Truthfully, I was never really gone, just extremely busy! Turns out homeschooling two kids is a crap-ton harder than homeschooling one, especially when the 2nd child has a COMPLETELY different style of learning. I am confident that we will at some point hit a bit of a groove, but at this moment, it just ain't there. Add in all of the extra-curricular activities like sports, dance, science classes, bowling, park days, Ukulele Society meetings, etc... Did I mention travel? Yeah, we still do a bit of that, in fact October was crazy. Oh and Halloween?!?! Yeah, Halloween is the one holiday of the year that I embrace fully, so preparation for that was insane. I also have that little photography business and a husband that recently gained a large new client (HOORAY) but has become MIA because of it (boo). Throw all of this madness together into 24 hour daily increments and you can see how blogging has not been on the top of my list as of late!
I know... Excuses, excuses, excuses. So I will try to be much more diligent in my posting. I have had several requests for some food entries as it is now fall (well, for most of the US it is now fall, for Texas it is some sort of weird alternate universe) and I have been posting a lot of pics of soup and such on my Facebook page and inquiring minds want to know how they too can have yummy Green Chile Corn Chowder simmering on their stoves. So I shall do my best to keep up a little better. I can't promise daily posts and hell, it maybe two weeks between posts at times, but I promise to make the effort! I do love blogging and sharing stories and pictures and I hope you all enjoy reading along!
Showing posts with label livin' and learnin'. Show all posts
Showing posts with label livin' and learnin'. Show all posts
Tuesday, November 8, 2011
Thursday, August 25, 2011
PSA: The Great Slime Fiasco of 2011
For those of you that don't know, my daughter is THAT kid.
I decided after this particular incident that I should post about it, because after all, one of you might have one of these kids as well!
OK, first off, what do you get when you mix this...
with this?
ONE BIG FREAKIN' NIGHTMARE!
"Look Mommy! I have a hat made of slime!" Oh joy! In case you're wondering what slime is, it is a mixture made of water, borax and GLUE. And does it easily come out of soft, fine, little girl hair? NO. No it does not. I have to say, I felt so sorry for her. My first reaction was, of course, to be angry, then all of a sudden this rush of giggling came over me and I howled like a damn hyena with tears streaming down my face.
This was not helpful.
It was also not helpful that her big brother was laughing himself into tears as well. So I had to chase the child around the house (with slime drooping from her head) to try and explain that it wasn't HER I was laughing at but the SITUATION. Needless to say, she did NOT think this shit was funny in the least.
First instinct, call mother-in-law. She used to be a hairdresser, she HAD to know how to remove slime. She suggested putting on tons of thick conditioner to hopefully help the goop slide out. Made perfect sense so we tried it.
I was able to start slowing scratching some of the top layer off, but the stuff underneath was so stuck in the hair it was unbelievable and the conditioner wasn't even touching that. At this point I was almost certain that a shaver and a buzz cut were in the child's future. I called Big Daddy to get him surfing the web to see if he could find a solution. He is the King of Google. Seriously, that man can find anything, anytime on Google! I hopped back in the shower with the girl to try to work some more of this stuff out. Shortly, the Monkey Man came upstairs with news. So what did Big Daddy discover on the internet?
That's right, Baby! MAYONNAISE! Turns out vinegar can break up some the bonds of the glue, but I was too scared I'd get it in her eyes. Mayo has vinegar and oil, double whammy! And although it's gross, it's manageable. So I slopped it on and started working it in. I was able to start pulling big chunks out after a few minutes, then I started in with the fine tooth comb. Slowly but surely, the slime started loosening up and I was able to comb the majority of it out. Then I shampooed a couple of times and conditioned really well and this was the end result...
Slime FREE!!!! I don't think I've ever loved a condiment so much in my entire life! GO MAYO! So remember, if you have one of THOSE kids and they get slime in their hair, it's all about the mayonnaise!
I decided after this particular incident that I should post about it, because after all, one of you might have one of these kids as well!
