Because I'm the Mom, That's Why!

Jealousy Rears Its Ugly Head

2011-06-07T11:05:00.000-07:00

Margaret Mead, the famed American cultural anthropologist, once said, "Jealousy doesn't prove how much you love someone, it proves how insecure you are." Those words have never rung more true than at this point in my life.

My husband and I have been married for over 17 1/2 years, and together for over 19. For the better part of our relationship, this man I share my life with has seemed completely indifferent when it came to who I was friends with. I felt completely free to speak to whomever I wanted, without any kind of recourse, or general flack from him. His behavior (or lack thereof) actually had me believing that he didn't truly care about our relationship, which led to distance, which led to the "bad patch" we hit last summer.

My husband is a good, decent, kind man. He's a great father and a good provider. He's never strayed, doesn't do drugs, doesn't drink, or harbor any other vices that a wife could be concerned about. But still, we were at a crossroads in our relationship, and were stuck in a horrible rut that seemed to be taking us down a path of sadness, heartbreak, and ultimately, separation.

I've always believed that God's hand is in everything that happens in our lives, and there are no accidents, because at the same time this revelation began to unfold in our marriage, a former boyfriend of mine surfaced on Facebook, and made a beeline onto my friends' list, and into my life.

At first, I was thrilled to reconnect with him. He was my very first boyfriend, and I'd always held a special place for him in my heart. But, when reminiscing turned into "what if" and "what could be", I realized I had come face to face with a MAJOR, possibly life-altering decision.

Once I realized this, I did what I always do when faced with a difficult problem -- I went to my best friend for advice, and talked to my husband about everything. We had several closed door conversations about us -- our past, our present situation, and the possibilities for the future. He was obviously upset with the way my thoughts were carrying me, but in the process of our many, MANY talks, he peeled away his own onion layers, and admitted to me that he was incredibly jealous of this guy, and would like nothing more than to have him out of my life for good.

Initially, that was easier said than done. I was happy to have my former flame back in my life, especially since I'd thought and wondered about him for all those years. In my mind, this person was just a friend, and I was more than a little annoyed that, if my husband couldn't trust him, he could at least trust ME.

Once we began really opening up to one another, we miraculously discovered that we still really loved one another, and were both hoping to reconnect but were at a stalemate as to how. This "interference" with my former boyfriend was ultimately the catalyst we needed to rekindle our feelings for one another, and make us wake up and realize how valuable we are to each other and how lucky we were to have each other.

The friendship with the former boyfriend fizzled out some when he finally got it through his head that I was never going to fulfill his "fantasy" and leave my husband AND my children (can you even imagine?), and run off into the sunset with him. Yes, he and I still chat, but only on rare occasions. I have to admit, if I had it to do all over again, I would never have reconnected with him in the first place. The sweet, handsome young man I dated has turned into someone that I'm not sure I really like, and it has blown all of my wonderful memories of the two of us completely apart.

My husband now immediately shares with me when he's feeling a pang of jealousy, or when something bothers him in terms of a budding "relationship" I may be developing with someone. It's become difficult at times, especially since I'm a member of the committee planning our high school's 30th reunion, and as a result, I'm happily reconnecting with a bunch of folks that I went to high school with. I've noticed it's hard for my husband to adapt to the fact that the woman who had only one or two close friends, and focused mainly on him, is now having conversations with lots of people on a pretty regular basis. I think, in some respects, I've created a monster with him. He's now telling me OFTEN that it bothers him when I talk to people so much, and that he's frequently reminding me "... you told me to let you know when it bothers me, so I'm letting you know." Ugh.

In one respect, I think his jealousy is sweet. I'm HIS, and he's not willing or able to fork me over to someone else very easily. But, on the other hand, I like all of these re-established friendships I'm experiencing, and would like to continue talking to my former classmates from school without feeling guilty or scrutinized. It's a fine line, and I don't know which steps to take to prevent falling off completely.

I'm glad my husband and I are a happily married couple again. We're MUCH better than we were a year ago, and neither one of us ever wants to go back to that dark place. But, at the same token, I'm remembering the old adage, "Be careful what you wish for; you just may get it." I wanted a husband that was more present and more attentive, and boy, have I got him!

So, I have to deal with the whole jealousy thing and try to figure out what the happy medium is. In the meantime, I'll keep reminding myself of another one of Margaret Mead's quotes: "Every time we liberate a woman, we liberate a man."

Old, Cold, and Hoping to be Sold

2011-04-18T11:17:00.000-07:00

Hello out there in Bloggerville!

Again, I've whisked off to la-la land, leaving my poor little blog to collect dust and amass cobwebs. It's amazing how much life happens to you while you're busy making plans.

Time has marched on. We are all older. The boy is now 16, and is finishing up his Junior year in high school. He's begun his quest for college, and for a part-time summer job, but has yet to search out a girl. I must admit that my Mama's heart is happy, on all three counts. :)

The oldest girlie is now 12, and has immersed herself head first into the world of 'Tweendom. She's struggled through her first year of middle school, complete with a heavier workload and raging hormones, and has emerged relatively scar-free. Her glory has reached new heights (pun totally intended), because she now gloats over the fact that she is taller than her Ma. It doesn't matter whether she towers over me or not... as long as she understands that I still rule the roost.

The little has just about wrapped up her first year in elementary school, and can almost notch Kindergarten off of her preverbial belt. There were some real growing pains for her, too... going from the fun, carefree days of preschool to the more grounded work that is Kindergarten hasn't been easy on her, either emotionally or academically. Admittedly, she's had her fair share of meltdowns and trauma, and has required some extra assistance in the way of reading and spelling. But, I can say that she's still a sweet kid who's happily making lots of new friends, and her school work is getting better each day.

So, as we find ourselves in the middle of spring (with the increase of sunshine, but not warmer temperatures, as I sit here typing this while bundled up in my winter robe and slipper socks!), I'm content to watch my children move forward into the next phases of their lives, knowing we've all overcome the struggles of this past year and have learned and benefited from the experiences.

Not only have I worked diligently to better my children with their academics, I'm also pitching myself out into the workforce. I've decided, more as a necessity, but also as a hope to dip my toes into the working world with the eventual outcome of diving into a full-time gig, to begin searching for a part-time position. I'm narrowing my application options to those jobs that truly sound interesting, fun, and accommodating to my kids' schedules. I've applied for a bunch, and will continue to look, and I'll hope for the best. Let's hope someone out there will want to buy the bundle of goods that this old lady has to sell.

Living Life Like Laura Ingalls Wilder

2010-05-04T08:01:00.000-07:00

For the past several days, we had a water ban in certain parts of Massachusetts. Apparently, a HUGE water pipe, which fed millions and millions of gallons of water into quite a number of cities and towns, corroded completely. The water, which was supposed to siphon off into all of the MWRA communities, poured into the Charles River instead (at the rate of a MILLION gallons per hour), and left all of us who live in those communities with contaminated water for two days. It was safe for showering (unless you had open sores), and flushing... but no drinking AT ALL.

A water boil order was immediately put into effect, which meant that any water used from the tap needed to be brought to a running boil for at least five minutes before it could be consumed. We had all four burners going constantly, filling up every available pot we had with water, and (once cooled) pouring it into clean containers for use.

The hubs also went on a mad search for bottled water. He came up empty at two different stores, before finally finding some cases available at Market Basket, where he got caught up in the process of forking over cases of Poland Spring gallons to those waiting for the pallets to be brought out from the stockroom. He finally broke free from the mass confusion, and brought home two cases of the precious liquid for our own consumption.

We lived like pioneers for the past several days, using the purchased water for cooking and drinking, and reserving the boiled water for washing our bodies, our home, and our dishes. I felt like Laura Ingalls Wilder last night, as I filled up the bathroom basin with some previously boiled tap water, adding some recently boiled water to it to warm it up, before using it to get washed up for bed last night. I was expecting Pa to come bursting through the door at any minute, telling us the crops were ready for pickin', and we should all get our bonnets on and get a good night's sleep, 'cause it would be a busy day in the fields tomorrow!

Thankfully, we were brought back to the 21st century pretty quickly. The corroded pipe was fixed, the water supply was diverted to the "reserves" held in other locations, and the water ban was lifted this morning. Who would have thought that washing one's hands under the tap would bring such joy?

I'll tell you one thing... I won't be cooking pasta, making tea or instant coffee, or a serving of Cup-of-Noodles anytime soon! I'd be quite happy NOT to boil another pot of water for a long, LONG time! :)

Illusions... or delusions?

2010-04-08T13:57:00.000-07:00

Some of you may be friends on my Facebook page. If you are, you may have noticed (or even participated in) the huge "dispute" another FB member and I had last night. With all of that back and forth, it left me reeling. And, after all was said and done, and the dust had settled, I still couldn't help but feeling that she missed my point entirely.

You see, this person has a home business, and is a salesperson (and spokesperson) for a very nature-based, holistic line of products. And, although I can fully understand her rationale for being so devoted to this line of products (her son became very sick because of toxic poisoning... which she claims was the result of using "traditional" OTC medicines and products), I do not understand, and will not accept, her incessant need to shove her opinions on these products down other people's throats. What you believe in is YOUR belief. Leave it at that, and move on.

Apparently, she couldn't do that. And, in not being able to do that, she also found it completely necessary to bash MY abilities as a mother in the process. It seems that she equates the "holistic approach" to healthier living as the be all/end all in terms of mothering status. Therefore, to her, I'm scum of the earth because I let my children ingest old-fashioned, over-the-counter medicines and products.

I beg to differ with her, but I feel, in my heart, that I'm a REALLY good mother. I put my children's needs above my own ALWAYS, and they are well taken care of, nurtured, and loved. I'm constantly receiving compliments on how great my kids are -- what good kids they are, and how respectful and caring they are. And, just imagine... they are all that (and more), despite the fact that they eat a cookie or two once in awhile!

I understand her opinion about wanting to live a healthier lifestyle. But... we all know the old comparison about "opinions", don't we???

Ramblings in the Rain

2010-03-13T17:48:00.000-08:00

It's been raining here in Massachusetts. ALL DAY. Wind driven gusts of rain have been pummeling the windows. It makes me want to curl up in a ball, under my covers, in the warm comfort of my bed. It makes me want to watch documentaries, cooking shows, and reality TV about life in the ER. It makes me want to keep all of the lights off, even when it's completely dark out. It makes me want to read loads and loads of books. It makes me bored. It makes me antsy. It makes me indecisive. It makes me inactive.

Although I'm not a big fan of the heat, I do really like the sun. It moves me, both emotionally and physically. It gives me the kind of energy I need to be a productive human being. Instead of this laggard, hunkered-down mass I turn into when the water and clouds cover the sky.

Maybe I have S.A.D.??

Beauty (and Art) is in the Eye of the Beholder... Isn't It?

2010-03-11T10:45:00.000-08:00

Last night, right before the little and I were both getting ready to hunker down and snuggle in my bed together, she produced a picture of me that she'd drawn. She explained to me that, in the picture, I was telling her to go clean up her room.

The detail was amazing, especially for a five-year-old. In her rendition, I had long, curly hair, ears (which she could have left off, for all I care... I'd hear less of the arguing and whining that way!), an open mouth (all the better to bark at you, m'dear), two front teeth (didn't see any others inside my mouth, but at least there's a couple there to gnaw on food with!), a tongue (not forked, I'm glad to add! :), a round body (like I said... the detail was amazing... unfortunately for me!), two arms, two hands WITH five fingers each, two legs WITH feet, a belly button (I found out later I was NAKED in this particular picture...whatever!), and according to my budding artist, "your big boobs". Gee, thanks!

I held back my laughter, while telling her to go show the picture to her father. The hubs took one look, and HIS first response was "What's that on Mommy's stomach?" When she explained it was my navel, I could have been blown over by his huge sigh of relief. Apparently, the humongous chest area was of no concern to him. He was making sure there wasn't even a whisper of another bun in Mama's oven!

I don't know what it is about this particular child, but she's got almost a borderline fascination with my "girls". I'll be so glad when she grows up enough for nature to take its course, and give her a set of her own. Maybe then, she'll leave mine alone!

Bad, Bad Mama!

2010-03-10T09:57:00.000-08:00

So... I dropped off the blogger wagon. Again. It's just amazing how much LIFE can happen, in the blink of an eye!

As some of you already know, I've gotten hooked on Facebook. Between catching up with everyone on there, and doing everything else I need to do on a daily basis, I'm afraid I neglected my blogging terribly. Hopefully, this will be another "rebirth" of sorts (just in time for Easter!).

It took us practically hitting him with a brick upside the head, but the boy has really buckled down with his schoolwork this year, and is bringing home excellent progress reports and report cards. The hubs and I always knew he had it in him... we just had to basically threaten to pull him out of the school that he loves to get him to quit goofing around!

At almost 15 1/2, he's now just about 6'2". I can't help but wonder if there are times, when I take the kids out together, if some folks mistake him for my partner instead of my son! Gone are the baby cheeks, and cherub face. It's been replaced by hairy cheeks and mature face! On the one hand, I'm glad he's growing up, and finally beginning to break out on his own a little bit. But, of course, it still saddens me that my "baby" boy is a thing of the past!

The oldest girlie is also a tall one... at 5'2 1/2", she's almost as tall as I am (and never passes up the opportunity to remind me!). She's just as beautiful and sweet as ever, and even though she's definitely starting to show signs of "womanhood", she's still very much a little girl in spirit and behavior.

She's three months shy of graduating from elementary school, and then.... off to MIDDLE school in the fall! And, I have the same feeling in the pit of my stomach about it as I did when the boy went off to middle school. I know she'll be fine, and she'll handle the transition well. I also know that I'M probably going to be way more of a mess than she will be!

The little is also going to be experiencing a transition this coming fall. She'll be leaving preschool, and moving on to Kindergarten. I met with one of her preschool teachers yesterday, to go over her mid-point evaluation, and was so filled with pride, hearing about her tremendous progress. Miss Maritza told me that she can't get over how far the little has come, and just how much she's matured and grown, since last year. I know what she means. There have been times, during one of our conversations, where I've stopped short, and realized I'm talking to a FIVE year old! She's so articulate, and so detailed in her conversations!! :)

So, come September, I'll have one child in elementary school, one child in middle school, and one child in high school! It's going to be a new challenge, trying to juggle all of their schedules, but I'm sure we'll quickly get the hang of things.

Once the little goes into school for a full day, I'm going to seriously persue a part-time job. I've been rooting around the job listings for the public schools in my area, and sending in resumes for positions that look interesting, and meet my needs. Hopefully, one place will think I'm the perfect fit for them, and I can start working soon! Don't get me wrong -- I love being home with my kids, and knowing that I'm their primary caretaker. But, I started working when I was 16 years old, and it's so difficult for me to not contribute something financially to the household. I just hope I can find a job that doesn't demand too much of me, so I can ultimately have the best of both worlds! :)

As for the hubs and I... we're still going strong. On St. Patrick's Day, we'll celebrate the 18th anniversary of our first date. There are times when I can't believe we've been together for so long, and there are other times when I feel the time just flew by. I feel so blessed and so grateful to have him in my life, and I'm so glad he chose me to spend the rest of his life with. If we were to go back and do it again, and if he asked me out on that first date, I wouldn't hesitate to say yes.

That's enough of an update... for now. I sure do hope I make this blog thing more of a habit in the future! ;)

Is It Really Time... ALREADY???

2009-06-16T15:15:00.000-07:00

I feel like a broken record whenever I say this, but honest and truly, I canNOT believe how fast this school year has gone! I mean, I feel like I was just shopping for back-to-school clothes for three children who'd gone through MAJOR growth spurts over the summer. Then, as the first weeks of school unfolded, scouring shelves and displays, with school supply lists in hand, looking for all of the gazillion items that my children's respective teachers wanted them to come to the classroom armed with.

Now, as quick as a wink, it's mid-June, and the school year is almost over. The littlest little has already gotten her certificate of completion for her first year of preschool, and had her last, bittersweet day with her beloved teachers and school chums this past Friday. She's being rather impatient, waiting for her older brother and sister to complete their respective school years, wandering aimlessly from room to room, looking for things to occupy her time. Unfortunately, her dear old Ma is not a suitable replacement for those young legs that can run and play and keep up with the likes of her.

I, myself, am hoping that these last few days endlessly drag on. Not that I'm not excited for them to move forward another year up the scholastic ladder. I'm just NOT looking forward to the constant drone of "I'm boooorrrrrreeeedddddd!!!" from their mouths, as we wait the dreaded few weeks before school ends and day camp begins.

It's almost impossible to imagine, but come next Tuesday, I'll "officialy" have a fifth grader and a Sophomore in high school. Can't someone please tell me which magic button to push, to slow down the growth process with these children? I'm just one step closer to watching them drive off to college, and out of my motherly grasp, for ::gasp!:: what could be the very last time.

I used to barely hear the statement as I was growing up and into my adulthood. Only now do I fully understand it's truth and perspective -- children really do grow up so fast!

April Showers Bring May Flowers

2009-04-07T09:58:00.001-07:00

At long last.... a new blog post! :)

I'm so sorry I've been away for so long. You'd never thing that the dog days of winter would be so crazy, but really, they have. First, we endured February school vacation, while being pummelled with lots and LOTS snow (so much for "best laid plans"!). Then, at the end of the month, we celebrated the littlest little's fourth birthday (still not quite sure how she got so big so fast, but that's for another time). She wanted a Chuck-E-Cheese party with some of her preschool friends, and that's exactly what she got. The way I looked at it, it saved me a TON of clean up, food prep, decorating, stressing....and then more clean up! :)

March brought with it more snow, as well as my husband's 45th birthday, which we celebrated with much less fanfare than his youngest daughter! A homemade spice cake and a lovely, homecooked meal were on the agenda for his evening. Thank goodness he's much easier to please!

And now, it's April. Already. Supposedly, springtime is upon us, but with the damp, cool weather, I'm having a hard time being convinced of that. I'm sure I'll relish these days as the scorching summer weather blazes in soon enough.

Not only is it April, but it's Holy Week, too. I won't touch a whole lot on that, for fear of sounding too "preachy". But, I will say that, of all the times when I feel our Savior in my heart, this week is the time that I love and appreciate Him the most, especially when I remember what sacrifices he made to save us all from our sins.

Of course, Sunday is Easter. Not only is it a time for reverence and rebirth, but it's also a fun holiday for our kids. For years and years, we held out hope that our egg hunt could be had outside. But, with all of the years of rain (and even snow!), we've relinquished ourselves to having it indoors. The kids have just as much fun, and we do too, as we watch them darting from room to room, trying to find all of the eggs left for them by the Easter Bunny. They're especially thrilled when they find their "special" eggs...labeled with their names, and containing a grand surprise (usually a small amount of money, or a gift card to one of their favorite fast food joints). And then, the BIG squeals of delight, as their baskets are discovered. I have so much fun, picking out things for each of them, and stuffing their baskets chock full of their treasures.

I will also admit that, over the past two months, I've succumbed. I suppose I would now be officially labeled a "Twilighter". I've read all four books in the series, and have ordered a special edition DVD set from Borders. I've even ordered the soundtrack! :) I honestly didn't think I could possibly like a love story containing vampires and werewolves, but the books were written well enough that they were easy to glide through. I'm going to wait a few more weeks, then read them all over again!

I think that pretty much puts me up to speed, for now. All of you who've joined me on Facebook know what I've been up to on a daily basis, too. I only hope my next update doesn't take me just as long!

Part Two, of Quite Possibly the Longest Blog Post in History

2009-02-05T07:49:00.000-08:00

Well, I don't know exactly what happened, but the Blogger wouldn't let me space through to another paragraph, so I sent what I'd written so far (so it didn't get lost), and figured I'd continue with a "part two".

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I have to admit, her e-mail really rubbed me the wrong way. I mean, I know she doesn't know me from a hole in the wall, and who knows what was going through her head when her husband's ex-girlfriend dropped out of the sky and onto her webpage... but still... there was SOOOOOO much about her curt little response that just raised the hairs on the back of my neck.

It took all I had to shoot off a snotty little response, but I bit my tongue, walked away from the computer to cool off, and came back when I had a clearer head. I told her I can understand how he'd feel overhwhelmed, but he needs to know that there are plenty of people who, for one reason or another, felt bonded to him, and wanted to know how he was doing. And, because I have a "past" with him, I was more or less their "go to" person. I also said I could totally respect that he needed time, and that I'd be more than happy to give him all the time in the world.

(Okay, okay... just because I said it, didn't mean I necessarily was FEELING it, but I was trying so very hard to be my diplomatic, "I'll take the high road" kinda gal.)

It was after those series of e-mails, and the weeks that ensued, that I began to feel crushed. I was, after all, a pretty integral part of his past (we went out together for about a year and a half, and got pretty serious there for awhile), and I was nothing but good to him. Why on earth would he shun me the way that he was?

It took me a bit of time to process through the whole thing -- to talk to people whose opinions I valued, to help me work through all the different scenarios. And, it also took me gathering ALL of the courage I had, and then placing a call to his work number VERY early on a Saturday morning (and praying, the ENTIRE time, that he wouldn't pick up the phone!), so I could hear his voice. Once I got through all that, I found a peace within me. I determined that he had made his own little life for himself, that he'd gotten himself to a better place physically and emotionally, and that he was doing well. And, quite frankly, all I really wanted to know was that he was okay. And I got that from his voice on his answering machine. I can't explain how... but I did.

The weird thing is, the guy who prompted me to seek out this man in the first place has all but dropped off the face of the earth, too. He's all but disappeared off of Facebook, hardly ever responding to anyone's posts (and when he does, it's only with these short, almost bullet-type answers). He won't return my phone calls, and he barely responds to my e-mails, too. I'm wondering if this "old buddy" of his, doesn't want to rekindle THAT relationship, either???

Men! Sigh.

Anyway... back to my life at hand. The littlest little is gearing up for her 4th birthday, and I went yesterday to book HER party (at Chuck-E-Cheese's, per HER request... the little Diva!). She's given me her short list of invitees, and at the very top is her "boyfriend", Luis (whom, she's going to marry someday, dontchya know!). Every night, when I'm getting her clothes together for school the next morning, she tells me that she has to look "really pretty for her boyfriend"...!!!! Ugh!

Who knew that it would be my THREE-YEAR-OLD who'd be boy crazy first???

Besides, I'm saving her for one of either Natalie's boys. I'll let them fight over who winds up getting her. All I can say is... GOOD luck, once you decide! She's a REAL handful, that one! :)

It's Been Such A Long Time...

2009-02-05T07:14:00.000-08:00

Now that I have the Boston tune stuck in my head.... :)

I sincerely apologize for not giving a blog update to all of my buds out there in cyberspace. I honestly do believe that someone hit the "fast forward" button right after Christmas, 'cause life's been a big blur after that!

We all survived the Christmas holiday quite nicely. The kids were very pleased with their gifts (as well they should have been!), and busied themselves pretty much the entire time off with their new gizmos and gadgets.

On the 26th of December, we celebrated my oldest daughter's 10th birthday with a homemade cake and ice cream, and even MORE presents for the birthday girl. For several years now, she's been saying how she can't wait until she turns 10, so she can have a laser tag party like her big brother had a few years back. The place I took him (Good Times) only allows kids over 10 to participate in their laser tag parties, and she was so looking forward to it. She was completely crushed when I came home one day, and told her the bad news -- I was at the shopping mall across the street from Good Times, and as I was exiting the back of the parking lot, I noticed that not only was Good Times shut down, but it was COMPLETELY gone (apparently, they closed because of poor revenue). From what I heard, they're putting an IKEA in its place. Good for me; BAD for her.

I promised her that I would do my very best to search out another place that has a laser tag party as one of its theme offerings. After some hefty Internet researching (you wouldn't believe how difficult it was to actually FIND a place close to home!), I discovered that the Kid's Playground offers such a thing. The only thing was, because they shut down the entire place, to allow party goers the run of the joint, they only offer these parties either before or after regular store hours.

So... I promised her that we'd schedule an "after-birthday lasertag bash" for her. I'm waiting for the income taxes to come in, and then I'm heading off to Kid's Playground to book it for her.

January brought snow. LOTS and LOTS of snow. I was housebound for what felt like almost the entire month (except for the taxi service to and from school, and the necessary trips to the grocery store to replenish sustenance). Why didn't I update then, you ask? Well..... because I had a situation occur that kind of put me in a funk. Not the same kind of funk I was in months before, mind you, but one that left me with a LOT of thinking and resolving to do.

As a member of Facebook, I've been thoroughly enjoying reconnecting with friends -- especially those from high school and college, whom I'd lost touch with YEARS ago. One of those "friends" is actually a former buddy of an ex-boyfriend of mine. He and I have really enjoyed getting to know each other (really, for the first time, since he was only a casual acquaintance back when I was dating his friend).

One day, he asked me if I'd help him try and find this friend of his/ex-boyfriend of mine. He lost touch with him a LONG time ago, and apparently, their last encounter wasn't such a pleasant one. He really missed the guy, and wanted to let him know that he never stopped being his friend. I agreed to help out, in any way I could, and plugged at it a chunk at a time, whenever I could spare a minute on the computer.

