Five Thursday things

1. My goal is to buy one present a day until December 24th whether it be for a birthday or for Christmas.  We have several birthdays in November which complicates matters for the holidays, in my opinion.  For example, my eldest daughter has a birthday at the end of November and she can never think of things she wants after her birthday.  Most of the time she says she doesn't need anything for her birthday!  (Very different from the second child)  This year she actually has a list so I have hopped on the computer and purchased a few of them.  Today I purchased a Christmas gift for the second daughter.  I say I shall do this every year, but this year I'm actually managing to accomplish one gift a week thus far.  I'm revving it up to every three days until I actually make the one a day.  The problem is that I might buy two items on one day and think that excuses me for the next day.  I have to say though that several people have submitted lists to me which does make my life easier.
2. This week has been another crazy one.  I thought nothing could top last week, but so far the first three days of this one have been a doozy.  I've been sick.  My mother has been sick.  She needed me.  I needed rest.  Unfortunately, my mother's health continues to decline.  While her body is slowly giving out her mind is not.  Because she is a fighter and it is in her nature to fight she does so despite her body going.  At some point it will get to be too much and she will not have the strength to keep fighting.  This week we had to get someone to come in the morning to help her get up, dressed, and ready for the day.  She already has someone that comes at night.  I do the driving to doctor's offices and various appointments like grocery shopping and haircuts.  All of it takes a toll.  She doesn't like it.  I don't like it.  We both feel guilty and then we argue.  Eventually we talk it all out and we continue on.  Que sera, sera.
3. I have to begin to devote one day a week for college scholarship searches.  Both my kids belong to the Duke Tip Program, a southern program for gifted children that helps with education.  They have a great website and offer various other websites for help with college applications, choices, and scholarships.  There are thousands of scholarships out there for the taking, but it requires tons of time and research.  I count this a part of my job as a SAHM.  I just haven't done much with it.  At first it was, "Oh, I have plenty of time for that." and now it is, "*&^%$ Where does the time go?"  I get up at 5:30 am. and suddenly it is time to pick up the girls and fix dinner.  I'm thinking the best way to approach this is to set hours that are to be spent at the computer and NOT on blogging, organizing my desk, or reading ESPN.  But then if I'm at my desk doing this how am I out buying gifts?  Perhaps this should be one of my 2014 resolutions.  Hmmmm....
4. My youngest made Regionals in swimming!  Last week she was picked by her coach to swim at districts.  It was south of us an hour and a half away at a huge facility with thirty lanes.  I ended up jammed between crazy swimming parents who knew their entire teams best times and what times were needed to qualify.  The parents were from two different high schools, but apparently knew each other from swimming elsewhere because they chatted and chatted and chatted.  I had the worst headache by the time the six hours of swimming was over.  Talk about intense!  Hell, I didn't even know my daughter's times until I paid the $2 for the program and read them in there.  My kid needs some major stroke and turn work, something I promised her we would work on after the season, so I haven't gotten to the little league swimming parent point yet.  But then after the meet I researched her times and the times of the other two districts in our region (which I found on the internet) and figured out that she placed 27th out of 63 swimmers in her 100 butterfly.  The top 24 advance to the Regionals.  She missed it by mere tenths of seconds and she wasn't even really trying.  Well, she was trying, but she wasn't any club swimmer like a lot of these kids.  Tom and I were impressed.  She and her teammates did qualify 15th in the 200 freestyle relay.  They take the top 16 in relays so she does move on and gets to experience Regionals.  They placed 17th in the 400 and missed it by one.  She also swam the 50 free, something she never swam during the season in competition, and placed 47th out of 119 swimmers.  All in all not bad for her first year.  She thinks she wants to continue so I copied all of the results and shall memorize them in preparation for next year.  I want to be prepared seating among those proud parents!
5. Football is halfway over!  How is that possible?  One minute I was lamenting the fact that it was starting and now I'm whining because it is already at the halfway mark.  The NBA has already started.  College basketball won't be far behind.  And what a crazy season it has already been.  Last year we had the refs and the lawsuit. This year we have bullying and coaches collapsing.  Last year we had teams winning a lot.  This year we have teams losing a lot.  The NFL has seriously got to take a look at itself in the off season and start getting a grip or they are going to look as bad as Congress.  Obviously, things aren't working.  Sit down.  Talk it over.  Give a little.  Push a little.  Come to an agreement that makes everyone happy from the owners to the players to the fans.  You won't make everyone happy, but the arrests, the keeling over from stress, the hazing, the head hitting, etc. has all got to go.  Make the NFL something to be proud of in terms of something beside making billions.  And now that the halfway mark is here, how about the Steelers start playing some winning football?