OK, first off, what do you get when you mix this...
This was not helpful.
It was also not helpful that her big brother was laughing himself into tears as well. So I had to chase the child around the house (with slime drooping from her head) to try and explain that it wasn't HER I was laughing at but the SITUATION. Needless to say, she did NOT think this shit was funny in the least.
First instinct, call mother-in-law. She used to be a hairdresser, she HAD to know how to remove slime. She suggested putting on tons of thick conditioner to hopefully help the goop slide out. Made perfect sense so we tried it.
Monday, January 24, 2011
Ode to My Thirties
Good bye to my 30's! You were AWESOME, so much cooler than my 20's! Don't get me wrong, my 20's gave me a college education and the absolute LOVE of my life, both of which I'm thankful for each and every day, but it wasn't until I met you that I truly hit my stride.
Right off the bat, you gave me the most amazing gift of all, the gift of motherhood! It's funny, I spent my whole life swearing off motherhood, but 6 days after my 31st birthday I met my Monkey Man and it was all over! I knew at that moment that this would be the greatest adventure of my life and I embraced it with every fiber of my being!
Four years later I welcomed the Fiery One, and although at this point you had armed me with a bit of motherly know-how, you slapped me square in the face with a hard reality. Everything I thought I knew about parenting didn't mean DICK with the second child!
Because honestly, it's a very thin line between laughter and utter breakdown and like the song says, "It's better to laugh than cry!" You taught me more about self-sacrifice than I ever really wanted to know, but at the same time gave me the wisdom to see that everything I have sacrificed for them has been worth it 100-fold! In the end, they will be my greatest accomplishment!
You gave me a sense of purpose and level of confidence that my 20's never could and it was beyond liberating! But you gave me that confidence with a level of self-control that I didn't possess in my 20's to keep me out of trouble and I thank you for that! You helped me see that it was pretty cool to be ME. You showed me that it was OK to be proud of my accomplishments, even if the only thing I accomplished that day was a load of laundry! And seriously, you have to be proud of yourself because at the end of the day, nobody else really has the time to give a shit and if you have to wait for the validation of others, you're gonna end up disappointed and sad!
You helped me embrace my body! Although I had an amazing physique through my teens and 20's, I was too stupid and too self-conscious to know it! It's probably for the best as I could have been wicked dangerous otherwise, but it wasn't until I gave birth to two kids that I realized that this was it. This was the only body I would ever have and I might as well enjoy it! So I adorned it with artwork that celebrated my life, the life of my two kids and the memory of the two that never came.
You taught me that every day counts, it sounds totally cliche' but it's true. Time is fleeting and sadly, children grow up in the blink of an eye! Thankfully, during this last decade I embraced the media available to me to help me remember. I write and I take photographs of EVERYTHING! I'm sure I drive my kids and family crazy, but someday they will be able to look back on my journals and blogs and photo albums and remember all of the fun, stupid, silly, ridiculous times we had together. And no matter how mundane my day is, I try to look back and remember one amazing thing that happened, whether it was a horrible knock-knock joke told to me by a zealous 4 y.o., or witnessing my 8 y.o. work his first long division problem or even something as simple as watching a butterfly flit through the garden, it all matters, it's all important and it's what LIFE is all about.
All of this being said, I can't say my 30's were perfect. You showed me a level of loss that I had never experienced before and rocked my foundation. You introduced me to my mortality and forced me to shake hands with it. You rubbed my nose in humility more than once and you gave me more wrinkles, gray hair and cellulite than I ever hoped to have! You also showed me that I really can't do squat about any of it, bugger all! So damn it, I'm gonna own these wrinkles, I earned them! And the gray hair? As long as my follicles will take hair color and I can lift that bottle to my head, I will battle those until I'm 80! I'm going to appreciate EVERY single day! I'm going to hug my kids and play with them EVERY day! I'm going to scratch the ears of two little pipsqueak dogs EVERY day! And I'm going to tell Big Daddy that I love him EVERY day!!!
