Only Daughter was complaining that she didn't have any clean school uniforms. She said, "Like, no one has done any laundry for about a week!"
It took all i could do not to say anything. What i wanted to do was walk up to her and ask her to stick her arms out. Then, i would grab her hands and say, Oh Wow! Look! You have standard equipment, a matched set! Just like the rest of us! And yours can work the washer and dryer as well as ours, too!
The sarcasm, of course, would have been wasted on her, and that's one of the reasons i do 8-10 loads of laundry every Thursday.
Later, i went to get the boys from school. On the way home, they were in the back seat giggling (yes, little boys giggle almost as much as the girls do in this phase), and Middle Boy said, "When you get out of the car, start running and i'll show you one of my football moves. It won't hurt! It really kind of tickles, honest!"
Sure, it won't, i thought, but all i said was, No, you two do it!
To which Youngest Boy gave an emphatic, "No!"
Won't hurt, huh! i said, laughing.
When they got out of the Jalopy, they did go tearing across the yard, and practiced a couple of football style tackles, and thank Heaven, neither of them got hurt.
After we went in, and Youngest Boy got right to his homework as soon as i mentioned it and Middle Boy dawdled and played and whined, i was starting to get very weary when Youngest Boy said something that made my heart sing.
"May I vacuum?" he asked.
Even though i had already done so, the boys had tracked in a bit more dirt (as usual), and even if they hadn't i could not have refused.
Today is:
America's Day For Kids -- sponsored by the Boys & Girls Clubs of America
Armed Forces Day -- Chile
Big Mac Shoreline Fall Scenic Bike Tour & Ride Across The Mackinac Bridge -- Mackinaw City, MI, US (a one-of-a-kind bike tour; through tomorrow)
Big Whopper Liar's Contest and Kunstfest -- New Harmony, IN, US (a German Festival, with traditional German foods, beer, and entertainment, plus the Big Whopper Liar's Contest, always a good time; through tomorrow)
Covered Bridge Festival -- Washington and Greene County, PA, US (arts, crafts, entertainment, and food at each of the 11 featured covered bridges; through tomorrow)
Cosmetic Bridge Day -- seems internet generated, but i'm sure your dentist will approve
Day of the First Appearance of the Slovak National Council -- Slovakia
Egremont Crab Fair and Gurning Championship -- Egremont, Cumberland, UK (ancient fair given a charter in 1267, includes throwing apples from a cart for children to catch; through tomorrow)
Eleven Days of Global Unity -- Day 9, Freedom (sponsored by We, the World)
Fall Migration Festival -- Wetlands Institute, Stone Harbor, NJ, US (nature photography workshops, guided viewing of the abundant and diverse species here at this time, and more; through tomorrow)
Flax Scutching Festival -- Stahlstown, PA, US (through tomorrow; demonstrations of the tradition of making linen out of flax)
German-American Steuben Parade/Von Steuben Day -- New York City, and other smaller parades in US
Heritage Weekend -- Blue Ridge Parkway Cultural Heritage Center, Ashville, NC, US
featuring the Gee Haw Whimmy Diddle Championships today
Idaho Spud Day 2015 -- Idaho, US, wants the 3rd Saturday of September as a day to celebrate their favorite crop
Independence Day -- St. Kitts and Nevis(1983)
International Coastal Cleanup -- join volunteers around the world in helping remove debris that harms marine life and ruins our oceans
International Eat An Apple Day -- a celebration of the fruit of the season, on the third Saturday of every September
International Talk Like a Pirate Day -- www.talklikeapirate.com
Johnny Appleseed Festival -- Fort Wayne, IN, US (an 1800 style period festival; through tomorrow)
Jubilee of the Moth Moons -- Fairy Calendar
Levi Coffin Days -- Fountain City, IN, US (celebrating Levi Coffin, the "President of the Underground Railroad"; through tomorrow)
National Butterscotch Pudding Day
National Gymnastics Day -- US (sponsored by USA Gymnastics, and with its own web page here)
National Seat Check Saturday -- US (check it for what, sagging? i'm old, of course it is! Oh, make sure car seats are secured -- my kids finally outgrew those, phew)
Oktoberfest -- Germany (through Oct. 4)
On the Waterfront Swap Meet and Car Show -- St. Ignace, MI, US (with a car show, truck show, toy show, and swap meet, there's something for everyone! through tomorrow)
Peddler's Village Scarecrow Festival -- Peddler's Village, Lahaska, PA, US (start celebrating the fall with scarecrow making, pumpkin-painting, and more; through tomorrow)
Responsible Dog Ownership Day -- sponsored by the AKC
