Parents of the HS Class of 2009 (Part 1)

Parents of HS Class of 20xx
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Happy New Year to all! Yes, H and I watched the Rose Parade. I actually didn’t leave the house all day yesterday…cold and rainy, and it was relaxing once my all night revelers had all come home/checked in. I watched more of the Cotton Bowl than I had planned to and cleaned out a few drawers.

H wants to start un-decorating, so I was glad to come to work. However, virtually no one is here, so I am leaving work soon and am going to yoga and made a salon appointment for this afternoon. The 18 trees can stay up a few more hours.

DTE, please tell me you’re totally well now. Oregon, healing thoughts to you, too.

This was the first year since having kids that we actually had to wake them up for Christmas morning. We waited until a bit after 9.

Saw Into the Woods, Imitation Game and Big Eyes., All good. Watched Christmas Story and National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation for the first time, to see what all the fuss was about. Neither will become Pie Family Traditions. (Unlike The Grinch, Charlie Brown, Rudolph and Frosty.)

I think I have done a decent job of balancing hanging out with family and Getting Things Done. I took all of Tuesday off to be with older D. With any luck, by next holiday season, she will have a full time job, meaning little vacation time. :frowning:

CBB, glad your son seems well adjusted to the AF.

H was talking to a young guy at his gym on NYE morning. The kid is a Private and is being sent to Syria very soon (today?) I was surprised that wasn’t Top Secret. Didn’t know we had ground troops there.

My mom is so miserable. She lost a front tooth (cap came off) and will have to get an implant or the like to replace it,. So she can’t/won’t go out until it can be fixed, and I think my sister is taking a vacation from her. I try to hard to be content and serene, but I just feel sick to my stomach when I think of how lonely she is and how totally resistant she is to doing anything that would make her feel less so.

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On the topic of NY Resolutions. My 2014 resolution went very wrong. I enjoy reading the NY Times Book Review. For 2014, I resolved that I would read it with a pen and pad nearby to record the books in which I was interested. Yesterday I finally threw away about 20 weeks of Book Reviews. Never make a resolution that turns a pleasurable activity into a chore.

For 2015, I am going to really try to be in bed with the lights out and TV off by 11 pm every night. There is no earthly reason why I shouldn’t be able to do it. I just sit in bed watching sit com reruns that I have seen a hundred times.

I got a Lumie Bodyclock lamp for Christmas.

http://www.lumie.com/collections/light-therapy-waking/products/bodyclock-active-250

I don’t know if it will really help me get up in the morning without hitting the snooze button 5 times, but I am really going to try to work on the sleeping/waking part of my life.

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H and I had a fantastic New Years Eve - had a great dinner out and then went to a 10000 Maniacs concert at a local intimate venue. They really raised the roof! So much fun!

Hey CBB - Glad to hear S is doing so well… that’s a heck of a budget he’s responsible for! Yowza!
MP - glad you were able to balance your precious time!
c_q - I’m with you regarding better choices this year.
Shaw - nice to hear about D.

Re: Serial. H and I binged listened to about 8 hours last Friday and finished up yesterday. S and D had listened in real time. We were hooked but I won’t say another word… except for the fact that S was horrified at the ‘entertainment’ aspect of a young girl’s murder. For those who are into it, I highly recommend the Funny or Die parody of the final episode. (I guess I am not as empathetic as S. :-S

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Wow everyone had a wonderful New year. happy birthday to those I missed and thank you for my wishes.
I dont have new Years resolution I have been making my own transformation this year.
I am still sick, struggled through the week, when we got to Minnesota went to an NP and got antibiotics, steroids, and nasal spray. she was awesome listened to me, when I said I was pretty concerned. she was a little bit younger than me , and encouraged me in my endeveours as she was an ICU nurse who went to grad school later in life.
I found the covering doc I went to didn’t listen as well and had the answers before I could explain everything
I was talking to my uncle about M water problem ,he explained but had not much in the solution department. did you ever get it fixed NM?
When we flew over MN I said hi to Moda and NM
I was not thrilled with the airline, I had a direct flight to Minneapolis that they canceled then were going to put us on standby in Atlanta, I was really mad, and they changed it but we had to go to Detroit, then Minneapolis then Fargo.
I should explain this by saying, I went to Oklahoma first see my brother and his family. I had never met my nephews and the cousins had never met. so we had fun, the little on cried when we left. I hadn’t seen my brother in 12 years.
then we "flew " to Minneapolis so D! could meet her boyfriend, and drive to a cabin near ELy with h is family. I visited my aunt and uncle, and my uncle also came from the city too. I need to see my people and it was lovely. My Aunt is 68 and is so busy and working as a PT, My uncle who drove down from the city, is retired and now tries out different patents, and works on small inventions. He got one on the market, a teeth flosser thing. We made Lufsa , actualy I watched H uncle aunt and D2 make it. My aunts husband, is a bit younger and is very interesting guy. My uncle form the city, watches Jimmy Kimmel, etc… know everything about current events including Taylor Swift. he said “One Direction isnt bad, just not very good either” anyway it was refreshing.
Woody, does Natalie Merchant play with the group still?
Kmc always good advice
CBB glad your son is doing well,
I am exhausted just reluctant to go to sleep. I fell asleep on the plane and woke up to a coughing jag that was a liitle scary. I actually am better but please don’t get this guys, its pretty nasty.

