Breakfast and Baseball filled Mothers Day

Hope everyone had a nice Mother's Day.  It is a bittersweet day for me. More sweet this year because I was busy from dawn til dusk.  We started the day hosting a breakfast for 14 at our house. My mom, two sisters, a brother, their spouses and available kids came over. It was Plan B. We were going to head up to the wine country for a picnic, but I backed out when I learned that Eddie was coming home for Mother's Day and my gift from him was tickets to the Giants games.

 I told my siblings I would host the breakfast, but they had to be gone by noon so we could go to the game and they were not allowed to put me in the position of throwing my mother out on the streets on Mothers Day.  That's just bad karma all the way around. They took care of me.

We really had fun on our adventure to the game. We took the train and ran into a few delays, so we didn't sit down until the bottom of the first. No problem. Plenty of baseball left.

When Steve and I go to the game, we watch intently, we clap, we cheer, we groan all at the right times. But we really blend in. We are average fans who don't stand out.

It's different with my boys. They are superfans who never blend in. Tim kept the entire section entertained (or annoyed, but mostly entertained) with his constant banter. He took aim at the opposing pitchers warming up in the bullpen and it was really quite hilarious. It's definitely rated PG; he does not swear or say anything mean, but he razzes them unmercifully at the top of his lungs.  Eddie joined in and we spent a couple of hours laughing pretty hard. When the relief pitchers gave the game away to the Giants, we had to give the boys credit for rattling them. Fans were giving them high fives them on the way out, so I guess/hope it was funny to others as well.

                  

We stopped for a beer after the game to let the crowds on the train die down. As we sat on the deck at the Hi Dive, we could hear the music inside. I swear every single song was on the Maggie Mix from 2012, Katy Perry, Bruno Mars, Call me Maybe and more.  I finally commented on it, and each of the boys had already noticed.  Another of Maggie's songs would start and we would just look at each other with a wan smile. It was good, though. It was like a message that Maggie was right there with us. Oh man she would have really laughed at Tim and Eddie's antics.


Keeping so busy was great. I was a bit melancholy here and there during the day, but generally busy and laughing. By the time we got home I was too tired to care about anything and ate some Pizza and went to bed.

And if you are wondering, Tim's shirt declares I'm proud to be an Air Force Mom. That's his mother's day shirt. The people behind were deferentially asking me if I was an Air Force mom and I had to say no.  The deference disappeared rather quickly. 

Maggie Mixes

Anyone who has read this blog at all knows about Maggie and her music. For the past several years, Maggie has been listening to pop music. Maggie demands it constantly, so the background noise in our house is Lady Gaga or Katy Perry or  some other pop star. Now it seems she is refining her tastes. It's still pop music, but she is listening for different things.

This love started when she was in middle school, which is age appropriate. She had two girlfriends there who were great for Maggie socially. We had a rock star birthday party and I made a mixed CD for all the kids. that was the very first "Maggie Mix." There have been several other since then. Maggie gives them out at Girls Rock camp and to her classmates and anyone else who is interested. Mr. Bebe was a paraprofessional in her middle school class. He suggested "All the Single Ladies" by Beyonce. That is Maggie's signature song and it is on every mix. Other songs will be on a few cds but not all of them. Maggie, unlike other teenagers is not as willing to accept change, though, so a few of the songs appear on several if not all of the mixes.

I have learned to introduce new songs by placing them just after her familiar tunes. While Maggie is still glowing in the joy of "All the Single Ladies," she is not fighting a new song. This trick has saved me from going out of my mind listening to the same music constantly. Recently we made a Maggie Mix when our German exchange students left. There were the Maggie standards, which had been the background music of their entire stay, along with several songs about San Francisco to make sure they didn't forget their time here. I made an extra CD and put it in the car because I had to have a little variety.

Maggie is far more willing to accept new music if there is something in it that makes her laugh. Profanity is hilarious. Of course, all of the songs are the cleaned up versions. For example, we have C Lo Green's "Forget You" rather than the other version. You may not realize, however, that even the clean version has a couple of profane phrases, and those send Maggie over the edge.

