Am I the Only One????

I CAN'T be!
I mean, if you go into a store browsing cards, and come upon one bearing a photo of a little girl in a princess costume with a 'growl' on her face (similar to above) that reads like this:
"I CAN'T go into the store because it's Tuesday and I have a SCRATCH on my arm!" It can only mean this is more common than it seems, right??? (RIGHT?! Someone? Anyone?)
When opened, the interior finishes the thought with a wish for a 'relatively drama-free day' to the recipient. HEY! I'll take it - even if I bought it for MYSELF.

I'm not exaggerating when I share that Myla nearly quoted the card the very next day, as we were making our way into a store, by blurting out, "But I CAN'T go inside because my leg hurts and I need SUNGLASSES!" I looked at Joel like, "See?" We both laughed at the time - because the timing was truly uncanny. But in everyday life - it's no laughing matter for the 24-hour-a-day mom! We moms can only handle so much drama before our brains melt... And mine is again, on the verge of just that. Things are growing mushy up there these days~


I tried to explain to Joel that it's not so much that I need to get away from the girls... It's just that I need a few moments (okay, many more moments) of quiet... calm... the ability to finish a thought... an opp to pee all by myself (another funny card, mind you!)... simply - to not have the demands of constant supervision, refereeing, begging kids to eat & sleep, and the general racket & chaos that comes with having 2 kids under the age of 4 in the same house with you. If you're not careful - it can consume you. I don't know how some people make themselves go 'numb' enough to deal... (Though most tips from friends included alcohol!) I also don't really know how to 'train' Myla not to be so damn dramatic about everything. 


Tonight - when I handed her multiple consequences following multiple misdemeanors on her part - she exclaimed, "You're driving me crazy!" UHUH! Sorry honey - other way around. I guess there's another thing I should be more careful about discussing within earshot. But I think sometimes they actually NEED to really understand that they are misbehaving, and you can show it through your disappointment. There's no reason to hide your discontentment with naughty behavior. I can recall when I was a kid, one of my major motivators in generally being good/ usually listening to my parents was that I didn't want to disappoint them. If they don't really feel that their actions affect anyone - what makes them want to discontinue them?? Just like you can't let them out of their consequences - and still teach them that they will have to deal with the outcome of their choices.


She did later feel bad, and apologize - but I think it was a big disappointment for her, when she realized that while I welcomed her apology and reassured her lovingly - it didn't mean she was allowed to get out of her consequences. I don't want this night to unfold again any time soon... (make that - ever). 


So - blogging it here... in search of someone who can confirm that I'm not the only one living in chaos and drama at so many consistent intervals?? - Hello?? Somebody?? (I'm only hearing my own echo... Damn!) Also trying to get it off my chest. There. That's better. Repeat this mantra with me now, "Drama-Free is the Life for Me!" (I'm a member of this page on facebook!) ;)


Ciao fo now!


TIP: If they sense weakness, they will play that key over and over and over and over.... Discipline must be consistent and strong. Not easy - but worth it. 
A Quote: “To see your drama clearly is to be liberated from it.” ~Ken S. Keyes jr. 
Bonus Quote: “What allows us, as human beings, to psychologically survive life on earth, with all of its pain, drama, and challenges, is a sense of purpose and meaning” ~Barbara De Angelis
WHIDFML: Totally vegged-out tonight once I got the girls into bed (early!!)... Watched the season premier of Master Chef. I needed to just stop my brain from spinning for a while. Seemed to help with that numbness I was needing ;)

Fellow Gluten-Free State-Fair-Goers... Rejoice!

JUST have to share my HUGE JOY!!! Even more to look forward to at that Great MN Get-Together! Yes, Yes, YES!!!!!!!!!!!!

Here is the State Fair's 2010 list of Gluten Free foods: GF Vendor List MN State Fair 2010 

Here are the people you can thank for this list (find them in the HealthFair11bldg at the fair!): Northland Celiacs

Here is the blogger I must thank for having found this! The Savvy Celiac

Now, all I have to do is control myself when the rest of the fam is devouring those corn dogs~ [sheepish grin] This year: Joel and I take the girls... and on another occasion, we go sans-children! Score: Best of both worlds!

