<p>woody – they seem so excited about it. She is their oldest grandchild, and I’m not sure they thought my dad would live to see any of their grandkids married. I was worried about the stress (the reception is at their home), but they are already planning flowers, etc…!</p>
<p>zETESIS that is wonderful gives them something to look forward to. oregon Ihope it works out.
D1 says she will not have a BF at school because many boys at her school are not on her team. She doesnt get too worried about it. She is a funny kid so normal but wanted foreign policy magazine for a Christmas present. She emraces her nerdiness she says
i dont remember when my D took the sat subject in lit Junior year i remember her being late on those. Hi to forevera mom</p>
<p>Wow, Zetesis, may I express a bit of envy - you have parents who are excited about hosting a wedding reception and I have inlaws who sleep in the car rather than spring for a motel room. If you hear a news story about an elderly couple freezing to death in a car tonight somewhere in Kentucky or Tennessee, that will be them.</p>
<p>Oh, Missypie, that is sad, sad but LOL it cracked me up.<br>
D#1 made it back with no trouble on standby fortunately. D #2 coming home from Europe via London, flight overbooked and she volunteered her seat…got paid $900 for it by the airline! YAY! That will help with costs for her NEXT trip (hopefully with Mum) back across the pond. 
She should land in Boston in 28 minutes but who is counting???</p>
<p>Mr Fang and I rendezvoused with Fang Jr at my brother’s house. We all had a splendid, lowkey Thanksgiving, enjoying each other’s company and playing with Fang Brother and Fang SIL’s new puppy. </p>
<p>We put Fang Jr on the train back to school yesterday afternoon. He of course did not call last night when he got in, and his phone was out of juice, but I forced myself to stop worrying and bake some cookies. This morning when I called him at 11, he sleepily said, “Oh I forgot.” And it serves me right. I never called my parents when I got back to school.</p>
<p>Fang Jr is home for winter break on Thursday, hurray, and doesn’t go back until after New Year’s.</p>
<p>What a gracious gift Zetesis. I dread the day D25 says I am getting married. We have too many tuitions at this point to tack a wedding reception on top of it all! But I am sure it is coming eventually and she’ll make an absolutely drop dead gorgeous bride. I watch that “say yes to the dress” and think… road trip!</p>
<p>Son’s birthday is Thursday, but he refused to even cyber shop with me when he was home and I refused to beg him to spend my money. I honestly have no idea what he’s expecting, but nothing is probably going to be a tad of a surprise. He’s home on the 11th and so we can celebrate then. I did send him a card, however, which he will probably not even go to the post office and pick up. Admittedly, I am sounding a tad bitter. But considering I have sent him a couple of care-packages that he has barely acknowledged, if at all, and I just don’t know if I’m up for the “unappreciated” crown he has put within my reach. Truthfully, I am not really sure why all I am so peeved at him except that for some reason I’ve come to now know nothing and he seems to have become omnipotent in all things. And too… he left his bathroom and bedroom a complete mess including towels and clothes all over the floor. Im not touching it.</p>
<p>Modadunn,
I can think of a couple of reasons for you to feel peeved… You are entitled!</p>
<p>MD, I’d be peeved too!</p>
<p>My CC friends who are already decorating - I am saving the Christmas Tree decorating for when Odessagirl comes home for Christmas Break. I will decorate the house - bought poinsettias today. Wreath is on the door, etc. But we won’t do the tree without her.</p>
<p>All indoor & outdoor decorations, save tree, are done. D will be home Dec 10th and we’ll fetch the tree as a family then. I agree with Zetesis about moving Thanksgiving to break up the semester better. Maybe we should celebrate Canadian Thanksgiving? </p>
<p>A wedding at the grandparents sounds lovely, Zetesis!</p>
<p>:-) to wedding reception</p>
<p>We’re also saving tree for when daughters are home.</p>
<p>And D2 says, no don’t move Thanksgiving; just make it the end of the term (like a trimester, e.g., Carleton) does …</p>
<p>D1 flew back to school Sunday, all went well. We will put up the tree when D comes home. In fact, last night I booked her a flight home on 12/14. Can’t believe she’ll be back home in less than 2 weeks now!</p>
<p>Wedding reception sounds wonderful and how thoughtful of them to do it.</p>
