One down...

Day One. Summer vacation has officially begun for the girls. I'm so happy for them, but I wonder what I'll do to help fill the time. I've never been very good about getting organized and motivated for summer. Summer seems to be a time when all my entertainment abilities shut down and take off for Belize or something.

The Bigun will be off at Army Reserves Boot Camp until after school starts again. She leaves Monday and will return the second week of August. Part of me is saying: "Great! One down! Only one to entertain!" and part of me is in denial the likes of which I haven't seen in ages. BOOT CAMP? Like, for the ARMY? Oh boy.

She's excited about it.When she's back, she'll start her senior year, and then be ready for training when she graduates. You didn't know the Army took Juniors? Hell, I didn't either. Apparently it's true, because she has an all-expense-paid trip (your tax dollars at work!) to South Carolina for basic training. I haven't seen much of her in the last three days, because she's had to spend all her time with her friends. And now she's at my mom's house until tomorrow. When did I get old enough to have a child in BOOT CAMP? When did I get old enough to have a child who DRIVES anyway?

So the plan, and I think it's a good one, is not to think about it at all until I have to.

Moving along, the Little Critter and I are definitely going to spend a lot of the summer at the pool. Dodging skin cancer is so much fun. I know she wants to join the summer reading club at the library (she won an award for being a top-five reader in First Grade this year) and she's suggested the Zoo as well.

I thought we might also do some research projects. We'll put a bunch of names of countries and maybe even states into a hat and draw one when we're bored. Then we'll hit the library and the computer and learn about them. She'll never know what hit her. I'd love to get the 2nd grade general curriculum and start slipping it in during the summer, but I am not that motivated, and not that organized either.

So, we're back to Day One. Of about eighty-two.

OK, GO hear this

Last night in Houston; Steve Burns, The Lashes, and OK GO.

Great show all around, but let me tell you, OK GO's A Million Ways stole my heart. Go to the OK GO site and play their video. They did that live at the concert, and it was superbly silly. They're an interesting sound, and worth a listen. When you've seen the video, come back and tell me what you think. And then go play their cute little video game. Who DOES that?

And for going to this and enjoying it, I am the coolest mom ever, apparently.

Walmart Baby Bingo

As promised.

This game is to be played at Walmart only after 9 p.m. Summer, you should probably wait until after 10 p.m. to play, to allow for longer daylight hours. Bring along a scratch paper and a pen - you'll need it. Also, bring along a friend or family member 15 years old or older. Compete and see who gets the highest score!

As you walk into Walmart, whip out your scorecard and pen. Your grocery list can serve double duty here. Your mission is to find as many children four years old or under (you may have to guess at ages) as you can in the store after the stated hours. In some neighborhoods, this will be very easy. Bonus points for every child present after midnight.

(Why midnight? I mean, who shops at midnight? Well, I do, because, um, I don't like to bring my kids to the store if I don't have to.)

The winner is determined by the rules under which you play. You can score by finding a child in each age group (infant, one, two, three, four) and get an actual BINGO. You can choose to score strictly on the number of children seen. You can earn bonuses for children who are crying or who are sleeping. You can use a multiplier for children from the same family, such as 1 point for 1 child, 3 points for 2 children and so on. The possibilities are endless! As you master one scoring plan, switch to another! Get daring! Give yourself bonus points for getting close enough to notice empty bottles, smell stinky diapers, or observe stains (one point each!)

You'll have the satisfaction of knowing that even something as awful as watching people drag their poor children through the store late at night can be fun.