Aw, I hope the evening is easier, msbelle. Believe me, there have been dozens of days I wished I could run away, too.

I spent three hours enrolling both the kids at their schools. Whoa paperwork, dude. But it's done!

Unfortunately the unpacking fairies did not arrive while I was gone. Do blood rituals mean nothing anymore?!

Oh no, Calli! I'm stopping at the CVS on the way home to pick up a prescription for Lulu. Would you like me to get you anything?

ita, to save you a mango-fail, these [link] fruit crusher things from Peter Rabbit do not have enough mango to balance out the banana. Poor Noah, who adores these fruit crusher things, couldn't even finish this one.

msbelle, a LOT of kids lie about their homework, or forget it or what have you. I know that this is just the tip of the iceberg for you, but it's easier to get kids in the habit of doing things when they are younger, than to wrestle with it when they are in high school and the stakes are higher.

I used to make this arrangements with kids and parents: they would have a planner (for Mac, a printed out week sheet would do, or one of those cheap checkbook looking planners) and at the end of each day, I would look over what the kid had written down for homework, and would sign it. In cursive.

You don't have to present this as a trust issue thing; you can look upon it as a skill-building thing. Like how kids learn to swim -- they push off from the edge and swim a little father each time. Eventually, they make it across the pool.

You might get stickers, like stars and put it by each day he writes his homework down, or does it without complaining 8 times, or whatever. Kids like to see tangible evidence of their accomplishments, especially when they can't make that connect that doing homework is its own reward. After a month or two of doing this, you might see if he has gotten in the habit and see if you can make an arrangement with the teacher that he be responsible that week for his homework -- tell him this -- but that you'll email or call the teacher afternoons that week to check.

I know it sounds like work, but I know, as a teacher, if I saw a kid in trouble, and their parent was willing to make the effort to work with their kid, I would always bend over backwards to help out.

Thanks, amyth. Actually, would you mind picking up a bottle of diet ginger ale, please? Canada Dry would be nice, if they have it. Or house-brand. Whatever's easiest to find. Thank you so much!

I guess it's the lack of attention to something which you choose to pay attention to from the outset that's driving me insane (for a short while.

Like my cousin's friend who claims to be in love with "Jon Steward." Which? Ok, fine. But, Jon Stewart is mine!

Sure thing!

these [link] fruit crusher things from Peter Rabbit do not have enough mango to balance out the banana

I'd never heard of those, but if I'd seen them, I totally would have tried one. The idea looks nummy. Shame, and poor Noah.

In all the time I've lived outside of Jamaica, I've never bought a mango. Mango-flavoured stuff, mangoes in stuff. Never a fresh, whole mango. I'm always sure I'll be disappointed. If they're processed or frozen, then, eh. That's already mitigated.

Ugh, Calli. I hope it's transient.

If I don't get my ass into bed now, I'm gonna regret it tomorrow.

Night, all!

I bought a whole mango from a fruit market in Galveston this weekend. It was heavenly.