The kids and I had a fun afternoon.  Mo and I ‘hung out’ while Brody had guitar lessons.  Afterwards, we went to the DQ and then hung out on the lawn of the Howell Court House.  When done noshing, I picked on Brod’s guitar (didn’t have mine with me) while the kids went over to the ‘band area’ and played…for a long time. 

Primarily they used long sticks as guns, and smaller chunks of trees as walkie-talkies, as they battled a blitzkrieg of ninjas who seemed to be arriving by air.

After playing some more we went grocery shopping.  At one point, Mo was riding in the seat and Brody took off.  I just kept going.  Mo insisted I go back to get him; I kept going, playing a parental game of chicken with him, ensuring her that he’d cave and come running to catch up. 

Apparently he ran off (my back was to him, so Mo saw it, I didn’t) and she became really agitated; nearly crying.  I stopped to talk to her and she was really upset that we’d lost Brody.  Just then I spotted Mr. Funny Pants coming up the aisle behind her (he had run around the aisle just to do so).  When she saw him she was happy…

For about a second…

And then mad and crying again, obviously pissed that she cared so much when he was being a clown. 

Fortunately, tag-team begging for junk cereal (which they didn’t get) brought them back together and all was forgiven (or at least, forgotten).

Was doing laundry and noted one of Dayna’s tops, that wasn’t originally blue, had all sorts of large, blue spots on it. 

Good news, I rewashed it, after doing some special cleaning tricks I know (basically throwing it back in the wash using the same laundry detergent…just maybe changing the water temp) and it came out great!

Don’t – tell – Dayna!

I think Mo is enjoying school more than she’d like to let on.  The other day she came home and proudly announced to Dayna…

“I am an author!”

Mo was with a friend this evening and Brod was feeling a little alone.  I hadn’t mowed the lawn in a week and thanks to the rain, it really needed it. 

So I offered to let Brod help. 

The lawn has a lot of weird angles and lots of stripes of high grass…yet it the best landscaping job I’ve ever seen. 

I remember in elementary school, back when attendance was done on paper, that a trusted student would get to walk the envelope with the attendance (as milk money) to the front office.  As I recall, it was a rather enviable job.

Maura recently indicated that she walked a fellow student to the front office.  They aren’t allowed to walk alone, so a partner is chosen if one has to go to the office.

As Maura told us about it, we asked why she was walking someone to the office.  It eventually came out that the other student had a medical issue.

She told us that he had ‘cooties’.  Dayna told her that it wasn’t nice to say someone has cooties.  However, Mo was rather insistent and sincere that the child did in fact have ‘cooties.’

She came back the following day…turns out he has diabetes (which is not like, but sounds like, ‘cooties’). 

So Brody recently read a book on UFO’s at school.  He learned about secret autopsies, tests (thankfully it didn’t indicate the orifice of access)and of course the Men In Black.

I showed him the MIB video with Will Smith; which he enjoyed but knew wasn’t the REAL men in black.  (Government officials are not funky!)

So today at the hotel there was a Discovery channel episode on UFO’s.  I thought he’d enjoy it and that it would be more-or-less kid friendly…

 Then the cialis ™ commercial came on!

I’m not a ‘joiner’; I rarely get close with anyone, and I’m definitely not one to ‘get involved’ or even really ‘care’.  (of course there are a few exceptions).

Dayna, however, is quite the opposite, and it is admirable.

We recently went to Arts, Beats and Eats.  Dayna was especially excited as students and former students were in a band that won the Detroit News Battle of the Bands and had the opportunity to play the main stage.  Dayna really wanted to show her support and be there.

Today, she did so again with the Witches Hat Run.  It’s an annual fund raiser for the cross country team.  We donate a few bucks, the kids get to run in a race, get a t-shirt and they get some money for whatever they need money for.

We’ve been doing this for five years now.  Mo did an excellent job running the ½ mile, and Brody did exceptional at a full mile!  This was the first year for D, but she ran the 5k!

Following are some pics of my sporty-family: (click to enlarge).

Some pics from Mo’s open house last night:

Some additional photos from this morning’s first day of school:

Jumping off the bus!

This is it, her going in for her first day!

Check out my hot wife, out-Katie Holmesing Katie Holmes in her new ‘doo!

Around the neighborhood, and back at pre-school, where Mo knows the lay of the land; she is the queen bee.  She is confident, comfortable…and a little bossy. 

Of my two children, Brody (Mr. Sensitive) is the one I worry about.  Mo always seems just so ‘bite me’ about everything that she would easily traverse the drama of life with the resolve a bitchy cheerleader. 

Surprisingly, like most 2 dimensional characters in a teen movie or a bad prime time teen soap, she has an insecure side masked by her attitude.