So here's to my 30's! I raise a glass in your honor!
It's been an amazing ride and I thank you for everything you have taught me and for the woman that I am today! I will never, EVER forget you! Now I believe I see your sister coming down the road, I know she's been traveling for a long time and I should prepare to meet her.
To be continued...
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
OH the irony!
September 1st people, day one of "Re-vamp My Life 2010" and I woke up with a sore throat. Hmph. Did I school two children today? Nope. Did I go to my physical therapy appointment or even do the exercises? Nope. Did I follow the planned menu? OK, sort of, instead of chicken salad I made chicken soup, so I get a few points there! So what did I do today? I let the kids play Wii and watch movies until they turned into little hyped-up, cross-eyed, brain-dead zombies!
Sigh.
And people wonder why I never make New Year's resolutions!
Sigh.
And people wonder why I never make New Year's resolutions!
Monday, August 30, 2010
Gearing up... BIG changes ahead
Do you ever have those times in your life when you just NEED a change?!? A change of address, a change of style, a new haircut, a new job? Yeah, well, I'm having one of those times! I need a change of lifestyle! I'm tired of being TIRED. I'm tired of being POOR. I'm tired of BAD HABITS. And mostly I'm tired of feeling completely over-whelmed on any given day with my life! But you know what? I'm not gonna bitch about it, I'm gonna do something. In fact, I'm gonna do a lot and what better time to start than September 1, 2010.
1. After about a month of down time, I will start the kids up with school. This will be the Piggy's first year with "real" school, and the Monkey Man will be cruising into his 5th year of homeschooling (since I started him at 4). He's an old pro now! And lucky for me, he has the ability to be self-directed, doing some independent study while I work with the Little Miss. I'm sure it's going to be a bit of a learning curve for all of us, but especially me. Time management is key and I'm not the best at it!
2. The kids will start all of their activities! Last year I was pretty lax with things, but they are craving more activity and interaction with their core group of friends. So... they will both be participating in a homeschool sport and skate class, Campfire, bowling, and Nature Nights at the Ladybird Johnson Wildflower Center! The Monkey Man will have a monthly science class through the Austin Nature and Science Center as well as weekly science experiments at our local library! The Piggy will take a few of the Nature Center classes as well as a weekly arts and crafts class at the local library! And can I just give a big shout out to my library for offering cool things for my kids FOR FREE! Hooray! We love free! We will definitely be a busy bunch of beavers over the next few months, but that is exactly what they need!
3. I am starting a new menu program to hopefully cut down on our grocery bills!! I admit it, I shop for what sounds good to me at the time, I make sure I have all the staples and I wing it almost every day for every meal! I have a couple of things in mind when I shop, but end up having to go back to the store for little things like cilantro or broccoli or mozzarella cheese! It never fails and it adds up! We have also spent entirely too much $$$ eating out. We are pretty good about eating evening meals at home, but I have planned poorly for outings and errands and have had to grab food on the fly, and there are times I don't plan well for leftovers for Big Daddy to take to work for lunch. It's a huge problem. So not only am I planning for dinners, but lunches and breakfasts as well to hopefully cut back on that unnecessary spending! This is going to take A LOT of planning, and I'm going to have to FOLLOW THROUGH!! It's crunch time and I need to get our monthly budget under control! Mostly since we now have two kids participating in activities that require money and a home business we're trying to launch. Every single dime counts now.
4. This will be the first month implementing our cash only program. From now on, I will budget a certain amount of cash for groceries, kid activities and family entertainment. It is SO much easier to go out and just throw it on the card and deal with it later, which is what bites me in the ass EVERY time! I will now pull cash out every two weeks to deal with the various activities and the groceries. Bills of course, still have to be paid online, but I have those budgeted at this point and know exactly when things will be coming out. One tank of gas per paycheck, unless there is a specific scheduled outing that takes us out of town (like a camping trip or a tour of the Bluebell Ice Cream Factory). So this household is on lock-down for spending for at least the next 6 months to a year! We will have to get a headstart on XMAS shopping this year and get pretty creative with how we pull it off! Fun, fun!
