Where Life Takes You...

My life is a sitcom...

2012-02-02T17:26:00.000-05:00

After waking today NOT sweaty and finding out the furnace broke sometime in the night (can we turn off the heat every night, please?); after the doorbell ringing at 9 in the morning with a small but bulging box that must have weighed 90 lbs, at least (getting that up the stairs was fun); after Max's comical attempt to open said bulging box - what is the latest?

Tyler has been on a quest for a few days to find a new MMO (since Lego Universe shut down.) What does he find? A Dragon Ball Z MMO! Perfect for him, right? Only problem? There are 3 versions of the game...Korean, Chinese and Taiwanese. Hmm. Well, every game is set up pretty much the same way, right? How hard could it be to figure out how to install one of these three versions.

After explaining that he won't be able to read any of the menus, or character chats or probably even chat messages from other players, Tyler still wanted to give it a try. One language version wanted the Korean equivalent of our social security number. After trying a bunch of random combos, forward progress was stymied. On to the next version. You want our country specific cell phone number? What is the country code for China again?

No, that won't work. Next! Oh, there is an English language add on for this version of the game? Cool! But it doesn't translate everything. 5 hours to download? Wow...what are they using, 1200 baud dial-up modems? *snicker* Sorry, geek humor.

5 hours turned into 2 days of failed downloads with retrys, but we finally got the game installed and working. So far, Tyler loves it. Problem? Now Max wants it installed. Here we go again!

The language barrier hasn't been an issue, so far. Tyler found a forum post that mentioned which server all the English speaking players log on to. He did ask if I could find a "look up guide" online that shows the English translation of the various characters/words he is seeing. Umm...you mean a Taiwanese to English dictionary? That would be a BIG book, I think. Sorry son, there aren't any quick look-up guides for that.

I wonder how a request to add conversational Taiwanese or Chinese language classes to our small town's public school offerings would fly. Ha!

Amazon Must Love Me

2012-01-29T17:45:00.000-05:00

I finally ordered a new mattress pad and pillow. I think I have milked all the mileage I am able to out of my current pad and pillow. I took the hint yesterday as I stripped the bed. I decided it was time to wash both the pillow case AND the "removable/washable cover" on my latex pillow. You know what? The pillow practically disintegrated in my hands. What a mess! I knew it was suffering from memory foam Alzheimer's (it no longer could remember it's original shape.) I did NOT know the pillow had suffered a complete breakdown.

When I stripped the sheets off the bed, the boys both came in and commented on the naked memory foam pad. "Mom? Can I sleep with you tonight on that side of the bed? I like how the bed is all squishy on your side and how I fit in your indent..." My WHAT? Oh. Right. The pad has Alzheimer's too. How many years does it take memory foam to lose it's memory? For me, it's been about 9 years or so. But really, this pad could have been 86'd a couple years ago. Max's comment had me thinking. "Mom! Why is your bed yellow?!" Um. [He had me thinking gross!] That pad used to be white, honey. It's just very old. "Did you pee on it a lot like I used to???" Ummm. No honey. You have pee'd on it. So has your brother. But not Mommy.

The more I think about it, maybe I should donate this pad to science. What does 8+ years of night time kid invasions (with leaky diapers), years of night sweats with hormonal surges and other assorted thrills and spills contribute to the world of science? I have no idea. I'm curious what a microscope would show. And scared.

I'd say I deserve a new memory foam pad. The current pad is 2 inches thick (4 lb density). The new one is 3 inches thick (same density). Other than making it harder to stretch on my fitted sheets, I wonder what the extra inch will give me. I am hoping for a better night's sleep. Stay tuned...

New Addition

2012-01-19T18:10:00.001-05:00

It's been over 10 years, but we have a new addition to our family. A cute butcher block cafe table and chairs! I think the last bit of furniture we bought was stuff for the nursery. The boys are currently sharing that set between their two rooms. Tyler has the day bed I used when I was single and Max is still sleeping in Tyler's old toddler bed. Yeah. They are next on the list for new furniture as soon as we find the right sets (nice quality but affordable - it's not as easy as it sounds.)

I wouldn't recommend waiting 14+ years for a kitchen table (this spot has been empty since the house was built) but I am pleased with our $199 bargain from Bob's. Thanks Bob! Now we can retire the TV tables my parents gave us as a gift all those years ago. Ha!

We just need to coach Tyler not to throw his body into the table as he sits down. I can just picture the table being shoved right through the sliding glass door. Yikes! I am also anticipating some objection when the boys realize this is where we are eating dinner tonight. No TV! Heh heh.

After the boys' rooms have been done, maybe I can finally get an HD TV...flat screen! Imagine, no more having to slam the side of the TV to clear up the picture when it goes wonky. Ah, 21st century technology... Maybe by the 22nd century I will have you. Ha ha!

The Sarcastic Mom - Has a nice ring to it.

2012-01-16T07:10:00.000-05:00

I've been thinking about changing the title of my blog. Why? I don't think everyone "gets" me. See, I receieved a couple comments from friends on my last post that equated to "gosh, I hope you really aren't constantly on the brink of beating the kids..." Um, no. Really!

Here is a good example of a Sarcastic Mom moment. Max approached me today and said, "Mom? I'm gonna steal a piece of your chocolate and put it in Tyler's underpants!" He was laughing so hard he could hardly get the words out. I replied, "Touch my chocolate, young man, and you will find out what it's like to grow up with no arms." He ran away laughing, yelling back - "I'll sneak in tomorrow morning and steal some for Tyler's underpants! You'll be sleeping and never know!!" See. He gets me.

Tyler, on the other hand, is still trying to figure out the nuance of sarcasm. He doesn't read people well and takes everything they say at face value. He is very literal. I have to be careful how I phrase things with him. Maybe I should utilise him more as a sounding board. Bounce my ideas off him and see how he reacts. I should have given him our Christmas card "newsletter" to read and gotten his reaction.

That is another prime example of how people don't "get" me. The note I sent this year with our annual Christmas Card was VERY Sarcastic Mom. Classic. It began with something along the lines of "Another year is gone. We are broke. We are tired. The End." Followed with a "But seriously!" and some tidbits about our year. My husband's uncle promptly sent us a check in a return card with a very sweet note. He was concerned about us being "broke" and wanted to send money for the boys to help out.

Yes, I cried. It was touching! But oh brother, he did NOT get me. I mean, yes we really are broke, but so is pretty much every single income middle class American family in this economy. Am I right?

Don't send money. I will keep it. Now I am off to Google my new blog title. I'll bet you chocolate that it's already taken.

If You Can't Beat Them, Charge Them?

2012-01-09T20:17:00.000-05:00

It can be difficult to enforce rules when you are a parent who tries very hard to never physically strike your children. Time outs have limited effectiveness and you can't use them too often or the positive effect is lost (or your child is spending most of the day in time-out.)

We used a chore chart for a while with a prize box reward system. That worked pretty well, until the chart was accidentally erased (wipe off white board) by our goofy cat. How? I had the chart leaning against a wall and the cat thought it was huge fun to run through the "tunnel" I made. His repeated passes turned him into a big furry eraser. Once the boys realized I had no idea how many stars they had earned for the month, the chores and good behavior went undone. Back to square one.

Then thanks to a couple jerks on YouTube who thought it great fun to use clips from my youngest son's favorite TV show and replace the 5 year old friendly dialog with a spew of curses and other inappropriate talk and did NOT identify their efforts as MATURE CONTENT, I have been treated to a string of four letter words from both my boys (who naturally found these videos totally hilarious.) With a great deal of difficulty, I resisted the urge to smack the lips off their faces and came up with an ingenious punishment. If either boy utters one of the "you can't say that!" words within hearing of his sibling, he must pay his brother 25 cents. Same goes if Mom or Dad hears those taboo words. They owe us a quarter. Of course, to be fair, I made the punishment valid for John and I too. If we slip and the boys hear us, we pay them a quarter. I gave them each a Post-It and taught them to keep track of the quarters owed with hash marks.

Since both boys are very protective of their respective piggy banks, this worked really well for a day or two. Then my clever little devils figured out how to turn the punishment into a money making scheme. They started accusing each other of swearing. His brother might not even be in the same room but "Moooom! Max said the A word!" Oh brother. The Post-It hash marks started multiplying. Then things really escalated. They started doing things that made me want to swear. A lot. OK, maybe that last part is more about my frayed nerves and being this close to "that time of the month." Currently, I think Max owes Tyler $1.2 million and I owe both boys around $250K.

Yeah. I think I am in the market for a new method of punishment.

Photography Rules: The Chubby Chick (mainly me)

2012-01-06T16:38:00.000-05:00

After seeing a few nightmarish holiday photos this season, I have come up with the following guidelines.

Rules for photographing the fat chick (from a fat chick):

1. When framing the photo, only shoot from the mid-bust and up, if at all possible.
2. Try to stand a little above us. Straight on or from below is much less flattering.
3. Have us sit at an angle and turn our heads a bit to the side. Tilt the head up a tad and bring the chin forward. All will minimize double-chins and create a more flattering line.
4. If there are young children available, arrange them in front or have them sit in her lap. The object is to mask and hide the mid-section.
5. In a group photo, have her stand in the back row. If she is short, have her be the one to hold up a sign, stand behind a sign or at least turn slightly to the side and extend one leg forward.
6. If you know photoshop and have fat women you love or care about, for heaven's sake, airbrush out our double chin! If you can fudge our waistline a tad, remove any tell-tale creases where our clothes might be fitting a bit too snugly, or in any other way shave off a few pounds - then DO IT! Trust me. We won't mind.
7. Don't take a photo of me from the back. I don't need to see my butt. This is just a personal request.
8. I don't like being in a photo alone. If you must have a photo of me...have everyone around squeeze in too!
9. Smile!

There you have it. Nothing too difficult. I could add something about barreling in certain lenses and using a telephoto...but I'll just keep it simple. *grin*

Christmas Card Reveal

2011-12-20T10:39:00.000-05:00

I've received feedback from several of my card recipients, so I know the Post Office did their job OK this year. Thanks Postal Workers! So for the curious, here is the results of a day of photo searching, a day of playing with elves, a day of Photoshoppery and ordering, and a day of label making/sticking/envelope licking:

My Christmas Elves

Add in the fancy border, mom and pop elves (cartoony) and the wishes for a Happy Holiday on the side and voila...here it is! Thanks to Walmart for doing such a nice job on the finished card. I just wish they sent nicer envelopes, but I do get the whole "keep costs low" and "use recycled materials" thing. Maybe next year the boys will cooperate with my whole "Let's get dressed up and pose for a Christmas Photo like loving brothers!" thing. *snort*

On another topic... My annual pre-Christmas anxiety has set in with a vengeance. Every year I stress. Am I really done with my shopping? Did I forget any one? Did I buy enough to cover Santa's butt? I fear it looking cheap and skimpy under the tree. I know. I really AM grateful that we have a home and a tree and the ability to put something under it. We are blessed. Telling myself these things helps a bit, but I am still waking up multiple times at night in a sweat. That's why my FaceBook pals are seeing me on at such odd hours. Heh heh.

Oh crud, I am watching a commercial for Sobakawa pillows. The boys both asked for one this year. Darn these dumb "As Seen on TV" products. A couple years ago it was those stupid Snuggies. Both boys got one, wore them once, and I've never seen them again. Idiotic backwards robes. "Wearable Blankets" my butt. *grumbles* But shoot! I didn't get the cheezy pillows. I have a feeling they will be super uncomfortable and a total waste of money. Let's hope the interest in this magic pillow has faded. I'm not adding them to my shopping list. Not gonna do it.

No! Not gonna call your 800 number. Not going to your website. No no no!

Shoot...why do these commercials have to be so compelling?!

Santa

2011-12-11T13:41:00.001-05:00

Tyler caught me by surprise the other day. We were driving in the Mom Mobile on our way to Wendy's for Tyler's favorite after-school snack. We were talking about Max's visit with Santa the weekend before and Tyler kept mentioning how all the "mall santas" were fake. Then he suddenly blurts out "Plus I think it's Mom and Dad doing all the work. I don't think Santa really comes to our house..." Ouch.

If Max hadn't been in the car I probably would have had a frank discussion on that topic, but because Max WAS in the car I had to do some fast shuckin' and jivin'. I decided to take that opportunity to drive home one very important point. Santa isn't FREE anymore. I told the boys that 100s of years ago, the elves made all the toys by hand and Santa gave away all those neat wooden boats and wagons for free to all the good little boys and girls who believed in him.

Then the modern age arrived with machine made toys created in factories. Over time, the little boys and girls wanted the slick new toys they saw in the store windows and not the home crafted things Santa made in his workshop. So Santa had to make some changes. He was happy to bring those shiny machine made toys and put them under the tree, but he would need some help. Those toys cost money, so parent started including cash along with the plates of cookies and glasses of milk to help Santa offset his overhead.

The world's population grew and demand for modern toys at Christmas grew right along with it. Santa needed more time and money to get ready for his Christmas deliveries. So Santa modernized. He got himself a computer, email, a website...everything he needed to take orders all year long, process credit cards, upgrade his sleigh, and so on. So Santa was happy to stay in business, the kids were happy with their video games, skateboards and bikes, and Mom's and Dad's...well...they tried to keep the bills from getting too crazy.

Tyler nodded his head in understanding. Then said..."Can we set up a hidden camera on Christmas Eve? I want to SEE Santa come down the chimney."

Yeah. I am working on that one now.

Christmas Card 2011

2011-12-05T19:11:00.001-05:00

I've been toying with ideas for this year's Christmas card. I wanted to do something clever this year. Turning all of us into elves with that JibJab tool I posted yesterday on FaceBook may give a clue to what I was looking for, but it wasn't perfect. I couldn't do a clean screen capture and they want $80 to make all the cards I need for my list. Yeah. $80 is INSANE!

So I dusted off Photoshop and set out to turn us into elves myself. After various iterations, I determined that I make a really hideous elf. The boys look adorable (including John) but I can't send a card with just them and leave me out. People might wonder where the Mommy elf went. So I decided to just elf the kids. No one really wants to see us old farts anyway, right?

So I slept on it and looked at my work again today. I still like it, so I'm running with it. I'm debating whether to post my efforts here or just make you all wait until you receive your cards...

...

Yeah. I'm making you wait. *insert evil grin*

Watch us all dance as elves!

Growing Pains and Growing Older

2011-12-02T08:14:00.001-05:00

26 degrees out. If I could feel my face I'd be blushing. Never been late bringing Tyler to school before. This is just a couple days after getting a warning letter from his school (addressed to all parents) about chronic tardiness. I gave him a 20 minute warning. Then 10. Then 5. When I said "Time to go!" he said "But I'm not dressed yet!" *sigh*

We need to make some serious changes to the morning routine again. I used to have a "no video games or computer" rule but let that slide because he was waking up at DAWN and had nothing to do but pester us for hours before it was really time to wake up. LOL! Allow computer time to buy me 30 or more minutes of sleep? You bet your sweet bippy! Maybe the new rule should be no computer or video games until he is fully dressed? Hmm. That might work. I'll have to get him to lay out his clothes on his desk chair the night before. He's not going to like new rules. But it will save our sanity just a little on these cold, dark mornings.

Now...how do I get a stubborn 10 year old to wear a winter coat, hat and gloves?! 26 degrees out and he grabs a sheep fleece lined hoodie. That's it. He flat out refused to put on anything else. Good gravy, I hope they don't send the kids outside today.

Speaking of 10 year olds - technically he doesn't turn 10 until tomorrow, but here is a slightly early birthday montage to remind us of how far he has come:

SlideShow

Happy Birthday son! I love you heaps and bunches!

Overheard in the other room...

2011-11-15T09:16:00.001-05:00

Some nights you hear something that just makes this whole parenting experience really worth while. I was puttering in the kitchen when I heard Max and Tyler talking in the next room. Max had asked for help with a computer game that turned out to have a lot of text prompts. His reading level is still pretty basic and he was struggling to understand what he needed to do in the game. Tyler very patiently started helping Max sound out the bigger words and identify letter combinations. Tyler even explained what a contraction was (in the case of you're meaning you are.)

I quietly listened to their conversation and was completely impressed with how well Tyler was doing in explaining things to Max. Toward the end of the interaction, Tyler was having Max attempt to read the prompts on his own by sounding them out. Ty would correct his errors and have him repeat back the phrases again to reinforce the words Max learned. I'm so proud of my boys!

This memory will help save my sanity the next time they are fighting like cats and dogs. Ha!

Costume Dilemma

2011-10-05T21:41:00.000-04:00

So...when I thought both boys were going to dress up as Angry Birds for Halloween, I laughed and was pleased. Then Max changed his mind to a train from Chuggington. Ok. Not as cool, but if it makes him happy. Now he tells me he wants to be Strawberry Shortcake. Um. Ok. Now I am flashing back to last Halloween and the mom who blogged about her 5 year old son dressing in a "girl" costume (Daphne from Scooby Doo) and all the flack she got from other moms at his school. I want Max to express himself in any way he likes. I have no problem with him dressing as Strawberry Shortcake. He loves the cartoon. Every girl in his class is a "him" in casual conversation - he hasn't made a full distinction between the sexes yet.

If he thinks his choice to dress as Strawberry Shortcake is just as valid as a bird, a train, or a video game character named Mario...who am I to disagree? I don't have a problem with long pink hair. He will look totally adorable. I just worry a tiny bit about what his preschool classmates will say. I worry a bit more about what his teachers might say. I worry a LOT about what random neighborhood kids out trick-or-treating will say. I worry most about what parents who answer the door Halloween night will say. If they call Max a little girl, he will correct them. He knows that fact well enough. Will they have the tact and good grace to just say sorry! and give him some candy? Or will they take the opportunity to lecture my poor husband about gender identity or yell at him for making his son "gay" or some crap?

I can hope that my town will rise to the occasion and just keep their opinions to themselves. I can just hear about the rumors at the next HSA meeting (kinda like a PTA, for those who wonder.) I can trust that they won't ruin Halloween for an impressionable 5 year old who sees nothing wrong with dressing as his favorite cartoon character. I can hope.

He might change his mind again by the time we hit the store this weekend. We shall see.

Max Turns 5

2011-10-03T19:34:00.000-04:00

Just a few months ago I was reflecting on Max being 4. Where does the time go? Today he turned 5 years old. Next year he will start Kindergarten. Having both boys attending the same school will be so odd! In a weird way, it will seem like Max is catching up to Tyler (he is always trying to do that.)

Max will tell you he's had a great day today. Fall theme cupcakes at school (he still has orange frosting around his mouth) and a pile of gifts to open when he got home. Nana and Grampy watched the gift opening via Skype. He had a mini party with his Grandma Lois yesterday and a family party with Red Lobster tonight (and cake!). He loves the Cars 2 race track he got from mommy and daddy (with Mater and Prof. Z from Tyler), new clothes from Nana and Grampy plus yet another race car (that works with the new track...my mom has ESP), added to the presents he received from Grandma Lois yesterday - coloring book, puzzle, Thomas pillow, talking Gordon train, and a hand made Angry Birds hat (she is a crochet genius!) he is in hog heaven right now.

The hat is a total scream! I was shopping for party ideas on Etsy a couple weeks ago (Max wants an Angry Birds theme) and he spotted a crocheted bird hat and went bonkers. I sent the link to Grandma Lois and she was able to whip out a close approximation in no time flat! Max dances with glee every time he puts the hat on. It's a riot! See for yourself:

He is over the moon. And I haven't even finished planning his friend party yet! I wanted to give him time to get to know his new classmates. It's hard having a birthday so close to the start of the school year. I think we are doing a costume party Halloween weekend. Save the date peeps!