Today is her first day of Kindergarten.  She was all excited to get her backpack filled, bringing me the forms that needed to be returned several times, and walking me through the lunch packing process, step-by-step.  She reluctantly posed for pics (see below – click to enlarge) so anxious was she to get to school.

Upon arrival at Latch Key, she was incredibly quiet.  Many who know Brody (the Cheer’s equivalent of Norm at Creekside and Latch Key) greeted him and his sister… she would barely respond with her name.  She was quite quiet in the room and it was difficult to leave…though to her credit she did not cry.

I left and headed over to school to see the bus arrive.  The older kids got off first, Brody had the swagger of a pre-teen and joyously headed off to class.

Mo got off the bus, didn’t look to scared, came over and I walked her to her line.  She gave me a hug, said ‘hey’ to her teacher (who remembered her name….very cool) and jumped right into line.  She confidently walked right into the building.

She doesn’t like to perform for praise as Brod does, but I think she is going to Wow us in school and really change a lot this year.

Following are a few pics from the first day of school (note Brody’s brand new Nikes!  He has turned into the Carrie Bradshaw of pre-tween trackies), more to follow after I get to CVS.

People often joke with their significant others about their ‘boyfriends’ or ‘girlfriends’.  I give Dayna a hard time about one fella, though Dayna gives it right back as of the few friends I maintain, all are women.  (touché!)

However, if there was ever ‘another man’ in Dayna’s life it would have been Mercury.  Right after Dayna got her first job and her first check, she went out to get the cat that she was unable to have in childhood (Mo’ will experience the same thing as she wants a dog and it ain’t happenin’ until she’s on her own). 

We were still in Warren and the Macomb County Animal place was out in Shelby (I think – 21, or 22 mile and Van Dyke).  I don’t recall exactly the selection or how Dayna came to Merc, but fate was certainly involved.

We stopped at The Shaggy Dog for supplies (a pet store on Van Dyke that had been used in my youth for our pets, it seemed appropriate and nostalgic…I’da picked up a comic at Hall’s Book Rack and picked up a La Mia Pizza had either still been there too). 

During his exam at the shelter they had to take his temperature; we were in the next room and only saw this grey (I prefer the English spelling) streak run by the door (suspect a thermometer up the arse (again, English spelling) would get me moving fast too!).  As we were at the Shaggy Dog, we noted he was the same color as my Mercury Topaz (Thanks Mom!). 

So between his similarity to my car color and his godlike speed in the face of rectal attack, we named him Mercury. 

It has been 12 years, over a third of Dayna’s life, and he is an exceptional pet, friend and family member.  When I hear the word ‘Mercury’, I no longer think of a silver, sensible sedan or a winged god with a hubcap on his head…I think of our cat.

Brody loves Merc, however he is far from subdued, always lunging to grab Merc, so he kept his distance.  Mo was somewhat indifferent to the cat (much like a cat – probably a mutual respect thing there), so Merc will approach, Mo absent-mindedly pets him.  Every night, Mercy goes to bed with Mo till we hit the sack and then he joins Dayna, the true love of his life.

If ever there were two soul mates, it is Dayna and Mercury.  He is always there for her, comforts her, sleeps with her (on the couch or in bed) and really only joined me when I was trying to read.

Sadly, Merc (and this is very hard to write) passed away Monday night.  Dayna and I did get to say our good byes and thank him for all he’s done for our…his family. 

We told the kids last night…Mo, a little immature yet, kind of understood but wasn’t too impacted.  Brody, older now, understanding the finality of death, was very, very upset and sad.  More so than I expected, but somehow Dayna knew.  A tough way for them to start the school year.

Willow, our other cat too is distraught.  He continues to search the house, expecting Merc back at any time, assuming he is simply at the vet for a day or two.  While he is our loner, reluctant to be held and only begrudgingly showing affection, he is never far from us and already sits closer to Dayna than he has in the past.  I suspect he knows they will need each other.

Merc will be forever missed and never forgotten.

Added a new download to my ipod by Daft Punk and Brody LOVED the song.  He spent much of the morning asking me to ‘repeat’ the track as we drove to the grocery store. 

I took him to youtube to show him a tribute video.   (give it a minute to get past the intro).

He enjoyed it, but was quickly bored and demanded funny cat videos.  

Growing up, our grandparents most likely pretended to have food on the table (as they were suffering through the depression or sacrificing for war efforts); our parents, astronauts…my generation, a TV detective (like Magnum or the tough Simon brother…no one liked the cute, preppy one)…what do my kids come home and want to do?

Create a web cast ala iCarly.

Sadly, like most sibling entertainment dynasties, the show quickly led to infighting, lawsuits and leaks to tabloids.  The season premiere of iBrody and iMaura was also the series finale.