I’d like to thank my mom and my dad and my brother and my sister (especially my sister) and of course TW and my children. If it weren’t for them and for the dogs who were slackers, I would not have been so honored…
The Daily Dose made it to the Carnival of Cockroaches! Woohoo! Let’s celebrate! Pecan Pie, anyone?
Technorati Tags: honored, carnival, cockroaches, pecans
Daily Dose of Carnival – I’m honored! Read More »
I’m going to share a really important Denise Rule with all of you folks. That rule is: Do not read your kid’s My Space, Live Journal, Xanga, [insert blog platform of choice]. That rule has a sub-rule that reads: Do not read the My Space, Live Journal, Xanga, [insert blog platform of choic] that belong to the friends of your kid, either. I’ve had this rule for a very long time and it has served me well. It will serve you well, too. I promise it will.
USA Today ran a nice little article about teens and blogging/journaling. It seems a lot of parents are surprised at what they’ve found when reading their children’s “blogs”. And once they’ve read the blogs, they don’t know what to do about it.
Hellooooo folks, if you are surprised by what your kids are writing in their blogs then you aren’t paying attention to your kids or you are in denial about your kids. That’s not the fault of My Space, Live Journal, Xanga, or [insert blog platform of choice], that’s YOUR fault.
Would your parents have been surprised by what YOU wrote in YOUR paper diary/journal when you were 15? Would they have been shocked at the words you used when interacting with your peers, away from prying parental eyes? Would they have been appalled at the things you did behind closed doors, while someone’s parents were out of town? If they would have been, then they weren’t paying attention either. Maybe it is an inherited trait?
I do not read my children’s journals, paper or online, and I’m rarely surprised at what they do or say. I don’t read their friends journals and I’m pretty good at knowing who the problem kids are and what their problems are. I do not read my children’s blogs and they have been known to simply carry on conversations with me regarding their friends’ blogs because they realize I already know what goes on in the world of teens and young adults and I’m not naive enough to think that they are immune to the dark side.
I cannot believe there are adults using the excuse “They put this stuff up for strangers to read so why are they upset when their family reads it?” as a valid reason for reading a blog without permission. Your children would not want you following them to the prom and lurking behind fake palm trees and crepe paper to see what they are doing, even though they are out in PUBLIC, would they?
The world has changed, mommies and daddies, and it is time to change with it. There are things that you (or people just like you) put up in a public forums everyday and you consider them private and anonymous, even though you are looking for answers and feedback and support from perfect strangers. I spend 12 hours a day reading message board posts from adults who would definitely NOT post half of the messages they post if they thought someone they knew was reading over their shoulder. Our children are doing exactly what adults have been doing ever since listserv and bulletin boards began.
Give your kids some publishing space and pay attention to what is going on in the world around you, and around them. If they trust you, they’ll tell you in one way or another what they’re writing and reading and who they are talking to out there in the blogosphere. And if you’re paying attention, you won’t be the least bit surprised by what you hear.
Technorati Tags: livejournal, xanga, myspace, teens, blogging, privacy
Daily Dose of Kids – Blogs and Privacy Read More »
Snead asked, so what is it that makes you love this particular brush and today seems like the day to answer her.
Why does today seem like the day? Since I’m sitting in a four star hotel that is NOT remotely like the two hotels I’ve stayed in with her while in Atlanta – it’s MUCH nicer. You’d think I’d be doing fun hotel stuff, right? Fun vacation stuff, right? Looking out of the window at the offices that have caused me so much work angst lately and considered ways to get even, right? Well, I am doing fun hotel stuff. I’m not worrying about cleaning up messes and we’ve watched several episodes of What Not to Wear and I suspect Clean Sweep and the like will also make appearances. We did fun vacation stuff last night and will be doing more of that this afternoon, tonight and tomorrow, so chill folks. I’m having vacation time, I really am. As for the looking out the window at those offices… and plotting… well I would, but I like my paycheck even when I’m frustrated so I feel incredibly lucky that the great view from this room looks out over Atlanta in the opposite direction and makes plotting harder. Maybe another time?