5. Health is a top priority! I will be continuing with my physical therapy as my knees have been feeling SO much better. They're not perfect, but I feel as though I'm not compensating as much and I can climb stairs now with minimal issue!! I NEED to keep this going! My kids deserve to have healthy active parents! I am instituting the evening walk at least 5 nights a week! Big Daddy and I are both on portion control at meals and I'm trying very hard to cut back on the country-cookin' and focus more on healthy choices. I have never fed my family a lot processed, packaged crap, BUT I do have a tendency to fall back on the old stand-by meals that I ate as a kid as they are cheap to prepare and make enough to have leftovers the next day! Maybe it's just time to get creative and re-vamp those meals! I am hoping at some point to purchase bicycles for the entire family. It would be nice to get out and ride the trails! I mean seriously, with Lance Armstrong here, you KNOW Austin has some cool biking trails! Obviously healthcare is expensive so now is the time to get pro-active. The old saying "an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure" makes SO much sense to me, because honestly, I don't have the time or $$$ to be sick!
6. Burn the TV! Haha! I say this as on the same day I sign up for a free trial membership with Netflix! But we are seriously cutting back on screen time in this house. Obviously a large part of my homeschooling involves the computer and educational programming, but it's the junk TV and games I'm worried about. The kids will each be allowed one hour of screen time a day (they can choose for it to be a movie, the Wii or some non-school related computer time). Once a week we will have a family movie night and Big Daddy and I are going to implement the hell out of the DVR and record the 2-3 shows we love like "Modern Family" and "House" so we can watch late-night TV after the kids are in bed! I'm not saying there can't be exceptions, but night time needs to be family time, not sit-on-our-asses-and-watch-the-boob-toob time! I have a feeling this is going to be the hardest goal of all. My kids are TV watching, Wii playing, computer junkies! And I'll be the first to admit that sometimes all I want to do in the evening is veg on the couch and watch HGTV until I'm damn near comatose, but really? I can't find anything better to do, like read a book or play a game with my kids? We're definitely gonna figure this one out!
Now that I'm reading through this post, these goals seem SO lofty! Is it even remotely possible for me to pull this crap off? I don't know, but the only way we'll find out is if I jump in and try! And since September is the kick-off of our school season, it seems like the perfect time to kick off some smarter, healthier practices in our home. Wish me luck and I'll keep you posted, that is if I don't keel over in the process!!
1. After about a month of down time, I will start the kids up with school. This will be the Piggy's first year with "real" school, and the Monkey Man will be cruising into his 5th year of homeschooling (since I started him at 4). He's an old pro now! And lucky for me, he has the ability to be self-directed, doing some independent study while I work with the Little Miss. I'm sure it's going to be a bit of a learning curve for all of us, but especially me. Time management is key and I'm not the best at it!
2. The kids will start all of their activities! Last year I was pretty lax with things, but they are craving more activity and interaction with their core group of friends. So... they will both be participating in a homeschool sport and skate class, Campfire, bowling, and Nature Nights at the Ladybird Johnson Wildflower Center! The Monkey Man will have a monthly science class through the Austin Nature and Science Center as well as weekly science experiments at our local library! The Piggy will take a few of the Nature Center classes as well as a weekly arts and crafts class at the local library! And can I just give a big shout out to my library for offering cool things for my kids FOR FREE! Hooray! We love free! We will definitely be a busy bunch of beavers over the next few months, but that is exactly what they need!