The trouble is, this guy's name is fairly common, and I kept going so far into a specific search, then hitting a brick wall when I found out it wasn't the right guy. I hit on a nugget of unfortunate information, when I stumbled across his dad's obituary, archived in one of our local newspapers. As sad as I was to read that his dad had passed, it was still really helpful, because it listed this guy and his (then) current location, which at least pointed me in the right direction.

The next day, I plugged in his name and the location, and *poof*... there was some concrete information, which could have been a clear indicator that I'd actually found him! The only thing that concerned me was, this guy I'd found was a real "techie" -- a career path that was so far removed from the guitar-playing, artistic boy I once knew. But hey, one never knows what can happen in 20+ years, so I gave it a shot, and sent this computer dude an e-mail. That, unfortunately, hit a bit of a dead end too, 'cause I never got a response back.

I did, however, find out what this guy's wife's name was, from the Internet results I obtained. On a whim, I decided to try out Facebook, and see if she might have a profile on there. When I plugged her name into the Friend Finder, and clicked "search", there appeared before me a black and white photo of a youngish-looking woman, flanked by three adorable little kids. Upon closer inspection of one of the boy rugrats in the picture, I could see, for sure that he was DEFINITELY a "mini me" of the boy I'd once dated.

I FOUND HIM!!!!

I was giddy with excitement, not only because I'd found him, and could go back to his long-lost friend and give him the good news, but because, well.... I'd ACTUALLY DONE IT! I'd found him! (I was pretty impressed with myself, if I do say so myself! :)

I informed my new friend that I'd found the guy, and he, of course, was over the moon. He contacted the guy's wife, and wound up e-mailing the guy back and forth a few times. Before I knew it, my friend had sent me my ex-boyfriend's e-mail, encouraging me to contact him. I reminded him that he was one exceptional guy, and that most boys/men don't really want to rekindle a friendship with a former girlfriend. He insisted that this guy would love to hear from me, and that I shouldn't be ridiculous, and I should just go ahead and write to him.

It took me six attempts (deleting five in the process), to finally get up the courage to write. I kept my entry pretty benign, only relaying information about my life, and where it's taken me from then until now. I sent of the e-mail, and waited for a response.

And waited.

And waited.

And waited.

And.... got NOTHING. The "silence" was so deafening, that I dropped a note to wifey-poo (on Facebook), announcing myself, telling her I was an "old friend" of his, and would love it if he and I could reconnect, and if she and I might become friends, too.

It took all of thirty seconds for HER to e-mail me back. She told me that she doesn't normally add people to her friends' list that she doesn't know (this AFTER she added the guy who was looking for her husband -- uhm, okay!), and that her husband was "a very private person" who was "very overwhelmed" by the surge of people who were coming out of the woodwork to contact him all at once. She also said that she was leaving it completely up to him as to whether or not he wanted to contact me, and that I should give him time.

I Know, I Know....

2009-01-27T08:10:00.001-08:00

.... I'm LONG overdue for a blog posting! I do have lots to share with you guys, but I don't have the time (or my thoughts together enough) to do that right now. I just wanted to let you all know that I'm still alive and kickin'!

Celebrity Sightings (Per Karyn's Request)

2009-01-08T10:43:00.000-08:00

As part of the last tag I participated in, one of the "random" things I listed about myself was that I've been fortunate enough to either meet, or spot, a LOT of celebrities in my lifetime. Some were totally by accident (when I was lucky enough to be at the right place at the right time), and some were arranged.

I've put an "S" next to the stars I've merely spotted, and a "M" next to those I've met, and had even a brief conversation with. If there are numbers next to the letters, it means I've either spotted or met them more than once (the number representing the number of times). I only hope I can remember them all! :)

Jimmy Osmond (M)
Jay Osmond (M3)
Merrill Osmond (M3)
Donny Osmond (M2)
Rex Smith (M)
The Go-Go's (M)
The Psychedelic Furs (M)
Joan Rivers (M)
Bette Midler (M)
Peter Wolf and Seth Justman (from J. Geils Band) (M)
Ric Ocasek (from The Cars) (M)
Laurie Bogart (Lauren Bacall and Humphry Bogart's daughter) (M)
Tina Turner (S)
Lauren Hutton (S)
Malcolm McClaren (former manager of The Sex Pistols) (S)
Natalie Portman (S)
Christopher Lloyd (S)
Christopher Reeve (S)
Vanessa Redgrave (S)
Paul Newman (M)
Sidney Poitier (M)
Lyndsay Crouse (M)
Patti Labelle (M)
Al Gore (M)
John Kerry (M)
Judith Hoag (went to high school with)
Patrick Ewing (went to high school with)
Jon Anastas (went to high school with)
Fran Tarkinton (M)
Roy Orbison (M)
Joe Perry, Tom Hamilton, Joey Kramer, Brad Whitford (all from Aerosmith) (M)
Brad Delp and Sib Hashian (both from Boston) (M)
Billy West (M)
Ken Howard (S)
Julia Child (S)
Diane Keaton (S)
Bill Walton (former Celtics player - S)
Danny Ainge (former Celtics player - S)
Robert Parish (former Celtics player - S)
Diane Lane (S)

That's all I can remember, for now (although I feel as if I've forgotten a few! :).

Why Do They Do This????

2009-01-08T08:00:00.000-08:00

I don't know whether it's just me or not, but it seems that there are a LOT more movie previews on during the day, with less than appropriate material for little ones to watch.

Two cases in point:

1) The trailer for "Taken:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k8HknJ3IaLk&feature=related

Just this trailer completely wigs my 10-year-old daughter out (especially the part where Liam Neeson's character tells his daughter, "They're going to take you, too." I mean come ON now.... who thinks that's okay for a young, impressionable girl to watch?? Especially one whose always had a HUGE hangup over the "things that go bump in the night", and with "monsters" under her bed! Yeah, she's sleeping REALLY well these days now, thanks!

2) Then there's this little dandy... the trailer for "The Unborn"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EfkPwW6FQFk

My kids are especially fond of the creepy guy whose head is on upside down. There's a special brand of terror that comes along with that guy that only a parent can truly understand!

Is it me, being a super-paranoid mom here, or have the networks gotten too callous? I've seen BOTH of these previews on in the middle of the afternoon, allowing both of my girls to witness them, implanting nasty little impressions on their budding brain cells.

Sure, I get that this certain genre of film has quite the following... of ADULTS. In my opinion, if a movie is rated PG-13 or R, meaning that kids under the age of 18 are not allowed to enter the theater to see this movie (either alone, or without a parent), then why the HECK are they showing the previews before prime time??

Help me out here, people, will ya? Help me to understand the logic... please?

Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to go check for the Boogeyman underneath my daughter's bed.

Jett Travolta

2009-01-06T07:47:00.001-08:00

I don't make it a habit to blog about celebrities, for one simple reason: I believe strongly that because they, too, are human beings (above all else), they deserve their right to privacy just like any other Average Joe. Maybe even moreso, because they're ALWAYS thrust in the public eye. So, "gossiping" about them just perpetuates the situation, giving them even LESS privacy than they deserve.

However, I really felt compelled to write something about the tragic passing of John Travolta and Kelly Preston's only son, Jett. Perhaps it's because I'm a mom, who like the Travolta's, has only one son. Perhaps it's because John Travolta seems to be one of the most humbled, down-to-earth, "normal" celebrities in show business today. Or, maybe it's because of the sheer enormity of the tragedy that a young man's life has ended, even before it had a fair chance of beginning.

Whatever the case may be for my compulsion, I had to put my feelings out there. To make my thoughts public.

Because, really, when it comes right down to it, whatever profession one chooses in life, and however one brings home their paycheck at the end of the week, the most gratifying job there is is to be a child's parent. Sure, it can be quite the daunting task at times, but, when you do the "work" right, it can also be an amazing, wonderful thing, to watch those tiny little creatures unfold and blossom into adulthood, and to know that you've played a big part in molding them to deal with whatever successes or challenges come their way in life.

John Travolta and Kelly Preston were shining examples of parenting done "right". Because of their celebrity (and therefore, their affluence), they could have easily decided to let the nannies and governesses rear their children, while they flitted about with their heads in the clouds. Instead, though, they made the conscious effort to keep their feet firmly planted on the ground, and remain an integral part of their children's lives.

So, although I completely understand that no parent in their sound mind would ever wish their child hurt (or worse), I must say that my heart is aching for John and Kelly, not only because they lost their only son, whom they quite obviously adored, but also because of the fact that they are celebrities, and cannot and will not be left alone to grieve in private.

I only pray that they find the strength in each other in order to make their way through this tragedy together, and that they know and understand that, as long as they carry that beautiful young man in their hearts, they'll have him with them forever.

The Seven Things I Like About You (a.k.a. Taggie-poo!)

2009-01-04T10:51:00.000-08:00

So, my dear blogger bud Erica tagged me, as a way to "start off the New Year right". Being the dutiful blogger friend that I am, I am more than happy to oblige! :)

I will say, though, that my list of seven things about me pales by comparison to hers!

Here goes:

1. I was the lead in two musicals during my Senior year in high school, and aspired, for awhile, to be an actor. (Shhhh...sometimes I still think about performing, and might just get up the courage to join a community theater someday!)

2. I've seen "The Rocky Horror Picture Show" over 150 times -- every Friday and Saturday night, in the theater, NOT on video.

3. I've met a ridiculous amount of celebrities in my lifetime -- mostly purely by coincidence.

4. I hope to take art classes someday, and plan to when my little one gets a bit older.

5. I didn't get my driver's license until I was 41 years old (and yes, this is one of my biggest regrets... that I waited so long to drive).

6. I'm very intuitive. Sometimes I like it, and sometimes, I really don't.

7. My husband and I were introduced by my soon-to-be ex-husband.

Rules: link back to who tagged you (I can't, for the life of me, figure out how to do that linky thing, but I'm sure Erica will pop in, at some point), and tag 7 people (I'm not going to arbitrarily pick seven folks. I hope you'll all participate, and let me know if you do). Let them know they've been tagged (Okay... you're ALL tagged! :P).

Out With The Old, And In With The New

2009-01-01T10:08:00.000-08:00

I don't know about you guys, but to me, 2008 went by incredibly fast. And, as challenging as it was, quite frankly, I'm glad to see it gone. I always feel so hopeful on the first day of a new year. It's like everything's all squeaky clean. I've been given a massive "do over". And, I fully intend to do what I can to make the best of it.

I'm not much of a resolution maker, but I guess you could say that's mine. To do the best I can. To try and move forward, and to work to my best potential to make things better. That promise may sound trivial to some, but believe me, that simple statement carries a LOT of weight behind it. I only hope I can strive to make good on that vow.

If you, yourself, make resolutions, I hope that, whatever they are, you'll work to YOUR best potential to make them come true. And, try not to beat yourself up about it if they don't come to fruition. Remember...there's always next year! :)

Happy New Year, everyone!

Double Digits and Divine Intervention

2008-12-26T19:12:00.000-08:00

Today marks the day that my oldest girl turns ten. Double digits. Pre-puberty. 'Tween. I can't even begin to imagine where that time went. It was a mere blur... a speck on my radar.

One minute I was pulsating through the pain of her ridiculously fast delivery, at the tail end of which my obstetrician beckoned me to open my eyes during a particularly strenuous contraction, and give him my hands. And when he positioned my outstretched fingers underneath my birthing daughter's tiny armpits, allowing me to gently grasp her and deliver her up onto my stomach myself, all of the pain simultaneously washed away, and the floodgates of joy took its place.

With this child, the feeling of joy has remained. She is, without a doubt, an incredibly special being. Her kindness is almost limitless, and her love for humanity is to be revered. During the insanity of 9/11, and all of the days of sorrow, confusion, and pain which followed, my husband and I (like almost civilized human beings on this planet) were practically glued to the television set, reaching out for even the tiniest smidge of hope that another lost person may be found; that some semblance of happiness or normalcy could be unearthed from all that rubble. My daughter was almost 3-years-old, then. Such a tiny thing, that one would think she couldn't possibly fathom the preposterous scope of the trauma that was coming into our living room every evening.

One day, shortly after the Twin Towers exploded throughout New York City, my teeny bit of a babe came to me and said, "Mama, I want to be a firefighter when I grow up, so I can help people like those firefighters did." Her conviction was so strong that year that, when we came across a uniformed firefighter one day at the grocery store, she walked up to him, tugged on his pant leg, and said, "Thank you." (To which he scooped her up, and with tears welling up in his eyes, he said she was more than welcome.) She also wanted to be a firefighter for Halloween, and I was proud to dress her up as one that October.

To this day, she still expresses interest...those memories firmly etched in her mind. When she isn't talking about fighting fires, she says she'd like to be a veterinarian, so she can make animals well. She sobbed uncontrollably over every lost fish, hermit crab, and bug that she'd snag in her bug catcher. She still talks about all of her "pets", recalling them with the fondness and love that only a person with the kindest of hearts can feel.

On her birthday four years ago, one of the earth's worst disasters hit most of the land masses that border the Indian Ocean, when, as a result of an enormous aftershock from a giant underground earthquake, the tsunami that followed rose up in 100 foot waves and devastated several countries, killing over 200,000 people.

Again, my compassionate, empathetic child watched the news....and cried. When she heard one of the news reporters state that all of the children survivors had nothing... not even any toys to play with.... she announced that she would like to donate ALL of her new Christmas and birthday toys to those children, because she was lucky, and had enough old toys to play with.

I believe this child is truly a gift from God. Two years before her birth, when I was convinced that, in my heart, I could never love more than one child, and was content to have only him, I dreamed of this little girl with wavy, sunstreaked hair, and the most amazing ice blue eyes I'd ever seen. We were at a park I'd never seen before, and I was lounging in the grass, calling out to her. She came running over the crest of a small hill, wearing a grape-colored, short-sleeved t-shirt with little puffs on the sleeves and the tiniest of bows on the neck, underneath a pair of faded denim Osh b'Gosh overalls.

She had in her hands a bright red ball, and as she ran toward me, giggling the entire way, I called out to her: "Come bring the ball to me!", and spoke to her by name. It was then I knew that she was out there for me. That God was trying to let me know, in his Infinite way, that this little girl was waiting to be delivered. This gift.

And, on the day after His son's birth, he brought my gift to me. Ten years later, I'm still feeling awfully blessed to have her in my life.

It Came Upon A Midnight Clear

2008-12-24T12:45:00.000-08:00

When I think of all of the gifts I could possibly want for Christmas, NOTHING can compare to the love shown to me by my family and friends. No material possession can come close to feeling the arms of my babies wrapped tight around me with a big "neck squeezing hug". No amount of money is worth hearing my kids laughter, or having them tell me they love me, or that I'm "the best mom EVER!". And, every time I either meet a new friend, or reconnect with an old one, I feel the blessing that is part of the REAL reason for the season.

I wish you all a very Merry Christmas. May you and your family be blessed with the bounty of the greatest gift of all.

The Snow's STILL Falling

2008-12-20T15:21:00.000-08:00

The storm came in right on time yesterday afternoon. The first flakes I noticed fell sometime right before 2:00 p.m. It is now almost 6:30 p.m. on Saturday evening, and it's STILL flurrying.

I can't tell for sure, but it looks as if we've gotten a good foot and a half. Enough to make driving anywhere distant a major nightmare. I'm just so grateful that we're DONE with all of our major Christmas shopping. We will need to make a trip to the grocery store sometime this week, to get the remaining ingredients for our Christmas feast (and for our oldest daughter's birthday celebration the following day), but hopefully the roads will be much easier to navigate in a day or so.

Last night, my girls and I all climbed into my bed and snuggled up watching Christmas specials while the snow fell. We must have all passed out relatively early, 'cause my husband said he came into the bedroom around 9:00 to say something to me, and I was passed out! I'll tell ya, all the jewels, fancy cars, and big homes can't compare with a nice snuggle with your kids. Especially when you know that as they get older, they're less and less inclined to want to cuddle with Mom (it's not too "cool", you see).

I know it's going to break my heart when my oldest daughter gets to the point where she no longer finds it acceptable to climb in bed with dear old Mom and watch some hokey movie on TV.

But, I have a three-year-old. There's still plenty of "cuddle" years left in her.

Battening Down the Hatches

2008-12-18T14:20:00.000-08:00

An impending snow storm is heading this way sometime tomorrow. Depending on which channel I turn to, the forecasters have different conclusions about how much is going to be dumped on us, and when it's going to begin. The general consensus is sometime late tomorrow afternoon, with an accumulation of anywhere between two and six inches.

Which could mean that it starts early tomorrow morning, and we'll get whalloped with three feet. Such is life along the coast. The ocean breezes can sometimes wreak havoc. If you don't believe me, take a gander at these:

http://www.massmoments.org/moment.cfm?mid=45

http://www.mass.gov/czm/blizzard78.htm

After then, I think all of the meteorologists (especially the "old timers", who were here in New England forecasting that particular nightmare back then) have become a little gun shy when it comes to impending snow storms in our vacinity.

If there's one constant about snow, it's that it can sometimes be completely unpredictable.

Hopefully, this will all blow over and we won't get much of anything. I certainly wouldn't want to be cooped up in my house for a week, like we were back in '78. I have shopping to do! :)

Something to Do Until My Hubby Comes Home

2008-12-17T13:06:00.001-08:00

Okay, so I'm sure there are a bazillion other things that I could do, other than to participate in this particular "tag", but none of the other things are half as fun! :)

1. Did you date someone from your school?

I had several boyfriends all throughout high school, some that never amounted to much of a relationship, and some I was pretty darn serious about.

2. What kind of car did you drive?

I didn't get my driver's license until I was 41-years-old, so in high school, if I wanted to get from Point A to Point B, I either took public transportation, bummed a ride, or hoofed it.

3. Did you pass your driver’s license test on the first try?

Why yes, yes I did! :)

4. Were you a party animal?

I certainly had my fair share of fun, but I didn't do anything lewd or lecherous. I was a good girl then. Still am, to a certain degree! :)

5. Were you considered a flirt?

HECK, yeah! But, mind you, there's a REAL distinction between a flirt and a tease.

6. Were you in a band, orchestra or choir?

None of the above. But I was heavily into theatre.

7. Were you a nerd?

Not in terms of the standard definition, no.

8. Were you on any varsity teams?

I've never been athletically inclined. I was asked to be on the cheerleading squad during my Senior year, but I was too crazy busy to fit that into my schedule, too.

9. Did you get suspended or expelled?

With the father I had growing up??? NEVER!

10. Can you still sing the fight song?

I never even knew we HAD a fight song!

11. Who were your favorite teachers?

Honestly, I liked most of my teachers, but my true favorites were Mr. Toomey (History), Miss Sullivan (English Lit.), Miss TePaske (Musical Theatre), and Betsy Grady (Psychology). Oh, and Miss Grant was the best Homeroom teacher EVER!

12. Where did you sit during lunch?

If I wasn't going across the street to grab a slice of pizza, I had lunch in the cafeteria.

13. What’s your school’s full name?

Cambridge Rindge and Latin High School.

14. What was your mascot and colors?

I couldn't even begin to tell you what our mascot was, but our colors were maroon and gold.

15. Did you go to homecoming?

Our school didn't have a homecoming, but I did go to my Senior Prom.

16. If you could go back and do it all again, would you?

Yes, but only if I knew then what I know now (and could somehow arrange to meet my husband back then).

17. What do you remember most about graduation?

That the ceremony itself was excruciatingly long, and how amazing it felt when a whole buttload of people cheered for me as I walked across the stage to receive my diploma.

18. Where did you go on your Senior Skip Day?

I don't think we had a Senior Skip Day. If we did, I sure don't remember it!

19. Were you in any clubs?

No. I just participated in the Theatre Arts program.

20. Have you gained some weight since then?

Ppppffftttt!! Next question, please!

21. Who was your prom date?

Skipper McKaskill (hmmmm... I wonder what ever happened to him???)

22. Are you planning to go to your 10 year reunion?

That's come and gone. If there is another reunion planned, it'll be my 30th, in 2010. Ask me then, if I'm going.

23. Did you have a job while in high school?

Oh, yeah. I started working a month after I turned 16. And I haven't looked back since! :)

Conversation with a Three-Year-Old

2008-12-17T08:25:00.000-08:00

My littlest little is home from preschool today. Partly because we woke up to snow on the ground this morning (told ya... New England), and partly because she has yet another cold, with a low-grade fever, and one of the many rules of her preschool states that you can't bring your child into school if they have a fever, and they may not return until they're fever free for 24 hours.

No matter. I love my one-on-one time with her.

Case in point:

After sitting on the floor behind me, contentedly coloring and singing a little tune while she was at it, she decided it was time to play with her dolls. So, she gathered up a couple of her stuffed animals (one in particular, her pink bunny with its missing ears and holey backside, is an absolute favorite of hers), her dolly high chair (in which pink bunny sits, at its place of prominence), and her little chair from her table and chair set.

She then proceeded to explain to me that I was the mommy, she was the sister, and her treasured, holey bunny was the baby, and that we were to pretend to be at a restaurant.

I asked her, "What are we doing at the restaurant?"

Her reply?

"Eating, you silly!"

Guess she got me on that one! :)

It's Beginning to Look A Lot Like... Springtime???

2008-12-15T09:54:00.000-08:00

Here in Massachusetts, it's 47 degrees outside. Right here. Right now. It's supposed to get up to 56 degrees, at some point today (according to the weather thingy-ma-bob on AOL).

I currently have all of my kitchen windows open, my bathroom window open, one of my living room windows open, and both of my bedroom windows open, and the breeze that's blowing into each of those windows isn't the slightest bit cold. Not even cool.

Need I remind you... it's December. And I'm in New England.

It's just so weird, that it's a week and a half before Christmas, and it's so balmy here. Not that I'm complaining, though. I've grown to HATE shovelling.

But, seeing as how it's New England, the old adage can hold true: "If you don't like the weather here, just wait a minute."

I'm not holding my breath.

Monday Randomness

2008-12-15T05:53:00.000-08:00

Morning, all!

I just realized I haven't posted anything since last week, so I figured I'd better get on the bandwagon and update you all on my oh-so-exciting life! :)

I FINALLY managed to go to the doctor's, and his "official" diagnosis was that I had a sinus infection. I personally think it had gone waaayyyy past that. When he tapped on the spot underneath my eye sockets and asked if it hurt, I told him, "It doesn't now, but as the antibiotic starts to work, and everything begins to drain again, it will." I was so clogged up that NOTHING was coming out!

He wasn't my usual doctor (in fact, that's one of the reasons why I don't like going to my doctor's office much any more; my doctor's SO in demand that I hardly ever get to see HIM when I make an appointment), so he didn't know ME well enough to know that when I get sick like this, I know pretty much exactly what's going on with me. So, even though I wasn't symptomatic of anything in particular, he was nice enough to take me at my word and give me a prescription for ten days worth of amoxicillin.

I'm happy to say that, after three or so days of taking the prescribed medication, I'm sleeping a bit better, and FINALLY starting to feel as if I might just shake this thing after all!

While I was there, I wanted to have him administer a TB test for me. I have the opportunity to work in a lunch service position at my littlest little's school, but everyone who goes NEAR their food on a regular basis has to have an up-to-date TB test performed. Since I don't believe I've EVER had one, it's important that I get one. The logistics are what always seems to get in the way, though.

He was happy to put the order in for me, but said I'd have to come back in two days to have the test "read". That meant going into Urgent Care on Saturday. Not one of my favorite prospects in the world. Not only would the wait time depend on the amount of people waiting to be seen, but I couldn't figure out a way to get the reading done without having to pay for parking. And, call me cheap, or call me stubborn, but I REFUSE to pay six bucks before I even walk in the door! So, I canceled the test for that day, and will call in to schedule it for the week that my husband's home on vacation. Problem solved.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

My husband has taken it upon himself to take off his scheduled weekday (Thursday). The good part is that we've been able to spend some time together, get errands done that either require the both of us to participate (like finishing up the wrapping of Christmas gifts), or that we need to "tag team" for (like for my oldest daughters parent/teacher conference -- I stayed home with the girls, while he went to meet with her teacher, only because I was sick as a dog that day, and didn't feel like getting dressed and heading out ANYWHERE). The bad part is, we're losing valuable overtime everytime he doesn't work on that day.

I know he's wanting to take some time off and relax, but I need to get his butt in gear to make that extra money! :) He said he'll start working the overtime again after his vacation week. Fair enough.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I mentioned that we're done with our Christmas wrapping. Or, so I thought. One of my girlfriends dropped me an e-mail, letting me know that Amazon.com had some INCREDIBLE, one-day deals on toys. I made the HUGE mistake of looking through the list of things that were on sale. Of course, there were two things that Miss S. has been BEGGING for; 1) Puppy Grows and Knows My Name, and; 2) the holiday singing Hanna Montana doll. Both were RIDICULOUSLY marked down, and I couldn't resist. I ordered them. So, even though I thought I was completely done, I now have two more things to wrap (which isn't all that bad, really). That is, unless I decide to put them away for her birthday in February... then I can hold off on the wrapping for awhile! :)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Speaking of birthdays, my oldest daughter's is coming up, too. She was born at 8:24 a.m. on December 26th! :) She's without a doubt THE best Christmas present I've ever gotten!

She was dying to be old enough to be able to have a laser tag party at Good Times Emporium. You can't play laser tag until you're ten, so this year was IT for her. She was all excited about the prospect... until, to her dismay, we found out that Good Times had shut down. Another victim of the lousy economy. She was crushed.

