A Mom’s Job » Four Against Two

Summer Here I Come

A Mom's Job, It's all about me!, Stuff, Summer Fun 2 Responses »

May 182012

Source: maxwanger.com via Amanda on Pinterest

I won’t go into detail, but the last couple of years have been a struggle at times. At the end of the summer I felt like I had survived rather than enjoyed them. Sure, we had some great vacations and wonderful times, but my stress and anxiety levels were way to high.

This summer I am not only looking forward to, I am planning. Planning beyond the normal camps, activities and how to keep your kiddos reading throughout the summer. I want to make it EPIC. Okay. So maybe I am setting myself up for disappointment, but I have this yearning inside of me to breakout from the normal, go beyond the stress, ignore the anxiety.

So what does EPIC mean to me? It means me having fun as well as the kids. The kids always have an EPIC summer (though they don’t always see it that way). That is why I am going to fall in love with my camera a little more. Learn how to actually use more of the settings? I also want to do some fun shots with the kids with the inspiration of Pinterest.

I am also going to start running again. My post-op no exercise rule was up a long time ago. It’s time to take my new, improved and smaller bust to the track and she how they do!

So my EPIC may not be as EPIC as some, but it is mine, and I am going to do it.

What are your summer plans?

Mother’s Day Spoils

A Mom's Job, Family, holidays No Responses »

May 142012

I have to show off my Mother’s Day spoils here! No breakfast in bed, as I got up before the kids (hahaha) but I did get to watch the morning news while eating this:

I also got and acrostic poem written in my honor:

And the cutest set of hands that have ever made a heart:

Meg, Enu and Elle accompanied me and my mom to a fun mom and me event at The Wilds. The Wilds is an amazing conservation park where you can see animals in a natural way, no fences for most of them! We had a great time and got to pet a few animals that we normally wouldn’t pet: a Madagascar Hissing Cockroach, a possum, a gray fox and a corn snake.

Top my day off with homemade lasagna from Meg and my Dad and I had quite the nice day ;) I hope yours was blessed as well.

Shhhh, Don’t Tell The Kids

A Mom's Job, All you need is love!, holidays No Responses »

May 102012

I’ll be very candid right now. Candid, not ungrateful, so please don’t think I am ungrateful.

I don’t like breakfast in bed. I hate eating in bed, even late night snacks, so breakfast foods are just impossible for me to enjoy. I don’t want crumbs on my pillow or syrup on my sheets. I just don’t like anything about it.

Except for the look on the kids’ faces when they bring it up. I do adore those faces. They are so happy and so proud, giggling and arguing bursting into the room to awaken me.

Bless them. If I am treated to this custom once again on Sunday, I’ll be sure to ahh it up and let them know how awesome they are. Then I’ll eat my carrots with a side of ketchup (okay, I’ll quietly skip the ketchup) and try not to mess up the bed too much. This may be my last year of my surprise, you never know, I may miss it someday. I probably will miss it someday, but I cannot help but hope they choose an everything bagel over cereal this year!

So Proud Of My Girl

A Mom's Job, Moments With Meg 1 Response »

May 092012

Meg has been working very hard on her Girl Scout Silver Award these past few months. The Silver Award is the highest award a Caddette Girl Scout can earn. It is 50 hours of learning, planning, and teaching a sustainable project that is targeted towards your community, not just Girl Scouting.

She choose recycling as her topic. She learned about recycling jeans into insulation for homes and part of her project is to collect denim to send to the Cotton From Blue To Green program. She almost has 100 pairs. She has gone to several Girl Scout meetings to teach the girls about her project, and to do a craft with them using old jeans (cup cozyies). Working on her speaking skills she presented her project and asked for sponsorship money to two groups of adults and her own troop. She toured a local recycling plant to learn how plastic is recycled, and also planned a “Fashionable Recycling” event for the our community. Meg has taken this very seriously and knows that earning her Silver Award and eventually her Gold Award will help her get college scholarships. She does think this far ahead on her own. It’s genetic she is a mini-hubby.

She held her event today. A very busy day for our community with baseball, prom,and a local festival. Her turnout was not what she had hoped for. My heart ached for her. She held her chin up, taught the kids (mostly her helpers) and the adults about her project, played games, made bracelets and then came home and went to her room for a while.

She didn’t cry, complain or whine, but she wouldn’t talk to me either. I told her that today was a success. She planned, organized, brought together volunteers, got door prizes and hosted a wonderful learning event. Today was a success. I hope through her disappointment that she can see what she has accomplished and take some learning lessons from it and move on.

Her project is not quite done, she has a few more hours to go and more jeans to collect. She will finish though. She will probably also turn a lot of today’s work into a fair project so the work will not be in vain.

I cannot be more proud of my girl. Living the disappointment and successes of your children is a roller coaster ride. I want to jump in. I want to fix things. I want it all to be rainbows and unicorn farts (a favorite saying of my girls). I also am glad to know that while disappointment is rough, that learning how to deal with the disappointments in life when you are young makes you a tougher more tenacious person.

My Meg is going to set the world on fire, just wait and see.

Keep Your Children Reading This Summer!

A Mom's Job, Education, Parenting, Reading Challenge, Summer Fun No Responses »

May 022012

If you ever look at my blog, you know that I am a reader. I love to read. I could read all day. I have to stop myself from reading to actively participate in the real world. My mom used to make me put down my books and play outside. I’m addicted, it’s just a legal drug and is generally a good thing to be addicted to!

Seeing a parent read is the best way to raise readers. I truly believe that. I also accept that not everyone is going to be as crazy about books as I am. But I will try to convert you I promise.

Summer time at our house is a great time. We are either crazy-busy or crazy-lazy. For the crazy-lazy times it can be challenging to keep the media to a low-roar. In our house media is TV, computer or non-active Wii games. For the last two years I have used media-bucks to keep the kids on limited screen time and to keep them reading. Last year I had yard sales at the end of the month where the girls could buy fun stuff with media bucks if they saved them. This is great because they are earning the media bucks, but not using them on TV! I also had a read-so-many-minutes over the summer you get a book series. All the girls earned great book series. Meg got the entire 39 Clues series, Mita got The Hunger Games Trilogy, Enu got a huge Junie B. Jones series and Elle got… I cannot remember, I thinks she just chose a few books instead of a series.

While I was happy with last year’s success, I am ramping it up a bit. This year I am doing a stamp card. This way they hopefully don’t loose it the way they could the media bucks. Here is how it goes:

1 Media Stamp = 30 minutes of media time

Level 1 books = 1 media stamp for 30 minutes of reading

(age level books the kids like to read)

Level 2 books = 2 media stamps for 30 minutes of reading

(Book that push them to read at a higher level)

Level 3 books= 3 media stamps for 30 minutes of reading

(any non-fiction reading, classic or a book that Mom would like you to read)

Learning Lab = 3 media stamps

( A workbook or experiment.)

