OH THE JOYS

As I'm dressing for the pool, I notice a perfect circle on my back. Oh god, I have ring worm! Panic. Do I go to the doctor? DO I just get anti fungal?! What do I do? Look it up online. That will tell me what to do. All of a sudden I hear....

Cec, why do you look worried?

Because, LOOK its a ring, I think its ring worm.

Oh, um, are all of those ring worms too?

What, are all of WHAT ring worms too?

The squiggily lines right next to it, they kinda look like worms under there, thats gross!

Don't be rude! Those are STRETCH MARKS!

Oh....well okay.

(Silence with a blank stare)

What?!!?!?

Well, I dont mean to be RUDE but I think your ring worm is just two really ugly stretch marks matched up.

So I procede to look again. Sure as shit, there they are. Two very ugly stretch marks that have given me permanent ring worm!

Mommy Day

Today I had the best Mommy Day EVER. If you know anything about my darling Izze girl, its that she can be a handfull! She is in charge and she likes things done her way. Today, she woke up and sang to me first thing this morning. We played for a while and had some breakfast. No fits, no throwing, no hitting. I layed her down for a morning nap in anticipation she would not get to her afternoon one on time. She gladly took a 45 minute snooze and again woke up singing. Then we went to the pool. She ooohed and Ahhhed over all of the fun things and we played and played and played. We ate some raisins, some hot dogs and drank lots and lots of pool water. Grandma and Cam joined us! We came home and she took a THREE hour nap! Wowza. It was a simple day, but sometimes those are the best. We had a blast!

Here are some pictures of Izze at the pool.....


and no, she was not crying, she got a red cheek from sunscreen in her eye.....lol...at least she was wearing it!

A little over a year ago, I got a new job

POSITION :

Mother, Mom, Mama, Mommy, Ma

JOB DESCRIPTION:

Long term, team players needed, for challenging permanent work in an, often chaotic environment. Candidates must possess excellent communication and organizational skills and be willing to work variable hours, which will include evenings and weekends and frequent 24 hour shifts on call. Some overnight travel required, including trips to primitive camping sites on rainy weekends and endless sports tournaments in far away cities. Travel expenses not reimbursed. Extensive courier duties also required.

RESPONSIBILITIES:

The rest of your life. Must be willing to be hated, at least temporarily, until someone needs $5. Must be willing to bite tongue repeatedly. Also, must possess the physical stamina of a pack mule and be able to go from zero to 60 mph in three seconds flat in case, this time, the screams from the backyard are not someone just crying wolf. Must be willing to face stimulating technical challenges, such as small gadget repair, mysteriously sluggish toilets and stuck zippers. Must screen phone calls, maintain calendars and coordinate production of multiple homework projects. Must have ability to plan and organize social gatherings for clients of all ages and mental outlooks. Must be willing to be indispensable one minute, an embarrassment the next. Must handle assembly and product safety testing of a half million cheap, plastic toys, and battery operated devices.. Must always hope for the best but be prepared for the worst. Must assume final, complete accountability for the quality of the end product. Responsibilities also include floor maintenance and janitorial work throughout the facility.

POSSIBILITY FOR ADVANCEMENT & PROMOTION:

Virtually none. Your job is to remain in the same position for years, without complaining, constantly retraining and updating your skills, so that those in your charge can ultimately surpass you

PREVIOUS EXPERIENCE:

None required unfortunately. On-the-job training offered on a continually exhausting basis.

WAGES AND COMPENSATION:

Get this! You pay them! Offering frequent raises and bonuses. A balloon payment is due when they turn 18 because of the assumption that college will help them become financially independent. When you die, you give them whatever is left. The oddest thing about this reverse-salary scheme is that you actually enjoy it and wish you could only do more.

BENEFITS:

While no health or dental insurance, no pension, no tuition reimbursement, no paid holidays and no stock options are offered; this job supplies limitless opportunities for personal growth and free hugs for life.

To the mothers.....

If you send this to just one person, it should make it all

the way around the world by Mother's Day.

This is for the mothers who have sat up all night with sick

toddlers in their arms, wiping up barf laced with Oscar Mayer wieners

and cherry Kool-Aid saying, "It's alright honey, Mommy's here."

Who have sat in rocking chairs for hours on end soothing

crying babies who can't be comforted.

This is for all the mothers who show up at work with spit-up

in their hair and milk stains on their blouses and diapers in their

purses. For all the mothers who run carpools and make cookies and sew

Halloween costumes. And all the mothers who DON'T.

This is for the mothers who gave birth to babies they'll

never see. And the mothers who took those babies and gave them homes.

And for the mothers who lost their baby in that precious 9 months

that they will never get to watch grow on earth but one day will be

reunited with in Heaven!

This is for the mothers whose priceless art collections are

hanging on their refrigerator doors.

And for all the mothers who froze their buns on metal bleachers at

football or soccer games instead of watching from the warmth of their cars,

so that when their kids asked, "Did you see me, Mom?" they could say,

"Of course, I wouldn't have missed it for the world," and mean it.

This is for all the mothers who yell at their kids in the

grocery store and swat them in despair when they stomp their feet and

scream for ice cream before dinner. And for all the mothers who

count to ten instead,

but realize how child abuse happens.

This is for all the mothers who sat down with their children

and explained all about making babies. And for all the (grand)

mothers who wanted to, but just couldn't find the words.

This is for all the mothers who go hungry, so their children

can eat. For all the mothers who read "Goodnight, Moon" twice a

night for a year. And then read it again. "Just one more time."