I found another place that has laser tag parties, but they only schedule them on certain days, either before or after the general public is allowed into the building. The laser tag birthday party involves a package deal, and because it's a bit pricey, she's agreed to hold off having her party until after the holidays are over (I'm thinking February or March). To a kid that's had her heart set on a laser tag party for YEARS, a few more months doesn't matter much, I guess.

Of course, we'll still have a small family celebration of her birthday ON her birthday, as we've done every year. Considering the fact that she is pretty much a Christmas baby, I have a certain set of criteria for her that MUST be followed:

1) Her birthday is always celebrated on her birthday (the same as my other children);
2) Any birthday present that's expected to be opened on Christmas will be considered a Christmas present;
3) Any birthday present that's wrapped in Christmas paper will be considered a Christmas present;
4) Any Christmas present given to her on her birthday will be considered a birthday present.

I don't want ANYONE to ever assume that, because she was born on the day after Christmas, that she got jipped somehow. Everyone's birthday is special... INCLUDING hers.

And, like she has always said, she feels lucky, because she gets to celebrate Jesus' birthday, and then she gets to celebrate hers! :)

I'm Throwing Down the Gauntlet

2008-12-08T07:24:00.000-08:00

Why is it that, as a mom, my needs pretty much always come last? At least that's the rationale I'm going with to defend my position against making a doctor's appointment... until now.

I felt a cold coming on, about a week before Thanksgiving. Oh, great. Just what every pie-making, cookie-baking, turkey-and-all-the-fixins Mama needs to feel when she knows she's going to be up against a marathon of a day. But, like a trooper, I persevered, getting all the dinner (and desserts) expertly done, in between sniffles, coughs and sneezes. Heck, I even felt somewhat GOOD on Thanksgiving. Perhaps I was only fooled by the euphoria of the day.

By Friday morning, the sore throat came back again in force. Once again, I bravely (or stupidly, depending on your side of the fence) ignored it, choosing instead to push ahead and get through the day, as only a mom with three kids home from school for Thanksgiving vacation (who were hopped up by an overload of apple pie, might I add) can do.

I'd casually mentioned to my husband, in my Robitussin induced stupor, that I'd like to put up the tree for Christmas that weekend. Silly me.

I woke up late on Sunday, after a ridiculously fitful nights sleep (I was coughing up half a lung all night long), and saw, with dread, that my well-rested husband had taken it upon himself to assemble our tree already. Poor guy... I know he meant well. But, all my weary body wanted to do at that point was go back from whence I came... and crawl underneath the covers and die.

But, once again, I persevered. I half-heartedly went through the boxes of lights, garland, ornaments, and other Christmas-y doo dads, and pretty much stopped at the tree and the mantel. Mind you, I typically have something... something that embodies the spirit of Christmas in each and every room of my house. My kids even have their own little Christmas trees, which I place in their bedrooms every year. Not this time, though.

After the tree and mantel were complete, and my homemade Advent calendar was hung, and the wreath was placed on our front door, and a few nick nacks were strewn about in the dining room, I called it quits. My husband gave me quite the quizzical look. I think, only then, he knew how sick I really was.

I spent the next week feeling about the same. Struggling to get through the days, doing just enough to get my kids to and from. Struggling even more to get through the nights, stealing what sleep I could in between brutal cough after brutal cough.

Finally, today, I decided enough is enough. I've thrown down the gauntlet. I called my doctor's office and made an appointment for ME. I'm to be seen by someone in my doctor's staff at 9:30 in the morning on Thursday. (I told the nurse who returned my call that I couldn't care less if I was to be seen by the janitor on duty, as long as he had the authority to write me a prescription for amoxicillin!).

So there you have it. I have succumbed. Now, please pray that I'll be better for Christmas!

Say Cheese!! :)

2008-12-05T12:35:00.000-08:00

Gearing Up For Thanksgiving Day

2008-11-26T12:11:00.000-08:00

Thanksgiving is a time for gathering up the ones you love around you, sharing a delicious meal (from soup to nuts), and reflecting on all you have to be thankful for. Although money's been tight, and we've had to sacrifice quite a bit this year, I wouldn't trade my life for anyone else's in the world. I have a husband who's the love of my life, three beautiful, healthy kids, and an abundance of family and friends, whom I hold dear to my heart.

I thank God that I'm able to have people jammed around my dining room table tomorrow, eating a beautiful Thanksgiving dinner of turkey, stuffing, gravy, my husband's incredible sour cream mashed potatoes, Brussels sprouts, fresh green beans, glazed carrots and rolls with butter. We'll have to make some room for my homemade apple or blueberry pie, too! :)

I know, deep in my heart, how truly blessed I am, because I am fully aware that there are those who (for one reason or another) will be unable to gather together with their family and loved ones, to celebrate their season's bounty.

I'm also blessed to have gotten to know so many of you. When I'm going through my list of all I am thankful for, you all will definitely be included, too.

May you all have a safe and happy Thanksgiving.

Please Vote for Brandon!

2008-11-25T17:57:00.000-08:00

Hi there!

My friend Don has asked me to pass the word around that his younger brother, Brandon, is in a contest to help showcase young and "up and coming" talent. Brandon's written a beautiful song called "Thine Own Son", which is the one that he's premiering as his entry into the showcase.

The link to the site is:

http://music.mormontimes.com/contest.php?id=737

If you could PLEASE take a moment, create an account, and then vote for Brandon's song, I'd truly appreciate it. And, if you feel so inclined as to go back every day and vote for him, that would be incredibly awesome!

Also, if you're up to it, it would be wonderful if you could pass along this information to any other people you know, who might also be willing to vote.

On behalf of Don (a very proud big brother) and Brandon, I thank you very much! :)

Rockin' Around The Christmas Tree (In OCTOBER??)

2008-11-21T07:55:00.000-08:00

My friend and blogger bud Don posted about the overkill of Christmas and holiday music. His main gripe (as you will) is that it is played way too early, and that we should give each holiday its just due.

While I totally agree that the commercialization of Christmas leaves a LOT to be desired, and thoroughly takes away from the REAL reason we celebrate and value the holiday of Christmas, I have to admit... I love hearing the holiday music. Granted, radio stations who begin solely playing the festive tunes THE DAY AFTER Halloween may be pushing it a tad, but for me, their reasons are sound. The deejays explain that their rationale behind playing that particular genre of music so soon is to "lift people's spirits", by getting them in a holiday mood. I certainly enjoy tapping my feet to "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree", or "Here Comes Santa Claus" while I'm driving, or doing work on the computer, or whatever. And you know what? It does certainly work to lift my spirit some!

My own personal feeling is that Christmas music falls into the same category as every other type of music.... I love hearing it, as long as it's good. There's nothing more moving than hearing the Mormon Tabernacle Choir sing "Silent Night", or nothing more fun than hearing my little ones singing along to "Dominic the Donkey". (You can keep such pitiful pieces like "Grandma Got Run Over By A Reindeer" How dreadful!).

I, for one, am glad that the music is being played now. With the economy in flux, and our country on the brink of turmoil, maybe a little lightness of heart and lifting of spirits is in order for all of us.

Blah, Blah, Blah....

2008-11-17T08:23:00.000-08:00

I have a lot of simple ramblings to update you guys on.... hope you don't find it too boring! :)

Mid-week last week, my mom decided that she wanted to take R. on a bit of a shopping spree, for some new sneakers and jeans. Miss R. has definitely "sprouted" over the past several months (gaining curves in places I really don't care to discuss! :(, and it's been quite the challenge to keep up with her growing frame.

Because she's grown so much, and her body is jutting out in all sorts of funky ways, I can no longer simply go into a store, pick a certain size off of the rack, and bring the clothes home, knowing they'll fit her. She has to try everything on. And, being a nine-year-old girl, I think she'd rather have all of her fingernails pulled out with pliers than try on clothes. So, going shopping with her is a daunting task, to say the least.

We went to Marshall's first, because my mother needed to return a (too small) pair of jeans she'd gotten for R. previously. My mom wanted to check out the sneakers in Marshall's, but after a few minutes of scoping around, I quickly decided that the designer labels (and designer prices) were just a bit much for a girl that's way too hard on her shoes. With that, we headed off to Payless Shoes.

We went into the girls section, and I promptly started hunting for sneakers in a girl's size 4.... all of which had some kind of problem with the fit. So, I moved over to the 4 1/2's... all of which were still too small. I went around the corner to the women's sizes, and pulled a bunch of size 5's and 5 1/2's. STILL too small. I moved on to the 6's. And, you guessed it... she still had some issue with each of the pairs.

By then, I was getting a bit irritated. It was 45 BAZILLION degrees in the store, and in between listening to my oldest daughter whine, trying to wrangle my youngest daughter in (as she proceeded to use the entire store as her own personal playground), and maintain my quickly frazzling nerves, as my mother's temper grew more and more short with each new pair of shoes that were being tried on, I decided that I'd had enough messing around. I looked for a salesperson, and asked if I could have R's. foot properly measured.

The salesgirl asked if I wanted her measured in a children's size, or in women's, and I opted for women's (to assure that her shoes fit properly).

After a few moments of wiggling R's foot back into the contraption correctly, and finding just the right spot where her foot measured up, the salesgirl looked up at me and said, "Well, her foot is really in between sizes, but it's sitting somewhere between a women's 7 and 7 1/2."

EXCUSE ME????

You can't possibly mean MY daughter! My baby girl??!! The same one who was fitting comfortably in a girl's size 4 back in August.... is now a WOMEN'S size SEVEN????!!! Yikes!

Well, no WONDER why she was fretting over the girls shoes!

I made my way over to the proper section, and scoped it out, finding a couple of pairs of cute sneakers. She picked out one plain white pair that she liked a lot, and said they were really comfortable.

Done deal.

We then made our way to Tello's, to look for some jeans. They had a bunch of Junior's sizes on the clearance rack, and we grabbed several in a size 3. Of the four pairs we picked out, two fit and two didn't (see what I mean about having to try EVERYTHING on???). My mom took the two pairs up to the register, and paid for those too. Thank goodness for her!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Miss S. missed out on the majority of the school week, 'cause she had a dreadful cold, complete with a dry, hacking cough, all last week. And, as a total act of generosity, she decided that her life wouldn't be fulfilled without sharing her sickness with her Mama! I'm sick as a dog today, and feel like I've been plowed over by a Mack truck, but I'll persevere. I'm just glad the rain is gone... all that moisture in the air wreaked havoc with my asthma, and I was having a difficult time breathing, especially yesterday.

And, even though I truly wanted to just sack out in bed yesterday, we had to take my car to Sears to have it looked at. The dreaded engine light came back on again, but this time, it won't go away.

The crew that does the diagnostics wasn't working yesterday, so we decided to take a quick walk around the mall. I thought maybe Santa might be there, so the girls could stop and say "hi". I also wanted to go into Sears, to see if I could find a good deal on a portable CD player for R. for her birthday.

As expected, Santa was all set up, and ready for pictures, in the middle of the mall. Since my girls were in their play clothes, I didn't really want to have their pictures done, but they could still go up and talk with Santa, and tell him what they wanted most of all for Christmas.

While we were waiting in line, S. turned to me and said, "Mama, I'm going to tell Santa all of my wishes!" She was so excited! Still, I wasn't quite sure how she would react when she got face to face with the Jolly Old Elf.

Quite to my surprise, her excitement remained as she walked up to him. He asked them if they were both good girls, to which they promptly answered with a resounding "Yes!" He asked R. what she would like for Christmas, and she rattled off, "An XBox 360, a PSP, a phone, and some Bakugan toys." He shot her a look as if to say, "Yeah, right" (and frankly, I couldn't agree more! :), and said, "Well, that's quite some list! I'll have to see what I can do."

And then, he turned his attention to S. He said, "What about you? What would you like most of all for Christmas?" She replied, "A pee-pee doll", and he thought she said a baby doll, so he asked, "Which baby doll would you like? Do you like Barbies? Or maybe Dora? Or how about the Princess dolls?" Again, she said, "No... a pee-pee doll!" He looked to me for help, and I said, "She's saying pee-pee doll. She wants the Little Mommy Baby Gotta Go doll" "Oh!" he said, "I see! Well, if you're a very good girl, then I'll do my very best to see what I can do for you, too, okay?"

"Okay, Santa!" she squealed, and she gave him a big hug. He handed both girls a candy cane, and wished us all a Merry Christmas. The girls were on cloud nine.

In Sears, we found a cute little portable CD player, with an AM/FM radio. Just right for Miss R's. room. My husband went back later last night to get it for her. It was Friends and Family night at Sears, and the store was open from 6:00 to 9:00, for Sears employees and their families ONLY. And, everyone who made purchases got an extra 10% off of everything, with special deals on certain items. With all of the discounts, the CD player I'd picked out was only $20.

He also swung by a fellow Freecycler's house, to pick up some children's videos she had up for grabs. When he came home, Miss S. was so excited to see all of her "new" Sesame Street, Dora, Blues Clues and other videos. She picked out the Elmo Saves Christmas one, and watched the entire thing in her room last night, without making a peep! :)

With the purchase of the CD player, I'm officially DONE with both Christmas and R's. birthday! I've also begun wrapping things, so we won't be up until the wee hours of the morning on Christmas Eve. Goodness knows our little one will have us up before the roosters on Christmas morning!! She's SOOOOO excited this year!

Now, I have to focus on Thanksgiving. We typically have Thanksgiving dinner here, with various family members popping in to eat or to have dessert. I have to go grocery shopping today (but only because we have NOTHING in our house at the current moment!), and I'll start picking up things for Thanksgiving dinner. I typically have a turkey with stuffing and gravy, mashed potatoes, a few vegetables (like broccoli, green beans, corn, glazed carrots), and rolls for dinner. I also make an apple pie and a blueberry pie, and some kind of other simple dessert (like brownies, cookies, or a cake).

What is your typical Thanksgiving dinner like?

Shameless Plug (well, kinda)

2008-11-14T13:28:00.000-08:00

I don't typically participate in any kind of "you scratch my back, and I'll scratch yours" postings, where people give away free stuff on their blog, and in return, I'm supposed to give them a shout out on my blog, with a gazillion links back to them. My theory typically is, if you wanna give the stuff away, just go ahead and DO IT already.

But, I gotta tell you guys.... this woman makes THE cutest darn stuff! Her hairclips, hats, leg warmers, and other little doo-dads for girls are just too adorable for words! And, since I think her stuff is so amazing (almost works of art, really), AND because I would love to be the winner of her current giveaway, well... I've succumbed!

The URL to her blog, Hair Flips, is located amongst "My Favorites" (over there, on the left of my page). And, if you want to go and check out her products up for sale, here's the link to her Etsy website: http://babybandsbeyond.etsy.com/

If you need to pick up a cute little gifty for a girly-girl this holiday season, I'd really recommend you take a look. Or, if you want to just "ooooh" and "aaaahhh", you can go check it out, too! :)

In Memoriam, and In Tribute

2008-11-11T13:58:00.000-08:00

In honor of my father, who swiped his older brother's birth certificate and faked his age in order to enlist in the Navy and serve his country to fight against Japan at the tender age of 16;

In honor of my oldest brother, who also enlisted into the Army at the age of 17, during a time when guys were enrolling in college to refrain from being drafted, and fought in the trenches of Vietnam, experiencing things so traumatic that he can't talk about them, even all these years later;

In honor of my nephew, who enlisted in the Army at 18, and is actively working through his tour of duty over in Iraq;

And, in honor of all of the noble men and women, in our past and present history, who have nobly stood up to represent, serve, and protect ALL of the freedoms that we hold dear --

With humility, I salute you and thank you, for all you have done to make and keep this country, our country, free.

1:24

2008-11-10T14:49:00.000-08:00

If you Google 1:24, you come up with a lot of interesting tidbits.

For example, did you know that 1:24 is the true (and apparently only technically acceptable) scale for any model car?

Or, how about the fact that the Schweizer SGS 1-24, also referred to as the Schweizer-Burr SGS 1-24, is a United States single-seat, mid-wing, Open Class competition glider?

Inevitably, there were a LOT of entries that contained the date 1/24 (with lots and lots of different years attached), telling tales of meetings minutes, science and medical experiments, individual and group blog entries, birthdates, dates of death... those listings were endless.

I also noted some particularly interesting Bible passages, listed as a result of this particular search:

Colossians, 1:24:

Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I do my share on behalf of His body, which is the church, in filling up what is lacking in Christ's afflictions.

Matthew, 1:24:

And Joseph awoke from his sleep and did as the angel of the Lord commanded him, and took Mary as his wife.

Wait...what? Joseph awoke from his sleep??? Was it at that EXACT time? Is that the relevance...the Holy Grail... the meaning behind it all?

THE REASON WHY MY 3-YEAR-OLD HAS BEEN WAKING UP, EVERY SINGLE FREAKIN' NIGHT, AT 1:24 A.M.????

Is Joseph trying to communicate with her? Is she being told to rejoice in Christ's sufferings? Or, is she merely trying to torment her poor mom???

Like clockwork, every SINGLE (early) morning, that child enters into our bedroom, waking me up out of a sound sleep. At 1:24 a.m.

I guess now I've added one more Google entry that is just as random as the thousands I've pulled up, and makes as much sense as her 3-year-old internal clock.

Blogging for Susy

2008-11-08T07:47:00.000-08:00

Okay, so I'll be the first to admit that I've been shirking my blogging duties as of late (sorry, Sus...and thanks for the nudge!). I promise you guys it's not because I haven't wanted to. It's more because I've been INSANELY busy, with the holiday season kicked into gear. I've also been rather boring, with nothing more than general ramblings to post. And, I didn't want to turn my high-falootin' blog into a total yawn fest. That would be pure torture! :)

So... the day after Halloween, two of my favorite radio stations started playing Christmas music. Now, I know that some of you may hear that and start screaming your fool heads off, but let me tell you... I actually rather enjoy it. In fact, I just about love it. It SOOOOO puts me into the "Christmas spirit" (more than our current 60-ish degree weather does, that's for sure!). So, for the past week, I've been coming home from dropping the little one off at preschool, taking care of whatever things need to be done around the house first, then getting the live feed from the radio station on my computer, and putting myself into a wrapping stupor!

I mostly began the whole wrapping spree out of necessity. I had so many boxes and bags jammed into the corner of my room that their edges started creeping more and more onto the floor, to the point where I started tripping on them (more than once). When I stubbed my pinky toe on the hefty box (that housed several of my children's treasures), that was the proverbial straw. I hiked out all the wrapping paper, tags, Scotch tape and scissors, and went to town! I'm proud to say that that mountain is down to a mere hill! :)

How many of you use completely different wrapping paper and tags for your "Santa" gifts? I started down that particular road quite a few years back, when N. said, "Hey, Santa uses the same paper as you, Mom!" Smart little whippersnapper! Ever since, I've used EVERYTHING different for the stuff that "Santa" gifts. It can get a little confusing sometimes, but so far, I haven't made any profound mistakes.

I'm going to try and score tickets to this year's Polar Express ride, too.

http://www.polarexpressride.com/schedules.html

We were fortunate enough to go last year, and it was a total blast. The ride is only limited to certain towns, but if you have the chance to go, I HIGHLY recommend it. It's great fun!

I also want to really try and go to see the Festival of Lights at the Stone Zoo this year. We went one year, when N. and R. were very small, and it was so wonderful. I wanted to go last year, but we just ran out of time. I'm hoping we'll get to see it again this year...it's so beautiful!

http://www.stonezoo.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=Page.viewPage&pageId=875

What are some fun things YOU want to do this holiday season?

More General Ramblings

2008-11-04T15:23:00.000-08:00

This morning, after dropping our little one off at preschool, I took my husband to an oral surgeon to get one of his teeth extracted. He woke up Sunday morning looking like a lopsided chipmunk! The left side of his face was all swollen, and he said it was very painful and tender to the touch. He took our oldest daughter to school yesterday, and then went straight to our dentist's office from there. That's when he found out that he had a severe abscess, and that the tooth had to come out before it got any more infected. They gave him prescriptions for both Vicodin and Penicillin, and sent him home, with copies of his x-rays, and a chart indicating which tooth was affected (he had to bring both to the oral surgeon's office today).

The entire procedure took about a half hour, and he was pretty groggy when they called me into the "recovery room" (a.k.a. a leather lounge chair for the patient, and an office chair for the "designated driver", in a teeny tiny room!). He said he'd just woken up, so they must have given him some of that medicine that puts you into a twilight (and not the nice, Edward Cullen version -- that's for you, Michelle! :), as well as the Novocaine. He came home, and shortly afterward, settled into bed. He took a much needed snooze, and just woke up a little while ago, saying he was hungry. Thank goodness for Sunday Baker, and her plethora of recipes.... I made the taco ring, which is nice and soft enough for him to chew! The swelling in his face has gone down a whole lot too, which is a good thing. Now, to just get him to continue to follow all of the "rules" he's supposed to adhere to over the next couple of days!

I can't even believe that I'm typing this, but, with a BIG thanks to the help from my mother, my Christmas shopping for the kids is just about DONE! :) I had one more thing to get for my oldest daughter (apparently, she needed some game board to go along with the Bakugan "accessories" I picked up for her a few weeks back; otherwise they'd be rendered pretty much useless! What do I know??). I also had quite a bit to get for my son, whose tastes have become VERY expensive. And...only two months to do it in. I couldn't, for the life of me, figure out how I was going to pull it off, without putting bills aside to do it (which I really didn't want to do, for very obvious reasons).

Then yesterday, I got an e-mail from KB Toys. It contained an e-copy of their "Big Toy Book" (or whatever they call it there). Underneath the header of the e-mail, there was an icon that said "Bill Me Later". I clicked on it, and to my pleasant surprise, found out it was a feature that could allow a person to purchase items now, and delay the payment for up to 90 days!!! Since this feature requires good credit (and mine's less than stellar), I asked my mother if it would be all right if I could plug in her information, and she totally agreed to let me do it!

So... next Friday, I'll give her some money towards it. Then, mid-December, I'll give her some more. Then again in mid-January, and again in mid-February, when the bill comes due. By then, it should be all paid up!!

This definitely frees me up to not only get a few things for both my husband and my mom (neither of which I thought I could get much more for at all), but it also gives me peace of mind in case I wind up having to get my car checked out (the stupid engine light is on.... AGAIN... and this time, it won't shut off!).

What a nice thing to do, huh? See...she can be a real pain in the patoot, but she definitely makes up for it sometimes! :)

Oh, and by the way.... I voted! Did you??

Wishing Everyone A Spooktacular Halloween

2008-10-31T10:26:00.000-07:00

I'd like to wish all of my ghoulies and gobblies

a very safe and happy Halloween!

Have a spooktacular time trick-or-treating, everyone!

Hugs,

Happy 15th Anniversary, My Love

2008-10-30T11:21:00.001-07:00

Fifteen years ago today, my husband and I exchanged our wedding vows. I had been married once before, and right before my first marriage ended, I had a long heart-to-heart with God. I asked Him for His forgiveness, and also asked that, if he were to bring another viable suitor my way, could he please bring a man who treated me with kindness, sincerity, and respect? Two weeks before my divorce was to become final, I met my husband for the very first time.

I learned very quickly that God had answered my prayers by "introducing" me to this man. My husband is the kindest, gentlest, most loving person a woman could ever ask for. He treats me as his equal, never making me feel inferior or disrespected.

He taught me how love should be, not how I thought love should be. He makes my life so easy, and says or does things every single day to make me fall in love with him all over again.

He is my protector, my savior, my lover, and my friend. He helps me to rear our children fairly, kindly, and with respect.

I consider myself incredibly lucky, not only because he chose me to be his wife, but also because I was given the gift of this man in my life. I hope, with all my heart, that our life together ventures forward into our golden years, and that we can look forward to many, many more anniversaries to come.

Here's some pictures of us, on our wedding day:

Spooky World 101 (Or Lessons Learned By A 14-Year-Old Boy)

2008-10-28T12:42:00.000-07:00

Our local Boys and Girls Club graciously offered to take a bunch of the teens to Spooky World last week. Surprisingly, my son was among them. There were a few years there when I wanted to take my kids, but thought the ghosts and gobblies that pop out from every direction, and the gruesome rides and attractions would be way too much for tender young hearts (can you just IMAGINE the amount of Monster Spray I'd need after that excursion? Oy!). But, my son decided he was old enough (and brave enough), and joined his friends. Another rite of passage for him, I guess. Be still, my quivering Mama's heart.

He actually said he had a really good time, too. Maybe TOO good. His new "idea" is to stay home and scare the holy crap out of all the little ones as they step onto our front porch. His plan? To hang out on the recesses of our front porch (which is shaped like a LONG rectangle, with the front doors on one end of the porch), and stay perfectly still, until an unsuspecting little one climbs our stairs to Trick-or-Treat us -- then he's going to pounce.

He thought that was a terrific idea. I was horrified. I told him, "How would you like it if someone did that to your little sister?" I guess that image was too much for him to bear, because now he's going to stay home (he feels he's gotten too "big" for Trick-or-Treating now... another rite of passage.... I tell ya, I don't know how much more of this I can take! :), and simply pass out the candy to the little ones.

