A Hodge Podge of Thoughts

This week has been kind of a blur. I can't believe the last post I made was on Monday... and here it is Friday! I don't have any one specific thing to write about and I'm not feeling very creative or "fluffy" enough to write about nothing and make it interesting. (Actually, I'm feeling very tired today -- ZERO energy levels!!) I've got a hodge podge of things running (sluggishly) through my brain cells:

My weekly date with Calvin was last night at the East Idaho State Fair. We look forward to the fair each year. It's a big deal here in Eastern Idaho. People from riles amound make the pilgrimage to Blackfoot to eat greasy/unhealthy fair food, go to concerts, muck around in animal barns and ride the unsafe rides in the midway. We (personally) go to eat greasy/unhealthy fair food -- HELLO tiger ears and caramel apples!! We also love to hang out at the back end of the animal stalls... well it's the only end available to hang out in!! It's always a game to see if we can run away fast enough when a tail gets lifted. And believe me, a lot of tails were moving last night as we walked by! We don't usually go to the concerts (Poison was last night) and I have a personal mission to never allow my family to sit on any ride that can be taken down and stored in a truck at the end of the week. So no roller coaster rides for us!! Instead of concerts and the midway, we spend the rest of our time people watching.

THAT'S a treat!!

Holy cow! there is a plethora of "interesting" people in this part of our state! (Do I dare say "redneck?") I live in a very conservative part of the state. Most of the residents here are LDS (90%) and we live in the most republican county in the country, so when we leave our little haven it's always shocking. There were tattoos, and earrings. I saw waaay too much cleavage -- both on top and bottom. **cringe** (I wanted to shout, "pull up your pants and cover your chest you 14 year old!")

To be honest, I would LOVE to take my camera and just sit and take photos of all the interesting faces I see. I could fill a book.

Maybe another year.

Bullies in school
My boy was pushed around in the bathroom at school yesterday. That bugs me. Why do they let kindergartners share a bathroom with 4th graders? I still don't know all the details, but I'm going to keep an eye on things and if they get bad, I'm going to play "Mama Bear" and growl at the principle. He's already on my short list for not okaying a crossing guard at a very busy corner by the school. He thinks there's not enough kids walking to warrant the expense, but I counted 13 kids that crossed that street in the 5 minutes I stood there. I think if there were 5 kids, that's enough to pay someone minimum wage for 1/2 hour a day -- yes it would probably be me. I tend to gravitate toward those kind of jobs.

Homecoming
When you start school the middle of August, Homecoming comes up quickly. It's next week for our school. Aly was invited to the dance today. She's very excited. She's made a friend (a boy) in Utah and his dad is driving him up so he can take her to the dance. Did I mention how excited she is?

American Idol
Yes, we're fans. It's the only show on TV that we watch as a family (don't you miss the days of Happy Days and Little House on the Prairie?) We love it and clear our schedules in the spring so nothing interrupts our viewing of this show. Yesterday on the way to the fair, Calvin and I stopped at Best Buy and while we were browsing, we came upon the American Idol Wii game. We don't usually splurge like this.... but we bought it.

HOLY COW IT'S A FUN GAME!!!

Tonight we played it (as a family) for something like 3 1/2 hours. Yes, even Calvin "chimed" in and he and I competed against each other. It was hilarious as we tried to goof each other up so we'd sing off-key. It was also hilarious listening to Randy, Paula and Simon (real voices) critique us. Even when we stunk (most of the time) the judges were quite complimentary. Simon was even ... (gasp) NICE!! (The game has to be rigged. When Adam sang --quite off key-- there was no criticism. It just led him back to the song list to make a different choice.) This game is like Karaoke on steroids. It was fun!!

Step out of our comfort zone
Today Calvin signed us up for beginner ballroom dance classes. I think it's sweet, but I can tell you right now that we'll be the comedy relief for the class. I used to enjoy this style of dancing. I even took "social dance" when I attended Ricks College and did fairly well. However, more than 20 years have passed since then, with little or no dancing in all that time. My right foot has gradually morphed into a left and now I dance with two left feet!! Calvin's not known for his amazing rhythmic abilities (believe me I'm being kind), and that's why I'm scared. We'll be quite a show!!

The reality is that it's very sweet (maybe even romantic?) of my hubby to want to spend time with me like that. It's a nice break from our normal activities. Thanks Calvin for a great idea!! (Not that he ever reads this.)