Friday Funny- In Which I Wear It Like a Three Star General

I had been telling her I was going to do it, threatening my vengeance for nearly six months now. I'm all about second chances and third chances and such. But I could bear it no longer. So I finally made good on my threat and followed through.

You see, my Z1 is a bit of a, well, she's free with her belongings. That means wherever she happens to be is where her stuff will land. And if she's finished with it, it does not follow her into the next room. It RARELY makes it up to her bedroom to be out away. Not without some "strong encouragement" (yelling) anyway.

So I hit my limit this past week and walked into her room with a bag. I filled the bag and had to go back to the kitchen for another one. Anything that was on the floor or in a cluttery pile went into the bag. Purple feather boa? Check. Chloe, her American Girl doll? Yep. Half her socks? Mmhmm. A myriad of stickers, pens and assorted paper goods? Those almost made the real trash, but I managed to restrain myself.

She came home from school and I said not a word. We walked upstairs, both of us to our own rooms. As she was walking she looked at me and said,"I know, I know... I REALLY need to clean my room." She got to her room and let out a squeal of surprise and exclaimed,"Wow, Mom! You cleaned my room for me!"

"Yes I did, Baby, " I replied, not letting on to anything.

It wasn't until about 3 hours later I heard a,"Hey Mom, have you seen my such and such?"

"Yep. I have it."

"Great. Where is it? I'll go get it."

"Uhm, no. It's mine now. You'll need to earn it back," I said calmly.

"WHAAATTT?????!!!" She freaked. Her little legs went into a flurry as she ran up to her room and began a staunch inventory process. Oh the wailing and cries of despair! I remained unmoved.

After explaining how she would earn all of her items back, she was still dumbfounded. "Even my clothes?" she asked. "What will I do if you take all of my clothes?"

"I guess you'll be going to school naked. And winter's coming, so I suggest we break this habit during September and not December,"I stated dryly.

"That's... that's just... oooooooo that's mean!!!" she wailed.

"That's right, dear. Mean I am. Mean I will be. But I will not be your maid." I am now officially a "Mean Mom".

Guess where I'm heading with a bag this afternoon.... Giggling all the way. :)

Yours, wishing you a cleaning free weekend,

Melissa

MY DOG IS GROWING UP?

Last night, it stormed all night. So naturally, if you’ve read prior posts about Bizmark, my 100 pound furry “baby,” you’d expect, as I did, that he’d be crawling over my head to get into bed with me. But much to my surprise, there was no fur in my face last night!

So I can attribute this change of behavior to one of four things.

1. Maybe he’s maturing. But usually with dogs, they get more neurotic as they get older, so I’m not so sure about this one.
2. He’s losing his hearing. Hmmm. He sure hears food dropping on the floor pretty well.
3. He’s decided I’m a bad mommy since I wasn’t giving him any sympathy and I was pushing him off of me as hard as I could. Me? A bad mommy? I think not. Scratch that one off the list!
4. He heard Bad Daddy calling him a “Sissy Dog” and “Girlie Dog” and decided to prove him wrong. Yeah! That’s it! Blame it on Bad Daddy!

Okay, mystery solved! As long as it’s working and IT’S NOT MY FAULT, I’m good with it!

 

Karen

Reflections on the Ten Year Anniversary of 9/11

It was quite a weekend. Solemn, reflective... remembering and feeling the intense wounds all over again of everything that was taken from us as a nation that day.

There is nothing that could be said or done that would make it all okay in the end. Even when President Obama announced they had killed bin Laden, it didn't bring me any sense of justice or vindication. Not that I want him to be around to bring more terror, by any means, but the whole things feels utterly senseless. I try to understand it, and I just can't.

But here is something I do know... things I did see this past Sunday. I saw people coming together and honoring the memory of the fallen. I saw people make time to display their patriotism, flying the flag, proud to be Americans. I saw people stopping for each other, random acts of kindness, expressing thanks to civil servants and first responders. I watched many recounts of that day on television, and in the midst of something absolutely horrific and incomprehensible, people stopped to save each other, help each other, protect each other. The news reports of the children of 9/11 were the hardest. Watching these children speak about the parents they will never know, simply because of someone's hatred. But I also saw the impact that people had on other people's lives. That is a priceless gift. I would not say it was an equal trade by any means. But I'm grateful to find something beautiful in the midst of something so devestating.
Never forget.
Always remember.