I thought I was being the good doobie mom by preventing him to do something as sinister as that, but I spoke to a friend of mine (who's a decade older than my son), who said he's planning on doing the exact same thing. And then, I remembered.... my brother (who's 52) does something similar, as well.

Hmmmm.... maybe it's a "guy" thing.

I know it's definitely NOT a "mom" thing!

I'm Taking Back My House... One Monday At A Time

2008-10-28T12:28:00.001-07:00

(Okay...so this one's a day late. I started it yesterday, but never finished it. Go ahead... you can beat me with a wet noodle. You have my permission.)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I love my husband. I truly, honestly do. And, I know that I'm blessed to have him in my life, in so many ways.

That being said, there's one remarkably BAD trait about him, that no amount of gentle nudging (and I'm sure quite a bit of nagging on my end over the years) can change. He's PITIFULLY sloppy. Granted, he's gotten much, MUCH better than he was when we first began co-habitating, but he's still pretty notorious for just leaving things where they lay, and not giving a goodness gracious heck if they stay there until the dust bunnies move in around it and take up residence. He's got better things to do than to pick them up. Like watching a NASCAR race. Yawn.

Anywhoosie... my wonderful, sweet, generous husband knows that I need much more in the way of sleep than he does. Therefore, every Sunday morning, he gets up with the girls (my son would sleep until Christmas if we let him) during the wee small hours of the morning, leaving me to stretch out and really lounge for another hour. Or two.

The downside to this luxury? I emerge from our bedroom to a house that looks like we've just set down on the Wicked Witch of the East. He cooks a lip-smackin', down-home country style breakfast every Sunday morning.... and leaves a huge, heaping, bloody mess in my kitchen to show for it. The newspaper he was reading while eating this amazing breakfast can be found picked through and strewn all across my dining room table. And, because the girls feel like they can roam free throughout the house, making their mark wherever they go, there are trails of toys, pillows, blankets, clothes, and various other "girly" belongings all throughout the house. They like it when Daddy gets up with 'em, in more ways than one.

In earlier years, this disaster area would have set me reeling. Now, however, I take it all with a grain of salt. Oh, sure, I get on them all to clean up their messes, but I no longer allow myself to stress and strain over it all. I simply tell myself that on Monday morning, when my husband has left for work and my oldest two children are off to school, I will reclaim my house. MY house. I will primp and fix and position all of the furniture where it belongs. I will pick up the objects that have been strewn all over the floors. I will put away things in their proper place.

And these people with whom I live KNOW that they don't mess with Mama during the week. Sunday is their only day to kick up and go wild. And I guess that's a fair enough compromise.

Is It Just Me, Or Is Something REALLY Wrong Here?

2008-10-23T09:06:00.001-07:00

Here in New England, it's turned quite chilly really fast. Like turn-the-heat-on chilly. (I hated to do it, but yes, I succumbed.)

On Monday, while in the midst of dropping my littlest little off at school, her Junior Teacher said to me, "I've been told to inform all of the parents that we'll be taking a nature walk on Thursday, and it's supposed to be freezing out Thursday morning, so we're asking that all of the kids be dressed appropriately." I told her that my Little Miss went to school this morning in her late fall/early winter coat, with a hat, a scarf, and some Thinsulate mittens. She was all set.

The teacher then said to me, "Well, to be honest, I wasn't concerned about your daughter at all, 'cause I know you take good care of her. But, I was told to say that to everyone." My response was, "Yeah.... I'm not like SOME mothers in here, who dress their daughters in sundresses and Crocs when it's 45 degrees outside." (NOT kidding!)

So, this morning, because I knew in advance that they were taking this walk, and because it surely was frigid out first thing this morning, I piled the clothes on my little one. She went to school dressed in her a pair of jeans, a long-sleeved shirt, and a sweatshirt. And, as before, when leaving the house, we put her in her coat, hat, mittens and scarf.

We got to her school, and I signed her into the parent's log, and she went off to "sign in" on the kids' board. As she was looking to move her name from the "Out" column to the "In" column, I noticed the same little girl I mentioned before, sitting in the listening station with her mom.

Wanna know what her mom dressed HER in today?

Ready???

She had on a tank-top style velour leotard. Oh, and Crocs. That's IT.

What makes it WORSE (if there is such a thing), is that her mom doesn't even drive her to school. She sticks her daughter in her swanky, fancy-schmancy jogging stroller, and she pushes her to school while rollerblading! So, this poor child is being exposed to the elements.... in her leotard and Crocs!

I was COMPLETELY appalled, and more than a little shocked when, as I was getting ready to leave, I heard her say to her daughter, "Do you want to think about putting your pants on now, sweetie?"

Huh??? Are you KIDDING ME???!!! Is it just me??

And of course, you KNOW that kid will be the only one in school who NEVER gets sick. Isn't that always the way?

I walked out of the school, shaking my head all the way. I got out to the car, turned on the ignition.

And turned on the heat.

The Things I Remember About Growing Up

2008-10-20T08:10:00.000-07:00

This is a tag, of sorts. So, for those who want to play along... feel free! Just let me know that you've added it to your blog, so I can take a peek. Thanks!

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TEN THINGS I REMEMBER ABOUT GROWING UP:

1) Cowl necks:

I had a sweater almost exactly like this, only mine was red and white striped. I triple loved this article of clothing. I think I even took a school picture with it on one year. VERY 70's chic!

2) Bonne Belle Lipsmackers:

EVERY girl carried at least one of these in her purse. It was almost sacrilegious not to own them! My all-time favorite flavor was (and still is) strawberry.

3) Wacky Packages:

I went almost certifiable, collecting these bad boys for awhile. I never got the coveted "Band Ache" one, though. This one was the crown jewel of Wacky Packages, and only the real die-hard collectors (or, those whose parents would willingly shell out tons of dough for their kids to buy these) would own one. My mother was cheap. She was saving her money for ridiculous things. Like food.

4) Charlie perfume:

This was the VERY first perfume I was ever allowed to wear. I think I was about 14 when I got a bottle of it for Christmas, and I was thrilled! Of course, it never occurred to me that I smelled just like every other girl in my class.

5) Lite-Brite:

I absolutely LOVED this toy as a child, and had it on my Christmas list more than once. I never got tired of plugging in those little lights into the preset holes, and turning the thing on once I was done, to have the lit picture appear. It was completely awesome to me. Of course, I nearly blinded myself once or twice with the bare light bulb in the viewer, and I scorched my hands several times with the hot lights. Nevertheless, it was a thrill.

6) "I'm Leaving It All Up To You" -- by Donny and Marie Osmond

I can clearly remember wanting this album for the LONGEST time. It seemed to take forever to save my weekly allowance to have enough to purchase it. When I finally owned it, I practically wore it out, playing it over and over again (on my turquoise and white portable record player, no less! :)

7) The Dorothy Hamill "Wedge"

I'm willing to bet that John Suga had NO idea what kind of phenomenon he'd create when he cut Dorothy Hamill's hair into the perfect "wedge". Girls lined up all over the world to duplicate her cute and sassy style, myself included. It took quite a bit of courage for me to cut my hair this short, but once I did, I loved it, and wore it this way for YEARS.

8) Earth Shoes:

These shoes were as ugly as they were comfortable, and I absolutely loved my brown suede pair. I wore them all the time.

9) Roller skates:

To the youngin's that frequent my blog... yes, these really ARE roller skates, and these are very similar to the pair I owned as a child. You'd slip them on over your shoes, buckle them around your ankles, and tighten them to fit your foot with a key (which looked sort of like a mini ratchet). These were state-of-the art back in the early '70's, and they made the BEST sound on concrete!

10) Charlie's Angels:

As completely hokey as this show was, MAN, did I love it in my early teen years! I had a "girl crush" on Farrah Fawcett so badly, that I named all of my early diaries Farrah! (And, if you tell anyone that, I'll dope slap ya! ;)

Even though that's ten things, I couldn't do this tag without including some of my favorite dolls/toys I loved growing up, too:

* Thumbelina Doll:

I must have been about seven when I got my Thumbelina for Christmas. I adored her. I loved the way she felt like a real baby, and the way she squirmed like a baby when you pulled the string on her back. She was one of my very favorites for a long time.

* Barbies and Dawn Dolls:

I owned a BUTTLOAD of these dolls, and played with them all the time. I found out, years later, that my little niece took up the habit of biting the feet off of all my dolls, so my poor mother had to go out and replace tons of them before I got home from school. I always wondered why my dolls looked so new! :)

* Flatsy Patsy dolls:

I had a couple of these dolls too (Patsy and a few of her friends), and I really had fun with them, too. I loved how their outfits snapped on and off. It was quite innovative at the time! :)

*Little Ittles:

I never owned any of these (my mother had a thing about toys with small parts), but I had a friend in school who had a bunch of them, and I envied her. I thought they were the cutest things!

* Pocket Pets:

I can clearly remember going to the five and dime store around the corner from my elementary school, and buying a few of these with my own money. I thought they were so adorable, and so tiny! I never got to get as many as I would have liked, but I made up for it in my adult years -- my little one now has her very own collection of these (thanks to EBay!).

* Joan Walsh Anglund's Pocket Dolls:

