Category Archives: Life in general

Tuesday Randoms (a.k.a., weekend recap or what we’ve been up to)

Posted on March 20, 2012 | Leave a comment

Like any good Michigander I’m hesitant to declare winter over and am trying to prepare myself for the possibility there is more snow to come, but this is proving difficult since we’ve had over a week of over 70-degree temps every day. I might have complained about humidity, I ate dinner Friday night on a deck and suffered five mosquito bites on one foot alone – this is unusual for March (understatement in the extreme there). But I’d trade mosquito bites for afternoons outside at Meijer Gardens and ice cream at Jersey Junction any day of the week!
Amazon keeps promoting free samplers and I keep downloading them and I’ve finally gotten the chance to listen to them and I’m pleasantly surprised to find there are many songs that I like – you can get good things for free!
Our weekend was packed with fun and secretly I hoped this would mean the boys would go straight to bed any one of the three nights, sadly, this did not happen. I just might consider a bungee cord for this problem of the ever-getting-out-of-bed child.
I wore a dress on Sunday – this might not seem worthy of news but I don’t really do dresses and I can honestly say I haven’t worn one in nearly 4 years. Seriously. But I wore it and liked it.
My hair has finally stopped falling out… a problem that cropped out for apparently no reason and my doctor says that since everything looks fine health-wise, it could just be a season of hair loss. I’m thankful it’s stopped (knock on a massive piece of wood) but more thankful I had a ton of hair to begin with because otherwise I’d be pretty close to bald (my husband can attest to this, he’s seen the hair in the shower drain – you’re welcome for that lovely image)
Simon was home at 4 one day last week and it was such a treat, makes me look forward to a future day when he’ll be home every evening. To celebrate, we had dinner together and then I ran Liam to his regular Wednesday night program and got to have coffee with my friend Keri, completely unhindered by children.
I’m one meeting away from being done with my board president responsibilities for a professional group I’m a part of and I’m thrilled because it means no more monthly public speaking, which for the extrovert that I am, I surprisingly hate.
We saw The Verve Pipe on Saturday and they were a surprisingly awesome family band – my kids LOVED the show (I wrote about it here for grkids.com); I was just sad they didn’t play Freshman, but it’s not really appropriate for a family concert, but still, I would have loved it.
And just for one minute, can I put on my crabby old lady hat and inquire: When did St. Patrick’s Day become an excuse for young women to dress up like leprechaun-inspired prostitutes? Maybe it was the warm weather, but driving home from the concert, we went past so many groups of dressed up people, it was strange. I’m all for drinking on St. Patrick’s Day, but an MSU t-shirt does the trick for my green clothing. /crabby old lady rant
The little boys and I got to spend a lovely evening with my friend and her kiddos and the kids played and played outside and we moms talked and talked inside – it really does take a village to make it in this world, or at least a small tribe! Though I did tell Stef that I needed to play a little more hard to get because she called at 5 to see if we wanted to come for dinner and I immediately said yes and packed the boys up in the car and we were there with salad by 5:30… offer me food and companionship on a weeknight and I’ll be there in a heartbeat!
Simon got me a wonderful “just because” gift on Sunday – a Bluray/CD combo of Adele Live at the Royal Albert Hall – LOVE (the gift and the gift-giver). I will simply accept the gift and not question what it is that he’s trying to atone for 😉
My favorite teacher of all time, Mr. Small, had a birthday yesterday – Happy Birthday, Mr. Small – it made me recall the cake we gave him when I was in 8th grade. He liked to sail and had a bald(ing) head so we asked the bakery to decorate it with a bald head popping up from the edge of the cake with a sailboat going over it – it was awesome (and we were kind of punks for doing that).
And lastly, I got to hang out with a super handsome baby boy on Friday morning and it just made my heart so happy – plus getting to see his equally lovely momma – friends are just the best!

Housekeeping

Posted on March 15, 2012 | 2 comments

The title of this post is ironic because I am so not a keeper of my house. It’s just not on my list of priorities. I’d much rather read, watch TV, spend time with people I love, blog or even do laundry. It is the way it is, but I digress…

Really I just wanted to let you know I updated some images and the “About ememby” section of the blog – I was rather remiss in making those changes since it said Liam was looking forward to turning five (um, last August) and also noted (with great chagrin) that I had typos in my about page. Whoops. I may work with a bunch of editors but I was a communications/art major so clearly you cannot learn new tricks.

Liam and I went to the dentist Tuesday, aptly named Smiley Family Dentistry (the dentist’s actual last name is Smiley – also ironic, and perfect). Anywho… we went to the dentist. Liam loves the dentist. Like feels-sorry-for-his-brother-who-didn’t-get-to-go-but-was-playing-with-friends LOVES to the dentist. I don’t hate the dentist, if anything I’m apathetic to the dentist in general and quite like our current dentist. The staff is amazing and actually remembers details about our family, I’m not sure if it’s because they review notes before we come back or if my husband’s accent burns things in people’s memories when he says them, either way, I like that personal touch.