Active outdoor play for 30 minutes= 1 media stamp

You can see where I am going with Level 3. Meg doesn’t want to read the classics right now, but I am bound and determined to get some Little Women in her this summer! This should all equal to plenty of TV time as well as great reading time and some fun prizes. This year I am doing gift cards to Amazon, Barnes and Noble and iTunes instead of a yard sale. The kids are stoked!

This may seem like a lot of work, but for my family it is how we function. We have to have clear, set guidelines or it is chaos around here.

We also do the Summer Reading at our local library. This is a family favorite, but as the kids get older I really push content over how many books are read. I try to get the girls to set a content goal over a number goal, like “I will read 20 books this summer, 10 of them chapter books, 2 of them classics and 8 off them non-fiction.”

Scholastic has a great summer reading site that you should check out. We did this last summer and the kids had a lot of fun on it. It is a fun way for them to keep track of how much they read. It also lead to a great discussion on honestly and integrity when one of my girls cooked the numbers a bit! Click here for a video tutorial on how it works. They also have great book lists for all ages.

If you want to keep your kids reading this summer the first thing you should do is pick up a book and read it yourself, let the kids see you read and talk about what a great book it is. Then take them to the library!

Getting Her Ready For Social Media

A Mom's Job, Family, Frustrated Mommy Moments, Moments With Meg, My Soap Box, Parenting, Safety, Teendom No Responses »

Apr 252012

As I mentioned a few weeks ago, I have an almost 13-year-old that is bringing the whole social media thing and her use of it to my forefront. I have several ideas running through my head on how to approach this, but I still have time. I don’t think I am in denial, I just like to procrastinate. Ask Hubby if you don’t believe me.

Meg (said almost thirteen year old) has a blog. She started it not quite a year ago and reviews books, movies and a few random posts. She is an obsessive reader, likes to write and is currently writing her first novel, which I find amazing, I know I am a her mom, but it is amazing. From time to time though she gets writers block and for some reason thinks it is my responsibility to help her through it. This conversation just happened this morning:

Meg: Mom, I don’t know what to write for my next blog. Tell me what to write. (Read in a whiny voice).

Mom: Write about Earth Day, write about your Silver Award project.

Meg: I’ve tried and I cannot. I’ve tried and tried.

Mom: Just start writing and throw out your first paragraph, a lot of writers do that.

Meg: I can’t, tell me what to write! (whiney voice is louder and more annoying)

Mom: (Watching a TV commercial about cars) Write about how you feel when you start daddy’s car in the morning. It could be a good father’s day gift for him.

Meg: (Silence)

Mom: (….ah silence)

This is what she came up with When I Start The Car. I think she did a great job sharing her emotions and I am very happy that I was able to help her out for once. Maybe now she’ll listen to me sooner, but I doubt it.

It is times like these that make me think she may be ready to dip her toe in the tumultuous ocean of social media. Not because writing a good blog makes you savvy to the ways of Facebook, but because she has demonstrated that she can share her feelings effectively to the world (or me). She writes, she proofreads, she edits.

She recently sent a text that hurt her friend’s feelings. We were able to talk about how texting and emails don’t show the emotions that your voice does. You cannot say somethings with a text. It’s just not done. A painful lesson, but on a smaller scale thankfully. I cannot help but mourn for the girls who have texted much worse to people such as inappropriate pictures. Our children have the whole world in their hands, literally. The power they have is daunting, yet we seem to let them treat it way too lightly.

To many I may be over thinking the social media thing. I may seem obsessive or over-protective with my kids. I cannot help but be careful with my girls though. Social media is the way of the world. Bosses are checking your Facebook page. Colleges are tracking your movements. Your social media footprint follows you much like your credit score, and you have to protect it. On top of that you have crazy people trying to meet with your children in hotel rooms (we have one of those down the street).

I hope when Meg clicks post on Facebook she looks at her post not as a brief update on what she is doing after school, but as a little piece of her that she is sharing with the world. I hope she can look at it objectively and think “Does the world need to know this about me?” “Is this a safe thing to share?” “Would I share this with a stadium full of people?” “Is this fair to other people?” “Will it hurt someone’s feelings?” That is a lot of questions to go through someone’s mind, but with time and practice I think we can learn to take a double look at our contributions to the world. Even if they are only 140 characters or a pin.

Earth Day 2012 – It Rained. We Picked Up Trash Anyway

A Mom's Job, Earth Friendly Ideas, girl scouts, Moments with Mita No Responses »

Apr 222012

Our Team's Zone Of Clean Up

Yesterday our local community organization had a pick up some trash day. Of course it was 40 degrees and raining! We had 11 braved souls, kids and adults, show up from a few local Girl Scout troops. They were indeed troopers and we had a lot of fun in the wet and cold!

Here is a short video we did for a contest: Girl Scouts Earth Day 2012 Check it out!

Mita wrote up a little something for this special day:

Earth day is not just another day. It’s a day that we think about the earth and how fragile the earth is and how we can make it better or improve more. Here are some ways you could make the environment better below:

* Recycle cans, papers, plastic, glass,
* Reduce the amount of water you use like taking, shorter showers take a shower instead of a bath.
* Reuse paper on the back instead of throwing it away and getting a new one. * Conserve the amount of light you use ( turn off the lights you have on when you leave your home or room.
* Turn off your car when you’re in a long line at a fast food place.
* Turn off your TV when you’re not watching
* unplug a cord when you’re not using it

Countdown to Earth Day: Better Shopping Practices

A Mom's Job, Earth Friendly Ideas, Stuff No Responses »

Apr 192012

I like a bargain. I like to use a coupon and get something for less. I am all for a generic brands as long as they work or taste as well as what I am used to.

With all of that it can be hard for me to spend a little more money on a product that is Earth Friendly. I do buy things that are better for the planet, but I want them to be competitive in price and quality.

So how can you tell a product is environmentally friendly? A lot of times the packaging advertises the fact to give consumers the heads up but here are a few other ways to tell:

Less is better. Does it have a huge box for a little product? Remember when CD’s came in the long cardboard box…they thankfully stopped that wastefulness.
Is the packaging made of recycled materials? Post-consumer waste is best.
Is the packaging itself able to be recycled locally? A lot of smaller towns (that would be my town) don’t recycle #3,4, 5,6 plastics.
Is the product locally grown/produced? Buying local not only helps out your neighbors, but it takes less gas to get it to the store. You can sometimes talk to the grower/maker and ask questions about chemicals and fertilizers.
Is it organic? This is what I seem to struggle the most with. I have a list of the dirty dozen, which are the 12 foods you should buy organic as they tend to have the most pesticides and chemicals. Organic can be pricey and it goes bad quickly (chemicals are there for a reason – to stop bugs and rotting.) I hate it when I let produce go bad, but I also don’t go to the store more than once a week. Having four growing girls that eat a lot and eat all the time can be expensive. I want to feed them healthy and organic, but I also don’t want to go into debt trying to accomplish that.