The artwork of Joan Walsh Anglund has recently been "copied" by another artist called Gorjuss (c'mon... you know it has!), but this doll is a prime example of the original work. I begged my mother for one of these, for the longest time, and wound up getting one for Christmas one year. Mine has black hair, parted in the middle and put up into ponytails, and is wearing a red and white pinafore-style dress. I still have her, to this day, and she has been well-loved. In fact, I've recently had to relinquish her to my youngest daughter, because my Pocket Doll makes her feel more comfortable while she sleeps. Apparently, she loves her, too! :)

~~~~~~~~~~

Well, there's my brief trip down memory lane! I hope you've enjoyed it, and I can't wait to see all of your contributions! Don't forget to let me know that you've done it, so I can be sure to check it out.

The "Quirky" Tag

2008-10-17T17:12:00.000-07:00

This tag entails the "tagee" listing six quirks about them. So, for better or worse... here goes:

1) As tired as I've been during the day, I absolutely CANNOT take a nap if I'm alone in the house. I've certainly tried, but all of the quiet brings out all of the noises, and it just wigs me out too much.

2) I also cannot take a shower if I'm alone in the house, either. Think Norman Bates, and you'll get it.

3) I'm a stickler about making sure that doors and drawers are CLOSED. All cabinet doors, closet doors, bureau drawers, linen cabinet drawers... they have to be SHUT TIGHT. It completely irks me if they aren't. In fact, if either the closet or room door isn't shut before I go to sleep, then I HAVE to get up out of bed to close it, or I can't sleep.

4) When I go to cook anything, all of my countertops HAVE to be free of clutter, and my kitchen sink cannot have a single dirty dish in it. I have to make sure everything's neat and tidy before I can start preparing a meal.

5) I can look like the biggest schlep in the world when I walk out the door and not give a rat's patoot, but my kids HAVE to look neat. Their clothes have to match, they have to be clean and neat, and they have to look nice.

6) I have to fall asleep watching the television, but I can't stay asleep if the TV is left on. I always wake up at some point and shut it off.

Okay, now that I've completed Paula's request, I ask that anyone who wants to participate, please feel free. Just make sure I know you're doing it, so I can come and read your responses! :)

I Almost Cannot Believe It!

2008-10-15T08:40:00.000-07:00

I had another one of my "monthly" headaches last night, so I retired to bed EARLY. Mostly just to rest my weary head and try and rid myself of the marching band that was pounding behind my eyeballs.

However, as is the norm in my household, whenever I climb into my bed, I'm almost certainly never left alone. Either one (or both) of my daughters has to come in and cuddle with me. Even my cat, Bear, wants in on some of the cuddle action from time to time. Poor guy... he tried last night, he really did... but he was out maneuvered by my littlest little, who'd taken up prime residence, occupying her dad's side of the bed. Even my oldest daughter had to relinquish herself to lying across the foot of the bed, 'cause apparently, S. needed some more Mama time.

Before S. got all cozy though, I made her go potty, and get out the Monster Spray so she could vanquish the evil nightdwellers once again. After an empty bladder, and a satisfactory dousing, she was content to crawl back into bed next to me.

R. fell asleep almost as soon as her head hit the pillow. I'd taken her out of school early yesterday, so she could pay a visit to her pediatrician. The cold she once had is all but gone, but a lingering (and horrific sounding) cough remains, and it had me concerned enough that I thought it warranted another visit to her doc. He took her off amoxicillin, and put her on Augmentin, which knocks her out even FASTER. She was out like a light in minutes.

S., on the other hand, took awhile longer to nestle into the task of sleeping, probably 'cause she'd had a nice little snooze during the mid-afternoon. It was fine with me, though -- she wasn't protesting what I was watching on TV, and it gave me the opportunity to talk with her, and tell her that when she did fall asleep, I'd let her stay for awhile, but when it was bedtime for Daddy she'd have to be moved into her bed. She asked if I'd carry her in, and I promised her I would, which I did, when the time came.

My fear was that she would be SO sound asleep when I transported her from my bed into hers, that she would do what she'd done a few nights before... wake in the middle of the night completely disoriented, wondering how she got into her room, when she'd fallen asleep in mine! But, praise be, she not only did NOT do that.... she SLEPT THROUGH THE ENTIRE NIGHT!!

When my husband tiptoed into our bedroom at 6:30 this morning to kiss me goodbye, I was shocked and amazed! I absolutely could not believe that my daughter and I both FINALLY got a decent night's sleep! WOOO HOOOO!!

Let's all hope and pray this marks the beginning of a really good run of evenings. Our weary bodies need it so badly!

It's A Love/Hate Thing

2008-10-13T07:58:00.000-07:00

As most of you who have more than one child can attest, the relationship between them can be pretty dicey. One minute, they're each other's best friends in the entire world -- bound to each other by this secret code that no one can possibly break. The next minute, they're ready to get in the ring and fight to the death over something as small as a toy that they both want, and neither is ready to relinquish.

Such is the case with my two daughters. Most of the time, they play very nicely together. In fact, right now, I can hear them in R's room, which is at the top of the second floor landing. They're playing their own, make-believe version of "Rock Band", and both making up this sing-songy little ditty as they go along. Priceless.

Yesterday, however, was a different story. Oh, they were fine together for quite awhile, but S. tends to believe that R. is her soulmate, and can sometimes be a bit too suffocating for a prepubescent girl, who occasionally wants to be left alone to embark on a particular activity. I was sitting here, burning a copy of the new High School Musical movie soundtrack for R. (who was thrilled beyond belief that I'd actually figured out how to do that, because, as you know, she's secretly hoping to be Mrs. Zac Efron someday). Miss R. was sitting directly behind me at the dining room table, working on one of those supermarket coloring contest pages, in the hopes that she'll once again win in her age category and get some sort of prize (she actually WON something last year, and is hoping for a reprieve).

Miss S. saw the paper, and the bucket of crayons, and probably thought she'd died and gone to Heaven. In her quieter moments, she'll sit placidly behind me on the floor and color to her heart's content. But... to actually be able to share in one of her most beloved activities with her big sister??? Well, it must have been almost too much for her little beating heart to handle!

Miss R., however, would have none of it. S. wanted all of the particular colors that R. wished to use, as well, and every time S. would even brush her tiny fingers over R's artwork, all Hell would break loose.

I had to scold them several times, because quite frankly, they were starting to get on my last nerve. That is, until R. decided that she'd just about had enough of her then pesky little sister, poking around with all of her favorite crayons, and threatening to potentially ruin her in-the-works masterpiece.

From behind me, I heard R. begin to proclaim, "Give me that crayon! I need that color to finish this part! Will you just go away and leave me alone, please?"

And then finally, the one sentence that made me break, "Will you stop touching things, Miss Touchy-Touch!!"

Maybe it was my ever-present sleep deprivation. Maybe it was the fact that the cold medicine I'd taken earlier had just fully kicked in, making my head all loopy and disoriented, and taking me out of my typical MAMA role. Maybe it was just 'cause we all needed to lighten up a bit.

Whatever the situation, I found that one sentence ridiculously, insanely funny, and began cracking up laughing. The girls had no idea what I found to be such a hoot, but, as we all know, laughter is contagious. So, they just laughed along. 'Cause that's what little kids do.

They decided to put the coloring away, and go play warriors. My tomboy, and Miss Touchy-Touch.

Some Randomness... So I Can Get You All Caught Up

2008-10-11T05:57:00.000-07:00

My oldest daughter has taken up the habit of "dining" with my mom every night. I think she likes the one-on-one attention she gets from Nana. Either that, or she doesn't like the food I cook! Either way, it's perfectly all right.

Anyway, after asking for my permission, she trotted on down to my mother's apartment to share a meal with her. The next morning, my mom came upstairs, and she told me that she had cooked some chicken and rice (both pretty much staples of Miss R's. diet). When she asked R. what kind of vegetable she wanted, my daughter gave her a sweet smile, and basically said, "I'll pass." "No", my mother persisted (after all, she IS my mother.... even though I wanted to say, "Yeah, right... good luck with getting her to eat vegetables!"), "...you're going to have some sort of vegetable with dinner." My mom walked over to her cupboard to see what kinds of canned veggies she had on hand. "I have green beans, peas, beets...." to which my daughter asked, "Do you have corn? I like corn." "Well, yes, I have corn, but I'm not going to heat it up because we're already having rice, and that's two starches. What about something else? Are there any other vegetables you like?"

"I like ketchup", my daughter proudly proclaimed.

Like I said.... good luck with that.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

I'd just finished picking up R. from school yesterday, and the usual car ride conversation commenced: "How was school? Did you have fun today? Did you do anything special in class?". I also asked her about her spelling test, which I knew she was very nervous about. Her teacher gives the entire class a pre-test on Monday, and those who get 9 out of 10 correct can do a certain set of language activities. Those who get less than 9 correct work on activities that focus on their spelling words for the week. On Tuesday morning, Rachel got her test back. She got 2 out of 10 correct. (Well, in her defense, even the teacher said the words were really hard this week!). So, she was in the group that did various activities to learn the words, in preparation for the "real" spelling test, on Friday.

Back to the car conversation. Again, I asked her how she did on her test. She excitedly told me she got a 10 out of 10! I was thrilled for her, and let her know that she did an excellent job.

She went on to tell me that one of her girlfriends got a 9 out of 10, and she felt badly because she was the only one (the rest of the class got all of their spelling words correct). So, my precious, compassionate daughter said to her, "It's okay. As long as you did your best, that's all that matters. You should never feel ashamed for the grade you got, as long as you know you tried your hardest."

I couldn't have said it better myself. :)

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

I reconnected with two old friends this week, and I feel really good about that.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

I was talking on the phone with one of these old friends last night, and he and I were reminiscing about all things high school. It was a hoot, recalling old times, old friends, familiar faces and familiar places. He's out in Oregon now, and he's admitted to feeling a bit homesick. I'd like to think it made him feel better to reach out to someone who's still on home turf.

Anyway, we were chatting away, and my littlest little was doing what she does best when I'm on the phone; hanging on my hip, trying to vie for my attention, and being a total noodge (for those of you who get pissed at me for not wanting to talk on the phone.... I say to you, just talk to my friend, and he'll explain why!). I kept going from room to room, trying to grab a bit of quiet so I could hear my friend talk (and myself think!), but she kept finding me. At one point, I was in my bedroom, sitting on the bed, and she climbed up, wanting to "cuddle" with me. So, I was holding the phone with one hand, while rubbing her belly with the other, all the while, chatting it up with my friend. At one point, I dropped the "F" bomb. My daughter, who had been completely relaxed, popped up, looked at me with her big, doe-like eyes, and said, "You said the BAD word, Mommy!"

I don't think my friend and I stopped laughing for a good two minutes.

The Elite 8 (or... Tag, You're It! :)

2008-10-09T08:37:00.000-07:00

You know the drill... just lemme know if you're playing along, and I'll go check out your blog. Danka! :)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
My Elite 8:

8 Favorite TV shows...
1. Grey's Anatomy
2. Boston Legal
3. Project Runway
4. Dirty Jobs
5. Heroes
6. Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives
7. Mad Men
8. Bizarre Foods

8 Favorite Restaurants...
1. The Border Cafe
2. On The Border
3. The Olive Garden
4. Macaroni Grille
5. The Great Wok (not really a restaurant, but they have the BEST Chinese food!)
6. Chili's
7. Cafe Luigi
8. Blue Ribbon Diner

8 things that happened yesterday...
1. My computer crashed
2. I spent 47 hours yesterday, trying to reload ALL of the information I've lost
3. My little one had her very first playdate with her new BFF from preschool!
4. I reconnected with an old friend
5. I was invited to a Pampered Chef party (and am actually thinking about going! :)
6. I started to feel sick.... again
7. I got the two EBay packages delivered that I'd been waiting for
8. I received some cookware handoffs, that my sister didn't want anymore (hey... they're perfectly all right for me! :)

8 things to look forward to...
1. Everyone in this family NOT BEING SICK anymore!
2. Sleeping through the night... again
3. Halloween
4. Thanksgiving
5. Christmas
6. Taking my kids to see Santa
7. Being able to work at my daughter's school, to make some extra cash
8. My oldest daughter's birthday

8 things I love about Fall...
1. The warm days
2. The cool nights
3. NOT SWEATING all day long! :)
4. Being able to wear a lot of my favorite clothes
5. The kids FINALLY going back to school!
6. The beginning of the holiday season
7. Halloween
8. Thanksgiving

8 things on my wish list...
1. Having a little one who sleeps through the night
2. Having a son who keeps up his good grades
3. Being able to spend more quality time with my husband
4. That my kids have a wonderful Christmas
5. "New Moon" and "Eclipse" (could someone tell my husband, please? ;)
6. Finding some cash windfall somewhere (just enough to help us out financially... don't want to be greedy!)
7. Figuring out a way to start a diet and actually STICK to it!
8. No one in my house gets sick again for the rest of the winter!

Erica

2008-10-07T16:34:00.000-07:00

Can you e-mail me, please? My computer got thoroughly messed up, and I had to do a system recovery. Which means I lost EVERYTHING, including all of my e-mail addys. :( I keep trying to log into your private blog, but it says I'm not invited.

Sigh.

Good News and Bad News.

2008-10-05T19:25:00.001-07:00

About last night, and my littlest little....

The good news is that, with all of the posters that we made and hung up in her room, and with another dose of the Monster Spray (and the corresponding chant) administered, she had NO bad dreams of monsters last night.

YAY!!

But.....

The bad news is.... she STILL woke up three times in an hour (between 1:00 a.m. and 2:00 a.m.) this morning.

Not so yay.

She'd fallen asleep in her room, with her television and light on. I shut off the light, plugged in an extra nightlight, and decided to leave the TV on, but turn the volume almost all the way down, to see if the extra light, and the "company" from the TV might make a difference.

The first time she woke up, she probably saw the TV still on, realized she'd fallen asleep watching it, and came out into the living room to look for my husband and me. When she couldn't find us, she came into our room, looking for me. So... I put her back into her bed, and asked her if she wanted me to leave the TV on. She did. She also wanted her light on. I personally thought it was too much light for her, and tried to talk her out of it, but she'd have none of it. So, I unplugged the second nightlight, and plugged her desk lamp back in, turned it on, left the room, and said a little prayer before crawling back into bed.

I flicked the channels on my TV, found "Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives" airing on the Food Network (I LOVE that show!), and settled in to watch it for a bit. I had JUST dozed off when my bedroom door swung open again, for Round Two.

This time, she was complaining that she wanted the light OFF. *ugh!* I bit my lip, salvaged my last thread of patience, and shut the light off, after asking if she wanted the second nightlight back on. She didn't. But, she DID want the TV back on (she'd shut it off when she got up out of bed). So, I turned it back on, made sure the volume was just above a whisper, tucked her in, gave her squishes and smooches and left the room, returning back to Guy and Triple D's.

I just started dozing off again, when... you guessed it. Round Three began.

She came into my room again, THIS TIME needing to go potty. Okay. So, I lugged out of bed AGAIN, and went into the bathroom with her, trying to dismiss the fact that I'd suggested to her, BOTH times before, that she use the bathroom before getting back into bed, only to have her vehemently deny my request. Yet here I stood, a full hour later, listening to her whizzing in the toilet. Another testament that children should listen to their mother.

We repeated the tucking in, squishing and smooching, and saying goodnight process one more time, and I dragged myself back to my side of the bed. By now, Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives had been replaced by another show, and I was too tired to even care to find out what it was. I shut out the light, shut off my TV, and prayed to God for sweet salvation.

She didn't enter our room again until sometime after sunrise. I couldn't tell you what time it was, and frankly, I didn't care. It was my husband's turn. :)

Monster Spray, Part Two.

2008-10-04T13:53:00.000-07:00

For those of you who read yesterday's post, and were scratching their heads (and thinking to yourself, "That poor, sleep deprived woman has FINALLY gone off the deep end!"), the "Monster Spray" is actually a bottle I picked up at The Dollar Tree, filled with water and just a dab of the stinkiest perfume I could find in my house (you know the free samples you can get at the makeup counters? I used one of those). I basically told Miss S. this ENTIRE story, and she and I literally did the chant to "seal the deal".

And guess what?

No... it's probably not what you think.

Not only did last night NOT work... it was her worst night YET! There was nothing I could do to get her back into her bed after she awoke from another horrid dream. So, she wound up jammed into bed between my husband and me for a couple of hours. She fell fast asleep, while I sat motionless and brutally uncomfortable, watching T.V. from 1:00 a.m. to 3:00 a.m., when I finally decided she HAD to be asleep enough to allow me to carry her back into her room.
I picked her up and carefully transported her from one room to the next, praying the ENTIRE time that she'd stay asleep, and not re-awaken and want to crawl back into our bed (so I'd have to start the whole damned process all over again!). But, Glory Be, she stayed asleep.... until 5:15, when she woke again. But, that time, at least, I got her to go back down in HER bed.

I was so surprised to hear my husband telling me that she was still asleep when he came in to our bedroom to say goodbye to me at 7:20 this morning. I guess she's just as weary from all of this as I am.

Today, R., S., and I made a bunch of posters that we're going to strategically place around her room (one on the outside of her bedroom door, one on the inside of her bedroom door, one on the inside of her closet door, and one on the floor, underneath her bed). All of the posters depict either S. or R. as Warrior Princesses, attacking monsters, and screaming at them to "Go Away!", and "Don't Bother Me Anymore!", and "Never Come Back!". We'll also douse the room with Monster Spray again, and again recite the ritual.

If this doesn't work, I'll seriously think about calling a Priest to exorcise her room.

Seriously.

Monster Spray.

2008-10-03T19:20:00.000-07:00

Okay, guys and gals. Today was the day that I had to pull out the big guns. The heavy ammunition. I had to go to that very special place -- to the Well of Tranquility, where only the parents of the most imaginative boys and girls are allowed. Armed with an empty bottle, I told my tale of woe to the Gatekeeper... a stodgy old man who writes the needs of bleary-eyed parents and their shell-shocked, fearful little ones down in his ledger, as a way of documenting our visiting history (and, as a means to distinguish those who are drawing from the Well of Tranquility too often). Once the sleeptime events are transcribed, he presents the documentation to the Mistress of the Well, who determines whether the potent nectar may be released into the hands of the needy parents.

You see... when used sparingly, this magic liquid rids any space of monsters. Monsters lingering under beds, monsters hiding under bureaus, monsters squeezing between cracks and crevices, monsters blending into walls, monsters peeking from behind pictures, monsters leering behind curtains. Monsters of all shapes and sizes. Kills 'em all. Dead. Like some kind of supernatural Raid.

This is the first time I'd made the trek to the Well of Tranquility in almost six years. The last time I went, my oldest daughter was being menaced with these vile creatures, who used to rattle her awake during the wee hours of the morning. Back then, I'd brought a cute little pink and black bottle, which was filled to an invisible line, seen only by the Gatekeeper and the Mistress, who determined (based on the severity of my daughter's particular case) just how much we'd need to rid the area of the offending ogres. They then labelled my bottle as "Monster Spray", so I'd never inadvertently confuse it with any other ordinary cleaning solution. Not a drop of this precious liquid should ever be wasted.

Six years later, and I found myself needing to take the same trip. I'd almost forgotten exactly which knoll the Well was cushioned within, but I found it quite by accident, when I took what I thought was a wrong turn. The Gatekeeper met me with even older, more tired eyes, and muttered the occasional "Hmmmm" and "I see", as he took up his quill and frantically began writing the plight of my little one. His hand moved with lightning speed as I explained to him the severity of my daughter's situation, stating that she's been woken up twice a night, on average, for the past several months, and there have been times when certain monsters were so fierce and menacing that she sprinted from her room, letting out a blood-curdling scream.

This statement made him stop his writing short.

"Hmmmm..." he said. "Quite extraordinary. I've heard enough. Wait here while I take the matter up with the Mistress."

I waited quite some time, watching the line of weary parents increase behind me, bottles in hand, as they waited their turn to relate their child's tale and bring home their liquid jewel.

After some time, I finally I saw the tiny, frail man emerge from his minuscule door, carved out just for him from the massive wooden paneled gates that were the entrance to the Mistresses castle. I noticed that the small bottle I'd handed him had been replaced with a much larger version. On it, the words "MONSTER SPRAY" were scrawled in thick black ink. And, on the sides, the phrases, "Keep out!" "Stay away!", and "Back off!" were written with a more delicate, red pen.

As he handed me the bottle, he said, "My Mistress and I agree... you and your wee one are in dire need of a much wealthier dose of the Spray. Again, just a little works well, but let your girl child tell you where she wishes the Spray to be placed. Do so and her sleep will be as sweet as the aroma of the Spray itself. Do not forget to recite the following crede, after the Spray has been administered: '1-2-3, 3-2-1, Let All These Monsters At Once Be GONE!"

I thanked him profusely, and bounded my way home, to share my precious gift with Miss S. She and I got to work right away, and she pointed out all of the areas where the monsters lay dormant within her room; waiting for the time when the lights go out, and her sleep becomes heavy. After the Spray was carefully administered, we held hands, and recited the all-important crede.

I only hope that the Gatekeeper, and Her Royal Mistress, have worked the potion well, and my little one can once again begin to rest easy throughout the night.

Why Women Cry -- A Powerful Message

2008-10-01T09:25:00.000-07:00

I truly do believe that in life, there are no accidents; that everything that happens does so for a reason. Today, I received another affirmation for my belief. A friend of mine passed this along to me today, of all days, and its message really hit home to me, and made me feel better about all I've been through over the past week or so.

I hope its message moves you, too.

A little boy asked his mother, "'Why are you crying?" "Because I'm a woman," she told him. "I don't understand," he said. His Mom just hugged him and replied, "And you never will."

Later, the little boy asked his father, "Why does Mother seem to cry for no reason?" "All women cry for no reason," was all his Dad could say.

The little boy grew up and became a man, still wondering why women cry. Finally he put in a call to God. When God answered, the young man asked, "God, why do women cry so easily?" God said, "When I made the woman, she had to be special. I made her shoulders strong enough to carry the weight of the world, yet gentle enough to give comfort. I gave her an inner strength to endure childbirth, and the rejection that her children will sometimes give her."

" I gave her a hardness that allows her to keep going when everyone else gives up, and to take care of her family through sickness and fatigue without complaining. I gave her the sensitivity to love her children under any and all circumstances, even when her child has hurt her very badly."

"I gave her strength to carry her husband through his faults, and fashioned her from his rib to protect his heart. (I LOVED this!) I gave her wisdom to know that a good husband never hurts his wife, but sometimes tests her strengths and her resolve to stand beside him unfalteringly."

"And finally, I gave her a very special tear to shed. This is hers exclusively to use whenever it is needed. That tear holds more then men could understand. If a man were to shed her tear, it would look enormous. "

"For a woman's tear is full of unconditional love, power, sacrifice, beauty, pain and compassion. All ten fold of what a Man is able to feel. And that my Son is, why I made her as close to being Supernatural. She is my gift to the world, and an Angel on Earth. 'Love her and praise her for there will be no other here on Earth that will love you like I do than your Mother.

''You see my son," said God, "The beauty of a woman is not in the clothes she wears, the figure that she carries, or the way she combs her hair. The beauty of a woman must be seen in her eyes, because that is the doorway to her heart - the place where love resides."

How Do You Measure, Measure A Year?

2008-09-30T06:57:00.001-07:00

This picture was taken on October 2, 1994; two days after my son was born. Fourteen years ago. Five-thousand, one-hundred, and ten days ago. A ridiculous amount of minutes ago.

So...why does it feel like last week sometime?

I can clearly remember that afternoon. I'd just given my newborn son his very first bath, so he smelled delectable; all lotioned and powdered and oiled. As most kids do, his bath relaxed him, and he was soon drifting off to sleep, draped across my shoulder. I just LOVED the feel of his tiny little body in my arms, and I was hard-pressed to put him down. After almost two stress-filled, apprehensive years of trying to conceive him, and a lifetime of dreaming about him, I had a hard time ever letting him go.

I loved everything about him. His porcelain skin, his insanely tiny, paper-thin fingernails, with the little pink buds of newborn skin underneath, the mass of jet-black hair that not only covered his entire head, but swirled around his body in soft little tufts. I loved the way his bottom lip virtually disappeared when he slept. And, mostly, I loved holding him, nurturing him, making him feel safe.

It's incredibly hard for me to fathom that that little bean; that adorable little bug resting so soundly on my shoulder, is 14 years old today. He's grown almost man-like, with his facial hair, and his deepening voice, and his height that now towers over mine. But, if I look somewhere in the deep recesses, I can still see remnants of that little boy, that I wrapped up and brought to our home; the little guy my husband snapped the picture of on an October afternoon, all those years ago. He's still there when he's sad, he's still there when he doesn't feel well, he's still there when something's bothering him. How do I know? Because he still turns to me to nurture him, and to make him feel safe.

And I wouldn't want it any other way.

Happy 14th birthday, son.

Yawn.

2008-09-29T10:28:00.000-07:00

I don't know why, but something woke me up at about 5:30 this morning. And, seeing as how I have a 45-year-old bladder (that's suffered the abuse through three pregnancies), whenever I am awake enough, well... a visit to the restroom is HIGH on the agenda!

I lay there for awhile, hoping the urge would pass. No such luck. So, I crept up out of bed, hoping not to wake my little one, who, due to some small miracle, had slept through the night. Poor thing -- she's been suffering through some TERRIBLE dreams, which wake her up in such a fright. I was thrilled when I looked at the clock and realized she'd slept through.

I was in the bathroom, washing up, when I heard this obnoxious, blood curdling scream coming from outside the door. It was loud enough to wake my oldest daughter, who was sleeping in her room on the second floor! I bolted out of the bathroom and met my little one in the little hallway that connects my kitchen, dining room, my bedroom and hers. She was crying her fool head off, screaming at the top of her lungs, and making a beeline towards me.

She practically jumped into my arms, and was shaking like a leaf. I held her tightly, rubbing her back and asking her what was wrong. She told me what I'd feared.... that she had a bad dream; monsters were chasing her.

Since we're still dealing with the remnants of Hurricane Kyle here on the East coast, and since it was still before 6 a.m., it was pitch black outside. I brought her into my room with me, and laid her down on the bed between my (still sleeping) husband and me. She clung to me, saying she wanted me to stay with her. I did until the alarm went off -- then I had to go wake up my son for school. This job is normally done by my husband (who's much more of a morning person than I, and doesn't mind waking up at 6:00 as much), but I figured, since I was now wide awake, that I would just go wake him, and leave my husband to snooze a bit longer.

My son wasn't feeling so great last night -- I think he caught the stomach crud I'd had earlier last week. He went to bed with a headache and an upset stomach -- and an old bowl, to put beside his bed (which was thankfully empty when I went to wake him up this morning!). After letting him wake up a bit, I asked him how he felt, and he said "a little bit better". But, after attempting to take a few bites of his morning cereal, he confessed that he still felt just as sick as he felt last night.

I ordered him back up to bed, and called the absence line at his school. Hopefully, he won't have too much homework to make up today. And, I hope even more that he won't be sick for his birthday (tomorrow). That would be the PITS.

I came back from the grocery store a little while ago, and he said he'd taken some Pepto Bismol, and had two pieces of dry toast, and his stomach was starting to feel a bit better. Hopefully, that's a good sign. I know the crap I had only lasted 48 hours. Let's hope the same is true of him.

Needless to say, I'm a tired Mama today. Miss S. is obviously a bit worn down today, too. Maybe, after I come back from picking R. up at school, I'll give S. a nice warm bath and (hopefully) get her to lie down with me. A little snooze might do us both some good.

Wish me luck.

Sometimes, They Make Me So Very Proud

2008-09-28T17:55:00.000-07:00

Today was clean the house day. Whenever it's necessary, my husband and I both pitch in to get everything done at once. And, with my crazy "Mom's taxi" schedule last week, my house was definitely in need of a GOOD cleaning.

Here's the difference -- this week was the FIRST week we got all three of our kids involved. Usually, I decline their help, mostly because they typically do more playing than cleaning. But today, I allowed them to do certain tasks, and they actually pleasantly surprised me by getting them done, and doing them well!

My son swept all the hardwood on the main floor, and vacuumed all the rugs. Then he took the vacuum upstairs, and did his rug, his sister's rug, and the runner in the hallway, before bringing the vacuum back down and putting it neatly away.

My little one helped put her clothes away, with a big, ear-to-ear grin on her face! :)

And, I'm most impressed with my oldest daughter, who WANTED to learn how to do the dishes, AND the laundry! Not only that, but she was excited about it, too! :)

I'm one proud Mama!

The Toddler Song (Too Funny Not To Watch!)

2008-09-27T12:23:00.000-07:00

*** Disclaimer*** None of the "people" in this video belong to me. This is simply a video I snagged off of YouTube. Also, I'm piggybacking the disclaimer at the end of this video, as well!

To those of you who have, or had, toddlers in your lives... this one's for you...

Sometimes It Pays To Be An Early Christmas Shopper!

2008-09-26T06:26:00.000-07:00

I think I've mentioned before that I start shopping for Christmas EARLY. With limited funds, and a large family, putting things on layaway, and getting a jump start on the holidays is essential for me. I don't deal with panic or frenzy well, and the idea of doing last minute shopping on Christmas Eve makes me break out in a cold sweat and start to hyperventilate!

I like to take my time, shop around, look for sales. ESPECIALLY since I have the growing boy child, whose "wish list" has NOTHING on it with a value of less than $50 dollars. I kid you not.

So....