Dream Man

2011-09-24T20:34:00.000-04:00

I don't remember much about the incident, but I do recall the well built man in the mall security uniform. He was observing me closely, and when it was all over he grinned at me and said, "I admire your perspicacity. That merchant was clearly duplicitous in a most surreptitious way." The way he spoke made me fairly swoon! I felt that spike of emotion like being kissed by your high school crush for the first time. Wow! What a man!

Then I woke up. After wiping the sweat from my brow, I started to giggle. What the heck what THAT all about??? Just the moment I document above is all I can recall, but it has stayed with me all day today. Just keep this in mind, boys...never underestimate the power of a great vocabulary. And uniforms.

The Power of Pharmacology

2011-08-30T14:12:00.000-04:00

Pharmacology[fahr-muh-kol-uh-jee] noun
the science dealing with the preparation, uses, and especially the effects of drugs.

I've been pretty heavily medicated for the past couple days. I had a massive infection in my throat that affected the lymph nodes in my neck on the left side. The swelling was unreal and seriously painful. Luckily, my wonderful husband pushed me to see a doctor. I was ready to cancel the appointment because I didn't feel safe driving and he came to my rescue. He drop all his work stuff and rearrange his schedule just to get me where I needed to go. Shh...don't tell him, but I love him more than he could ever know.

The doctor put me on an antibiotic instantly. Then, as almost an afterthought, he decided to give me a script for Prednisone too (for the swelling.) I could feel my anxiety kick in immediately. I've know a few people who have taken steroids for various illnesses and I have some memories of the side-effects. To be perfectly honest, I have a paranoia about serious pharmaceuticals. At various times in the past, doctors have given me assorted scripts to sample and see if they helped with health problems. I would fill them, take the little sacks full of pill bottles home, read the warnings and potential side effects and be too scared to take the meds.

Yep. They may have helped, but I was so freaked out by what might go wrong, I couldn't take the risk.

What did I do this time? I didn't look at the sheets that came with my prescriptions at all. OK, that sounds even worse. But I knew if I read the sheet for Prednisone, I wouldn't take it. I am sure of that. I just did what the doctor told me. Take with food, 3 doses a day for 2 days, 2 a day for 2 days and then 1 a day for 2 days.

Day 3 and I am feeling pretty darn good! Better that I have felt in a really long time. I am starting to realize that the steroid is having more far reaching effects than just the swelling in my neck. I have swelling in a LOT of other places on a daily basis. It's all gone. My hands, wrists, knees, back, hips...I've been in so much pain for so long, it feels odd to be able to stand up without having to supress a cry of agony. I also have a new pain in a weird spot on my lower back. Not sure what that's about. Probably internal swelling from my ongoing female issues going away and my internal organs rearranging themselves again. Things shifting and falling into new positions. I hope when all the swelling comes back in a few days, that this new arrangement works out ok for me. Could get interesting.

So now I am thinking about reading the sheet with the side effects just to see if I would have freaked out. I'm curious, ok? I'm also sad that these benefits will only last for a couple more days. I know long term steroid use just isn't feasible. They go from being good to being bad for you. Liver damage and stuff, if I remember correctly. Remember, I haven't read the warnings yet. I'm just babbling from memory.

In the meantime, I am going to enjoy feeling better. If the hurricane (Irene) didn't have us stranded at home, I might actually feel up to going somewhere and doing something fun.

Fasionista?

2011-08-28T07:06:00.002-04:00

No one would ever mistake me for anyone with any kind of "style" or fashion sense. Seriously. If it's made of cotton and will survive my washer and dryer intact, I'll wear it. Tyler is the same way. If it has the word "sweat" in the name, he is a fan. Max, on the other hand, cares about what he wears. He isn't rolling his eyes at me yet when I lay out his clothes, but I can see it coming. He will smile at me, shake his head, sometimes say "Oh Mommy..." with that tone that says "You are hopeless but I still love you..." and will dig through his basket of clean clothes for something entirely different.

So yesterday morning my Mother gave me a call. She'd been shopping for back-to-school clothes for Max. (She may have bought some for Tyler too, but she wasn't as excited to tell me all about this latest sweat suit I guess.) She spent at least 30 minutes telling me all about the adorable outfits from Baby Gap but she was particularly excited about this puffy vest. I think I can picture what she was talking about, but let's see if the website has it:

OK. Based on her gushing, I think this must be it. Cute, right? I'm sure the shirt and pants she got to go with it really make the outfit. Will it get the Max seal of approval? Gosh, I hope so. My mom will be crushed if he doesn't like her taste. heh heh. Max is lucky he has his Nana. They can go shopping together!

Now we come to the part where I talk about what is REALLY on my mind. If you are a long time reader of my blog (back to the AOL days) you know I had a lot of trouble with bullies in my youth. One thing they used to love to pick on me about was my fashion sense. Back then, I didn't buy my own clothes, my mother did. Because I was growing so fast, she couldn't see spending top dollar on trendy things. My back-to-school shopping was done at TJ Maxx, Sears, Marshalls...yadda yadda. I was the "Kmart Blue Light Special" girl from way way back.

Did I want those trendy things? Oh yes. With every fiber of my being. Why? Because a lot of the other girls wore them and I wanted to fit in. Desperately. I sort of wanted to be noticed by boys too, even if the idea scared me to death. Long story short, until I put my foot down and started shopping for myself with my own money, I was stuck.

Having been stuck in the fashion zero hell of my middle school years, I am now highly sensitized on certain issues. Do I think Max is going to get comments about the fleet being in port or that his new vest looks like a life preserver from his fellow pre-schoolers? Probably not. Four year olds don't roll that way, generally. (Anyone get that Back To The Future movie reference there? Anyone?) I do, however, have my worries for when Max is older.

I've seen a LOT of TV commercials lately with various stores advertising their back-to-school clothing lines. Kmart's ads in particular have been standing out for me. Kick me if I'm wrong, but I think the clothes in their ads are super cute! So here is my question...if you DO buy your kids clothes from Walmart or Kmart, do they feel the need to keep it a secret? Does this bargain mart shame only strike the girls or do the middle school or high school boys also feel the pain? Does anyone care anymore where the clothes come from or is it a regional thing? Maybe in school where you have a broader ratio of rich vs. poor?

I think most folks in our town are in the same general socio-economic class. We shop Walmart without shame and occasionally splurge at the mall after the tax return comes back. But there isn't really anyone around here I would classify as "rich" or "snobby". Not that I have met, so far. Sure I know a couple of the Moms watched Sex in the City and Project Runway so they speak "Prada" with some authority. They have designer purses that cost more than my whole wardrobe. But they aren't snobby about it. Not to my face. And they have nice kids. Kids that don't strike me as being the ones to one day cut Tyler down for wearing his favorite holey sweat pants.

Am I worried over nothing? Maybe. I am certainly starting to worry too soon. I tend to do that a lot. Max is only 4. His Christmas wish list is already 12 pages long on Amazon, so you can tell we haven't instilled in him the realities of our limited income yet (Santa doesn't deliver toys for free anymore kids, not since his toy biz went global.) The reality is, maybe he can get one outfit from Abercrombie, but the bulk will be from Kmart or Walmart. I hope my little fashionista can accept that cruel reality and make the best of it.

Sexism and the Star Trek Universe (Jim Kirk on the Rag?)

2011-07-24T10:01:00.000-04:00

I've been amusing myself the last few weeks re-watching the entire original Star Trek series from start to finish. To my shock, I actually found a couple episodes I'd never seen before. Maybe, in syndication, the TV powers-that-be decided those were the lowest rated and not worthy of being repeats? Or, more likely, they contained material deemed too controversial to air to young audiences. (I recall watching reruns of Star Trek at some early evening hour...like 5pm, right before dinner.)

I just finished watching the final episode of the series, Turnabout Intruder (Season 3, episode 24). Wow. I think I now know why I'd never seen THAT episode before. What a buttload of sexist and misogynistic crap. I have a deep affection for Gene Roddenberry because I love all things Star Trek and his over-all vision for the future, but he really gave this fan girl a slap in the face with his Freaky Friday tale.

Not horrible as a story line, but the execution was just plain awful. Kirk is forced into an alien device that causes him to switch bodies with an old lover who has deep resentment against Star Fleet for their rules against women being in command of star ships (not to mention her hatred of just being female - transgendered? I wonder.) In defense of Gene, in the 1960s this was a political hotbutton topic...women in the military. My Dad served in the Air Force so I had a lot of exposure to military life back then. And male-dominated attitudes.

In the early to mid-60s, women weren't allowed to rise above a certain rank and were not allowed to take on many jobs, even if they were technically qualified, because the job was considered too masculine. Women were given "women's work" in the Military. WACs (Women's Army Corps) and WAFs (Women in the Air Force) were not given any combat or weapons training, taught to apply lipstick and nail polish correctly so it would match the red color of the braid on uniform hats, and generally relegated to position with little power or influence.

Thankfully, President Johnson signed Public Law 90-130 in 1967. This lifted restrictions on military grade/promotions and gave women in military service more rights. But real change didn't arrive until 1976 when women were accepted into the military and treated much the same as the men. WAF/WAC was abolished. Even the US Air Force Academy began accepting females...but before this blog entry becomes a major history lesson, back to the topic at hand.

Mr. Roddenberry would most likely have been aware of the new Public Law (Star Trek originally aired from 1966-1969.) It sure did make a lot of waves! So, why then, did he envision a future where women were still barred from command? Worse yet, Bill Shatner's portrayal of Jim Kirk as a woman in a man's body was rife with sterotypes from the era. Women as hyper-emotional and unable to react well in stressful situations. Like all women were hormonal messes, perpetually suffering from PMS and unable to make command decisions. Hell, why didn't Lady Kirk just direct the Enterprise into a space telephone pole? Women are such bad drivers too, right? Ack!

While Gene made some strides in the fight against racial predjudice on the show (I will always love his integrated and ethnically diverse vision of the command deck,) he really struck out on the women's rights issue. It saddens me that this was also the series' finale episode. What a weak way to end such a visionary TV program.

I'll leave you with a quote from the Armed Services Committee of the 1967 US House of Representatives:

"...there cannot be complete equality between men and women in the matter of military careers. The stern demands of combat, sea duty, and other types of assignments directly related to combat are not placed upon women in our society. The Defense Department assured the committee that there would be no attempt to remove restrictions on the kind of military duties women will be expected to perform. ...It is recognized that a male officer in arriving at the point where he may be considered for general and flag rank passes through a crucible to which the woman officer is not subjected—such as combat, long tours at sea, and other dangers and isolations."

Looks like Gene agreed with the military men's club at that time and doomed women in the 23rd century to the lower ranks, mini-skirts, and go-go boots. Yes, I supposed he could have been playing devil's advocate in making his female ship's captain wannabe such an emotional wreck and a bad example for all women everywhere. Then I see the women in uniform and remember what a GUY he was. *wink*

Your thoughts?

Max at 4

2011-06-27T06:10:00.001-04:00

I've been lost in deep thoughts for the last couple days. I went back and read some entries in my blog from years ago. Before I discovered FaceBook, I spent all my free time writing in here. Many of those entries had to do with Tyler and parenting...which I guess made this a sort of Mommy blog. I never intended it to be that way, but when you write about your life and 85% of it is raising your children, the Mommy influence is inevitable.

One of the more negative side effects to the time sucking vortex that is FaceBook is that I tend to post my thoughts in short wall updates rather than take the time to flesh things out here. I need to see if I can capture all those status updates in some form and save them for posterity. One thing I love about my early entries in my blog is I managed to capture a lot of Tyler's early childhood. I think it will be fun for him to one day go back and read all my thoughts and memories from when he was a baby/toddler. Sadly, Max won't find the same treasure trove of writing about him. His life moments have been captured more like a series of Tweets and photos.

Max is 4. I thought I would take a few minutes to reflect on the last few months. This has been a fun age with Max. It's like he is made of solid joy and energy. It takes a lot to get him down. He loves music and dancing. He can spend hours replaying his favorite songs and making up dances. Luckily he has a wide range of musical tastes. Along with Laurie Berkner, the Freshbeats, Strawberry Shortcake, and other kid fare, he also loves club music (dance remixes), and classic rock. The variety goes a long way toward saving my sanity. I feel sorry for those parents who are forced to listen to Barney 24/7. Ouch.

His regular dance style most closely resembles hip hop, but he surprises me at times. I caught him copying Angelina Ballerina one day. He stopped when he saw me watching. Maybe it was my eyes tearing up at how amazing he was. He was doing basic ballet positions like he was born to it. I have this almost overwhelming urge to enroll him in dance classes, but when I ask him, he looks thoughtful for a moment then tells me no thanks. I won't give up, but I won't push. Having been pushed in my own childhood and how that sucked the joy out of all the things I loved, I just can't go down that path. I'm still sad I gave up my own dancing and violin playing so early in life.

Max often tells me he wants to play an instrument too. It changes from day to day, but the one most consistently mentioned is drums. He also favors keyboards and wind instruments. So far, he doesn't have much interest in anything with strings, but we did have fun making a rubber band banjo one day. Today he told me he wants to start a band when he'd older. He already has his drummer and guitarist picked out (pre-school classmates). I hope Aris and Brooke are into it. Ha! He tells me he will sing and play keyboard. He really is so much fun. It pains me when he and his brother fight.

Tyler and Max are so different. Tyler is more deeply emotional, into all things computer, and moody. Max's chronic sunshine really seems to bother Tyler at times. It's like vampires and sunlight. Max shines and Tyler cringes like it burns him. As a result, Tyler spends a lot of time trying to break Max down. He tries to rain on his parade, so to speak. Can a party boy and a chronic party pooper co-exist under the same roof? Time will tell. I think I am in for a very bumpy ride.

Then there are the times when they get along swimmingly. They play together - board games, video games, or just a playful wrestle on the floor. For a brief shining moment I have hopes that they will become the best of friends...then someone gets hurt. It's usually accidental, but a poke in the eye is still a poke in the eye. Tyler doesn't forgive easily and once Max is crying, he wants to stay crying. The drama can be overwhelming. It brings me right back to my own childhood and the rather complex relationship I had with my little brother.

We had our moments. We got along really well at times. Then there were the times we didn't. Like Tyler, I was the deeply thoughtful and moody child and my brother was full of energy and constant mischief. He loved to play jokes and tease. I blame my father for the teasing part. We were also nearly 5 years apart in age. I see a lot of similarities between Tyler and myself and Max and his Uncle Mike. A very complicated sibling dynamic with personality types as different as night and day. So fun.

I will try and keep the peace without turning into a screaming harpy like my poor overtaxed Mother used to. But enough about that. Back to Max.

I don't know if he will remember being 4 years old. I have a few memories from that age, but I think most people don't really remember back that far. He had a great year in pre-school. His teacher was Miss Mel (Melanie) and she was marvelous. Young, patient, energetic, cute as a button, petite and blond - the perfect blend for teaching kids this age. Max learned so much from her. I know he is going to miss her. You can see Max's musical tribute video to Miss Mel over on my YouTube page. That was 100% his idea. I just filmed him and added titles. OK, the blooper reel at the end was my idea. But the outtakes were just too funny not to share.

So other than mentioning that Max has expressed a desire to stay this age and size forever, I think I covered all my thoughts for now. If only I could keep him my sweet little 4 year old. I won't spoil his plans to stay as he is by telling him everyone has to grow up sometime (Tyler will do that for me at some point.)

I'll just continue to gently encourage him to keep dancing, doing his gymnastics and playing his music. Maybe he will try a class one day soon. He is only 4. No need to rush him into growing up too fast.

Blogging My 3am Flash of Hindsight

2011-06-16T03:46:00.000-04:00

It's funny the things that come to mind at 3am when you wake all hot, feverish and coughing. I think I was having one of my frequent "work" nightmares. Yes, even after being semi-retired for 10 years, I still have dreams about work.

This time, rather than a nightmare about being late for a meeting , parking my car in a rush and realizing I am only wearing my underwear - I had a rather insightful thought. Roughly 10 years ago to the day, I was tasked with presenting to several high level AT&T executives about Spyware/Malware. I was a newly promoted B level manager working in a new group doing web development. I was one of the few "techies" in our group. Most came from other backgrounds, like Marketing.

Naturally, given my background and having personally fought in the war against Spyware, my presentation took the tact that Spy/Malware was BAD. Very bad. Evil, evil, bad, naughty spyware.

It just occurred to me, 10 years later, at 3am, in my feverish delirium, that those executives asked for a presentation on Spyware because they wanted to know if AT&T could USE it to track consumer buying trends and whatnot. Duh.

It's funny what years of maturity, a healthy dose of corporate cynicism, and a fevered brain will make you realize. Makes me glad I'm a Mom now and not a corporate tool. Just imagine if they'd tasked me to implement the use of some kind of spyware. At least I can hold my head up high safe in the knowledge that I never compromised my own ideals. Ha! My over active subconscious mind can put that in its pipe and smoke it.

A Love of Books

2011-05-21T13:36:00.000-04:00

I've had PSAs telling me for many years now that reading to my kids would foster a love of books and reading. Know what? They were right! (Not that I really needed a PSA to tell me to read to my kids. I would do it anyway.) We have more children's books in this house than toys. Easily! And that is saying a lot, because these boys have more toys than a Toys R Us.

While it's really obvious that my boys love books, it's not always apparent to me that they love books because of my efforts. Last night I had a small bit of tangible evidence that made me smile. Tyler and I have been reading the Harry Potter series together for over a year now. We are on book six and I will be really sorry when this Mommy and Ty time comes to an end. Sure, there are many other book series we can read together, but how much longer is he going to WANT me to read him stories? He is going on 10 years old now.

Last night Tyler asked if we could have a Harry Potter slumber party. He wanted me to read to him until he passed out. I wasn't allowed to stop reading until he was fast asleep. After two chapters, I could see his eyes getting heavy. Suddenly, as I read some dialog that spanned a page, I realized too late that I was using the wrong voice. I didn't think Tyler would notice. Really, did he even notice that I used a different voice for each character?

"Mom...that was Mr. Weasley talking. You used Mrs. Weasley's voice." Wow. He not only noticed, but he recognizes the characters simply by voice. It WAS Mrs. Weasley's voice I was using. I smiled and acknowledged the screw up and continued reading.

It may seem like a small thing, but I've worked hard to develop a voice for each character in the Harry Potter universe. Many of them are based on the accents and voices from the movies. In defense of my own creativity, however, I'd like to point out that I've been using these voices in my own head since I read book one...long before the first movie came out. Am I the only one who reads dialog in character in my own head? To the credit of the actors that portray these beloved characters, they do a nice job of bringing the voices to life. Many of them sound just like I've always imagined they would sound. :)

Yes, a small thing. But I am still smiling about it. You should hear my Lord Voldemort voice. Seriously creepy! (He sounds more like the evil Emperor from Star Wars than the H.P. movie version, but I think it fits.)

Consumer Watchdog: Chocolate

2011-04-10T03:58:00.000-04:00

Let me start by saying I love chocolate. It's been a passion since I was a child. There are certain treats I remember fondly and even though I don't eat them on a regular basis, every now and then I will indulge. One by one, these cherished childhood treats have let me down. Well, really, it's the manufacturers.

When did it become OK to replace sugar with high fructose corn syrup and cocoa butter with hydrogenated oils and artificial flavors. I know they are cheaper and more shelf stable. But they don't TASTE the same. Not only that, but they are even worse for you, health wise, than the natural ingredients.

