Family tales.

I am told that I was a bad Mom this weekend.

Well, I have a teenager, I am frequently told this.

Here is the evidence she wants me to produce for the prosecution.

1.  Yesterday while the girls and I were lounging in bed I asked Eldest to go and get me the computer so that I could look up a book or some such thing.  When Eldest complained that she is always the one asked to go and get things (isn't it that true for everyone I ponder?) I replied by saying that Youngest was playing a game on a cell phone so couldn't go at that moment.  Eldest put her hands over her eyes and groaned that she was now permanently psychologically damaged.  She had to go so her sister could finish a  video game!  (I will grant that was raaather lame on my part).

2.  I was reputedly on the computer all day today.  The fact that Eldest didn't emerge until noon, by which time I had done most of an hour of yoga, eaten breakfast with Youngest and done some yoga with her too, done some work on the Mona Lisa jigsaw puzzle that is going to be with me forever as far as I can tell, and chatted with the man, also read a bit and listened to two podcasts.  Then the Man, Youngest and I went out to a local fair and a wee bit of shopping.  Eldest ignored us entirely and watched us swirl around her and leave without a word, only a grunt from her dressing-gown clad self.  When we came back a couple of hours later, she ignored me completely while the man read, and then ran and Youngest and I chatted and I slogged on with the puzzle.  Then we ate.  Then we read.  Then I started to do some work/marking on the computer (oh how I loathe it) and Youngest had a friend over.  Finally around 5pm Eldest decided that it was time I drop everything and pay undivided attention to her.  When I was reluctant to do so, I was a Bad Mother.  Then we sent her out to walk the dog as she was pacing incessantly through the house and had not been out all day.  I was then a Very Bad Mother.  Then she read to me while I made dinner and I seem to have been a Good Mother again.

My fortunes seem to wax and wane. precipitously.

Chuck has had an adventurous weekend as well.  He and I went for a two hour march, well, hour and a half I suppose, through the mountains yesterday.  As we were working our way upward, a runner came down.  He passed Chuck, no problemo,  Chuck barely looked at him.  Then it seemed to dawn on his Chuckiness that I was behind him, and maybe, just maybe this runner constituted a threat as he ran down towards me.  Good grief.  I decided to climb up the embankment and turn my back on the runner instead enjoying the view to alleviate any potential worries from Chuckbacca's furry canine (male) mind.  The runner gave me a very odd look as I also didn't greet him, but Chuckalicious didn't come roaring to my - perceived - defences.

Then we found a horse.  There are quite a few in the hills around here, and Chuck ignores them.  I decided to catch his collar though as he was handy and occasionally crosses WAY to close in front of the nervous beasts.  Seems we were very very spooooooky to the horse who slowed and slowed and then pranced and danced back up the hill.  Of course this was very very innnnnteresting to Chuck who then proceeded up the hill after the horse.

He did agree to return to me and the rider went by on foot equally baffled and not the least upset.  For a moment there though I thought it was going to get a wee bit too adventurous.  Chuck hon, they are big big animals......

Today the Man took the be-belled Chuckster into the hills, belled as it is hunting day.  The man sited a ring-necked pheasant not 30 feet from the path, between him and Chuck.  Not wanting the bird to get shot, he called Chuck thinking this would scare the bird into moving further from the trail.  Chuck, the brilliant, did not even notice the bird as he lolloped up to the man for a cookie.  Thinking this wasn't a great success, the man lobbed the cookie at the bird thinking that Chuck would (finally) notice it and scare it away to a safer place.  Chuck bounded off after his cookie, entirely oblivious to the bird, found the cookie and crunched it up before heading off on his merry way.  The bird did finally concede that possibly Chuck was near enough to warrant flying off to a safer place, but goodness, I don't think there is very much hunting dog in this beast.  If he had noticed it, from the astounding distance of about 6 feet in the end, he probably would have tried to herd it or something.

Fuzz-head.