Sounds exhausting. My parents are still healthy and active, but I know the day will come.

My daughter is 17, and has been playing soccer since she was 5. I've seen over the years that parents get mellower and mellower. At some point, we realize most of the kids out there aren't going to get scholarships or play professionally. They are having fun, learning teamwork, experiencing the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat. The parents on my daughter's club soccer team generally say "nice!" for a nice touch on the ball, and are quiet the rest of the time. It's very pleasant. And it took years for all of us to let go, and just let the girls play. As for loud parents - I still see a few. I try to ignore them. You can't control others. But I do feel your frustration. My daughter is a referee, and has officiated games where parents and coaches were so unruly, they were red-carded and sent off the field. Yep, these were games of smaller kids. Those parents set a horrible example. It really does get better as the kids get older. The parents realize it's not actually life and death. Don't be too hard on yourself. The pacing/yelling woman is the one at fault. Let it go, and look forward to next season.

Major cool parent points!! Isn't that great? I have the same problem with my kids - sometimes it's pulling teeth to get them up and out for an event. But once there, they usually love it. Bravo on the cool blogging mom event!

That's fabulous! Sounds like the talk happened just as it should. When my daughter entered 6th grade, I had the "sex" talk with her. http://dadshouseblog.com/2008/07/02/how-to-talk-to-daughter-about-sex/ Kids love having open communication with a parent. I'm sure your daughter is very grateful you had that talk with her. She knows she can come to you with questions.

Last year I was in San Francisco to watch my daughter play in a soccer tournament. I wanted an apple, and I bought one at a little market near Golden Gate park. It cost me half of what I would have paid at my local Safeway! Around that time, I was cutting back on restaurants, thinking it would save me money. To my amazement, my grocery bill went up by the same amount. i.e. - I could eat out every night for the same price as cooking. I put two and two together, and realized Safeway charges Silicon Valley double what you pay elsewhere. Guess what - I now get my produce from Milk Pail, a small indie market in Mtn View. I rarely pay more than $30 for a week's worth of fruit and vegetables. That alone has made a huge difference in my monthly bill. Support your local produce stands, and you'll save a bundle.

When I was a teen, we took communal showers after PE class. These days, my teens don't even take a shower, let alone a communal one. They bathe at the end of the day, at home.

When I was a kid, my family was asked to leave a restaurant because we kids were being cranky and noisy and disturbing the other patrons. The plane thing seems similar. It's not a right to let your kids throw tantrums, and expect everyone around you to simply put up with it. I have no problem at all with Southwest kicking that woman and her kid off the plane.

I have a great David Mott mask. I wear it daily! (hahahaha. sorry, being silly)

Your first sentence is hilarious! I think parenting books are a crock of shit. Relationship books are better - getting along with a spouse or loved one. But raising kids is personal. We all try to correct the mistakes our parents made with us. As for this line from the book: "And hopefully, Father, if father is present, will refrain from lectures on table manners." - what a crock of shit! Was this book written in the 50s by Beaver Cleaver? I'm a dad, and I don't have manners, let alone try to correct any! (Haha - tongue in cheek. But I do find that line from the book offensive.)

I had a wry smile on my face the entire time I read this. Amusing exploration of an amusing topic. I don't think I was ever called Hubby while married, but I find the term more affectionate than demeaning. (Then again, if I actually heard it thrown my direction, maybe I'd wretch. Who knows? A term for the little woman... hmmmm... (sorry, was that demeaning? haha. Said it on purpose.) How about Goodwife! Puritanical props, all around.

Silicon Valley homes are so expensive, and a lot of them are small. Factory and cannery workers used to live here. My home cost more than I care to think about, but the kitchen is so small, and has almost no counter space. And yet... I do think about downsizing once my daughter heads to college in a year. My son won't be too far behind her. You can get a lot of house in other parts of the country by selling a home here.

