I'm getting smarter...

Me vs. the shoe closet...

2008

2010 

2012

Notice that tiny door in the back?  It leads to a world of pure imagination!  We knocked out the wall, cut a normal-sized door in half, and wa-la!  A cupboard under the stairs.  We finished it off with carpet and stapled up some white cardboard walls and added lights.  It's like a really nice homeless shelter in there.  Perfect for a boy-wizard.    

The shoes look kind of stupid, I know, especially those ones piled on that top shelf, but oh well.  I might get some totes or something to put them in so it looks better, or I might just leave it and continue to apologize for it.  (Probably the second option.)  I built that shelving beside the tiny door myself.  I apologize for that as well.  But the closet is too narrow to build a shoe rack on either side, so we had to make that space work as shoe storage.  

A metal rod used to stretch across the space under that upper shelf.  Our coats and some hanging shoe racks blocked access to the back of the closet, where there was some extra storage space.  Not that we needed to get back there often--it was basically a place to throw random crap.  But we took down the rod to give us access to the back of the closet, and added coat hooks to the left wall instead.  On the right wall are three backpack hooks and a dry-erase board.  And of course we painted (it was dirty white before).

The point is, I have a cupboard under my stairs. (!!!)

Brace yourselves...

Cord started high school this week. Freaky, yeah? His voice is an octave-and-a-half lower and beneath his armpits are sprigs of hair. I hear this is normal.  (I forgot to take his picture on the first day, but in my defense, it was 5am, practically the day before still.)  

He's not going to the nearby high school, but a far away performing arts one, instead.  It’s located in the heart of downtown Las Vegas, on the corner of Bitter and Sweet--just past that giant waving cowboy you’ve seen in movies, and three homeless dudes.  Besides the core subjects, they will also teach him such skills as “movements across a stage” and “juggling,” which is a weight off my shoulders. I have neither the time nor the patience to teach Cord how to juggle. Ain’t nobody got time for that. Umhum. The kid is as clumsy as they come. I need to bake his juggling teacher some cinnamon rolls. 

Gus started middle school today, or as I like to call it, Pleasure Island. The children smoke and swear and play pool and sing “hi diddle dee dee” all day long. But at least Gus has a good schedule with good teachers. 

(this is Gus "smiling excitedly," trust me)

Beyond his core subjects and the serious life lessons he'll learn (like how to say “no” to gateway drugs), he will also take guitar this year.  (That's his elective.)  His cheeks are still as squishy as a memory foam pillow and his hair is still as silky and soft as a baby chinchilla.  (Phew!)  

Homer, the ittle baby, is starting second grade. (That's three separate schools, if you've lost count.)  He still can’t say his “Ss” or “glitter glue.” (ga-litter ga-lue.)  His teacher is Mrs. Glisson. (Mrs. Ga-listhon.)
  

(those are shorts, not capris, trust me he's just ridin' low) 

We read all summer long and worked hard on math skills so he would have a jump start for second grade... is what we MEANT to do.  Instead, we ruined him this summer, letting him play too many video games.  Minecraft is the bane of my existence.  Now I'm putting all my hopes and dreams in Mrs. Ga-listhon.

As for me, I've decided to spend more time in my car this year, to just practice my driving techniques, becoming more skilled at merging into high traffic areas, waiting in long pick-up lines... break, gas, break, gas... things like that.  It will cost us around $16-$18 a day in petrol (almost 5 gallons), but I figure it's worth it.  Why shouldn't I indulge a little?  Sheesh!  Don't judge me on my first day back at blogging!