. Then they called out the Bronze Charm winners and I wasn't on the list. There were 2 others from our service unit, that I consider to be my peers (and friends). Odd I thought.

Then they moved up to the next level, Appreciation Pin. This one is from Girl Scouts U.S.A. They called out my name! I was dazed. I haven't been involved long enough to receive this one. I was called "horrible" by a fellow volunteer last fall when I quit the troop and pulled Violet out. I went around singing "I don't want no more of Girl Scout daycamp" the last few days of camp and didn't return to the committee this year. And I received this honor!

I got my picture taken and sat back down at our table next to my mentor. I told her, I blacked out a little, this was an Appreciation Pin? She said yes, you deserve it. I said Wow. A couple of times. Just wow.

What blows me away is the others who received the same award. Two from our service unit have been leaders forever. I've turned to both of them for advice. Another one from the service unit I started in. I see her in the paper all the time, all the work she does. And someone thinks I'm on the same caliber as them. Wow.

The evening was very nice. I also won the 2 potted plants on our table (my birthday was closest to Juliette Low's, the founder of Girl Scouts in the U.S., and I had driven the farthest to get there). Oh, and a cookie cutter in the raffle. (They had $100 gas cards as prizes too. The cookie cutter will be fun and last longer than a tank of gas.)

I always wonder what people passing by these things think of them (it was held in the conference room of a hotel). In between awards, to allow time for photos, we were singing Girl Scout songs. A couple of them we all stood up to do the hand motions. A room full of grown women, all dressed up, shimming to "Princess Pat". The couple of husbands who had come thought we were pretty crazy indeed. It was fun.

It's over

I definitely wouldn't say a root canal is fun. It wasn't too terribly bad and was over within an hour, so that's good. He did numb it up good (in fact I'm still quite numb). I don't really know what he did, I kept my eyes closed the whole time. I really didn't want to see any of the equipment going in my mouth.

Next Monday I go back for the permanent filling. Today I am taking the rest of the day off.

p.s. Mr. Incredible REALLY hates the dentist (not ours in particular, dentists in general). He has lots of sympathy for me having to have the root canal done. He's being so helpful. He's running errands now and bringing back food. At least there is an upside to it. :)

Tomorrow's the day

I'll finally get the root canal tomorrow. I'm glad I'm going in, the tooth has been bothering me more lately. I think the infection isn't completely gone. I just want it over with.

I've been so busy with work lately. I've been putting in 20 hour weeks for the last month. It doesn't sound like much, but all of us homeschooling moms know that carving out an extra 20 hours each week for anything is a lot. I can really tell when I work more than 10 hours in a week. Up to 10 hours is a breeze, after that things start to slide. Like cleaning and relaxing. I probably have 2 more weeks or so until this project is done. I'm definitely not complaining about the paychecks. But I am ready for a break. I'm using the dentist as my excuse to take tomorrow off.

We've had beautiful weather the last couple of days. I've already asked Violet if she'd mind playing outside a lot tomorrow while I recover from the dentist. I told her I probably wouldn't feel like reading out loud much which is what most of our school revolves around. She agreed to swing all afternoon. By next week I'm hoping we can get out and start the yard work. It is still too early to plant anyway.

Since I've gotten everything done for work that I can do until some of it gets reviewed I'm taking tonight off too. I'm going to go shower and put on jammies and sit around with a magazine or a Sudoku for a while. Living on the wide side again!

I'm weakening

I told Mr. Incredible today that if Bubba (great-grandma's orphaned cat) really needs a place to stay he can come here. I know it will throw our 3 cats into a tizzy. And our carpeting will take many hits. But I'm really afraid someone will suggest Bubba go to a shelter or be put down. Best case Bubba keeps living at her house pretty much by himself and is neglected. Someone will go by and feed him, but no one will love him.

I wish there were a better solution for poor Bubba, but I don't know what it is. At least we'll try here. He's about 10 years old, neutered and declawed. He's very shy and reclusive because the only person he's ever lived with is Great-grandma.

I know. Bad idea to move him in here. Like I said, I just wish there was a good idea for him.

Thoughts on a funeral

Great-grandma's funeral was this morning. I must say, it was the happiest funeral I've ever been to. But when someone lives to be 93, sees all her children grow up, raise their own kids to adulthood and sees her great-grandchildren arrive, it is hard to be sad at the end. She outlived her husband and most of her friends. She was at peace with passing. It was a full and happy life. She only leaves behind her cat, Bubba.