It's tough to know when it's okay to let a child quit at something, and when they should push through and stay committed. It's great to overcome obstacles and fears and accomplish something, but there's also value in failure, imperfection, and letting go. It can be a fine line for parents and kids both. Glad your daughter did well and was happy with her performance.

My daughter plays high school soccer (U18) and it's very aggressive. Definitely a contact sport. The key is for the parents to remain neutral. Refs will call illegal moves on field. But if the parents get out of hand, it sets a bad example for the kids. Even worse than Brandi's sports bra.

Funny story telling, but I'm still a little stuck on why the school requires fingerprints for volunteers. I know youth sports performs background checks. But fingerprints? Yikes. Seems a little paranoid to me. But, whatever. That said, why not just collect a hair from everyone and store the DNA in the teacher's lounge fridge? (haha)

Wow, much to deal with. I agree September is quite busy. I haven't reached the stage where I'm having to help with my folks. But my ex and I help each other whenever one of us is ill.

The good news is, this teacher knows your son has an involved parent. That's great! Teachers love it when they know which parents care. One of my daughter's teachers joked that it's always the A student parents who show up to back to school night. I think this teacher will be great with your child.

What a fun treasure hunt! Brought back memories of my own childhood. I loved creative play like that as a kid. I think it's great he was so into the pirate spirit, he wanted to rush back home and hide the loot from other pirates. Maybe from the very pirate who buried it! As for not wanting to share the loot - he's a pirate captain for sure. And he figured he needed to share a little, or he'd have a mutiny on his hands. Jack Sparrow, watch out!

Your daughter's right - you're a hottie! (Am I aloud to say that here? I don't need any husbands tracking me down. Doh!) I'm mid 40s. Life just keeps getting better. It's all about letting go of attachments, and enjoying the moment as life unfolds

I'm like your sister - self-employed, with minimum health insurance because it's so expensive. I almost never go to the doctor because it will cost me too much. Instead, I try to stay as healthy as possible - diet, exercise, cocktails in moderation (I posted that on SVMoms yesterday: http://www.svmoms.com/2009/08/best-healthcare-plan-diet-exercise-cocktails.html ) My healthcare coverage will pay for major surgeries if I need. Any other medical coverage is pretty much out of pocket for me.

Bonggamom - I totally agree with you. Some medical conditions can't be beat by diet and exercise alone. Also, part of the reason I wrote this post was because I'm so frustrated with the high cost of healthcare. Maybe it's a defeatist attitude on my part, but it sometimes feels like diet and exercise are the only way I can fight the healthcare system. I find it ridiculous that, when it comes to setting insurance premiums, someone who eats right and exercises like I do is categorically lumped with other "men my age", even if those other men have unhealthy diets and don't exercise. I know Blue Shield used to encourage healthy life choices with a "my life path" campaign (not sure if they still promote that). But they charge me the same premium, whether I practice healthy living or not. That's silly! On top of that, rates can go up if I'm diagnosed with a condition, which makes me wonder why I have insurance in the first place. Forget two aspirin - give me another cocktail, please! :-)

I work for myself, and pay for my own health insurance. And because rates are so high, I'm basically covered for major surgery catastrophes, and not much else. I have a post up at SV Moms talking about how I stay healthy: http://www.svmoms.com/2009/08/best-healthcare-plan-diet-exercise-cocktails.html Yeah, the word "cocktails" appears in the title of that post. Maybe that reflects the sad state of healthcare in the US.

Yes, some CEOs are bozos. But rookie pro athletes and their agents think the market price for their rookie services should be more than last year's draft class - regardless of whether league finances are on the up or downswing. This just in: The 49ers top draft pick Michael Crabtree is refusing to sign unless he gets paid more than Oakland's Heyward-Bey who was selected higher than him, because mock drafts that never happened guessed that Crabtree should have gone higher. http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/news?slug=dw-michaelcrabtree080609&prov=yhoo&type=lgns Now there is a case of someone negotiating to his full potential! (Summa cum laude graduates in scientific fields, take note.)