St. Januarius of Naples' Day (a/k/a Gennaro of Naples; Patron of blood banks; Naples, Italy; against volcanic eruption) related observance
Feast of San Gennaro -- NYC, NY, US (began on the 13th, continues to the 23rd; one of the highlights of the festival is this, the actual Saint's day)
Trail of Courage Living History Festival -- Rochester, IN, US (frontier life in Indiana when it was Native territory; through tomorrow)
Trail of Tears Commemorative Motorcycle Ride® -- Bridgeport, AL to Waterloo, AL (ride along part of the original Trail of Tears to honor the Cherokee, Choctaw, Chickasaw, Creek, and Seminole nations)
UCI Road World Championships -- Richmond, VA, US (Union Cycliste International sponsors these races, through the 27th)
Waikiki Ho'olaule'a -- Waikiki, Oahu, Hawai'i, US (a huge, fun street party, part of the larger Aloha Festivals celebrations all over the Islands, to showcase the culture and beauty of Hawai'i)
Women's Suffrage Day -- New Zealand
XTERRA Trail Run Nationals -- Ogden/Snowbasin, UT, US (finale of the series of extreme runs held across the country through the year, featuring 21k of extreme, off-road trail runs; through tomorrow)
Birthdays Today:
Alison Sweeney, 1976
Jimmy Fallon, 1974
Jim Abbot, 1967
Soledad 'Brien, 1966
Trisha Yearwood, 1964
Kevin Hooks, 1958
Joan Lunden, 1950
Leslie "Twiggy" Lawson, 1949
Jeremy Irons, 1948
Randolph Mantooth, 1945
Jooe Morgan, 1943
"Mama" Cass Elliot, 1941
Bill Medley, 1940
Paul Williams, 1940
David McCallum, 1933
Mike Royko, 1932
Adam West, 1928
Duke Snider, 1926
Sir William Glding, 1911
Lewis F. Powell, Jr., 1907
Joseph Pasternak, 1901
Henry Peter Brougham, 1778
Charles Carroll, 1737
Jan Luyts, 1655
Debuting/Premiering Today:
"Skylight"(Play), 1996
"ER"(TV), 1994
"The Mary Tyler Moore Show"(TV), 1970
Funny Girl(Film), 1968
"Flipper"(TV), 1964
"The Virginian"(TV), 1962
Today in History:
Edward, the Black Prince, commands the forces which defeat the French army and capture France's King John II, 1356
Giles Corey is pressed to death after refusing to plead in the Salem Witch Trials, 1692
The Continental Congress passes the first budget of the US, 1778
Ephraim Morris patents the railroad brake, 1838
Bond and Lassell discover Hyperion, moon of Saturn, 1848
New Zealand becomes the first country to grant all of its women the right to vote, 1893
Funeral of assassinated President William McKinley, 1901
Mickey Mouse makes his screen debut as Steamboat Willie, at the Colony Theater in NYC, 1928
The Council of Europe is founded following a speech by Winston Churchill at the University of Zurich, 1946
Nikita Khrushchev is barred from visiting Disneyland, 1959
Betty and Barney Hill claim that they saw a mysterious craft in the sky and that it tried to abduct them, 1961
The Solomon Islands join the United Nations, 1978
Scott Fahlman posts the first documented emoticons :-) and :-( on the Carnegie Mellon University Bulletin Board System, 1982
Ötzi the Iceman is discovered by German tourists, 1991
The BP oil well at the bottom of the Gulf of Mexico was declared “effectively dead” by retired Coast Guard Adm. Thad Allen, the government’s point man on the blowout disaster, 2010
I'm worn out just listening.
ReplyDeleteI say you are never too young to learn to do laundry!
I remember introducing my son to the washer and dryer. I don't think he knew where they were. That was the last time I did his laundry. Bless their hearts.
ReplyDeleteHave a fabulous day. ☺
My mother wouldn't have put up with us not helping out with the laundry. She didn't care that we were boys and instructed us on how to fold, iron and put away closes. Like you, my mother worked outside the home and her time was limited.
ReplyDeleteyou have your hands full with that household! if it was yours full-time, i know it would be VERY different. :)
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteI'm sorry, #1 daughter's kitty was all over the keyboard again.
ReplyDeleteAt our house, my kids believe a fairy flies in and does the laundry, then folds it, then puts in your room, and she also washes the dishes. She is a wonderful fairy and works for free.
I do worry about kids who have no home responsibilities. My grandchildren complain when the "maids" don't finish the laundry on time and I do give them a piece of my mind. That gal will be on her third husband before you retire.
ReplyDeletewait.... we are supposed to get an annual mental health retreat?? I must have missed that memo. LOL
ReplyDeletewell, I am glad someone gets away and I can hear all about it. granted I think your house is way busier than mine. I did nearly faint the other day when my oldest - boy - came home and started doing his homework right away. I didn't even tell him!