On one hand, 250 posts sounds like a lot, but then there are weeks when I write only once – or sometimes not at all. At any rate, I figured I’d write about something off-the-wall for this post – something completely mundane in the grand scheme of things, yet it is one of my biggest pet peeves. Someone used my towel.

I walked into my bathroom earlier and discovered that my 10-1/2 year old had used my towel – again. Besides the obvious gimme – it was damp – he had hung it back on the door hook by the short end instead of the wide side, so it hung down practically to the floor. That hook is for MY towel. The towel that he used the other day was hanging up nearby, perfectly reusable and well within reach of the shower.

The shower, by the way, is a privilege that not all of the boys get. The oldest two are the only ones allowed to shower in the master bathroom, a) b/c I trust them not to make a Splashtown-esque mess, and b) b/c they can take a shower while the little ones are taking turns in the tubs.

Anyway, I don’t know why it bugs me so much. I know that – in theory, at least – you are clean when you dry off, and we’re all family … but still. I just don’t like the idea of someone else using my towel. We’ve had this discussion before, and I’ve asked him not to use it.

When Lane is here, he does the same cotton-pickin’ thing, and it drives me bonkers. How difficult is it to reach into the cabinet and get your own towel? I don’t just arbitrarily pick up his razor and use it, just b/c it might be closer to grab.

It’s not worth making a mountain out of a molehill; it’s just something that irks me. So, what are some of your pet peeves?

It has been a challenging day, even with the [albeit, MUCH appreciated!] break to go watch a movie with a girlfriend this afternoon. It was just one of those days when the boys’ energy levels were at peak performance all. day. long. I put the little three to bed at 7:15 instead of 8.

The movie was sweet; we went to see Letters to Juliet. It reminded me of bits from French Kiss and An Affair to Remember. The optimistic pursuit of destiny pulls the viewer into the movie, but like so many other romantic comedies, it left me wondering if there really is the sort of love that traverses oceans and overcomes all the odds, or if that is just the stuff of fairy tales and Hollywood, while the rest of us have to work extra hard at life, love and the pursuit of happiness.

I mentioned recently that I was considering taking karate with the boys. Well, tonight’s the night!

If I can’t move a muscle tomorrow, you’ll know why!!

I was walking across the living room when my 10-1/2 yo looked up from what he was doing and asked me out of the blue, “Does Dad need any deodorant?”

I shrugged – thinking he was brainstorming care package items for our next box – and said, “No, I don’t think so; why do you ask?”

“Well, we were just talking about hygiene at school, and I wondered if Dad used deodorant.”

“Ohhh – you meant does he WEAR deodorant! I thought you meant does he need us to send him some, but I said no because he can buy it at the PX. Yes, Dad wears deodorant. Most grown-ups do; in fact, you’ll probably start wearing it in a couple of years.”

“Can I start wearing it now?”

“Do you think you need it? Do your armpits stink?”

[Walking toward me] “I don’t know – here, wanna smell them?”

“Noooo – you can smell them yourself.” [Demo armpit-smelling motion]

[Attempts armpit-smelling motion with exaggerated sniffs, wrinkles nose and shrugs] “Nah, they don’t smell.”

“Ok, then, you don’t need any deodorant yet.”

Oi vey … this parenting thing should have come with a manual!

For the past two days, I’ve attended a workshop hosted by Advancement Resources to delve into the topic of The Art & Science of Philanthropy. I took away several tips that I think will help me in my day-to-day work in Development, but the workshop also compelled me to think of my own/our family’s charitable goals.

The key question they posed was: “What would you like to accomplish with your money that would be meaningful to you?” The query is designed to make development professionals think in terms of what is important to the donor, rather than focusing solely on their organization’s needs.

As a philanthropist – and I do believe that I am one, even though I don’t have the capacity to make “major” gifts – the question made me think more deeply about what my own interests are and those of our family. Historically, we give the bulk of our charitable gifts to our church, but we also support several other organizations, to varying degrees. One of the role-playing exercises in the conference had us play the part of a donor with $2 million to spend.

When it was my turn to play the donor, I answered the “passion question” by saying that military families and non-traditional students are near and dear to  heart. If I really had gobs of money to spend for charitable purposes, then I would definitely establish a scholarship for transfer students and/or other non-traditional students. I feel a burden for folks who are working their way through college, perhaps not even beginning their higher education journey until later in life. I also have a heart for military families and would like to see greater opportunities for them to connect and feel “at home” even when they are separated.