Even when her 88 year old brother stepped forward, using his cane and with assistance from his son and great-nephew, he told a funny story about her. He started out with "I'm going to tell you a secret" and I know I thought, ooh dirt! Then he said, "Dorothy was left-handed." Well, yeah we know that, we always stuck her at the end of the table every holiday, next to Mr. Incredible's brother who's also a leftie. I was a tad disappointed. But Uncle Jack went on to tell about being a young boy and getting poked in the ribs by her elbow every meal. Who couldn't smile through that?

My sister-in-law read a poem Dorothy wrote when she was 18 and a high school senior. The poem spoke of dreaming of freedom, sleeping in late, not being called on in class, having your dreams come true. It was nice. It was the only thing that brought a tear to my eye, and trust me I cry at the drop of a hat.

The funeral procession was a bit nerve wracking. We had to drive about 45 minutes through heavy suburban traffic to the cemetery. We didn't get split up and no one cut us off. We think the funeral director was a bit apprehensive about it too because he told us all at least 3 times before we left the church to use both our flashers and headlights.

Violet did great through it all. She was polite and respectful, even when she was bored out of her skull and tired. It was a late night last night at the funeral home. But I have never heard so much laughter at a wake before. It was just hard to be sad. We will miss her. I told MIL and her sister that I spent more holidays and parties and events with their mother than I did my own grandmothers. She was family.

On a quick topic of footwear. Two of Mr. Incredible's step cousins wore sandals to the wake and funeral. We were taken aback. Especially since they didn't even have glitter on them! (See Mom#1's comment from a couple days ago if you don't get the joke).

p.s. So far no one has suggested we adopt Bubba. (It has been suggested many times in the past that we would be the perfect family to take in Bubba. We don't think our 3 adult cats would take too well to him moving in.) We were afraid to go back to the house afterwards or he would have been smuggled into our car while we weren't looking. We will be looking cautiously out the door every time the doorbell rings.

I've got to quit reading the newspaper

There were more details on the teacher's union proposed contract in the paper. Remember how they want a 7% raise next year AND the year after, well it gets even better.

They want an additional 3.5% increase for new teachers. Yes, brand new first year teachers will get 10.5% raises. Teachers already get free health insurance and 90% paid health insurance for their families (I nearly fell out of my chair when I first heard that one). Now they want $5000 in cash if they choose not to take the health insurance coverage. And somehow or another the administrator's health benefits is worth over $10,000 in cash.

But that's not all. No, no it gets better.

The teachers do not want to have to spend more than 4 and half hours a day with children. If they do, they want extra pay.

Yes, that's what the paper said. They can only handle 4 and a half hours with children each day before they need combat pay. WHAT??!! If they can't handle children for more than that why in the world are they teachers??? Personally, I'd never spend that much time on a daily basis with a room full of children, but guess what...that's why I became an accountant and not a teacher. What do you think my boss would say if I told her I couldn't spend more than 4 and a half hours a day with numbers without extra pay? I'll tell you, she'd laugh so hard she'd fall off her desk chair and bonk her head on computer. That's what.

So let's recap. The teachers was an outrageous amount of a pay increase. Far past the norm and way more than cost of living index. They already get free health insurance for themselves and pay a whopping 10% for their families. They want the cash equivalent if they opt not to get free health coverage. AND they don't want to spend more than 4 and a half hours a day DOING THEIR JOB!

I can't stand it.

Formal Pajamas?

The visitation is tomorrow and the funeral is Wednesday for Mr. Incredible's grandmother. I spent this morning trying to find something I could wear to each. I used to work every day in an office. For years. In fact, I spent a lot of days in a suit out at clients. Now I wear jeans and sweatshirts all winter and shorts and t-shirts all summer.

I tried on one of my best skirts. It is wool and very classic looking. It would work for the day as long as I don't eat, drink or breathe the entire time. I tried on a few others too, same results. I gotta start working out. I finally went back to my one suit. The one I wear every single time I go anywhere for work. I'm sure they all say "Here comes Freakworker, in her one suit," when they see me. It is a pant suit, so I'm wearing it to the visitation. I have a summery dress that fits, and I found a blazer I can wear over it. That will do. Mr. Incredible and I both said that as long as we didn't stand out too much, no one will notice what we're wearing. They'll all be too worried about what they are wearing.