My goal is to become a bit less of a penny-pincher when it comes to healthier products for my kids. I go in and out of making my own cleaners, it depends on my busy level but when I do buy cleaning products I try to make them the “greener” ones. I need to focus more on my long-term goal.

I must also concentrate on the fact that where and how I spend my money makes an impact on the Earth not only by helping the natural state of the Earth, but telling businesses and corporations what I as a consumer care about.

Do you shop towards Earth-Friendly or Pocketbook-Friendly?

How To Save Your Dr. Seuss

A Mom's Job, Books I Have Read, Education, Moments with Elle, Parenting, Stuff 1 Response »

Apr 102012

If you have young children in elementary or pre-school most likely you know that the celebration of Dr. Seuss’ birthday was a couple of weeks ago.

Which means right about now your child’s backpack is full of the cutest art projects you have ever seen! Projects that you don’t want to toss but cannot realistically keep on your fridge or in a scrapbook either. Unless this is your first child. Then you will keep everything for years until your basement or garage is full and realize that something has to hit the recycling bin or you have to buy a bigger home.

After having Meg fill 5+ bins I started to realize that with four kids, the bin thing wasn’t happening. So three years ago I started making school project photo books on Shutterfly (tons of other sites, but Shutterfly is my fav). I take the pictures of the projects and save them for the next book. This makes it so much easier to toss the projects. I don’t enjoy junking them, but it is a necessary evil of motherhood. I have also made thank you cards and notecards out of some of the projects.

So back to Dr. Seuss. Elle came home with a few really cute things that I cannot throw away. Maybe it is because she is my baby and I’m realizing that this may be my last Dr. Seuss birthday bonanza, maybe it’s because I’m tired of taking out the recycling. Who knows? What I do know is that an idea popped into my head that I am happy with and thought I would share.

As a reading family there are some books that will never be donated or passed on. Dr. Seuss books are those sorts of books. Elle has fallen hard for the rhyme master and has even read me Green Eggs and Ham backwards before (a realllllly loooonnnggg story btw!). So I merged the two and have not lost any space.

I simply added her art work to the insides of the books and now the books mean even more to me than before. I can imagine Elle’s kids opening the book and seeing mommy’s artwork from when she was a girl….ahhhh. Tears. Sniff. Sniff.

Awesome.

They better appreciate this stuff!

Book Review: If Only

A Mom's Job, Books I Have Read, Reviews No Responses »

Apr 012012

I was goofing off on Facebook the other day. Yes, I know I shouldn’t admit that, but I was. I am so very over TV and still kinda building up my stamina so I do have lots of sit down time. Anyway, I was looking at a post from one of my favorite places, Scholastic. They were talking about a book named If Only by Carole Geithner. The cover showed a girl looking out a window. It was simple, pretty and immediately drew my attention. Then I read the plot and was most definitely engaged.

If only is about the first year a thirteen year old, Corinna Burdette, goes through after her mother dies. It is told from her character, and is aimed at tween/teen girls, but will keep adults interested as well. Corinna has to go to school and be surrounded by her friends who don’t know what they should say or do. Who sometimes say or do the wrong things. The book goes through the seasons and focuses on her feelings and her relationship with her grieving dad as well.

It has all the normal developmental things such as body changes, boy crushes and drama over the little things plus is a great way for young people to learn about grief. Most of us don’t know what to say or do when someone looses someone. It’s tough. I’m not very good at it really, but I am learning. I wish I would have learned earlier in my life and having a book such as this one could have been a big help.

I am encouraging Meg to read it and review it on her blog from her point of view. I hope Mita will read it as it may help her know that the feelings she has about loosing her mother in Ethiopia are normal, that loss is a messy, nasty thing that never goes away. It does change though, into something that softens and doesn’t sear all the time. Someday Enu will be ready to read it as well and I think she will respond to the character well. Though our situation is different, there is still grief to be dealt with.

I must mention that Geithner has worked as a clinical social worker who has worked with children and adults who have lost a parent while they were growing up. She is Assistant Clinical Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Science at George Washington University School of Medicine. This is her first book and frankly I think she did a spectacular job. As a mom of two girls who have done counseling, I know when someone gets it. Geithner does.

The book If Only definitely has a niche in the grief community to give girls who have lost a parent a tool to work through thier loss. It also belongs in the mainstream middle school library as a tool to help students learn about grief in an non-stressful way and how to treat those who are grieving.

(Disclosure: Scholastic sent me a copy of the above book at my request to read and review on my blog. No other compensation was given.)

Movie Review And Rant: The Hunger Games

A Mom's Job, Books I Have Read, Moments With Meg, Moments with Mita, Reviews, Teendom 1 Response »

Mar 262012

Okay. So I wrote that this is a movie review and a rant. I will rant first. I know I am not the coolest mom ever. Or the coolest mom. Or a cool mom. But I am a mom and I did fork over close to $50 yesterday to take my two oldest darlings to see The Hunger Games. Nevermind that I would have seen it anyway if they hadn’t wanted to watch it because I am in love with this book series. Gas, tickets, popcorn aren’t cheap. You would think I would get one lousy picture of my girls having fun at the movies…..noooooo. Not one picture of them in front of the movie poster, in the theater, posing with tickets. Nothing. I took a picture of my lonely little ticket to remember the day. Maybe when Catching Fire comes out I’ll not take them unless they sign a contract saying they will pose for one picture. Don’t they know that these events are the memories of their childhood? Don’t they know that they need to have them documented in photos so they will have hundreds of Shutterfly books to look through with their own children, my grandchildren, to show what an awesome ~~mom~~ childhood they had? Enough of the rant and on to the review.

I’ve read enough book series turned movie franchises to know that it is impossible to put everything from the book on the screen. The movies would be five hours long. I would still pay to see it, but apparently the movie people don’t know how die-hard readers can be! The Hunger Games the movie was close enough to the book to please me. I can excuse the few missing characters, though I miss them.

If you have not read the books and only seen the movie the way Katniss gets her Mockingjay pin is not correct, and it loses some of its value I think in how she obtained it. In the books Cinna is one of my favorite characters, he is very flamboyant, yet supportive. The movie Cinna is certainly supportive, kind and him and Katniss work well together, but he was lacking in some of his charm. Except for his eyeshadow, he wasn’t that WOW as he was in the book.

What I loved about the movie. Woody Harrelson as Haymitch was great, I enjoyed his portrayal. Katniss was the Katniss from the books, I think she nailed it. Peeta was perfect, Gale had a small part in this first film, but I feel he is going to be perfect in this role. I hate the whole Team Gale/Team Peeta thing. This is about Katniss! She is not a prize to be won, she is a stand alone person. Trying to tell this to my giggly girls is aggravating.