Then there is the underhanded way these manufacturers are trying to put one over on the public. How? They shrink the size of the product, wrap it in the same size packaging and charge us the same price. Snickers, Reece's Peanut Butter Cups, etc. They have all shrunk over the years. The ingredients have changed. Now, finally, it's reached the point where I no longer like the taste. The ratios are wrong and they taste artificial and waxy.

So I switched brand loyalty a number of years ago. I started eating certain imported and specialty brands of chocolate. Until THEY sold out. One sold their brand name to a US based chocolate maker so that company could make and sell their products. What did Hershey do to my decadent Cadbury chocolate? They started making it with high fructose corn syrup and hydrogenated oils. Did the taste change? Hell yes, it did! Not to mention the downsizing of my beloved creme eggs. Boo Hershey!

My focus hovered around Godiva, Lindt and Ghirardelli chocolates. Good stuff! I was super pleased when Lindt bought Ghirardelli in 1998. Better than being run by Quaker. I'm not super fond of giant food conglomerates buying up my favorite snack food start-ups and then changing the recipes to suit their high-volume, cheap focused policies (remember SmartFoods?! The formerly yummy cheesy popcorn treat is forever ruined for me.)

When my local supermarket started carrying Lindt and Ghirardelli products on their shelves, I was thrilled. At first. Easy access to something that used to only be found in upscale department stores or by mail order? Yes! But wait... Why does this Ghirardelli square taste odd? It doesn't send me into chocolate bliss. Not like my first taste in San Francisco back in the late 90s. Oh no! High fructose corn syrup and hydrogenated oils?!

Even my beloved Godiva - Belgian, expensive, pretentious... they now use partially hydrogenated palm kernel oil. Ick.

So now I am on a search for a new chocolate company. One that CARES about what goes into their products. I don't mind if I have to pay $5 a bar or more. You hear me chocolate manufacturers??? Spoil me! Make a decadent treat with all natural ingredients that costs me an arm and a leg to buy. I don't care! It's worth it! I want to let that little square melt on my tongue and taste the jungles of central America. Not artificial flavors and fake fats. Even better? Made with guaranteed Fair Trade ingredients. No child or slave labor! Ever! You hear me Africa?

Yes we American's love our chocolate. But I bet a lot of us would give it up if we knew who was picking the beans and how much of the natural rain forest was cut down to make room for cacao plantations using unhealthy growing practices. It's pretty ugly.

Now I should rant about tuna. Well...I guess I'll save that for my next episode.

Sweet!

2011-04-05T22:09:00.001-04:00

Life handed me a sack full of lemons...so we made lemonade! Really, it was the husband with the lemons (at the insistence of my youngest.) He learned fast how hard it is to squeeze lemons by hand.

Mistake #1 was storing the lemons in the fridge overnight. Brr! Not good for the arthritis or sensitive little hands. #2 was misplacing the hand juicer (and the food processor.) Found the little hand juicer when there were 3 lemons left to squeeze. Max didn't want to try the new twist and squeeze method and just watched me like a hawk. #3 was thinking sugar packets would be a good way to control the amount of empty calories we dumped into our mixture. Watching your 4 year old rip open and dump packet after packet can raise the blood pressure to unsafe levels. Not to mention making the walk through the kitchen feel rather gritty. I promise I fished all the paper scraps out of the jug.

The sugar packets, really, were a mixed blessing. Some of us like our lemonade on the sour side (Max), some like it medium sweet (Tyler), and some just a tad sweeter still (John and I). So the jug in the fridge is super sour. Ready for ice and more sugar.

Want some lemonade? Nothing like fresh squeezed. Enjoy it now. This little experiment in kitchen science won't happen again any time soon. Heh heh.

Dysgraphia

2011-02-15T13:52:00.000-05:00

It's a scary word, but the more research I do the more I realize that it FITS. Motor dysgraphia. That's what the child development folks at Ty's school suspect. We've know for a while now that something was going on with him. He has been growing increasingly frustrated with school and the stress has been eating at him. This year the problems have really started to manifest. Add in some trouble with bullies and poor Tyler has been a total wreck.

It's been hard. Every parent wants (or should want) what is best for their child. For them to be healthy, happy, educated and well adjusted. Sometimes reaching those goals is a challenge. Lord knows I have some friends who found out early on that their parenting path was going to be bumpy. Parenting is hard enough without having extra problems heaped on. But they have faced their challenges with grace and have become strong advocates for their kids' well being. I hope we can follow their example.

We have a long way to go yet. Doctors, testing, referrals, therapy and so on. I am just praying for strength and guidance. The universe has a way of doing me a solid when I need it. I've been lucky that way. Now I just have to get past the guilt. Making poor Tyler write things over and over...trying to get him to be neater. I just cry when I think about how difficult it's been for him and how he couldn't TELL us. He didn't know how to explain. He didn't know why tying shoes and doing buttons was so hard. Why he was so clumsy and always falling down and ripping his pants. *sigh*

Back to doing my homework. Knowledge is power, I always say.

Darn phones!

2011-01-20T16:33:00.000-05:00

I have a love/hate relationship with the telephone. OK, really it's more of a hate/hate relationship. I'd rather just send an email, thanks. But seriously...the phone woke me up again this morning. I gazed bleary eyed at the caller ID and saw the word "school" so I immediately answered. We've been exchanging emails with Tyler's teacher a lot, lately. His grades have slipped since his regular teacher returned from maternity leave. I'd heard from other Mom's that she was pretty tough and didn't tolerate nonsense in her classroom. Since Tyler is about 80% nonsense, we figured we were in for a bumpy ride.

Ty responds better to a gentle touch and easy-going spirit. He gets super defensive when anyone in authority gets confrontational with him. He is all about truth and fair play. Don't blame him for something he doesn't think is his fault or he will totally shut down on you. Especially if you yell. He will do what you ask, as long as you are specific about HOW and how long he has to finish. He needs a bit of flexibility and clear directions. Stern and strict really rubs him the wrong way. Yeah. I don't see a military career any time in his future. :)

But I digress...again. I assumed the call was about Tyler. Nope! This time is was Max's school calling. His teacher wants to meet with us tomorrow about some "concerns" she has. Oh boy. John and I brainstormed back and forth this afternoon about what THIS is about. Maybe Max has been showing off his wide array of potty mouth phrases he learned from his big brother. Not swears! Things like "Well, you are a big poop head! Oh yeah? Well, I just threw pee and poop in your face!" and so on. *cringe* I know. Typical of just about any just turned 9 boy. Not so much the sweet little just turned 4 year olds.

Or maybe it's Max's abundance of energy. I don't think he's bouncing off the walls at school...but who knows. His lack of snow clothes? His teacher sent home a notice a couple weeks ago asking us to send in snow pants, boots, gloves, hat, mittens, etc. so the kids could play in the snow at recess. Cool! But...Max only has one pair of snow pants with matching thermal mittens. And only one pair of snow boots. I can't leave his gear at school. He wants to play in the snow at home too. And I can't send them to school if they are wet. We can't afford another set of gear just for 20 minutes of fun at pre-K a couple times a week.

Maybe it's not that. He's got the same speech thing Tyler had at his age. Can't say his "th" and "sh" sounds. And when he says "funky" it sounds like...well...never mind. But it seems a little soon for speech therapy. Most kids have that lispy thing at this age. So, maybe not. Is it his alphabet? He can sing his letters, no prob. But he can't read them all just yet. Tyler was into Alphabet books at this age and had his letters down cold. Max prefers books about hugs and kisses from cuddly animals or books about kids who stall their bedtime.

I know we should just stop speculating and wait until tomorrow, but this kind of thing totally freaks me out. We already have a meeting with Tyler's teacher set for next week. Now Max's teacher too?! I wasn't prepared for that. Max is such a sweetie. Cooperative, helpful, up beat, affectionate...what could it be?! *sigh*

I could use some prayers/lucky vibes that it's nothing serious. Positive thoughts. Positive thoughts.

Now, if I could just figure out what the HECK that dream was about. I was having it when the phone rang this morning. I was visiting with a former boss. He was boxing up his office. He was being forced to retire and wasn't happy about it. I was sympathetic and had some brilliant insights. Something about having an office with a door instead of a cubicle and the impermanence of a cube. How his grand kids could see where Grandpa used to work... but here's the thing. This boss was Kelsey Grammer. Yeah, the actor. No, I never worked for him in reality.

His office building entrance opened into a broad atrium that then connected to a swanky mall. I walked across into the mall, around a large water feature, and into a VERY long line for ice cream. In the line with me was my Great Aunt Evie and Grandma Madelyn. They've been dead for many years but I still think about them often. Super great ladies. They were babysitting a little girl around 3 years old. My little girl. At one point, she took a toy truck and drove it into the water feature. Then walked in after it. The water was over her head, so I reached in and grabbed her by the head to lift her out of the water. She smiled at me...no crying or coughing. It was obvious she was completely unaffected by the water. I remember thinking in the dream "but I don't have a little girl. I have 2 boys."

People were cutting the line and making me angry. When it was our turn for ice cream, my little girl wanted vanilla with this crazy hodge-podge of mix-ins. I was a little worried about her age and the dangers of frozen gummi-bears. Then I asked for the same mix-ins with chocolate ice cream. The girl gave me this tiny tiny little cup thing - is was like a plastic ball, slightly squashed with a circular opening. It was called a "licker" cup. I was really annoyed by how little ice cream was in it and how expensive it was. Plus frozen gummi-bears really ARE gross.

Oh yes, and my great aunt was wearing this sailor style suit with a hat just like the Stay Puff'd marshmallow man. Navy blue and white. Someone in line made a snide comment like "ahoy sailor" and saluted her. I shot him a dirty look.

So you can see how confused and muddled I was when I answered the phone. What on earth did THAT mean. LOL

Movies - Legion

2010-12-13T18:43:00.000-05:00

I just watched the movie Legion on Netflix. I had such a strong reaction to the film, I felt compelled to write a review. I've never done that before, so I took some time to read some of the other reviews first. Lesson learned...many people are stupid and I should NOT read the reviews on Netflix. They are pretty much useless.

I swear, if I had been in the same room as some of these mouth-breathers, I would have a sore arm from smacking them repeatedly in the back of the head. I feel sorry for film makers. They have to pander to the masses. They are the people with disposable income, I guess. I get it. But try and slip a deeper message into your film and you get a crapload of stupidity from those same mouth-breathers. The masses don't like it when you get too deep or preachy. "More action! Kill more stuff! It ain't an angel if it don't got wings! Why her? Why her baby? I'm so confused! The story makes no sense! Wah! God would never kill a baby!" Gah! Go sign up for a world religions course at your local community college, people, and get a clue.

God would never kill a baby? Really? Did you miss the part in the bible with the flood? What did you think happened? All the babies floated like rubber ducks for 40 days and nights? How about God asking Abraham to sacrifice his son as a symbol of his faith? Yes, I know. I am just pandering to the "bible is literal fact" crowd. I am firmly in the Bible is full of parables meant to teach through example and NOT literal fact crowd. Just trying to make a point.

Old Testament God was a wrathful God and not above doing some serious smiting. I do like the New Testament God better. The loving and forgiving God is much nicer. But then you take a read through Revelations and you see that old wrathful God is still in the mix. He may have promised to never send another flood, but there is more than one way to give the earth a clean sweep.

But I digress. I often do that. Back to the movie... while the action was cool, it was not the point of the film. Dennis Quaid did a good job portraying a man beaten down by life and poor choices. I don't know why so many people were knocking his acting in this. I thought all the actors did a great job. There was a mood and darkness to the film. Almost no sign of hope, until nearly the end. They did a nice job of leaving me hanging and wanting to see more of the story. I'd be happy to see a Legion 2.

This movie is not for zealots who think God is only loving and forgiving. It speaks more to the disenfranchised among us. Those force-fed faith as kids only to grow up and see the way the world REALLY works and where organized religion is failing us.

No, I haven't lost my faith in God. Just my faith in men who claim to be believers, but don't DO as they SAY. Words and professions of faith are meaningless if you go to church on Sunday but put people down, pass judgement on others and wait for someone ELSE to fix the ills of the world the rest of the week.

So I say watch the movie and look for the deeper messages. The action bits keep things interesting, but the beauty of the film is in the character interactions. Seeing the flaws we all have and how we can fail, epically, to overcome them, or how we can rise above them.

Where is the love?

2010-11-17T13:38:00.000-05:00

Last week, Tyler jumped into the van and settled into his seat with a sigh of frustration. I asked him, "What's up, bud?" He vented about three of his friends. The gist I got was their lack of interest in trading Pokemon and the boys kinda poking fun that Tyler was still interested in his old DS games. He was quick to clarify that he still has friends who loved to play the same video games as him and that he has NO INTEREST in playing the games these boys play.

"What games do they play, sweetie?" I had a feeling I already knew the answer...probably something on another game system that Ty doesn't have and wants. His response shocked and then horrified me. "They play Halo and Call of Duty and junk like that, Mom." What?! I asked if he was sure about that and Tyler was adamant. That is all they talk about.

I was quiet for a moment as I digested this new information. "Mom? Are you mad? I know you don't like those games because they have guns...right?" I had to pull the van over because, suddenly, I was crying so hard I couldn't see where I was going. All I could say to Tyler was, "That's horrible!! Those boys are only 8 years old! What are their parents thinking?!" Ty gave me a pat on the arm and shrugged.

I was eager to blog about my thoughts when I got home that day, but I decided to sit on it for a bit. Just in case I was having one of my hyper-emotional days. But it's been over a week and I am crying as I type this, so nope. Not hyper-emotional. Still horrified.

To clarify, I am NOT against first person shooter games - if you are 14 or older! You need at least a scrap of emotional maturity to handle the graphic violence in those games! My gosh, Tyler has nightmares at the drop of a hat. After being exposed to the horrors in those kinds of games, I can only imagine the damage it would inflict.

8 years old, people. Those boys can't even SPELL Post Traumatic Stress Disorder...so they certainly shouldn't be suffering from it. Am I silly? Crazy? Does everyone but me allow their 8 year olds to play Halo and Call of Duty? Ugh.

Oh Wendy's...shame on you!

2010-10-21T12:09:00.000-04:00

I took a few moments today to send an email to Wendy's corporate about our local franchise.

I am disabled and my husband or I pick up food from this location several times a week. For the last month I have been enjoying the new salads. This location has been rather notorious for messing up our orders in the past (adding wrong things to the burgers, forgetting parts of our order) so we have gotten into the habit of carefully checking the bags before we leave for our 10+ minute drive home. We, and perhaps they, are still getting used to checking for all the items supposed to be included with the new salads.

I can understand occasionally forgetting to give us the little bag of nuts, the salad dressing, the croutons, etc. Sadly, it is not OCCASIONALLY with this restaurant location. They consistently leave out something. Yesterday they didn't add the bleu cheese crumbles to my salad. That is a main ingredient IN the salad bowl and not something we would routinely check for. We were all too tired to drive back to the restaurant, yet again, to get the problem corrected. If there were another Wendy's located closer to us, we would stop going to this particular location all together.

I have a very strong loyalty to the Wendy's brand. I adored Dave Thomas, am adopted, as are my two children. Dave was a great man. I love Wendy's and usually cringe when my boys ask me if we can go to Burger King instead. But I can't blame them. They are tired of the mistakes and all the times we have to turn around and go back to have them fixed.

Honestly, I am starting to think the "mistakes" with the salads are deliberate. The salads are expensive and I imagine the condiments/ingredients that go into them are also. A franchise could save a great deal of money if they consistently "forgot" to give nuts, dressing, and other things to the patrons. I don't like being scammed. I'm sure Wendy's corporate doesn't want their loyal customers to be scammed either. So I wanted to make someone aware of what has been happening at this location so that the workers can be better trained OR the manager reprimanded for shady business practices.

By the way, I do LOVE the new salads. Keep up the good work, Wendy's.

So, yeah. My local Wendy's has royally pissed me off lately. I honestly think all these "mistakes" are a scam. I think the employees have been instructed to leave items out of the orders. It must earn the franchise owner a bundle from the cost savings. I mean, it's not like it's the same brainless employee every time. They can't ALL be that clueless.

At the same time, I really do love the new salads. I've lost 10 lbs in a month. I gave up regular soda, french fries, burgers...I eat a lot of salad.

It must be rubbing off on the kids. The other night I made a healthy lasagna and low fat Caesar salad. Both boys actually ATE SALAD. They were upset when I ran out and they couldn't have more. I started checking for hidden cameras. Seriously. Tyler doesn't eat veggies. I can occasionally get him to eat some celery stix. But that is IT. He eats a fair amount of fresh fruit, so I don't sweat it much. Plus he gets his veggies in chewable gummy bear vitamin form too. He gets fish oil (Omega-3s and DHA) and calcium that way too. Thank the powers for tasty chewy supplements.

Shh! Don't tell him his nightly "treat" is good for him! He thinks he is getting away with something because we make him brush his teeth as soon as he is done chewing. Yep. I am aware of the bad rap gummy vitamins get and the rumor they cause tooth decay. So we are careful. But I know there is NO WAY that kid would eat fish. Ever. And trying to get him to drink milk is an exercise in futility. Plus I love how the boys fight to be the first ones to get their portion of vitamins each night. It amuses me. "Mom, can I have my gummies now?" "Noooo! I want to be first!" "Too bad! I asked first!" "Youngest goes first!" "No way!" "You got to be first last night!" "No I didn't!"

Heh heh heh. Wow. I really took a hard right turn on this entry, didn't I. But I digress...Local Wendy's? You suck! Wendy's restaurants, as a whole? Love you! Now... bring back the fresh fruit bowl! Those were awesome!

Post number 667...

2010-10-14T15:51:00.000-04:00

I almost fell out of my chair when I saw my dashboard a second ago. My last post was 666. My brain flashed back to The Omen movies and I got a little wiggy. LOL

I just made this comment on FaceBook to my friend Heather - When I was shopping for costumes for the boys, I asked Tyler his opinion about a few choices. He saw a Harry Potter costume and told me "Sorry Mom, I don't want to be Harry for Halloween. Too bad it doesn't come in your size, huh." LOL He is SO right. I told him if they made a Hermione costume in my size, I would so get it.

See, we spent a good part of the last month of Summer on into September and now this month reading the Harry Potter series. We are up to book 4 currently. When you spend extra time in bed with health troubles, nothing makes ME feel better than reading with my boys.

Tyler likes Harry and his adventures at Hogwarts, but he hasn't taken to the books as strongly as I did when I first read them. Heck, I went to a midnight release party at Barnes and Noble. That was a once in a lifetime experience (J.K.R! Write some more Potter world books! Honestly!)

However, all the reading together DID have another desired effect. Tyler has fallen in love with the Diary of a Wimpy Kid book series. When he isn't watching cartoons or playing video games, he is READING. Voluntarily! For FUN! I know, right?! Crazy good stuff. He just bought the Do-It-Yourself book at the school book fair and is filling it out, on his own. It's full of interview questions, like prompts or ideas for blog entries. I may have to mine from it!

Don't mind the Amazon links. Just experimenting with the new widgets here. I don't get enough traffic to ever make them really worth while, but they do look cool.

Next topic...

Today, as we were rushing to get to school on time, Ty paused at the back of the van. The van was covered in a thick layer of morning dew and Tyler saw an opportunity to make his mark. He wrote, "Tyler Was Here" in the mist. I could see it the right way around when I looked through the rear view mirror to back up out of the driveway. It made me laugh. Not an easy thing to do at 8 in the morning. Where did he even come up with that idea??? I'll have to ask him when he gets home from his haircut.

