Parenting is sooo much fun!!! (NOT!)

Why don't the nurses give you a book on how to raise YOUR child on the day they're born???  It would make life so much easier.  We try to do the best we can, but sometimes I feel so incompetent.

The kids got their progress reports yesterday.  Ugh!  Clare's was not great.  She was very disappointed and crying.  Unfortunately for her, there are consequences to bringing home bad grades - she loses her phone and all screen time (TV, computer, etc.)  The phone is the worst for her.  She "NEEDS" her phone, or so she says.  (Wow!  I have a cell phone and would LOVE to toss it out the window sometimes!  I didn't even get a cell phone until I was well into my 30s!) Anyway, I took her phone from her last night and now she isn't speaking to me.  Gotta love the silent treatment.  Don't worry, I have LOTS of experience with the silent treatment.  I can outlast anyone. :)

Best thing about this?  The weatherman is saying we might get a foot of snow tonight and tomorrow!  Yay!  I get to be stuck in this house with my pouting, silent, brooding child for days!  Hopefully, the sun will come out on Thursday and melt it all away.  Keep your fingers crossed!   If you hear about a murder-suicide in the area...

I love to caulk!

I know.  This sounds very strange, but just ask Tom.  I really do love to caulk.  This week I decided to paint our bedroom.  It's been this project that's been hanging over my head.  We painted the master bath sometime in October, but never got to the bedroom.  The paint has been sitting there on the floor in our linen closet just waiting to be used.  So, I felt like the time had come to get it done.

I started on Wednesday at about 12:30 p.m. and finished the first coat around the time the kids came home.  Thursday I painted the second coat and had an headache from the fumes (and this was that zero VOC paint - oh well) by the time I went to bed.  Today was trim day - and caulking day.  We had a lot of cracks around the crown molding next to the ceiling.  I couldn't wait to get at them!  I think it's the challenge of having the perfect edge.  (I also don't usually tape when cutting the edges - again, it's a challenge.)  It's one of those things I could do all day.  I actually had to stop myself from going around the house and caulking every crack I saw.  You should see our bedroom!  Magnificent molding!  ;-)  

I know.  It's very strange.  (I would love that t-shirt!)