They can play for hours with cardboard boxes……and cups. 

 Except children have an advantage. Opposable thumbs.

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There is nothing like a night off from mommyhood, wifehood, businesshood.

Nothing like getting human with makeup on and your hair in something other than a pony tail. Getting dressed in something that makes you feel good. So that you remember you are a person and not a machine.

And nothing like a night to escape the madness with some really good friends.

The key to keeping sane is some time to do things at your own speed and for yourself.  Because you’re “no good” to anyone if you aren’t good to yourself too.

Aren’t these pillow cases the best??

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Seriously, look at The Gap and search by size.  Where’d the 9 go?  And Old Navy? Same thing.  It’s not just those retailers either.  The chart  on the left? That’s from Garnett Hill. There IS no size 9 for kids there either.  Why is this?   

I can deal with this size 9 thing when it comes to tops. Boys tend to like their shirts and tees to be big.  However, I think the age of 9 is a little young for the jeans falling down look with the boxers sticking out. Not sure I can even handle that look when he’s 17.  This is my personal opinion, however. I realize some of you may like that look for your 3rd graders.

With a size 8, the length is too short for my little boy-wonder. A 10, the waist is too large.

I get that the age of nine is kinda ordinary as far as childhood goes.  They’re pretty much set into a routine with homework and activities. The hormones are still tame and they’ve got a hint of independence.  And as far as parenting….a nice little breather on the stress factor. But still…they still need to wear clothing.

Where are the size 9 pants??????

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It was a head on collision. I don’t believe either Mr Teddy Bear or Mr Hewlett Packard survived.

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There’s a new one though, that I thought would be worth downloading just because it’s so relevant to the safety of children. 

Offender Locator

According to the Washington Post:

The app allows you to see a list of offenders based on your current location (using the iPhone’s location services), any contact’s address, or it allows you to manually enter an address. The app then scours the database and lists the sexual offenders based on their proximity to the location you gave.  

For the sake of research, I downloaded this application. There are two versions: Free and Paid ($.99). 

Differences between the free version and the paid version:

• The main difference that I could see was that the free version only provides 3 local offenders. (As if 3 isn’t enough). The paid version gave me  41 (Yikes) that reside within 10 miles from my home.
• The free version allows you only once search per day

Click on any offender’s name and you are provided with:

• Name
• Alias
• Date of Birth
• Race/Gender
• Height/Weight
• Hair Color/Eye Color
• Address
• Crime committed
• Photo of the offender

I’ve read that this application may not be legal in all states. California being one of them.  The information may also not be up to date or completely accurate.

You don’t need the Iphone, or any phone for that matter to find this information out.  There are websites where you can enter your address and find out the same information. FamilyWatchdog.comis one of them. And when I tried using it, it provided me with the same information as the Iphone application.

Pass this on!

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I tried to keep a diary when he was younger so that I wouldn’t forget….but then I lost the diary. I’m sure it’s buried at the bottom of  the closet in my office here at home…but that’s a post all on it’s own.

Anyway, I’m sitting here now at the end of the non-stop part of my day (um from 5 this morning until 5:30 pm) and sipping my Free Monday Iced Mocha from McDonalds. (Yum, I might add!) and thinking about some of the things that really made me laugh.

My husband and I don’t travel well together.  Not because we don’t get along, but because we just  drive differently.  I have a lead foot and I like to listen to music pretty loudly. I don’t like the windows open when it’s humid out, because I can’t deal with the frizzy mess my hair becomes.  I also don’t use the horn and I don’t let other drivers annoy me.

The way I see it, if other drivers are rude, cut me off  or even flip me off, so be it.  Let them get all worked up over it. Once they get to their final destination they are someone else’s cranky problem, not mine.

The problem? My husband takes those drivers personally. Not good.  Not good at all.

So we are driving one day to my parent’s house.  My son was about 3 years old and was fastened into his booster seat in the back of the car.  Music was on, windows were closed and life is good.  I’m not really paying much attention to the driving or what is going on around me. (I find it’s best to zone out when he drives.)

And here we go……next thing I know my husband has his hand laying on the horn of the car.  For what seemed like eternity. And out from the back seat comes a little voice saying “F**king Lady“.

WHAT!????

My head turned so fast towards my husband,  who just had a completely dumbfounded look on his face, which evolved into a semi-grin.

Yes, my little darling had learned to associate horn beeping with ……F**king lady.  Who wouldn’t be proud? Go try and unteach that one!

Unreal.

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First major scratch? When some older woman moved her empty shopping cart and didn’t bother to stop it when it went rolling into my car. I witnessed this with my own eyes and she just went on her merry way. Such is life though, right?

I’m not the neatest person in the world. I openly admit this. And yes I have an extra pair of shoes in that SUV as well as a couple of magazines and a half empty (or half full) bottle of Poland Springs Water. Add children to the mix and the car is a complete disaster.

Tell me something….how did a trail of ketchup get on the ceiling of the car? Seriously.

I cleaned out my mommy SUV today so that I could bring it to the car wash. Got a large black trashbag and emptied that thing out from top to bottom.

I’d like to know a few things……….

•  How is it that no matter how often you clean it out, the same things keep reappearing?
•  When the car is empty of people, do the candy wrappers reproduce? 
•  Do the bottles of water invite other bottles of water over to hang out under the front seats?
• Why is there a stray sock wedged into the back seat? Did it run away from the washing machine?
• How do you remove bright green stuff that’s stuck to the carpet by where my son usually sits?
• And lastly…..how do I get the ketchup off the ceiling?

So, my car is free of debris today.  Tomorrow I will check under the seats to see if the candy wrappers and bottles of water have been up to no good again.   And really….if you know how to get ketchup off of  car ceiling fabric, please let me know……

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You can sit in the other room and not hear one kid “whining” the other kid’s name. You know the whing I am talking about? Kind of high pitched and about 30 letters long. An example for you: EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEETHANNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNN

Hear it once and there is still hope that this will be a pleasant experience. Hear it twice and you perk up a little bit to hear what’s going on. Hear the other kid whine your kid’s name in return and it’s pretty much over. Best pack your things up, collect your kid and go on home. It’s’ not gonna go anywhere good at this point.

And here’s the thing. If you aren’t close friends with the other parents it’s no big deal. But when you ARE very friendly, you’re in a tough spot. Parents (read: Moms) are very sensitive and protective about their little angels. Friendships have been torn apart because of kids. How many of you that are reading this have left a playdate or get together thinking “The other kid is a monster/bully/whimp/difficult/poorly parented/trouble/spoiled/brat/insert your own adjective.”

I’ve got a lot of thoughts on this, but it’s late. In future posts I’ll be able to give you my insight (or lack thereof) on it with examples, because this is a real issue with a few familys we are friends with.

Anyway, enjoy what’s left of your weekend!

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