Sunday, November 30, 2008

Turkey for me, turkey for you...

Sunday Nov 30, 2008

Turkey for me, turkey for you...

...Let's eat the turkey in my big brown shoe!

It's just not Thanksgiving without Adam Sandler's "Thanksgiving Song"!

And truly, we have so much to be thankful for:

  • a healthy heart (Jay just got a clean bill of health from his cardiologist last Monday!)
  • a big extended family who makes me laugh
  • friends who encourage me when I'm feeling overwhelmed
  • grandparents who actually *want* to babysit at a moment's notice
  • a hubby who likes to shop for groceries
  • big win by the Wolfpack that can get us to a bowl game
  • cow lovey that is (almost) guaranteed to get Jay to sleep
  • more food than either of us could eat in a month
  • warm flannel sheets
  • a daycare where both Jay and mom/dad are happy
  • a happy, healthy kid

We had a great Turkey day at the beach, enjoying time with family and eating loads of junk. We are so blessed.

Tuesday, November 18, 2008

Running on - running on empty...

Tuesday Nov 18, 2008

Running on - running on empty...


...Running on - running blind
Running on - Running into the sun
But I'm running behind
-Jackson Browne

Yesterday morning, after arriving for work 15 mins late (yet again!) I asked my friend, "Does it ever get any better? Am I EVER going to get it together again?" She gives me a blank stare. "You know - am I ever going to have a reasonably clean house? A kitchen counter that isn't covered in mail? Get out of the house in the morning without spending 30 minutes searching for my keys?"

She looks at me in that way that only a true friend can, and gives me the only true, honest answer to that ridiculous question:
"No. It just gets worse as they get older."

Seriously? Please tell me she's wrong. When they are old enough to pick up their own toys, they will, right?! (Shut up, I can hear you laughing.) Eventually, he'll stop creating gigantic piles of laundry, right? (Who am I kidding?) I feel like I'm running up the down escalator. I have to keep going just to stay in the same place. I stop for a second to catch my breath, and suddenly I'm heading back to the bottom again.

And it's not just a clean house I'm after, though that would be nice. It's the feeling of having it under control - that I know what I'm supposed to be doing this week, I've got something in the fridge I can cook for dinner when I get home, I have clothes in the closet that fit, and I have a little free time in the evenings to enjoy my adorable kid and wonderful husband.

There are lots of other moms who really appear to have it all together, and I count my honest friend among them. These women never leave the house with their hair falling out of a ponytail and spit up stains on their shirts. They can pay their bills on time because the bills aren't buried beneath election junk mail (remember the election was 2 weeks ago!). They take the time to clip coupons - and use them. They go shopping and buy cute Christmas gifts for their kids well before December 24. And somehow, they manage to squeeze in 40 hours of work outside the house, and still get a chance to vacuum the carpet!

So, all you "Got it together" Moms ... what's your secret?!


Comments:

Jen, Jen, Jen, Jen, Even the Moms that you think have it together, don't. We hate to admit it but most of us are hanging on by a thread. Would it make you feel better to know that I was 15 minutes late for Gabe's speech appointment and "yelled" my kids into the car. Oh right, probably not because I've never pretended to have it together. Just want to let you know that you aren't alone.

Posted by TOOJ on November 18, 2008 at 08:53 PM EST #

Nope, sorry to tell you but it does just get worse the older the get. They do help pick up but more times than not, they have left for school with their dance shoes in the same place they dropped them when they came home the night before. And the laundry, the piles never go away but the bright side is that as they get older, they don't mind living out of the laundry basket because they don't want to fold the clothes. Even with almost 11 years of experience under my belt, I still don't have it together and admit I never will.

And just remember, the ones who appear to have it all together are the ones who loose it in private. To be so secure to not have to maintain that appearance is what it is all about. Hugs!!!

Posted by Marcy McWhorter on November 20, 2008 at 09:54 PM EST #

Remember the wise words of this poem from 1958. (Google it for the rest of the poem.) Keep being the wonderful mother that you are and the rest will take care of itself.
Love, Mom

Cleaning and scrubbing will wait till tomorrow,
For children grow up, as I've learned to my sorrow.
So quiet down cobwebs. Dust go to sleep.
I'm rocking my baby and babies don't keep.

Posted by Mom on November 20, 2008 at 10:57 PM EST #

Your mom has hit the nail right on the head. Your most important job is to be the best mom you can be. Having an unkept and unclean house drives me up the wall but it is far more important that I love on P and spend as much time with him as possible to soak up every second I have with him that it is to have everything neat and in perfect order. Working from home and having an awesome hubby that helps out a lot allows me to be the mom I am.

