Sunday, TBF helped a friend of ours move a washer and dryer for the friend’s mom.  He went by his parents and changed vehicles to get a truck to move it with.  He was running short on time so came to my house to shower and get ready.  We went to Spring Creek Barbeque.  It was by far the quietest car ride we’ve ever had.  I was so nervous that I thought I was going to throw up.  His parents met us at the restaurant.  I’ve never been there before and didn’t know what I wanted or even how the ordering process went.  Of course they stuck me up front so I was holding up the line.  I finally picked chicken, but was looking at all the sides of vegies going, ewwww!  Then TBF said, “You can get a baked potato you know.”  Nope.  I didn’t know.  I love baked potatoes so we had a winner!

We finally got to the table and I was glad to get the first part over with, but now came the second part - eating in front of people and making conversation.  Those two things are not easy for shy people to do!  Luckily, TBF is  not shy.  He and his mom carried most of the conversation while his dad and I added a few things here and there.  We all finished eating and just sat and talked for a while afterwards.  I was thinking about how the servers hate it when you do that - take up a table that they could use.

When we left, his dad asked if we were going to swing by the house and trade out vehicles.  I figured it couldn’t have gone too badly if I was being invited back to the house. =)  As we were leaving the restaurant, TBF said, “I think that went well, but I’m always optimistic.”  We went and hung out there for a few minutes before returning home.  The car ride home was much better than the car ride there…lol  I was soooo relieved.

Later, TBF asked his mom what she thought about me.  I had to pry it out of him, but he finally told me, “She said that she likes you and that she thinks it’s one of those likes that the more she is around you, the more she will like you.”  She told him to ask me about having a cook out at her house the next weekend we all have off.  I’m sure it’s so I can be around the rest of his brothers and sisters and they can see me with my kids.  I’m okay with that.  It’s much easier with more people. =)

I liked them.  I think they’re good people.  I didn’t feel as if I was being judged and I think they were doing their best to make me feel comfortable.  Just that little bit meant a lot to me.  They didn’t ask me tons of questions about what my intent with their son was or about my children and parenting skills or anything.  I didn’t feel as if I was being tested at all.  I think a cook out will be good.  Maybe next time I can relax and I might even talk a little…lol

Oh my word!  This movie was soooo good.  I figured all the hype about Heath Ledger was just because of his death.  WRONG!  The Joker and his tongue/mouth thing is just down right creepy.  He was very disturbing…and yet you looked forward to what he would do next.  I’m very disappointed he wont be back for a sequel.

Vanessa gave it two thumbs up.

Ethan said, “I REALLY liked that movie.”

The BF said, “The Dark Knight was definitely the better movie, but I enjoyed Iron Man more.”  That hit the nail on the head as it was a very dark movie.  It was great, but you weren’t smiling and laughing the whole time.

Don’t wait for video.  Go see this one in the theater!

The bf had Wednesday off. He taught Vanessa to drive a standard, took the kids to the movies and to eat lunch at CiCi’s Pizza, and then to pick up his car from the shop. He let Vanessa drive his car back to his house to drop off the truck he’d been driving. I can’t believe he was brave enough to spend the day with my kids alone…and that he survived!

The kids met his parents. I haven’t met them yet, but that’s coming up Sunday and I’m nervous. =/ I’m already starting out with a couple of strikes against me - I’m old and have children. I wouldn’t be happy if my son came home with some old woman with a few kids….and then wanted me to meet her! One good thing, they liked my kids. Said they were cute and that Vanessa (who carried much of the conversation) was a sweetheart. Ethan didn’t talk at all…lol Guess we’ll find out more on Sunday.

The night before last, the bf spent the night.  The kids were gone, but Vanessa returned the next morning - after I’d left for work and before the bf got up.  She also brought my mom with her.  He heard them and was getting his clothes on when Vanessa walked in my room to find him in his boxers.  She immediately laughed, “Well, hello there!” and left the room.  He finished getting dressed only to round the corner and see my mom standing there…lol

I was expecting a lecture from my mom or at least some kind of scolding, but oddly enough, she acted like nothing ever happened.  She was there to look at Ethan’s a/c that went out.  The bf helped replace it and ordered the broken part.  The only thing my mom said was, “I tried to pay him back for the part, but he wouldn’t let me.”  I’m taking that as consent.  I know she’d have yelled at me and told me what a bad example I was setting for the kids if she didn’t like him. =)

We’ve seen a ton of movies this summer.

Hancock was - meh.  I just don’t think there was enough story here.  I love Will Smith, but I dunno.  this movie just didn’t do it for me.

