Another one in the books, folks... my babygirl (the oldest one) did the graduation thing last week, and the graduation party this week. Today. All frickin' day.
Oh, but it wasn't just a TODAY thing... nnnnooooo.... we had to shop for two days, decorate yesterday, cook this morning, party this afternoon, clean up this evening, and as I type, she's having her own "after party" that I know absolutely nothing about. (Innocent Face: No, officer, I was NOT aware there was a party going on. We ended our graduation party at 6pm this evening, cleaned up, and was out of there by 8pm. If anyone was there, they must have broken in.)
Ugh. :) Ok, it was fun. But not for the reasons usually associated. First, I hate shopping. With a passion. The girls know this. They torture me by taking me captive and dragging me to clothing stores, and shoe stores, and malls. Says it's "good for me" to get out. They have no idea the number of people they put in mortal danger this way. Seriously. I have no patience for bubble-popping cashiers with less brains than my shoe. Or the morons in the parking lots who should not be allowed to breed, let alone drive. I digress...
This was great. Both sets of ex in-laws were there today. At the same time. Heh. They hate each other. They tolerate me. They all love my babygirl. I was doing pretty well dividing my time between both camps (strategically placed at opposite ends, both in direct proportion to food and bathrooms - hey, I AM a logistics expert, after all!) They were civil to each other, barely. I have grown up enough to know that I am no longer in the middle. I was amused, yet mature. I made wisecracks with my daughter's friends about it out of earshot. Hey now, I HAD to say something to someone or I would have burst. :)
Ex in-law set one, paternal grandparents. Wonderful people. Didn't interfere with my raising her, knew I was doing ok, but were there if I ever asked for help. I didn't. Been kind of distant over the years with my daughter, but never unkind or unloving. Busy with 13 other grandchildren in closer proximity.
Ex in-law set two, no relation. Have known her since she was a baby. Interfered in many ways, many times, over many years. Have since discovered their son is a worthless POS and are not extremely close to me, but are to both my girls. (youngest daughter is their granddaughter) They have been very good to my oldest and my son as well. Always had nice holidays and birthdays for them, even when they couldn't see them. Have made sure my youngest daughter had a good life, even when her dad did not. Gave my oldest the car for graduation, bought the prom dress et al, this year, and footed the bill for the entire graduation party (food, decorations, hall). They knew it was a bad year for us, with the loss of my job last summer and the cut in pay I've taken with the new job. Ok. Grow up, Miss B. You're not pissed because they offered to help; you're pissed because you were unable to swing it on your own. It was a very generous gift to our family. PLUS they donated to the starving college student fund as well. They've worked hard over the years, saved well, and if they want to spend their money on her, who am I? It's not mine.
So anyhow, we actually had a pretty good day. Well, except for one short period. Her father was supposed to show. She had called to make sure he had directions, etc. He told her he was coming, bringing his other child, and was on his way. His mom (XIL1) and sister were there, and my daughter took bets saying he wouldn't show. (How sad is that?) 10 minutes before the party was over, he called his mother, told her he took a wrong turn and was in another town, it was storming out and he was turning around and going home. My girl called him and couldn't get through on the phone. She was pissed. Can't blame her. This is a common pattern throughout their relationship. Flashback: She was 4, had packed a bag for the weekend, and was sitting by the door waiting on him to pick her up for visitation. 2 1/2 hours later, I woke her up to take her to bed because he hadn't called or showed. She was very mad at me because her "daddy was coming to pick her up." My brother was there at the time. He still hates him for leaving her that way.
She vented for awhile, then she was getting ready for her other party. *sigh* I cleaned up, and took some stuff back home. When I left, there were three of her friends there and it looked to be pretty quiet. I dropped off stuff at home, came back an hour and fifteen minutes later, and it still looked pretty quiet. Heh.
I roll up to the back door of the hall. All the cars were parked around back. (Covert - good job babygirl!) The dj had the music going, loud. And there were probably about 70 kids in there, in various stages of partyness.
This really big, tall guy comes up to me as I walk in and says, "Who are you? Are you the mom?" I have to crane my neck to look up to him, and he's in my "space", so I let him know I am not intimidated and say, "Who wants to know?" Again, "Are you the mom?" Heh. "Why do you ask?" So he turns to my daughter's current "crush" and says, "Is this the mom?" He nods and the other guy sticks his hand out and introduces himself. Cory. Who my daughter has hired to be the BOUNCER. I told him I could see why. He was amused. This kid was a mountain. And 25. I find out later he thought it was pretty funny I wasn't deterred by him - he told my daughter about our meeting. :)
So I finish packing stuff up and cleaning. Her "crush" is following me around like a puppy asking me if I need him to carry anything for me. He's one of those short-haired, wife-beater wearing, droopy pants over the ass, baseball cap on backwards kinda rapper wanna be guys. Not the one for her; I'm pretty sure she knows that already. He's cute enough I guess, for a kid. Apparently he's so "courteous" to all the parents, and everyone likes him. Uh-huh. He's a putz, and he's not sure how to take me 'coz I think he realizes I'm not impressed. *giggle*
After I get the jeep loaded up, I wander out to see what's happening. It's pretty comical to see the looks on the faces of the kids as I meander on through. "crush" is chatting a mile a minute. He told her last week he'd met me and he was pretty sure I liked him. I was bartending at the time and saw him for about 3 minutes. He was pretty looped, so the first impression wasn't good. I just hope he's a summer thing.
Anyhow, I'm chitchattin' with a few of her girlfriends, giving her last minute instructions on what needs to be done and cleaned up, and I'm outta there. I told all of them if I have to deal with any kind of court date over this, I will hunt them all down and kill them. They laughed, assured me that I knew nothing of this, they broke back in after we left earlier, blah blah blah. We'll see.
On the upside, they had rallied around and coordinated 6 DD's *designated drivers* so there would be no issues with that. She's lost 2 friends within 6 months of each other to that, so they're pretty intent on not letting each other drive. They're adults. It's the final summer before they get caught up in life, and really, they're old enough to take a bullet for the country. I don't make the laws. I just remind them of the consequences.
So a lot of fun memories from today. More than a little humor. And another rite of passage. Pictures to come soon... I'm too whupped tonight to fiddle with the camera. Hope your weekend was pleasant.
*hugs*
miss b
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