Ch-Cha-Chaaa-Changes!

Well, nothing has changed over here at Manic's house:

The house is still a D.U.M.P., and now I'm even proclaiming it so.

I didn't do any laundry today.

I didn't miraculously awaken on January 1, 2007 with a svelte new bod and a cheery attitude (although, from recent posts, it didn't matter if I had a svelte new body, and I actually was cheered up).

The kids are STILL HOME FROM SCHOOL UNTIL JANUARY 8. Thank you Mr. School District Superintendent or whoever came up with this bright idea to extend THEIR holiday.

I continue to diet.

I continue to think about all types of foods.

I continue to cheat a teeny bit on my continuous diet.

I am still querying agents, getting a handful of requests from agents, and sending out partials or fulls to interested agents -- same as I did last year.

I am still not diligently sitting my ass in the chair and writing fiction.

I have however, created a new "Children-Points-System" that has been tested now for two days, and we're having some success with it. I give each child 50 points to start out with (will determine if that's a realistic number or not). If they fight, or whine, or make an ugly face; if they don't do what they're told to after the second warning; if I find their socks behind the door; if Tuke is beating the heck out of his sister or brother; whatever ... if they do something that annoys me, or pisses me off, or makes me want to yell, then they get a point removed from their 50.

If they do something unexpectedly kind, or help with laundry, or the garbage, or if they do something they know they should without being asked, then they gain a point.

It's still TBD what will happen at the end of the week. Maybe the points will each be worth a dime, guaranteeing five dollars if they just exist for that week. Who knows, but so far, this is one resolution I would like to stick to. I'm tired of being the "kick-her-in-the-face-and-do-whatever-we-want-to-with-no-regards-for-mom" mommy.

Although that makes it seem like I am raising terrible children here, which I most certainly am not. They just need a little more discipline from the Mom side of the Mom-Dad combo. We'll see how it goes.

Finally, because it was so darn beautiful here for a January day, and because the kids knew the POINTS were in effect, they let me sleep until a really unfair-for-a-mother-of-three-children hour (wait, does that even make sense?), and when I got up, I was kindly informed they had all eaten breakfast AND cleaned up the basement, so I decided we needed a trip to the zoo! (After all, it is free-zoo day on Tuesdays in the winter.

When we reached the parking attendant (Because of course, free-zoo day does not include the eight bucks to park), I happily greeted the old geezer happily taking people's money.

We exchanged pleasantries--beautiful day for the zoo! Warmer in the sun! Happy New Year! Have a great day!

I roll up the window and when I'm looking for a place to park, Ajers grins over at me and says, "Mom?"

Me: "Yeah?"

AJers: "We're you hitting him?"

Me: "What!?!?"

Ajers: "You know," and he kind of grins some more, nudge-nudge-wink-wink..."hitting him..."

Me: "You mean, was I hitting ON him!?!?!?! Good Lord, Ajers, he was a geezer, I was just being nice!"

Ajers: "Yeah, but he could have been in a disguise!"

Who needs the monkeys at the zoo when you have Ajers for entertainment?