You’re still wondering why I’m blogging about my hairbrush while on vacation, aren’t you? Or had you forgotten that’s what I set out to do? I almost forgot myself so I can’t blame you if that’s what happened. The reason today is the day is because I am in Atlanta at a Four Start Hotel and I have NO HAIRBRUSH AT ALL! That’s right folks. Me. The woman who is incredibly anal about hairbrushes and always makes sure to travel with three, at a minimum, has NONE. NOT ONE.
I blame MICHELLE. She was sick and not improving and laid on mommy guilt so rather than pack in my incredibly efficient way, I just threw things in and left TW to throw things in, as I rushed all over town yesterday getting Michelle to the doctor, getting her medicine, getting her a Halloween costume etc…
I blame TW. After all of the trips I’ve packed for her, you’d think she could have managed to think about my hairbrush. We’ve already established that she understands the importance of this one item in my life. Instead, she printed a copy of the itinerary and directions and such – which was unnecessary since I had already printed a copy earlier in the day!
I blame WORK. If I hadn’t found myself immersed in a project that I thought I was removing myself from, I’d have had time to take my sick child to the doctor earlier in the week. I’d have had time to buy her a Halloween costume earlier in the week. I’d have had time to pack in the normal, and highly efficient way, I normally pack.
Obviously, I’m fixated on my brush right now and I’m thinking about how unpleasant it will be to go and buy another one just to get me through the weekend. I hate new brushes. I hate that the handle feels different and the bristles feel different. The weight is different. I’m a woman who really dislikes change and when I get use to something, I tend to stick with it.
It’s not that the pink Goodys brush is some high end, BMW of hairbrushes. It’s simply that I am use to the size and shape of the handle. The weight of it in my hand. The bristles. The brush. It’s familiar, I know what to expect when I use it. I don’t have to think about the best WAY to use the brush. I just know, because it’s the same brush I’ve used for years and years and years. Even when I open a new package and pull a fresh one out, I know what to expect. Same size. Same weight. Same brush.
Maybe I’ll get lucky and find MY brush at the Eckerd around the corner? (And why is it that all of the Eckerds in my town changed to CVS but here in Atlanta they still have Eckerd?)
Daily Dose of Vacation – Hairbrushes Read More »
His Highness on the flute, 6th grade, 10/2005 Spartacus
Daily Dose of Music – Spartacus Read More »
I mentioned in my Random 10 post that it was my birthday and I was cleaning my office and I mentioned pictures. Well here’s one… I got too busy cleaning to remember to take more, darn it.
I got a lot done, even though I was distracted by taking TW to work, picking her up, little kid madness, email and AIM. I’m not finished but after five hours of it today, another hour tomorrow should do it.
TW came home from work midday, it’s Gator Homecoming – whoppeeee … Go Missisisippi! 😉 And as soon as we walked in the door, she left to “run a birthday errand”. She came back just as I was about to feed the little kids their lunch. No birthday gift in hand. Hmmm.
The little kids finished their lunch and then TW rounded them up to take them out “birthday shopping” again. Uh oh. TW and 3 small kids unaccompanied on a shopping trip is dangerous. I stayed focused on cleaning the office and doing laundry and within a couple of hours they were home. RJ came in carrying an orchid. Hmmm, nice but odd. TW handed me an envelope. I open it. Gift certificate? Hmmm odd. I look more closely, wondering why TW got me a gift certificate. I do not really like to shop. Ha, a gift certificate for a tanning salon. Hahaha! I often say I wish we could move into the new townhouses that have tanning salons free for use in the exercise room.
Weird that she took the kids out for two hours and came back with just a gift certificate and an orchid. Oh, craft project is about to begin. Uh oh. TW and 3 small kids doing a project is even more frightening then the shopping trip.