Max has his first school field trip next week. Pumpkin picking! He's been dying to do just that. I want to follow the bus with my camera in hand and capture every moment like I did for Tyler's first field trip (apple picking). But I know which farm they are headed to and it is NOT handicapped friendly. I'm tempted to just give Max my Flip camera so he can make movies of his adventure. Maybe I will... I can put my email address on it with the label maker just in case he drops or forgets it. I could get lucky. He is pretty responsible.

I missed the boys' apple picking adventure last weekend. Broken toe on top of everything else going on. But John was there to take some photos. Come to think of it...where is the camera he took? I want to see the photos! LOL Enough babble for now.

¿Qué?

2010-10-12T19:46:00.001-04:00

I composed a couple of brilliant blog entries in my head, in bed last night. Let's see what my sleep addled brain can spit out now that I've had another 2 hours of sleep and sorta remember what I was going to talk about.

First, I thought about adding a new blog feature - Becky's Thought of the Day. I would try and post every day with things that were foremost on my mind, crazy or not. That is dangerous, I know. I'm still thinking about it. My 4am thought of the day was seriously funny. I wish I could remember what it was now.

The next thing foremost on my mind is the events of the past week. Mainly the vehicle factory recall that took my 10 year old Ford Windstar away from me. For those who aren't up to date on current events here (you need to Friend me on FaceBook!), we took my minivan in to have its rear axle, the reason for the recall, checked for cracks. If found, the dealership would replace it and provide us with a $30 a day allowance to rent a car. The repairs were estimated to take a month. My poor minivan had 4 cracks in the rear axle.

So! I needed a rental car and poor mom-mobile was left at the local Ford dealership. John figured he could get a better rate on a rental than Ford was willing to offer - they have a direct bill deal with Enterprise - and got me a great rate (less than the $30 a day) for a "full sized" car from Enterprise. What did I get? A Ford Focus.

Since when is a Focus considered a "full sized" car!? As I practically sat on the ground in the tiny cockpit and tried to drive Max to preschool, I thought, "Maybe I can cope with this for a month..."

Just for some more background; I've been struggling with some health issues and limited mobility (intense back pain, leg muscle weakness, knee and hip pain) and have needed to use an assisted mobility device. It's sorta like a walker with wheels, but it's very heavy. My doctor took pity on me and while I am going through all kinds of tests, he helped me acquire a handicapped parking placard/permit.

If you saw the designated parking spot at the preschool, you would probably be as outraged as I am. It is nowhere near the front door of the school, it's on a slope and a badly degraded area of pavement. There is a side entrance to the school, behind a hard to open chain link fence/gate, but the door is always kept locked. They left a wireless doorbell button sitting unattached and balanced on the doorknob for my use. Sadly, the two times I've tried to use it, no one answers.

John warned me that the trunk on the rental Focus was hard to open and wouldn't stay open unless you pushed it ALL the way up. What he didn't realize is the trunk is broken on the rental car. The lid won't stay up because the hydraulics are shot. The lid just falls down at random. I was struggling to lift my rolley (our nickname for it) out of the jacked up trunk when the lid shifted with the breeze, startled me and made me almost lose my balance and I dropped rolley on my foot. I was wearing Teva walking sandals and heard a sickening crunch as my walker landed on my little toe.

So one broken and nearly unusable trunk and one broken toe later, Hubby agreed with me that the tiny Focus was NOT going to work. Yes, there are loads more problems beyond the rental car, but we aren't prepared to take on the State to get the parking issue fixed...yet. But we did take a ride down to Enterprise yesterday to see what else they had to offer. I sat in a Chrysler Town and Country minivan, a Ford Ranger truck with an extended cab, a Kia SUV... I rather liked the truck. It was very high and roomy! The seats were quite plush. But the kids hated it. I said NO to riding in the open flatbed in the rear. Moms and child safety restraint laws can be such a drag to 4 and 8 year olds. *insert wry wink*

We all voted for the Town & Country minivan. It's way more per week than that full sized Focus, sadly, but I am LOVING this van. John wasn't entirely happy with how the vote went, but after driving the van home and Tyler to school today, I am really pleased. I hadn't really noticed the gradual decline of our old minivan. The shocks, the brakes, the steering, the acceleration, the handling, the comfort, the power sliding side doors and rear hatch on the new van had me nearly in tears of joy. Or maybe I was ready to cry because it was too early in the morning and I'd been writing this blog entry in my head since 4am. But seriously... that van is AWESOME!

The husband reluctantly conceded that our old van is, well, OLD and probably due to be replaced. Add to that the new fear of sudden rear axle failure (yes, they are repairing that, but...) and how many other things that just suck on the old van, I think a new minivan is in our future. I've sold Tyler on the idea (no more booster seat and a rear entertainment package got him on my side) but Max is still reluctant. Max is very attached to the old van. It's the only car that has been around for as long as he can remember. John's company gives him a new fleet car ever couple of years and Max was a wreck when Dad had to turn in the slick black Impala that was his last car before his current Taurus.

Here is a question. Why is a "premium" car like a Taurus from Enterprise more expensive per week than a minivan? I'm not complaining! I like the van MUCH better than the cramped interior of the new Taurus. It just seems odd. Probably has to do with popularity, I would guess.

After I make dinner, I will get back to my online minivan shopping. So far the new Toyota Sienna is leading the pack with my choices. It's pretty slick looking! But I have a feeling all those options would cost a fortune. Something we don't have. I feel bad for my hubby. He told me weeks ago when he got the notice about the factory recall that getting a new car/van was out of the question. It's just not in the budget. Now, we're going to "make" it work. Wish us luck! And send warm skylight and dual rear entertainment system vibes!

...on bullying

2010-10-01T01:42:00.000-04:00

I've talking about my experiences with bullying and bullies in the past on this blog (pardon the wonky formatting on that old entry - it was imported from my old AOL blog and things got so messed up.) I was so sad when I saw this Ellen video. She chose to focus on gay rights, which makes sense. But having read more about this tragedy, I think there are a number of issues at play.

The one I choose to focus on is the teasing/bullying aspect. How his own roommate could be so ugly and mean... His name was Tyler and he played the violin. Feeling it. Deep hurt and sadness for his friends and family. I am intimately familiar with the long term damage a suicide can do to the ones left behind. Also intimately familiar with the desire to die rather than face another day with people who treat you with hate.

More thoughts later. Way past time for bed.

First Day of School

2010-09-02T16:20:00.000-04:00

Tyler started 3rd grade today and came home melting from the heat with complaints that his new math book "weighs 2 tons!" He has already proclaimed that "school stinks" so... so much for being excited to see his friends and reactivating his summer fried brain synapses. I do have high hopes for tomorrow, however.

Tomorrow is Max's first day of school. It's hard for me to believe it, but my baby is starting pre-school. Tyler objected to my attempt to take the annual first day of school photo on the front steps, so I'll try that again tomorrow morning with both boys. I keep trying to prevent Ty from infecting Max with his negative attitude toward school. No luck. I asked Max if he was excited about starting school (for probably the 50th time) and he just said (with a mischievous grin), "No. I hate school." *sigh* He sure does love his new Thomas the Train lunch box and Disney Cars backpack, however.

Max has reminded me several times today about what he wants packed in his new lunch box for tomorrow. Thank goodness he has a broader palate than his big brother. Figuring out what to pack for Tyler is an exercise in total hair-tearing frustration. I convinced Ty to take apple slices today along with his usual selection of junky bags of Cheetos, pretzels, fruit snacks and juice pouches. What is the one thing he doesn't eat? The apples. [Update: Tyler just told me "Great lunch today Mom. Thanks!" LOL and *sigh*]

What does Max want to take for lunch? A turkey sandwich, baby carrots, apple slices, yogurt smoothie, non-fat pudding and a baggy of goldfish. He is nearly doing cartwheels over the thought of opening his new lunch box and chowing down. Bless him!

Please send us some good vibes and wishes of luck for tomorrow. My guts are in knots! I hope Max will be ok and not too nervous. Please let him get excited and happy. I hate to see my baby be scared and cry. :(

Now to decide what to do this long weekend. We had plans to hit Cape Cod with the grandparents, but hurricane Earl has decided to plow right through there. Thank goodness the hotel didn't charge us any penalties for late cancellation. Go away Earl!!! Ya bother me!

...on being disabled

2010-08-12T11:42:00.000-04:00

Bad news from the doctor yesterday. I hate rehashing my medical history every time I sit down with him. I've been seeing him for 8 years now. I know he has a LOT of patients, but I wish he would just read my file and refresh his memory before he sits down with me.

"Have you had any major surgeries?" Yes! Remember? I had half my reproductive system ripped out in my early-thirties followed by a couple surgeries to try and repair the mess that remained. The surgeon was more concerned with saving my life and not about cleaning out all the lesions and scar tissue from endometriosis. So the pain and diseased tissue still remains.

"Any accidents or trauma?" Yes! I was rear-ended by a drunk driver in my early twenties that gave me a life-time of back problems that have worsened over time. Add in the inward curvature of my spine and weight in front pulling my spine even further out of alignment plus the catastrophic slip and fall accident I had on Valentine's Day 2 years ago and you have my current circumstances. I can't stand for longer than 1 minute without extreme pain and I can't walk further than 10 feet without needing to sit down. You approve of my need for a handicapped parking placard? Swell. Thanks for that.

You want me to see a cardiologist? Why? My heart and lungs sound fine. My blood pressure is a little elevated? Well DUH! You just got me crying and hyperventilating over my health-history rehash. Not to mention the long-ass walk from the parking lot, to the elevators, and to your office which is the furthest away from the waiting room through a maze of hallways.

So I come away with scripts for blood pressure meds, something to help with swelling in my feet and lower legs, potassium to replace what the other meds strip away...and no mention of help for my pain levels or physical therapy. Again. Why do I go through this every year or two?

This time you want me to come back in 4 weeks to go over blood work results, what ever the cardiologist has to say and to see if the meds are "helping". *sigh* I'll try again to get help for my REAL problem. Maybe the direct approach, since my tears, cries of pain whenever you press on the bad areas of my back and other hints that I need help with pain management are being ignored.

I am NOT some drug-seeking loser addict. I've only been on something stronger than over-the-counter Tylenol 3 times in my life. After my abdominal surgery, when I had my wisdom teeth removed, and the 5 pills your associate was kind enough to give me for my pain after my fall.

I think when a person's quality of life is in the crapper because of chronic pain, something needs to be done. I do appreciate the recommendation of a bariatric surgeon. Best in the area, you say? Awesome. Too bad he doesn't take my insurance any more. The alternative? Your referral person said "I think this guy still does that kind of surgery sometimes...I'll check and get back to you." Oh. How warm and fuzzy I feel. Do you honestly think I'm going to trust my digestive tract to some hack?

I guess I'll go and get all those x-rays you ordered now, Doc. Funny thing...didn't I just have a conversation with my mother about her bulging disks and how they didn't show up on x-ray? Only an MRI showed the damage. Peachy. I am probably going to get irradiated yet again for no good reason. Throw in a mammogram just for fun? Ok, sure. Why not. I have to stand up for that, right? For a long time, if I recall.

I wish I knew how to just demand what I need. I keep trusting that my doctor knows best. That he will help me once he knows all the facts. So why am I sitting here dreading my trip to the DMV to get that placard that I desperately need? I'll have to STAND in a line. I don't know if there is anywhere to sit or if I'll be able to stay in that line before the need to sit down forces me to give up my place.

Every day is a new challenge - and my family wonders why I never want to leave the house. I don't want to worry my kids, so I hide the pain. They know there are a lot of days when "mommy isn't feeling good" and it makes me sad. I think about the life I want to have and how, if this pain would go away, maybe I could get some exercise and lose weight with out needing surgery to do it. So simple. Why am I the only one who sees it?

Books are Dead?

2010-07-23T13:12:00.000-04:00

Last night I finished reading the last of the paper bound books I had waiting in a pile on my nightstand. I told myself that once I'd read every bound book I owned, that I would never again buy another. The last paperback I will ever read? Extras by Scott Westerfeld. (Great book series, by the way.)

Don't panic. I can't give up reading. I would go insane! I am buying a Kindle from Amazon! I've been researching these digital book readers for about a month now and the Kindle is the best fit for me. I'll have instant access to almost any book I want, the ability to make the type larger once my eyes go (I hear this is inevitable), save a few trees, and give my poor arthritic hands a rest from having to hold these gigantic hardcover volumes I've bought so often in the past.

The irony? In the last book series I read (Scott Westerfeld's Uglies) paper books are things you see in a museum display or special collection at the library. Everyone uses special view screens to do their reading. Heh.

I know writers who are convinced that bound books will never completely die...but as they make these reader devices better and better, I see paperbacks becoming a rarity. I can get a new release seconds after it goes on sale. No waiting for shipping or wasting gas on a trip to a bookstore. I can get a new book in the middle of the night to combat insomnia. No trees need to die. Plus the Kindle editions are way cheaper than buying a first edition hardcover book.

So I had this brilliant idea on how to pay for my Kindle (and maybe send the boys to summer camp next year too.) I read a blurb in the AARP magazine about a couple websites that would buy back your gently used books. Since I have more books than the local public library, this sounded like a gold mine! I checked out cash4books.net and sellbackyourbooks.com to see what kind of prices they would offer me. I had a tall stack of hardcover and paperbacks that I knew I would never re-read and were just gathering dust on my bookshelf.

It took 10 minutes to enter all the ISBNs. The result? Zilch. Nada. No sale. I read the fine print and discovered they don't buy any books published before 2007 (say what?) and even then not every book is in demand. I was miffed! It felt like a knock on my taste. I have an awesome book collection! Any geek would drool.

I moved on to check out Amazon resellers and Ebay. I checked just one book from the stack (a first edition hard cover.) Amazon had over 100 people trying to sell the same book. Ebay had even more. That was a total buzz kill! So it looks like me and my piles of dust collectors won't soon be parted. I feel like each volume has an expiration date. How long before the stacks are all obsolete and considered worthless?

*groan*

I spent soooo much money on these books. There has to be someone out there who wants them. Any ideas, gentle readers?

Leave a message! beep

2010-07-13T05:01:00.000-04:00

My mother has been complaining about our answering machine message for months now. Personally, I think it's adorable! Then again, they are my boys doing all the talking. I don't find Max hard to understand. I think him yelling LEAVE A MESSAGE at the end is clear as day. ;) That is the most important part, right?

My mother's latest argument is "No one has their kids record their answering machine message. It's not proper!" *snort* No one has ever accused me of being proper, right? But seriously, I have a bit of a problem with her conclusions in this case. How many people with school age kids does she know? And how many of them does she call regularly?

So here is my very unscientific poll. Do you currently or have you ever allowed your kids to record your outgoing answering machine message?

While I wait and see if anyone responds, I do plan to record a new message. Well, the boys will be doing all the talking. They are older and wiser. Tyler no longer talks like he has a mouth full of marbles (even if he still talks at the speed of light) and Max has lost a lot of his toddler lisp. He still has trouble with his S sounds and is a little Elmer Fuddy with R's, but it's cute on a 3 and a half year old!

Sorry Nana, when I call my friends I smile when their machine has a message recorded by their kids. It's so much cuter and I find myself more eager to actually speak at the beep. Computer generated messages make me wince (unless they have a British accent.) An adult voice reciting the number I called with an abrupt order to leave a message makes me want to shake my head and hang up.

Brutal Truth

2010-06-23T13:10:00.000-04:00

I found out some things about my bio-mom a couple weeks ago that rocked my world. My first instinct after breaking down for an hour was to come here and spew all my thoughts, rage, emotional bile, and insanity. Somewhere in the upheaval the cool voice of reason talked me down. I've burned myself in the past when I've come here and shared everything that was going on in my head. Now I check myself. Those emotion fueled rants made for compelling reading, but they also tended to piss off family member who didn't understand where I was coming from or how loony PMDD can make me at times.

So here I am, having spent a considerable amount of time stewing over things and feeling like I have an even better and more unvarnished view of where she came from. I understand now. It hurts like hell, but I understand. I wasn't part of one of those story book dramas where the young girl was forced to give up a child she loved and wanted to keep, but for whatever reason, was not allowed to.

Nope. I wasn't wanted. Given the era, where she lived, the families involved...she had no choices. She was forced to carry an unwanted pregnancy to term, was sent quietly out of town to deliver, and then tried her best to just forget the whole mess and move on with life. I try to see myself in her shoes and it just horrifies me.

I am sympathetic. Really I am. But at the same time, I am glad abortion wasn't legal. I wouldn't be here. No dancing around the truth. I would simply not exist.

I wonder how my unique viewpoint would sit with her rabidly pro-choice daughter. How would her view of the world shift if she knew about me. Why her mother raised her with such liberal and feminist ideals. Yes, mom was a child of the 60s and a bit of a hippy, but she has NO IDEA how far down the rabbit hole really goes.

Well, little sis - you and I will never see eye to eye on the whole pro-life/pro-choice debate for obvious reasons. But it would be cool to argue with you. I have a feeling, however, that you and I will never get the chance. I think mom is afraid of what your reaction, in particular, will be to finding out about my existence. Little bro, on the other hand, would probably just take the info in stride. Sis and I are too much alike. Sensitive and deeply emotional with a tendency toward depression and an epic ability to take things too personally. Must be genetic.

Just know this, we have a lot more in common than mom thinks. Don't judge me just because I was raised by uber conservative Catholic Republicans. My personal viewpoints and politics may as well be from another planet when compared to my parental units. I am my own person. A "non-conformist" as my mother always calls me. Hey, Tarzan was raised by apes and he turned out ok. KWIM?

Summer of 77

2010-06-15T01:45:00.002-04:00

I have a basket of trinkets on my dresser in the bedroom under a stack of mismatched socks waiting for their sole mates to return to them. Heh. Is it wrong to chuckle at my own puns? I was digging for a match today and pulled out a braided yarn necklace I made when I was 13. That put my mental way-back machine on overdrive. Who taught me how to braid? It certainly wasn't my mother.

It came to me in a flash...Pam Launder. Suddenly I was transported back to the summer of 1977. Pam's family bought one of the few contemporary split-level homes on my street. Her dad had been transferred by his work to the east coast from California. I remember being impressed by that fact. That and the fact that Pam was so much cooler than all the other kids on the street. She dressed like one of the beach kids from Sigmund and the Sea Monsters. She also wore thin braids, one on each side of her face, that she would sometimes decorate with a feather or beads on the ends. Just like a real California "hippy". Like my Dad always said...California was full of hippies and liberals. (Feel free to roll your eyes. I just did too.)

While most of the girl cliques on the street shunned Pam at first, I welcomed her. It was exciting to have someone new to hang out with and escape from the constant in-fighting and gossip from the other neighborhood girls. Pam was more like me. She was used to moving around a lot and having to make all new friends, start over in a new house and at a new school, and just get comfortable when you would be uprooted and have to do it all again.

Pam and I shared a love for music that none of the other girls did. I remember sitting in her room (or mine) and playing our Shaun Cassidy records over and over... He was soooo dreamy. I was jealous that she was allowed to hang up the free poster than came inside the album. I wasn't allowed to hang anything on my bedroom walls. Mother said it might damage the wallpaper. (Yes, I am rolling my eyes again.) But I did get away with hanging him (and later The Dukes of Hazzard) on the back of my bedroom door.

Pam was the one who totally busted me for secretly kissing my poster of Shaun. I denied it! But she pointed out my lip prints on the glossy paper. She was also the one who taught me how to braid my hair. I tried her look a few times, but my dad picked on me and called me Pocahontas, so I gave it up.