The violence in the movie was PG-13 for sure. It was really hard to watch children kill children. The books can be hard to read, but as I am a visual person, it was hard to watch. I questioned letting Mita and Meg see it on the screen. They had read the books, I’ve tried to discuss the issues with them as they read them. I still don’t know if they get the entire picture, but I feel they are on the right track. I would be hesitant to allow a young tween/teen see this film if they hadn’t read the books and started digesting the whole fight to the death theme of the books. I don’t think murder should be glorified.

The theme of The Hunger Games being a reality TV show is very important for this upcoming generation especially. It shows how real live human beings can be turned into mearly characters to play with. Watching the behind the scenes people come up with dogs, fires and darkness to add to the games appeal is reprehensible and yet it rings a bit to close to home. Reality TV is not reality. We see people turn into diva monsters all the time for a few minutes of cheap fame. A great discussion starter with the kids about the realities of reality TV and how human lives should not be treated lightly.

I encourage parents to read this series if they have kids reading or watching them! If you want to learn more about them Scholastic has a great site to check out. Have you read the books and seen the movie? Did you allow your tweens or teens to see the movie? What are your thoughts.

Here is Meg’s blog about the movie. Notice how much time she spends on Peet and Gale! Arghh!

Talking Body To Tweens

A Mom's Job, Health and Hygiene, Parenting, Teendom No Responses »

Mar 222012

Racing towards adult-hood :(

I have an amazing power that was only recently discovered. I don’t twitch when the word puberty is said. I not only don’t twitch, I get happy and love to talk about it with parents and girls. Girls only. I have no idea about the boys.

Armed with this new super power I recently worked with a teen counselor and we put on a program for some local Girl Scouts. We held it around Valentines Day and called it Loving Your Growing Body. It was complete with snacks and door prizes and I have to say it was a huge success. I was elated afterwards that twenty girls ages 9-16 knew how and why their bodies were changing, that it was healthy and normal. Also that ten of them attended with their moms and the continuing conversation was started that day for some of them.

Remember that I always encourage parents that there is no “The Talk” if you want to have healthy communication with your kids. There needs to be several small conversations over several years that make parents and kids comfortable with each other so that when and if a big topic or issue pops up, the scene is set for loving and supportive communication.

I am excited to be working on a similar program at the hospital where I work. I want to develope a program for girls to attend with their mom/grandmas. I believe that knowledge is power. Girls (and boys of course, though I know nothing about them and frankly they scare me sometimes!) armed with the knowledge that they are healthy and normal are going to make better decisions. I hope they will delay having sex, will feel better about themselves and not take abuse, have open communication with parents. I feel that the current programs that are in place for this age group are very lacking in that they do not encourage communication with family and when it comes down to it the family is responsible for passing on their values and those values are what is going to form the child. If you are secretive about bodies with no communication your child will most likely have a lot of unanswered questions or obtain incorrect answers from other sources, this may lead to very bad choices.

At the end of the program the evaluations were all positive, I had one mom who wished I hadn’t talked so much about menstruation, but others were asking for more. They want a class on sex, a 16-year-old was asking good questions about her cycle. Kids want to know, they just need a trusting place to ask. Hopefully that place is at home.

To clarify here, there was no talk about sex or birth control. Girl Scouts don’t go there as they are about empowering girls through fun and educational program activities and building self-esteem. This program was simply about feeling good about yourself and knowing the changes that happen to our bodies are normal. The moms who stayed really loved it and learned things they needed to know about helping their daughters prepare for what is to come.

All of this said. Only one of my own daughters came and she admitted it was just for the great goodie bag (several places and people donated beauty and hygiene items). The older two helped me put together the packets and said that they had seen it all. I am mom. They don’t want to watch me talk about boobs and pads to other kids. I get that. Frustration was felt, but I get that. My baby at age seven is not ready for a class like this and I am happy about that. I want kids to be kids as long as they can.

Just today my almost ten-year-old was asking why her butt was so big when she was only a kid. My answer was truthful. “Your butt isn’t big, it’s a woman’s butt. Your body is going on 16 while your mind is about 8 or 9. One day your mind and body will even out, but until then the process can be trying.” No easy answers, but compassion and understanding and hopefully we will get through this one-day!

Trying To Figure Out The Social Media Thing For My Kids

A Mom's Job, Entertainment, Family, Moments With Meg, My Soap Box, Parenting, Safety, Teendom 1 Response »

Mar 092012

I must tell you that the knee-jerk reaction I have when I think of my kids joining social media is no, absolutely not, never and lets just not even go there. Why do I feel this way? Well, it is just one more thing to monitor for one, and I just don’t need anything else to my list to check on. My daughters also see their friends five days a week if not more, so they are not lacking socialization.

My oldest daughter, Meg, does think it is somwhere she needs to go. Hmm. Now I have to do that parenting thing and not the dictatorship thing that comes to naturally and makes my life that much more easy. Meg will be the magic 13 this October and is already being strategic about getting onto Facebook as 13 is the legal age to have a Facebook account. I will repeat, Facebook allows you to have an account when you are 13. I repeated that because many parents don’t know this or don’t care about this rule. I recently learned that everyday Facebook kicks off around 100,000 underage kids. It irritates me that parents allow and encourage their kids to break the rules. Go ahead, teach your kids that rules don’t apply to them, we need more entitled kids in this world (sarcasm).

I have noticed that many of Meg’s friends are on Facebook (underage) and even have open to the public accounts. Not even the basics of safety have been undertaken. That scares me. Are we just ignorant as a society or in total denial that bad things can happen to our children?

Okay, back to my own house. I know my kids will be exposed to social media at some point, Actually they are already on Yoursphere network. I love Yoursphere and have tried to get Meg’s friends on it so they can talk and be social online together in a safe place, but it didn’t take. The kids were already on Facebook. I even recommended it to the middle school principle and PTO as a fundraiser and a solution to the social media problem at the school. No go. This at a school that at the orientation spent the majority of the time talking about “mean girls” and social media problems that they were having with behavior.

At a recent Girl Scout event they offered a Hip Pop session for parents/leaders covering social media basics. The one thing I really took away is that we want our kids to be innovators of social media/computer not just consumers. Meaning we want our kids to learn and create things not just stare at a screen. He suggested that we get our kids blogging, making movies, even writing apps. I was pleased that Meg already fits in this category with her blog.

To sum up this all over the place post, I am working towards a plan to raise media savy kids who are productive in our techy climate. I will share my plans and ask many questions on this quest.

I have a headache already. Why can’t they just stay little and be happy with a few places?

