You mean I have to say thank you?

I have teenagers and a toddler. My toddler says "thank you" all the time with no prompting. Not so with the teens. Last Friday I spent all day helping the 17 year old find a car. I spent two hours on the online auto trader, and then I drove her to the valley and we looked at some potential buys. We found something we both could live with, of course out of her price range, but, being good parents (or stupid, take your pick), we told her we'd help her out with the difference. My husband and I agreed to gift her $1000 towards the car and lend her another $1100 at no interest. She had herself $1600 in her savings. We didn't buy the car right there and then because I am not mechanically inclined, and I wanted my husband to look at it before we made a purchase. So, that evening we left the toddler with the 17 year old and my husband and I went back to look at the car. He testdrove it and decided that it was a good buy. So, we bought the car upfront and brought it home to our daughter. We walked in the door and said "Guess what? You have a car!" She didn't turn away from the TV when she asked "Which one did you end up buying?". She did not run out of the house screaming with joy that finally she had a car. We never even heard a thank you. She just asked how come we picked this one over the other one of the potential cars we had looked at earlier. All weekend she showed no excitement over having a "new" car....well it's a 2003 Hyundai....silver color with a sunroof. Did I tell you that my first car was a grey (not silver) 1985 Ford Escort station wagon with no airconditioning and no radio, and I was damned pleased to have some wheels (I was 25).
Yesterday, I was in a god mood and the kids were out of the house and the toddler was sleeping, so I decided to clean the teenaged girls' rooms and do their laundry for them. I am working up a sweat doing this when I get a text from the youngest teen "Be here at 4:40 at the latest to pick me up"....??? Hello, what happened to please and thank you? I have created monsters!!! But at least, once at home, the youngest teen noticed my work in her room and said "Thank you for cleaning my room". The 17 year old, however, did not. I physically took her up to her room and asked "Do you see something different about your room?" Her reply "You cleaned my room!" .....and.....??????? She gave me a puzzled look. How about a simple thank you, I replied. And I do take hugs as payments. In her defense I have to admit that she gave me a hug, But, what the hell, why is it like pulling teeth when it comes to get these kids to see that showing gratitude is a basic human response to kindness. How did I fail so miserably?

Milkshake Cravings

It's nice having kids that drive when you crave a strawberry milkshake after 10 pm at night when hubby is out of town and you don't feel like driving. And no, I am not pregnant. Ahhh...I can hear the door. It's them...my milkshake is here. Halleluliah.

Night time thoughts

My husband is out of town, Hayden is sleeping soundly, the girls are in their rooms watching TV in bed while texting their boyfriends, and I...am alone in my bedroom, not taking advantage of my newfound solitude. I should have a steaming bath filling and a coctail with an umbrella sticking out of it...or at least a glass of red. Or I should be laying in bed watching all the soaps and reality shows that my husband would never suffer through no matter how much he loves me. What a bore I am....

Sleepless in T.O

Went to a party last night. Didn't drink much and didn't stay late because I knew I had to work the next day. I went to bed at 22:30 and was sound asleep in 20 minutes. So, when I woke up a couple of hours later I thought, no big deal, just turn around and go back to sleep. Hell, that was easier said than done. I tossed and turned all night long. I looked at the clock with dismay...first it was 1:22 am. I had slept a total of 2 1/2 hours. Then it went downhill from there. The clock turned 2 am and I still couldn't sleep, at 3:30 am I was getting a little worried and annoyed. My alarm clock was set for 5:30 am. Did I mention that I work a 12 hour shift in an ICU caring for critically ill patients. It doesn't take a science degree to figure out that one need to be sharp and on the ball in such environment. At 4:30 I still hadn't slept and, pathetic as I was, I woke my husband and said "What do I do?" "I haven't slept all night"....Call in sick was his reply. So, I did! I felt like a looser because I had called my work the day before and told them I was available to work if they needed me. Now, I felt like I left them hanging with one nurse short. So, in hindsight, don't go to a party the night before work if you know you really need that sleep. I should have said no to the party or no to work. Trying to do both messed me up. ...$450 went up in smoke just like that! Sorry kids, back to school shopping will have to wait!

