Parenting at its Finest

My favorite part of being a mom is wondering if you made the right choice.  The best part is that this "wondering" takes place on all of the decisions, and not just some of them (NOTE:  Sarcastic tone).  As a mom, I feel like I am constantly second guessing myself.  This is not in that "I should have done a more Pinterest-like Birthday party" or I should have bought them this or that.  This is in the "Am I doing the right thing to raise respectable adults?" way.  When my two youngest were babies, we used a modified vaccination schedule.  My mother-in-law works at our pediatrician, so you can imagine how well that went over, but it was something I felt very strongly about.  There are so many other decisions that I do not feel strongly about one way or the other from the beginning and I am always wondering if I am doing what is right for them.

I find middle school children to be extremely difficult in a not very pleasant way.  Don't get me wrong, I love my own middle school child, but generally speaking, I think middle schoolers would do better if they were shipped to a different planet and allowed to return to planet Earth when they begin behaving like normal people again.  Having said that, my husband and I decided to put my 12 year old in the online school where I work, so that he would miss out on some of that torturous middle school experience, and he would have amazing amounts of flexibility.  However, through the past two months, it has put an amazing amount of stress on my relationship with my normally sweet 12 year old son.  My husband and I have gone back and forth about leaving him there or putting him in a traditional middle school.  There are definite benefits to both, but I love the flexibility that this schedule allows him.  However, we decided to put him back in a traditional middle school, effective later this week (once I complete all of the paper work) and now my mind wonders. 

Like I said, the best part of being a parent is always wondering if you should have done it differently. 

Consignment Sale Fun

I. LOVE. CONSIGNMENT. SALE. SEASON.  There, I said it and I am not embarrassed by it at all.  We have a huge consignment sale down here where I volunteer a ridiculous number of hours and work my butt off, but I love it.  I have made so many great mommy friends there and laughed until we cried.  We scream when we find that bargain that we have been searching for.  We laugh at some things that people bring to sell, and even harder when people purchase them.  We help each other find that great bargain.  I will never forget searching through the book section (and for those of you not familiar with this sale, there are literally two hundred boxes of books sorted by type or author) with other moms and I told them what book I was searching for (The Kissing Hand) and they told me what they were searching for.  One of them found my book and we all screamed and laughed together.  I love finding sets of PJ's that look brand new for $1, then I don't even feel bad when I purchase 8 sets.  I love finding new clothes with tags still on them priced for $2-3 each.  I love the thrill of the hunt, but mostly I love the other moms.  When it is all said and done, we do clean up shifts that last for 10 hours (while we still search for bargains) and even when we can't lift another thing, we laugh. 

I said all of this because the consignment sale is in 2 weeks.  I. SIMPLY. CAN'T. WAIT. 

Sad Loss

We got word tonight that David's grandmother, Grammy, passed away.  She had been alive for 93 years and while David's heart is sad, he is so pleased that he lived to be almost 40 with her in his life.  She loved her family, bingo, and beer.  She had a quick sense of humor that was a little snarky.  Grammy,  you will definitely be missed.

Here she is in 2006 with David and both of his brothers. 

5 years ago

My, how quickly time passes. Five years ago, I had been in the hospital on bed rest for 66 nights. When released, I went home and was on bed rest for another 30 days. In the end, I was induced and after a 10 hour labor, I brought the most beautiful baby boy into the world, weighing 9 lbs. 1 oz. He looked so much like me when he was born… Only to discover five years later, That he not only looks like me, but has every single one of my personality traits. He is inquisitive, charming, witty, funny, and not afraid to question anything. He loves all competition in any game, as well as puzzles and mazes. This week, I went to a meeting and registered my sweet little baby boy for kindergarten. I know he is ready, I'm just not sure that I am. Never before have I wanted Michael J. Fox's Time Machine from Back to the Future as badly as I have wanted it recently. I, however, do not want to go to the future, as much as I just want time to stand still. Time to take in every characteristic of this young boy before he continues to grow into a fine young man. I love how much he enjoys the outdoors, enjoys competition, and can accurately articulate an argument to defend his point. Don't get me wrong, sometimes it is frustrating when he is arguing against me. But, nonetheless, it is amazing to watch him articulate his point. Ironically, I was actually in the hospital last night due to a food chopping accident that involved slicing my finger. While there, I was reminiscing about the fact that I was there exactly 5 years ago even to the hour. Five years, and another little boy later, I can't imagine being any happier than I am at this very moment. I can't imagine being any more proud of any of the three boys. I know God has a plan for them, and I cannot wait to watch it unfold.