I even remember having lunch at Pam's house one time. Her mom asked me if I liked tuna salad. I loved tuna! Or so I thought. Pam's mom used Miracle Whip and pickle relish in her version of tuna salad. Ick! Who does that?! Everyone knows the proper way to make tuna salad is with Hellmans, diced green pepper and celery. Right? That's how MY mom made it. I remember running home and telling my mom all about the horrors of Mrs. Launder's tuna. I didn't realize until years and years later why that news seemed to make my mom really happy. Moms like it when their kids praise their cooking skills, FYI.

Then, after only a year or so, Pam's dad was transferred again and she was gone. We did the pen pal thing for a while, but lost touch as kids are prone to do at that age.

So! Pam Launder! If you remember spending a short time on Cot Hill Rd in Bedford MA in the late 70s, drop me a note. I enjoyed being your friend and remember you fondly. Plus I can give you credit for the long braid rat tail I sported in the late 80s. Amiee Mann gave me the hair-style idea, but I wouldn't have been able to pull it off without your braiding lessons.

Dusting off the Cobwebs

2010-06-13T21:22:00.001-04:00

I figure I better write something (anything) before I forget how. These days, when ever I get the sudden urge to write here, the timing just doesn't work.

Right now I am watching Netflix battle with my internet connection and other computer users in the house. I am competing for bandwidth not only with my neighbors along the chain, but also with my own family. Every single last one of them is a bandwidth hog! Look at this:

Aren't they cute?! The boys each have
their own computer, side by side. Here they are playing ToonTown together. I get mixed emotions watching this scene. Pride, a little teary, relief that they aren't fighting, giddy with a touch of depression that they are both growing up so fast. It makes me dizzy!

Tonight I have one boy watching Thomas the Train on Netflix, the other playing some new online game, the hubby running multiple sessions of Second Life and me...waiting not so patiently for my Netflix movie selection to rebuffer because my "internet connection has slowed". *sigh* So, yes, add in a touch of frustration to my emotional mix. Get off my net, you resource hogs! I love you, but can't you all just go play on the Wii or something? Ha ha!

But seriously, I am proud of my boys and their growing computer skills and ability to cooperate. Plus, my movie is back on. Yay! Back to watching "Cashback". The only thing saving this movie from being boring is the British accents. Funny how a nice accent can spice things up a bit.

I'm alive!

2010-02-08T20:14:00.004-05:00

Since Max was hospitalized last summer, there really hasn't been much to write home about. The days began to run together in a bland parade of routine occasionally broken by a birthday or holiday. Those events were chronicled in pictures and posted in the usual places, but I didn't have the energy to write about anything.

Anything important or funny was reported on the spur as a blurb on FaceBook and I left it at that. But yesterday and today marked a major milestone for Max so I couldn't let the occasion slip by without note.

I've made 3 serious attempts to initiate potty training with Max and each time we discussed how the process worked, watched Elmo's video about all things potty related, played with Potty Time Elmo, and read all the potty bedtime stories in my arsenal - and all 3 times I was met with serious resistance. He just was NOT interested in trying anything but his trusty diaper. I decided this time around I was not going to press the issued at all. I would wait patiently until Max showed he was ready.

Two days ago Max rediscovered Elmo and his potty. He spent the afternoon helping Elmo drink from his sippy cup then race to the potty when he needed to "go". After a long day of potty play, I suggested one of the potty story books at bedtime. Max listened intently and asked a few questions about Henry and his potty.

Amazon.com Widgets

Yesterday evening, Max followed his Dad into the bathroom (as he often does). Next thing I knew, John was shouting that Max had peed in the potty. Squeee! I was so excited I cried.

Today was Pee-Fest 2010. All day Max has been running to the bathroom. A lot. Once Tyler got home from school, big brother became the pee-fest master of ceremonies and followed Max to the bathroom to supervise and give advice. "Drink more water! Then you can pee MORE!" Yes, thanks Ty. It wasn't long before Tyler was shouting that Max had peed, standing up, into the big potty. Minutes later Ty was asking me where the potty seat for the big toilet was located. Max was ready to sit and try pooping.

I was nearly hyperventilating. Was it possible he was going to learn how to do it all in ONE DAY?!

Yep.

He perched on his new throne and did his thing. I was summoned to the bathroom again with shouts of "He did it!" "Look at all that poop!" "Wow, it's huge!" "Wait! Don't run away naked! You need to WIPE! Max! Come back!"

I'm so proud.

So now Max is parading around the house proudly sporting his new race car pull ups and trying to remember to keep them dry. We'll see how the next few days go. It's all a matter of coming to terms with using the potty all the time. Not just when it's fun.

Consumer Watchdog: Quilted Northern

2009-10-18T15:04:00.004-04:00

Oh GP, you are so busted. I opened a brand new package of Quilted Northern this morning, feeling pretty pleased that they had custom pink packaging for breast cancer awareness and the promise of a donation to Susan G. Komen's foundation. Nice! But wait a sec... There was something different about the roll.

It took a moment for it to register. There were still a couple sheets clinging to the old roll I'd just removed, so I pulled one off to do a comparison. The new roll was significantly narrower in width than the old roll. I checked the package carefully to see if this new "enhancement" was noted anywhere. Nope. Still bragging that the roll was a "double" with twice the sheets of a "regular" roll of toilet paper. Hmm!

So what's the deal? Charge us the same and shave off pennies per roll so your donation to breast cancer research really amounts to nothing? Or is this new enhancement a long term deal like so many products before yours. Make it smaller, charge the consumer the same amount and hope we don't notice?

Gah I hate the underhanded way that practice is foisted upon the average American consumer. Smaller candy bars (same price), smaller portions in frozen dinners (same deal)...give us a little less but charge the same price so you can make the claim that the cost of your product hasn't increased in X number of years. Come ON. We aren't stupid.

And now the photographic evidence. Oh yeah. I took photos of toilet paper today. I'm so proud.

Photography

2009-09-30T08:22:00.003-04:00

I was totally unprepared for picture day at Tyler's school this year. Gone are the days where I would scour Gymboree.com for the perfect outfit for back to school and photos. His Dad dressed him that morning while Max and I still slept. When I picked Tyler up at school I was a tad horrified at what he was wearing - high water sweatpants with holes in the knees and a Mario Bros tee-shirt. At least the shirt was relatively new and school photos are only chest/face shots. But still...

I moaned at Tyler, "Oh lordy, look how you are dressed. Did you get your picture taken today?" He frowned and said yes and asked what was wrong with how he was dressed. How do I explain the significance of school picture day? I told him about when I was a kid and how it was a HUGE deal to get your class photo done. Clothes had to be just perfect...heck, the photographers even gave away a free plastic hair comb (anyone remember that?)

Tyler asked, "Why? What was the big deal???"

I thought about that. What WAS the big deal? Then it hit me. "Tyler, when I was a kid the digital camera didn't exist. Good film cameras were expensive to buy and even more expense to keep loaded with film. Do you know what film is?" He thought about it and remembered my old point and shoot 35mm and the little film canisters. "Right. Each one of those film rolls could hold around 24 or 36 photos. TOTAL. Do you know how many pictures Mommy can take with her nice digital camera? Over 2000. And I don't have to pay someone to develop film and then pay more for prints of my photos. I can just unload my digital pictures onto my computer."

But that still wasn't completely the point. He gave me a so-what shrug and I continued. "Back when I was a kid a lot of parents didn't have practice taking good photos. Or they didn't have a camera - remember how expensive they were and how it cost even more to get the photos developed and printed? Well...when school photo time came around, those were often the ONLY nice pictures the parents would have of their kids for the whole year! So it was really important that they come out well. Understand now?"

I could see the light bulb go on in his brain as the knowledge sank in. "Wow Mom, the only pictures for the WHOLE YEAR?! Too bad I don't have that problem. You have your camera in my face ALL THE TIME!"

I shook my head with a laugh and groan. Then Tyler smiled and said, "It's ok Mom. I know you take my picture so much because you love me."

School Daze

2009-09-01T23:52:00.002-04:00

Today went by in a blur of last-day-of-summer-vacation/school-starts-tomorrow frantic prep. Three hours I spent filling out all the bleedin forms and crud from Tyler's school. WOW! Honestly, why can't they just send us home a printout of last year's data and request we just update it. Nearly nothing has changed. What a hassle. Then it was on to a rousing game of "find the backpack". Followed by a nail biting challenge of "make lunch for the kid who eats nothing."

I don't even want to think about the morning. Will Tyler be able to wake up that early? What clothes will John put on him? If it weren't so late, I would be sorting through the laundry baskets trying to come up with a decent first day of school outfit. Ah yes. Gone are the days of me buying a pricey but cute first day outfit from Gymboree. This year, his new school clothes came from Walmart and Daddy bought them. *wince* I couldn't bring myself to look in the bags.

Prays: Please don't let him look like a hobo!

Max is going to be so upset when he wakes up tomorrow and Tyler isn't here. Poor kid. He already cried several times today that he wanted to go to school too. But it means he will have the TV and Mommy all to himself. I hope that is enough. Maybe a nice trip to the park will make him happy too. I'm just happy Max is back to his old self again. What a summer.

Milestones

2009-07-28T14:18:00.004-04:00

With all the medical drama, it took me until last Thursday to realize that Max was sleeping in a full sized single bed in the hospital (craftmatic style). It took John until Saturday to notice and discuss our options. So Monday morning before Tyler and I took off to pick up John and Max at the hospital, I got Max's new bedding sorted, his new "big boy" bed assembled. No more crib or pack-n-play!

Max was thrilled with his new bed when he got home but after sleeping with his Dad all week, he had a bit of a hard time settling to sleep. So John slept on the floor next to him. Such a good daddy! But Max did stay in his bed and slept all night! Woo hoo!

Tyler also had a milestone slip by us this week. He spent his first night away from home. Overnight at Grandma's house, so I could get one night with my bed to myself. :) He did pretty well, all things considered. Next step...a week with Nanny and Grampy! Be ready, you two. ;)

Whew. Last week was overwhelming. I feel like I will never feel rested or relaxed ever again.

Not pretty...

2009-07-26T16:15:00.002-04:00

So here I sit, at John's laptop here in Max's hospital room. I am currently covered in the remains of runny poo from my chest to my knee. Poor Max has explosive diarrhea from all the antibiotics and his diaper leaked BADLY. Of course I don't have a change of clothes for me. I bring clothes for him, for John but didn't think about me. *sigh* I called home but John hadn't gone to sleep yet. He made the stupid mistake of calling his mother first. She got him all upset and he is too tired to make sense, never mind drive. So I'll just be here for the rest of the day. Poo covered.

Yep. I am feeling a bit sorry for myself at the moment. Max is fine. Doing well. Ready to go home. Rough night tho. His IV stopped working in the wee hours so they had to put in a new one. John got to experience that trauma first hand this time. Glad I was asleep at home with Tyler. I couldn't take it again. I wouldn't let them touch him. They'd just have to find another way to get the antibiotic into his body. No more IV pokes!

I bet I stink. Only so much babywipes can do. Oh well. At least Max is napping. I can sit here and try to dry off in peace. I hope John went to sleep. I will have to kill him if he isn't getting some rest. I can't deal with him when he is that sleep deprived. It just makes me cry.

Bad news

2009-07-23T11:49:00.001-04:00

Max has to stay in the hospital until Monday at least. :( Kidney problems.

On the mend...

2009-07-22T23:58:00.004-04:00

So the culture has pinpointed the bug as Streptococcus pneumoniae bacteremia (blood stream infection). The source? An undiagnosed inner ear infection (masked by the redness and swelling of his outer ear infection). What leaves me confused is that Max had a prevnar shot which I thought would make him immune to this particular bug. Maybe someone in the medical know can educate me more there.

The broad spectrum antibiotic has been 86'd in favor of something stronger and more targeted. I was told the name of it this morning but of course it's flown right out of my head.

The good news is his lymph node swelling is way down and Max finally ate dinner tonight in a quantity that was close to normal for him. Whew! It's just down right spooky when that kid doesn't eat. He loves just about everything, usually. Unlike Mr. Pickypants Tyler.

So please, nice hospital people, let him come home tomorrow afternoon! Crossing fingers and toes again. He is so totally done with this little adventure. It will be a miracle if he ever allows anyone wearing a white coat to come near him again.

And the food people got his meal right for dinner tonight. Finally! But he didn't want what we ordered. So I had to call and request something else anyway. Figures. I know they must hate us down there. ;) I also just found out that we can get our parking validated since we are the parents of a peds patient. Would have been nice if someone told us that on MONDAY. While parking fees don't break the bank, they aren't exactly cheap either.

Oh who am I kidding. I can't really bitch. I'm just too relieved. I will blame Aunt Flo for my extra dose of cranky over the last couple days.

Honestly, the folks at Morristown Mem are super nice and very helpful. Bless the nurse who listened to Max tonight and took his complaint of pain in his IV arm very seriously. She must have spent over 45 minutes gently trying to pry and swab off all that tape the vampires had wrapped around Max's arm to strap him to that board thingy (to keep his elbow from bending) so she could re-wrap it in a stretchy sleeve thingy instead. Max sobbed the whole time because the tape was just ripping his skin to bits. Add in alcohol swabs to kill the stickum on the tape and ouch! That stings. But he was a much happier camper when she was finally done. It wasn't the IV causing the pain, thankfully. It was where the tape and that immobilizer board thing were cutting into his skin.

Oh! And with his fever officially gone for 24+ hours he was finally allowed to play in the playroom this afternoon. He was in heaven! So many toys in there he flitted from thing to thing, not knowing what he wanted to play with most. That certainly made the day go by much faster too.

ok. Enough with the babble babble. Time for some much needed sleep.

Ugh

2009-07-21T23:06:00.003-04:00

So we still have no real clue what is going on with Max. Idiopathic fevers? I think that is what one of the doctors initially said. Idiopathic... fancy scmancy for I have no fucking idea. They are growing cultures of the mysterio bacteria they found in Max's blood to try and find out what the heck it is and if that is the ultimate cause for the fevers (they also said if it's staf epidermsomething that some schmuck just contaminated the top of the blood vial, so we shall see.) They discovered blood in his urine today too. That was new.

So he's been poked, stuck, pressed, squeezed, prodded, xrayed, ultrasounded, EKG'd, folded, spindled and mutilated. He's had enough. Let's not forget that he is now seeming a lot SICKER since he arrived at the hospital that he was when he was just hot but playing and having fun at home. I'm just scared this will be one of those "the hospital made him worse" scenarios.

They gave him IV antibiotics today. He is supposed to get another dose tonight sometime too. The parade of doctors all are very friendly and nice, but they have no real information to share with us. The antibiotic must be a broad-spectrum let's cross our fingers and hope it works kind of deal. That's the impression I got.

Meanwhile, the food folks keep losing our menu selections and sending food trays with stuff like pot roast and a cup of tea and lasagna with squash. Hello? He's 2! He was really looking forward to that hamburger patty and tater tots. Or the tuna sandwich he was supposed to get for lunch today. All the kid has to look forward to is the excitement of food in bed (or another ride in a wheelchair to his next procedure). Please try and get it right people! And fruit! Don't forget the fruit!

He's just so pale and small. So sweet, trusting and cooperative too. He holds still and gives them his arm knowing they are probably going to hurt him. He asks in his tiny voice, "Please don't hurt me..." and when they do, he cries, "I need a bandaid!" with heartbreaking sobs. All I can do is hold him and tell him it's going to be ok. I feel like the biggest liar on the planet.

I've never felt this powerless in my life.

My heart goes out again to my friends (Beth/Jeff, Kim, and many others) who have spent so much time with their little ones in hospitals for various reasons. I feel fortunate that this is my first time walking in their shoes. I've been lucky to avoid this for over 8 years now.

I hear Tyler crying. Looks like he will be sleeping with me again tonight. That means no sleep for me. That kid is a blanket stealing Tasmanian devil in bed. I get kicked and smacked all night as he winds himself up in my sheet and quilt in the dead center of my bed, gradually menacing and crowding me off the edge. Then there are the times he just sits up and starts talking in his sleep. Or tries to sleepwalk out of the room entirely.

Off to bed. Wish me luck and continued healing vibes for Max.

More bad news...

2009-07-20T21:58:00.003-04:00

Maybe I need to change the name of my blog. When Life Takes You...to the hospital. Again and again. Ugh.

It's Max's turn (AGAIN!) The poor little kid can't catch a break. If it's not big brother caused injury, it's mysterious ailments the doctors are left scratching their heads about. Not good.

And that is where we are now. Max is in the hospital and the doctors are all scratching their heads. We feel so warm and fuzzy. Not. He's had fever spikes for a week now. His hands and feet are peeling. His lymph nodes in his groin and neck are big and headed for huge. He complains about pains in various places in his body. And the icing on the cake, he also has an outer-ear infection...which the doctors assure us would not cause any of the other symptoms including the fever. Good to know.

They have bandied about everything from Kawasaki syndrome to Juvenile Rheumatoid Arthritis. All are freak-out worthy.

So 4 IV stick attempts later, 5 vials of blood, a chest x-ray, other assorted poking and prodding, hospital hamburger and tater tots (eww), peeing in a bag, and a partridge in a pear tree - Max finally passed out in his Daddy's arms and I drove Tyler home for the night. If they keep Max another night, I'll swap with John tomorrow and lather, rinse, repeat.

If you are a praying sort and think it's just a bad idea for adorable nearly 3 year olds to have mystery illnesses that keep them stuck in a hospital, say a few for our little Max? Thanks.

Now it's time to crawl into bed with my clingy and seriously worried 7 year old. Poor kid. At least this time the hospital trip isn't his fault. Guilt has a bad affect on his sleeping patterns. And since he will be sleeping with me tonight, I'd rather not get hit, kicked or pee'd on all night or woken by yelling/screaming. *sigh*

Geeze, worry makes me really bitchy and sarcastic. I need to work on that.

Good Luck Nana!

2009-06-27T12:07:00.003-04:00

We spent the week up in MA and just got home last night. My super active and seemingly indestructible Dad (aka Grumpy Grampy) was struck down with debilitating pain in his leg a short time ago. Fearing a blood clot or who knew what else, we were a bit shocked to find out that his hip had failed. Before we knew it, he was scheduled for a total hip replacement. My Mom (aka Nana) was in a panic because the best ortho hospital was an hour away and in the busy outskirts of Boston. Me to the rescue! (Really Mom...you need to learn how to drive more than 20 miles away from your own home!) Initially it was just going to be me and the boys going up to stay and shuttle Nana back and forth to the hospital, but John decided to move his vacation week and we turned it into a total family affair.

It worked out well because after one visit with all of us, I could tell the boys were a bit freaked out seeing their Grampy that way and they had a hard time keeping busy. So John spent most of the week taking the boys to the town pool and out to lunch while I played chauffeur and drove my mother back and forth to the hospital.

He looks pretty good here, right? This is the day after his surgery.

After 6 days and a lot of PT, he comes home today. Good luck to my Mom...that grumpy Grampy is a most challenging patient.

School's Out for Summer!

2009-06-19T11:59:00.004-04:00

Summer Vacation - Day 1

When does school start again? Ah. September 2nd. Only 75 more days to go. *sigh* But seriously, it's nice to have Tyler at home. He and Max have been having a ball today. It's balloon sword battle royale as they chase each other around the family room.