I noticed this first with Mumford and Sons "Little Lion Man." It's an upbeat song and Maggie was tolerating it even though it was new. At one point they say "I really F'd it up this time" and Maggie started laughing her head off. I looked at her in mock horror and said Maggie where would you even HEAR words like that. (I won't tell you her response.) Now we wait for that phrase with great anticipation.

The other day she started laughing uncontrollably at another song. There was no profanity at all and I couldn't figure out what was making her laugh. The song was "Save me San Francisco" by Train. Every time they said "San Francisco" Maggie completely lost it, laughing so hard she couldn't breathe.

I think she likes it here. In fact  I'd swear to it - but only to make her laugh.

Born This Way

Quick check in from a very busy week. It's very cold here and they are talking snow in San Francisco for the first time in 30 years or something. Right now it's clear and cold but we will see what the night brings.
Maggie will stay inside in this weather. Her coughing sounds like a foghorn already, I don't think the cold temps will improve that sound at all.

Fortunately, we finished the Maggie Mix 2011, so she can listen to her new songs. This is year three of the Maggie Mix - a collection of pop tunes and other random hits. It's very popular with Maggie's crowd and we prepare one to give out at her birthday party. That's next Thursday! Of course it's just called the Maggie Mix, but each year the Mix has a title too.  We pick a title from the songs on the list, trying to make it work for Maggie. The first Maggie Mix in 2009 featured (among others) the Jonas Brothers and we used their song "That's Just The Way We Roll" as the name. That was too perfect for words since the first recipients were all in Wheelchairs. In 2010 it was Katy Perry's "California Gurls" which was has a good generic application to Maggie.  This year it's more specifically applicable.

As you all know, Maggie goes wild whenever she hears Lady Gaga, so it's only right she should get the recognition.  Lady Gaga, who is always a featured artist on the Maggie Mix was nice enough to name her hit song: "Born this Way." Obviously, that's the title for 2011. It's perfect for Maggie*.

"I'm on the right track, baby, I was born this way."

I think Lady Gaga would be wowed by Maggie too, don't you?

 

(And yes, I am aware that the lyrics may not be referring to physical disabilities, but it's certainly applicable)

Going Gaga

Maggie and I started Valentine’s Day much the same way we start most weekend days. She sits in her chair in the kitchen, throwing whatever she can get her hands on and I putter about or just plop down at the table with the crossword. We always have tunes and it HAD BETTER be the Maggie Mix, which is a collection of pop tunes that we downloaded for her birthday party last year. The first song is Single Ladies, Maggie’s favorite and it continues from there. She is delighted.


Valentine’s Day was a little different from other Sunday’s, though, because we had the visiting rugby players staying with us. I kept Maggie away from the pots and pans that she likes to throw so the boys could sleep. I was cooking away preparing for the consumption of mass quantities by the guys. The music was on, but a bit lower than usual. We were enjoying ourselves even if Maggie was limited to throwing the less than satisfying dishtowels.

I heard someone coming down the stairs and said, Maggie, here comes Dad. I poured coffee into the stupid heart mug I bought and said loudly “Happy Valentine’s Day, Dad. I heard a strange voice say,” No, it’s Aaron.” Aaron went to bed earlier than everyone else the night before and was up early too. I offered him coffee but told him he could not use Steve’s cup. He did not seem phased by that. Go figure.

He greeted Maggie and she just smiled at him. I realized this pop music was playing and explained that we have to listen to this because it is the Maggie Mix. He said, “I like this Music, Maggie, this is Lady Gaga, isn’t’ it? “

Maggie’s reaction was instantaneous and delightful. When she heard him say Lady Gaga, she whipped her head around to him and grinned from ear to ear. It was as if she was saying, “Ok, you’re cool” while at the same time basking in the attention from her older brother’s friend. It was a very "teenage girl" moment and four days later it’s still making me smile

It was a moment of normalcy in my very abnormal world.


P.S. February 18 is my dad’s birthday and I miss him. He is looking down on us and smiling. However, he would not have liked Lady Gaga.

Also I need suggestions for Maggie Mix 2, because her birthday is fast approaching