Ask Me Wednesday!

Happy Wednesday, Peeps.

Today was a quiet day .... which was rather nice.

It stayed pretty quiet until I went to Circle tonight. As soon as I sat down I received a text message from one of the sons that said this: "Some how water got all over my bathroom."

Somehow that kind of put a hitch in my quiet day.

I left Circle a little early, after calling the Son and telling him to clean up the water, from whence he knew not it came.

I just got home a bit ago and checked and I can not tell from whence it came ... unless it backed up through one of the drains. No sign of water anywhere, except in a bucket sitting under one of the sinks that has duct taped pipes.

Seriously?

Yes. I kid you not .... it would seem that at one time, some months ago, there was some type of leak in those pipes and Son #1 (or so I've been told) used duct tape and a bucket to solve the problem.

I'm still shaking my head in disbelief.

So .... it would appear that one water issue has nothing to do with the other, and I still don't know how water "got all over" the bathroom. It's dry now so we'll just keep an eye on it, I guess.

OK .... now that I've caught you up on the excitement of the day ..... on to the questions!

Anon asked:

How is your brother doing...and his family? I've been praying for them! Do you have Skype video to communicate with him and your other kids that are living away from home? Did your boys go to the Homecoming dance...and if so...do you have any pictures to share? How do I retrieve your post on "What Not To Say!"? I have a girlfriend who would benefit from those words of wisdom.

Hi Anon and thanks for asking. He seems to be doing well .... he sends out e-mails when he can and his wife is pretty amazing when it comes to being the one in charge for long stretches at a time. I don't have Skye, but we have chatted over Facebook once.

My boys did not go to the dance .... Son #3 went to the OSU/A&M game (YAY POKES!!!). There didn't seem to be a lot of interest in it this year, which is A-OK with me.

As for where to find that post --- click here: "What Not to Say"

Anon #2 asked:

Here's a question related to your "No Dating Until 16 Yrs Old" rule. I always thought that would be my rule too. But, I need to think thru some potential loop holes (that the kids are sure to find) before we get there. Is it a strict 16 years of age? Or, can they start dating during the school year that they turn 16? What about a special event (like a Homecoming Dance) that occurs just a few short months before they turn 16? What really is a "date?" Can they go somewhere in a large group of boys and girls (even if I know there is one girl in particular that he is interested in)? If they ask to meet each other at the Mall and see a movie, is this a date? What if other kids are going to the movie too? Let me know how you have handled these situations. Did your kids try different ways to bend the rule?

16 was the age when they could go on a one-on-one date. We let them go out with groups of friends when they were in middle school. I'd let Homecoming happen .... after all, they can't drive themselves and won't be by themselves there. If they want to meet each other for a movie I'd go with them and sit else where in the theatre (maybe right smack behind them!). I've let them go to movies with a group of friends.

I don't know if any of them ever bent the rule .... they're not at the age where they'd admit that .... yet. Although Son #1 was very shocked that the "16 rule" would apply to him when he was 14.

Seriously.

Anon #3 asked:

Did any of your kids ever want to get to school early just to hang out and socialize? Our middle school bell rings at 8:25. If they get there around 8am, I think that is plenty of time to socialize. But, they are wanting to go earlier and earlier. And, they even try to convince me that they are going to tutoring - yeah right. I don't think they need to just be hanging out around the school. Your thoughts?

Yes, they've wanted to go early and hang out before hand. I've never really had a problem with that, as long as they really were at school. Now, if they lied about going to tutoring then I'd have to slam that door shut. They should be upfront about what they're going to school to do. If they can't do that then they can't go hang out. But that's just my opinion.

Anon #4 asked:

Do you have any specific rules regardging cell phones and texting? I got my son a cell phone for his 13th bday which, according to him, he was the last person on earth to get a cell phone. Now, he is texting ALL THE TIME! We have unlimited texting so it's not the bill I'm worried about. It's the apparent addiction. He can't enjoy a movie, or do homework, or talk to me without responding immediately when a text comes thru. It's driving me crazy!

Oh .... do I know all about texting and what a pain it is!! The kids do it so much it seems that they were born with a phone in their fist. I try to make them put the phones away when we're eating ..... and especially when we go to someone's house or to a restaurant. They sometimes sneak them past me, but I try.

If it was getting in the way of homework I'd definitely take the phone away so that he could do his homework uninterrupted. And make him talk to you as long as you need to without using the phone. I imagine you're paying for it ..... thus, you own it. And it can be taken away if it becomes too addictive and a lesson needs to be learned. Trust me.

Carrie asked:

It's already Wednesday, but I do have a question! It's about hair! When did you start to get gray hairs? I am only 28 (just turned) and I have TONS of gray hairs, all on the back of my head & above my ears...and some on the top... I know you mentioned that you used to dye your hair, I have never dyed it, and I love the natural colors of my hair...but I'm starting to think about dyeing it b/c of all the gray. I'm really bad about keeping up with stuff like haircuts, though, esp. with a new baby coming, I just know I wouldn't keep up with the dyeing very well. What should I do??? And also, is it normal to have a bunch of gray hair before 30???

Hi Carrie!

Premature grey runs in my family so I started getting grey hairs when I was in my 20's. I started coloring it in my mid 30's and finally quit about 4 years ago. My hair grows so fast that I was having to do it about every 2 to 3 weeks. And it takes time and money. I say if the thought of letting it be natural doesn't bother you then let it grow. Especially if you don't think you'll be able to keep up with it.

But if you think you'd feel better coloring it, then by all means, color it. I think you should do whatever you want to do .... whatever makes you feel good about yourself.

And yes, it's normal .... in many families. Bummer, huh? :)

Anon #5 asked:

You totally don't have to answer this (and if you do, I'm not asking for details), but I was wondering if the situation with your son and the school counselor and principal was ever resolved.

Yes, it was. Thank you for asking

Anon #6 asked:

What are some funny stories that you have from public outings with 6 kids? I bet you have some pretty good ones!

(It doesn't have to be with all 6. If you have any funny stories from outings with any kids... that will work. Basically I just want some funny stories.:)

I'm sure if I sat and thought about this for a while I could come up with some hilarious stories, but the best thing I've got at the moment is how people reacted every time we'd walk through a restaurant.

Every. Single. Time.

Either Jim or I would lead the way and the other would bring up the rear. Every time we walked through, mostly single file, people would count. Every time. Some would count out loud, some would count silently but while moving their lips. All looked incredulous. Sheesh .... it's not like we had 18 and counting or anything.

And I wish I had a dollar for every single time someone came up with the "original" question, "Are they ALL yours?!" One woman even asked me if I had a day care when I took the kids to the grocery store.

Wow ..... lots of brainiacs out there.

ShortyMom asked:

Did you have any issues with any of the kids not wanting to eat what you fixed and then taking what seems like years to finish a simple meal? What did you do to correct that behavior?

Hi SM!

Ummmmmmm ...... of course!! My children made me hate cooking. Seriously. I used to enjoy it but when you have to cook enough food for 8 people and then half of them won't eat it .... it sucks the joy right out of you.

We fought the food fight for a long time before we finally settled on this: I would put dinner on the table. Everyone took their own serving. If someone didn't like what I made they could either sit there and enjoy the dinner conversation, or if they were going to pout and be "ugly" about dinner, they were excused from the table, so that they wouldn't ruin my dinner or anyone else's. That ended up being much easier than trying to force them to eat something or listening to them whine about it.

OK, Peeps ..... thanks for all of the questions ..... you kept me busy throughout the day. It's now almost 10:00 so at least I made the Wednesday deadline!!!

Have a great Thursday!