Speaking of balloon swords...I have a new talent. Tyler was at a birthday party a few weeks ago and came home so impressed by the clown who made balloon animals that he insisted his Dad take him to the store to buy some of those long balloons for him to try out. Of course, this meant that Mommy had to learn a few new tricks once the initial joy of discovery was replaced with the agony of frustration. "Moooooom! I can't do this! Can you make me a sword?"

OK! Thank goodness for the internet. (What did Moms do before the internet???) After a few video lessons, I produced 3 different styles of balloon swords and all was right with the world...for about 10 minutes. Then all hell broke loose. "Mom! The clown at the party made a dog. Can you make a dog?" Another 10 minute instructional video later and I was making hounds and poodles. "Cool! Can you make a rabbit? How about a turtle? A pig?? Ohh! I really want a bird!!" Oh lordy help me...

Balloon cutlass, anyone? How about a balloon saber? Balloon belts to hold your inflated weaponry? I can now make 2 love birds kissing inside a heart too. I think I'll tackle balloon hats next.

Now the house is overrun with a menagerie of balloon creatures who have a habit of popping at inopportune moments. But it is rather fun. Good thing I have great lung capacity.

One of many balloon turtles and swords

I'm so confused...

2009-05-14T16:48:00.003-04:00

"Mom? Can you buy me an instrument? I want to learn how to play something."

Tyler...didn't you just tell me not too long ago that you hate music?

"Well, I figure if I play an instrument, maybe I'll learn to like music? I just don't want to be weird, Mom. Everyone likes music 'cept for me!"

Interesting idea. What instrument did you want to learn to play? You know you won't be able to play right away. It takes time, lessons and lots of practice to learn to play something.

"Well you can teach me, right Mom? You know a lot of instruments. I want to play the trumpet. Or maybe the flute. Or the flutophone. Oh! And you have a guitar too, right?"

The flutoWHAT? Trumpet?!? ...oh wait. I actually think we have a trumpet around here somewhere. Maybe in the attic.

"The flutophone! They play them in our school band!"

Oh! Those funny looking recorder thingies from the spring concert?

"Yeah! I want one of those."

M'okay. Call me crazy, but I ordered him one on Amazon. And my darling John dug around in the attic until he found not only the old trumpet our friend Kerry had left with us years ago, but also my old Yamaha SHS-10 keytar (a keyboard you wear and shred on like a guitar). Max instantly took possession of the keytar and Tyler took the trumpet as soon as I had it put back together.

I gave Ty a short demo on how to blow into a trumpet and he gave it a go. My jaw dropped when he sounded a crystal clear (and very loud) note. It's freakin HARD to do that and I've never heard anyone make a sound with a trumpet on their first try, never mind so clearly. He was totally in love.

Now I have a splitting headache as the boys have been playing happily (and loudly) on their instruments for the last hour. We may have to just start a family band.

Hark! Easter Approach-eth!

2009-04-06T17:11:00.005-04:00

One sign of spring and the arrival of the Easter Bunny is the annual town Easter Egg Hunt. Only this year it was 40 degrees with 50 MPH winds. Brrrr! The kids looked miserable waiting in line for their goody bags from the bunny, but once the hunt began, I think it could have been snowing and they wouldn't have cared. The next day you never would have known it was so cold. It was in the 60s and gorgeous! So I took the boys to the park.

I love watching them play! Complete sets of photos at my Shutterfly page.

Conversations: Tyler on Music

2009-03-25T17:57:00.004-04:00

"MOM! Please turn off the radio! I hate music. It hurts my ears."

As the boys continued to act up noisily in the back seat I turned the radio up LOUDER.

"Come on Mom! This stuff is horrible!"

I cringed. He was insulting Tears For Fears. Classic 80s. So I began to sing along. As the commercial break came on, I said, "Ty, maybe if you listened to the words or thought about the instruments that make the music, you might understand better why music is cool and another way to express your feelings."

Tyler made a disgusted noise. "They sing too fast. Who can understand what they are singing anyway..."

So I began to sing the lyrics to the next song to Tyler, clearly so he could understand what I was singing. "Once I ran to you. Now I'll run from you..." Oh yeah. Tainted Love! Max laughed.

"Ahhh! Mom! Stop! This is horrible!"

"OK Ty. I guess I'll never be on American Idol, huh." It's not the first time he's complained about my singing.

"Nope. It's too expensive, right?"

"What?? No no. They pay all the expenses for the people on the show. It's free for them to be on it." That too expensive comment left me a little bewildered.

"Oh! So you COULD be on it if you wanted to? It's not too expensive?"

"Well, no. I'd have to try out. You know, pass an audition in front of judges...maybe in New York City..." I decided to ignore the fact that I am way too old, just for the sake of this discussion.

"Oh. Well that's easy then. You could do that. I love New York."

"Ty, are you telling me you think I could be on American Idol?? You're joking, right?"

"No Mom. I'm serious. I think you'd be great on that show. But I still hate singing."

Hmm. Tyler thinks I could be on American Idol but he wouldn't watch the show, because he hates singing. Over all, this conversation left me feeling good. Confused, but good.

After a long pause, I suddenly burst out; "And the next American Idol is...Mommy!" [insert enthusiastic crowd noise sound effect]

Max said, "Yay Mommy!!!"

Heh.

Lexicon

2009-03-15T15:11:00.003-04:00

I find myself using parenting phrases based on false or dubious scientific evidence quite frequently. You know those phrases...

Don't swallow the seeds, it might sprout in your belly!
Stop making that face, it could freeze that way!
Don't sit so close to the TV, you'll go blind (or cross-eyed)!
Don't stand in front of the microwave, you'll cook your brain!

Yes, I've joined the parenting conspiracy of misinformation used to make our children conform to a certain standard of behavior or to keep them safe. But I find myself using a new phrase, of late. Sadly, this one can't be laughed off as the paranoid myths passed on from our own youth.

Don't put that in your mouth, it might be Made in China!

I know. It's sad, isn't it? But with Max testing positive for lead a few months ago, I am unwilling to take any chances. I do realize not EVERY toy is made in China; but really, MOST of them are these days! And yes, not everything made in China contains lead. But I have no way of knowing what is safe and what isn't short of throwing out every toy here and starting from scratch. It's easier to just keep reminding the boys not to put them into their mouths. (And it's working because Max's blood test yesterday showed no trace of lead.)

Am I the only parent to add this new phrase to her lexicon? I wonder if it will be as enduring as "You'll shoot your eye out!" I hope not.

ER

2009-03-11T17:06:00.002-04:00

Max + Tyler + Bathroom Door = ER Visit

Don't you just hate Mom Math?

The good news is Max's finger wasn't broken and they were able to use that cool dermal glue to reattach the tip. Bad news, he will probably lose his fingernail and keeping a bandage on a curious 2 year old is a total exercise in futility.

Mom + Injured Baby + ER Visit = 10 years off my life and more gray hair.

Anyone got any valium they can send me? Thanks.

Hey Max! Who is our President?

2009-03-07T13:52:00.001-05:00

As promised...the video!

Conversations

2009-03-03T19:08:00.002-05:00

I get into the funniest conversations with my boys. The other day, Tyler was watching one of his favorite kid channels and an infomercial type segment featuring our new President came on. Max looked up at the TV and yelled "Barack Obama!" very excitedly. My jaw dropped! Max is 2. Where the heck...how the heck...who the heck taught him... I was flummoxed! I started laughing hysterically. He can say the name so clearly!

Then Tyler looked at me with a serious look of concentration on his face. "Mommy? Why is Obama black? They keep saying he is our first black President." Ummmm. Oh boy. So I launched into a discussion about race and uses of specific color words to represent someone with a specific skin color and how some people place a lot of importance on those colors (but not us). Then I talked a little about how those terms have changed over the years. And the origins and ancestry of certain races and why there are different skin colors. I was just trying to think of a way to explain slavery and America's more sordid past when I saw Tyler looking rather glazed.

He said, "Mommy...I just want to know why they call him black when he's not. He's more brown. Or tan. I don't know. What color do you call it? I'm...tanish. Right?" I said, "Beige? and President Obama is more light brown?" Tyler's face lit up and he said, "Yes! He is light brown!" Then he returned his attention to the TV, completely satisfied.

*sigh* I really need to stop over-explaining things and just K.I.S.S. (keep it simple, stupid.)

"Barack Obama!"

Yes, Max. That's him. I've got to get him on video saying that. It's just too cute!

American Idol

2009-02-27T06:07:00.003-05:00

I posted some thoughts on my favorite American Idol blog today and thought I would share them here too. Anyone watching Idol this season?

Going back to Hollywood week - I'm still sad the Osmond kid didn't make it. Almost stopped watching when I saw that.

As for that Adam Lambert kid...current? Relevant? I'm sorry, but am I the ONLY ONE to see he is a perfect clone of an 80s hairband diva (minus the hair)? He is Brett Michaels from Poison, Tom Keifer of Cinderella, and most especially, Sabastian Bach from Skid Row all rolled into one! I am NOT objecting, mind you. I was a HUGE fan of heavy metal back in the day. But how can the judges not see it? Especially Paula who was an 80s pop icon and RANDY who played with Journey (a hair band forerunner).

Meanwhile, I love Danny Gokey. LOVE him. He's my pick to win. Thoughts?

Cyber Stalker...

2009-02-27T00:10:00.006-05:00

Wow! Two blog posts in one day. When was the last time THAT happened? A lot on my mind lately, but no clear path to put it in writing.

I suddenly realized today that I hadn't heard from my bio-mom in a long while. After the excitement of meeting her for the first time, in person; I'm not really sure what I was expecting beyond that point. So I sent her an email today just to let her know I was thinking about her.

Then I Googled her. Yes, again.

Boy has she been busy! She has both a FaceBook page AND is on Twitter now among dozens of other new links. I was seconds from clicking the add friend link on FaceBook when I hesitated. Would that be weird? I know people have popped out of the woodwork and asked ME to be a FaceBook friend (and I was pleased as punch to say yes) but would that kind of overture be welcome in this case. I wonder. Then I found her on Twitter. She has 609 followers, so I would be relatively faceless in the crowd, but I hesitated again.

Yep. I am feeling very cyber stalkerish.

*sigh*

edited to add: I am not looking to replace my "real" mother. I just think it would be really cool to be friends with my bio-mom. Nuff said.

Shhh! Max won't share his Cheetos with me!

2009-02-26T13:41:00.004-05:00

Silently my fingers creep across the table, slowly seeking the open bag of Cheetos. Freeze! The boy reaches over and digs in the bag, face already coated in orange powdery goodness. Attention returns to the TV, and my hand resumes its stealthy path. Success! I grasp a couple plump Cheetos and retreat rapidly, popping one into my mouth. The boy whips around and looks at me. I stop mid-crunch and look innocent, a second Cheeto hidden rapidly under the table.

I smile and lift one eyebrow.

The boy eyes me suspiciously for a moment and then returns his attention to the TV.

Ha! Cheetos thief crunches with relish on her stolen booty. The boy never the wiser.

Trippy!

2009-02-18T21:31:00.003-05:00

I just got caught up on several posts on Alphawoman's blog and made an interesting discovery. If you stare at a website that has white text against a black background long enough...then look up suddenly at your white walls...everything has stripes! Whoa. That was so weird! I just got a flash on what my family room would look like done in a zebra motiff. Coooooool!

Now back to reading. And more reading. Geesh I am far behind.

Happy Valentine's Day!

2009-02-13T13:22:00.003-05:00

I received a special package today from my 3 boys for Valentine's. Mmmm mmmm!!! Here is the first ever photo I've taken with my new cell phone:

OK! Hope you all have a nice Feb 14th. I've got some serious eating to do...

Creative!

2009-01-29T23:22:00.001-05:00

What a cool idea! I think I am more impressed with the patience of the female subject of all that still photography more so than I am with the stop-motion finished product! LOL

Calgon, take me...oh that's just wrong!

2009-01-19T15:04:00.002-05:00

The latest stomach virus has had it's way with almost every member of the family except John. Somehow he has remained untouched in this vomit and poopie fest.

First Max was struck down with no warning. I'd just put all his and my winter gear on for a trip out to breakfast when he sat down on the top step and said, "Mommy, tummy hurts..." I picked him up to comfort him. BIG MISTAKE. He threw up all over both of us. I've never seen so much puke come out of such a little kid. I don't deal well with barf, so it was a challenge to get coats, gloves, shoes and clothes off and into the washer before I lost my own cookies. Yay Mommy. I had to get everything clean and dry so we'd have something to wear to go pick Tyler up at school at the end of the day. John picks the worst times to have to go work out of state.

After a couple days of Max being in misery, it was my turn. Sadly the worst of the virus struck the morning we were supposed to leave for upstate to attend my Uncle's funeral. To top the day off, Tyler woke up puking too. It was his turn to be struck down. Thank goodness this was a long weekend.

Meanwhile, Max had been virus free for several days, but he was still periodically pointing to his belly and saying, "Hurts, Mommy! Hurts!" Since my own belly was killing me, I sympathized. I was a little worried that something else was going on, but was too sick to think it through in depth.

Today Max complained to his Daddy that his "butt hurts." He told me his tummy hurt again. Considering how many days of poop-fest the poor kid had suffered through, it wasn't all that surprising. He hadn't had the runs for a couple days, but who knew. Maybe his poor bottom was still irritated. So John made him a nice warm bath.

Turns out that was just what the poor kid needed...to get his constipation moving. Fast. Oh yeah. So that's why his belly and butt were hurting. Right now I am actually happy that I'm still feeling under the weather because that meant that John cleaned out the tub.

*shudder*

Also, there goes our "no accidents in the bathtub" record. Soooo close. *sigh* And I've lost a whole week to illness. *double sigh* How was your week?

It's a new year...

2009-01-03T13:10:00.002-05:00

Talk amongst yourselves for a moment while I try to figure out where the old year went...

Nope, it's not under the sofa cushions. Eww! I think that used to be a peach slice! Hmm. Tyler's been looking for his DS. What a surprise, it's in the black hole...er...sofa. No sign of 2008 tho.

*Looks about speculatively*

Maybe in one of the 35 toy boxes scattered around here... Huh. Why on EARTH are the boys saving THAT in there.

OK. Now I've lost interest. On to 2009 I guess.

Merry Christmas! Happy Holidays!

2008-12-26T15:22:00.002-05:00

After initial worries that Santa was going to seem "cheap" this year, we actually had a very nice Christmas. Once all the gifts were under the tree, all was well. I was grateful to extended family who sent gifts to the boys. Plus Daddy did an excellent job of last minute shoppery so that Santa could stuff the stockings to the bursting point.

Because of my MIL's boycott on Christmas cookie baking last year (oh it was TRAGIC!), I got ambitious and made cookies myself this year. The plan was for the boys and Nana (my mom) to help me decorate the cookies with icing and sprinkles. Sadly, we were too busy and the cookies were forgotten until after my parents left today.

Tyler was a little frustrated that he couldn't control the icing bag to his perfectionist satisfaction and gave up after three cookies (they looked terrific, by the way). Max was handed cookies that were pre-iced (yeah, I'm not crazy) and he proceeded to take each of his variety of sprinkle cups and dump them ALL onto his first batch of cookies. That was pretty funny. Then he was done. That left me to finish the remainder of the 3 dozen sugar cookies myself. It was tedious work, but fun! When I brought the tray full of cookie art back into the kitchen, I made a comment to John about bringing some of them plus the 2 dozen oatmeal/peanut butter/chocolate chip cookies I'd made on Christmas eve over to my MIL's for Christmas Part Deux.

He paused with a funny look on his face and said, "OK...but you know my mom made cookies this year, right?"

*sigh*

So much for me being the cookie savior this year. LOL! Back later with photos. It's time now for a Mario Kart showdown between Tyler and I. He's going to eat my Wii dust!

Regift Rules

2008-12-16T12:05:00.002-05:00

When John and I got married, an old high school buddy of his gifted us with an electric can opener. When I opened the box, I found an appliance in a color that was popular about two decades earlier and there was a wedding gift card inside with a note for "Sam and Elena" to enjoy it in good health.* We giggled over that regift for a long time and were thrilled that the retro opener actually looked great in our seriously outdated rental kitchen.

*names changed to protect the guilty

AOL had a feature on regifting horror stories on their homepage today and it inspired me to start a list of regifting rules, just in time for this gift-giving season:

1. Check the box carefully to be sure there are no gift cards thoughtfully enclosed.
2. Be sure there are no incriminating shipping labels affixed to the outside of the box.
3. Check the item to make sure it's not a collectible with a date on the bottom (unless the recipient collects that sort of thing). Nothing like getting a nice Christmas ornament as a gift then finding out is says "1993" on the back.
4. In addition to dates, check for personalization. Don't regift that nice coffeetable book that didn't fit on your coffeetable without checking inside the covers for a note.
5. Confer with household members to be certain you don't re-gift an item to the person who gave it to you/them in the first place.
6. If the item has been in the attic for a number of years, ask for a second opinion on if the item is "retro" and "back in style" or just OLD and DATED.
7. When you check inside the box for that thoughtfully enclosed gift card, also check to be sure all the parts of the gift are still in the box and that the item doesn't look "used" in some way.

Can you think of anything to add to this list?

Rigging up the lights...

2008-12-14T18:50:00.003-05:00

Happy Holidays everyone! Is everyone in the holiday spirit yet? Hello? *tap tap* Is this thing on?

I know, I know. I hear ya. Poor John spent most of the afternoon going through 500 white twinkle lights on our pre-strung tree trying to find out why most of the strands are no longer lighting up. I spent a good chunk of that time trying to keep Max out of his way. Not easy when you have a 2 year old who has no memory of a tree in his living room. It's fascinating stuff!

The rest of the late afternoon and into this evening, I've been gathering addresses from the remote corners of the house and my computer to update the file that contains my Christmas card address labels. I have mixed emotions going through each name. Some make me smile as I think about the card I've already received from them, if they are happy in their new home, or just general happiness that I'll soon reconnect in some small way with that person or family. Some make me sad as I alter the labels to reflect the losses that happened over the past year (two family members lost husbands).

Once the address labels are in place, it's time to stuff the cards. As I look at the smiling faces of my two boys, I recall the pains I took (and they endured) to get the perfect holiday card photo. My poor kids! I bought special matching outfits (a now annual tradition), dressed them up during our recent mini-vacation to celebrate their birthdays, posed them in various arrangements in front of the pretty fireplace at the lodge, and struggled to get them both to look at me AND smile at the same time. No easy feat! They fought me every step of the way...but it doesn't show in the end result.

Will this discourage me from making a similar effort for next year's holiday card? Nope. I put up with the same pains when I was a kid - the itchy wool, mall Santas with the smell of booze on their breath, my brother kicking me in the shins, mom licking a tissue to wipe a smudge off my face or licking her hand and smoothing down my fine flyaway hair, being posed again and again, forced to act affectionate to my pesky little brother when all I REALLY wanted to do was kick him back (love ya Mike!) Ah memories.

If you are lucky enough to receive a card from me this year, please take an extra moment or two to admire the artistry and effort that went into making it. Ha Ha! No seriously. And I apologize for not doing a newsletter this year (the first year in a 10+ year streak of newsletter writing.) I went back through my blog and photos from the past 12 months and realized that nothing really interesting happened to us this year. That's not a bad thing! I'll take a news free year over one full of health woes, job loss/stress, major life changes or lots of travel for a nice change of pace. Boring is good!

OK. Enough stalling. Back to stuffing envelopes full of holiday love and cheer sealed with a generous helping of Tyler's spit.

Happy Birthday!