Remember who you are, and from what nation you come. Remember what our freedom has already cost us... and continues to cost us today. Remember the people who protect and serve on a daily basis. Remember that we are all in this together, and one day, it may be the kindness of an absolute stranger that saves you. Remember how as a nation we came together to heal. Work toward coming together again.

Never forget.
Always remember.

Melissa

Friday Fun!

Friday Funny...

This one is still making me giggle. I mean, the beaver at the very end... that would totally be my world!

Have a wonderful weekend!

Melissa

IS THE TELEPHONE DEAD?

I just read in Reader’s Digest (original article by Pamela Paul from The New York Times) that nobody talks on the telephone anymore. And they aren’t talking about just landlines. They are saying that nobody uses the phone to just “chit-chat” anymore, they are only using their phones to text or use email now. Talking on the phone is a nuisance to most people and is avoided at all costs.

In fact, the line is, “Phone calls are rude. Intrusive. Awkward.”

Really? Wow. I respectfully disagree.

Unless that call is from a telemarketer.

But if that call is from a friend or family member or neighbor or credit card company telling me my card has been used suspiciously, I welcome that call.

Maybe I’m just a “chit-chatty” gal, but I like to TALK to my friends and family, not have only a written relationship with them. How can you console a sad friend with a text? Or relay a funny story in an email? How can you catch up after a couple of weeks without actually talking? You need to HEAR their voice to know if everything really is “fine” when they say it is.

So, if you’re my friend, I’m going to keep calling you until you tell me to stop (at which time I’m guessing we won’t be friends too much longer!). I’ll call your home, I’ll call your cell, and if I can’t find you, I’ll text you and tell you to call me so we can TALK! Texting is fine for certain things, but not to sustain a friendship.

If Reader’s Digest, the New York Times or Pamela Paul would like to discuss this further, they are welcome to CALL me!

Karen

Oh, and yes, I just realized that today is Thursday, not Wednesday! I’m sure Melissa will get a kick out of the fact that I’m a day late in blogging this week. Let’s just let her have her fun, shall we? Do you think she’ll call me or text me?

No Madness Today! (OR: A Girl's Gotta Have Goals, Right?)

May your cares be light, your worries be few and your blessings be many.

Say thank you to a civil servant today, especially the ones who are working.

Don't go to the store unless it's a true emergency (and no, running out of liquor does NOT count!). Help retailers remember why they are suppose to be closed today.

Eat some BBQ. Smile. Relax. Breathe.

Happy Labor Day!

Yours, gearing up for absolutely nothing today!

Melissa

Friday Funny...Welcome To My Oxymoron

What happens when you take a 50 pound fur ball, a squeaky toy that she simply adores, and add in three days time?

This sentence: "Mooooooommm! Lola's pooping the pink piggy!"

Go ahead. Say it five times fast. It's just funny. Lola is still chewing, chewing, chewing. She chomped that pink pig until she completely annihilated it. I thought I had picked up all the pieces. Apparently, I did not. Dare I say it, though, I believe she may be potty trained completely! YAY for Lola!

So on to my oxymoron... or paradox. I'm not sure what to name it... maybe it's simply ironic. But it made me laugh. You all know one of my jobs is working for a church. And theologically, this church is pretty conservative. And that's okay. I'm a believer, and there are things upon which the church and I will agree and disagree. We agree to disagree. That being said, one of my jobs for them as the head of their arts school is to develop new classes. I've been working on a photography course about which I am very excited. i was putting all of the finishing touches on the information, building fliers and sending out registrations. Someone asked me if the teacher had a site where they could view their work. So I googled the teacher's name + photography.

Among one of the very first hits, came a site with a photographer of the same name.

Guess what HIS specialization is?

Seriously... it couldn't get any better for my conservatively minded church. Especially as some of it's members are particularly vocal about how modern we are becoming.

Yep, you guessed it.

The other guy's (NOT the photographer with which we are contracting to teach the class) specialization?

Boudoir Photography.

Yours, anticipating some fun phone calls come Monday!

Melissa