<p>Students will be back again before we know it.</p>
<p>Hoping to get the real tree this weekend and get it decorated. We don’t wait because we host a large sit down dinner party for our friends the day after D gets home. Just not enough time if we wait until they are both home to get the tree.</p>
<p>Moda, step away from the crown! Clearly he just feels safe with you, and hasn’t switched gears yet to comprehend that after 18-19 years of it being about him, it’s time to renegotiate the relationship : ) Sign him up to Go Gratitude and coach him a little on the “how to win friends and influence people” approach to acknowledging folks and then invite him to practice on you (without “making him wrong” about it.) Sounds simple, right? (Ha, it’s Owlice’s bourbon talking : ) Boys can be a little thick about this sometimes. McSon receives extensive subliminal coaching and I swear it is paying off.</p>
<p>Missypie: You never know, this sleeping-in-car habit of your outlaws could payoff in the post-apocalyptic or other realm. I once covered a story about an 85 year old woman who got ditched driving in a snow storm in a remote area and wasn’t found for 3 days. She survived on chocolate milk, by “keeping herself dry” (using a pee jug) and praying/meditating a lot. Recovered 100% and in time for Christmas. Her motivation to live was refusing to have he kids and grandkids deal with a funeral at Christmas : ) She had a blanket in the car and sundry items with which to wrap her feet etc. – maybe she was a closet car sleeper ; )</p>
<p>Moda- I was thinking the same as kmccrindle- I have given my kids alot and given up alot for them, they have been educated privately as well etc… but if they did not acknowledge a gift or act entitiled in any way the deal would be off. I would pay their education but also told them I cant afford this for them to fool around. You deserve to be appreciated so maybe if you stop he will miss it and grab his attention and not take things for granted. Sometimes you need to be without to appreciate things.</p>
<p>not impying he’s fooling around, just meant it as a generalization.</p>
<p>Thank you for all the support. In addition to briefly pointing out his lackluster behavior before heading back to school, H is going to have a little heart to heart with him over his winter break. As it is, I did get a text message last night that said he didn’t mean for me to take the whole airline thing personally, but it wasn’t exactly an apology. Truly, it’s not like him to act so, as you say, “entitled,” but he does need a “wake up and recognize reality” call. No one is ever too busy or overwhelmed to at least say thank you for something done for them. And frankly, this makes ME look bad as the person who raised him. I know he works really hard and is doing well in his classes, but that doesn’t excuse boorish behavior. This said… I somewhat folded because I just couldn’t imagine doing absolutely nothing for his first birthday spent so far away from home. All I could imagine was that this surely would be HUGE fodder for the future therapist’s couch and frankly, I am sure there is more than enough material there to work with already. </p>
<p>I asked my H if his Mother has ever not recognized his birthday in all of his 48 years and he couldn’t think of one. Same with me. So… while I sent him a card yesterday (which was actually kind of difficult because so many of the “son” ones were all sappy about how proud and perfect they were as people and I just couldn’t go there ), I also sent him a Giant Wicked Whoopie Pie this morning. Either he picks it up at the post office or he doesn’t, but I made the effort to make his day somewhat special to share with friends - even if it was just clicking and entering a credit card. And if he says nothing? Well, we’ll just add that to the list of grievances heaped on the proverbial camel’s breaking back. Still not touching his room though.</p>
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<p>Right, the survivors of the apocalypse will be the cockroaches and my inlaws. I’m already convinced that my FIL is going to outlive me. After rewarding mass consumption of food when H was growing up, such that all four of the kids are overweight and need psychological counseling to deal with their deep food issues, my inlaws are now eating right and working out. I’ll be 70 when my FIL is 100…his mom lived to be 94, so it’s entirely possible that he could survive me…him and the cockroaches.</p>
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<p>So much for repopulating the universe, eh? :)</p>