This is for all the mothers who taught their children to tie their

shoelaces before they started school. And for all the mothers who

opted for Velcro instead.

This is for all the mothers who teach their sons to cook and their

daughters to sink a jump shot.

This is for every mother whose head turns automatically when

a little voice calls "Mom?" in a crowd, even though they know their

own offspring are at home -- or even away at college.

This is for all the mothers who sent their kids to school

with stomach aches assuring them they'd be just FINE once they got

there, only to get calls from the school nurse an hour later asking

them to please pick them up. Right away.

This is for mothers whose children have gone astray, who

can't find the words to reach them.

This is for all the step-mothers who raised another woman's

child or children, and gave their time, attention, and love...

sometimes totally unappreciated!

For all the mothers who bite their lips until they bleed

when their 14-year-olds dye their hair green.

For all the mothers of the victims of recent school

shootings, and the mothers of those who did the shooting.

For the mothers of the survivors, and the mothers who sat in front

of their TVs in horror, hugging their child who just came home from

school, safely.

This is for all the mothers who taught their children to be

peaceful, and now pray they come home safely from a war.

What makes a good Mother anyway?

Is it patience?

Compassion?

Broad hips?

The ability to nurse a baby, cooks dinner, and sew a button on

a shirt, all at the same time?

Or is it in her heart?

Is it the ache you feel when you watch your son or daughter disappear down the

street, walking to school alone for the very first time?

The jolt that takes you from sleep to dread, from bed to crib

at 2 A.M. to put your hand on the back of a sleeping baby?

The panic, years later, that comes again at 2 A.M. when you just want to hear their key in

the door and know they are safe again in your home?

Or the need to flee from wherever you are and hug your child when you hear news of a

fire, a car accident, a child dying?

The emotions of motherhood are universal and so our thoughts

are for young mothers stumbling through diaper changes and sleep

deprivation...

And mature mothers learning to let go.

For working mothers and stay-at-home mothers.

Single mothers and married mothers.

Mothers with money, mothers without.

This is for you all.

For all of us.

Hang in there.

In the end we can only do the best we can.

Tell them every day that we love them.

And pray.

"Home is what catches you when you fall - and we all fall."

Cha-cha-cha-chia

Sometimes the days go by so quickly I have no idea what month it is anymore. But then reality hits and I look at the calendar. I see that I only have 13 sleeps until I wake up and my baby is one! I can not even begin to fathom this thought. She is supposed to be an infant, my snuggily little cuddily infant. But no, this baby isn't such a baby anymore. She's a talking, crawling, growing little toddler. She sasses her momma, she chases her puppies, she works her daddy, she pulls tons over on her grandparents and most of all she GROWS. I knew this would happen, I knew she would change, and I'm glad she does so well at it. But I wasn't prepared for the speed. She's like my very own chia pet....sprouting off new buds all the time! So here I sit, mourning my last few days of being a mother of an 11 month old and in my heart I'm doing a little rejoicing in the marical that is her; crying over the time that has gone to fast; and wondering how I will protect this beautiful little creature while still allowing her the freedoms she so yearns to learn on her own. Oh momma----this is one tough job.

Being a woman

Having the ability to carry a baby for nine months---Awesome

HAVING to carry a baby for nine month---Not always so awesome

Feeling your baby kick for the first time---Awesome

Feeling your baby kick ALL the time---Not so awesome

The maricale of birth---Awesome

The pain of birth---Not so awesome

Being a mom---Awesome

Being the mom---Not always so awesome

So, is this ability God gave US (women) a gift or a curse? 99% of the time, I'd tell you its the best gift he/she gave us. And it was given to US because we could handle it, unlike those other creatures. But then there are days when I think, WHY me. Why does my body have to be the one to betray me. Why do I have to suffer 8 days a month so that my husband can enjoy our furure children. Why doesn't he HAVE to do any of the work?! And I do my best to remind myself that the power is ours because we can do it. And in the end it will be worth it. Because some day we will wake up and look into those eyes and say, oh I get it now.

Predictable

They always say the holiday season is busy but I never really think so. Then I look back to the last time I had time to myself to post and think oh, maybe it is a busy time of year. OR maybe having a baby is never predictable. Maybe some weeks I get plenty of time to myself and the next I dont have a second to even brush my hair. Its amazing how unpredictable my life has become. I used to have time to watch and be addicted to certain shows now I'm lucky if I get a chance to be filled in on what happend by someone who did get to watch them. I used to have a schedule. I thought with Izze I'd be able to make one as well, and we have. Sort of. Yet because she is always feeling diffrently it never goes quite the same as the last time we ran through that schedule. I used to think predictability was boring and for old people and wanted to be spontaneous even though I never was. Now I think predictability just for a moment would be a dream come true. How I miss the times when I was "so predictable".

To be a mom....

Is there more to life than being a mom? I'm not so sure. Its only been 7 months and I already can't imagine what life was like without her. Was there really a time when I could wake up when I felt like it, run to the store in 5 minutes, play outside all day without worrying about the tempature, go to dinner without thinking if there will be a place for her to sit, go to a movie, rent a movie, spend time with Kev without anyone around, take a shower at any moment I felt like it, put makeup on every day and even wear clothes that I liked in a size I was happy with. I don't know if those things were ever done, or if I'm just dreaming that up. But what I do know is I can't imagine waking up and not getting to hug and snuggle with that baby, laying down to sleep without wondering if she will be okay, going to work without wondering what fun she is having at daycare, not wanting to cry because that child on tv has a mother somewhere. As much as I miss feeling like a women, I just plain can't remember what it feels like NOT to be a mom and I dont think I want to....