As summer draws to an end, I begin to ask my children what they'd like for Christmas. My son puts his list up on our bulletin board in the kitchen, and adds to it whenever he thinks of something new. Of course, he's not getting EVERY SINGLE THING, but so far, here's what he's requested, and here's what we've purchased:

Gears of War 2 (for XBox 360): Retails for $59.99 -- this game doesn't come out until November, and we may wait until after the holidays are over for this one.
Guitar Hero 4 (for XBox 360) Retails for $150*
Guitar Hero Aerosmith (for XBox 360) - Retails for $49.99 -- we got him this
Unreal Tournament 3 (for XBox 360) -- Retails for $59.99 -- we got him this
Call of Duty 4 (for PS3) -- Retails for $59.99 -- we got him this
iPod (we got him an Onyx MP3 player for his birthday, 'cause I refused to spend $200 bucks for essentially the same thing!)
Rock Band (for XBox 360) -- *Can't decide whether to get him this or Guitar Hero 4 -- they both cost about the same, but we will ONLY get one.
XBox Live 3 Month Card -- Retails for $50 -- Probably won't get this for him.
1600 Microsoft Point Card -- Retails for $20 -- I think my mom's getting him this for his birthday.
Marvel Ultimate Alliance (this one's new on the list, so I don't know which system he wants it for, or how much it costs, or if it's even OUT yet).

I also got him some clothes, which he'll probably think is boring, but he needs them desperately.

Miss R. is a bit all over the place with her Christmas list. The ONE thing she truly wants is her own XBox 360 system, which we got for her, as her "big" gift from my husband and me. She's also been asking for Bakugan playsets. She wanted both the launcher, and the starter orbs, which look like this:

Because I start my Christmas shopping early, I found both the launcher and this particular set of red orbs (they come in different colors, you see... each color represents one of the five elements, I believe), and purchased them for my daughter, who will be thrilled BEYOND belief when she opens them. She said she wanted both the blue and the red orbs, so I've recently been trying to track down a package containing the blue ones.... and they're SOLD OUT EVERYWHERE. And I mean EVERYWHERE. My husband thinks that people are buying them and selling them on EBay, which could definitely be a possibility (as awful as that is... to take away toys from a little kid so you can make a profit is disgusting to me), but I've searched and searched, and can't find any more starter sets anywhere. The good thing is, she'll definitely be over the moon with the set she will get! :)

As for my little one... well, she's got me turning to look at the television every five minutes, telling me she wants a different toy being advertised. In a nutshell, she wants EVERYTHING. But, I did ask her, "If you went to see Santa, and you could ask him for only ONE thing, what would it be?", and she said she'd either ask for Mermaid Barbie, or the Peek-A-Boo Petites Barbies. Again... Mama, the early-bird, already has both stored away, and the Peek-A-Boo Petites are a hard item to find, too!

So, I'm thrilled that I got in early on these hot new toys, and that I'm not going to be forced to be one of those parents who has to get up at the crack of dawn the day after Thanksgiving, and head out to a toy store, get in line, and put my name in on a lottery to be one of the lucky ones to be able to purchase these. Nor will I have to scour the pages of EBay, hoping to score a deal. I have these little treasures, all tucked away, ready to be wrapped and placed under the tree for my little ones.

I can't tell you how excited that makes me! :)

Twilight (Darn you, Michelle! :)

2008-09-25T15:05:00.000-07:00

For those of you who've been living under a rock, or have just touched down from another planet, let me enlighten you about the whole "Twilight" phenomenon. Stephenie Meyer is a cute, young author from Utah, who just happened to write a series of four books that are equal in popularity, and often compared to J.K. Rowling's "Harry Potter" series. However, instead of young witches and warlocks in training, and the Muggles who just don't seem to understand their importance, Ms. Meyer's theme went down an entirely different path of good vs. evil. Her main subject of choice was a family of vampires, with specific emphasis on the "Romeo and Juliet"-esque love affair that develops between a young vampire named Edward, and his beloved Bella.

(L to R: Alice, Emmett, Bella, Edward, Rosalie and Jasper.)

Now, I know... before you start groaning and throwing things at your computer monitor, I will say I felt the same way when I heard of this series. I couldn't seem to quite grasp how a love affair between a vampire and a human could amass such a frenzy, especially with seemingly intelligent, rational, grown women. It sounded far too much like Harlequin Romance meets Stephen King, and I resisted heading down that path.

That is, until I read my friend Michelle's blog.

She expressed her sheer excitement about standing in line at Borders Bookstore at midnight, with a HUGE group of her peers, waiting for the latest installment ("Breaking Dawn") to be released. I must say, my curiosity was definitely piqued. When I questioned the validity of this phenomenon, both she and our mutual friend Natalie strongly urged me to read it, and see for myself just how engaging the books can be.

So... I succumbed. I went on EBay, and found a copy of "Twilight" at a fairly reasonable price. Since my oldest daughter was back to school, I knew I had a fair amount of reading time coming up, during my sit and wait time before she got out of school for the day. I figured I'd give it a shot. I mean, with all the frenzy surrounding these books, I figured if I didn't like it, I would most certainly find someone who would be more than happy to take it off of my hands.

I started tentatively, still fairly dubious. But, by the time I was 20 pages or so in, I was completely hooked (or, as Bella states, "I was unconditionally and irrevocably in love...").

I devoured the book in just a few short days, and have already purchased "New Moon", the second book in the series (to be put away as a Christmas present from my husband). Earlier this afternoon, I was sitting up in my bed reading while my little one was napping next to me. My husband came into our room to talk, and when he saw how far into the book I'd gotten, and teased me to "read slower", so as not to be too anxious to receive my present!! :)

Late last week, I also stepped a bit out of my comfort zone, and went on an excursion to snag "Breaking Dawn" from a generous Freecycler, and will now STRONGLY encourage my husband to buy "Eclipse" for me, so I can read the rest of the series over Christmas break.

I only hope he's hidden the second book well. I don't know if I can wait that long! :)

And, I may have to take a solo trip to see the movie in December. That is, unless one of my friends from Utah happens to be in the neighborhood at the time! ;)

Just Some General Jibber Jabber

2008-09-23T11:51:00.001-07:00

I can't believe how quickly the day's gone by already! This is the first real time I've sat down to read e-mails and check on all of my other computer "stuff" since first thing this morning. For some reason, my computer wouldn't boot up, so I had to leave without being able to check in first. I'm sure I have TONS of e-mails to go through, but I wanted to update here first.

R. went to school this morning, despite still not feeling well. I gave her some liquid Tylenol, and some cold medicine, and sent her in with a note to her teacher, explaining that she still wasn't 100%, and if she really wanted to come home, I could be contacted on my cell. After picking her up from school, I asked my daughter how her day went, and how she felt in school today. I was shocked and more than a little upset to hear that she gave her teacher the note I'd written first thing this morning, and then proceeded to ask her teacher... TWICE... during the course of the day, if she could call me to come get her. Apparently, her teacher's response was, "you don't look that sick to me". Hmmmm.... sounds like someone (or several someones) needs a SEVERE talking to!

S. had her first day of preschool today. She whisked into her room, with barely a goodbye to me (which is always a good sign!). I killed a few hours by hunting around for an MP3 docking station that would work with the Onyx MP3 player I got for my son for his birthday. Sure, I could find TONS of iPod stuff, but it took me three different stores before I found something that I think will work for the "generic" MP3 player I bought. I only hope it works! My husband and I will be giving him the MP3 player as his birthday present, and the docking station is from the girls.

One of my stops was at Target. While there, I picked up three sweatshirts and three pairs of leggings for S., as well as a long-sleeved t-shirt. I also got three pairs of leggings for R., too. I went through S's. fall clothes yesterday, and switched everything out in her room. Turns out, I have a HUGE trash bag filled with clothes that are too small for her! She's definitely gone through a MAJOR growth spurt, and a ton of her fall stuff from last year is now just too small. The only thing she really needs, though, is sweatshirts. But, between the three I picked up today, and the few that I've recently won on EBay, she should be all set for a little bit.

I also found the second book in the "Twilight" series on sale, so I picked it up for my husband to give to me for Christmas! :) I called him and told him that I'd found it, and that they had the third book in hardcover for $13 bucks... and that it was on him to get that one! :) I picked up the fourth book from a VERY generous Freecycler yesterday! :) I'm halfway through "Twilight", and it's definitely very intriguing, to say the least!

S. woke up three times last night, claiming she had bad dreams. I think she was anxious about school today. She also said she had a sore throat this morning, so I gave her some liquid Tylenol too. Sigh. And to think... it's only the 14th day of school!!

N. had picture day today, and I'm praying that his picture turned out halfway decent. I told him it's going to be weird to see his picture without braces! It's the first time in four years he'll be taking a school picture without 'em! R's picture day is scheduled for this Friday (and of course, it's going to be raining all day long.... so her hair should look absolutely lovely, thankyouverymuch!). I only hope she's feeling well by then. It'll be bad enough that she has a total frizz head from the rain... I don't want her to look like death warmed over, either!

And of course, because it's the beginning of school, my stomach has been feeling quite nasty the last couple of days. I even went to far as to cancel my dentist's appointment tomorrow (go ahead, twist my arm! ;), 'cause with my gut doing flip-flops, the last thing I'd find comfortable right now is to have someone's hands in my mouth, and the smell of old fillings being ground down to pulp! Yuck-o!

Well, I'm off to read my 3790809560949708234 e-mails. We're going to have grilled cheese and tomato sammies for dinner, and I think I'm going to whip up a batch of Loaded Potato Soup (a delicious-sounding recipe that one of my friends passed along to me). I only hope I feel well enough to try some later!

Ahhhh. Solitude.

2008-09-21T14:50:00.000-07:00

I don't know how I managed it, but I wound up sneaking off for a few short hours earlier... by myself.

I needed to go out and return a bunch of things my mom purchased for my kids for Christmas. Bless her heart... I know she meant well, but when she handed me the things she'd put away on layaway for them, and I opened the box, I knew that the toys and crafts were not exactly my kids' "style". She tried her best, and I love her for it, but really... there are other things that they'd much rather have "Santa" bring them on Christmas morning. So, she gave me permission to take them back and get them what they really wanted.

I have to say, I felt horrible pangs of guilt leaving the house by myself. It was so strange, not needing to buckle a small child into a carseat, not having to ask if everyone's buckled in, not hearing anyone asking me to change the radio station to Radio Disney or Jammin'. I got to drive with all the windows down, listening to MY music, and didn't have to break up a backseat quarrel ONCE. Heavenly.

The woman at the customer service desk thought it was a real hoot, when I explained to her my rationale for returning things. She agreed that it was best to get them what they really wanted, rather than fill up the spaces under the tree with "stuff". I walked out of the store a few hours later, feeling so good knowing that the kids will definitely have a good year this year, and they'll be totally psyched about what Santa brought. It tickles me more than I even care to admit, especially because they really are good kids, and they don't get much at all during the year in the way of "treats", so to be able to be a bit generous at Christmastime just warms the cockles of my heart.

Not to mention I wasn't being hounded for a toy, and had to face the deflated looks on their faces when I had to tell them no. That's always so hard on me.

We were watching "Baby Mama" last night, and there was a scene where Tina Fey's character is in an elevator, and standing in front of her was a young mom, holding a baby who couldn't be more than 9-12 months old. She gently caressed the baby's little hand with one finger, then cautiously leaned forward to smell the baby's head. I turned to my husband and said, "I know exactly how she feels. I've been having that 'itch'" again. Of course, he looked at me as if I'd completely lost my mind. He even invited me to find someone else to have the next child with, if I so desired (teasing, of course).

Logically speaking, I know it's the absolute wrong thing to do to my body. At 45 years of age, it wouldn't be the wisest thing for me to put my body through, or my heart, for that matter. My old eggs might not produce a healthy child, and I just don't want to set myself up for that.

I guess, as long as I'm able to bear children, the longing will exist. I only hope it goes away once I hit menopause.

My Dad

2008-09-20T07:42:00.000-07:00

It's been 19 years today since my father died, and I posted this video, for him.

The very first time I heard this song it had just been released, and I was driving to somewhere. The day was so busy with errands I was surprised when I forgot what day it was. It was a few years ago....today. By the time the middle of that song came, and I heard Luther sing about hearing his mother crying in her room, I had to pull over. I had tears running down my face and couldn't see well enough to drive. I still can't hear this song all the way through without welling up. It's been hard losing him... and it's even harder when I think about all the things he's missed about my life since he's been gone. The failed marriage I finally left because it was just simply WRONG for me, which opened the door for me to find the RIGHT guy, whom I've been with for over 16 years, and have had three amazing kids with. He didn't even walk me down the aisle then... my husband-to-be and I walked hand in hand through the door together on that day. A symbol, I guess, of my first real "adult" act since my father's passing.

My dad was VERY strict (sometimes to the point of being downright mean, in my estimation), but he was incredibly smart, had a wonderful, dry wit about him, and offered a balance to my mother that really hasn't been there since. And there isn't a day that goes by when I don't think about him in some capacity. I miss him every day, and feel the "empty space" in the room whenever there's a family function, knowing he should be there to celebrate with us. Mostly, I wish he were here to talk to, and to seek advice from. He died way too fast, too young, and too soon.

So, Dad....wherever you are... I hope you've found a comfortable rocking chair, and are kicking back, drinking a Schlitz, chewing on some sharp cheddar, or a slice of pepperoni, munching on some Wise potato chips, and watching a game somewhere. I wouldn't even mind if you called me into the room, just so I could change the television channel for ya.

Love ya... you old coot.

Happy Anniversary, Mom and Dad

2008-09-18T09:37:00.000-07:00

If my father was still alive, today would have been my Mother and Father's 61st wedding anniversary. So, in honor of the occasion, I dedicate "their song" to them:

I Have Succumbed.... To Rock Band

2008-09-16T09:16:00.000-07:00

My son likes the way I sing, and is thoroughly impressed with my musical repertoire. I keep explaining to him that the reason why I know so many songs on the radio is because I choose to listen to radio stations that play the songs I listened to growing up. Turn on one of HIS preferred radio stations, and I'm like a fish out of water. The closest I can get to possibly recognizing, and MAYBE singing along to any sort of "new" music is Radio Disney, and that's only because I swear they play the same five or six songs overandoverandoverandoverandoverandoverandover again!

So, last night, after dinner was through, we all sat down in the living room. My husband and I tried our best to watch "Jeopardy" while the girls fought....er.... played with some toy that they both wanted to use. During a commercial, my son shyly asked, "Mom, would you be the singer for me in Rock Band?"

Now, mind you.... we don't OWN Rock Band, so I thought my son had finally gotten tired enough from all of his super-early mornings to become a bit loopy. He explained to me that one of his friends had let him borrow his system "indefinitely", because he never plays with the thing anymore, and so he told my son that he could use it until he "beat the system". I'm not sure how long that would take, but I would presume it might be awhile.

I asked him where he would like me to perform this particular endeavor with him, and he suggested his room. Since I tried to avoid the two upstairs bedrooms like the plague (the sight of them, at times, can potentially lead me to want to hurl myself out the nearest window!), I said, "Since your sisters are making too much noise for us to be able to hear the television clearly anyway, why don't you bring the game system down here and set it up?"

Well... I didn't have to tell him twice. He was off like a shot, with his little sister in tow, to grab the gear to set up the game.

I'd never seen Rock Band in action before, so I had no clue really what to expect. Setting up this game is a bit like setting up an actual stage show for a band... there's all kinds of wires to plug into certain ports, and the drum kit has to be assembled. Once everything was in place, my son turned the game on and scrolled down the list of song selections.

Most of the titles (and artists) were completely foreign to me. They did, however, have a few Aerosmith selections, a song by The Clash, one by The Rolling Stones, and one by Boston that I did know.

I started off with the Boston tune... "Foreplay/Long Time". Since I grew up on Boston, I chose the "expert" level, and got a near perfect score. My son was grinning from ear to ear when the song finished, 'cause I guess getting a good score moves him up in the ranks somehow. All I know is, although I can carry a fairly decent tune, I'm no Brad Delp! But, if it helped him along, and it was all in fun, that's all that really mattered.

We played a bit more before I shooed them all off to bed. Even my little one got in on the action, pretending to be the newest rock-star singing sensation. It was quite the hoot.

So, today.... we were driving back from the grocery store, and as always, I had the radio on. I was running through channels, trying to find something other than commercials or "talk radio", when I heard the distinctive sounds of that very same Boston tune. I left it there... and cranked it.

And, as I did last night, I sang along with Brad. My incredibly intelligent, smart-as-a-whip little girl exclaimed, "Mama! That's YOU singing! That's the song you sang last night!" And, when the guitar solo hit, during the middle of the song, she cheered, "That's BROTHER playing! Awesome job, brother!!"

What a howl! There's never a dull moment with that kid, I tell ya! (Who, by the way, now thinks we're all rock 'n' roll stars! :)

And So.... It Begins....

2008-09-14T18:22:00.000-07:00

My son shaved his "beard" off, for the first time this evening. I took a few pictures, then took a small patch of his virgin beard hair, and put it in a tiny little plastic pouch for safekeeping. Sentimental fool that I am.

I think I'm going to go crawl in bed and cry myself to sleep. :'(

***********

I was putting my little one to bed this evening, and after our usual nighttime banter, she said to me, "Mama, I think you're beautiful." My heart swelled. I said, "Well, thank you, baby. I think you're beautiful, too." She asked, "Do you think I'm beautiful when I'm sleeping?"

"Yes, sweet pea... you're the most beautiful of all when you sleep."

Let's hope SHE doesn't slip away too fast.

To Everything There is a Season

2008-09-14T13:55:00.000-07:00

This is a hard blog to post, not only because the subject matter is difficult for me to talk about, but it's a subject I was hoping to avoid for another, oh, say, twenty years or so!

My daughter and I were driving back home from her school one afternoon last week. She and I were the only two in the car -- my little one decided she was too bushed to join us and plopped herself down for a nap, so my mom came upstairs to keep an eye on her while I picked up my oldest daughter. R. must have felt it was the perfect opportunity to talk to me about something, because after the average line of questioning was finished (How was school? Did you do anything fun? What did you do in class today? Did you make any new friends?), she turned to me, and tentatively asked, "Mom, would you be upset with me if I told you I had a crush on a boy?"

It was all I could do to keep myself from slamming on the brakes, smashing my head against the steering wheel, and shrieking out, "NOOOOOOOOOO!!! Not my baby!!! You can't have my baby!!!!!"

But, you'll be proud and relieved to know I remained calm. And my forehead remained in tact.

I thought very carefully for a moment, before answering her. Give her too much information, and she'll feel overwhelmed. Give her not enough, and she won't be prepared to know what's probably going to happen next.

I couldn't look at her. To see her face would have been too much. My adorable, 9-and-three-quarters girl. My BABY girl. Instead, I kept my eyes on the road as I began to speak. I asked her who the boy was that she liked, and was completely relieved when she said the name of a boy that I just adore. He's a sweet kid, and his parents are good people, too. That's always a help. Not that I was making wedding plans, or anything! :)

Then, as matter-of-factly as I could, I said, "Of course I'm not upset with you, lovey. J. is a sweet boy, and I can understand the reasons why you might have a fondness for him. But, you need to know that you're going to have LOTS of crushes in your lifetime. Some may be meaningful, and some may be in passing, but they're all a part of teaching you how to deal with true love, when it comes along."

The question that came out of her mouth at that point was one of the most touching things I've heard in a long time; "You mean like the kind of love that you and Daddy have?" It was such a lovely testament, to know that my kids can plainly see just how my husband and I feel about each other, even after all these years.

"Yes, sweetie," I said, now fighting back the tears, "just like your Dad and me. You have to understand that giving your whole heart to someone is like giving them a very precious gift. And, they have to PROVE to you that they've earned that gift. It's not something you want to give away lightly, because if you do, you're going to get terribly hurt. You're going to get hurt anyway....that's unfortunately part of falling in love with the wrong person sometimes. But, my only hope for you is that when you're REALLY ready to give your heart away completely, that you find a man just like your father. Someone you can trust, someone who's your very best friend, and someone who can love you with all their heart, too. Until then, you do your very best to keep your heart protected."

She listened very intensely, wanting to seemingly grasp every single subtle nuance of what I was saying; to absorb it into her system, and to adjust it so that it fit, somehow, into that tiny, girl-like body of hers. At least that's what I hoped she was doing.

I know this marks the very beginning of my daughter's growing up years, and I know I have to let it happen, even though I'm certain of the pain and the heartache she's inevidably going to suffer through as a result. As much as I'd love to protect her and keep her from feeling that sort of emotion, it's as certain as the world rotating on its axis. To everything there is season. Turn, turn, turn.

But, as we got out of the car, and she ran to the garage, grabbed her bike, plopped her helmet haphazardly on her head, and began to ride away, I hoped that particular rite of passage would take its sweet old time.

Showdown at the Park (or, Don't Mess with Mama C. and Her Cubs!)

2008-09-13T07:12:00.000-07:00

Yesterday marked the first full week of back-to-school for my oldest two, and we all mustered through the earlier mornings and the longer days relatively unscathed, albeit a bit more weary.

I quickly adapted a new routine, especially formulated with my little one in mind (so she wouldn't feel quite so abandoned by her ever-present brother and sister, who were pretty much at her beck and call all summer long). After she and I go to R's school to drop her off in the mornings, S. and I head off to the park, where I find a sunny spot and read for about an hour, while she plays with all of her newly-made toddler friends. I get to enrich my mind and sprout some new neurons, and she gets to blow off some steam. It's a win-win.

After the morning park visit, we're either off together to do whatever necessary errands there might be, or we come home so I can take care of stuff here. Then, in the afternoons, we head up to R's school again, where S. hangs out in the little park (located right in front of the school building) to play, until it's time to go wait at the front door for R. to emerge from the mass exodus of children. Then, it's back to the "big park" across the street for a few hours more of play.

Since the afternoons are a lot busier, both with children and parents, sometimes my book reading gets pushed aside. I have to keep a sharper eye on my kids, constantly navigating my view so I can keep them within eyeshot.

Since last Wednesday was a beautiful fall day, we followed this routine exactly, and wound up at the big park so the girls could play. As luck would have it, a gaggle of R's girlfriends were playing at the park, too, so not only did she have a small group of friends to pal around with, but so did S. (they all "mother hen" this child to death, and she eats it up with a spoon! :).

I waited for a spot on THE prime bench to open up. This particular bench is located on the "fifty yard line" of the park, so no matter which structure the kids ran to, I can always locate them pretty easily. When a seat became vacant, I plopped my keester down, and looked forward to continuing on with the book I've become very much interested in ("A Redbird Christmas" by Fannie Flagg, for those who might be wondering).

I was happily engrossed in my book, stopping from time to time to scope out my children. Once I had them in my direct line of vision, I'd continue reading. The kids were blissfully chasing after each other; there were four or five 9-year-old girls, two 9-year-old boys, and one 3-year-old runt... all playing happily together. A small slice of Heaven.

Just when I thought we were having ourselves a pleasant afternoon, I spotted one of the mothers walking towards R. The troop was hanging out in the middle of one of the smaller structures, laughing and singing and having a grand old time, and by the time this mother finished her speech (which, from my angle, looked as if it was directed RIGHT at my daughter), there was a deathly silence in the group of once jovial kids.

I immediately removed myself from my prime spot (a Herculean task at best -- once you relinquish this seat, you know that it might never be re-claimed), and walked over to my daughter to see what that particular fuss was about. I called R. over to me, and looked at her with shock and dismay as she relayed the encounter. Apparently, this particular mom didn't like the fact that the girls were screaming, and she went over to ask them all to stop. Are you kidding me????? We were in a freakin' PARK!!!

I was just about to walk over to this clearly demented mom, when she saved me the trouble by heading towards R. and me. I thought for sure my daughter must not have heard her right, and I was determined to get to the bottom of this.

But, come to find out, my daughter's hearing was as perfect as ever, for that's EXACTLY what this woman told the girls! She further explained that it looked to her as if the boys were antagonizing the girls, and that's why the girls were screaming, so she asked them all to cut down on the noise and to leave each other alone. She felt that "girls should play with girls, and boys with boys".

Well.... I probably don't have to tell you what transpired next.

But I will. :)

After the smoke stopped pouring out of my ears, I turned to her and said:

"My daughter has been going to this school since she was in Kindergarten. My son, who entered his freshman year in high school last week, went here before her. I have NEVER encountered such a shallow-minded, prejudiced woman in my life here at this school as I have with you today.

"My children have been brought up to believe that friends are friends... no matter who they are, what they look like, or what race, color, or SEX they are. Until now, it appeared to me as if all of the other children, and their parents, followed the same principle.

"To me, it looked as if the kids were playing tag, or some similar game, together. At the very least, they were having FUN. Not only is it completely ridiculous of you to suggest it, but it also defeats the purpose of being here when you ask the kids to stop screaming. I don't know what your intentions are for being here -- maybe they're to perpetuate more of the stupid gossip that goes on with the clique-y little 'coffee clutch' of moms that are an unfortunate side-effect of this institution -- but my purpose for having my children here is to allow them to blow off steam so that they're not screaming in my HOUSE."

"If you're so close-minded to think that boys should only play with boys, and they should leave the girls alone, I would firmly suggest that you speak with your SON about the situation, and remove him from the group. I also ask that you never, EVER speak to my daughter like that again. If she's got any sort of 'problem', here or ANYWHERE, whichever family member is with her at the time is the ONLY one with the authority to walk up to her and correct it."

And, with that, I told my daughter to go back to her friends and play.

After the woman picked her chin up off of the floor, she started backpedaling a bit. She introduced herself to me ("Trish"... like I really wanted to get to know her at that point!), and said that she used to work as a lunch lady at another school (poor kids!), and that she got pretty good at seeing when a situation was developing into something that might be threatening to one of the children, and she was just afraid that their screaming might escalate into something more serious, and....

I put my hand up to stop her.

"Trish," I said, trying to sound as calm as humanly possibly (although at this point I wanted to pop her one right between the eyes), "How many children do you have?" (knowing full well the answer before I even asked the question). She answered, "Well, Mark is my only child, but I also have a 22-year-old stepdaughter."

"So, you basically only have ONE child, right?" She nodded in agreement. "Well, then, I hate to say this, Trish, but one child just doesn't count. You aren't fully schooled in the subtle nuances of play between children. And, trust me when I tell you, they were just PLAYING.

"You see that bench over there?" We looked over, and of course, my prime spot had been scooped by some little kid, no less. Damn. "THAT'S where I was, and as you can clearly see, it's within direct eyeshot of the children and where they were playing. As the mom of THREE, if I had caught even a glimpse of wrongdoing, I'd have been over there like a shot to find out what the problem was. But, there was no problem, except for the one YOU created. You just need to figure out how to chill and let your child play, because if you don't, he's going to wind up being very lonely, and you're going to have a miserable little boy on your hands. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go and try to find another good spot to watch my children, and maybe squeeze in another chapter or two of my book before we have to go home."

She went back to her bench, which was co-occupied by a friend of hers, who seemingly left once "Trish" started her tirade, and I gave the kid who stole my seat the hairy eyeball until he got up and bounded off.

I sat back down, pulled "Redbird Christmas" out of my pocket, and went back to Alabama, while I listened to the wonderful sounds of my two girls.... who went back to screaming their fool heads off. A small slice of Heaven, I tell ya.

Reflections of 9-11-01

2008-09-11T07:02:00.000-07:00

It was a Tuesday morning, and I was at work early, helping my boss prepare for the weekly Senior Team meeting. As usual, as soon as I got to work that morning, I entered my office, booted up my computer, then turned on the radio. I was typing out the agenda for the meeting, when one of the DJ's came across the air, announcing at first that it appeared as if a helicopter hit one of the World Trade Center buildings in New York City. Now, I've been to New York numerous times, and I know just how ridiculously TALL the Twin Towers were, and because of that, I clearly remember thinking that it was so odd that ANYTHING could hit those buildings on a day like that particular September 11th was; a beautiful fall morning, very crisp, cool, and clear, with a perfectly blue, CLOUDLESS sky.

A few moments later, the same DJ interrupted the music again, to say that it wasn't a helicopter as they initially reported, but a commercial aircraft that slammed into the side building (which I thought was even WEIRDER, but dismissed as some sort of malfunction with the plane. It HAD to be that....there was no other explanation, as far as I was concerned).

After a little bit longer, the DJ came back on the air again, and announced that the Pentagon in Washington, D.C. had been hit by yet another commercial aircraft!

