Restaurants are making me mad

Everywhere you go, restaurants have a large TV in every corner. Why is this? What happened to days when there was MAYBE one, small 19 inch TV behind the bar?

I tried to take Dylan to lunch at a local pizza place today. I thought it could be a great time for us to catch up and talk, just the 2 of us. I'm already fighting the talking battle uphill because he's a boy and "Great" and "I don't know" are usually the extent of his conversations with me.

We get to the restaurant, find our seats and, zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.... he's hypnotized by the TV. I could have moved him to another seat in the restaurant, but noooo. There was a TV everywhere you turned. I was so mad, I should have left.

I have no idea why restaurants insist on doing this, unless they are trying to reduce noise volume in their facilities by putting their patrons in a trance.

Last week of summer!

I'm always amazed at how quickly summer flies by. I always think, "Wow. What are we going to do for 10 weeks?" And then, SNAP! Summer is over. Between the baseball, karate, tennis, scouts, lake vacation and going to the pool, we were pretty busy and we had a lot of fun.

Last week we went to the Lake of the Ozarks for a much needed family vacation. We rented a great house, which was very relaxing. We hung out at our dock, swam, rode waverunners, toured a cave, rode bumper boats and ate a lot. Like a whole lot. Some highlights:


As a side note, I found an office. It is a very nice place right next to the kids' school. I am really excited to get started. I'm also terrified to get started. Here are some pics of the office:


My dear friend Kristin from Virginia showed up on my doorstep on Friday morning. Apparently, she and Joe had been planning a surprise visit for quite some time and they both managed to keep me completely in the dark. I was so surprised, and I realized that there are very few things in my life that surprise me anymore. I think I need more of that.

Finally, I met up with some of my classmates for a therapy book club last night. We didn't talk about the book at all, but it was so fun to see everyone and catch up. My friends Erica and LaShandra brought their beautiful babies, which was so fun.

It's hyyyyydromatic

Lauren and I had girls night last night. We decided to watch a movie that the boys don't like to watch, so she chose "Grease." It was so fun to watch her enjoy it and it was a relief that the dirty stuff went right over her head.

The boys are at Scout Camp until Tuesday evening. They are blessed with warm weather and super-low humidity - unheard of around here!

Such Great Heights, part 2.

After his spectacular fall off the high dive a month ago, Dylan finally slayed the high dive dragon. I'm proud of him. Here's how it went:

He had decided to do it on the drive over to the pool. I told him that they had created a new rule at the pool (this is true, by the way, not my attempt at manipulating him) that you can't climb back down the ladder once you've climbed up. You go up, you have to jump. We arrive, and Dylan heads over to the high dive with his 2 friends and his sister. He is the last one in the line.

His sister, knowing what is about to happen, decides that this will be HER first time off the high dive as well. She goes first, flinging herself off the high dive with reckless abandon.

Friend 1 jumps off. Friend 2 jumps off. Dylan begins his slow climb to the top of the ladder. He hesitates around the area he fell from before, but continues to climb the rest of the way.

Once on the board, he moves to the end of the railing. I'm thinking, "Wow, he really is going to do this!"

SCRRREECCH! He comes to a halt at the end of the railing and begins to cry. CRAP! So I started out empathizing with him, using all my best therapy techniques. Didn't work. 15 minutes have passed and there is a line of kids waiting for their turn. I tried making him feel guilty... didn't work.

At this point, all the kids are cheering for him and telling him he could do it. The lifeguards were cheering for him. He still wouldn't jump. I tried getting mad at him and telling him he couldn't play Rock Band if he didn't jump. Didn't work. He said, "I DON'T CARE!!!"

So I bribed him. I bribed him with $30 and 3 hours of Wii time.

He jumped.

We caved.

We bought "Rock Band" for the Wii. We are working on mastering "Wanted Dead or Alive" and "Roxanne."

Somehow, I have the feeling that we will never be the same.

I'm closer to fine

I finished school on Thursday. The past two years were amazing and amazingly difficult. I wouldn't trade it for the world. Thank you, Cohort 32!

I got home around 11:00 on Thursday night, and the next morning we woke up at 4:30 to drive to Cape Girardeau for Joe's cousin Beth's wedding. Dylan and Lauren were the Ring Bearer and Flower Girl. They both looked gorgeous! Dylan was really excited about his tux. When he opened the bag and saw it he said, "I AM GOING TO LOOK STUNNING IN THIS!" He did.

In addition to school ending and the wedding, we have had a good summer. The kids are taking Karate and Dylan is taking tennis. We are also having fun going to the pool. Life is good.

But the suburbs have no charms to soothe the restless dreams of youth...

Dylan got to see his first concert last week with Joe. Can you guess what it was?

Rush. What else? Dylan, Joe, Uncle Rob and Uncle Bill all went together to see the show. It was Dylan's first Rush show and Joe's TWELFTH. Yes, Joe has gone twelve times to see the little tiny man they call Geddy Lee. Dylan loved it and, like anyone would do after they saw an awesome concert, wore his concert t-shirt to summer camp the next day.

We are having a good summer. Dylan and Lauren are taking Tae Kwon Do, Dylan is playing tennis and baseball and Lauren is considering gymnastics. This week the kids got to go to St. Louis to visit their grandparents, which is always a treat. For everyone involved.

Joe and I barely saw each other this week, because we're both working hard. We did manage to go see "The Happening" last night and went to dinner.

Which brings me to my next topic. We went to this restaurant by our house that has been around since 1978. It's in a charming, little old house with a great stone patio out back. It's small and rustic and it reminds me of being in Vermont. We moved here in 1978, right around the time it opened, and we've been going there ever since. It was always the place we took my grandfather when he visited us. They have always been a bit of a hole in the wall, but it's still good. Anyway, we get there last night and there must be some new management. The service was bad, the food was bad, the wait staff was fighting in front of everyone, and to my horror, they had removed the Filet Mignon and baked potato from the menu along with several other items that had been on there forever. Even though things had drastically changed, everyone was wearing shirts that said the name of the restaurant and "Since 1978."

I was irritated, and Joe stopped me from having a talk with the manager, which I imagine would have gone something like this, probably with even more profanity than I used in this example.

ME: Yes, manager person, I see that your shirt is now advertising that this restaurant has been here since 1978. Were you even BORN in 1978? Do you know that I have been taking my family here since 1978, and we usually order the filet mignon and baked potato????? If you are going to SAY you have been around since 1978, which you clearly haven't, you might want to carry that g*dd*mn filet mignon and baked potato!!!! Do you know that my grandfather ordered the filet mignon and baked potato when we brought him here in 1978? Do you know that almost every time I've been here in the last THIRTY years I have ordered the filet mignon and baked potato?

MANAGER: Well, I suppose we could consider adding it to the menu. We had no idea people would be so emotional about it.

ME: DON'T EVEN BOTHER!!! YOU PROBABLY COULDN'T COOK IT RIGHT ANYWAY!! THANKS FOR TAKING A GREAT RESTAURANT AND PUTTING IT IN THE SH*TTER!

I'm a little worked up about this. Joe has told me that when the restaurant goes belly up I am not allowed to buy it. Would someone out there please buy it with me? I could only contribute about $25.oo, so you'd have to come up with most of the money. We could advertise it as a "totally local" restaurant with only local meats and produce. I think it's brilliant and I'll do therapy in the kitchen.

Just make sure to put a filet mignon and baked potato on the menu.