2008-12-03T20:33:00.002-05:00

Tyler turns 7 today (at 11:03pm PST). Tyler requested Red Lobster for dinner (he ate 5 cheddar bay biscuits by himself), we sang to him while he blew out a candle on his cupcake, then I watched him open gifts from his grandma, birth-grandma, and his parents. He was over-joyed with everything and spent an hour on the playroom PC setting up one of his gifts (thanks Karen!) Then he and Max studied the box that contained the gift from John and I and they discussed which Pokemon they would cook up tomorrow after school. I love watching the boys commiserate. It's charming to observe and makes me feel warm and fuzzy. I wish they got along that well all the time!

I am soooo far behind in my photo sharing. Hundreds of photos sit on my camera waiting to be offloaded to my PC. My monitor died and I had to wait for the new one to arrive. Then we went out of town for several days, I got sick... yadda yadda. I need a vacation. But Christmas is at our house this year, Tyler's big birthday party is this Sunday, the house is a wreck and I'm still sick. So yes. I am stressing a bit. I wish I had a disintegrator device of some kind so I could just make half the clutter in this house simply vanish without a trace.

I agree so much I think I strained something vital...

2008-11-15T19:04:00.002-05:00

Thanks to Connie for featuring this in her blog.

Happy Halloween!

2008-11-01T03:40:00.008-04:00

I'd like to say that Max enjoyed his first real experience doing the trick-or-treating thing, but I'm not so sure. He looked a little shell-shocked as I took photos of the boys as they got ready to roll. Then there was this photo:

I said, "Bye Max, have fun!" and he looked back at me with that expression. Seconds later he was running into my arms in tears. I know he was eager to go with his Dad and brother today; I could barely get him to take his nap. Maybe when the time came he just got nervous. Fear of the unknown? Separation anxiety because I wasn't going with them? Nap wasn't long enough? No clue. But I gave him a hug and told him everything was going to be OK and that they were going to have lots of fun. He stopped crying almost immediately and didn't hesitate to take his Dad's hand and head out.

I snapped this shot shortly after they got back home.

Still no smile. He seemed to enjoying sorting through his candy and then eating a bunch. No brainer there. And he really enjoyed going to the door to see the kids when the bell rang. All in all, I guess he liked Halloween. But I'm left feeling vaguely disappointed this year. We didn't even get around to putting our giant blow-up pumpkin in the yard. I didn't carve anything. I didn't roast pumpkin seeds. I did put on my goth cape that makes me look vaguely sinister and elegant. That was fun. But... next year I'm going to get a much earlier start with the planning and get the boys more involved with decorating. I think that will make things much better.

Thunder Snow

2008-10-28T18:23:00.004-04:00

Woo hoo! First snow storm of the year today...and it was a thunder snow storm. How cool is that?! The boys are outside playing in the snow with their Dad as I type this. I just wish I knew where the heck I stashed Tyler's size 2T snow pants. I found the coat (and it looks totally adorable on Max too) but the snow pants are no where to be found. The toddler sized snow boots are MIA too. *sigh*

It's a miracle we were able to find gloves and hats for everyone. That's a plus, I guess.

I also managed to take some photos of the boys right when Tyler got home from school today. I wanted to get a snap of them in their Halloween costumes and then, just for fun, a photo of them in their new PJs. This might become a backup Christmas card photo, if the other ones I have planned don't turn out well. Max is a Top Gun pilot and Tyler wanted to be a football player - well, really he wanted a helmet to go with his Jr. Patriots uniform (he is already a football player.)

Now to figure out what to make for dinner...

Followers, Pumpkins and Apples

2008-10-27T14:48:00.005-04:00

I kept seeing this new-fangled thingy on some of the newer Blogger blogs the displaced AOL folks were creating - so I went into my template and sure enough, there it was. Followers. Mkay! I added it, just to go with the trend. I'm not totally sure what it does...but I assume it adds blogger blogs to your dashboard. I don't use my dashboard to follow the blogs I read. I use Bloglines (you can see all the blogs I follow on my list in the right side-bar. If you don't see yours there, please comment and leave me a link!) But I sure don't want to discourage others who use Blogger to keep track of their blogs. So there ya go.

We've had a few tragic events in the house recently. The unintentional squishing of Tyler's pet woolybear caterpillar (he dropped the fuzzy fella and couldn't see him on the oriental rug - he blended right in) and the accidental squishing of Tyler's hand-picked pumpkin from our jaunt to the farm the weekend before last (Max tried to carry the prized pumpkin from one room to another and dropped it in the hall with a sad splat.)

After the crowds we encountered in our first trip to the farm for the fall season (see the photo to the left), John was not eager to repeat the effort.

Tyler, however, can be very persuasive. So...lather, rinse, repeat.

THIS weekend's trip was much less traumatic! No 50-person deep lines just for tickets to take the hayride out to the pumpkin patches. Plus the boys had the added fun of apple picking!

This time the pumpkins have been safely placed on the back deck. Now I just need to figure out what I'm going to do with the 30 lbs of apples the boys lugged home. Too bad I can't make caramel apples for the hordes of trick-or-treaters we get each year. I used to love getting those and popcorn balls in my bag when I was small. Then the whole razorblade urban myth destroyed that tradition.

Now I have a 50% off photo calendars deal as incentive to get moving on that annual project. Time to play dress-up with the boys. I hope they cooperate! First step...Halloween costumes! Stay tuned...

Pumpkin Pickers

2008-10-23T20:34:00.002-04:00

We did manage to tear Tyler away from the giant haystack long enough to pick out two pumpkins. He announced that we would NOT carve them this year. He would rather just paint a face on his. (I think he's afraid the carving process would be painful to his adorable little pumpkin. It's just too cute!)

Both boys are currently fighting head colds. I think Tyler is mostly over his, but poor Max is a mega-snot-factory. It's scary what comes out of that little nose of his.

I am usually in full Halloween mania by now, but I find myself feeling just plain tired.

I also recently realized that Tyler's birthday is swiftly approaching and other than our annual family trip to celebrate both boys' birthdays at the Lodge...I have no other party venue booked. I'd better get on that!

Guess who just turned 2?

2008-10-04T13:34:00.001-04:00

Photos are up on my Shutterfly page.

Still alive!

2008-09-29T00:45:00.002-04:00

Sick, but alive. Just to give a clue...here is Tyler's day yesterday:

1. Up at dawn...time to get ready for soccer team photos and game.
2. Off to game! Go right from soccer to...
3. Football game. Grab some...
4. Lunch! Fast food! But hurry, almost time for...
5. Birthday party #1 - fly home to pick up rest of family to run to...
6. Birthday party #2!
7. Get something quick for dinner and...
8. Home just in time for bed.

The soccer and football and long work hours for poor John and Max officially in the terrible 2 stage...we're so very tired. I've not been able to read any blogs in probably 2 weeks. I am sooo behind!

Ugh. Damn this cold.

Hi-5, Shhhh!

2008-09-05T10:47:00.003-04:00

Sitting and watching Hi-5 with Max this morning (his favorite show). I started clapping along with the music, like I often do. Usually he starts clapping with me.

Today, he turned and said, "Momma! Shhhh!" I was so startled, I didn't know how to react at first. Then I started laughing and couldn't stop...which prompted more frustration and disgusted exclamations of, "Momma! Momma!!! Shhhhh!"

I had to get this on video, so I started a recording then started clapping. It's difficult to get video of Max in action because as soon as he sees the camera, he wants to grab it. Well...see for yourself:

Overheard...

2008-08-30T19:00:00.003-04:00

In the background, a TV commercial plays... "Erase blackheads with the new Blackhead Eraser! It really works!"

Tyler: "Mark should get that."

Dad: "Mark doesn't have blackheads, he has freckles!"

Tyler: "Oh."

Long pause.

Tyler: "What's a blackhead then?"

Mommy laughs hysterically until she can't breath.

Oh boy...here we go again

2008-08-17T23:03:00.004-04:00

So...yeah. Second Life kinda stole me away from blogging and the internet at large for a while there. Then I got kinda sick of SL. I have a new time sucking addiction now.

YouTube.

Yeah, I know. I've been uploading videos there for ages and have watched the occasional clip or 12. But then a couple of bloggy pals starting doing this whole VLOG'in thing there and I got sucked in. Mostly thanks to FreeePeace. I've been enjoying her videos for a while now and then she started recommending all these OTHER people's vids on the Tube and...bam. I was hooked.

So let's run down a list of my favs (just in case you have time to kill at night once your kids are in bed...or something):

FreeePeace - It's all her fault. (Love you Freee!)
ShayCarl - Like they said in the Howard Stern movie...the fans love him or hate him, but most of all they keep watching "because they want to see what he'll do next." But seriously, I just want to hug him and squeeze him and fluff him up and prop him against my headboard with all my other pretty pillows. Heh.
Journey2betrhealth - My pal Donna. She recently had WLS and is on the road to better health. I am following her progress avidly. Go Donna!
BrettTheIntern - Poor Brett. Once upon a time he was an intern for the Jerry Springer Show and OMG his behind the scenes videos were hilarious! Then NBC found out about his little YouTube channel and sic'd the corporate dogs on him. He was given the sack and had to take down a lot of his videos. I was just ill when I found out. But he's still funny as hell and I will keep watching to see how he bounces back.
JoshSource - Watch the response video he did about cereal in Australia. I about pee'd my pants! He is fierce, gay, Asian, does hair, and should totally be adopted by the QueerEye guys as a new correspondent. Wait...is that show even on anymore? I don't watch live TV these days.
ItalianStallionette - I think she lives, like, down the street from me. Seriously! I am waiting for her to notice that I'm in her neighborhood so we can have a diet coke together. She's very outspoken about gay rights (and rightly so) and I think she's awesome.
SxePhil - Throw out your newspaper and turn off the 11 o'clock news...Phil will fill you in on current events from his very not-politically-correct viewpoint. Good stuff.

Enough shout-outs for now. There are a few others I follow but they haven't been very active of late (nyah nyah you guys need to make more videos if you want me to pimp you here. Ha!)

See? So much to watch...so little free time. I need to make more videos myself, since I have a nice new webcam and not many excuses (other than the fact that I'm boring). If you have a YouTube channel, let me know in comments and I'll come check you out. Or if you have a must-see channel to recommend, let me know that too.

State Fair and Haircuts

2008-08-06T12:30:00.001-04:00

The boys visited the fair two days in a row, opening day and the day after. Opening day the weather was nice - hot but with a breeze. Day 2 was an airless oven. But that won't stop two eager young boys from having a good time. They came home covered in mud (dust settled on their sweaty bodies and turned to mud); their hair matted to their scalps with sweat and heaven knows what else. It was a relief to plop them both into the tub.

Tyler has announced that he wants a pet sheep and a pet cow. He plans to keep them both in his bedroom. He would not be dissuaded, even after explaining that cow pies often exceed the size of his head.

In other news, you may notice Tyler sporting a new buzz cut (click the photo above for more from the fair). If I'd been smart, I would have done Max too this past weekend, before the hot and sweaty dirt fest (aka the fair). Instead, Max went to bed last night with his hair still damp and uncombed. Poor kid just passed out from sheer exhaustion - after crying and flailing hysterically for 20 minutes (he didn't want to get out of the tub, or get dried off, or get his PJs on.)

Instead, I took the shears to his wooly and matted mane today.

The new Max!

Curly Hair - Lessons Learned Part 36

2008-08-06T10:58:00.002-04:00

Don't let your curly haired child fall asleep right after his bath, but before you have a chance to fully dry and comb out his (excessively long) hair. Oh My GOSH!

I am armed with scissors and I'm not afraid to use them. Pictures of Max's new haircut and shot from this year's NJ State Fair to be posted later.

*snip snip*

Dum A Day

2008-08-01T17:46:00.003-04:00

When Tyler was 2, he had very specific taste in music. He was a big fan of old time cartoon theme songs. (Yes, I have an adorable video of him getting down to the theme from Speed Racer.) When he was older (3-4ish), he had a brief infatuation with the music of Lazy Town; particularly the theme song (again, cute video of him dancing.) Then one day he declared that he "hated music" and was adamant about it...to this day. I can't even turn on the radio in the car without getting an earful if he is with me.

Max is entirely different. From the earliest moments after we brought him home he has shown a strong interest in music and it hasn't wavered. I used to play music with Windows Media Player and he would listen raptly while watching the cool kaleidoscope of colors on my monitor. His dad would put the wireless headphones for our stereo on his head and he would bop to 70s and 80s music. Christmas music would send him spinning in joyful circles. Classical music he would pick up from his Baby Einstein videos and he would hum along...making up his own clever lyrics that consisted of "Dada" and "Mama" in tune with the music.

Now Max has taken his adoration of music to another level. He has discovered the joys of Jack's Big Music Show. He was already familiar (and obsessed) with Laurie Berkner - we've nearly worn out her music video DVD, but with Jack, he has been introduced to a whole bunch of new musical artists and music types. But what I find particularly adorable is how he asks for his favorite show. His vocabulary is still limited, but he can say Jack (or "woof" for Mel the dog)...however, he doesn't say that. Instead he took a phrase from the intro song and sings his request. Jack's friend Mary sings "dum ditty dum de dum de dum day" in the intro and Max has decided that the show should be called "Dum A Day". Yes, it took me a while to figure out what he was asking for. Stupid mommy.

Having "Dum A Day" playing in the background all day long, thanks to Free On Demand and the Noggin channel, has been the norm for a couple months now, until one morning I went into the cable menu and discovered, to my horror, that the show wasn't among the selections. Those with kids in that terrible two stage will understand my desperation to restore the peace. Max didn't understand my lame explanations why his show couldn't be played and I couldn't locate the one Jack DVD we have.

I frantically cruised the On Demand menu trying to find something else that would appease Max and stumbled across the Discovery Kids offerings. One of the shows sounded vaguely familiar from when Tyler was four-ish so I gave it a shot. Tyler had hated the show because it was basically all music and singing. Heh. It should be perfect for Max. So I selected Hi-5 and hoped for the best.

Oh my heck. Max is IN LOVE with this show! Now we've been alternating between Jack and Hi-5 for the last couple weeks or so. And I really appreciate the variety (I love Jack, but I've seen every episode from both seasons at least 10 times each.) For several days Max has raced into the family room first thing in the morning, pointed at the TV and started yelling "Woo!" Woo? I thought he meant "woof" at first and automatically put Jack on, only to get a completely disgusted reaction. He would stomp his foot, make a loud whiny "UhhHHHhhh!" sound and start shouting "Mama!" in a short, gravelly, loud voice. Oh boy. What the hell was "Woo"???

Finally today, Max explained himself. He was watching the one episode of Hi-5 that has been available in the On Demand menu for the last 3 days (why do they do that? Have 6 or 7 then suddenly remove all or almost all for weeks at a time???) and the talented teens (or 20-somethings) in the Hi-5 band were singing about making wishes and suddenly all of them were harmonizing and singing "Woo woo woo wooooo oooooo ooooo ooooo ooooooooooo." Max started singing along. Ohhhhhhh! Duh. Woo. Got it!!

It cracks me up that he won't call these shows by their name but instead picks out phrasing from the music in the show and that becomes the name, to him. It's all about the music, man.

And speaking of his love for music, has anyone been watching this season of America's Got Talent? Max was entranced by this little contestant, Kaitlyn Maher. I had to replay the segment to make the video. He was just as cute the second time through, but he tried to sing along more the first time. I am imagining Max at age 4 and wondering if he might have this kind of talent. It wouldn't surprise me. He certainly sings and hums more than he speaks.

Official Website Video

Post Vacation Thoughts

2008-07-26T21:37:00.005-04:00

Eating sand and then sneezing will make sandy snot come out of your nose.

$25 in tokens at the arcade converts into 164 tickets which redeems for two small sacks of penny candy. Tyler's response to my comment on how much candy $25 would buy us at the supermarket? "Yeah, but Mom, the supermarket isn't FUN." Point taken.

Mango scented bubble bath poured generously into an oversized Jacuzzi (jets on) will create a scene very close to that one in the Brady Bunch with Bobby pouring too much laundry soap into the washing machine.

You can't tell a 21 month old that he is "too small" to go down the slides at the water park. He will prove you WRONG every time. What a dare devil Max is!

A good dad WILL go into the water park 7 times in a row just to make his boys happy. You are a trooper babe.

Never say, "Don't give him that! He won't eat it!" Because you know what? He will. (Note to self - Max likes asparagus, cottage cheese, creamed spinach, broccoli, and miso soup)

Remember to put sun screen on the back of your neck and shoulders, unless you think that whole "red neck" look is sexy on a woman.

Don't bring the wicked expensive digital camera to a water park because you damn well know you won't dare use it and now you have no photos from part of your vacation. *sigh*

Trying to shimmy your toddler into a cold clammy wet swimsuit will cause him to say several new words - "Yuck! Ick! Wet! and No!"

A bath towel makes a great blanky sub when Mommy forgets to pack the bedding for your pack n play...according to Max.

Sofa beds are like magic to a small child who has never seen Daddy turn the couch into a bed before. That same child will lift the sofa cushions repeatedly when you return home trying to find the magic bed.

Leaving your sweet fluffy kitty alone for several days will turn him into this:

Back to reality. But first, a vacation video:

Beach Adventure

2008-07-22T17:47:00.002-04:00

We took the boys to the shore today - Max's first visit. Unfortunately the conditions weren't ideal for photo taking because of the fog and heavy surf, but it made things interesting. Max was thrilled with the sand. After his reaction to bare feet on grass, I was worried. No need! He was kicking his shoes off as we were walking toward the water! Tyler set right to work on a sand castle and Max took off exploring. Yes, I know. We ran after him a LOT today. Heh. He would get 50 yards away or so and then look for us. With all the people and the fog, most of the time he wouldn't see me flapping my arms wildly and yelling his name, so he would start to cry. Aww!

Max also cried as we were leaving the beach. He did NOT want to go. It was so cute! A very different reaction from Tyler's first time. Ty was petrified of the waves and couldn't stand the way sand felt on his feet. I swear these boys seem to be almost exact opposites of each other.

Photos from our adventures are in my Flickr album.

www.flickr.com

Perfect Timing

2008-07-07T20:10:00.002-04:00

For several months now, Max has been objecting strongly to having his diaper changed. It's not that he hates being clean...more that he hates having to lie down and be still for a few minutes. So I've developed a rapid standing diaper change method. (Obviously only works for pee and not poopie diapers.) I can yank down his shorts, whip off the dirty dipe, brace the clean one against his butt with one hand and fasten the tabs with the other, adjust leg openings, pull up shorts and voila! Done in about 30 seconds flat.

Well today, as I reached for the clean diaper, Max started to pee like gang busters all over me and everything else in firing range. He hasn't done that since he was a newborn. Heh. I guess this means I need to move even faster in the future. I'll be very happy when we start potty training. Maybe in a couple months. He's not quite ready yet.

What I Did On My Summer Vacation

2008-07-06T11:47:00.002-04:00

We made plans to go to Wild West City. It started raining. Hard. So we went to Burger King instead.

The End

*sigh* The entire blog is going to sound like the essays of a first grader if I don't get some inspiration soon.

How about some holiday peek-a-boo instead?

How does that happen?

2008-07-01T11:07:00.002-04:00

July 4th has snuck up on me! John suddenly announced on Friday that the carnival and fireworks show we take Tyler (and now Max) to was the next day. WHAT? Good thing he checked or the boys would have missed it this year! I was a little nervous about Max, fireworks and being out so late; but he did great!

Next hurdle is a visit to Grandma and Grampie's house this weekend. Two years in a row my mom has promised to get the boys some kind of inflatable water play gizmo, and thus far the boys have been disappointed (she waits too long then the item she goes to get is sold out).

