Goodbye Week. Hello Weekend. Lessons Learned: Take 89.

A week in photo format.

Goodbye shopping all those great after-Easter sales to fill Kiddo's Easter basket for May 5th.
Goodbye organizing a Potluck feast for Kiddo's classmates and being thankful for responsive parents.
Goodbye declaring this beef stew recipe as a new family fave: just add some crusty bread and a salad and you've got a stick-to-your-ribs meal.
Goodbye film critic Roger Ebert, a man who found a way to make money watching movies and giving us his opinion - what a gig.
Goodbye eye doctor appointment for Kiddo and having dilated eyes all evening long, poor guy.


Hello great news that Kiddo won the First Place Prize in the International video contest he entered - click here to view his winning submission (it's the one from Ohio).
Hello warmer temperatures and feeling like Spring has sprung (dare I say, I think it's here to stay).
Hello heart filling with mom-pride as my son decided to donate his winnings to the school.
Hello evaluating college acceptances for my clients and helping them make the BIG decision (did I mention I hate wait-lists).
Hello refusing to pay $6 ever again for a freshly baked loaf of bread because I think I can teach myself how to bake my own bread (did I mention active yeast scares me?).

My Lesson Learned this week is how I may very well have the ability to see into the future. OK, not really, but sometimes I hate when I'm right! Coming back from Spring Break, Kiddo had an exciting first week back at school: the conclusion of the Leadership curriculum. The students are divided into 4 service groups: Arts & Education, Hunger and Homelessness, Environmental, and Animal Advocacy. Kiddo is a member of the Animal Advocacy team and, boy, were they busy this week. On Tuesday, the group went to a Nature Reservation and cleaned up garbage on the grounds. It was Wednesday when my glances of the future became a reality.

Meet Grover.

 Wednesday they paid a visit to the Rescue Village, a local animal shelter. I had a funny feeling Kiddo would fall in love with a dog and we'd have to hold off pleas of adoption at bay when he arrived back home. Well, I was almost right - it wasn't a dog, it was a cat. A cat named Grover has stolen my Kiddo's heart. It's all he has talked about all week. Kiddo searched the web to do research so he could have answers for all our reasons excuses as to why we should not have a cat, or any animals for that matter. We had fish, but that didn't end too well for the fish. Kiddo has made some great arguments and he almost has me convinced. But then, reality sets in and I think about all the hard work, all the cat hair, and the smell. I'm not sure I could handle it. Can you convince me, otherwise?

Continuing the week, Kiddo spent the entire day on Thursday at the zoo, informing people of the palm oil crisis. Not familiar? Click here to get in the know. Before Kiddo left the car to get into school that morning I tried to beat the odds and told him, "Don't even think about adopting an elephant."

Am I being selfish? Would it be good for Kiddo? Should we adopt Grover? Will my furniture and carpet get destroyed?