We both got our teeth cleaned at the same time in adjacent rooms, I also like this about our dentist because how efficient is that? Though I am not sure how Liam’s hygienist was able to get his teeth checked and cleaned because the kid NEVER stopped talking. And he was cracking us all up with his little quips, observations and general enthusiasm for life. And I was again reminded that his kindergarten teacher is a saint.He gave her a very detailed recounting of how often he brushes his teeth and uses his fluoride, he asked about every instrument and piece of equipment in the room, he requested sun glasses to block the light, he talked all about his brother and how he is sometimes a pest but “that’s okay because he’s only three and learning to share,” he detailed his escapades on the Wii and talked about what he was learning at school. He also managed to get a free toothbrush for his brother, along with two reward toys for a good check up and a tattoo for Jack. Both of our hygienists commented on how sweet he was and he really is, despite the nonstop chatter. We also booked our next appointment for six months from now (which, yipes, Liam will have started back at school and will be in FIRST grade – hold me!) and added Jack to the list since it’s about time he start going to the dentist. Sometimes tells me our next visit isn’t going to be as lovely, though I’m perfectly willing to be proven wrong on that one.

Later in the day we went with some friends to Meijer Gardens and when we were getting in our car, Liam asked if he could give them the prizes he got for a good check up and I told him that it was a nice gesture but that he had earned them for a good checkup so it was okay if he wanted to keep them. He responded with, “We have more than enough toys at home, I want to give these to my friends because I love them.” My heart swelled two sizes bigger (unthwarted by Jack trying to kick me in the face as I buckled him in his car seat).

Liam may often test my patience and I might not keep a super clean house, but I have to be doing something right for him to be growing up into such a great kid. And I think maybe I have some friends who need reminding of this (not about my kids, but about their own; and not anyone specific, just in general) we are all doing great because our kids are happy so don’t worry about the rest. Don’t worry about all the things you’re not getting done, just celebrate all the things you are getting right, especially if it has to do with your kids because happy kid trumps clean house any day of the week!

2 Comments

Posted in Life in general, Parenting, who is ememby

Still more laughable search terms

Posted on March 14, 2012 | 4 comments

As I mentioned back in August and again in November, I’m highly entertained by the search terms that lead to this here bloggity blog. So I figure it’s about time for another installment of recapping the funny search terms that have brought people here to visit.I’m once again happy that top search term is actually my name, or my bloggy name: ememby. This is followed up by skidz pants, hypercolor shirts and lightning mcqueen cake which tells you that the audience I draw is in their 30s and (likely) mother to a young boy OR making some unfortunate fashion choices and is actually a highly skilled five-year-old Google user. Also popular, some variation on long third toe, long toes, freakish toes and my favorite “her second toe is longer” because I can just imagine some poor guy who has discovered this fact about the woman he’s dating and he’s hoping to find out if this is indicative of something about her or if he can be justified in breaking up with her (Dear guy: It just means she’s awesome and if you break up with her, you are a toe elitist.)

More terms and my commentary on them:

“things I like about me” | just like that, all in quotes; this makes me sad for the person who googled this because if you have to ask the internet what you like about yourself, you’re really looking in the wrong place. For the record, I think you are a great person with a sparkling personality.
family dont bother with my birthday | this is something I would never say (plus I always use apostrophes correctly); I love celebrating my birthday so: Dear family, PLEASE bother with my birthday.
how to bungee cord a baby | I DO NOT condone bungee cording your baby; I do, however, condone bungee cording a baby gate to block off your child’s bunk bed stairs or using a bungee cord to lock your chairs to your kitchen table.
things that make you go hmmm on thanksgiving | I’m guessing the list could include, why do they include all the giblets in turkeys… why don’t I use more gravy every day… how can I steal the leftover stuffing and take it home… why don’t more countries celebrate thanksgiving… is there more pecan pie… would anyone notice if I fell asleep
pap test piece of mind billboard | it is still just disturbing to me, glad I’m not the only one
appropriate everyday jewelry | because you would totally hate to be wearing inappropriate everyday jewelry
card making paper junkie | is this an upcoming episode of “My Strange Addiction”?
car seat premium economy | yes, please
did anyone else think that opaul mc cartney performance at grammy 2012 was weak | my goodness that was a wordy search term
taylor swift is an idiot | people are so judgmental; also, the person who googled that is an idiot