My poor blog has really suffered since I got a new computer. I have videos to unload off my Flip, but I can't get it working right. I can't find the disk to install the software to unload pictures from my camera either. And without photos and video, I think things get kinda dull here. Heh.

Ah well. Back to the struggle.

Tyler Politics and Anniversary

2008-06-21T13:24:00.003-04:00

After watching a TV segment that featured a song listing all the U.S. Presidents...Tyler says to me: "Mom? Are girls allowed to be President?"

I was a bit taken aback that he'd noticed all our former presidents (and the current one) were men. "Well Ty, in theory, yes - a woman can become President. It just hasn't happened yet."

"Why?"

"Um...because for a long time women weren't even allowed to vote and none of them ever ran for President until recently. There was a lady running for President for this next election, but it looks like she is out of the race."

"Oh. Mom? I wish you could be President. I would vote for you. Maybe you can do that when you get old?"

"Ha! Aww...thanks Ty. Maybe someday."

Chances of a college drop-out and full time Mom getting to be President one day? Unlikely. The fact that my son wants to vote for me? Priceless.

And in other news: Today is our 16th wedding anniversary. I was so exhausted and stressed this week, I completely forgot what day/date it was and I don't even have a card for my sweetie. So I just want to say to my husband...thank God you're home and I love you, baby! If you have to go away again for any time longer than overnight, I'm going with you. The boys can stay with Grandma! Ha!

Da Bears!

2008-06-20T12:28:00.003-04:00

I got an automated phone call from my son's school the other day. They have this system that phones every emergency contact number you list on a form at the beginning of the school year and plays a recording to whomever answers.

The auto-phone message went something like this: "Attention parents of students at Blah Blah School...do not be alarmed. A large black bear has been spotted near the high school. Authorities have been alerted, but we ask that no child be allowed to walk home today. Every effort to pick your child up at school should be made. Thank you."

Yeah! Good times. LOL

I asked Tyler about "the bear" when I picked him up...he stared at me blankly. I guess they didn't tell the students about the danger. Probably a good thing since the first thing out of Tyler's mouth when I explained the situation was, "A real bear?!?! Can we go see him??? Pleeeeeeease Mom!"

Oh boy.

No good very bad day...

2008-06-16T20:32:00.002-04:00

Baby up at 6am. Sucks when you fell asleep at 4:30am. Husband took Ty to school and went back to bed until after 11am. I may hate him. Then he packed and left for a week in Las Vegas. I'm pretty sure I hate him. As he was leaving, he says, "I really don't want to go. I don't even know who the entertainment is at the last conference event...some band called Matchbox 20..."

It's official. I almost certainly hate him.

Then I made dinner alone. Kids dying from hunger, screaming, coloring on the windows, crayons spilled everywhere, Tyler insisting on making his own peanut butter sandwich (no, he won't eat what I cooked)...and the chicken came out half cooked and half raw. Why do they put HUGE chicken thighs in the same package with little tiny ones??? How hard is it to sort them by size?

It's way past their bed time. Peas and rice spilled into my sofa. Kids are wired and bouncing off the walls. Tyler lied about brushing his teeth. No hair left to pull out. John has 4 nights of a bed to himself in a city built for fun and loaded with great places to eat...yeah, it's a work function and he has to mingle and go to meetings. But I know those sales guys. Someone is going to suggest a strip club and it's all down hill from there.

Yeah. I hate him.

[If hubby reads this... Just kidding honey! I love you! Travel safe and bring me home a present, mkay?]

Binki Experiment - Day 2 (Thanks Lotus!)

2008-06-13T21:47:00.003-04:00

One of my fav bloggers (who else could get all their readers to send photos of their boobs?) is currently in the process of weaning her boy off the binky. Since our boys are very close in age, I thought I would give it a shot. I'd much rather say bye bye to the bink NOW than have a repeat of the extreme pacifier addiction that Tyler had. (He refused to give it up until he turned 4 - then gave it up cold turkey that very day.) For several months now, we've already limited Max's paci use to nap and bedtime only (or when we were desperate on a long car trip.)

Day 1 - No bink given at naptime. You know what? He went to sleep without complaint! No bink at bedtime. He woke several times during the night, but didn't cry. Just rocked in his bed to sooth himself. Success!

Day 2 - Again, no binky at naptime. He fell asleep on the sofa and was carried to his bed, so no problem there. Bed time is now. He has been talking, rocking and calling for me for a half hour now. *sigh* Crossing fingers.

Update at 11PM - he fell asleep after a second sippy full of milk. This might not be the best time to take his comfort items away. Max has started to settle in to full blow separation anxiety. I hope it doesn't get as bad as it was with Tyler. I couldn't even leave the house without him breaking down into a hysterical mess. Poor kid.

The other issue I have in parallel with Lotus (see link) is our excessive need to control all writing implements and keep them away from little hands except under the strictest supervision. Yeah. It worked great when it was just baby Tyler in the house. There was only ONE instance where he got his mitts on a pen and drew on my dinning room table and chairs. Now? Tyler is much older and very careless with his things. Max finds crayons in the sofa, pens under the bookcase, markers on the floor near the whiteboard, and a multitude of other writing implements anywhere and everywhere. Ugh!

So I've been cleaning up Max's "art work" on a daily basis and it's driving me a bit batty. He loves to use markers on the dining room window. That's not so bad. The ink comes right off the glass easily. He'll also follow big brother's example and draw on the white board I mounted on the back-side of the breakfast bar in the kitchen (where the bar stools would normally be parked). Also easy to clean. BUT, then he write on the carpet and the furniture. Ugh. He has some major special radar. If there is a loose pen anywhere in his reach, he WILL find it and use it. LOL

Meanwhile, in Second Life, I am attending a Kiss tribute concert. Wow, this takes me back.

Dragon Flys, Boys, and Making Babies

2008-06-12T13:11:00.003-04:00

I had an interesting discussion with Tyler the other day. He was watching "Miss Spider" on Noggin with Max and said, "I love this show."

I asked him if it was because he had something in common with Miss Spiders' kids. He looked at me blankly. "Think about it Ty. She is a spider and her kids are spiders, bed bugs and dragonflies. Didn't you ever wonder about that?"

That triggered a lively discussion on adoption and the differences between being born into a family and being adopted into one.

Tyler wisely said to me, "You know what Mom? You are lucky your belly was broken. Getting a baby out of there really hurts!"

"How did you know that childbirth was really painful, Ty?! Did they talk about it at school?"

He shook his head at me and said, "Think about it. It takes a DOCTOR and a HOSPITAL to get a baby out of there. That HAS to hurt! Plus those holes down there are so SMALL!"

I burst out laughing and when I composed myself, I said, "You know what Ty? You are right. I am very lucky."

WeAss #219 Transportation

2008-06-06T21:18:00.005-04:00

Weekend Assignment #219: What is your favorite form of transportation, and why? You can choose any means of traveling by land, sea or air, with just one catch: it has to currently exist in the real world, or have existed in the past. No TARDIS, no Star Trek transporter, no flying DeLoreans, all right?

Extra Credit: What's the most unusual form of transportation you've ever taken?

While I love the comfort and convenience of my mini-van, I confess I crave some very different modes of transport.

Firstly, I would LOVE to have one of these:

We rode these in Bermuda and I've wanted to get back on one ever since. I think it would be GREAT to tool around town on one. I'd get Tyler a nice helmet too. What a fun way to get to school in the morning. (Of course I have no clue what the laws are when it comes to passengers on these...but I would check, of course.)

Second choice would be a Segway. Currently I have an issue with the maximum allowed weight on these (which sucks) but maybe one day I can address that. Maybe that can be my incentive. Hey honey? If I get under the max allowed on a Segway, will you get me one? Or better yet, get me that cool Vespa?

Third choice would be one of these:

But seriously, I might be forced into one of those at the rate I'm going.

EDITED 6/8 1:49PM to add:

I forgot to do the extra credit part! Most unusual form of transport I've ever taken...hmm. There was the sky tram in the New Mexico mountains, cable cars in San Francisco, scooters in Bermuda...probably the most unusual was catching a ride on a C-130 (at least I think that's what it was called) military transport plane. Can't recall if it was to or from Okinawa where my Dad was stationed when I was a kid. I only remember that is was VERY LOUD.

And a note to Trish - that Vespa up above? It is FAST. It can do freeways with no problem. :-)

Opening Pandora's ... er ... Website!

2008-05-31T11:57:00.002-04:00

A big THANK YOU to my bloggy pal, Donna, for pointing me to Pandora. What is Pandora, you ask?

So glad you asked! It's an internet radio station...sorta. The big difference is you are in control of the station programming. You start by picking a band or song you really like. They will play that song/group right off the bat, but in the background the site is putting together a playlist of other artists and songs that they feel have a similar style and sound as the band you like. Then they play one of their suggestions as the next song. If you like it, you can click Guide Us and say so. Ditto if you DON'T like it. What you end up with is a radio station full of songs and artists you LOVE and nothing you don't. How cool is that?

So far I am on song number 8 and they haven't thrown anything at me that I don't like...and all I did was pick Rush as my starting band. And the sound quality over my cable broadband connection is friggin awesome! Now I wish I had a cigarette lighter so I could light it and wave it over my head. Heh.

Friends in the News

2008-05-30T10:03:00.002-04:00

One of my bloggy pals (Bridgette of ...And Then There Were Four, a private journal) was interviewed recently. She has a son on the autistic spectrum and has been a tireless advocate of autism awareness and the need for major reform in how our children are vaccinated.

Just wanted to drop a pointer to the article (complete with video). There has been a great deal of debate over whether vaccinations are a cause or contributing factor to the onset of autism. Her story is quite compelling.

At the very least, I agree with the argument that we need to "Green our Vaccines!" Go Bridgette!

"Can you feel the soft cool grass...feel it with your toes..." L. Berkner

2008-05-27T17:09:00.002-04:00

While visiting Grandma on Memorial Day, Max lost a sock. It was a nice day, so we decided to skip shoes and just go outside in bare feet. I quickly realized this was only the second time Max had been in grass without shoes on. This was his reaction:

Heh. Max may love Laurie Berkner's song Under a Shady Tree, but he does NOT like how grass feels on his toes.

And now it's time for Max's word of the day:

Hope you all have a great week.

Photos from the Show

2008-05-24T14:31:00.002-04:00

As I mentioned before, while I was taking video with one hand, I was shooting photos with the other. Here they are.

I decided to just do a one time share rather than post them on my Shutterfly site/album because there are photos of some of Tyler's classmates in there. Shutterfly photos don't show up in search engines and the only way to view them is through that link. Just trying to be mindful of showing other people's kids on the net (something I never used to give much thought to in the past since I never had any hesitation to share photos of my own kids.)

The photos turned out much better than the video did (sorry about that!) LOL! I used my new (birthday) Sigma telephoto lens and quickly realized we were sitting too close to the stage. Wow can that thing zoom in. A good lesson for next time. Plus maybe if we sit further back, I won't freak Tyler out with all that A/V equipment trained on his every move. Heh.

As I said in the note included with the photo link, Tyler and I had a long talk when he got home from school that day about why is Mommy is so camera crazy. He remembered the previous conversation where I explained about childhood memories and looking back one day when he is older. He can't imagine being older at this stage of life, so obviously that argument didn't hold much water with him. Then I went on to talk about all the people in his life who love him and can't always be around to see him growing up and doing cool stuff. It was light-bulb moment for him. "Oh yeah! Grandma and Grampy and Grandma Lois didn't get to see my show! It's too far to drive to get there on time in the morning..." Then he was thrilled I had made the video of the whole show so his grandparents and aunts and uncles and all those nice internet friends could all see him in his play. He wants you all to know that he "worked real hard" and he's sorry he didn't sing the bad wolf song (he thought it was too silly.) Then he wanted to make a video of his brother's butt to share on the internet. Funny, kid. Very funny.

I'll have to remember this argument for the future. "Tyler, smile nice please. Remember, all those people who love you want to see how big you are getting. Photos are important!" Heh. Maybe it will work. We'll see.

Oh! And just an aside... I've mentioned her before, but, Tyler has a classmate who looks just like Dora (from Dora The Explorer). She happens to be a HUGE Dora fan and deliberately tries to maintain her "Dora" look...right down to the hair cut. There's a photo of her at the link above. She's so adorable and a really sweet kid (who likes Tyler a lot.)

The wolf said WHAT!??

2008-05-22T19:37:00.002-04:00

Today, Tyler had his very first school play. He starred in a kindergarten production of The Three Little Pigs (he was the 3rd pig who made his house out of bricks). This isn't Broadway, but it was cute (and the kids are reading the scripts all by themselves). I was filming with my left hand and taking photos with my right, so the video goes a bit wonky at times. Hope you don't get too sea sick. Also, the audio goes on the fritz half way through Part 3 - I'm not sure why. Either I had my fingers covering the mic or the battery was running low. Needless to say, I'm not too happy about trying to hear Tyler over a buttload of static. I'm not going to embed all these, I'll just link them.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rkK-050ZzmI Very short vid - I just wanted to capture the stage.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hwfWB281P7Y Tyler's class arrives - also a short video. Not too exciting, but Tyler looks very cute at the end.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GnVrzBEn7pk The play begins. Tyler's best pal Robert was supposed to be either Pig #2 or the Big Bad Wolf (can't remember which) but he's been out sick the last couple days. Ty was feeling sad that his friend missed his opportunity to be in the spotlight.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3rLwBf5UWsU The thrilling conclusion - if you can hear through the static. Sorry about that. I'm sorry, but, excuse me? The pigs didn't make FRIENDS with the wolf at the end of the 3 Little Pigs story *I* heard as a kid. Heh. I like it better when the wolf gets his buns toasted in the fireplace after he attempts to climb down pig #3's chimney. Still, the kids did a nice job for their first production.

Max was VERY good during the play. I was really pleased. We came armed with his sippy full of milk and a snack container full of cheerios. He was transfixed! He sat very quietly and watched the story, only making a couple of excited noises when he saw his brother. I think he might be ok to bring to the circus or to go see his favorite kid's singing star (Laurie Berkner) in concert. Speaking of Laurie...here is one last video of Max enjoying her music.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wt3jh-Cpx1E
The ringing phone at the end...? That was Grandma calling to chat. She has great timing...she always calls when I'm on the toilet, changing a diaper, or napping with Max. Heh.

Bring it back!

2008-05-18T21:06:00.004-04:00

Monica has a great topic in her journal today...stuff we miss that we wish would make a comeback - like the old fried apple pie at McDonalds or ice cold Coke in those signature glass bottles.

I could spend a whole entry just on McDonalds alone. I want the original chicken nuggets back (before they were "all white meat" and dry as hell), I want the old french fries back - who cares if they spray them with a beef flavored coating?!, the amazing cheddar burger (quarter pounder sized patty on a whole wheat bun with cheddar cheese sauce and grilled onions...omg they are heaven), the ORIGINAL shakes before they made them lower in fat and took out the industrial plastics that made them so thick...and so on. LOL

But let's move beyond the superficial (and food)... what else would I like to see make a comeback? My waist would be a good one. I miss that. My stamina and upper body strength. Those would be good too.

How about a genuine sense of community? Where are the block parties? The concerts on the green? Folks having open house parties with the grills fired up in the driveway and kegs of beer on ice in the garage? We're all too busy in our own lives and have lost that connection with each other in this town.

I asked John this question too and we brain-stormed. Marathon bars! Remember those? It was like a braid of caramel dipped in chocolate. Mmm! He says "good music on the radio" and I chimed in with "The REAL MTV!" not this reality TV craptastic channel it's turned into.

Wetson's hamburgers (from John). He says it was a burger place in the 60s. I have no clue. LOL! It's funny how many food related things we are thinking of. "New Coke!" He loved New Coke apparently.

Palisades Amusement Park (again from John). Long gone, but not forgotten.

Fanny Farmer chocolate stores. They had the BEST jelly beans ever (yes, even better than Jelly Belly).

There are a TON of TV shows we came up with, but I won't list them all. Honestly, if TV execs and writers have run out of ideas, then why not remake some TV classics? They do it enough in the movies. Look at Battlestar Galactica! That show is kick-ass!

Yeah, all this stuff is pretty superficial. I could list big things like strong and honest government, lower taxes, bringing back the peace (and our soldiers), and freakin' SCHOOL BUSES in this dang town... but superficial is better for my blood pressure.

What would YOU like to see make a come back?

EDITED to add:

For Andi -

Well...I can bring you 3, because they actually DID come back (or never left).

http://www.spencersonline.com/

http://www.babysnazz.com/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=2&gclid=CPr2pd_NsZMCFRIkxwod9C7gnQ OK, so the legwarmers are for the diapers and spitup set, but hey...they are BACK!

Xanadu - on broadway... http://xanaduonbroadway.com/

For Lori -

I give you http://www.driveintheater.com/index.htm where you can find the closest open drive-in to you. Maybe there is still one that is within a reasonable drive distance! We've been talking about a field trip to one in CT for a while. I think the boys would get a kick out of it. California is your best bet to find a woody. They are a cult classic with the aging surfers out there. ;-)

Max's First Words

2008-05-17T19:36:00.002-04:00

For the past couple months, we've had some concerns about Max and his speech. Worried about a delay, we spoke to his doctor. She reassured us that speaking "later" is common in boys; particularly boys with older siblings. Suddenly, a couple weeks ago, Max started saying more words! His list now includes Mama, Dada, TyTy or Tyler (said like "Tywer" so cute!), good, more, bye bye, all done, that, shoes, and the words featured in the following cute videos (please ignore Max's chocolate covered puss and jammies - he was chowing on chocolate chip cookies right before I shot this footage. LOL):

And one more word!

Needless to say, we are tickled! I've been spending more time trying to engage Max in trying to say new words. I also spend all day talking about everything I'm doing and asking Max questions. The conversation is very one-sided and anyone eavesdropping on the baby monitor frequency probably thinks I'm nuts. LOL

Milestone: Tyler's First Movie (non-animated)

2008-05-16T22:37:00.003-04:00

We just got finished watching E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial with Tyler. This marks the first time he's sat through an entire feature-length, live-action film (AND paid attention AND liked it!) The only other movie I know of that he's watched, in it's entirety before, is Finding Nemo.

It's interesting to watch this movie again, after so many years...and to see it from the perspective of a very naive and inexperienced 6 year old. He knows nothing of mans search for alien life, or the paranoia of government against any unknown and potential threat, or the effects of exposure to exotic life-forms and the precautions needed to prevent the spread of disease (wow, the questions we got when the faceless men in space-suits showed up at Elliot's house.)

We talked about radiation again (remember the microwave incident?) and it's effects on the human body. That sparked a whole side track on "cancer" and how it forms and why. Whew! Who knew E.T. would be such a catalyst for conversation on so many divergent subjects. We spent a great deal of time talking about the potential of life on other planets (and Tyler's certainty that alien life DOES exist and has already visited us.)

In the end, it's interesting to note that this movie still makes me cry. I cry at the part where it appears that E.T. has died (even tho I know he isn't really dead) and I cry at the farewell scene. Like a baby. Tyler was so engrossed in the chase scene and the space ship landing, I don't think he even noticed Mommy blubbering right next to him on the sofa.

He got so much out of this movie night experience, that I only feel slightly guilty for letting him stay up until 10:30pm to finish watching. Heh. At least it's a Friday night and there's no school tomorrow.

Oh! And he won't look at me funny any more when I point at him and say "Be good!" while doing my best E.T. impression. Yay for updating Tyler's pop-culture references!