Don’t forget to enter my St. Patrick’s Day giveaway! Ends March 11, 2012

Sunday Stream Of Consciousness: Season Of My Life

A Mom's Job No Responses »

Feb 262012

This week’s prompt is to define the season of your life you are in right now. Hmmm. I think this may take more thinking time than I am able to have! This question actually makes me remember a book I read years ago. I cannot remember the title of the book, but it was something like “When The Roses Grew Wild”. It was about a young family and the mom went to live with her grandmother for a while. The grandmother had a beautiful Rose garden that was well-manicured and award winning. Her grandmother shared with her that while her kids were growing up her garden was out of control mess and that those years were the best years of her life.

I know that when I look back on these years I will remember things with fondness and happyness. Right now I am just tired!

This was my 5 minute Stream of Consciousness Sunday post. It’s five minutes of your time and a brain dump. Want to try it? Here are the rules…

Set a timer and write for 5 minutes.
Write an intro to the post if you want but don’t edit the post. No proofreading or spellchecking. This is writing in the raw.
Publish it somewhere. Anywhere. The back door to your blog if you want. But make it accessible.
Add the Stream of Consciousness Sunday badge to your post.
Link up your post below.
Visit your fellow bloggers and show some love.

They Never Sleep Through The Night

A Mom's Job, Parenting 2 Responses »

Feb 152012

Working with new parents I often hear the term sleeping through the night. I get a kick out of this phrase. Why? Because kids never sleep through the night.

Oh sure, you won’t be waking up to nurse every two hours forever and there will be weeks, maybe months without being disturbed from your slumber. But they will still awaken you for good reasons sometimes and for annoying ones at other times. The most annoying reason lately was when Elle hit her sore toe on a box. .. In her bed. I suggested to her to not sleep with a giant box on her bed and that would take care of the problem (Thanks Dad for making your box robot so wonderful that she will not get rid of it!)

Last week I realized that I had been woke up by a sick child ELEVEN nights in a row. I don’t have babies, toddlers or pre-schoolers. My kids are 7, 9, 12 and 12. We had a run of illness that just now seems to be coming to an end. Hopefully. I would love to sleep through the night again.

Sorry if I have burst anyone’s dreams of a sleeping feature.

And also, as I shared with Firemom the other day, the whining gets worse around age seven. Wish I could say it isn’t so.

Photo Credit

Sweet Words

A Mom's Job, Adoption No Responses »

Feb 112012

I won’t get into specifics or mention which girl told me this but I heard music to my ears this morning. This morning before Hubby and I leave for vacation. Vacation without the kids.

While cuddling in my chair (with my laptop, the dog and a kid), the kid whispers, “Please come back from vacation because I need you. Promise me you’ll stay away from sharks.”

I need you too baby. I don’t plan on getting up close and personal with any sharks either.

More Than A Blow Dry

A Mom's Job 2 Responses »

Feb 112012

I’m not much for blow drying my hair. I’m a wash and go kinda person. My hair does look a lot better when I blow dry it, but my appearance has never been a top priority for me. Obviously.

I love blow drying the girls’ hair though. I always ask to dry it and love combing through the golden brown straight hair, scrunching up the dark brown curls or lately, straightening those dark brown curls. It is a great time of pampering and showing love through the power of touch. The girls tend to say no though. They hate me playing with their hair, or so it seems. When I am allowed to dry their hair I am so happy and could stand there forever brushing, combing and just being with my girl.

The other day I was at my mom’s house. She put some color over these strange gray hairs that keep appearing along my scalp. After I had rinsed my hair, mom said “Let me blow dry your hair.” My first reaction was to say no, I wasn’t going to bother with it. Then her look of Please put me in my place.

She is my mom. She gets enjoyment from me. Gray haired, thirty-six year old me gives her happiness, just as my girls make me so happy when I can pamper them a bit. Wow. What a lovely, humbling thought.

What makes this even sweeter is that my mom was able to raise her arms to handle a blow dryer. Just a few months ago, her illness made it impossible to hold up a dryer for even a few minutes at a time. She is doing so much better now. I am so blessed to have my mom as I am reaching the age where others around me are losing parents. A scary, horrifying thing that I cannot even think about.

So yes mom, you may blow dry my hair anytime you wish. And if my kids are reading this, which I know isn’t likely to happen, please know that it is so much more than blow drying your hair.

Photo Credit

Worry Much?

A Mom's Job, Hubby, Moments With Meg, Parenting 1 Response »

Feb 082012

So the bad news is that I am neurotic and the good news is that apparently my condition is getting better.

Nine years ago Hubby surprised me with a seven-day cruise to the Western Caribbean. When I say surprised, I mean total shocker. We hadn’t talked about it or anything, I just opened up my Valentines card and there it was. Lovely man, I know.

Nine years ago I only had one little one. Meg was about three. I was still perfect mom. You know what I mean, I did it all right and I could tell anyone how to raise a perfect kid. Meg was a dream child in so many ways and I attributed it to me. Hubby too. But Me.

I was a wreck about leaving her. I was sure we would die on the plane and not be around to enjoy watching her grow up. I was positive that a week with her grandmas would spoil my perfect child. So I did what every perfect mom would do and I created a pamphlet, yes a pamphlet, for the grandmas. The title of the pamphlet was: How to Raise A Meg. Really, that is what I called it.

The trip came and went, all was well. Apparently my perfect child at one point jumped up on the counter and called my father in law a “lily-livered-codfish”. I, of course, thought that she was a genius for reciting Peter Pan (a personal favorite) but my father in law wasn’t impressed! She did fine and was not spoiled forever, we lived to see her again and the pamphlet was forgotten.

Until last night. Going through old pictures, by mom showed it to me at our Super Bowl get together. Oh my gracious. How embarrassed was I? Reading this pamphlet was eye-opening. I must have been an obnoxious bitch of a mom at that time. I am able to laugh at myself, but it was enlightening to see how condescending I was back then. At least I hope it was back then.

We are leaving for Hawaii on Sunday. When I say we I mean, Hubby and I. That lovely man did it again and surprised me on my birthday last year. The kids are staying home mostly with my mom. My mom in law and my sister-in-law on deck to help out as needed. I’ve called in a few favors to help with the picking up and dropping off that is needed with school age kids. There will be no pamphlets this time around as I do not have the time to make four of them, nor is there room on a piece of paper to explain all the craziness in my head that is parenting. I do have a schedule made out, a menu planned, general rules for the girls and the necessary permissions for my mom, dad and mom in law to take care of the kids.

So the good news is that I am no longer, neurotic mom. Or maybe it’s not that I’m no longer neurotic, it’s just that I don’t have time or energy to be. Hmmm.

Twelve Year Old Mood Swings And Rules To Live By

A Mom's Job, All you need is love!, Frustrated Mommy Moments, Teendom 2 Responses »

Feb 062012

If you have yet to live with a twelve-year old, please read the following post carefully. It could save your life or at the very least an unpleasant outburst of emotions, from you and the child you used to be able to tease.

Rule #1 Never look them directly in the eye when you know they are grumpy/psychotic. The glare from them can freeze you on contact.