Posted by Bethany Watkins on November 21, 2008 at 02:34 PM EST #

I think you're a great mom - but from one McLean to another, PERFECTION IS BORING !!! Why DO we try to do it all? In the end, it's all about the people (family, friends). Hang in there ~ Love, AJ

Posted by AJ on November 21, 2008 at 07:44 PM EST #

LOL! Jen, I've wondered on-and-off all day about what on earth you would have written about me on your blog. I'm finally able to get on and read, and, in fact, you ARE writing about me. Except I'm not even on the escalator -- I've given up and am sitting at the bottom with my chin propped in my hands wondering if there is a secret elevator somewhere! Drop by my house any time you need to feel better about your own housekeeping skills!

Posted by Amy Galvan on November 24, 2008 at 12:02 AM EST #

Monday, November 10, 2008

This here's the story...

Monday Nov 10, 2008

This here's the story...

...of Billy Joe & Bobbi Sue
Two young lovers with nothin' better to do
-Steve Miller Band "Take the Money and Run"

Storytime in blogsville:

Once upon a time in a house on the other side of town lived a little boy named Jay. Jay was generally a good baby, but one night he decided that he didn't want to sleep. So he woke up crying about 10:00 p.m. His mommy tried everything she knew - she rocked him, she nursed him, she changed his diaper, she quietly told him how much she loved him. But he STILL didn't want to go to sleep.

Enter SuperDad, stage left.
SuperDad: Uh oh! Little Jay doesn't want to go to sleep.
AverageMom (looking exasperated): Apparently not. We've tried everything short of driving him around in the car.
SuperDad: Let me try.
AverageMom: Go ahead. Good luck with that. (rolls eyes)

AverageMom exits stage right and heads into the kitchen.
Suddenly, she hears a strange sound coming over the baby monitor. It sounds like SuperDad is talking to Baby Jay. "HA!" she thinks. We tried that talking thing, and it didn't work. But as she listens closer, she can hear that they aren't just talking. What in the world?

She peeks in to find SuperDad settled into the corner of the bed, with Baby Jay snuggled cozy in his lap. And they're reading "The Very Hungry Caterpillar."
Superdad: "But he was STILL hungry!"

And AverageMom just can't hold back the tears. "This," she thinks, "is what it's all about."
I love you, SuperDad!

Comments:

Awwwwwww... We librarians love stories like that. {Sniff, sniff}

Posted by Amy on November 11, 2008 at 01:18 PM EST #

Saturday, November 1, 2008

He did the mash...

Saturday Nov 01, 2008

He did the mash...


He did the monster mash
The monster mash
It was a graveyard smash
He did the mash
It caught on in a flash
He did the mash
He did the monster mash

Not a monster, not a basketball player, not a ghost, and definitely not a politician (though we saw all of those on the streets last night). For Halloween, Jay was a candy corn. So cute, it was all I could do not to eat him up!

It was a great first Halloween. We did what my friend D called "reverse trick-or-treating." Instead of asking for candy, we showed off our little candy corn to friends and neighbors. We loaded Jay into the stroller & walked around my folks' neighborhood where we have lots of wonderful friends. And the sidewalks were hoppin'! It was so fun with loads of costumed kids out and about - just like I remember trick-or-treating when I was a kid. It's funny to see how different trick-or-treating was for Derek. He imagined we'd load up in the car, which is an idea as foreign to me as eating Duke's mayo was. (For those who don't know, we've had an ongoing Duke's vs. Hellman's war for our entire 7 year marriage. Although I've given in, I'm still a Hellman's girl at heart.) I guess when you grow up half a mile from your next door neighbor, driving is the only efficient way to do it! But I think even he enjoyed the community feel of the neighborhood filled with kids (and a few grown ups!) laughing and walking and looking for treats.

Isn't he just adorable?


Comments:

He is so stinkin' cute, I can hardly stand it! And the Turtle on his back video made me almost wet myself, I was laughing so hard. We think our baby, (our dog) is endlessly entertaining, but she's nothing compared to your little baby. Love you guys!

Posted by Aunt Jamie on November 02, 2008 at 02:51 PM EST #

Sorry we missed you on Halloween at your parents house. It was late by the time we made it over to there to show off Scott in his Winnie the Pooh outfit. I'll have to send you a picture so you can see it!
Diane

Posted by Diane on November 02, 2008 at 03:06 PM EST #

Hi! Your Mom told me to post what I told her. I told her to tell you that surely was an adorable "little niblet"!

Posted by Lynette Rhodes on November 04, 2008 at 09:19 AM EST #

Dear Candy Corn Parents,
Thanks so much for bringing the baby candy corn to my house. If I'd known ahead of time I would have provided you with your favorite candy (besides baby Jay). He was just adorable and his smile is so darling!
I am looking forward to next year...can't wait to see what Jay will be.
Happy Halloween indeed, love, Susie

Posted by Susie Hoffman on November 06, 2008 at 01:11 AM EST