Monday morning randoms

• How cute is this? Got a text this morning – apparently LG and her camp BFF were thinking along the same lines when they laid out their outfits last night. And this couldn’t have been planned because everything LG is wearing? We bought yesterday. Eager much?
• 
• Summer is, for all intents and purposes, over. LG goes back to school on August 7!
• Speaking of August 7…why? This is the last week of summer camp, yet school doesn’t start until the next Thursday. For three days I won’t have child care. Oh, but I will. Someone will be joining her father in his big rig. I wish camps and schools would synchronize their foolishness.
• School. I start on August 25. I’ve got less than a month to finish cleaning my house up and out and getting everything organized so that home/work/school doesn’t drive me any battier than I already am. Y’all pray for me.
• I said I wouldn’t complain about this any more. On twitter. But this isn’t twitter, so…my pregnant coworker is driving me crazy. Every day she complains. And complains. And complains some more. Now I’m the first to admit that I had the easiest pregnancy and delivery in the world. And I try to be sympathetic. But it aint working. I know more about her body, symptoms, and issues than I want to. And she’s only about 7 weeks pregnant. I need to figure out a way to remind her that some things only her doctor and husband need to hear about without cussing her out (this is hyperbole – I don’t cuss people out!) and hurting her feelings. Okay, I’m done complaining about it on here as well 🙂
• Oh wait. I do have one more complaint about her. She used to have an on campus parking space. Now she doesn’t. So she waits for me in the parking lot so we can walk in together. I realize I sound petty whining about this, but that’s my quiet time and she’s harshing my mellow. Okay, now I’m done for real.
• I’ve kicked up my working out – I’m trying to work out at least 4 days a week and have done so for the last 3 weeks or so. I take a light weight lifting class, a 30 minute high intensity class, spin, and bootcamp. I’m pretty sure I’ve lost not one single pound -_- I’ve been eating better as well, but I guess I need to make some more adjustments in the kitchen, because I know I should see more change than I do.
• Have y’all heard of the sandwich method of doing your nails? I tried this last night to see if I could make it through the week AND do a lot of heavy chores and still keep my manicure looking good. Right now, my nails are good for a week, but I don’t do a lot of heavy cleaning during the week. I was too…lazy to do all the steps she calls for. I did a base, gelous, color, gelous, color and topped it off with Seche Vite. 5 coats instead of my usual 4. Hope it works.

I think that’s it. Have a glorious day!

Home Alone

As you know, LG and I were recently on vacation with my parents, niece and nephew. Well. Once we got back to MS, my parents planned to go to AR visit my brother and SIL, then to Houston to drop off the niece and nephew and then head west back to Cali.

The night before they left, my mother, my brilliant, brilliant mother was all “why don’t you let us take LG with us on the rest of this trip and Smoochy can pick her up in Houston sometime next week when he has to run a load to Houston?” Stop. The. Presses.

You mean I am going to have this here house, to myself, for a week? Hammer time! I juked around my kitchen like my life depended on it. And then I juked some more! Then I lifted my hands to the heavens and praised God from whom all blessings truly do flow.

You have never – and I mean never – seen someone kick it into high gear the way I did. I probably had that little girl’s bag packed in less than 6 minutes. Adios homeslice, adios!

I haven’t had time alone like that since before I was pregnant with LG. Yeah, around 2003.

I had all of these grand plans. I was going to the gym every day. I would go to some of my favorite restaurants, call some friends and hang out, catch a movie, date night with Smoochy…the list of possibilities was endless!

Do you know what I ended up doing? A whole lot of nothing. LG left on Wednesday morning. I did go to the gym every day that week. But the rest of the time? I saw not one movie, ate out not one time. I laid around the house, finished OITNB (OMG – how great was this season!!!) and on the one day I was feeling productive I threw away about 75% of my nine year old child’s belongings. I loved every minute of it!

Smoochy and I had a date night planned for Saturday. We cancelled. We stayed home, turned off the lights, opened the windows, turned on the radio (okay, Pandora) and chillaxed. Hard.

I know that some people cannot bear the thought of being away from their child(ren). Apparently I am not one of them. I had the best, most relaxing week I’ve had in a long, long time. I’m already trying to see how LG and her grandparents can spend some quality time together next summer. I love that little brown girl, but just piddling around being Nerd Girl was some kind of awesome. I think I ate PB&J sandwiches and/or salad every day she was gone. I didn’t even use the microwave.

I used to just think I was jealous of my friends who are able to send their children away for a week or three at a time. Now I know I’m jealous of them!

This is a Pandora’s box my parents may regret opening.

