Endless Pursuit for Mom of the Year

I always say shopping is cheaper than a psychiatrist.   ~ Tammy Faye Bakker ----------------------------------------- I love to shop!  Seriously, I do.  If I had an endless supply of cash (and patience) I would shop all the time.  But, since I have neither of those, I must do this in moderation.   Daughter of the year #1 had a gift card that has been burning a hole in her pocket since Christmas.  So we decided to head to the mall for some fun and shopping.  The girls and I immediately headed to Justice so she could spend her gift card.  Now, the mall was busy today but I've never let that stop me.  However, I seemed to step into some sort of pre-teenager hell when I crossed that threshold.  First the music was LOUD!  Second, daughters of the year decided this would be a good time to start screaming.  And, third, I had a stroller. YIKES!  I left a bit of my soul and my sanity on the cheap tile in that...

There is an interconnectedness among members  that bonds the family, much like mountain climbers  who rope themselves together when climbing  a mountain, so that if someone should slip or need support, he's held up by the others until he regains his footing.   ~ Phil McGraw ------------------------------------------ Spending the day after Thanksgiving in a hospital waiting room isn't quite the idea we had for myself or my siblings.  However, no matter where we are, there's one thing my family does better than anyone - bonding.  We've had lots of coffee, many trips to the vending machine (which family friend of the year has deemed the concession stand).  Football watching, crochet coaster making, college home working completing, Twitter educating and following, snack pack toting types of bonding.  For what some may deem a crisis, we've managed to make light of what may not be seen by all as a "light" situation. It's been ...

It's what you learn after you know it all that counts.   ~ Harry S Truman ---------------------------- I love that daughter of the year #2 is getting old enough to have school projects now.  Not those little projects like, make a poster of your family or create a collage.  I like those projects too, but I was excited for a big one.  This one involved research, reading books, internet searches, and, in the end, putting everything she learned into a final project of her choice.  The options were endless but she picked diorama.   I like to think I am not the only parent out there who did not know what a diorama was, and therefore, Google and I became good friends.  This simple search brought with it a great deal of information.  I learned a diorama is something I created many times in my childhood from empty Kleenex boxes.  I found a website that refers to dioramas as crafts and even has a place you can order little...

Dancing with the feet is one thing, but dancing with the heart is another. ~ Unknown --------------------------------------- Daughter of the year #1 has been begging us to take a dance class.  I sit back, proud that she may follow in some of my foot steps.  Dad of the year?  Well, he sits back wondering what this will cost him.  So, we started slow.  We enrolled her in a simple class, not at a dance studio, for Hip Hop.   Why Hip Hop?  Well, we've been down that ballet route.  Grace, extension, and good turnout are not words I would use to describe daughter of the year #1.  I love her with all my being but seriously folks, after one ballet class I knew this was not for her.  Hip Hop is different movement.  It's funky.  It's fun.  It's just like playing Just Dance on the Wii.  Right up her alley!  Her first class was this week.   To say she was excited would be an understatement. ...

You can learn many things from children.  How much patience you have, for instance.  ~ Franklin P. Jones ------------------------------- I am the mother of a two year old.  I've been through "terrible twos" before and I know the worst is yet to come...threes.  As a parent, I think this is possibly the cruelest joke.  You see, we get blessed with this nice, snugly, soft and sweet little infant.  An infant who needs you, emphatically.  They grow.  You smile.  You take photos.  You're blind to the fact that at some point, this human being will begin to talk, have their own thoughts, get defiant, and at times, not like you.  The girls had some money from grandpa that was just burning a hole in their non-existent pockets.  Therefore, we went shopping yesterday for a new toy.  I don't know about you, but when I go to Target, I can't NOT stop at the dollar spot.  So, on our excursion yesterday we found thes...

A family is a unit composed not only of children but of men, women, an occasional animal,  and the common cold.   ~ Ogden Nash ------------------------------------------ I recently had a weekend reunion of sorts with my mother's side of the family.  These were aunts and uncles I had not seen in some time, so it was good to get together with them and catch up.  Daughter of the year #2 had not met any of them, so that made it extra special.  I entered the weekend a bit preoccupied, but it sure didn't take this slew of crazies long to take my mind off things.  That's right, I said crazies.   Now, it's clear to me that many of these family members read my blog and for that I love you just a little bit more.  Come on now, you'd all admit we're a bit crazy.  Although I'm fairly sure this side of the family is where I got my ability to jump from two very vast and strangely different topics in a matter of seconds.  You ...

The problem with children is that you have to put up with their parents.    ~ Charles DeLint   ------------------------------------------------   Earlier this summer, I decided to try a new hairstyle.  Well, it wasn't so much a new hairstyle versus a new hair color.  It all started with Pinterest.  I was browsing through hairstyles and came upon one that was edgy, modern, sleek, sexy and completely not me.  I re-pinned it thinking someday I may have the courage to do this.    On my next visit to hairdresser of the year, I showed her the photo, rather embarrassed like I was some middle school girl showing her the latest movie star's photo, asking for the impossible feat of looking "just like them."  Come on, I was smart enough to know I could NEVER pull off the Rachel so I didn't even ask!  But, I love my hairdresser so much I have followed her to different salons for about 7 years. ...