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DTE, sorry you are still so sick. That makes flying (and everything else) a lot less pleasant. I had a chronic cough for about a month following a viral infection (fluish symptoms went away just leaving the cough). My doctor prescribed two weeks on Advair 500 and the cough is nearly gone (though the two weeks are not quite up). I gave two one hour talks without notable (or any) coughing.

Oregon101, no resolutions at the moment. But, we will fill out our time capsule entries tomorrow.

In our family room at the moment, we have 6 or 7 kids from ShawSon’s 10 kid suite his junior and senior year. In what must have been an upgrade from then, ShawSon asked if he could open a bottle or two or Prosecco. (I have been buying a case of Prosecco at Costco). At least half probably will be sleeping someplace in the house tonight – two of them slept here last night.

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So happy for most of us. DT not not happy that you are both not feeling well and the airlines are so difficult.
I am an annoying you know what today. I have been so sick for 8 days, gave a happy dinner party for 16 (although I know every single thing not done up to par), made a few dinners and have felt terrible that D is here and I am not able to pull things such as happy hours and late movies together. She has assured me that she had a great visit. My ribs hurt so much from coughing that I lean against a wall when an incident hits.
Found myself in the kitchen thinking of making prawns with fennel and finally caught myself…why?? I am sick!
Somehow in my family I am the meanie and H is the saint. I swear the next time I am ill I am packing a bag and going to a hotel and if I do not I want all of you to yell at me.

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Good morning!
Oregon, I promise to yell at you if hubby is mean and you don’t run away. Wait, wouldn’t yelling at you be mean too? But seriously, best wishes for good boundaries. I love my guy to pieces, but every now and then I find it helpful to vigorously establish a boundary here and there or examine a comment for tone :wink: That way I don’t sweat the small stuff as much.

I read an article (that a recently divorced guy I know had posted) about marriage health and the relationship to “bid response” – meaning small acts of kindness or attention given when a partner makes a comment or an event/situation arises that gives opportunity for kindness or acknowledgement. I’m not explaining it as well as the article/research did, but it put me in mind of something a crust ole bachelor defense lawyer pal told me years ago when we hung out a lot at a courthouse together. (Often a lot of time to kill at a courthouse ;). He said that in the end, survivable love was made from small daily choices to be loving. It hit home at the time, and it was advice I carried into my second marriage that has served me well. Mch, I’ve noticed, is good at that, and I’ve become better than I was. But I’m not sure a lot of guys get that a little part of love dies off every time they look at the paper instead of turn their attention when you speak, etc.

Eg. Its a small thing, but although I was pretty much lavished by thoughtful gifts at Xmas/birthday, which I totally appreciated, what was really special for me during the season is that completely unbidden, mch bought little surprise “girls night” gift bags for my 3 visiting sisters last weekend, with chocolates and pedicure stuff, etc. He wanted the non-birthday girls to have something to open. In truth, he’s not wildly fond of a few of them, but its the kind of thing he does for ME, if that makes any sense. Being kind to my peeps is being kind to me.

By contrast, my ex made all girls nights feel somehow taxing to him. The difference might be that he didn’t like not being the center of attention, whereas mch, by contrast, loves to wander off to the cave and leave us to our devices :wink:

DTE, hope your feeling better soon, and hope you find a new doc like the doc you visited while traveling. Awesome that you got to reconnect with family.

Woody…sounds like fun. Perhaps I should be hanging out with you next NYE…mch is not one for crowds and for the first time in several years there was no mcson party here to entertain me :wink: also didn’t have anyone over as the two usual couple-suspects were abroad this year. On that note, NM, I love the sound of your seafood lasagna. I haven’t played cribbage in years, but used to enjoy it.

Missy…I don’t sleep A LOT but I sleep well and deeply. However, I did not learn to do that until later in life, when I studied various forms of creative visualization. You can basically self-hypnotize into a deep refreshing sleep, might be worth a shot and some hobby reading.