Violet went shopping with my folks yesterday and picked out a skirt and shirt that will work for the visitation. My folks knew about Grandma's passing, but we waited until Violet got home to tell her (I did tell you she spent the weekend at their house, didn't I?) Mr. Incredible and I had also found her another dress when we were out last night. Today when I went to pick her up we all went to lunch and shopping. We found shoes for Violet too. Now she won't have to wear pink tennis shoes with her dresses.

Anyway, I'm trying to figure out why I can't wear my blue flannel two piece "suit" with sheep on it. Or maybe my pink flannel suit with kitties on it. I could wear my fuzzy "shoes" and a long terry cloth "coat" over it all, the one with the big pockets and the tie belt I keep by the shower. Wouldn't we all be more comfy if we could wear pajamas all the time? Maybe society would be a lot less grumpy if we were wearing comfortable clothes.

What's wrong with this picture?

I read in our local paper that our school district is currently in negotiations with the teacher's union for new contracts. The teacher's union's proposal is for 7% increases in base salary for all teachers for the next 2 years.

My question to the teachers is, have they read a newspaper or watched a news program in the last few years? Are they completely unaware that that their raise request is way out of line with the rest of the world? Keeping your job is the new raise. Layoffs are the norm. One dad from a local homeschool family we are good friends with just told me that he and 300 of his co-workers were laid off last week. There have been several other big layoffs in the Chicago region, as is the case around the country.

Perhaps the schools should let the teachers walk. There are lots of unemployed workers out there who could actually teach the kids about the real world to prepare the kids to enter the workforce when they are older. Nah, that'd actually be useful for the kids. It isn't about the kids. It never is. Schools are all about the teachers.

Can you believe it?

There is snow on the ground today! Not a complete covering, but snow. Yesterday morning I had to drive to the Girl Scout council office for our delegate meeting and there were snow flakes mixed in with the rain. It was even snowing fairly hard during our meeting. But none of it stuck to the ground. I get up this morning and look out the window and see white!

Meanwhile the daffodils are about to pop open any time now.

Violet is at my folk's house this weekend. They are doing the postponed overnight. Last night they went to KFC for dinner. Today they are going to a big greenhouse and Cracker Barrel. I gave her some homeschool petty cash to pick out something at the greenhouse to grow for school, or a bird house or whatever she sees.

Mr. Incredible and I are going out to dinner tonight, our postponed dinner out. We just can't decide where. We both have piles of work to do. I'm still not hopeful I will actually get this project done on time. I've told them as much, but get no answers. They haven't even gotten me back any of the work I've submitted as drafts. I'm supposed to get some of it on Monday. That's what they said last week.

Mr. Incredible's grandmother passed away yesterday. She had a daughter and grandson with her at the nursing home. She went peacefully to go join her husband again. Since he died ten years ago I really think that's just what she's been waiting for. I'm sure by the end of the week he'll be driving her nuts again.

We don't know when the services will be yet. There are family members in Wisconsin, Virginia, California and Georgia that might be coming in, so I'm guessing later in the week. When I go pick up Violet on Monday we need to stop by Wal-Mart and see if we can get her a nicer pair of shoes to wear.

Or if the snow keeps up she can wear her boots.

I may already be a winner

We've had a couple of busy days. Yesterday was Narnia Group. Violet didn't want to go at first, but I asked the mom who runs it if Violet could do a little less participating and more chilling out and absorbing. I said she was just coming off a stomach bug and still out of sorts a bit. The mom was cool with that. Violet did fine.

Last night the Girl Scout product sales committee met. They LOVED Violet's pictures especially the tiger made out of Caramel Delites (you may call them Samoas if you buy them from the other bakers). We got to see the incentives for next year's Fall Product Sale and pick out what the girls will earn. Violet will love, love, love them. We also got to sample all the candies and nuts and decide what the girls will sell. There was a heated debate between Fruit Slices and Gummi Berries. The sell for the same price, but Fruit Slices are less expensive for the Council to buy. Fruit Slices have also seen higher sales than Gummi Berries. But there were some big time Gummi Berry lovers on the committee (and I had strict instructions from Violet to try to bring back Gummi Berries and lose the Fruit Slices). We had to have a secret vote and the Director of Product Sales abstained from voting to count. Gummi Berries won. Those girls have to push Gummi Berries next fall!