The Incredible Hulk was better than the last Hulk; however, not nearly as good as Iron Man.

Kung Fu Panda really let me down. =(  With Jack Black and Angelina Jolie, I was expecting more.  One of the things I really disliked was the lack of the voice lenders features in the drawings of the characters.  I mean with most toons, the person who does the voice is reflected in the characters.  This movie lacked that and I think it was actually a bad thing.  The voices were just that…voices.  Not part of the character themselves.  I’m not sure I’m getting my point across.  Watch the movie though.  It could be anyone doing the voice overs.  Why pay big named stars if you’re not going to weave their personalities into the movie? =(

The kids saw The Love Guru, Don’t Mess with the Zohan, and The Happening.  They said all three were bad.  I’ve not seen them, but I’ve heard the same things from other people.

For the fourth of July, the BF, his best friend, his brother, and a couple of guys from work came over and brought a ton of fireworks.  While blowing them up around my pond, various small flames started and were quickly stomped out.  The kids had a ton of fun.

Yesterday, I got home and noticed a HUGE Scorched spot near the pond.  I thought, “I don’t remember that being so big.”  I saw the mower had been moved to the storage shed and thought, “Oh good.  The kids put it up.  I’d been thinking it needed to be done, but kept forgetting.”  Then I walked into the house and smelled and saw fireworks laying around - unpopped fireworks. I went into Ethan’s room and Trey was asleep on his bed wearing Vanessa’s swim green bikini bottoms over his jeans.  I was going to ask Ethan where the fireworks came from, but no need.  I knew then that Trey brought them over.

When Vanessa got home a bit later, she said, “Who caught the grass on fire?!?!”

…and that’s when it hit me what had happened!!!  I go back into Ethan’s room, “Boy, is there something you want to tell me about the yard?  What happened?!?!”

They set off fireworks, caught the yard on fire, couldn’t get it out because the water hose wasn’t long enough to reach out there, and finally the neighbor’s came over and helped them get it out using water from the pond.  Both boys were like, “We kept thinking if it hit the trees, the whole woods and the house would go up!”  Judging by the many unpopped fireworks sitting around my house, they were scared by the fire.

“Don’t you dare try that again without me being here!”  Later, I told them I’d have a list of things for them to do around the house when I was at work.  If they couldn’t stay out of trouble, I’d keep them busy.

The good news is, I don’t have to mow there anytime soon and I get some long put off chores done!!

The other day I was talking to the bf on the phone.  He said that he’d noticed my dead ivy plant in the kitchen and had asked his mom for a start off her ivy to replace it.  She wanted to know what other flowers I liked.  Yesterday morning, I got a text saying, “I got up early to bring you those flowers.”  A little later, he was over….with a crate of flowers.  Two different kinds of ivy that went into three pots in the house.  Like 9 impatiens, 5 vinca or periwinkle - I’m not sure which, 2 cockscombs, some spider grass, and a vine of some sort - I think maybe Morning Glory or Sweet Pea.  I don’t know what it is.  She also sent a baggie full of seeds that I have no idea what they are.  Maybe Marigolds?  I really don’t know, but I was told to plant them anywhere….lol

I’d like to do something for his mom now, but I have no idea what to do.  I just know that it was really nice of her to send me so many flowers.  I sure hope I don’t kill them….lol

I’d post a pic, but Petey the puppy chewed through my USB cord for my phone. =/  I have to buy a new one.

While seeing Sex and the City, the film blacked out twice.  Nothing like a theater full of angry women on opening night!  The theater gave us free movies passes to help calm the crowd.  The guys and I had discussed going to the movies on the weekend, but plans changed and people didn’t really want to go.  I was alone without kids so I decided I’d go see the movie again.  Yes, I really liked it that much.  When I told the BF, he said he’d go with me.  So I met him close to his house, left my truck, and rode with him to the movies.

Once again, there was no hand holding, no kiss, no contact at all.  During the movie, he was fidgety.  He played with a straw, sat up straight, slid down in his seat, sat up straight again, etc.  Surprisingly enough, he liked the movie.  He took a lot of ribbing at work for this.  The ride home was nice.  Full of chat and laughing.  He dropped me off at my truck and on the way home I got a call from him.  He stayed on the phone until I’d made it home.  Then I got a text, “I really wanted to ask you to just sit in the car and talk with me some more, but I lost my nerve.”