TIP: When one door closes, seek the open doors you hadn't noticed before :)

A QUOTE: "One of the very nicest things about life is the way we must regularly stop whatever it is we are doing and devote our attention to eating."  ~Luciano Pavarotti and William Wright, Pavarotti, My Own Story

WHIDFML: Caught up with a friend over Mojitos by the creek - after a walk by the river. Cheers to that! Had a blast, Karen!!

Mommy Doesn't Like Baby-Sitting...

Laughing already? Me too! She's right... I'm not so hip on 'baby-sitting'. I love my daughters, and am glad to have the opportunity to be home with them, but I'm not supposed to feel like I'm BABY-SITTING! It's supposed to be different when it's "your own kids" - hahahaha! Yeah, anywho... I'm going on roughly a month of no 'mommy-day'; These are days that I've grown to not only appreciate, but count on... and desperately NEED. I mean, again, I adore my babes, but we need those mommy-breaks. And, when I don't get one for an extended period of time, I find myself falling into that whole 'my brain can't finish a thought again' mode. Wait... what was I just saying? Oh - right! Okay - something about my brain getting fried. Love, Love, LOVE 'em! But, need time away to refresh as well. With 2 little ones at your feet - it kind of feels a lot like, well, chaos at times!

Funny how the girl put it. Joel says, "Hey - I'm gonna head up and start some food... Can you manage this one?" (meaning Myla) I gave him the "For REALZIES?!?" look of "DUDE, I'm FRIED - and I can't get up..." Myla seemed to catch on [though she'd been overhearing my discussions with Joel about (finally) formulating that "plan-b" for when the retired grandparents become unavailable for a day off... I guess I should be more cautious about being within earshot!] She looked at me, and looked at him with a pout, saying, "Mommy doesn't like baby-sitting." We laughed! She did too - she gets that I love her with all my being, and even said she has fun when she's with me! ;) So that was reassuring. 

TIP: Just do it. [I'd have taken my sis up on her offer to help out at times like these - but she's been so busy too lately - I just couldn't bring myself to do it. I'll definitely need to give her a buzz. The girls have been talking about her a lot lately. They miss her!]

A QUOTE: "This is ridiculous. It's crazy. I feel like I'm babysitting, except I'm not getting paid." [Insert gum-chomping and eye-rolling here]  ~Stef, in The Goonies

WHIDFML: Bought & tried a gluten-free soft-baked cookie found in the natural foods section at Cub. Not many in there for the price - but it's all healthy - and considering that - they're rather good! Also picked up some Betty Crocker gf choc-chip cookie mix! Can't wait to try. If it's as good as their gf cake mix - I'll be SOOOOO happy! [I miss cookies.]

Gotta Give My Props!

Okay - I just have a freakin' LIST of great products/ tips here... This may count as one, giant TIP and WHIDFML!

Thought I had to choose between greys or tumultuous tresses... No longer! I DID find a "happy medium" product out there (somewhere in between making a mess of every shirt worn, pillow-case slept upon, or towel dried with - and the opposite extreme: harsh chemicals that make your color last longer)... It's Herbatint! Can only be found online - for approx $10/ box... PLUS $6 s&h... BUT, the bonus is that since I'm only applying streaky-low-lights, I get 2 uses out of that box! It's SO much better for the hair, FAB color, and my strands are still manageable and low-maintenance! I use 2 additionally new (and inexpensive) products to help with that trend: Garnier Fructis brand Sleek & Shine Anti-frizz serum... ($4-5/ bottle, need one to two pumps - me love you long time), AND, same brand 3-Minute Undo, Tripple Nutrition conditioning treatment ($3/ tube). *TRICK: leave a tad in the hair - don't completely rinse out. The combo works wonders when color-treating... and this new colorant is such a find!

Also recently substituted our regular Seventh Generation Dish-washing Liquid Gel with a Method brand of drop-in-style detergent. Never again! Seventh Gen works miraculously on dishes - whereas the Method brand left a film over EVERYTHING. (BTW - this film doesn't simply rinse away... must be scrubbed off.) While I'm a huge fan of Method brand for other cleaning items - this one didn't slice it for us. 


