All By Myself

Great title, no?  Now I have that song stuck in my head, here are the lyrics (by Eric Carmen) so you can sing it with me: 

When I was young
I never needed anyone
And makin love was just for fun
Those days are gone

Livin alone
I think of all the friends Ive known
But when I dial the telephone
Nobodys home

All by myself
Dont wanna be
All by myself anymore
All by myself
Dont wanna live
All by myself anymore

Hard to be sure
Some times I feel so insecure
And love so distant and obscure
Remains the cure

All by myself
Dont wanna be
All by myself anymore
All by myself
Dont wanna live
All by myself anymore

If you made it this far…thank you for sticking it out with me. You see, I am actually all by myself!  In my house!  I know, that sounds like a weird thing to get excited about but for us moms this is a strange and rare occurrence.  I have been a mom for 22 years, more than half my life, and I am not used to this at all!

So far, I watched grown-up TV shows during primetime. I had rootbeer and Doritos for dinner (without having to share!).  I picked up all the toys around the house and nothing took its place.

I tried to take a nice long bubblebath but the animals keep sticking their paws under the door…so I let them in and the cats sat on the toilet staring at me and the dog kept peeking over the tub’s rim to check on me.  That was a bust.

I hate to say this out loud but…I am kinda bored.  

Water fell from the sky today!

It rained!  Not just a little sprinkle but big huge drops that lasted for at least 20 minutes! I let the kids run out and play with their umbrellas (there was no lightening or thunder) They had such a blast and were so happy splashing and jumping in the puddles.  I love watching them play like that, it reminds me of the fun carefree playing I used to do. 

 

My parents were really easy going and let us kids run around the neighborhood without much worry. We just had to be in when the street lights came on.  Hubby’s parents were the complete opposite, he had to play inside a small fenced yard.  I would like to allow my kids a little more freedom than they have but it is not easy with all the media hype as to the dangers our kids face nowadays.  Hubby says he thinks his parents were too restrictive for him, but when it comes to his own kids he doesn’t like them out of his site.  It is hard to let the kids be explorers while keeping them on a short leash.  Hubby tells me, “when they are older they can go out on their own”, but they are getting into lazy habits that will be hard to break. 

We are lucky that we live in a neighborhood that has large acre lots so there is a lot they can do in our own yard. Many of the neighbors have horses and pools so we all have fenced lots, but we also have gates into each other backyards so the kids can go through the yards instead of going around the block.  Sounds really great but it is not so good when the kids want to go bike riding and skateboarding…in opposite directions!

We have a loose tooth!

At 5 years, 2 months years of age, this is Kenny’s first “real” loose tooth. I am extra excited because this is a legitimate, honest-to-goodness loose-on-its-own baby tooth!  Twice he has knocked his teeth loose, and one of them has turned gray so I am very happy that there is no trama involved in this latest case  😀 .   I first noticed it the other night when I was helping him brush his teeth, and today he complained that it hurt to eat his corn on the cob. It looks like the tooth will be out just in time for kindergarten pictures…I think that will be so cute!

Single parent

I am a single mom for the week.  😦   (why is that sad smilie not working?) Hubby is on a business trip to the Philippines and Malaysia.  I don’t mind the business trips but I hate it when he leaves the country. This trip is only 6 days which is pretty short for going such a long way. 

Since Sunday is “Family Day” for us I took the kids out for lunch. We went to a Mexican food restaurant. A real sit-down place. Not a pizza place with tons of video games. Not a fast-food joint with toys and a play place. An actual eatery with a waitstaff and menus. I don’t always like being out-numbered but I am proud to say KK and Kenny behaved really well.  For the most part they are good on outings, but sometimes they get on a roll and they cannot stop.  I don’t know what gets into these kids but every once and a while they get so disruptive that I don’t want to be seen with them.  When that happens we leave. I have dragged my screaming kids out of stores, movies and restaurants.  Some people will give me a stare that makes me think they are wondering how I can abuse my kid that way.  I am sure they would think I am a bad parent for letting my kid run around too. Either way, their opinion doesn’t matter. All I care about is my child.

I really don’t like unruly kids and I think it is a sort of child abuse for a parent not to teach kids right from wrong. Limits have to be set.  Children do not naturally know how to behave, it is one of life’s lessons and it needs repeated everyday.  I understand that children, babies and toddlers are unpredictable and you sometimes you don’t know how to deal with the situation, but that is no reason to ruin everyone else’s meal.  Box up you food and take it home. Pick up your screaming child and take her out the door.  Trust me, it is not that hard to do, people will love you for it, and your kid will learn a valuable lesson!

Kids Say The Darndest Thing…

Does anyone remember that show?  Bill Cosby chatting it up with kids, it was cute.  My kids have me laughing all day, maybe we should have our own show. Here are a few anecdotes that stick out in my mind:

The other day my 8 year old daughter was looking at her naked self in the mirror while she was waiting for the shower water to warm up. She turned to me in all seriousness and worriedly asked, “Why is my butt turning white?”  I tried to be reassuring and not giggle too much as I explained that her butt was the same as it always has been, and that the rest of her body was tanning from being exposed to the sun.  She was very relieved!

For the summer I have the kids on a schedule that includes “quiet time” (crazy idea, I know!).  We turn off all electronics,  get a book or quiet toy and have down time in their room for an hour. A few weeks ago Daddy was home during the week, which really was fun but the kids were staying up extra late, getting up early and with all the excitement we all really needed this rest time more than ever.  If only the kids saw it that way!  After one especially crazy morning the kids were both going strong with their whining and resisting all efforts to rest. Finally Daddy had enough and ordered them to their rooms. Without missing a beat, our precious princess puts her hands on her hips looks him straight in the eyes and pronounces, “We hate quiet time! If we had more brothers and sisters, we would be an angry mob!”   I really don’t know where she heard that phrase, but I think I will blame Sponge Bob.

Hello world!

I have just one food weakness,  Chocolate Donuts !  I am picky when it comes to the donut, I won’t eat it if it doesn’t meet my high standards, but when I do find one that is perfect, I can (and I have!) eat half a dozen in one sitting.   

Mind you this is a very rare occurrence! 

One bit of trivia you may not know about the chocolate donut  , it taste just as good going down as it does coming back up! I only know this from my morning sickness days with KK.  My only daughter would not allow me to enjoy any form of chocolate for 40 weeks.  

The best chocolate donut  is not really a donut, but the hole.  Dunkin’ Donuts’ Munchkins are the perfect size, flavor and texture for my tastes.  It could only be better if it had a chocolate glaze instead of the white sugar glaze, but maybe it would be too chocolaty…which is why the brownie is not my favorite.  

Welcome to my blog.  Enjoy!