A few days later, he was off work and asked to go do something with me after I got off.  His idea, go material shopping.  I’d mentioned wanting to recover my kitchen and patio chairs.  He decided that would be a good thing to do.  I tried to talk him out of it.  What man in their right man volunteers to go shopping - let alone material shopping?!?  There was no talking him out of it though so off we went to the fabric store.  It was a short trip.  I didn’t find anything I liked.  I’m holding out for Winnie the Pooh material for my kitchen and the store was really limited on the outdoor fabrics they had.  Since that was really quick, we went to the mall to look for his dad a Father’s day present.  Struck out there too.

Once again, he dropped me off at my truck and about five minutes later, I got a text, “Are you sure you don’t want to do something else?”  I asked what and he said, “Anything.  I’ve had the most fun talking to you in the car one on one, but gas is expensive to drive just to talk.  Can I come over to your house or you to mine or anything you want to do.”  I caved and gave him directions to my house where we ended up watching Say Anything (Yes, that’s right.  Another girly movie….it’s all I have at my house.)  and this time, he did finally get the nerve to hold my hand.

Since then, he’s over at least a couple days of each week.  The kids look forward to it because he generally either brings dinner or cooks.  Heh, he cooks around here more than I do.  Mandy the dog still barks at my mom, but she no longer barks at him.  Instead, she climbs into his lap and rolls over on her back to have her tummy pet.  It’s odd how he just fit right in.  Not just with my kids, but my extended kids as well….Ryder, Trey, Vanessa’s best friend Whitney.  They all like him.  Ethan and Trey got nerf guns and couldn’t wait to ambush him.  He beat them all at Halo and rather than getting upset about it, Ethan said he was glad to have some competition finally.  Vanessa tries to talk his ear off.  He listens and comments, giving his opinion on her friends and whatever else she’s talking about.  They all not only accepted him, but really like him.

As for me, I’m stunned.  I don’t think I ever expected to date anyone.  Sure I’d talked about it, but that’s all.  Never really acted on it.   I freak myself out now and again when I start wondering why he’d want to be with me when he could be with some little 21 year old girly instead or when I think that things are just too good and something bad has got to happen, but he’s amazingly well at defusing me.  Hopefully I can cut that out before he gets annoyed with it. =/

I’m sure eventually routine will set in and things will calm down.  For now though, there hasn’t been a day go by that I haven’t thought how lucky I am and how wonderful he is.  It’s a nice feeling to have.

By this time, the texting and phone calls have gotten pretty constant. Sex and the City was coming out and I wanted the guys to go see it with me….but at the same time, I didn’t want to be embarrassed watching it in front of them. Actually, I only wanted one guy to go see it with me, but he and one of his sisters were going to visit their sick uncle. On the way home from the movie, I got a phone call, “How was the movie?”

“Orgasmic”

Of course that answer kicked off much conversation. Between the conversation there (much wordplay and innuendo of course) and the movie, I ended up having this horrible dream about being a little girl again and facing the molester. I freaked. Bad.

The poor guy took most of it pretty well as I completely spazzed on him. Before it was over with, I told him I wasn’t going to have seks with him in the foreseeable future and a number of other things that I’m sure came at him from out of nowhere. He was doing good until I just pushed too many buttons Finally, he basically said, “Lets just forget any of this ever happened and go back to being friends.” I didn’t want to though…and I knew he didn’t want to either. We kept talkin and eventually it all calmed down and things went back to normal.

I’m not an easy person, as much as I would like to be. It’s okay though. He survived the first freak out. I supposed you can call initiation. He passed.

I began asking friends what they thought about the age matter. I expected to hear, “He’s way too young. You should date someone your age or older.” Surprisingly, though, that’s not what people said. The answer I seemed to be hearing was always, “You deserve to have some fun!” the down side seemed to be that everyone was of the opinion that it was clearly a short term thing:

“You know it can’t last because of the age difference, but enjoy it!”

“It’s never a good idea to date someone you work with because it’ll be bad when it ends, but enjoy it while it lasts!”

We went to dinner for my brother-in-law’s birthday and during dinner, my brother-in-law asked how my little boyfriends were. I took the opportunity to feel out the family, “Funny you should ask. One has asked me out, but I’m not sure if I should go or not.”

Prior to that comment, there was plenty of small talk going on at our table. Suddenly though, all eyes were on me. The brother-in-law’s sister came from across the table, “A 21 year old?!?! Go have some fun! I would if I could get a 21 year old!!”

The brother-in-law’s mom was the only one that said, “He’s only 21?.” That’s the only comment she made.

My step dad said, “Can you say Cougar?”

On the car ride home, my mom said, “You can always go out with him one time just to see if you have fun.” I couldn’t bring myself to tell her I’d already done that thinking I’d realize we had nothing to talk about and nothing in common so it’d stop things before they even started. I was wrong though. I did like the guy. So I decided to let majority win. We would go out again.