Back to school shopping................

Check!!

Yikes!!! This year was the year...................Usually our back to school shopping plays out like this.............

ME: Brendan, its time......
B: I don't want to.....
Me: I know!! I promise I'll keep it quick....
B: I still don't want to.....
Me: I'll have you home in an hour.....
B: I DON'T WANT TO!!!
Me: Get your shoes on and get in the car NOW!!!!
B: FINE!

then we travel to the mall --- he tries on a pair of jeans so I know what size he wears. Then he picks out some shoes - I take him home - he is happy - and now I go back to the mall and shop for him...........................Jeans - blue --- CHECK, Sweatshirts - hooded & Pull-over (no zippers MOM!) --- check, t-shirts - a variety --- CHECK, long-sleeve t-shirts - a variety --- CHECK -- assorted underwear (jockey shorts please) and socks (calf lengh please) -- to replace the gross ones.

This is how back to school shopping has happened since Brendan started school. Last year he sprung on me that he wanted to just "check out" a store called American Eagle Outfitters -- I hadn't heard of this store before -- hum............because of his size there were very few things that fit him -- although, he did find that he liked the "man spray"

I bought him a can -- he wore it a few times and then it just sat on the counter in the bathroom - until towards the end of the year when he started wearing it daily -- he would bathe in it before school and then would re-apply (although he didn't need to) once he got home from school. He also decided that he wanted to wear contacts.....that went VERY well.

My assumption would be that back to school shopping would follow the same pattern as years past..................I was WRONG --- he is trying to find his style -- and while I think he leans more to the "preppy/jock" style I can see influence of some friends with a skater-type style --- so, on Tuesday we went shopping -- he had a list - this is a sample of what he picked ----

I noticed that his color scheme consisted of browns, burgundys, blues & whites. There are a few other colors thrown in here and there but basically he is sticking with these colors. They look REALLY nice on him. He also let me buy him a piece of "man Jewlery" -- ok maybe, let me buy isn't being totally truthful --- basically I black-mailed him:) ok, not black-mail but urged really strongly -- I know that he will like it once he wears it. He looks very sharp in his clothes --- I can't wait to do a photoshoot or two or seven with his new clothes!!!!! Don't think that Whitlee was left out ------- she has gotten some new stuff for "school" but that is a different post :)

I made a first year memory album of Rick ---- the store where I teach at wanted to display it -- it shows that with love you can scrap a difficult time.

I have also finished a project I have been working on since January -- While at Rick's memorial service his kids(Teressa is included in this term) made these photoboards of random photos that Rick had --- I was able to scan these photos after the service (Thanks Auntie Kim!!!!) I am burning disks of the photos for my family --- but I have been working of a side thing for them also. It's taken a long time -- Really much longer than I thought it would -- but I could seriously only work on it for maybe 5 minutes at a time. My plan is to start sending them out this next week.

Anyhow, I am off............Jeff has had this week off and we are de-cluttering the house --- I am getting rid of all the crap I kept in the garage from my moms house. That stuff hasn't been touched in 9 years -- no need to keep it.

I'll be back later with a Whitlee post.