Say what?!

Have you ever said something so stupid that halfway through the words spilling from your mouth you actually think to yourself, "That has to be the dumbest thing you have ever said!"? I have, and it's a humbling experience.

This whole weekend (it's Sunday afternoon now) I have been without internet service or it has been at best unreliable. Charter is infuriating, but they require a whole other blog themselves. My Scentsy business that I handle from my home office requires internet to place my customer's orders, check and respond to emails, etc. This happened to be a weekend where I needed to place a large order, and several other tasks online. Without service, I was becoming more and more distraught by the hour. I blame part of it on my withdrawal from Facebook, but again...a separate post. Service was up briefly yesterday morning, enough for me to key in and all but hit the SUBMIT button. Then, the connection is lost. *sigh* After banging my head on my desk for a few minutes, I recovered, reminding myself that nothing would be shipped til Monday anyway. So I spent the rest of the afternoon watching movies and playing with the boys.

Fast forward to bedtime. We had arrived home from church choir practice and GLORY! I had internet! The hubby bathed the boys and read to them while I finished my work. He told them I would be up to sing as soon as I was done. It hadn't been 5 minutes before Candy Man decided that I wasn't coming fast enough and a shrill scream and tears would hasten my appearance. It worked, but my mood was anything other than sing-songy when I arrived. I yelled, Hubby yelled and Candy Man received a stern lecture about not using those measures to beckon me and I was busy. Then it happened. The most asinine words ever uttered spilled from my mouth...

"I need to send these emails and now I probably don't have an internet connection!"

Seriously. His response only drove the nail into my heart further..."I just wanted you to sing to me because I love you." he said through his tears. Yes, do not fret readers....my head hung in shame for the rest of the night. Had he asked for a pony in that moment my only response would have been, "What color?!"

It was a blessing to me though to realize how out of whack our priorities can be during the day. We rationalize that work is important because it helps to feed and clothe them. That cleaning is important to maintain a home with no germs, to keep them happy and healthy. Although these reasons do have some merit, there is a fine line between "Mommy, will you color with us?" and being in the middle of cooking dinner, as opposed to "Mommy, will you color with us?" and making an excuse why you can't so you can catch up on more Facebook time.

As mothers who chose to work at home it's easy for us to feel that we spend 24/7 with our children, but how much of your day is time with our children?

My animated reaction...

I fondly remember cartoon shorts before the feature movie when I was a girl. It was 1980, so let's not get too nostalgic and start referring to the '80s as "the good ole days, but nevertheless, I remember fondly. My parents and grandparent would often reminisce about a Mickey Mouse short or news features. After yesterday, I can't say that my children will remember that fondly.

It was one of our family's famous Date Days. One parent takes a child and goes out for uninterrupted quality time. I decided to take Daniel to "the big movies" to see Mr. Popper's Penguins." The film itself wasn't worth the $14 I spent on tickets, but this blog isn't about Mr. Popper's Penguins. It's about the cartoon before Mr. Popper's Penguins.

Picture it. I'm sitting in a theater with my 4-year-old while he stares at the big screen in amazement and wonder on his way to a massive sugar high with the tip of his nose glistening ever so with the sheen of popcorn butter. Then it happens. The lights dim and a cartoon short begins with the words, "Isn't this great?" "Yeah, makes me sad that I ever have to leave to poop again."

WHAT!?!?!? I sit horrified trying to decide how to handle this. The crude, violent short continued and I wavered between marching the both of us out of the theater and demanding my money back or sitting quietly and hoping that if I didn't make too big of a deal out of it that he may never remember it. Then, they announcer said that I could find this cartoon during Prime Time on the Cartoon Network. Ah ha! Right there is the disqualifications for it to be shown during a children's movie. NOTHING on the Cartoon Network is acceptable in my house, let alone during or after 8:00pm.