3. I am starting a new menu program to hopefully cut down on our grocery bills!! I admit it, I shop for what sounds good to me at the time, I make sure I have all the staples and I wing it almost every day for every meal! I have a couple of things in mind when I shop, but end up having to go back to the store for little things like cilantro or broccoli or mozzarella cheese! It never fails and it adds up! We have also spent entirely too much $$$ eating out. We are pretty good about eating evening meals at home, but I have planned poorly for outings and errands and have had to grab food on the fly, and there are times I don't plan well for leftovers for Big Daddy to take to work for lunch. It's a huge problem. So not only am I planning for dinners, but lunches and breakfasts as well to hopefully cut back on that unnecessary spending! This is going to take A LOT of planning, and I'm going to have to FOLLOW THROUGH!! It's crunch time and I need to get our monthly budget under control! Mostly since we now have two kids participating in activities that require money and a home business we're trying to launch. Every single dime counts now.
4. This will be the first month implementing our cash only program. From now on, I will budget a certain amount of cash for groceries, kid activities and family entertainment. It is SO much easier to go out and just throw it on the card and deal with it later, which is what bites me in the ass EVERY time! I will now pull cash out every two weeks to deal with the various activities and the groceries. Bills of course, still have to be paid online, but I have those budgeted at this point and know exactly when things will be coming out. One tank of gas per paycheck, unless there is a specific scheduled outing that takes us out of town (like a camping trip or a tour of the Bluebell Ice Cream Factory). So this household is on lock-down for spending for at least the next 6 months to a year! We will have to get a headstart on XMAS shopping this year and get pretty creative with how we pull it off! Fun, fun!
5. Health is a top priority! I will be continuing with my physical therapy as my knees have been feeling SO much better. They're not perfect, but I feel as though I'm not compensating as much and I can climb stairs now with minimal issue!! I NEED to keep this going! My kids deserve to have healthy active parents! I am instituting the evening walk at least 5 nights a week! Big Daddy and I are both on portion control at meals and I'm trying very hard to cut back on the country-cookin' and focus more on healthy choices. I have never fed my family a lot processed, packaged crap, BUT I do have a tendency to fall back on the old stand-by meals that I ate as a kid as they are cheap to prepare and make enough to have leftovers the next day! Maybe it's just time to get creative and re-vamp those meals! I am hoping at some point to purchase bicycles for the entire family. It would be nice to get out and ride the trails! I mean seriously, with Lance Armstrong here, you KNOW Austin has some cool biking trails! Obviously healthcare is expensive so now is the time to get pro-active. The old saying "an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure" makes SO much sense to me, because honestly, I don't have the time or $$$ to be sick!
6. Burn the TV! Haha! I say this as on the same day I sign up for a free trial membership with Netflix! But we are seriously cutting back on screen time in this house. Obviously a large part of my homeschooling involves the computer and educational programming, but it's the junk TV and games I'm worried about. The kids will each be allowed one hour of screen time a day (they can choose for it to be a movie, the Wii or some non-school related computer time). Once a week we will have a family movie night and Big Daddy and I are going to implement the hell out of the DVR and record the 2-3 shows we love like "Modern Family" and "House" so we can watch late-night TV after the kids are in bed! I'm not saying there can't be exceptions, but night time needs to be family time, not sit-on-our-asses-and-watch-the-boob-toob time! I have a feeling this is going to be the hardest goal of all. My kids are TV watching, Wii playing, computer junkies! And I'll be the first to admit that sometimes all I want to do in the evening is veg on the couch and watch HGTV until I'm damn near comatose, but really? I can't find anything better to do, like read a book or play a game with my kids? We're definitely gonna figure this one out!
Now that I'm reading through this post, these goals seem SO lofty! Is it even remotely possible for me to pull this crap off? I don't know, but the only way we'll find out is if I jump in and try! And since September is the kick-off of our school season, it seems like the perfect time to kick off some smarter, healthier practices in our home. Wish me luck and I'll keep you posted, that is if I don't keel over in the process!!
Tuesday, November 3, 2009
Uncharted Territory
Oh jeepers! Time to trade in the Pilot for a mini van and my flip-flops for tube socks and sneakers, Little Mama's about to be "Sports Mama"! Here I was cruising through life, enjoying the creativity, art, music and crafts that so define my family when I was blind-sided by my 7 year-old. "Mom, I wanna play basketball!" Cue crickets....