For fellow Gluten-intolerant folks out there - I found a french bread & pizza mix by Gluten Free Pantry that turned our home-made pizza into now-edible-YUM! The only prob is that I can't seem to find it anywhere locally... We found this in the grocery store up in Alexandria, MN. May need to ask my MIL to pick them up for us periodically! (Still haven't managed the google search...)
We also found there, a package of "Premium Gluten Free English Muffins" by GLUMNO. OMG - TDF! Tastes just like the "real" thing ;) Still a pending search to locate more of these as well...

While I'm at it - I might as well also throw in a BOO for soy products... It's SOOOOO frustrating to me that I had to find out about this possibility via another health-aware friend, and DIG for the information to learn that there may be cause for concern over the supposed "super-food" that's been sweeping the market. Not surprisingly, all of the 'yay-sayers' (at least in this very informative article - provided below) are somehow influenced by the financial gain to be obtained by the soy market. I have to say that I've had some really strange effects when I've consumed it - particularly when I've consumed it via multiple sources in one day. (ie: soybeans in the veggies w/ dinner, and a glass of soy milk...) We were using butter made from soy, soy milk, soy beans, soy-based ice cream, tofu etc, etc, etc... After reading this - combined with my own odd experiences and bodily reactions - I've been phasing it out of our diet. The thing that angers me, however, is that when our daughter was determined to be lactose intolerant, and I found myself pregnant again - we moved to formula - that was of course, soy-based. Thankfully, that formula didn't agree with our second daughter, and we wound up feeding her a milk-based product for the majority of her infancy. BUT ARGH! It pisses me off that our FDA will approve anything that means financial gain - even allowing false/ unconfirmed health claims to promote the product's use in nearly everything now. Thankfully - there is such thing as a soy allergy (sorry to those of you who may suffer from it!) But I think that's the only reason manufacturers are continuing to make soy-free options! See article HERE

This does lead into my final happy-point for this post: Calcium-fortified RICE DREAM! I love it. Thank you to the makers of this, as well as to another fab find: Trader Joe's Organic Whole Grain Drinks! It's just like milk - so tasty. Now that I'm mildly dairy intolerant (milk), and want to avoid the noticeable-whether-scientifically-proven-or-not-hazards of soy... along with my need to ingest whole grains that aren't gluten-laden, these are my saving grace! (I LOVE milk.)

ALSO! Since we ousted the soy ice cream, we decided to try a regular ice cream: TJ's Super Premium Ice Cream in chocolate... HOLY SHEISSE! I'm in LOVE. (Thankfully, my bod can handle 'dairy' in the form of ice cream, cheese, and other processed forms.)
I may have plugged them before - but in general - I heart Trader Joe's! They specialize in unique, hard-to-find, gourmet, and ALL-NATURAL (many, many organic options) of AFFORDABLE groceries! I don't know what I did without them. And as a Gluten-avoiding girl, it's truly amazing! Check out their list of gluten-free goods (6 pages long!!!!) TJ's Gluten-Free List

Whew! Now that I got all of that off of my chest... I feel like I've done my duty to spread the word. Kudos!

A QUOTE: "Enthusiasm is excitement with inspiration, motivation, and a pinch of creativity. "
~Bo Bennett

Fave Convo Eva

 

Yep. This pretty much registers as my favorite conversation ever... Keep in mind, Addie is 2-1/2!

Addie was Laying her head on the arm of a chair away from all of us, feeling crabby... She turns to me as I pass by her, asking, "Mommy, What you doing?"
Me: "I'm going to go do some laundry." (I kiss her cheek)
Addie: "Can you give me a kissy?" (puckering her lips)
Me: (Getting down onto the floor at her level) "I sure can." (shared kiss on the mouth)
Addie: "You sure can, Mommy... Thank you Mommy. I like when you give my (me) kissies." 
Me: "Well I love to give you kissies - and I LOVE YOU!"
Addie: "My (I) love you mommy.... K - Leave me alone now... You go out there." (pointing the way)
Me: (Laughing!) "Okay - I'll go do my laundry now..."
Addie: "O-kaaaay."


Had to blog it before I forgot the details! One of those moments I must engrave into memory forever :)

TIP: Pick up a small goodie-bag of dollar-toys ($1-bins at Target/ Dollar-Store) and a few treats to occupy the kiddos during long road-trips. Worth every buck! 

A QUOTE: God gave us memories that we might have roses in December.  ~J.M. Barrie

WHIDFML: Took a vacation in the wilderness. L.O.V.E. it!