But my outrage doesn't lay with just this one short. Oh no...it is the trend of awful mini scripts written and produced for theaters. Just because it's animated doesn't make it OK! Television and movie producers...along with much of the country...have strayed from what is decent and appropriate. And I'm not just saying that in a buttoned up manner of a God-fearing, Southern mother. In the first two minutes of America's Got Talent last night, Nick Cannon said "damn". When did 'damn' stop becoming a 4-letter word? I remember getting a hand across my mouth if I ever said it way back when. Some programming is a given; Family Guy, The Simpsons, La Femme Nikita...naturally those are not appropriate for a 4-year-old. But on what planet should I pay $14 and be subject to unedited content that I am not informed of or is within the rating guidelines that have been set forth?!

From now on I'll stick with Netflix.

Join the Club

I really didn't realize that when I became a mother that I was now a member of a club. Yet since having my twins I am realizing that I am a member of an even more elite subset club....Moms Of Multiples.

Today I was out with the boys at the hospital for some simple lab work. I entered the waiting area only to have it noticed that my children were twins. The only other family in the area was chatting with the receptionist and an elderly woman regarding the multiple multiples in her family. She went on and on about her father and how he was a twin, had 2 sets of twins with 2 different women and each one of those twins had gone on to have a set, along with a cousin of hers. She herself is a twin.

I was immediately drafted into this conversation regarding multiples which detailed our children's birth weights, labor difficulty, delivery type, personalities of my children, current age, etc. This is a complete stranger! I listened politely as she proclaimed the importance of treating each child as their own person, not comparing them, and so on. I made chit chat, but was not interested in being engaged in this 30 Question moment.

What intrigued me most about her, and I will say about most people, is her complete lack of knowledge about twins. Astounding, I know, considering her birth status. So as an act of service, I want to take a moment and enlighten everyone about multiples.

1. Never ask if boy/girl twins are identical. You just look dumb. My husband never believed that I was asked this question, but after 9 years of marriage he now will tell you that people can be this dumb.

2. Twins do not "skip" a generation. Any multiple birth is a result of many factors. Fertility drug intervention, the number of previous pregnancies, maternal age, all play a role. As do the general probabilities of twins in a family.

3. Your father/brother/husband/uncle being a twin has zero bering on your fertility. Men always shoot multiples. It has nothing to do with the number of targets they have to hit. It's all up to the woman.

4. If giving gifts to same sex twins, PLEASE JUST BUY 2! Or, purchase a gift that they can play with together like walkie talkies, or a train set. You are causing undo stress on the parents.

5. There isn't a "bad one". And while we're on the topic no, I don't have a favorite. Do you? Just as my father always said "You are no different than any other siblings. You just happen to be born at the same time".

6. Finally, yes....sometimes I do dress them alike because after all of the double work (it really is at least double!) I should be able to have some fun. But I don't do it all the time. Mainly, it's to keep them easily spotted out in public, or just that I found a good deal and they wear the same size. I do need 2 of everything. (See #4)

The Economy

Since it's the big issue of the day and everyone else has commented on it and beat the poor dying horse, I'll throw my own 2 cents in.

Personally, I just don't understand. I know that it is the intent of every voter to elect officials that have our best interest at heart. That have the ideas for "change" and that would ultimately improve this country for our children. It ain't happenin'.

It really wasn't until my 30th birthday that I could mention running for public office without laughing. It can't be that hard. From the outside it actually seems like anyone with common sense could be gainfully employed as a Senator or Congressman. How difficult could it be to balance the budget? If I don't balance my budget monthly, my house is foreclosed on, my car is repossessed and I'm out on the street. Common sense, right?

I'd like to know how our public officials are better serving us with all of their Ivy League degrees. The political games, back-scratching and closed-door meetings aren't serving this country.

How difficult would it be to just look at all the programs that the US is funding and decide if they are required until we balance the budget and *gasp* possibly pay off our debts. If I don't have enough money at the end of the month, my Netflix subscription, gym membership, country club dues, etc. may need to take a back seat to my medical bills, food costs and grocery bills.

Raising taxes isn't the answer. I have a rental home I own. How awful would it be for me to say to my tenants, "I'm spending more than I make. Therefore, to pay my bills, I will increase your rent as often as I choose." ? It's irresponsible and I doubt anyone would rent my home for very long.

Where is the outcry for being fiscally responsible? Where is the rage of the American people for electing officials that finger-point, argue and play silly games of "he won't call me back!"? I'm outraged and will let more people know. I hope you do too.