Just then, the Executive Secretary for the Dean of Education came bolting past my office, and ran into my bosses office, interrupting the private meeting that occurred right before the Senior Team meeting. I immediately got up from my chair to chase after her, to try and stop her from entering his office, until I heard what she was crying out, "The DJ on the radio is announcing that this country is being attacked by terrorists! You might want to come and take a look!" We all rushed off to one of the empty classrooms, and immediately set up a television set, and turned it on just in time to see the aircraft slam right into the side of the second Twin Tower. It was an image that I will never forget as long as I draw breath.

I rushed back into my office, and tried desperately to call my husband. Because he worked nights, I knew he'd be home. I quickly learned that ALL of the phone lines were dead, and it was futile to try and contact him, either by land line or by cell phone. So... I did the next best thing. I logged onto AOL Instant Messenger, praying he was online. I can't even begin to tell you how relieved I was when I saw his screen name popping up in response. I asked him if he'd been watching TV, and he said no...that he was busy straightening up from that morning's breakfast, and playing with our then 2-year-old daughter. I told him "Go turn on the TV... NOW! We're being attacked!" He must have thought I'd completely lost my mind (and to be quite honest, I felt like I had just stepped into the middle of some horrible, twisted prank myself), but he complied. When he came back, he typed the words "Oh my God! The Twin Towers are on FIRE!!!" I told him the Pentagon had been hit, too, and that I wasn't exactly sure what was going on, but considering all THREE planes departed out of Logan Airport, and they were speculating that The Prudential Center might be the next target, that I wanted him to go get our son out of school .... NOW, and that I would be coming home as quickly as possible. The first thoughts that came to mind were we were experiencing the beginning of World War III, and if there was even a remote chance that we were going to be killed, then I wanted to be hugging my family when I went.

Before leaving, I stopped back into the classroom where we'd set up the television. By this time, co-workers from all departments had filled the room, glued to the set and hanging onto every word and video with growing horror. Just as I positioned myself in a spot where I could see the TV screen, the first Tower collapsed. An uncontrollable gasp escaped from me, and I began to sob. I remembered hearing that, although they were working really hard to get all of the people out of the buildings, there were many who hadn't emerged yet. I also recalled that there was a Preschool located on the first floor of one of the buildings. So... I sobbed for all those people...those ordinary people who were just going to work or attending school...whose only mistake that morning was to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. I sobbed for all of those lives senselessly and carelessly lost.

Soon after, I went back to my office, gathered up my things, and bolted out of work. I made it to the bus terminal a few short minutes later, fighting my way through the throngs of people who were making a mass exodus from their own jobs, their own classes, their own "normal" lives... to make it home to their own loved ones. Of course, my husband all but insisted that he would come and pick me up from work, but I demanded that he stay home with our son and daughter.... if anything happened, I wanted the three of them to be together, at the very least.

As most who take public transportation know, a bus is usually buzzing with people chatting with one another, or talking on their cell phones, or listening to their iPods. But, on this day, EVERYONE who had a cell phone had theirs plastered to their ears... either trying desperately to get through to their loved ones, or talking to people on the other end. Those who weren't on their phones were listening to the radio that the bus driver had on board with him. Some were crying, some were praying, but we were all quiet and still. It was one of the most eerie things I'd ever experienced.

It seemed to take forever to get to my stop, and as soon as I exited the bus, I RAN home, flung open the front door, and tore up the stairs. I don't think I ever hugged anyone for so long, or so tightly, as I did my children and husband when I walked through our front door!

Of course, along with the rest of America (and the majority of the world), we were glued to the television for the rest of the evening, watching the madness unfold right before our very eyes. It was clear that history was being made that day, and that the world, as we knew it, would never be the same again.

I prayed that my kids would grow up to understand exactly what happened to all of us on that day, and that none of us would ever grow complacent enough to carry on our lives without remembering all of those innocent people whose lives were taken away on that day. I know I will NEVER forget.

Yet Another "Tag" Response (from Michelle, This Time! :)

2008-09-07T20:01:00.000-07:00

I actually don't mind doing these... it makes me feel so loved! Shhhhh...don't tell anyone, though! :)

4 places I go often:
K-Mart
Market Basket
school
the park

4 people who email regularly:
Karen H.
Karen T.
Tommy
Andrea

4 places I love to eat:
The Border Cafe
Rudy's
Macaroni Grille
On The Border

4 places I'd rather be:
At the beach (didn't make it there ONCE again this summer! :(
On a cruise (after the hurricane season is over though...naturally)
Touring Europe
In bed (headed there after this!)

4 TV shows I watch:
Grey's Anatomy
Heroes
Boston Legal
Jeopardy!

4 people I tag:
Susy
Erica
Karyn
Paula

Now....I'm off to do some snoozin'. 'Nighty noodles! :)

The (Updated) Definition of Beauty

2008-09-07T10:48:00.000-07:00

"Mom, is it my hair that makes me beautiful, or my body?"

My 9-and-three-quarters, prepubescent daughter posed that question to me one morning last week, while I was fixing her hair for school.

I was so surprised to hear those words coming out of my completely unconceited, self-professed tomboy's mouth, that I was rendered speechless. But only momentarily.

My response to her was one that not only rings true in my heart now, but one that I want her to earnestly believe. "Sweetie, it's not the assets you have that make you beautiful.... it's who you are, as a person, that makes you beautiful. A person could be the most stunning creature on the face of the Earth, but if they have a nasty, cold-hearted, conniving, selfish personality, it makes them completely ugly."

She agreed with me, and we finished up fixing her hair and were on our way.

It got me thinking, though, about the various concepts of beauty I've been awestruck by over the years. In particular, I've realized that my ideals in terms of beautiful men have changed.

In my teens and early 20's, I used to think men like these were beautiful:

Andrew Stevens

Rex Smith

Robbie Benson

Tom Cruise

John F. Kennedy, Jr.

And.....uhm.....oh, yeah.... this guy:

Beautiful? Sure, these guys were all pretty darned aesthetically pleasing. I swooned over them, had their pictures plastered all over my walls (and even kissed a few of them goodnight, before I travelled off to the Land of Nod). But, I was always reasonably intelligent enough to know that these men were completely unattainable to a girl of my "average" caliber. I wasn't a cheerleader, or a starlet, or a model, and I certainly didn't run in the same circles as any of these young men. So, I was resigned to admire their beauty from afar.

Yes, I did date my fair share of real-life "beautiful men" in my younger years, as well. Men who, although incredibly good looking, had lacked the social skills, intelligence levels, or charming grace that were necessary for me to find them attractive for very long. Most of them spent all of their spare time looking in the mirror. Their narcissistic love affairs always made me feel like a third wheel in these relationships, and they always seemed to end with my heart cut to shreds, and laid out to filth.

It wasn't until I grew older (and really worked on how to love myself), that I discovered that I was worthy of a love that went far beyond the realm of good looks. It was only then that I found a man who was not only physically appealing, but who also knew how to treat me with consideration, kindness, honesty and respect. And, quite frankly, I honestly feel he is the most beautiful man I've ever known.

I guess the moral of this story is that, even though my daughter will go through her "beauty as vanity" stage... with her current pretty-boy crushes being these guys:

Zac Efron

The Jonas Brothers

(An aside: To demonstrate how my girls are currently swooning over these guys, as I was pulling up pictures, BOTH of them saw the one with the JoBros, and LITERALLY started squealing behind me; "Oooh, Mom! The JONAS BROTHERS!!! What are you looking at? Can I see? Can I? Can I puhllleeeaaaazzzzeeee??" And the beat goes on! :)

I only hope my daughter doesn't get too hurt before she realizes what her version of real beauty is.

But, I doubt that she will. Because my 9-and-three-quarters Missy is an amazing soul. She sees the good in everyone and everything. She's got one of the most lovable, kindest hearts I've ever witnessed, and really does give every single person a fighting chance, and befriends people for no other reason than because of who they are.

Not to mention she's got beautiful, ice blue eyes, a smile that lights up a room, and a face that, when it reaches its full maturity, will stop traffic.

She's also got gorgeous hair, and a killer body.

Back-To-School, Round Two

2008-09-04T13:33:00.000-07:00

Today was back-to-school day for R., and N's second "official" day of high school. So, it was a bit rough getting used to moving two bodies along this morning! After we dropped R. off, S. played in the park for a bit, before I had to go to the dentist's to get a cleaning. Then, I had to drop off the final two pieces of paperwork necessary for S. school, and drop off the completed roll of back-to-school pics at Walgreen's (which I'll share privately in a bit, via e-mail).

We came home, and my mom came up to ask how R's morning went. She and I chatted for awhile, then when she left I got some laundry in downstairs, before needing to head BACK to the school to pick R. up (I was so freakin' afraid I'd get busy and totally forget what time it was, so I kept looking at the clock every five minutes!). R. and S. played in the park (again), and then we went back to Walgreen's so I could pick up my pictures (too cute, I tell ya! :), and then to the supermarket to pick up some milk and N's prescription.

Whew!

What a day!

And it's not over yet. I still have to go through R's backpack, get clothes out and ironed for tomorrow, get R. into the shower and help her with the conditioner (she can never reach the ends of her hair), then dry her hair after dinner, make N. a lunch (R's all set with her free lunches for this year), get washed up..... and then collapse!

Tomorrow should be a lot better. It'll be easier to deal with the two of them, and I won't have so much pressure after school 'cause of the weekend.

I don't know who's more zonked... them, or ME! :)

Well, The Worst Is Over (Or At Least I Hope!)

2008-09-02T12:44:00.000-07:00

I am so not a morning person. I never have been. I can remember one summer, in my early teen years (before the age of working summer jobs), when I could hear my dad's alarm clock going off while I was watching TV.

But, as we all know, being a mom brings with it the automatic need to VERY quickly adapt to being a morning person. Little people are just early birds, by nature. It's a bit freakish to me, especially since they're the fruit of my loins, but the youngin's are always up at the crack of dawn, nonetheless, clamoring for food and drink like a soldier out on a three-day-pass.

So, I knew this morning I'd be in for a rude awakening (no pun intended), when I asked my husband to get me up at 6:30 a.m. I wanted to be sure to be up and at least physically vertical when my son left our house for his very first day of high school.

Not only was I surprised to see my son awake and mobile (he's grown to be a vampire, just like his Mama), but he was also relatively chipper this morning. An untrained eye would have to look really closely to see it (especially when his only full sentence to me this morning was, "Where are my clothes?"), but I know him like a book, and I could sense his excitement.

I passed him his (ironed) school clothes, and waited for him to be finished so I could take a few pictures before he headed out the door to wait for his bus. All the while, I was trying desperately to insert an IV into my arm, so I could pump my body full of coffee. I knew I was going to need it today, that's for sure!

I held it together pretty well.... until the moment when my little one and I were standing in front of one of her bedroom windows, looking out onto the street and waiting to see my son and my husband pass by as they walked to the bus stop. I saw him walk by, and fought back the tears. It was so surreal... to be stroking the head of my 3-year-old, and seeing my oldest go off to high school. It feels like just yesterday when I was stroking HIS 3-year-old head, looking out the window to watch for Daddy, coming home from work. That felt like last week sometime. And now, he's accomplished his first day of high school! Unbelievable.

He said he enjoyed it, even though it was a bit overwhelming. The campus is both gorgeous and HUGE (82 acres total), so it's naturally going to take him several days to really get to know where all of his classrooms are, as well as the lunchroom, the library, the restrooms, the computer room, etc. I'll give him a few weeks, and he'll be an old pro.

Tomorrow will be his first full day, when his "real" classes start. Once tomorrow's over, I'll be a little less on edge, just knowing he made it through, found all of his classes, and is getting more comfortable with the school and his surroundings.

And then maybe, I'll be able to sleep until 7:00 or so. Still not late enough to my liking, but hey... I gotta fetch those Cheerios for the clamoring kiddos! :)

The Last Day of Summer Vacation Marks The Beginning of The Fall Flurry (and a Correction....)

2008-09-01T07:47:00.000-07:00

Happy Labor Day, everyone!

Today marks the beginning of the Fall Flurry for our household. From the beginning of September, to the end of February, we're right out straight, and those six months just FLY by! Here are the notable dates:

September 2 -- N. starts school (Freshman in high school)
September 4 -- R. starts school (4th grade)
September 19 - S. has her "meet the teacher" day at school
September 23 - S. starts her first day of preschool
September 30 - N's. 14th birthday (with some kind of plan for celebration involved, including a cake on his birthday with us here at home)
October 30 - My husband's and my 15th wedding anniversary (we don't usually do much to celebrate this, but it's coming, just the same)
October 31 - Halloween (of course all you moms know what goes into planning all this!)
November 27 - Thanksgiving (we usually have Thanksgiving here every day, which means I spend all day Wednesday baking and cleaning, and all day Thursday cooking, cleaning... and collapsing!)
November 28 - Christmas shopping day (gotta take advantage of all those sales!)
December 25 - Christmas (this holiday is actually focused on all month long... between the shopping, the wrapping, the decorating, the cooking... it's insanity at its best!)
December 26 - R.'s 10th birthday (we also have a party here for her every year, about two weeks before her birthday, and have a cake for her on her birthday)
January something - the Yankee Swap and kid's grab swap for my family (since there are so many of us, being pulled in so many different directions on Christmas Day, we don't typically all see each other. So, sometime in January we have a Yankee Swap for the adults, and a kid's grab for the kids. This is also typically held at my house, but at least it's pot luck, so I don't have to cook EVERYTHING, thank goodness!)
February 22 - S's. 4th birthday (again, we have a party for her sometime in February, with a cake for her on her birthday)

And of course, in between all of those dates is all of the planning, preparation, shopping, stressing, decorating, and detailing that goes into every single one! See why it's such a flurry??

How about you guys? What is your fall/winter season like? Are you as crazy as I am, or does it just pass by you, relatively unnoticed?

On another note, I have to make a correction regarding my last week's weight loss. I gotta tell ya... math has never been my strong suit, and I got my total loss for the week all wonky. I only lost 2.4 pounds in a week (hey... I'll still take it! :). This past week, I lost 2.6 pounds, for a total of five pounds!

We're thinking about using the guest passes I won and taking the kids to the N.E. Aquarium today. We'll have to see how the day unfolds. Guess that means I have to get dressed, huh? ;)

P.S. -- I got your Google tag, Natalie, and I tried to complete it LATE last night. I was halfway into it, when all of a sudden, my computer "blinked", and when the Blogger screen came back, it was BLANK! AAAARRRRRGGGHHH! I'll complete it soon, I promise.

A Google Tag (Especially for My Blogger Bud, Natalie)

2008-08-31T21:46:00.000-07:00

Those who read my blog on a regular basis know that I'm pretty private when it comes to my personal information. But, because Natalie has tagged me (and asked so nicely, too), I will, just this once, share some really personal stuff.

I'm not going to tag anyone specifically to do this; if you'd like to participate, just let me know you've done it by leaving me a message, so I can check yours out, too! :) (Although I would like to see Don's response, though! ;)

So, without further ado, I give you:

A GOOGLE Tag

Favorite past time:

Reading

Favorite color(s):

Black, white, and red.

Hometown:

Arlington (MA)

Favorite Vacation:

Hampton Beach, New Hampshire (childhood)

Royal Caribbean cruise to the Bahamas (adult)

Favorite food(s):

Mexican and Italian (too bad they love me back! :)

Favorite animal(s):

Koalas and otters.

My age:

45 (sorry I couldn't find a "gentler" image, but hey... you gotta give me credit for the creativity! :)

Favorite treat:

Ice cream (see how it mocks me, as it's attaching itself to my hips?? ;)

Place that I would love to visit:

Well, all of Europe, actually.

Last name:

Jones

Middle name:

Anne

First name:

Cheryl (I think I even owned that album, at one point! Too bad I didn't own that body at one point in time, too! :)

Something I Felt Compelled To Share

2008-08-30T09:15:00.000-07:00

If this video offends some of you, I'm sorry. I guess that's what the "delete" button is for.

But really, this is one of the most profound things I've read in a long time. No need to pass it along, if you don't want to. If you take away its message, that's good enough for me.

I'm Exhausted, I'm Broke, and I'm Counting Down The Days

2008-08-28T17:29:00.000-07:00

My, my... what a flurry this week has been! I thought for sure that this week would feel about 538902874982433490873 years long, but with all we've had to do, in preparation for back-to-school, it's just whizzed by.

We got R.'s school supply list, and fortunately for me, I had most of the staples in the big school supply box we keep here in the house. Unfortunately for me, there was still a bunch more stuff left, and believe it or not, I had to go to THREE different stores to find some of 'em. Who knew that a nine-year-old needed THREE packs of index cards??? One of the other items was three packages of 3x3 Post-It's (I wondered if her teacher would make her take them back if they were, oh, say 2 1/2 x 2 1/2??? Geesh! Where DO they come up with this stuff???)

Anyway, while at Target, shopping for school clothes and the cherished Jonas Brothers CD/DVD combo (sold exclusively at Target, so stopping there for that priceless Christmas present was a MUST! Hey... I can't knock her though... I recall having quite the crush on my own set of teenybopper brothers back in my day, too! ;), I looked at their measely school supply section (guess the buyers there didn't get the memo that school's about to start????), and found Post-It's... for FOUR DOLLARS AND NINETY-NINE CENTS for a package of three! Are they out of their freakin' minds???!!!! Of course I passed on them there, and headed to our local Dollar Tree when I was on my way back home. I found a generic 3-pack for a buck! Much more my style, thankyouverymuch.

So, her list is done, but I refuse to pack her off with some of the items on it. For example, what the HECK does she need with two boxes of 20 Ticonderoga pencils?? If there were 22 kids in her class this year, and each of them brought in 40 No. 2 pencils, that would be 880 pencils!! Are they building a dang LOG CABIN this year, or what?? I put a few sharpened pencils in her brand new pencil box, and kept the rest at home. If she needs more, I'll send them in with her.

We also went shopping around for school clothes... a MAJOR endeavor this year, considering all three of my children went through HUGE growth spurts this summer. My son is now over 5'11" (he's 13, almost 14); my oldest daughter is almost 4'11" (she's 9 3/4); and my little one's even sprouted. Not sure how tall she is, but she's gone from a 2T to a 4 or 5T in pants! Yikes!

So, another major chore this past week was to weed through clothes, to see what fit, what doesn't, and what can go to charity and what's just way beyond repair. I'm glad to say that not much of my daughter's late spring/early fall clothing is too small, even though I did buy her a few new (VERY cute!) outfits. You gotta have new clothes on the first day of school, right?

My son got some new clothes and undergarments, too. He tried his new stuff on, and the pants I got him are too big, but all the shirts fit fine. So, it's back to the store for me to return the pants and hopefully find them all in a smaller size. He won't need them right away, anyway... he wears shorts until the frost hits the grass in the mornings (the doofus!).

And, I've been picking up things here and there for my little one, too. She's got the nice beginning of a fall wardrobe going for her. I still have to pick up sneakers for her, but I wanted to wait until the very last minute, to make sure she doesn't grow anymore before I buy them! :)

Oh, and the haircuts came this week, too. I cut about two inches off of my oldest daughter's hair (to make it look fuller and less stringy), and I've started blowing it out after her showers, so it looks all straight and pretty again. And, I took my son to my girlfriend's hair salon today to get his hair cut. He DESPERATELY needed it -- his hair's so thick, and grows like a weed, so he looked a bit like a Neanderthal man! She also told him it was time for him to start shaving, and he agreed. My husband told him he'd show him how to use his electric razor. Sigh.

So... now that everything's purchased, their backpacks are full-up and sitting in the front hallway, ready to go, and their clothes will be finished up by this weekend, all I'll have left to do is to iron some things for next week (I always make sure that they look presentable for at least the first week of school. After that, all bets are off! :), load some film in the camera, and see them all off.

N. starts the 2nd (with his half day orientation at his new high school); R. starts the 4th, and S. starts the 23rd. Poor little thing is going to be wandering around the house, not knowing what to do with herself.

And I'll be enjoying the silence.

Ain't back to school grand? ;)

Another Minute Post, To Again Tide You Over

2008-08-26T07:33:00.000-07:00

I have a big, back-to-school update coming (I promise!), but until then, I wanted to post a brag of sorts.

Since last Monday, when I vowed to take better care of myself and "take my life back", I've lost almost four pounds!

Yay, me!

Now I only have another 78975508787987203956804 pounds to go!

More later.....

Okay, So I Know I've Been Lagging, But Hopefully, This Will Tide You Over...

2008-08-24T18:59:00.001-07:00

It's been a flurry of craziness around my household, with old clothes flying and new clothes trying... back-to-school shopping has commenced (more on that in another post, I promise).

But, until then, I wanted to share something else. A bit of fun "fluff", if you will. Another thing that warms the cockles of my very heart.

As is typical here, I went to rent movies on Friday. This is done, fairly ritualistically, because there's virtual CRAP on TV on the weekends. Disappointingly enough, there was crap left on the shelves in the video store, too (guess everyone has the same idea in the summertime).

So, I came up with a grand idea. Genius, even. I went to the "classics" section, and made it a John Hughes night. What a blast! Not only are the movies just a small slice of Heaven, the memories abound with the clothes, the hairstyles, the atmosphere, and the teenaged angst.

So, without further ado, I share with you three of my favorite scenes from the movies I rented:

1) Duckie's infamous rendition of Otis Redding's "Try A Little Tenderness":

Oh, and for the youngin's that come and visit my blog... those things that Duckie's leaning against are called albums.

2) The gang from "The Breakfast Club" dancing to Pinback (what I would have given to get five minutes alone with Judd Nelson back then! Sigh...)

Again... an album is being played here. This is the land before iPod.

3) Sixteen Candles. Love the whole movie... so here's the trailer:

Enjoy.... hot stuff! :)

Speaking of the Olympics... I Think This Is Just AWESOME!

2008-08-22T20:42:00.000-07:00

As the mom of two children who have ADHD (one minute, one full-blown), the "behind the scenes" story of Michael Phelps just warms the cockles of my heart. (You should have seen the ear-to-ear smile on my daughter's face when she realized that an eight-time gold medal winner has the same thing she does. Talk about an inspiration!).

Here's the article, published recently in the New York Times:

August 10, 2008

Parenting

Phelps’s Mother Recalls Helping Her Son Find Gold-Medal Focus

By MICHAEL WINERIP

DEBORAH PHELPS’S third baby and only son was larger than life from Day 1 — 9 pounds, 6 ounces and 23 inches long. As a little boy, said the mother, he asked 25 zillion questions, always wanting to be the center of attention. If he wasn’t zooming by on his big-wheel tricycle, he was swinging past on the monkey bars.

Starting with preschool, teachers complained: Michael couldn’t stay quiet at quiet time, Michael wouldn’t sit at circle time, Michael didn’t keep his hands to himself, Michael was giggling and laughing and nudging kids for attention.

As he entered public school, he displayed what his teachers called “immature” behavior. “In kindergarten I was told by his teacher, ‘Michael can’t sit still, Michael can’t be quiet, Michael can’t focus,’ ” recalled Ms. Phelps, who was herself a teacher for 22 years. The family had recently moved, and she felt Michael might be frustrated because the kindergarten curriculum he was getting in the new district was similar to the pre-K curriculum in their old district.

“I said, maybe he’s bored,” Ms. Phelps recalled saying to his teacher. “Her comment to me — ‘Oh, he’s not gifted.’ I told her I didn’t say that, and she didn’t like that much. I was a teacher myself so I didn’t challenge her, I just said, ‘What are you going to do to help him?’ ”

In the elementary grades at their suburban Baltimore school, Ms. Phelps said, Michael excelled in things he loved — gym and hands-on lessons, like science experiments. “He read on time, but didn’t like to read,” she said. “So I gave him the Baltimore Sun sports pages, even if he just read the pictures and captions.”

She will never forget one teacher’s comment: “This woman says to me, ‘Your son will never be able to focus on anything.’ ”

His grades were B’s and C’s and a few D’s.

It was a tough period. Ms. Phelps and her husband, a state trooper, were divorcing. She had just gone back to school to get a master’s degree to become an administrator, she said, and at the same time she had to be the 24/7 parent.

Michael grew like crazy, but not evenly — his ears looked huge, and when he ran, his arms swung below his knees. (He was on his way to being 6 feet 4 inches tall with an arm span of 6 feet 7 inches.) Kids bullied him, and when he whacked one on the school bus, he was suspended from the bus for several days.

When he was in fifth grade, during his annual check-up, Ms. Phelps and the family physician, Dr. Charles Wax, discussed whether Michael might have A.D.H.D. — attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. By then, the Phelpses were a swimming family. (Michael’s older sister Whitney at 15 was ranked first in the country in the 200-meter butterfly, though her career would be cut short by a back injury.) Dr. Wax’s children also swam, and he’d noticed Michael at the Phelps sisters’ swim meets. “Michael used to run around like a little crazy person mooching food off people,” said Ms. Phelps.

The doctor suggested sending assessment forms to his teachers. Their consensus: Can’t sit still, can’t keep quiet, can’t focus.

At age 9, Michael was put on Ritalin, a stimulant used to treat hyperactivity.
His mother thinks it helped a little. “He seemed to be able to focus longer,” she said. “He could get through homework without moving around so much.” She said he was still a middling student. “It might have raised some C’s to B’s,” she said. But if a homework assignment had to be at least four sentences, she said, “he’d just do four sentences.”

After two years, Michael asked to get off the meds. He had to go to the school nurse’s office to take a pill at lunch, she said, and felt stigmatized. “Out of the blue, he said to me: ‘I don’t want to do this anymore, Mom. My buddies don’t do it. I can do this on my own.’ ”

“I was always stern as a parent,” she said, “but from Day 1, I included my children as part of the decision process. So I listened.” After consulting with Dr. Wax, Michael stopped medication.

In the meantime, Michael the swimmer had appeared. By 10, he was ranked nationally in his age group. Ms. Phelps watched the boy who couldn’t sit still at school sit for four hours at a meet waiting to swim his five minutes’ worth of races.

When Michael was 11, his swim coach at the North Baltimore Aquatic Club, Bob Bowman — still his coach — took the Phelpses aside and talked about Michael’s gift. “Bob says, ‘By 2000, I look for him to be in the Olympic trials,’ ” recalled Ms. Phelps. “ ‘By 2004, he makes the Olympics. By 2008, he’ll set world records. By 2012, the Olympics will be in New York and’ — I said ‘Bob, stop, he’s 11, he’s in middle school.’ ”

As it turned out, the boy would move four years faster than his coach’s prediction (and New York would lose its Olympic bid).

At age 12 Michael needed an algebra tutor, and was so antsy in school that his mother suggested the teacher sit him at a table in the back. And yet he willingly got up at 6:30 daily for 90-minute morning practices and swam 2 to 3 hours every afternoon.

By 15, in 2000, he was at the Olympics; at 16 he had his first world record; and by 19, at the 2004 Olympics, he had won 8 medals, 6 of them gold.

Of all his mental gifts, the one that amazes his mother the most is this: “Michael’s mind is like a clock. He can go into the 200 butterfly knowing he needs to do the first 50 in 24.6 to break the record and can put that time in his head and make his body do 24.6 exactly.”

He always did his swimming homework. “In high school, they’d send tapes from his international races,” Ms. Phelps said. “He’d say, ‘Mom I want to have dinner in front of the TV and watch tapes.’ We’d sit and he’d critique his races. He’d study the turns — ‘See, that’s where I lifted my head.’ I couldn’t even see what he was talking about. Over and over. I’m like, ‘whoa.’ ”

These days, Ms. Phelps, 57, is principal of Windsor Mill, a middle school in Baltimore County. Her A.D.H.D. son is so renowned, she was hired this summer by a pharmaceutical firm, Ortho-McNeil-Janssen, as a “celebrity mom” who will answer questions about her experiences with A.D.H.D. on a company-sponsored Web site.

While the company makes an A.D.H.D. medication, Concerta, and arranged my interview with Ms. Phelps, during our three hours together, Ms. Phelps never mentioned the drug. Nor did her son ever take it. Like so many parents, she seemed conflicted about having given her son any medication. “There were so many things going on at the time — the divorce, Michael’s maturity, we changed school districts,” she said. “Were meds the right thing? I could be on the fence either way. That was the decision that was made.”

More to the point, I think, is the moral of her story, which offers hope for parents of any child with a challenge like A.D.H.D.: Too many adults looked at Ms. Phelps’s boy and saw what he couldn’t do. This week, the world will be tuned to the Beijing Olympics to see what he can do.

E-mail: parenting@nytimes.com

If The Olympics Were Like This, I'd Be Thrilled To Watch 'Em, Too! :)

2008-08-21T16:05:00.000-07:00

Hysterically funny!

Is It So Completely Wrong of Me To Find This Hysterically Funny????

2008-08-21T15:26:00.001-07:00

Mika's My New Hero

2008-08-20T21:27:00.001-07:00

I think it's pretty obvious why I think this song is AWESOME!

Why I Left, And Why I'm Back (or, How MC Got Her Groove Back)

2008-08-20T17:32:00.000-07:00

Before I start typing any of this out, I want to send out a disclaimer of sorts. Please forgive me if some of this gets a bit "random" (as my kids would say).... I'm probably going to slip into stream of consciousness mode, in an effort to get everything out in the way of an explanation for my absence. And, I can almost guarantee that this is going to be excruciatingly long, so really..... get into a comfy chair, put your feet up, and read on, if you dare.....

Okay.... you've been warned......here goes......

As I mentioned, I slipped into another one of my "funks". This one was bad, and I got scared. I took to my bed for two days, barely getting up to do the minimal amount of stuff needed to take care of my kids. After forcing myself to get out of bed (and fighting the urge not to climb back in), I finally decided that I just simply couldn't do that anymore. I had to take my life back.

I did a LOT of thinking, and came to the conclusion that there were three major sources to my problem:

1) I know this might sound very strange, considering I've got a house full of people here, but there are a lot of times when I'm incredibly lonely. The only people I have to really talk to on a regular basis is a 3-year-old kid and a 78-year-old mother (who, for all intents and purposes, might as well be another 3-year-old kid!).

Yes, there is my husband, but he's a service technician, which means he's not usually available to talk much during the day, since he's up to his elbows (quite literally) in washers and dryers. And, when he comes home, he's dirty, he's hungry, and he's tired. He gets washed up, cooks dinner some nights, or just plain eats it on other nights, and then sits down on the couch for the remainder of the evening to watch TV.