I did check about Violet's missing dog and it is set to ship later this week. I found out some girls are still waiting for their T-shirts from last fall's sale!

Today Violet was in a Girl Scout workshop for Juniors (4th, 5th and 6th graders) and bridging Brownies (3rd graders), they earned a science badge (Be a Science Sleuth). I was expecting more younger girls, but it was mostly 5th and 6th graders. Violet held her own and completed it. She was the youngest girl there and I think the only 3rd grader. I helped match her up with one other girl who had come on her own to sit next to. I don't know if it helped or not. But once the program started, Violet had me leave (I sat in the next room reading Secular Homeschooling Magazine and talking with the Girl Scout staff person running the program - well the lady from Mad Science was doing the actual presentation of the program).

Afterwards Violet was starving (it went from 4 - 6 pm) so we stopped at McDonald's on the way home. It was a few towns away and pouring rain, so I was glad to fill her up while we drove back. I had put soup in the crock pot for Mr. Incredible and me.

And now, why I am a winner. The yearly Girl Scout Volunteer Dinner is coming up and I had sent in my reservation form. The cost of the dinner is $25. You get $5 off for having nominated a volunteer for an award, I had nominated my friend from daycamp and delegates. And you get $5 off for booking a table of 8, our service unit has booked 2 tables. So I mailed in a check for $15.

I got a message this afternoon saying I owed $5. I called the lady back and left her a message of how I arrived at my calculation, but that I'd be happy to send in another $5. I got a call back, not from her but another lady, saying she was sending my check back to me. What? I got kicked out of the banquet? No, I am an award recipient and my dinner is free! How cool is that? Being the generous volunteer that I am (who knows it is tax deductible) I asked them to keep my check and apply it to sponsorship of the dinner.

I have no idea what my award is, but it is pretty cool that I've been nominated by my service unit buddies for one. See, I keep saying that although they are a few rotten apples in the bunch, over all they are a great group of ladies and I enjoy working with them.

p.s This is one of those dinners where we all sit around and clap for ourselves all night long saying how great we all are. Feel free to make fun of us. It will be a good time. Kool-Aid will be served. (And we are great! clap, clap, clap, clap, pass the Kool-Aid.)

The Apple Dumpling Gang

Last night in an effort to cheer up Violet for missing out on her overnight, I checked out "The Apple Dumpling Gang" from the library. She really enjoys the silly old Disney comedies from the 60's and 70's. We have a long list of favorites to work our way through like "The Absent-Minded Professor," "The Shaggy Dog," and "That Darn Cat." After watching it we got her a scoop of ice cream from the freezer, she ate less than half of it and said she was tired. We made the right decision.

I am feeling tremendously better today. In addition to the antibiotic, I'm sure not having to spend the day going to the film festival when I'm so behind helped too. I've gotten a lot done here. Violet's finished up some projects too. I'm on the product sales committee of our Girl Scout council and we are working on some educational materials for young girls just selling cookies for the first time. One fun idea I came up with was having them make pictures using Girl Scout cookies in them. Violet and her friend Red each did some samples for me. Here are Violet's samples:





Red's turned out equally terrific (but I don't really have her permission to post her pictures). Some of the adult committee members wanted to do the samples, but I thought ones done by other girls would be far better. Violet loves to see art work by other kids much more than adults. The meeting is tomorrow night so we'll see what they use.

Still no stuffed dog from the cookie sale, but I am speaking to the Product Sales Director about it tomorrow.

Our weather was beautiful this weekend, wish we would have gotten out to enjoy it more. But between feeling tired and loads of work to do, we just had the doors open.

I'm dodging a meeting tonight. This is so unlike me. I had originally said I couldn't go because Mr. Incredible had the tickets for the film festival. Well, I'm not in Madison. But I'm not taking Violet with me. She's still cranky and shouldn't have to sit through a boring adults only meeting. If anyone asks the festival was great.

Finally, Mr. Incredible's step-grandmother (who he pretty much considers a grandmother even though he was 20 before he met her) is going downhill fast. She's 93 and in a nursing home. She's been put on hospice care and has had her feeding tube removed. She's been in very little pain the last 2 years and we all think she is ready to go join her husband who died 10 years ago. Her mental state has been gone for some time now (she thinks she's in the hospital and until a few weeks ago every day she'd go "down the street to another party," also known as, going down the hall to the activity room).

