Haircuts and Roommates

Tony decided to give himself a haircut which resulted in him shaving his head with a razor. Not with our permission, but we have told him in the past that when he was 13 he could decide how to wear his hair. We figure that hair grows back -- it's not permanent like a tattoo or piercings, which of course, all the kids want as well, so at 13 we let the kids make their own decisions.

This was Tony's decision but he found himself ill-equipped to deal with the consequences of his choices. He had therapy yesterday at noon, so Bart and I had decided to take him to therapy and have lunch at the bar across the street to celebrate Valentine's day, as he was leaving soon after to go out of town. (I know, I know, don't be too shocked at the romance of it all -- they do have a sign advertising the world's best hamburgers, we needed to determine if it was true. It wasn't. Anyway I digress)

So Bart picked up Tony, and then me, and Tony was sobbing uncontrollably. He did not want to go back to school because he was afraid of a kid who had stated calling him a skinhead. He was afraid he was going to get beat up if other kids thought he was a skinhead. Bart was very patient with him, and I tried to be and did pretty well for me, but we both almost lost it when he said, "and the kid who was making fun of me had hair shorter than mine." You can see from the picture that his statement could not possibly have been true.

Since yesterday was Valentine's Day and Bart was out of town, I decided to take the kids out for dinner and a movie. So we headed to the mall where we had supper at the food court and Wilson and Leon got haircuts. I am still so in love with these boys. They are fun, pleasant, cooperative and easy going. I have not had to consequence either of them for anything major since their arrival.

Whenever Bart is gone there is always an argument about who gets to sleep in our bedroom with me. There is a recliner in there, so the kids beg for that spot, and then there is the spot next to me. Before Leon and Wilson showed up, it was usually either Sadie, Dominyk or Tony, all of whom are HORRIBLE bed partners.

Last night Leon surprised me by asking if he could sleep in our bed. Sadie had requested the chair but decided she might be getting a little too big for it, so she let Wilson have it. And I had the quietest night I've had when Bart was gone in my life. They slept without making any noise whatsoever, stayed in one spot the whole night, and never bothered me once. It was wonderful. I managed to sleep until 5:30, which for me lately is almost late.

I am finding it increasingly harder for me to get anything done when I am connected to the internet. Too many temptations online -- blogs to read, people to talk to in chat, games to play, and so this morning Kari and I are going to a restaurant for breakfast that does not have internet where I will stay and attempt to catch up on some of my work. Then I'm going to the grocery store, which is highly unusual for me. Making beans tonight since Bart is gone.

All remains pretty calm at our house -- even after I wrote about that. I guess knocking on wood works.