Adulting

I took a nap today!

Like, that is some exciting shit right there, for me. Naps are a thing of the past.

Of course, it was after I did an extreme amount of adulting with in a few short hours.

First thing, I got up and attempted to get myself together to be presentable for Matt’s eye appointment. Matt has had glasses since 1st grade, and I swear to you the first time he put them on it was like, oh. So that’s how your face is supposed to look! His face was made for glasses. And when big frames came into style, and he put those on, I was in awe of how awesome he looked. Maybe I’m just that mom, I don’t know. I think my kids are ridiculously handsome though, and Matt needs to be a glasses model. (Okay. I’m that mom.)

To greater expand on yesterday’s conversation with Chase’s teacher, she said that while he does have behavior issues, it’s mainly due to him not following instructions, and not being able to sit still. And while he struggles in these areas, he is very bright and loves to learn, absolutely transfixed during science and social studies lessons, and has amazing fine motor skills, as well as a wide vocabulary. She also said that he was suspected of stealing someone’s money yesterday, though. When I asked him about it, he said the girl left it on the lunch table. My Chase has a lying problem currently that I am trying to break. So I don’t know if that’s the true story or not. The teacher said no one saw him do it, and so they weren’t certain he actually did. To try and combat these issues I have instituted a no snack money rule if he comes home with a bad report, and early bedtime, as well.

Anyway. So getting myself presentable didn’t work because Chase was whiny from not getting enough sleep. And he was confused because it was still dark. I wasn’t thrilled at the prospect of driving to the eye doctor on the other side of town, in the dark, in the rain, on a road that had been rerouted recently that I wasn’t super familiar with. Despite the rain and dark and crazy new road layout, despite me looking this side of homeless, despite a whiny Chase, we made it there on time though.

It is a pediatric ophthalmologist, so there are toys and kids books in the waiting area, and they have a tv that plays Disney movies, as well.

Sometimes they do get along, believe it or not.

I found a book that I had once upon a time read to Matt regularly, and Matt and I entertained ourselves reading it again, years later. He kept shaking his head and smirking. Apparently Chase wanted Matt to play with him however, so he picked up the large toy on the corner table and began to carry it towards us. “What’s he gonna do – try and steal that, too?” Matt loudly whispered to me. I stiffed my laughter – the boys sarcasm game is strong for his young age – and elbowed him in the ribs. “Be nice!” I admonished. It’s hard to be unhappy around these two hooligans. They may be flirting with potential careers in crime, but they sure are funny.

Soon the nurse called us back for Matt’s initial eye exam. Which he bombed. If one can bomb an eye exam, that is. If so, Matt definitely did, missing probably seventy five percent of the letters. I was stunned. At our last appointment his far sightedness was improving, and the doc said that while Matt may always need glasses for his astigmatism, he may actually conquer the far sightedness. The nurse and I joked about him missing the letters, trying to make light of it. “Son, I hate to tell you. . . But. . . You may need glasses.” I got him to smile, and she put the drops in to dilate his eyes, Chase wincing and hugging me the entire time. Chase recently went through about a year with glasses and knew how unpleasant those drops are, and mistook Matt’s laughing for crying and was worried about his brother. They have such a unique relationship. They fight and bicker and pick, but they do love each other very much. When one isn’t home, the other is anxious for their return. Matt was more concerned for Chase’s safety than I was when he was little. As in, I knew what it meant to have a mobile toddler and knew when to step in, and Matt was constantly trying to keep him from hurting himself. “Mom, he’s going to hurt himself!” My worried little 7 year old Matthew yelled at me one day, upset that I wouldn’t stop Chase from trying to pull himself up on furniture. “Matt, he has to learn. He may fall. In fact, he will fall. A lot. But how else is he supposed to learn to walk if I keep him caged up in his play pen?” Frustrated with me, Matt went and picked his little brother up and moved him from the tiled dining room floor to the much safer carpeted living room floor. I couldn’t even be mad. Another story, and I’ll get back to today’s. Matt decided when he was 8 or 9 to get his ears pierced, and when cleaning them one day I discovered one ear was infected. I cleaned it, and the earring of course. I had Matt sit on the toilet seat and I stood next to him, while Chase watched tv in the other room. I pushed the earring into the hole in Matt’s ear, and an utterly amazing amount of puss pushed out the backside. Apparently it hurt, because Matt screamed like I chopped his damn ear off. And suddenly, as I was trying to soothe Matt, my two year old Chase was there, grabbing my hands and trying to push me away from his brother. “DON’T YOU HURT MY MATCHEW ANYMORE!” My little one roared at me. Such a fierce sense of protection for such a little guy. I can relate.

Annnnywayyyy. . .

So the nurse sent us out to the lobby to wait for Matt’s eyes to fully dilate, and he entertained himself trying to read a magazine. He is in complete awe of the process.

The doctor called us back, and exclaimed over how big Matt had gotten. While he conducted the final eye exam, he asked Matt what he wanted to be when he grows up. “I don’t know,” Matt replied. “Maybe a doctor, or an astronomer.”

“That’s so funny you say that, because I wanted to either be a doctor or an astrophysicist, which is very similar.” French. Utter French. Matt seemed to know what he was talking about though, so I just kept quiet and watched the two geniuses talk. I’m no dummy, but they were way over my head, talking about the actual speed of light and how many years to get to the nearest star. Some stuff I remembered from science class once they started talking about it, but it’s not stuff I have a need for in my brain, so it’s dismissed itself to make room for I assume mom stuff. They held a fifteen minute conversation centering around this topic, and then the doc issued a new glasses script – because of puberty Matt is now near sighted instead of far sighted. Poor kid.

We took Chase to school, and went and had Matt fitted for a new pair of glasses. I then took him to school, and headed out to the VA office here in town, listening to Going to Hell, an older Pretty Reckless album. I recently splurged on a $10 a month subscription to an internet radio service, so I’m doing some catching up. The tracks that I had heard previously off of the album were harder rock, but there is actually a lot of acoustic stuff on there, and I am a complete sucker for acoustic guitar. I stopped and got a coffee and despite the rain, I enjoyed my trip. Coffee and music and solitude. What a beautiful morning.

I was met with surprised gratitude when I brought the flag into the office. Apparently people of my generation lack common sense and courtesy. I don’t know the right way to properly dispose of the American Flag. I didn’t want to end up doing it wrong. So I took it to someone who would do it properly. I think five different people thanked me, and I was just in shock that this isn’t the norm anymore. Hopefully I was able to instill a sense of hope that not all is lost for our generation, and the generation that we’re raising. We’re not all ignorant fools. I promise.

I followed that by going home and catching up on some phone calls I needed to make – setting up a payment plan for a medical bill, and contacting the city about a letter I had received that seemed to say simultaneously that I owe them money but they may write it off but I needed to pay them, and figured out how when Chase has two insurances we received a bill. Adulting like a mf! Lookit me go! I also went and paid the gentleman who fixed my car, and set up a time to have him do my breaks and oil change and look at possible other issues, and stopped at my tire place to have them check what I thought may be a bubble in my tire. It wasn’t, thanfully. Yay for adulting!

And then I said fuck this noise, it’s raining and no one is home. I laid down with a book and was soon fast asleep. For two hours. Apparently I was tired and needed it.

Matt spent the evening at the high school football game, and I took Chase to the movies.