The best place for swim lessons is the YMCA. They have an indoor pool for lessons and exercise classes plus a great outdoor pool with water slides and sprinklers. The classes are small and last about an hour. A great deal for only about $10 per lesson day.

New Year and more drama. Great.

At least I got 8 hours of sleep to start off 2009 with a little energy.

We’ve been too busy and I’ve been battling a severe cold to get too much into the Christmas spirit. Last year we had our grandson and daughter here with us on Christmas Eve and they slept on the futon to be here Christmas morning, because Santa could only find his way to our house.

This year she is keeping him at the apartment with her little 10 inch ridiculous tree and Santa is coming to the apartment.

Of course, he’s six and realizes that he isn’t going to get much from anyone at the apartment. He’s already asked several times if he can stay here with us on Christmas and worries that Santa won’t find the apartment. More likely Santa would get mugged on his way to their ghetto apartment. But that’s her choice and unfortunately we all suffer for the sins of our parents.

The teacher has been sending home notes complaining that our grandson does not pay attention on class. I think he needs to be tested for ADHD but his mother refuses to permit that. She says that she doesn’t want him labeled as handicapped. She also says that she refuses to give her son any drugs to treat ADHD, so there’s no reason to test him.

So every time he brings home a note from the teacher she beats him with a belt and tells him he is a bad boy. I wonder if the teacher would continue to send those notes if she knew that he gets beat for bringing them home?

A little late for spring cleaning, but I was cleaning out the extra room and getting a lot of odd household chores out of the way today. Every time I turned around I found toys and little boy clothes. I can’t tell you how many trips I made to the toy box to deposit odds and ends – Spiderman figures, little dinosaurs, Hot Wheels cars, wiffle balls. I have two boxes of little boys clothes now – most of them barely worn before they were outgrown. Amazing how much of his stuff has invaded our house.