What's "Up Chuck"?

It’s good to be home again. I’m swamped with work today, trying to catch up thanks to two and a half days out of the office. I got home yesterday just in time to get my son dressed in his soccer gear and head off to have individual and team pictures made, then to play a make up game missed from Saturday, due to the rain. We made it back home in time to order pizza and watch American Idol. Taylor and Chris were certainly the stand outs last night. I certainly don’t think they have anything to worry about for tonight. Who do you think might be going home? I can see Ace and Paris in the bottom three. Not sure about a third person though. Ah, bring on the relaxation! We’re leaving on Friday for four days chillin’ in Destin, Florida. I’m really looking forward to it. This will actually be the first vacation, as short as it may be, that Susan and I have taken with the kids in the two and a half years we’ve been married. We’ve taken many vacation trips together, as documented on this blog (beach trips/cruises to Cozumel/Banff, Canada - where I was sexually molested by a ghost), but never as a family. It should be a blast! I can’t wait to lay in the sun, swim, drink fruity drinks, play with the kids in the pool and eat a truck load of fresh seafood. Yeah, I’m ready to leave now! There was a monumental event that happened in the life of the Chuck family this past Saturday. I was in the master bathroom wrapping up a very satisfying bowel evacuation when I head my 12 year old daughter yell from upstairs, “Hey can someone bring me a pad!” A pad? Hmmm, that can mean only one thing! Someone just took her first big step into adulthood. I finished things up and followed Susan up the stairs to investigate the excitement. Susan went into the bathroom to help my daughter with her menstrual materials and I stood outside the closed door singing the Neil Diamond song, “Girl you’ll be a woman soon”. It was one of those classic moments. She was embarrassed and excited, and I was sure to rib her about it all day. I made her call my Mom, my sister and various other family members and share the good news. Susan gave her the same advice her mom had given her when she first started, “Remember...sticky side down”. I threatened to hang a banner up outside the house to announce to the neighbors that T was now a woman. She didn’t like that idea, but I did have her write on a piece of printer paper, in red magic marker, “I got my period - April 8, 2006" and then I took several pictures of her holding up the sign. Hey, someday she’ll appreciate it. She’ll always have photographic evidence of the exact date she first got her period, and what she looked like on that day. Ain’t I a peach? I’m so proud of my little girl! We’ll that’s it for today. I’m back to slaving for corporate America now. Y’all have a good one!