4 Comments

Posted in Life in general, Search Terms

Confession time…

Posted on March 13, 2012 | 4 comments

It’s that time again, time for me to confess to you all…

I already facebooked* this one: over the weekend but I finally took down the Christmas decorations (why yes it is March, why do you ask?); comments on Facebook revealed I’m not alone in the slackerdom – aside from over-achiever, Heidi, who took hers down before Christmas but who also gets a pass because she was moving back to Michigan the following week
Related confession: we don’t put up a Christmas tree, instead I decorated the windowsill about my kitchen sink with my favorite Christmas ornaments
Another related confession: along with not having a Christmas tree, I also don’t intend to dye Easter eggs with my kids; don’t worry, they get an Easter basket and we do an Easter egg hunt (of the plastic, candy-filled variety)
I love it when Liam gets stuck on something while playing the Wii because then I get to step in and help him out. I love this for two reasons: 1) I love playing the Wii and 2) Liam thinks I’m pretty cool for that one minute
I do not love helping out in Liam’s classroom (but I also don’t hate it). In theory, this should be a great, fun experience but in reality it’s like wrangling a herd of hyperactive cats. Last week I made green eggs for 24 kids, scrambling them up for four different groups of six kids – it was the fastest 60 minutes of my life. It makes me glad I’m not a teacher (mad props to those who are) and that I don’t have 24 5-to-6 year olds – can you imagine?
I also don’t love meeting with potential new clients for the first time – the introvert in me hates making small talk while the extrovert just wants to be liked… but it’s a necessary thing if I ever want to get more business. Why can’t people just give me work over the phone or by email?
Saturday I stayed in my pj/workout clothes until mid-afternoon, this is nothing new but I just thought I should tell you.
I downloaded a Rihanna song, it’s this one:

(it’s a great song, perfect for working out, but I kind of hate Rihanna)
I socialized every night this week and couldn’t be happier about that – not so much a confession, I realize… but that’s my prerogative to share it; I also love that my kids have my social butterfly tendencies (not that Simon doesn’t, I’m just much more of a joiner, planner than he is) life is just nice when you enjoy being around people.
I fear this week won’t be as exciting and I’ll feel distant from people because last week was so chock full of stuff – the downside to having fun; you can’t keep up the pace forever.
I love, love, love my boys!
When Jack gets out of bed for the tenth time in an hour, I don’t know how much I like him. I feel bad that the last thing he hears before finally going to sleep is often me yelling at him. But if he would just GO TO SLEEP, there would be no yelling.
When my nail polish grows out of gets chipped (typically on my toenails) I simply paint over it with the same (or a darker color), I never take it off and start over unless I’m getting a professional pedicure.
As mentioned, I got a shellac manicure on Friday. Friday and Sunday nights I had nightmares that my manicure peeled off – I woke up relieved to find it was perfectly in tact. I think it’s sad that my definition of nightmare includes “nail polish that doesn’t live up to expectations”

*Yes, facebooked, I’m going to pretend it’s totally a verb, along with “googled”

4 Comments

Posted in Confessions, Life in general

I want to tell you…

Posted on March 7, 2012 | 5 comments

Jill from Diaper Diaries retweeted a link to a Hallmark contest from Mary at Giving Up on Perfect yesterday and I thought, sure, I’ll leave a comment and then I thought, why not write a blog post? The prompt was to say what you need or want to tell someone. Get ready for a genuine post, not one that is snarky and addressed to the people at the gym next door or judgmental shoppers at the grocery store – I’ve thought and said plenty to them (pretty much entirely thought, aside from that one time I told off a rude old lady at the post office).

One of my resolutions in 2011 was to send real mail to people which I opted to do for my friends and family at holidays like Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day and Father’s Day. It felt so good to send those little treats to people and I’d like to continue to send real mail or notes of encouragement over email so people know I’m thinking about them or have them on my minds. But while I get my act together on that, here are a few things that should be said.

Thank you to my parents for raising me right and never once making me feel like I was an accident (because hello, I’m pretty sure I wasn’t planned when I came along 19 years later)
I want my brothers to know that despite the big gap, I so love them and appreciate their roles in my life. This also goes for my sister-in-laws because I’ve known both of them nearly as long as I’ve known my brothers.
I want my sister-in-law in Australia to know how thankful I am that she played such an important role in Simon’s life and that we appreciate beyond words everything she does; also, take it easy because she pushes herself too hard.
I want to tell my high school youth group leaders that without them I would not be the person I am today. It’s because of their love and Christian example that I ended up going to the college I did and that set the path for where my life is today.
I want to say thank you to my high school yearbook teacher for encouraging the creative side of me and introducing me to graphic design, without him I might have ended up pursuing my teenage aspirations of being a pediatrician for far longer than I should have.
I want to say to Julie that I miss you and your friendship but I understand the distance.
I want to tell my First Rooks Girls (so named because we all met living on that floor in college) that you are my heart and without your friendships I would be lost.
I want to tell my MOPS ladies that you have given me so much more than I could ever give you, making new friends as an adult is hard but you guys make it easy.
I want to tell Simon that I know our current work/life/house situation isn’t ideal but there isn’t anyone else I’d rather go through this with and in another couple of years this will all be behind us and we’ll be stronger than ever. And I still love your accent and you.
I want to tell Liam and Jack that they have made me a better person because I am their mother and that they have taught me how to love selflessly, endlessly and fiercely.
I want the future wives of my boys to know that I am praying for them and hope we have a good relationship but that they can feel free to tell me if they feel like I’ve ever over-stepped my bounds and also to please not take my sons from me (dramatic, but you know what I mean).