"Basketball? Really? What about karate? No? Swimming? No? So basketball, huh? OK, give me a minute to think." Or panic if you really must know. Team sports are about as foreign to me as frog sashimi and social grace! I was raised by pot-smoking, peace-loving, hippies for Pete's sake. It was all about expanding the mind to allow for greater creativity, enhanced by music, nature and color. So naturally, I chose the path of art and music. I stayed as far away from sports as possible. In fact, PE was like Guantanamo Bay for me. Water-boarding sounds like a treat in comparison! I was never fast enough, limber enough, big enough or good enough to play anything well, so I was teased relentlessly. I was that "Breakfast Club" geek who was razzed by the sporting elite daily. So I learned a healthy loathing for anything athletic early on.
I have, in my later years, learned to appreciate watching a good game of basketball or hockey or even the occasional football game with friends (granted I'm usually the one chatting with someone in the kitchen with the food) but I had not really ever entertained the idea that my son would have an interest in team sports. So... what to do? Well, like any good parent, I researched and researched and found a program at the local YMCA where they teach basketball in a non-competitive setting. I understand that this can only last so long. If he is good and he enjoys it, he will have to enter a league. OK, feeling hyperventilation coming on! A league! OK, I don't mean to generalize, but the horror stories I've heard of crazy, gung-ho parents at these youth sporting events freaks me the hell out! I want my son to play for the love of the sport, not because he needs to help somebody else's parent relive the fucking high school glory days! I know these people are probably the minority, but it just weirds me out. And we all know that it only takes one bad apple to spoil the bushel. OK, so BREATHE!
I enrolled him in a SportsZone class where he has 4 classes to learn some of the basics of team sports. Then I have him enrolled for 2 months of basketball starting in January. These are both at the Y and are both non-competitive classes that are to teach him how to play the game in a safe environment. I can do this. I can do this. He wants it so badly and I want to support him in anything he wants to do. So, it's time to pack up all of my baggage and let him have his own unbiased experiences. Time will tell, he will either love it and excel or he'll hate it and we're back to writing songs, painting pictures and playing the dulcimer. Either way, if he's happy, I'm happy... except for having to get up early for games every damn Saturday morning!
"Basketball? Really? What about karate? No? Swimming? No? So basketball, huh? OK, give me a minute to think." Or panic if you really must know. Team sports are about as foreign to me as frog sashimi and social grace! I was raised by pot-smoking, peace-loving, hippies for Pete's sake. It was all about expanding the mind to allow for greater creativity, enhanced by music, nature and color. So naturally, I chose the path of art and music. I stayed as far away from sports as possible. In fact, PE was like Guantanamo Bay for me. Water-boarding sounds like a treat in comparison! I was never fast enough, limber enough, big enough or good enough to play anything well, so I was teased relentlessly. I was that "Breakfast Club" geek who was razzed by the sporting elite daily. So I learned a healthy loathing for anything athletic early on.
I have, in my later years, learned to appreciate watching a good game of basketball or hockey or even the occasional football game with friends (granted I'm usually the one chatting with someone in the kitchen with the food) but I had not really ever entertained the idea that my son would have an interest in team sports. So... what to do? Well, like any good parent, I researched and researched and found a program at the local YMCA where they teach basketball in a non-competitive setting. I understand that this can only last so long. If he is good and he enjoys it, he will have to enter a league. OK, feeling hyperventilation coming on! A league! OK, I don't mean to generalize, but the horror stories I've heard of crazy, gung-ho parents at these youth sporting events freaks me the hell out! I want my son to play for the love of the sport, not because he needs to help somebody else's parent relive the fucking high school glory days! I know these people are probably the minority, but it just weirds me out. And we all know that it only takes one bad apple to spoil the bushel. OK, so BREATHE!