Just this week, for instance, I received a wait-list notification for our two oldest boys from an Army family camp. I was so disappointed, because I registered very early (so I thought). If I had the resources to make a significant impact, then I would want to ensure that no eligible family would be left out of being able to participate in summer camp. I would also support the USO and help to open more sites at more airports.

Closer to home, however, I would immediately finish funding the Endowed Scholarship Fund Honoring Baylor Staff. What an exciting, grassroots effort this scholarship has been. We are wrapping up our second year, and we’re still on target to reach our five-year goal, but I’m concerned about losing momentum down the road. “Donor fatigue” is a real phenomenon, and I would love to see some leadership gifts make a big dent in the balance remaining.

After that scholarship is fully funded, if I had the resources, then I would establish an endowed scholarship specifically for transfer students from community colleges. I read an article recently in the Chronicle of Higher Education that showed a graph of students who obtain PhDs, and the number of students who began in community colleges was paltry. It was only 1 in 5. I am still waiting to hear about my acceptance to the DPA program at Valdosta, but I sure would love to boost that statistic! Students who start their academic careers at a community college may not think that they would ever be able to afford to attend a school like Baylor; I know I didn’t!

The point is that if I had to itemize my passions as a philanthropist, then those are the areas that are near and dear to my heart. There are other areas, particularly in missions and community outreach, but for the purpose of the workshop, I focused on education.

In response to gross misinformation disseminated by the 6yo (and obtained from an unknown source), I had to have a sit-down conversation with the oldest two boys about how babies are born. (I will have another private sit-down with the 6yo, but perhaps not as much detail.)

The primary objective was to alleviate misconceptions about birth and bowel movements being one and the same. *sigh

I was a little nervous, but it actually went really well. They both took the info at face value, asked a few questions about organs here or there, and seemed satisfied with my answers. They were both totally freaked to learn that females have eggs inside of their bodies. (I did clarify that they’re microscopic … not like chicken eggs. I could see the obvious relief on their faces.)

I braced myself for the obvious follow-up question: How do the babies get there, in the first place? but they didn’t ask. So, I didn’t tell. We’ll cross that bridge another day … hopefully after Dad gets back from his Army job!

Rain washed away our outdoor plans this weekend. In an effort to preserve my sanity with five cooped-up boys in the house, I made a chart of indoor activities on a 30-min rotation schedule. There were four categories: computer, TV in Mom’s room, Wii in the living room and chores/reading/quiet time.

Two people at a time were assigned to Wii, but the others were solitary activities. It worked great for about three hours, then we had lunch and went to Nana & Granddad’s for a while. That afternoon, we watched a movie, then it was nearly time for dinner!

I loved that they didn’t argue over who got to do what when because they could see their names on the chart and knew that they would have a turn at each “station.” I’m definitely doing that again on another rainy weekend!

The water lilies were pretty, but the white-on-blue font bothered my eyes. Besides, I have enough blue in my life … I need more pink! 😉

The 5yos asked me on the way home today if we could rename our house “Monkey Boys Restaurant.” I said that was a clever idea, but it’s a house – not a restaurant.

“Plleeease?” they asked in unison. I shook my head no again.

Ri: “But you fix good food!”

Me: “Thank you, but we can’t just turn our house into a restaurant.”

Ry (with a resigned expression and sudden realization on his face): “Oh, yeah – we wouldn’t have enough chairs for everyone to sit.”

Ri: “AND they might make a mess on the carpet.”

Ry: “And if they eat pistachio nuts, they might leave the shells on the floor.”

LOL – as if the only reasons why we couldn’t convert our home into a restaurant are simply matters of seating arrangements and cleaning up messes! Never a dull moment with those two!  :p

I dreamt that I got held up while standing in line at the bank. I did a shoulder hold from the back release move, palm strike to the nose, blocking punch and pinned the would-be criminal to the ground, then looked up and calmly asked the stunned teller: “Um, would you mind calling the police, please?”

I was interviewed on the nightly news and Mr. Passmore awarded me an honorary belt. LOL – I think I need more sleep.