Rule #2 When you are aware of said grumpiness, say as little as possible. Don’t try to fix it or make a suggestion. When needed to inform them of something important, make it very informal and indirect (while not looking at them) for example: “Lunch box is on the table.” Is much better than “Sweetie, I put your lunch box on the table by your backpack. Please don’t forget it.” That last statement may just make them leave their lunch box on purpose.

Rule #3 When later that day your twelve-year-old is happy, humming and the sweet child you remember DO NOT ASK THEM WHAT WAS WRONG EARLIER! They will revert back to grumpy. Just be happy that they are happy and get some hugs in while you can!

Rule #4 The rules change day by day and sometimes hour by hour. Do your best and remember that someday they will enjoy your company, help and support. At least I have been told this. I hope they just weren’t saying it to give me hope…..

Artwork credit

Tis The Season

A Mom's Job No Responses »

Jan 302012

To the tune of Deck the Halls

Tis the season of sickness,

fa la la la la, la la la la

Tylenol and Ibuphrophen

Gotta stock up a la la la

Kleenex, Vicks Vapor and Vomit

La la la la la Fa la la la

Snotty noses, swollen glands

Don’t forget the throw up pans

Fa la la la la la Fa la la la

(Please forgive my sleep-starved brains!)

Adoption and School Projects

A Mom's Job, Adoption, Ethiopia, Family, Family Pictures, Moments with Enu, Parenting 3 Responses »

Jan 262012

Enu came home yesterday all excited about the time line project assigned to her class. She has to have at least 3 pictures and 5 events on her timeline including birth and present day.

I honestly don’t remember Mita doing this assignment last year, but I do remember Meg doing it. This makes me wonder if it was assigned to Mita and she didn’t make a big deal about it or if she kept the assignment on the down-low because it was a big deal to her. Hmm. I must go through the projects I kept from last year and see if I can find it.

Back to yesterday. I told Enu that I would have to get on the computer and order prints as we are a digital family and I rarely have extra prints hanging around. We discussed what pictures she wanted and what her events on the time line were going to be:

1- Birth in Ethiopia – She wanted a baby picture of her and her dad that we have.

2- Mom dying when she was 3.

So when she mentioned this I gently said,”Honey, if you put this down people are going to ask you about it.” She shrugged and said that it was fine.

3- Adoption and movie to the USA.

4- Disneyworld for the first time.

5- Being at 4th grader.

I am planning on supporting her wishes, but I am also going to have a back up picture in case she changes her mind at the last-minute. I will also let her teacher know what is coming so she isn’t put on the spot.

I applaud her for being truthful and authentic in her project. I admire her strength for acknowledging what she has done through. I am so worried that this may trigger something and she will have a bad experience at school. I’m running this by Hubby to see what he thinks.

I think this will also be a lesson-learner for the other kids in the class. Not everyone has an all-happy timeline to share, even 9 year olds. That said I hate that my children seem to be the models for adoption and diversity at school as that is a lot of pressure on a kid. If anyone out there has traveled this path I would love some advice!

Book Review: When The Black Girl Sings

A Mom's Job, Adoption, Books I Have Read, Family, Reading Challenge No Responses »

Jan 242012

The second book I choose to read for the 2012 Adoption Book Challenge is a fiction one titled,When the Black Girl Sings, written by Bil Wright, published in 2008 for young adults and picked as a Junior Library Guild Selection.

I hope that Mita and Meg will read this book as it speaks to their age and I think Mita can identify with the main character, Lahni. Of course I can not push it on them to forcefully or it will come right back. The joys of having twelve year old girls!

A quick plot review: Lahni is a tranracially adopted, only child who is fourteen years old. Her parents are white and she goes to an elite private school where she is the only student of color. It seems her main goal in life is to not be noticed and she ends up being put in the spotlight without her asking to be. Along the way she deals with divorcing parents, an older boy who is threatening, dealing with normal school issues and trying to find her voice. She also developed some new relationships with adult African Americans and this makes a big impact on her.

As a mother to two trans-racially adopted children there were a few parts of the book that made me feel triumphant, as I am a much more open and affectionate mother than Lahni’s mom. Here are a couple of lines where I felt this:

“Do you think I have a decent voice?”

“Of course I do. God knows where you get it from. Certainly not your father or me.”

How could she be saying this. It is not as though she knows more than I do if my real mother or father were good singers. But it was something my mom always did. Speak as though were were really one family, instead of me being apart of someone else’s.

The family dynamics demonstrated in the book showed that Lahni was very loved by her parents, but that they were distant enough to Lahni to sometimes think that they thought the adoption was a mistake. While reading the book I would get irritated at some of the interactions of the family, but I do acknowledge that her younger memories show a happier, close knit family. The strain of the divorce and Lahni becoming a teenager may be a couple of factors for the emptiness felt in this family. You can see both parents struggling and so can Lahni.

I have to wonder though, if the author is showing his experience or lack of experience with trans-racial adoption in this story, or if in fact this is just how he envisioned the story. I would love to talk to him and ask him. I hope that people don’t assume that trans-racial adoption, or any type adoption at all for that matter produces lack-luster affection in families or families who don’t address and celebrate their differences.

Any thoughts on this book if you have read it? I really enjoyed it. I even sat in a Sears parking lot today reading it, because it was driving me nuts having it in my purse while I was running errands and I couldn’t finish it! I love it when a book gets into me that way.

(Disclaimer: I was not asked to read or review this book, I just wanted to for participation in the 2012 Adoption Reading Challenge hosted by Jenna. Links are Amazon Affiliates.)

Snow Day Activities

A Mom's Job No Responses »

Jan 202012

Hmmm.

Snow day….what to do, what to do?

1) Hide under my covers.

2) Be the best mom in the world and take the girls sledding topped with hot chocolate.

3) Be the best mom in the world and let them watch their favorite shows on the big TV while eating popcorn.

4) Establish a nap time, but call it a siesta to make it sound sophisticated.

Who am I kidding, we can accomplish all of these things today. There is plenty because we have another three day weekend. Whoo-hooo and waaaaaaa.

Photo Credit

Dear World, My Kids Do Have Clean Clothes

A Mom's Job, Domestic Goddess, Family, Frustrated Mommy Moments 2 Responses »

Jan 192012

Dear World,

My kids do own clean clothes. They also have coats and gloves. They own and have demonstrated proper use with a toothbrush and a hair comb.

I recently made a pledge to myself to send my children off to school with more love than nagging. Thus instead of my normal “It’s January in Ohio, get over it and where your heavy coat” song and dance I have been trying to say things like, “Mommy loves you and doesn’t want you to be cold.” In a soft voice that is much like Mary Poppins or Ma Ingalls.