I stayed focused on cleaning the office and late in the day took the second bag of trash out to the can and found 3 odd things in the yard. 3 paper pots with plaster hardening and a metal stake sticking out of each one. TW appeared at the door, sure I would know what creation they were making. I was clueless. It wasn’t flamingos again, thank goodness.
The afternoon passed. The girls were in the living room working on part of the project and I did not peek as I passed in and out of there. J was “busy” working on his part in his room for hours and hours. Hmmmm.
Jenn called after she got off work and asked if I was doing something special for my birthday. I told her I spent 5 hours cleaning the office. She said “ohhhh did you do the tarp thing?” (Some of you may not know that TW and I have a TLC thing. Everytime we go on a trip, we spend hours in hotel beds watching Clean Sweep, Trading Spaces, What Not to Wear and Property Ladder. We were just in Charleston last week and had such a marathon) I laughed and said “No, I was mostly by myself and couldn’t take everything outside alone, not to mention it rained most of the day.” She laughed and suggested I should have held off and just done the Clean Sweep thing because there was surely more to get rid of than the 2 bags I took out. Hmph.
After dinner, TW and the little kids went outside for a few minutes. There was a lot of giggling outside of my bedroom window. Super Glue was mentioned, as was bamboo. Hmmmm. TW yelled, “OK, go into the living room.” I did, held the evil dog so he didn’t get out and watched the little kids parade into the house with these umm pots with some signs sticking up on them. Hmmmm
I looked closely at E’s. It had a big 42 on it, gee thanks kid. And the word keep spelled front ways and backways in nice neat handwriting and lots of the beanie baby stickers I had found in my desk this morning all over it. I told her it was cute as I was laughing and asked why it said “keep, peek” on it. She said, “You’ll find that out later.” Hmmmm.
I look at RJ’s and it had the beanie baby stickers on it and the word Sell. Ha, it hit me.
I started to laugh, looked at J and said “TRASH, You’re TRASH!!!!” hahhaha. A large bag of tarps was presented by TW. A Clean Sweep Birthday, woohooo!
The small children are not thrilled with the idea that we may Clean Sweep their room. E in particular is worried about her beanies. She should have realized by the signs that no beanies are every trashed, they’re either kept or sold and I don’t think anyone would want hers, they’re well loved. I, on the other hand, have a good 100 well cared for, clean in acrylic cages, beanies that should definitely wind up on the sale tarp soon.
Daily Dose of Birthday – Clean Sweep Read More »
TW tracked down the Weetzie Bat quiz for Michelle. I think I really need to catch up and read more of these books. Maybe in my spare time?
You’re the Lanka. You’re dark and mysterious, mainly because it helps keep others from seeing just how much pain you feel. You try to create ways to escape from the torment, but it ultimately all catches up to you in the end.
Which Weetzie Bat character are you?
brought to you by Quizilla
TW, Michelle and I drove UP to Charleston for the weekend to see Jenn (and Ronnie too, I guess) and her new house (well I guess it is his too but he’s not the important one there). I was reminded of three things during this trip, three things I hope I will not ever forget:
1) I will not EVER book a room at the Red Roof Inn, on Northwoods BLVD, for any reason. NEVER. AGAIN. We stayed there for one night last month and hated it but apparently the learning curve is steep and it took a second trip to really make it sink in for me.
2) I’m getting too darn old for this 12 hours of driving over a 2 1/2 day period. It’s hard to believe it wasn’t more than a couple of years ago that we were driving all over the south following Melissa. This weekend trip is making me rethink the whole Melissa in Atlanta thing at the end of the month, even if TW is healthy enough to go. I AM OLD and TIRED!