1/18/08

 How time flies...  

I love that sweet Face.  Happy Birthday HAS :) 

#70 Go one week without sweets

I. LOVE. SWEETS.  Chocolate, Ice Cream, Cookies, Fruit, Candy Bars, Milkshakes, pretty much anything with sugar.  When I was getting my Master's Degree, several girls in my cohort teased me because I always brought a pint of ice cream with me to class for a snack.  When we finished our program, we all went on a cruise.  These same sweet girls teased me because I ordered every dessert with every meal.  In my opinion, life is too short- Eat Dessert First.  I am very fortunate because I have a really high metabolism or it could get really ugly.  My desire for sweets seems to have increased now that I work from home.  I will open a 12 ounce bag of M&M's in the morning and they will be gone by the end of the day.  Does anyone else remember when the 12 ounce bag used to be a one pound bag.  Now, they charge you more and give you less. 

I don't make New Year's Resolutions, but I was determined with this new year to change my eating habits (including more than the issues I have with sweets).  I wanted to do more clean eating and try to get more vegetables on our families plates and less processed food.  I also gave up fast food (which is easy except for Chick-fil-A) for the month.  I'm hoping to retrain my body so that it likes vegetables and wants sweets in smaller amounts.  When all of that is said and done, I gave up all sweets for one week from January 6th - January 12th.  Each day got a little bit easier than the day before.  The first Sunday, I wanted to gnaw off my own arm, but by the following Sunday, I had a little bit of chocolate and I didn't eat the entire thing.  I consider that a success.  As I reintroduce sugar into my diet, I am hoping to only have a tiny bit and not even every day. 

Don't panic- I will NEVER be the girl who goes without dessert.  Life is too short.  Speaking of that, I know I need to get on the ball about scheduling another one of my 101 things, because Dante's Down the Hatch is going to be closing in 2013 and I do NOT want to miss out on chocolate fondue. 

Giving up Chocolate

One of the things on my 101 List is to give up sweets for a week.   Some of you probably don't understand exactly how many sweets I eat a day.  Sometimes it is an entire 10 ounce bag of M&M's, sometimes a pint of ice cream... anything that has sugar in it.  I am thankful that I already have a high metabolism, but now I am going for the healthy amount.   I am actually trying to extend my goal even further than that, but I keep running into all of these obstacles- People keep giving me sweets and I hate wasting food :)    Self control would be a good thing, but it is definitely something I struggle with, especially regarding sugar.  My husband had some metabolic testing done before the holidays and I said I wasn't even thinking about it until after the holidays because I know me and I was NOT missing out on sweets during the holidays.  

Well, I was trying to finish all of the sweets in the house before the end of the year (almost counterproductive in my opinion) and I couldn't do it, so I pushed it back a week.  So, in January, I cut way back on them and just ate a little a night until the homemade goodies were gone.  I also put 5 dozen cookies in the freezer as well as all store bought candy, so that was not included in the things that needed to be eaten.  I will finish all of the sweets in my house tonight, so I will start the sugar limit, allowing myself permission to break it on January 13th, which is when I signed up to run the Hot Chocolate 5K, which rewards you with Chocolate Fondue and Hot Chocolate at the End!!!  I will keep you updated on how I am doing with it.  Some of my closer friends asked that I not go near them when I am on the sugar fast :)