This recent pledge has backed me into a corner and given me little room to maneuver or manipulate. So you may see my almost twelve year old wearing her pajama shirt today,”No one will know it’s a pajama top mom.” Says Her. Little does she realize that everyone who has been to Walmart after Christmas and seen the 50% off pajama section will know. I did complement the shiny, red sequined head band she is wearing with said pajama top.

I know that the announcements the schools send out go to everyone, but I see them as personal failures.

” Dear Parent, please make sure your children have appropriate cold weather wear so they can play outside.”

“Dear School, I have provided cold weather outerwear for my kids and send them off to school with it. Check the backpacks and pockets for the items you need that they say they don’t have. I’m not sure why but my children feel the need to be cold. Please feel free to speak with them on this subject as they cannot hear my words on the subject, it must be a communication flaw.”

I’m not sure what I am doing wrong/different from the parents who get their kids to wear not only appropriate attire, but matching and cute attire as well. Pants, shirts and head bands that match and coordinate? How do you do such a thing? Is it genetic or maybe you torture your kids? Am I cursed because I refused to wear a dress for my mother from the ages of 3-14? Or maybe because I wore all black for three years and threatened to shave my head bald? Or maybe it is because I used to change at school into my shirts with skulls and crossbones that my mom wouldn’t let me wear? Or maybe it is because for a few years as a pre-schooler I claimed I was a boy?

I hope the curse will end soon, or my kids will learn to like being clean and warm. Until then, take pity on me and ignore what my children wear today to school. Please? I will owe you one.

Sincerely,

A mom who is trying not to nag

Mom Of Tweens: Rapid Growth

A Mom's Job, Health and Hygiene, Parenting, Teendom No Responses »

Jan 162012

Most people know that when girls hit the age of eight or so they seem to grow outward a bit, a bit more rounded. Then poof….they grow several inches and breasts, hips get rounded and they become little ladies rather than staying little kids. These are normal changes for girls, yet we as parents/adults don’t treat them as normal.

We seem to giggle at the pudginess, get exasperated with buying more clothes, talk about how they are growing up too fast - like it is a bad thing. Or sometimes we don’t say anything about it at all, which can be worse.

What we should do and often don’t do, is tell the girls that this is normal. During puberty girls can gain thirty to fifty pounds. Their bodies are getting ready for a change and our body fat needs to increase to hold the estrogen needed. This is a lot of weight in a relatively short period of time. It is hard for us as parents to watch our girls growing up, but it is even more difficult for the girls themselves to live through.

So how can we help our daughters, and ourselves, during this time of growth and transition? Words. Simple words starting when you start to see changes in them, or even before if it comes up in conversation.

“I am in such awe of how beautiful you are becoming.”

“You are growing up, it is a pleasure to watch you become a young lady.”

“That shirt looks nice on you. Maybe we should get a bra to wear under it, for a smoother appearance. What a lady you are becoming.”

“Let’s try another size, you are blossoming!” (Seriously, this line made one of girls smile with pleasure- she loved that I had noticed.)

I am being honest, saying these things are helpful, they may just not seem like it. Remember, the girls will roll their eyes and say things like “You have to say that you are my mom.” Conversation and loving support is always a good thing. Getting Dads to be supportive is a wonderful thing to do as well. They don’t have to talk about bras, but hugs and complements from their father can mean a lot to a young girl.

There are still going to be moments of tears, it is a good chance they will talk about dieting, not liking how they look and of hating themselves. We have to be the voice of reason. Remind them to look around at school, notice the other girls and how they are changing to. Remind them that this is a normal, natural development, but that everyone grows differently and at their own pace. I will give you a link to a great book I reviewed last year about girls and their body image.

And be prepared to spend a bundle on clothes, they will grow out of their pants overnight!

In One Ear And Out The Other: An Idiom And My Children’s Listening Skills!

A Mom's Job, Adoption, Books I Have Read, Education No Responses »

Jan 112012

One of my goals in homeschooling Enu this past semester was to help her with her English. That may surprise some who have heard her speak, as she is very much fluent in her conversation and has no accent. When we first brought the girls home I read that it took 7 years for a child to become fluent in English. I scoffed at this (as I did many, many other things I read about!) and thought they were fluent after just two years. They needed no extra school help and understood everything.

Or did they? I have slowing gleaned that while they seem conversationally fluent, if they don’t know something they fake it, or guess the meaning by the context of the conversation. I have learned we need to work on vocabulary, tone, sarcasm and idioms. They are still very literal in many ways.

Enu and I have worked a lot with word ladders. This has improved her spelling and vocabulary and they are fun to do. I found two other books that helped with her language skills:

In A Pickle And Other Funny Idioms by Marvin Terban

Ever wonder where the expression “To let the cat out of the bag” came from? This book will tell you along with other idioms like “He got up on the wrong side of the bed” or “Keep your shirt on.” I learned some things reading this and I know Enu did as well.

How Much Can A Bare Bear Bear? by Brian P. Cleary is a book on homonyms and homophones. “A bee can be.” ” A horse can get hoarse from talking of course.” An easy read that shows kids how to learn our complicated English in a fun, silly way.

I would love for Mita to read these books as well, as I know she too struggles with some of these things as Enu does. Of course a fifth grader is not always open to such suggestions from mother ;)

I wanted to share these books to help out the fellow homeschooler and the parents of newly adopted older kids who are learning English. They are helpful and fun and free if you get them from the library as I did. I did get the word ladder of Amazon, but it was totally worth the few bucks it cost.

(Disclosure: I was not asked to review these materials, nor do I make money on the links. I should do something about that shouldn’t I!)

Pure Delight

A Mom's Job, Moments with Elle, Moments with Enu, Moments With Meg, Moments with Mita, Parenting, Teendom 1 Response »

Jan 072012

Watching the girls grow up is downright amazing. I’ve said in the past that when they are small you are so exhausted and tired of saying “no”, of doing the diaper thing, the potty training thing, the sharing thing that you tend to not pay attention or appreciate fully the gains. You are just happy to be through them.

As they get older and the achievements are more out of the hygiene realm, watching them grow, learn and become who they are meant to become is nothing less than miraculous. I have found that every morning they come out of their rooms one step closer to adulthood and it makes me want a pause button in some ways and an applause button in other ways.

Where did Meg, long-legs Meg, get her confidence? Both Hubby and I didn’t have great self-confidence growing up, yet she is strong, solid and humble in her self. I’ve had teachers and other adults tell me how kind she is and how she isn’t a braggart in her accomplishments.

Mita. My dear Mita has blossomed into a young woman (seriously, have you seen her?!). She is quiet and works so hard. She is reading up a storm and is a straight A student. Straight A’s for a child who four years ago knew no English! Her room is her castle and she loves to clean it and take pride in her appearance. The outfits she puts together dazzle and are stunning. How does she make sweats look glamorous?! Her heart. Her heart has had more sorrow than many have had in a lifetime, and yet she is healing. She gives me spontaneous hugs and I love yous. She calls me Mommy sometimes. I love to just stare at her. She doesn’t like that so much though!