As much as my daughters adore each other, and they definitely do, they do not do well together when I am around. It’s not horrible but there’s some weird undercurrent thing that bugs me to death. I don’t remember it being there all those years ago when were all a big “happy family”. It happened after Michelle and I (and Chris) moved out and left Jenn (who was all grown up and going to college) with her dad (and boyfriend who is now her husband). Michelle was always jealous and wanted me to herself but she’s 15 1/2 and this is getting really weird. Maybe it’s time to reconsider that therapy thing again??? Maybe we could do some double sessions so that when we are all together for Thanksgiving it doesn’t feel crummy?
Daily Dose of Family – Daughters Read More »
TW bought me this cute little iRiver for my birthday and of course she gave it to me a full week early. I’ve been happily downloading music for the last 24 hours or so. Life is good.
And so here I go, joining the random 10 folks with the 10 most recent (and random) songs played on my little iRiver (who has yet to name himself/herself…):
What’s playing on your portable device … or in your CD player?
Daily Dose of Music – Random 10 Read More »
Michelle is home. 😉 We know this not just by the scent of popcorn or the music playing behind me while I work or the phone ringing late into the evening. We know this because the drama has begun.
While Michelle was in NJ, she was skateboarding and “hurt her knee”. No big deal, certainly not as big a deal as her Scarlet Fever issue. She came home and didn’t do anymore than the normal Michelle whining about her knee thrown in with the normal Michelle whining about her back, (she is sure she has Scoliosis, thank you school nurses around the world), and I am so use to her whining that I rarely listen.
I’m a bad mom. I’m not all that compassionate in general, except when I’m at work. I’m really not very compassionate when it comes to Michelle and her health dramas. I can totally understand the woman I heard on the radio the other day whose son flunked an eye test at school and she thought he was faking so she sent him to his room without dinner… he turned out to be blind in one eye. Anyway, that’s what life is like here. Michelle is “sick” or “injured” and I only half listen.
So the other day, Michelle was skateboarding here and she came in saying she “hurt her achilles tendon”. OK, let me see… no swelling so stay off of it and would you like some tylenol? Fast forward a few days and she’s limping down the stairs. I ask her what’s wrong, oh remember I hurt my achilles tendon. Ummm Ok, let me see… no swelling, stay off of it, would you like some tylenol?
I head back to the bedroom and hear her at the door asking if we have any crutches. I say no and then quickly say yes, we do from when TW’s sister broke her ankle a couple of years ago… they’re ummm in the garage. Michelle limps off as I chuckle.
A moment later, she’s back. Umm where in the garage. I chuckle some more. TW says last time she’s seen them they were near the workbench. I am really chuckling at this point because there is no way that kid will know where the workbench is – no work has ever been done on it, she may have never even SEEN it. I jump in and say no, I think they are near the bedframes and mattresses. Michelle asks where the workbench is and where the bedframes are. I explain the bedframes are behind the freezer. TW attempts to explain the workbench by telling her what it looks like. Hahaha, you can’t see what it looks like – it’s on the other side of the washer and dryer.
I’m still chuckling and continue to read my blog feeds when we hear a crash in the garage. Hahaha. Moments later we hear Michelle making some high pitched whiney noises and the garage door open and close. Michelle mumbling, high pitched moans. TW says – Is she crying?
I say umm, I dunno, maybe and I keep typing whatever it was I was typing.
TW says – well could you go check?
I say ummm sure, in a minute. (see, I’m a bad mom)
I head into the office where Michelle is mumbling and making these weird whiney moans. I ask her if she’s ok. I ask if she found the cruthes. She moans. She shivers.
I am not going in there ever again. Roaches. Dead roaches. Behind the freezer. Millions of them. (moaning, whining, horrible cringing, shivering accompanied this)
I tried not to laugh. Really I swear I did. I couldn’t help it.
Michelle, honey. Those aren’t roaches. They are… pecans. They’ve been back there for a year. The cats knocked the bag off of the freezer and the dogs ripped open the bag and snack on them whenever they can’t find kitty litter crunchies to nibble on.
She keeps shivering, keeps moaning. She hasn’t found the crutches yet. 😉
Daily Dose of Kids – Pecan Roaches Read More »