In the first part of the post-dinnertime hours, my kids try to monopolize almost every single conversation we have, so we've learned not to try and have more private, "adult" conversations around them. In the latter part of the post-dinnertime hours, my husband fights tooth and nail not to pass out. So, it's pretty much like talking to a wall.

I do have all of my online buds (through my groups, and my blogs), but you all know how that goes... it's just not the same as having a "real life" friend. Someone you can go hang out with, or call up and talk to, for the most part.

All of my other friends are pretty much my age or older, and those who have kids have ADULT kids.... NONE of them have youngin's. They're also working full-time, and can't be imposed upon at work. And, since my nighttime is so busy, I can't really talk to anyone on the telephone until right about now, and most of my friends usually busy doing their own stuff, and aren't available to talk until much later in the evening. And frankly, being the mom of three kids... my bedtime has gotten considerably earlier. I can't be on the phone until all hours of the night anymore (without suffering miserably the next day, that is).

So... all of that being said.... it's been really hard not to be able to have adult conversations with anyone lately. I miss being a grown-up. I miss having friends that I can pick up the phone and talk to, whenever I need to. And, most of all, I miss having any kind of private time with my husband.

2) I've been leading a VERY sedentary life lately, and there's no one to blame for that one but me. I think, with the passing of my husband's cousin (who was only four years older than I), I got really nervous. Although I'm blessed to say that I wasn't plagued with her health issues, who's to say that I wouldn't wind up with some of them somewhere in the near future? I'm overweight and don't move around a whole lot.... a poster child for diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, strokes, and all of the other not-so-lovely ailments of a person who suffers from the "O" word (sorry... I can't even bring myself to say it). Pretty scary stuff for the mom of three young kids to think about.

It was actually thinking about my littlest one, and she got me the most worried. I couldn't bear to think about leaving her at a young age, and missing SO MUCH of her adult life. And, putting myself (and my body) in the position it was in wasn't helping.

Not only that, but because my life consisted of so much inertia, so did hers, by default. She started to become cranky, whiny, miserable, and completely out of bounds.... all because she was bored senseless. We made a good pair, she and I... a bored, bratty little kid, and a depressed, crying overweight mom. Life was just a party!

So, I decided to take my life back. Which means, I need to learn to be a bit selfish. Of course, I'm not going to put myself so far up on a pedestal that I neglect my children; they most certainly will come first... ALWAYS. But, I need to have a little bit of "me" time, even if that means going to the public library one night a week, plopping in a chair (maybe with one of the Stephenie Meyer books! :), and reading for an hour. The "old" me would always bring at least one kid, to lighten the load for my husband (who, by the way, winds up being left alone in this house waaaaaayyyy more than I do), but I really need to capture some of my "space" back (and those of you who have a 3-year-old jammed semi-permanently up your butt KNOW what I'm talking about!).

I also need to take my little one's needs into consideration, because I'm not being fair to her. So, I made a vow that, on nice days, I'll take her OUTSIDE to blow off some steam. We'll either go to one of the local parks, or go for a walk, or find something else to do where she can run around, giggle and play, and get herself all tuckered out. And let me tell you... she's LOVIN' this "new Mom"! :)

The other promises I made to myself were to exercise more regularly. I dusted off my old "Walk Away The Pounds" videos, and will begin by doing the 1 Mile tape, three times a week, and I'll work my way up to the 2 Mile, then the 3 Mile, and so forth. I've also vowed to eat better. No more starving myself all day, to "save" the food for the kids (again, being a bit selfish here), and then loading up my dinner plate with carbs and protein, and topping that off with a big heaping bowl of ice cream!

We have to be very careful about buying food on a budget, and I was using that as an excuse for not buying more healthy options. Like I told my husband today, if I substitute some of the junk I've been buying on a regular basis with some healthier alternatives, then the grand total shouldn't change that much.

The BIG thing I had to change was the mindset of eating better to "lose weight", although I'm sure I probably will. Since I am a big girl, and have a bunch of weight to lose, I get frustrated, I get overwhelmed ('cause it's not coming off fast enough), and I give up. I've got to keep reinforcing the fact that I'm eating better to get healthier, not only for my kids, but for me, too. If the weight starts coming off, that's terrific!

I have work really hard to convince myself that I'm not doing this work to wind up looking like Cindy Crawford (heck... even Cindy Crawford doesn't look like Cindy Crawford anymore! :), and that what I'm doing has to be a gradual, for-the-rest-of-my-life kind of thing. This is mostly because I'm one of those kinds of people who's really good at losing weight (and have done so by following pretty much every diet program under the sun), but I've never been good at keeping it off for good. I need to learn how to do that part.

So... I'm three days into this newer "lifestyle", and so far, so good. I've done my workout tapes twice already, and Miss S. and I took a nice little walk together before we went to the park today. It felt like quite an accomplishment, let me tell ya! I've also been making a conscious effort to eat something that's fiber-filled for breakfast (Go Lean Crunch is the BEST!), having a light lunch, and since I tend to get hungrier at night, having a dinner that's normally portioned, with a BIG salad. I've also stopped drinking soda, and have replaced it with water (can't give up the coffee, though.... sorry!).

The other thing I've had to come to grips with was getting a better handle on my depression. My doc seems to believe that it's mostly hormonally induced (since I'm in the throws of perimenopause), and he's suggested that I finally "up" my dosage of Wellbutrin to two times a day instead of once. When he initially prescribed this medication to me, he suggested that I start off taking it twice a day. I did, and it made me so wired that I couldn't sleep. So, he said if once a day was working all right for me, then that was fine with him, too. But he'd keep my prescription at two times a day... just in case. Well, two years later, and based on the conversation he and I had a few days ago, I'm back on two days a week.

Let me tell you... that decision was gut-wrenching. It really was hard to come to terms with having to "rely" on that medication more. But, the way I looked at it.... I have hypothyroidism, and I take Levothroid every day for it. It's necessary, because it keeps my pituitary gland working correctly, and keeps me from getting VERY sick. The Wellbutrin is doing the same thing for me, only on an emotional level. It's keeping me from getting "sick".

I've been taking two tablets a day for three days now, too... and I've already felt a difference in my mood. The only way I can describe it is the feeling of a veil being lifted from my face, allowing me to breathe freer and easier again. I did have a really bad headache last night (forcing me to go lie down early), but I'm not sure whether that's a side effect. I don't have one yet tonight, so maybe it was just a change-of-weather thing, seeing as how we went from it being in the '80's and muggy, to the mid '60's and dry.

I also had a discussion with my husband last night, asking him to try and support me, and to let me know if he notices any changes, even if they're subtle. He actually admitted to me that he was scared for me, because he knew that I didn't want to act the way I behave when my "funks" come on, and he wants me to get better, too. It really suprised me to see that he could actually notice a difference in my behavior. And yes, I did tell him that I needed him to really try to talk to me more, but I know I couldn't make him do it; the decision needed to be his. He agreed to try, and that was enough for me.

3) There are definitely some outside influences that I need to work on, too. Getting more money into this house is one (I don't care what ANYONE says... when you're constantly strapped for cash, it wreaks havoc on your emotions), and reeling in my mom is the other.

A few months back, I inquired about a new job I got through an e-mail from a local after school program for middle school kids. They were looking for some people to come on board as part-time counselors. I replied to the director, expressing interest. She quickly e-mailed me back, we chatted back and forth a couple of times, she asked me to come in with my resume in hand, and must have liked what she saw and heard, 'cause she hired me on the spot!

I knew her summer was going to be an incredibly busy one: a planned trip to El Salvador, to our town's "sister" city; a move of the entire facility from one location to another; a certification visit once the new location was up and running, and; a vacation week. When I didn't hear any updates from her, I sent her a "touch base" e-mail, and she told me that not only had she NOT forgotten about me, she was thinking about adding more to my initial position, and wished to ultimately make me an Administrator of their facility. Because of my level of expertise, and my past job experiences, she thought that I'd be a perfect fit for a position she'd had in the works for quite some time.

Of course, we have to discuss all of the logistics that this position entails -- primarily making sure that my two daughters are taken care of in terms of some sort of daycare for S., and after school transportation and care for R. And... I also have to REALLY think about whether I want to be thrust into a full-time job, after being a full-time stay-at-home-mom for the past four years (thinking about going back to work all those hours makes my heart race!).

Regardless of whether I take on the full-time or the part-time position, the extra income, and the fact that I'm CONTRIBUTING money to our household, would be a wonderful thing. Don't get me wrong... my husband has never once made me feel even the teeniest bit inadequate because I don't work. He always refers to our money as just that... our money. And I really do love him for it. But, I've been working since a month after I turned 16, up until four years ago, and it feels awfully strange not to be paying my own way. Does that make sense?

Anyway... I should know more within a week or so, once the director is back and done with everything else that made her summer absolutely nuts. When I know something, I'll be happy to share.

As for my mom.... well, I've been writing passages that will eventually lead up to the "here and now". But, in a nutshell, she's been experiencing "panic attacks" (I'm not sure if that's the correct term for whatever it is she's going through, but that's what she calls them, so that's what they'll be termed, until I know the appropriate medical terminology for it), and basically... she's deemed me to be her "babysitter". This essentially means that I'm not allowed to leave my house, to go ANYWHERE, without her. Now, stop, and just absorb that for a minute. Think about what your life would be like, if you had to deal with those kinds of ramifications, ON TOP OF the needs of your own children, and while also trying to squeeze out a little bit of time for yourself. Maddening, isn't it?

Don't get me wrong... I love my mother. She's been a good mom, and is a great grandmother. But.... to have to have her "tag along" to EVERY SINGLE SOLITARY PLACE you go.... oh, my!

AND, whenever I was able to "sneak out" on my own, I'd later hear things like, "When I noticed your car wasn't in the driveway, I got so nervous, but I knew you wouldn't go far." Huh????? What does THAT mean??? Does that mean I can't take a ride to Nashua, New Hampshire, if I want to do some tax-free shopping? Or does that mean I can't travel to the next town????

I hope you don't think of me as the cruel and evil daughter, but I truly do believe that having that kind of pressure and responsibility on one's shoulders would make even the most stoic of people want to take to their beds, too!

So, anyway.... there's my long, rambling post about my numerous epiphanies.

If you've made it all the way through, you deserve a cookie. Low fat, of course. ;)

Something to Share.....

2008-08-19T12:31:00.000-07:00

I Believe...
That just because two people argue,
It doesn't mean they don't love each other.

And just because they don't argue, It doesn't mean they do love each other.

I Believe...That we don't have to change friends if we understand that friends change.

I Believe...That no matter how good a friend is, they're going to hurt you every once in a while and you must forgive them for that.

I Believe...That true friendship continues to grow, even over the longest distance.
Same goes for true love.

I Believe... That you can do something in an instant that will give you heartache for life.

I Believe...That it's taking me a long time to become the person I want to be.

I Believe...That you should always leave loved ones with loving words. It may be the last time you see them.

I Believe... That you can keep going long after you think you can't.

I Believe...That we are responsible for what we do, no matter how we feel.

I Believe...That either you control your attitude or it controls you.

I Believe...That heroes are the people who do what has to be done when it needs to be done, regardless of the consequences.

I Believe...That money is a lousy way of keeping score.

I Believe...That my best friend and I can do anything, or nothing, and have the best time.

I Believe...That sometimes the people you expect to kick you when you're down, will be the ones to help you get back up.

I Believe...That sometimes when I'm angry I have the right to be angry, but that doesn't give me the right to be cruel.

I Believe...That maturity has more to do with what types of experiences you've had and what you've learned from them and less to do with how many birthdays you've celebrated.

I Believe...That it isn't always enough, to be forgiven by others.
Sometimes, you have to learn to forgive yourself.

I Believe...That no matter how bad your heart is broken the world doesn't stop for your grief.

I Believe...That our background and circumstances may have influenced who we are, but we are responsible for who we become.

I Believe...That you shouldn't be so eager to find out a secret. It could change your life forever.

I Believe...Two people can look at the exact same thing and see something totally different.

I Believe...That your life can be changed in a matter of hours by people who don't even know you.

I Believe...That even when you think you have no more to give, when a friend cries out to you, you will find the strength to help.

I Believe...That credentials on the wall do not make you a decent human being.

I Believe...That the people you care about most in life are taken from you too soon.

'The happiest of people don't necessarily have the best of everything; They just make the most of everything.
Thank you God for all the wonderful people who help us throughout the journey of life..
May Angels guard you and guide you.

Need To Be Quiet For A Bit

2008-08-16T19:05:00.000-07:00

I'm a bit overwhelmed with feelings right now (and I've probably slipped into what I call one of "my funks"). When I get like this, it's best for me to be still, and be quiet, and kind of fold into myself. If I fight it, it only gets worse.

I'll probably be lurking for a bit, but hopefully I'll be back to my usual posting soon.

Hugs,

C.

Oh, But There IS A Bit Of Good News... and I Need To Thank You ALL!

2008-08-13T14:13:00.000-07:00

For those of you who read my lament about my engine light coming on, and proceeded to add me and my car to your daily prayers... I want to extend my deepest gratitude, 'cause the light went OUT yesterday afternoon!!!!!

YAHOOOOOOO!!

Isn't it nice to know that good things actually do happen to me once in awhile? ;)

I Feel Like I'm Chronically Complaining... But Here I Go Again

2008-08-13T13:52:00.000-07:00

First thing this morning, all of the kids were loaded up into my SUV to head towards the Club. R. had camp again, and my son actually got his butt up out of bed bright and early this morning, so he could go there and hang out with his friends. When S. and I arrived back home after dropping them off, she finished with her breakfast, and I got her settled in to watch a video. The plan was to check my e-mails first, then start in on finishing up laundry, and then, since it's been beautiful out today, take her to the park for a bit before I pick up the kids.

While I was on the computer, the phone rang. From the caller ID, I could tell that it was my husband's cousin's husband's number. Now, mind you...we don't talk to most of his family AT ALL anymore (and believe me when I tell you, that's one LONG story!), with few exceptions. But, we never had anything against this particular cousin. In fact, I always liked her, and her mother (my husband's aunt -- his mother's sister -- who is also his Godmother). But, we still didn't talk much to her, either... mostly because we all had our own lives, and she had a LOT of issues to deal with.

So, when we got a random letter from her a few months back, we knew that the contents had to be pretty darn important. She wrote to let us know that her mom had passed away, after a long illness. My husband called her as soon as he got home from work that evening, found out the details of his aunt's services, and wound up going a few days later. That was the first time he'd seen anyone in his family in six years.

His cousin called again a few weeks later, to tell Stephen that she was dealing with her own health issues (she'd ALWAYS been sickly, all of her life, with some rare disease that came and went), and she was getting so incapacitated that she could no longer take care of her 16-year-old daughter. She asked if we would be willing to take her in.

My husband and I talked quite extensively about it, and I prayed about it. A LOT. We both finally agreed to do take her in, even though she was virtually a stranger to us. We thought it would be better for her to be brought into a "normal" home, rather than have her face any of the other consequences. I told him it would just kill me to find out that that poor girl, who'd lived with so much pain and suffering to begin with, would wind up being stuck in some foster home, with people who were only taking her in to get her money for their own gain, or abusing her in some way. I didn't think I could live with that.

He called his cousin back once we'd made our decision, but at that point, she said that she'd made arrangements for her daughter to go and live with her best friend for awhile. My husband told her that the offer was still on the table, and if anything changed, to call him and let him know.

That was about six months ago.

So... when I saw his cousin's husband's name come up on the caller ID today, I thought for sure it had something to do with the daughter. I let the call go to the machine because 1) This man is VERY long-winded (and we all know what it's like to try and talk to someone on the phone with a three-year-old around), and 2) if it was an issue involving the young lady, I thought it was my husband's place to have that discussion about her, not mine.

The message that was left on our machine had nothing to do with the daughter, however. He called to say that my husband's cousin passed away, and that he wanted us to call him back as soon as possible.

I immediately called my husband on my cell phone, and played the message back to him so he could hear it. He called me back as soon as he finished up with his service call, got the telephone number, and his cousin's husband.

In the meantime, I was trying my full-best not to bawl my eyes out, especially when S. handed me a paper-doll like sticker that she put together for me and wanted to hang up on my wall. I told her she could hang it on my bedroom door instead, and she went off to try and put it on my door. She came back a few minutes later, crying and saying she'd ripped her sticker. I told her not to worry, I'd fix it for her.

I went into my room with her, and asked her to go and get another piece of paper from the scrap drawer, in an attempt to get her out of sight so I could take my tape and the scissors out of the top drawer of my dresser (I have to hide these items, 'cause my kids would use a roll of tape a DAY if I allowed it, and scissors and R. just don't mix). I fixed her sticker, put a piece of tape on the top of the paper for her so she could go hang it on my door, then turned my back to try and slip the scissors and tape back into my drawer unnoticed.

My husband called me back when he finished his conversation with his cousin's husband. I was so engrossed with the information he was relaying to me that I didn't realize at first just how QUIET S. had gotten. I called out her name, and got no response. I called again. More silence. I was just on the verge of getting up to see where she was (and more importantly, what she was into), when she came running out from my room, into the dining room, telling me "See, Mama? I got all of the yuckies out of my hair!" She was holding the right side of her hair in her hand, so I couldn't immediately see, and I FREAKED OUT when I finally saw what she meant.

SHE GOT A HOLD OF MY SCISSORS AND CUT OFF ABOUT FOUR INCHES OF HER HAIR!!!!!

My poor husband... here he was, all mournful and upset over the loss of his cousin, and I just about lost my freakin' mind, especially when I went into my bedroom and saw the huge pile of hair on the floor, and another pile on top of my dresser. I started sobbing... her beautiful hair was ruined, and there was no way to blend the cut section in anywhere... she'd chopped it off from the side all the way around the back. The only thing left to do was to cut it completely off.

I'm heartsick over it, but thankfully, her hair grows back quickly!

When I was finally able to calm down enough to actually LISTEN to what my husband had to tell me, he informed me that his cousin's husband asked if we could possibly give (loan) him $1,300 for her service expenses! Neither one of them had/has any money, and the husband said he'd already tried calling all of the other members of the family to ask them for the loan, and we were the ONLY ones who called him back! NO ONE ELSE seemed to either care, or want to bother! He said that he had a service scheduled for my husband's cousin for tomorrow, but if he can't come up with the $1,300, he might have to cancel it until a later date.

My heart just broke for him, but we don't have that kind of money, either. Shoot, I had to cut my daughter's hair myself, 'cause we don't even have the $12 bucks to take her to my girlfriend's salon to get it cut! If I did have it, I'd give it to him in a minute, though.... no questions asked. I wouldn't even want it back. Everyone deserves a decent service.

The moral of this?

1) My husband's family just plain SUCKS!

2) My little one now looks like Suri Cruise! (And shhhhhhh...don't tell her I said this, but she looks adorable with her new "bob"!)

Ever Have A Day That's About A YEAR Long???

2008-08-12T12:37:00.000-07:00

That's how it feels around here today. Even though I made my two girls their breakfast, brushed hair and teeth, helped to get them both ready, finished making and packing up my oldest daughter's lunch, then piled the two girls in the car and took my oldest off to camp. Even though I came back, and throughout the course of the day, made beds, swept my hardwood, vacuumed my rugs, did the dishes, mended a pair of my husband's work pants, made lunch for my little one and me, played with her a little bit, rewound a movie for her (Lazytown... FOUR times today! Ugh!), washed five (yes, FIVE) loads of laundry, dried, folded and put away four loads of laundry.... even though I've done ALL THAT, this day is still ddrrrraaaaaagggggiiiinnnnggggg BY!

Maybe it's 'cause this is our third day of rainy, gloomy, yuck outside, and we've become housebound once again. Maybe it's just 'cause I've become an "Olympics Widow", and therefore, have no one over the age of 13 to talk to in this house (unless of course, you count my delusional mother, who doesn't ever let me do much of the talking, but instead recounts events that have happened either in her recent or not-so-recent past....over and over and over and over and over and over again, and if you think that's not exactly like talking to another kid, then you've got another thing comin' to ya!), and so I'm maybe kinda lonely.

My e-mails are sparse, no one's posting much on their blogs... heck... not too many folks are even on Instant Messenger. I'm starting to feel like Robert Neville Smith in "I Am Legend":

My name is Mama C. I am a survivor living in the suburbs. I am broadcasting to anyone who would like to participate in a halfway decent conversation. I will be at my computer workstation everyday, at regular intervals, morning, noon, or night. If you are out there... if anyone is out there... I can provide laughter, I can provide company, I can provide advice. If there's anybody out there... anybody... please. You are not alone.

The Ten Books To Read Before You Die (according to AOL)

2008-08-12T08:52:00.000-07:00

How many have you read?

http://shopping.aol.com/pages/10-Books-To-Read-Before-You-Die/1000091?ncid=AOLCOMMshopDYNLsec0001&icid=100214839x1207143689x1200398426

1) I never had any interest in "Gone With The Wind"... so I'll pass on that one (I haven't seen the movie, either)

2) We do have the entire Lord of the Rings series, and I do want to read them at some point (especially now that I've seen the movies, and can understand the "language" better). Maybe someday I'll "borrow" them from N. (who has read them all) and get through them.

3) I think I read the first two books of the "Harry Potter" series. I was into reading the third one, and it just got, well... too boring for me. So I stopped. We have all of the books in that series, too. Maybe someday I'll get to the rest of those, as well.

4) I read "The Stand" a LOOONGGG time ago, and frankly... it freaked me out. The possibility of that happening for real is just a bit too close for comfort for me.

5) I read "The Da Vinci Code", too. Again, a little too realistic for comfort.

6) I've never read "To Kill A Mockingbird". It's another one we have around here, somewhere. I guess I'll have to add it to my list! :)

7) I've never even heard of this book. Maybe I'll look it up.

8) I made an attempt to read "Atlas Shrugged" a long time ago. I think I may have even gotten through it... I can't remember now. That's how excited I was about it, I guess! :)

9) I read, and re-read "The Catcher in the Rye" when I was in high school. It's a phenomenal book. So is its sequel, "Frankie and Zooey".

10) There have been many, MANY times when I've picked up the Bible, to try and read it. The language is just a bit too hard for me to get through.

Olympics Widow, Car Update, and Other Nick-Nacks

2008-08-11T17:43:00.000-07:00

Anyone else out there have a spouse/partner that's turned you into an "Olympics Widow"? I mean, don't get me wrong... I'm as excited as the next guy that they're here (and I'm definitely rooting for the good ole' USA), but geez! I'm with three kids ALL DAY LONG, and I look forward to some kind of adult conversation at the end of the day!

Husband's been GLUED to the set, every night (until the wee hours of the morning, I suppose... I'm never awake when he comes to bed), since the opening ceremonies.

I asked him earlier tonight, "Am I going to lose you all night long again tonight?" You know what his response was? "Well, the Olympics are only on every four years." So, in other words.... yes, dear, you ARE going to lose me again tonight, and every other night until the very last competition is over, and the very last medal is awarded. Sigh.

On the way home from picking up R. at the Club (more on her assessment of her first day at camp later), I ran into one of my brothers as I was heading into my front door. Since he's been having a bit of difficulty with his car lately, and has developed quite a repore with a mechanic, I figured I'd ask him where he went and what his opinions were of the dreaded engine light. He seemed to think it wasn't much of a big deal -- that it was probably a sensor that wasn't connected right, or that the gas cap wasn't screwed on properly (uhm... been there, done that), or that it was very likely some kind of other minor malfunction.

At first, he told me that I shouldn't worry about it too much, but when I balked about the possibility of being out somewhere with my kids in the car, and having my car die on the side of a road somewhere, he said he'd meet me back at the house after I dropped R. off at the Club tomorrow, and go with me to see his mechanic.

I sure hope he's right, and that it's something really tiny. Maybe, just maybe, that would mean there's a glimmer of hope that SOMETHING will finally go our way after all! :)

As for Miss R. -- she LOVED her first day of camp! She said they made a bunch of craft-like things in the morning (which I assume were left in their room to dry overnight), and then they went to Stone Mountain Creamery in the afternoon, where they got to "concoct" their own ice cream treats. She said everyone was surprised when she was the only one who finished her entire ice cream (little do they know what a bottomless pit she can be!).

She went upstairs at 4:00, as part of the drop-off program, and called me to ask if she could attend the next free swim. I agreed, as long as she made sure to meet me outside right at 5:00, which, I was proud to see that she did.

And, as predicted, she was tired as all get-out when she came home. She showered, ate, brushed her teeth, and headed upstairs to bed. I wouldn't doubt it if she was asleep soon after her head hit the pillow!

I'm so glad that she liked it, and that my little one was an angel today -- well, except for the brief lapse, when she managed to get into my Vaseline AGAIN, and daubed some into the front strands of her hair -- right after I'd just finished washing it too! Ugh! Guess that girl can't hold her halo straight ALL of the time! :)

Wish me luck tomorrow, and please, please... pray that there's only something minor wrong with my car. I know that there are lots of worthy people who are on a waiting list for a kidney, but I'd rather keep my set in tact for now, thanks!

What A Difference A Day Makes!

2008-08-11T07:38:00.000-07:00

Today was R's first day of summer camp. She's going all week, from 9:00 in the morning, until 4:00 in the afternoon, at our local Boys and Girls Club. I told her she could go upstairs to the drop-off until 5:00, too. So...she should be GOOD and tired by the end of the day!

And, because R. isn't here, Miss S. has been as quiet as a mouse. She's finished her Cheerios, had her fill of juice, and is now lounging on the chair in my living room, watching Princess Dora. The only noise coming from her is an occasional response, when Dora asks the viewers to help her by repeating something, either in English or in Spanish. S. keeps mumbling her responses through her beloved pacifier.

I have the feeling that it's going to be a VERY quiet week around here! :) And, R. was very excited about getting "her turn" to participate in camp. She just loves it, and it's so good for her, too.

I was planning on taking S. to the park today, but AGAIN, it's dark, cloudy, gloomy, and cool. I have no idea what's prompting all of this funky weather, but someone needs to inform Mother Nature that it's August, for Pete's sake! Not that I'm complaining, really.... I'm not a big fan of the heat, so this weather's fine for me. It's not so good for little ones, though, who want to go outside and run and play, and can't understand why it's not allowed. It also makes me want to go crawl underneath the covers and go back to sleep. Who knows? Maybe, just maybe, S. will take a nap, which would mean I could, too. If I wanted to.

But.... with the burgeoning hamper in our bathroom, I'll probably be a good little doobie and wash a load of clothes, instead. I'll just have to wait and see how loud that bed gets when it calls to me! :)

Oh... and BTW.... my engine light is still on. Sigh.

Am I Blue? Am I Blue? Ain't This Paint on My Face Tellin' You?

2008-08-09T09:13:00.000-07:00

Oh, man... where do I even BEGIN with this one!!! I'd barely woken up this morning, and was on the potty, when R. came downstairs and "announced" that S. had "somehow" gotten into a tube of blue paint from one of R's craft kits (all of which should have been thrown away by now, by the way), and when I finally saw S.... she looked like a member of the Blue Man Group. Or an Oompa-Loompa.

She was blue from head to toe!

So, I had to wash her completely down first thing this morning. That was it. It was the final straw that broke this camel's hump. I gave R. her medicine (so she wouldn't be off the wall), and told her to go wake up her brother (who's been taking it upon himself to sleep the day away lately! I warned him last night that I'd be getting his lazy butt up out of bed bright and early this morning, and I wasn't kidding!!), and TOGETHER they would clean her room, then clean his.

He came downstairs, all mopey and grumpy 'cause he had to get up so early, and I told him that he had to clean too. He said, "R's not going to help me clean", so I told him to send her back downstairs and I'd take care of it.

When she came down, I said to her, "I'm only going to say this once, so you had better listen. If I hear, one time, that you're not helping to clean, not only will I tell your brother to stop cleaning and make YOU finish both rooms BY YOURSELF, but when your father comes home from work, I'm going to have him remove EVERYTHING out of your room but your bed. That means your TV, your Gamecube and all of your games, your CD player and all of your CD's, your desk, your nightlight, your lamps, your toys.... EVERYTHING. And... you will be made to sleep in your room with JUST YOUR BED."

I knew that the threat of her not having a light or some kind of sound would be enough to move her tiny little hiney in gear. They've been upstairs cleaning ever since. I've been informed that they've finished R's room, and they've now moved on to N's. I told him that I want everything up off of the floor and put away where it belongs, 'cause when they're done cleaning, he's to come down, get the vacuum cleaner, and vacuum both rugs.

Tough love sucks, but it works!

And, what's my little one been doing the whole time? Sitting quietly on the chair in the living room, watching Dora, and peacefully rubbing her beloved "pup pup" on her nose. They're soooooooo much better when they're separated!