I enrolled him in a SportsZone class where he has 4 classes to learn some of the basics of team sports. Then I have him enrolled for 2 months of basketball starting in January. These are both at the Y and are both non-competitive classes that are to teach him how to play the game in a safe environment. I can do this. I can do this. He wants it so badly and I want to support him in anything he wants to do. So, it's time to pack up all of my baggage and let him have his own unbiased experiences. Time will tell, he will either love it and excel or he'll hate it and we're back to writing songs, painting pictures and playing the dulcimer. Either way, if he's happy, I'm happy... except for having to get up early for games every damn Saturday morning!
Monday, August 10, 2009
Contemplation...
You ever just hit the wall and wonder what the fuck you're doing? I'm there.
I feel an obsessive need to get my shit together and make some changes. I don't think I'm having a mid-life crisis, but who knows, maybe I am!?! And it's not that I am unhappy, it's just that things aren't quite where I want them to be and it drives me nuts!
I crave organization, but seriously lack in that department.
I want a home with a yard where my children can play outside without being scorched or eaten alive by fire ants.
I want to figure out a way to balance homeschooling the Monkey Man while providing positive and personal interaction for my Piglet. I feel for the Piggy, so much time and effort has been placed into the education of the boy that the little girl sometimes gets lost in the wash and I HATE that! She deserves the same one-on-one time that he had!
I want stronger, more meaningful relationships with my family and friends. In this day and age, things seem so much more superficial. It's like I see your status on Facebook and for some reason I am satisfied that this is communication and friendship. WHY? It's positively ludacris! I want to SEE my friends, I want to BBQ with my family, I want a level of connection that transcends online networking and email. Is that even possible anymore?
I want something for me. I am so lucky that Big Daddy's folks have moved to town and now I have the ability to make something for myself and I am chomping at the bit to do so! It's been so long since I've been anything but "Mommy" I'm just not quite sure how to venture out into the big bad world to stake my claim. It's scary! I have definitely decided that I'm not coming out to play by the rules of others, if I'm going to leave the relative safety of my stay-at-home mama status, I'm going to do what I LOVE. I refuse to compromise. The fact is, something of my own will take me away from my family at times and therefore it better be something I LOVE or it just won't be worth it!
So there it is. All the little naggings in the back of my brain, slowly working their way to the forefront of my mind. Do I listen, do I tempt fate and embrace the notion of change? It seems like the season. I suppose a new dawn brings new beginnings and I should just greet the dawn and be open to the possibilities!
I feel an obsessive need to get my shit together and make some changes. I don't think I'm having a mid-life crisis, but who knows, maybe I am!?! And it's not that I am unhappy, it's just that things aren't quite where I want them to be and it drives me nuts!
I crave organization, but seriously lack in that department.
I want a home with a yard where my children can play outside without being scorched or eaten alive by fire ants.
I want to figure out a way to balance homeschooling the Monkey Man while providing positive and personal interaction for my Piglet. I feel for the Piggy, so much time and effort has been placed into the education of the boy that the little girl sometimes gets lost in the wash and I HATE that! She deserves the same one-on-one time that he had!
I want stronger, more meaningful relationships with my family and friends. In this day and age, things seem so much more superficial. It's like I see your status on Facebook and for some reason I am satisfied that this is communication and friendship. WHY? It's positively ludacris! I want to SEE my friends, I want to BBQ with my family, I want a level of connection that transcends online networking and email. Is that even possible anymore?
I want something for me. I am so lucky that Big Daddy's folks have moved to town and now I have the ability to make something for myself and I am chomping at the bit to do so! It's been so long since I've been anything but "Mommy" I'm just not quite sure how to venture out into the big bad world to stake my claim. It's scary! I have definitely decided that I'm not coming out to play by the rules of others, if I'm going to leave the relative safety of my stay-at-home mama status, I'm going to do what I LOVE. I refuse to compromise. The fact is, something of my own will take me away from my family at times and therefore it better be something I LOVE or it just won't be worth it!
So there it is. All the little naggings in the back of my brain, slowly working their way to the forefront of my mind. Do I listen, do I tempt fate and embrace the notion of change? It seems like the season. I suppose a new dawn brings new beginnings and I should just greet the dawn and be open to the possibilities!