For the last few years Violet has been periodically sending her pictures she's drawn. None of the other great-grandkids have done anything like that and she's the only one who's a "step". I told her great-grandma was really sick and not going to get better. She did another picture to mail tomorrow. Most likely the last. A dog and cat in love:



I honestly don't think Great-Grandma will be able to understand she got another picture, but Violet's grandma (MIL) and great-aunt will know Violet sent it and it will mean a lot to them. That's what is important.

Feeling better

Violet is definitely feeling better after the poppy seeds. Who knew? But she is still dragging around. She was supposed to go to my folk's house tonight to sleep over and spend the day tomorrow while Mr. Incredible and I went to a film at the Wisconsin Film Festival. Violet really wanted to go, but she's still not eating much and isn't herself yet. So the sleepover was pushed back to next weekend and the ante has been upped to 2 nights at Grandma's.

Mr. Incredible called his dad, and he is going to meet him in Madison for the film tomorrow. It is a film about the history of the Mac (yes, the computer). I wasn't very thrilled about going, so I don't mind missing out. And Grandpa Incredible was excited to spend the day with his son. I'm still skipping my Girl Scout service team meeting tomorrow night. I'll have Violet here and the meeting is being held at a restaurant, not the place you want to take a kid getting over a stomach bug.

I'm feeling a ton better than yesterday. I'm still a little oogy in the stomach, but nothing like yesterday. I am hopeful that yesterday was the worst and that this antibiotic really is getting rid of infection that's been dragging me down.

The poppy seed cure

In the book series The Warriors, the medicine cats often use poppy seeds to cure sick cats in their clan. Violet is a huge fan of the series. So when I suggested she should try poppy seed rolls to eat she was all over it.

She went from throwing up again, to having shoes and a coat on in no time flat. We had to go out to get the poppy seed rolls, and while we were there got some ginger ale and 7-Up too. Of course our local little store had no poppy seed rolls of any sort in their bakery, freezer or bread aisle. So we bought poppy seeds in the spice aisle. Violet felt good enough to help prepare the rolls when we got home (although I made her wash her hands a lot).

The dough is almost done rising, then we'll make the rolls and dip them in our poppy seeds and bake them. We'll see if these cats know what they are talking about!

Quick update

I'm starting to feel better. I finally tried working today. Got a little done. I've come to terms with the fact that I just might not complete this project as assigned on time. Oh well. Not sure how the bosses will feel about that. But maybe they should have asked more questions about my availability prior to assuming I'd be able to do it.

Violet has been sick now too. Yesterday she woke up with a sore throat. I thought it was just allergies what with all the leaves starting to bud. But it got worse during the day and by evening she was throwing up. Today she had no energy whatsoever and a fever. Just sat on the couch and read books. Finally agreed to have me read to her in the afternoon.

She didn't eat much all day, although her stomach was better. She had plain cooked noodles for lunch. For dinner plain cooked chicken, white rice and green beans. And water. Her choice. I kept trying to get her to try other stuff, but nothing sounded good.

She was supposed to have a play date tomorrow afternoon, but we pushed it back a week. I told the family that Violet wouldn't be much fun if she was anything like today. She just kept sitting and staring at me. I expect she'll feel a lot better tomorrow. But another day off will be needed.

tired

I think it must be the antibiotic doing battle with the bacteria I didn't even know I was harboring in my tooth, but I am wiped out today. I'm falling further behind in work. But I'm hoping to feel a lot better in just a few days, so I'm not forcing myself to do anything. The tooth itself hurts more than it did, so I'm guessing it is the battle raging under it.

Thanks for all the root canal encouragement! I'm still not looking forward to it, but it doesn't sound as bad now.

And thanks for the California book suggestions. I'll be looking those up any day now. When I have more energy.

We did do a full school day today. And I took Violet to the homeschool session at Pump it up. We met a new family there today. They live quite close and Violet and their 7 year old daughter seemed to hit it off. I'm going to try to set up something for the girls sometime soon. Violet is at her best at one on one play dates, so I'm definitely on the look out for those.

For now, I'm going to go veg out on the couch before bed.