A Good Girl

Lilly wrote a letter to be submitted to The Friend. I'm so delighted by what she wrote that I had to share it with you. Kelly, on the other hand, wasn't quite as pleased and thought a lot was written out of context. That's probably the part I like the best. Without further ado, here's Lilly's submission to The Friend (typed just as she wrote it):

Careful what you watch.

One time my dad put batman. It started to get violent. I told my dad to turn it of but my dad did not turn it of. So I decided to not look. I felt good when my dad turnd it off.

age 6 1/2 NevavaDa

Lilly

{I'll clarify this much: the Batman show in question was a cartoon}

my boyfriend

I've often thought about how funny (ludicrous funny not ha ha funny) it is that children are brought to this earth and entrusted to people who have no idea what they're doing, having no qualifications, and previously to having children, didn't like them all that much to begin with. You know, people like me. I get so down in the dumps about this whole parenting thing sometimes because it's so hard and I feel so selfish and I feel like my kids are taking and taking but I'm not really giving anything of substance. It's no secret that we've struggled with how to raise, discipline, monitor, set free and care for Abe. The others too, but their needs seem to have easier answers for the time being. But I (I'm only going to speak for myself now) can get so angry at him and so frustrated that I don't want anyone to know lest they think I'm a horrible mother because I, in those moments, know that I am. And yet, I feel so protective of Abe when others get mad at him. I about told off the 7 year old neighbor girl who was getting after him. So, with these things in mind, I'm constantly wondering what to do. How do I love him enough? How do I get him to mind me? How do I discipline him? I'm having a hard time getting the answers but today I felt inspired.

It was another rushed morning to get the kids out of the house to school and Kelly off to work and we're trying out the whole thing of having family prayer. Abe didn't sit still and we're a bit too quick to get frustrated with him. By the time he got in the car, his head was down and he was sad. My heart about broke when I saw how he was feeling. I gave him as many kisses as I could and told him how much I love him. When I dropped him off at school, a thought came to me to take him on a date. I kept thinking, does he know he's special? He needs to know that he's special. So after school, Abe, Oliver (who miraculously was so well behaved and quiet and stayed in his car seat the entire time), and I went to lunch. Where else but Cafe Rio.

While in the car we listened to whatever Abe wanted. We talked about preschool and for the first time in a long time he actually told me about what he did at school, the snack he ate, the games he played.

Then we went to the park he wanted to go to and played and played.

And swung really high.

And tried to take cute pictures of us together.

It was so fun to be with him and really focus on him without the cell phone and baby interruptions. He's such a fantastic little boy with so much personality and charm and I think we both needed to have such a good time together today.

Here are some funny things Abe's said recently:

During a prayer- "Thankful that Oliver's my child. Thankful that he loves me a lot."

Q: I think you're really special and wonderful.

A: Thanks. I think you're special and...stinkin'.

Today as we drove home from the park we took a different route and Abe had this to say:

"Seriously, this is home? Seriously?"

My 200th Post!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

For this momentous occasion of my 200th post, I shall share with you a walk down Oliver's hair history lane, er...whatever. Most weren't fans of his comb over, but I was. Look at all you could do with it.

Beginning with a great look that could either be dracula inspired or that guy from Sha Na Na.

Next we have the in-the-right-light-I-look-bald style. With that face he could get away with anything!

Don't forget the ever popular and way over used faux hawk
(with a slight lean).


And then here's my favorite. All I need is some hair pointing straight up in the back and I've got Alfalfa from The Little Rascals. With the comb over he was changeable, interesting, and spontaneous (especially when it was windy).




But I listened to others, a mistake I'll never make again, and I cut it off. Fortunately, he's still cute...even without his pizzaz

Question

It's almost birthday time again and I tend to make goals, process my life's path and get a little rebelious as the occassion approaches. I'm thinking about piercing my nose. Just a small little thing that would most likely look like a golden boogie. Is it too 1990's? Could I still go to church? If I don't wear earrings when I have a nose ring does it still count as only one set of piercings? Your thoughts?

p.s. our literary society is meeting april 13th same time and place. i'm sure everyone noticed the weirdness last time, so i was hoping that we could all come prepared with either a question to ask, something to discuss, or something you liked/didn't like about the book. should i make this a new rule? maybe i'll have an entrance exam before i let you inside. anyway, i'm looking forward to discussing our book. I will also no longer be posting reminders on my blog cause i feel the grandparents might be annoyed when there's no talk of grandkids and just a lousy book club reminder. if there's anyone who wants to come and hasn't yet (i'm sure there are many) just let me know and i'll fill you in. one more thing, there will be some changes coming up to the reading list so stay tuned.

On the verge

If I wasn't such a goody goody (and by that I mean too scared to get in trouble if I did something wrong), I would have taken up drinking mass amounts of alcohol years ago. Just a litttle something to numb the pain. And then I remember that mothers of teenagers say that these are the easy years. Maybe I'll save my first serious act of rebellion for a few years from now when Lilly wants to date a boy and Abe goes to juvy. Surely then I wouldn't be criticized for living in a drunken stupor. I tell Kelly I'm just going to head straight for the hard stuff, like vodka or whiskey in a pretty flask. I think he thinks I'd stick with fruity wine coolers. I'm really so much cooler than that, though.

And yet the funny part of it all is that really my bad days just stem from myself and my distractions and not from my children. Sure, Abe spit in my face today at Marshalls and Lilly ignores me EVERY time I ask her to do something, but generally speaking they're good kids. Oliver's a real gem and I'm for sure gonna keep him. He likes to shower me with open mouth kisses ALL DAY LONG. I often forget, though, that in the grand scheme of things, it's really for a short time that I can't always go shopping when I want, or go to the grocery store by myself, or even visit the bathroom in peace and quiet. Nevertheless, it's hard. Today's been hard. Yesterday's been hard. We all have days like that, though, and I don't see any of you boozing it up. If you start, though, give me a call.

(Please don't tell my bishop cause I'm not really being serious...Or am I?)

reminder

literary society meeting tomorrow night at 6:30. my house. be there or be square.

recipe exchange

remember how i said i was going to detox from sugar? i haven't been successful yet, but i do have a fabulous and super healthy recipe to share and even Kelly really liked it. If you don't like it, though, don't blame me.

one-pot chicken and brown rice

from Everyday Food

1 tbsp. olive oil

4 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs (I used skinless and boneless chicken thighs)

coarse salt and ground pepper

1 large yellow onion, cut into 8 wedges

2 celery stalks, cut inot 1 1/2-inch pieces

2 medium carrots, cut into 1 1/2-inch pieces

1 bay leaf

1 cup brown rice

1. In a large Dutch oven or heavy pot, heat oil over medium-high heat. Season chicken with salt and pepper and place, skin side down, in pot. Cook until golden brown on both sides, 10 to 12 minutes total. Pour off all but 1 tbsp. fat from pot, add onion and celery. Reduce heat to low, cover, and cook 20 minutes.

2. Add carrots, bay leaf, and 1 3/4 cups water; stir in rice and season with salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low. Cover and cook until rice absorbs almost all the liquid, 40 to 45 minutes. Let stand, covered, for 10 minutes before serving.

per serving: 372 cal; 13.9 g fat; 18.3 g protein; 42.6 g carb; 4.6 g fiber