My SIL in Houston (niece and nephew’s mom) kept LG Sunday night and into Monday until Smoochy picked her up. We were talking about how nice it was to have kid-free time. I’m thinking she and I need to make a deal of some sort. She teaches and has summers off – I will keep her kids one week during the summer if she’ll agree to do the same for me and keep LG. Everybody wins, yes?

The little girl came home yesterday morning. As happy as I was to see her, I was sad that my week alone had come to an end. And apparently she felt the same way. “You know mom, I just don’t think I was gone long enough to miss you.” Touche LG, touche!

 

 

Well Alrightie Then

LG is still, for the most part, kinda sorta, a believer. She believes in Santa, the Tooth Fairy, and I’d guess the Easter Bunny. Now, I’ve never told her that any of these entities exist. Nor have I told her they don’t exist.

Well.

She’s lost several teeth in the last few weeks. So, last night I the Tooth Fairy had yet another tooth to swipe and money to pay out. (The Tooth Fairy has to keep stack of ones on hand like she patronizes the strip club….)

In addition to her fallen soldier tooth, this is what LG left for the Tooth Fairy:

Envelope addressed to the the elusive Tooth Fairy

“If your (sp) REAL follow these steps: 1. sign here in cursive 2. give me powers 3. when I race I’ll be as fast as lightning. Powers on sheet 2.”

1. invisibility
2. super strenghth (sp)
3. flying
4. freeze/heat breath
P.S. Sign in Perfect cursive

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

So yeah, my kid is basically demanding that the Tooth Fairy prove her existence with perfect handwriting and sharing of super powers….

WWYD – Chirren & Money

So. LG wants to buy Minecraft – some video game – for her Kindle. Well, I’m opposed. Because it’s $27. But then I realized that I need to let her spend her money as she sees fit. Or do I?

She’s got about $90 tucked away in her piggy bank. What I’ve been thinking is I’ll take $45 and put it in her savings account, leaving her $45 to spend as she sees fit, whether I agree with her choice or not.

Thoughts? Suggestions? How do/did you handle similar situations with your child(ren)? If you don’t have a kiddo, how do you think you’d handle it?

(Edit: the game she’s looking at is for a PC or gaming system, not her Kindle. She already has Minecraft Pocket which is for iPods & tablets. She still wants the full $27 version)

Five on Friday

• I cancelled my debit card yesterday. Y’all already know I have been all up and in Tarjhay so I figure the thieves have my info. All the news reports say monitor your account, notify your bank, etc., etc., Uh. How about I just cancel my card so whatever info they stole is now null and void. I need to protect my twenty-fives and twenty-fives of dollars!
• What’re y’all having for Christmas dinner? I don’t want Thanksgiving part 2, but can’t think of anything else to prepare. I thought about doing Mexican food, but would like to make it to 15 years of marriage, so that’s out!
• I don’t think we had named subdivisions growing up. As a matter of fact, I’m sure we didn’t. Everything here is a subdivision. People tell me they live in such and such – I have no idea where they’re talking about. I called my own subdivision by the wrong name for almost a year.
• LG has a sleepover tonight. I have wasted plenty of opportunities to throw away more of her stuff. But tonight? It’s on. I really need to get my house together and I feel like the shortest person in the house has accumulated more stuff than is necessary. Adios clutter!
• Speaking of LG, she found the skateboard I bought her for Christmas. She was in the trunk of my car looking for a Sharpie she thought she’d seen back there. She was terrified I’d be mad. I wasn’t. The child acts like she’s being raised by Mommy Dearest. She so is not!

Anyhoo, that’s all I got. Have yourself a marvelous weekend and if I’m not back in this space before then – Merry Christmas!

-_-

Saturday morning LG and I went to the grocery store good and early. I wanted to get in, get out, and hunker down in my toasty warm house the rest of the weekend.

Now. I am not a big purse carrier. I carry a crossbody bag at the most and just keys and a card or two at the least. Saturday I had my crossbody on with my puffy jacket over it. This is important…

LG and I are standing looking at something when she scoots closer to me and whispers something. I don’t hear her, so I ask her to repeat herself.

LG: Mama. Why are you standing like that?

Me:  Standing like what? What are you talking about?

LG: You know, with your nuts poking out like that.

Me:  WHAT?!?!?!?

LG: When you stand like that your nuts poke out.

Me:  Dear God.

Me:  LG. First of all, I don’t have nuts.  Girls and women don’t have nuts. Boys and men do. But wait! Don’t call them nuts. They’re called testicles. And that’s my purse poking out from my jacket, not my alleged nuts. Why are we having this conversation? God help me. Who have you been talking to about nuts? I mean testicles? Do you know that’s not considered polite conversation? You can get in trouble for saying that. Lord. I’m rambling….

LG: My bad.

No ma’am!

I try my best to be patient, loving, and kind in parenting LG.

But.