Shaw, how exciting for your D! Also glad you’re having what sounds like nice time with shawson.

Today would be a great day to like CQ, honor the notion of healthier eating and a bit of exercise – I slacked off on that front a lot when we lost our long-term employee in June and had to quite suddenly reinvent the team. (And looking back, we’ve increased revenue/work volume by about 30% - no wonder ive felt so busy!)

There’s a bit of snow, so I should make the hill trek at the very least. I’d like, a the very least, to get back to where I was in June on the fitness front :wink:

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@kmcmom13‌, nice post. I learned (and am usually able to follow but not always) that the key to doing something nic for someone is to do something that they like, not something that you like. So, I barely notice flowers (or many visual things) except peripherally. ShawWife loves flowers. Especially when I am traveling, I buy flowers for her when I am around. At one point, earlier in life when I was traveling a lot and leaving her with the two kids, my assistant had a standing order to have flowers sent to the house when I was traveling for 3 or more days of a week. Now I often bring 24 roses back from Costco. That is what mch is doing – giving you something nice as you define it and not how he defines nice. Well-done.

ShawWife also really likes that I bring her coffee in the AM – at least when I am up at the same time she is. That used to involve work on my part. We now have a fancy superautomatic espresso maker that grinds the beans and produces espresso at the push of a button, but bringing her coffee still elevates her mood. [She’s in the studio, but maybe I’ll bring her coffee].

Ooops. Went to Costco yesterday and didn’t bring back flowers and I’m going to be in Europe for a few days. Maybe I’ll pick some up tomorrow.

Oregon, sorry to hear that you and DTE are still sick. Maybe a trip to someplace warm would help. Don’t know if that is feasible. [Since I never really get off airplanes that much, flying always seems feasible to me].

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I drove ShawD back to her place so she could continue studying for the nursing licensure exams. She had an idea that, in keeping with her new vision of what she might be able to do (become the next Dr. Ruth?), she could offer to teach the sex education course at her old private high school, which was taught by a gifted teacher and the school nurse. She said, “I’m a nurse.” Plus, one of ShawSon’s friends who is sleeping here is a med student in upstate NY (SUNY someplace, I think). She asked him to ask if his hospital / med school if they would like a talk on what medical professionals should know about gender roles (she’s given this talk twice to nurses, interns and residents at one of the Harvard teaching hospitals where she worked). So, she’s moving right away on the inspiration she took from the weekend. Bravo.

The good news is that our kids both realize what a privilege it is to be able to attend an event like the one from which we just returned (some of these kids live in that world day in and day out). ShawD was both inspired and recognizes that the network could be very useful. Med schools profs and deans, other health professionals. A year from now, she can perhaps show these folks what she does and get their help.

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kmc - I loved your post. On another thread, I read about the 5 languages of love: words of affirmation, gifts, physical touch, time and acts of service. If you can figure out what your partner wants in terms of one these languages and act on it, you’ve hit an emotional homerun. I kindof like the idea. Shaw, you seem to have figured it out… flowers (gifts) and making coffee (service). ;))

Re: New Year’s Eve past. We were in Shanghai 3 years ago for NYE at the Peace Hotel right on the Bund. The kids - unbeknownst to us - were in a rooftop club just across the street. I have never seen crowds like that in my life - Times Square included. Huge waves of people all walking in the same direction but eventually they can’t go any further because there is no place left to go at the river’s edge. Scared the hell out of me. So when I read about the stampede, I was really not surprised.

DTE - I’m still coughing my head off - 3 weeks after the z-pak, inhaler and nasal spray. I actually used a tsp of codeine at night to sleep for a few days - I was in a coma with that stuff!! One side benefit - my abdominals are actually firming up with all the coughing!

Re 10000 Maniacs. Mary Ramsey who sounds very similar to Natalie Merchant and has played electric violin for the group since the 90s is now the lead singer - I think for about 15 years. We really didn’t miss Natalie. One of the fun things from the night was that they used a local university’s brass ensemble for back-up. These adorable guys came out in tuxedos and sounded great. It must have been such a thrill for them.

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dte,woody,oregon and anyone else who is under the weather - I hope you feel better soon.
Loved your post, kmc.
shaw - your kids continue to amaze me.

Not much going on here, weather is cold and rainy.

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I am starting to feel better, but am on augmentin, Flonase, flovent, albuterol, prednisone, probiotic, codeine cough syrup. I am completely exhausted, but have not had a crazy coughing fit today. I know others who have had this and it takes eons to go away. I hope everyone gets better and Kmc send her mojo for no one else to get it.
I love to give gifts and sometimes miss but not often. It isn’t hard to figure out based on things people say.