Friday, May 8, 2009
Hard work pays off!
Well, it's week 3 of the Monkey Man's poop-scoopin' job and I have to say, I'm proud of this kid! He grabs the trash can, locates his shovel and rake and proceeds to scoop without even being told. In fact, he usually informs ME that it's his poop-scoopin' day. He also informs me every Saturday that it's PAYDAY! Tomorrow he will get paid and since he has been a frugal boy and not spent any of the $$$, he will have $15. I think he will probably race right out this weekend and purchase a much coveted Bionicle. I'm cool with that... he's earned it!
Sunday, April 19, 2009
It's a crappy job, but somebody's got to do it!
The Monkey Man has been bugging us for about a month to receive an allowance. He wants some spending money, which I get, cause technically, I want some too! Anyway, Big Daddy and I have been discussing the possibilities. I have a hard time with allowances because I think a child should be willing to help clean up the house and whatnot just because he or she is a part of this family. After all, I've been cleaning this house for years and no one has ever given me an allowance! We all live here, we all make messes and therefore we should ALL do our part. But I do respect that he's 7 now and wants to make a little money to buy a Bionicle on occasion. It could be a good lesson in the value of a dollar and what it means to work hard for it.
After much discussion, we decided that normal household chores would not be included in the allowance. He needed to do a job that I normally did, so it would be helpful to ME! Well, he stinks at laundry and folding (it would take him 20 years to fold one load), putting dishes away worries me because he would have to climb on a chair to put breakable things in the upper cabinets, an accident just WAITING to happen. He's not old enough or big enough to mow the lawn, so we finally settled on... POOP SCOOPIN'! Yep, poop scoopin'! It is a job that I abhor (and not because poop is gross, but because it KILLS my back to stoop like that), and we have a tendency to let it go for long periods and yadda, yadda. Poop scooping is always the last thing on my list of to-do's, so it seemed an obvious answer to our problem. At first The Monkey Man wasn't too thrilled about it, but when I explained that we would get him an appropriate shovel and rake AND pay him $5 a week, he seemed much more amicable! So, he has agreed that he will scoop twice a week for a $5 allowance. He started his job yesterday and did great! He busied himself, never complaining and searched the yard high and low for canine landmines! Afterwards he even helped me put branches and twigs into the recycling bags. He told me, "Mom, I'm here to help! If you ever need anything... I'M YOUR MAN!" And he truly is, I'm very proud of him and the job that he did! If he keeps this up, he'll have a new Bionicle in 3 weeks! SWEET!
Thursday, April 2, 2009
Takin' them out for a test run!
It's that time folks. Time for a little Piggy to venture into the potty realm. I have to be completely honest here, I HATE potty training (or potty-learning if I want to be PC about it)! I know there are folks out there that have potty trained their little angels in one weekend. I also know of kids that just decided they were done with diapers and potty trained themselves. No such luck here! When it was time for the Monkey Man to leave diapers behind, it was a 3 month battle of wills, with him ending up victorious in most instances! Granted, we eventually got through it and I'm happy to report my son will NOT go to college in Pull-Ups! But it was a struggle and it seemed as though every minute of every day revolved around the toilet and bodily functions!
Now it's the Piggy's turn! She shows interest in the potty itself, but not so much in doing the "DEED" in the potty. Her bears and dollies are quite adept at using the potty, but not the Piggy. However, I recently discovered that she longs for "Big Girl" undies, so I decided to buy a pack to see if I could well... bribe her to use the potty. I got them washed and she tried them on yesterday. She LOVED them! And I have to give her credit, she wore them for almost 3 hours, asked to use the potty 5 or 6 times (only once was productive, but hey) and stayed dry the whole time. I think we will have Evening Undie Time for a couple of weeks and then see if we can expand from there. All you mamas out there, please send good potty vibes my way, I'm gonna need 'em!
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