Getting back to normal

It's been a few days since my sister and her family left. It's been quiet and the house feels kind of empty. How the hell that's possible, I don't know, with two teenage girls and their boyfriends, a 20 year old with friends that come and go, a toddler, and my husband and I. I guess I miss them already. Not that I'm in any way disapointed to have my house back, on the contrary. Finally the toddler is out of our bedroom after sleeping with us for three weeks. The girls have their rooms to themselves and no longer need to share with cousins. It's just that for three weeks I was in Sweden and lived in close quarter with my parents and then I came home and 4 days later my sister arrived. So, I have been accustomed to a hectic and crowded schedule, so now when it's quiet I don't know what to do with myself.
I have kept busy since they left last Thursday...I spent the whole day on Friday cleaning house, on Saturday I did some more cleaning, some laundry, and yes I spend a few hours resting by the pool. On Sunday I worked for the first time in 2 months...that felt weird. I had gotten used to the lazy lifestyle. And today I had organized a playdate for Hayden at our house. I had 6 other toddlers at my house, with their mothers of course. We swam in the pool, we played with sand, we colored and played with playdough. And of course we ate... and after the last two guests left Hayden begged me for his nap. Was I ready or what?

Hot tubs and alcohol

My sister and her family are visiting from Sweden. They have been here for almost three weeks. Last year they were here for three weeks in the summer as well, and not once did we go in our jaccuzzi. Don't know why it never happened. So, we said they definetily have to try it out before they go back to Sweden on Thursday. Well, our jaccuzzi is old and takes some time to heat up, so when my friend invited us to come and soak in their jaccuzzi, which by the way is a rolls roy of jaccuzzis, we didn't hesitate one bit. Of course we'll come. So, last night we had some wine with dinner and then headed over to my friend's ouse. Over there we had some more wine before going in the tub. Finally, we all went in and had a little Bailey's to make a toast. We had a great time talking, laughing, and listening to music. Then all of a sudden my sister is starting to look a little cross eyed. I had forgotten to warn here that alcohol goes to your head a lot quicker when you're sitting in a hot tub. Did I feel bad or what? Long story short, we got her out of the tub and she fell asleep in my friend's really cool massage chair. Don't know if she remembers much of the jaccuzzi experience.

Going Places

I had a couple of busy days. On Sunday we went to Santa Barbara. It was a gorgeous day, and my husband, the toddler, and the youngest teen took my sister and her family to show them something other than our backyard pool. Santa Barbara is such a quaint little town with a lot of ambiance. Us adults had planned to walk around for a while and then find a cozy place to have lunch. The kids however, as soon as we got out of the car, "We are hungry"! Hello, that's why we told everyone to eat a good breakfast. But, of course, like good parents, we didn't want our poor children to starve so we found a small Hawaiian Grill which served burgers and salads. It was ok, but not great. Then we walked down State Street down to the pier, and there were so many nice places we could have stopped at. On the pier itself they had a couple of seafood places. Next time I will not listen to the kids. You didn't eat your breakfast, tough, you'll just have to wait.
It took us 45 minutes to get to Santa Barbara, but 2 hours to get home. We got stuck in the worst beach traffic ever. I will never go in that direction on a Sunday in the middle of summer. Everyone goes to the beach on Sundays....why didn't I know this after living here for 20 years? Next time we'll go up on a Saturday or midweek.
Monday we realized we were low on food and other neccessities such as toiletpaper, so we went to costco to stock up. Well, did we ever...! Our cart was full to the brim and $415 later we were on our way home. But, we're a big crowd, so the food goes quickly.
Today I took my family to the beach and then I took Hayden to a playdate...a lot of driving but it was worth it. I think everybody was happy with their day.
Tonight all the young girls are going out for some Thai food and then our oldest daughter, the 20 year old, is taking them all to Hollywood for milkshake at some famous milkshake place!!! What do I know? I have no clue where all the hot places are. Us adults are staying in our backyard for some barbequed steak and potatoes and of course some wine...we're so boring.