Enu. Enu is the child who is teaching me patience and perseverance. She is growing by leaps and bound physically and emotionally. She is finding herself slowly, but it is happening. She is great with young kids and as of right now she is helping me watch my niece. She will be a great babysitter in just a few years. Her smile is contagious, and she really is quite funny. It will be great to watch her harness her energy in the years to come.

Elle. Elle is my elfin fairy for sure. She is now seven and I look at what Meg was like at seven and they are so different yet alike. Elle is becoming very funny, almost a dry sense of humor in some ways. Her comebacks make Hubby and I look at each other and smile. She can take care of herself just fine in a pack of four sisters! She still plays with toys, which makes me sooooo happy. For Christmas she got an iPod and a Lalaloopsy doll and she will walk around playing with both at the same time. She still cuddles which makes me think she will always be a cuddler! Yeah! My baby reads. My. Baby. Reads.

Watching my girls grow is truly a pure delight. I am overwhelmed with how fast everything is going. Meg is talking about college (of course she has always talked about college, but now I picture it happening!). Hubby and I find ourselves talking about a third car for the girls to share.

I know that talking about your kids growing up is a well-worn topic. I’ve heard for years how it goes by quickly. It makes me ache that this is so true but at the same time I love, love, love watching them learn, grow and burst into the world. If I have anything to do with how wonderful these children are it is my greatest honor in life. My work is done, everything else is a bonus.

Passing Along The Fun

A Mom's Job, holidays 2 Responses »

Dec 222011

As I mentioned at the beginning of the holiday season, my girls are getting older and that means that some of our traditions are changing. I recently thought of a way to continue a Christmas tradition that we have outgrown by passing it down to my youngest niece.

Every year I put out lots and lots of Christmas books and DVD’s/VHS movies. They are put around the tree and on top of the TV and around our den. It used to be contained to a small basket, but in the years my collection has expanded. This year I sadly noted that many of the books we have outgrown. Part of me wants to keep all the books forever, but I have to be realistic of my space.

After reading Firemom’s book advent activities I have decided to let the girls wrap up some of our books when we pack up the Christmas decorations this year. I will buy some more books in after Christmas sales to make it a pile of 24 books and we will give it to my niece next Thanksgiving so she can have an advent of books next year.

A few books I will keep forever. Here are a couple of them that I just cannot bear to give away:

You Are My Miracle By Maryann K. Cusimano Love

Little Drummer Boy By Ezra Jack Keats

If You Take A Mouse To The Movies By Laura Numeroff

There are a few more of course by those are a few off the top of my head.

I thought I would pass on my Christmas idea to help other mom’s who also have families outgrowing the good old traditions. If you have any ideas about older kids and traditions please share them!

(Disclosure: I was not asked to write about these books, nor are they affiliate links.)

Stream Of Consciousness: Does Your Santa Wrap?

A Mom's Job, Family, holidays, Stuff 4 Responses »

Dec 182011

I adore Christmas, I’m sure I have mentioned that fact before, but I really do. Growing up Christmas was just magically. We didn’t have a lot of toys, we didn’t do Christmas crafts or go on holiday jaunts, but it was still magical.

My brother and I started a tradition of waking up in the middle of the night and pulling everything out of our stockings and seeing our big gift from Santa. Santa always brought the big gift. A big plus for in our house is that Santa did not wrap his gifts! That is how we knew the gift was from Santa.

What I didn’t realize was that Santa wrapped other kids’ gifts.When I found this out I was no longer a believer, so it didn’t matter.

Then I got married and had kids. Hubby’s Santa did wrap! He wrapped the big gift and the stocking stuffers! It was a time for copermise and Hubby’s side won!

Santa wraps at our house now. I help him get special gift wrap so that his are different looking than ours…..this parenting stuff is so complicated!

There is my five minutes of Stream Of Consciousness about Santa Wrapping! Life changing I know! Does your Santa wrap?

This was my 5 minute Stream of Consciousness Sunday post. It’s five minutes of your time and a brain dump. Want to try it? Here are the rules…

Set a timer and write for 5 minutes only.
Write an intro to the post if you want but don’t edit the post. No proofreading or spellchecking. This is writing in the raw.
Publish it somewhere. Anywhere. The back door to your blog if you want. But make it accessible.
Add the Stream of Consciousness Sunday badge to your post.
Link up your post at AllThingsFadra.com
Visit your fellow bloggers and show some love.

The Non-Christmasy Christmas App

A Mom's Job, My Soap Box, Seasons 2 Responses »

Dec 142011

I really wanted to entitle this The Non-Christmas Christmas App That I Wasted My Money On And Am Incredibly Mad About, but I thought that would be a bit too long and obnoxious.

The other morning I was snuggling deep in my bed with # 3 and #4 (Enu and Elle) and we were playing Holiday Angry Birds. An add popped up for a Christmas App. It was Talking Tom’s Christmas or something of that sort. So I buy it to make the kids happy…$0.99 cents or $1.07 with tax. A drop in the bucket for my children’s Christmas happiness right?

So we play. We feed Santa, tickle Santa, make Santa laugh and so on and so forth. Then one of the girls presses a button and Santa MOONS US! That’s right, the big guy drops his pants and shows us his holiday greeting underwear. But wait, there is more! You can personalize his undies and email the picture to someone! Yeah! Just what I want to send out to my dear ones. Santa’s undies. Not. Big time not. Royally ticked off at the waste of my money not.

I have four children. I have enough farting, burping and bodily function jokes and stories told at my table and in my life. I don’t need Santa to egg them on.

So if you ever design a Christmas app, please keep it Christmasy and leave out the mooning.

Please.

I might just buy your app if you do ;)

Older Entries

Four Against Two

Summer Here I Come

Mother’s Day Spoils

Shhhh, Don’t Tell The Kids

So Proud Of My Girl

Keep Your Children Reading This Summer!

Earth Day 2012 – It Rained. We Picked Up Trash Anyway

Countdown to Earth Day: Better Shopping Practices

How To Save Your Dr. Seuss

Book Review: If Only

Movie Review And Rant: The Hunger Games

Talking Body To Tweens

Sunday Stream Of Consciousness: Season Of My Life

They Never Sleep Through The Night

Sweet Words

More Than A Blow Dry

Worry Much?

Twelve Year Old Mood Swings And Rules To Live By

Tis The Season

Adoption and School Projects

Book Review: When The Black Girl Sings

Snow Day Activities

Dear World, My Kids Do Have Clean Clothes

Mom Of Tweens: Rapid Growth

In One Ear And Out The Other: An Idiom And My Children’s Listening Skills!

Pure Delight

Passing Along The Fun

Stream Of Consciousness: Does Your Santa Wrap?

The Non-Christmasy Christmas App

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