Wednesday, November 26, 2008
In Chaos, Minty Bliss
MAV and I had to run to WaL-MaRt for some things earlier. It was a madhouse. Grown people acting like complete and total fools. There were people behaving in ways that I cannot stand. Three grown men, probably mid-20s, were walking in the middle of the aisle, wearing sunglasses and pretending to be blind. They were knocking things off of the shelves and running into the racks. It was obnoxious.
I fought my way through the store with my buggy (stop laughing. That is what we call them here) and my MAV (not easy because she is quite possibly the slowest human being on the planet-is it all children?). But. BUT!!! On our way to get the taco shells for our supper, we encountered a huge display of Limited Edition Old Fashioned Candy Cane Creme Oreos. How am I possibly supposed to diet when things like this exist?
I bought one package and we each ate two after dinner. I LOVED them. They have the same amount of creme as the double stuffed Oreos but the creme is flavored with peppermint- like a candy cane. It's delicious. I had a cookie "pure" as this girl describes and one cookie "with milk." As with every other cookie (especially the Oreo), "with milk" is always better.
MAV's review, "They're yummy!"
Labels: food, MAV, review
Giving Thanks
I am fine. Monday was not a great day. I was just remembering a bad time in my life and so I was feeling sad. The depression, it comes and it goes. It's like a big thick fog that settles over me, weighing me down with memories. Then, it passes. I appreciate all the love. Monday night, I took Maria to see Twilight. I loved it. I LOVED it. I did not LOVE the books. This is a peculiar change for me. I usually do not LOVE the movie. I guess that is if I LOVED the book though. I think the reason I LOVED the movie though is because of the problems I had with the book(s). I liked the idea the writer had but the writing was sometimes very slow. The movie was pretty fast paced (no two hours of Bella moping around doing the same ol' thing like she does for the entire middle of the books) and dramatic. It was also pretty cheesy but I expected a little cheese. I like the guy who played Edward. I really, really liked him in the movie. I did not like the girl who played Bella. I don't think she is "beautiful" only cute. I think her mouth/chin is weird, distractingly so and I think that THIS girl would've been better. That's just me. My godchild, MAV, is here with me. I went and picked her up yesterday. She will come with Blue and me to the camp tomorrow for Thanksgiving. My parents, Little Bro, Gus and Gus' family will be there, too. On the menu: - turkey
- broccoli and cheese casserole
- rice dressing
- green been casserole
- corn pone
- sweet potato crunch
- rolls
- fruit salad
- dessert
I don't know what the dessert will be because Gus' mom is bringing it. I think. OH, and I think maybe Gus is making 24-hour-salad. Maybe(?). I guess if she or mom read this, they will let us know. If you are interested in the recipe for any of these dishes, let me know.
I'm going to bring a bag of Steam Fresh mixed veggies, too. I'll still eat everything above but just a little bit of it. I'll try to fill up on turkey and regular veggies. TRY TO. But, as of now, I'm very thankful that I've lost the 14lbs that I have already.
Labels: food, holidays, Maria, MAV, Movies
Monday, June 30, 2008
And She Has A Cute Nose
I was just re-reading my past post and I wanted to take it all back because I feel so guilty. I wrote all that stuff that irritates me and not the great, wonderful things that I love about my MAV. I didn't tell all about how relieved I am to have her back after two years and how it's so great to hear how well she's doing. I didn't write about how she won first prize at her spelling bee and how she's so super proud of that. Or how she got perfect attendance even though she has more than one home. I didn't mention that she is bright and funny and adaptable and mature and sweet and honest. She is adorable and fun. I wanted you to know the wonderful things, too. Labels: MAV, sad
I've Gone Off My Diet Too
So, I have MAV for a few more days. This "parenting" a nine year old girl is pretty new to me. I am so not used to the behaviors of some children today. I'm also not as familiar with this age as I am with a bit younger ages. Plus, she is being raised a lot different than I was raised or would raise her. Here are some of the issues we're (I'm?) having:- blatant defiance- I am just not used to this and I do not put up with it. I don't let it go either. I'm strict, not mean, strict. No matter what my mom says about me being a talker and hyper and attention-hungry (I was all three), I listened to my parents and my elders and didn't blatantly disobey.
- What?- We were raised to say "Ma'am" and "Sir" to our parents and elders. I understand that not everyone does this, but to me, it sounds terribly disrespectful when a child answers, "What" when you call his/her name. This is not her fault, of course. I ask her to say, "Yes" when I call to her from a distance. If she hasn't heard me, "excuse me?" is more appropriate.
- I'm a carnival director- She's bored! She's complaining before we finish this activity about being bored later.
- The REPEATS- This may be the top thing along with the disobeying. I know that kids ask for toys, candy, food, to go play outside, to watch a movie, to go to the mall, la la la and so on and so forth. I know that. Again, I'm basically basing things on how I was and how my parents were when I was growing up. She asks for or about the SAME. FREAKING. THING. over and over and over and over again. I'm not exaggerating at all. We go to the store and get a buggy (cart, we say buggy here), I've told her at home 10 minutes ago that I'll buy her a ball. She asks me NO LESS than 4 times before we get out of produce about the damn ball. Once she gets said ball (TWO!), it's on to something else. What do I say about this? Is this normal? Are you laughing at me?
I know that it's mostly me and my problem. I don't yell. I speak sternly and directly and if something continues, we have a discussion. She is very, very mature for her age and is adorable when talking about things. I know that lots of things that she does that irritate me are not her fault and so I try to be patient. I don't know how much this has to do with her parentage (or who she is with and around) or personality. I also don't know if some of this would be easier for me to deal with if she were my child. I feel like a bitch when I get stern and correct her too much. I want to be fun Nanny, but not be walked all over and have her misbehave. If she were our child I could correct her as I see fit.
And Luke. Luke is infinatly more patient with her than I am or than he is with me. He is really fantastic with kids and that is the 100% truth. He's like a Pied Piper with them, they all love him so much. MAV and Luke have always been like this, since she was born. She has a nickname for him, they hold hands, play with the ball, watch movies. She helped in the yard yesterday while I cooked in the kitchen. I looked out my window at the two of them together and it was adorable. It was a little glimpse at my future.
my dreams all come true standing side by side in the yard
Labels: advice, childhood, family, feedback, Luke, MAV