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woody, my ribs and back are really hurting from the coughing. It has been 9 days now and I can see the end.
dt, did the augmentin too. Don’t know if it helped.

Tonight H picked up food…

D is off and the dog is lost.

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The dog is lost? Your dog? Please update.

So sorry about the nagging illnesses. Please take care of yourselves.

The undecorating is going very slowly. Why do we put up so many trees and other decorations?

I am starting the new year with a fresh pedicure, hair cut and colored, eyebrows tinted. 2015, this is as good as you’re going to see. (Maybe that is why the undecorating is going so slowly - I’ve been doing other things.)

Stay warm everyone and truly, take care of yourselves.

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And THAT is the question of the day/week/month/year! :slight_smile: I may not always enjoy the decorating, but I know for sure I don’t like the UNdecorating. Hence my simplifying the past several years – although I never came close to all the decorating you do, mp. And I like your way of starting 2015!

Hope all who are not feeling well are recovering quickly.

I am so sick of college football bowl games! Seems like there are more than ever before. Fortunately I’m able to read while H watches …

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Yay MP putting yourself first for once!
I think inhalers help with a persistent cough as the bronchioles get so irritated and they close down, so the body keeps coughing ineffectively to get the mucous out.
going to make my new year’s chili today.
I cant believe school starts again next week. What is APA format Ack! just downloaded software to do it for me.
I used to hold on to things mentally and physically and I am working on that . it is quite freeing. I am slowly getting rid of things, clutter in m y house and trying to let go of slights and hurts. life is too short.

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I should have said that the dog is depressed. She goes to D’s door and throws herself against it every morning. It is now nearly 1 and she has not gotten out of bed yet. We did cuddle her while watching a movie last night. (the one about the Alps–beautiful and interesting and SLOW but interesting to watch with H as the main theme, I thought, was about our expectations of each other).
Feeling better today but have nagging back ache due to coughing.

MP, I seriously want to know about the eyebrow dye. It seems that it is illegal in OR. At least my hair colorists has said this and cannot do it for me.

OK–Kudos to H. I got up one morning and he had undecorated the tree and had it ready to go out of the house.
Now that was a great gift.

I have decided that my New Year’s resolution is to “unload” 3 things in my life. I started with a caustic “friend”.

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I hope that all who are getting better feel much better tomorrow. I read that influenza is at high levels in many parts of the country; we had it years ago and I remember the utter exhaustion combined with pain from coughing. H actually cracked a rib from coughing after a bronchitis episode one year, and D has too. No fun.

We had our big party, but attendance was way down due to a nasty snowstorm that blew in yesterday. I rather enjoyed it since it gave me more time to sit and chat with guests instead of needing to make sure everything got restocked.

H brings me tea every morning, and it is a gift I treasure more than jewels.

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We “undecorated” on the morning of January 2. We had our last supper around the tree, etc., on New Year’s evening, then took it all down the next a.m. It was cold on New Year’s; my brother and his wife (an FSU grad) went to the Rose Bowl game, but left at the beginning of the fourth quarter because it was so cold and, well, FSU wasn’t doing so well …

D2’s second quarter starts tomorrow. After an intense fall term, she’s hoping this one will be a little more sane, if only because she’s taking either 1 or 2 classes, rather than 3. But she has officially “joined” a lab, so she starts on her research (this will lead eventually to her thesis); and she continues to serve as a TA for the gen chem course (which all undergrads take). It turns out that the prof whose lab she joined, and for whom she TA’d for Gen Chem in the fall, actually lives just 1/2 mile or so from us, and he remembered my daughter from his child’s APChem class in HS! D has also been doing a lot of aerial at two different studios. I don’t see how she does it all.

Over the break, I read *How I Killed Pluto and Why it Had it Coming/i. Apparently this prof offers a Coursera course on The Science of the Solar System; I may take it this summer, just for fun. Seems like the sky has changed a lot since I learned anything about it!

Oh, and my daughters gave me horseback riding lessons for my birthday. Eons ago I had a horse and rode a lot, but haven’t done so for a long time. So guess I’m going to take that up again at some point too!

Hope everyone feels better soon. I had something (flu?) in mid December; the cough just wouldn’t go away. So tiring.

Best wishes to all for the coming year.

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I had that lingering cough for about a month and a half and my doctor gave me Advair 500/50 and it mostly has cleared up within two weeks. I gave two one-hour presentations without coughing. She had given me Advair 100/50 before and it wasn’t doing anything.