It’s like she googled “what would really annoy my mama” and has been doing her best to make me snap.

What’s she doing you ask? Mumbling. I.Cannot.Stand.It! Open your mouth and say what you have to say little girl! This mumbling stuff in my general direction is not the business!

Is there one thing that your child/SO/whoever does that sets your teeth on edge? Do tell!

Mama’s Baby

On Sunday morning, LG got in the bed with me and started crying her little eyes out. When I asked her what was wrong she told me that her life was pretty much perfect and she didn’t want to grow up and have things change.

Oh y’all. I wanted to curl up next to her and bawl my eyes out. She talked about how much she loves us, how she loves pinching my cute cheeks, how she loves curling up in her daddy’s lap and how she doesn’t think anybody will ever love her more than we do.

I told her that we do indeed love her more than anything in this world and we would always love her with our whole hearts no matter how old we are or she is or where we are – in the same room or halfway around the world.

She stopped crying, patted me on my cheek and told me thank you, but she knew it wouldn’t be the same when she was grown.

Oh my sweet girl. My heart.

Forty Wonderful!

So since last we spoke…

• I turned 41! Can you believe it? Okay, you probably can, but I can’t. 41? Time really does zoom on by. So blessed to see another year!
• LG has informed me that we need to spend MORE time together. More y’all! We are nearly joined at the hip now, but I love my girl so now? I wake her up at 5:45 instead of 6:05 so we can spend 20 minutes cuddling and discussing what’s happened in our lives since her 8:00 bedtime the night before  -_-
• I’m down 5 pounds with my clean eating/increased exercise routine. Happy about it. Another 10 pounds and then I’ll be revisiting the whole “how to eat a few treats every now again without gaining the weight back” issue.
• I have tailgated all across the south. And by “all across” I mean Baton Rouge and Itta Bena 🙂 Of course we tailgate at JSU home games, but this season we’ve taken it on the road as well. Had a ball at Southern and MS Valley. We are truly making memories!
• I have been wonderfully blessed by Disco Diva! One day on the twitter, I mentioned that I was going to ask for a stand mixer for Christmas. Do you know she told me she had one she never used and boxed that bad boy up and sent it to me? I am so very, very grateful. Ms. Mixtress posted the other day about folks saying it’s “just the internet,” but I wholeheartedly agree with her – the folks I have met and “met” via blogging and Twitter are simply awesome and I’m thankful for each of you.
• And now? Pictures. Behold:

My purty new stand mixer! Making a cake next weekend to break this bad boy in 🙂

I know I posted this on the Twitter, but this bar/lounge that some enterprising folks at Mississippi Valley set up at the tailgate just tickles me to no end! I should be so smart.

Deep fried koolaid from the fair. LG requested it and then declared it “gross.” I didn’t think it was gross, but it certainly wasn’t delicious!

This kid cracks me up. Especially when she’s wearing light up shades and dancing around my room.

LG and H after the 3rd grade play. I wish they weren’t so shy…

 

Y’all have a great weekend! We’re supposed to tailgate for JSU’s Homecoming, but since Grambling players are on strike and not coming to play, I’m not real sure how that’s gonna play out!

WWYD – Metro’s Most Wanted

I believe I’ve previously shared that we are the only black people on our block. Usually. Every once in a while the rental house across the street is occupied by a black family, as is currently the case.

Last night LG and I were returning home from Bible Study and as we turned the corner and pulled into our garage, LG tells me that our neighbor looks suspicious. I ask her who she’s talking about.

LG:  The man that’s always standing outside. He hangs out too much.

NG:  Well honey, that’s where he lives and if he wants to be outside, he certainly can be.  Why do you think he looks suspicious?

LG:  Well, he looks like one of the Metro’s Most Wanted.

NG:  Huh?

LG:  You know on the news when they show the criminals? He looks like one of them.

NG:  Um, how does he look like one of them?

LG:  Well, he’s black, he wears a cap, and he’s always outside. He looks like he’d run up to the car, make us get out, hit us on the head and take all our stuff.

NG:  So…do you think he’d look suspicious if he was white, wore a cap and was always outside?

LG:  No ma’am.

Well damn. What am I supposed to do to counteract that? I told her, of course, that she can’t/shouldn’t think that all black men in hats who hang around outside are criminals. That a number of men she knows and loves are hat wearing, outside going black men – her father, her grandfathers, her uncles, cousins, friends’ fathers, etc., etc. – and they’re not criminals.

So if you were faced with this situation, what would you do? Have you dealt with anything similar? What else do you think I should tell her? I don’t want to beat her over the head with this, but I surely cannot have her walking around with this notion in her head! Sometimes I can’t help but feel that by moving to a county where whites are the overwhelming majority we have done our girl a disservice.