What a lot of nerve!

My almost four-year-old, while totally cute and absolutely delicious most of the time, is VERY strong willed. Any time that things are not going his way, he starts completely freaking out, screaming, crying, etc. Moms, you know what I am talking about.

One day last week, we are out having lunch in a kid-friendly (of course) place. He starts freaking out because I tell him he can't sit next to me in the booth and he needs to stay where he is on the other side of the table. Every parent knows that the way to stop tantrums is to absolutely NEVER give in to them. So I begin to tell him he needs to calm down or we are going to have to leave, which only makes him cry louder and harder. I keep repeating, "You really need to calm down and stop crying." Eventually he does, and we have a fine lunch.......until:

The mom who was sitting at the booth that backed up to ours decides to tell me what a horrible mother I am! First, I want to point out that she had her back to us. During my son's tantrum, I could see her glancing over her shoulder at us. When she gets up to leave, we make eye contact. I give her the mom-solidarity smile, which she sort of returns. Then, she gets right in my face and says something along these lines:

"I have something that I really want you to consider. I live with a man whose spirit was broken as a child by his mother, and it is really hard. Don't break his spirit." I was sitting there speechless. Then she continued: "You need to work on your anger." And with that, she turned and left.

I suppose in her house the children get to do whatever they want, she doesn't care and no one ever raises their voices, but at my house IN THE REAL WORLD, things are different. I don't know, maybe she thought I beat him in the bathroom or something. I am still in shock that someone would be that bold AND so off base.

For the record, when I repeated this story to my family, my nine-year-old daughter was ready to go hunt this woman down and punch her for suggesting that I was a bad mom. "You are a great mom," she told me, which, of course, is really the only opinion that matters. But to that mom out there who just couldn't mind her own business: Thanks for your input, but you don't have any idea what kind of mom I am...my kids think I am pretty great!

Old Friends

There is nothing like your old friends. How many of us are lucky enough to still be friends with someone we grew up with? I am! My best friend from growing up is still near and dear to my heart. While we live far away and have vastly different lives, we still treasure our friendship. She's the one you did silly childhood things with, sang to Madonna, flirted with older boys, shared your dreams and your fears, used your fake id with. Unfortunately, life get the best of all of us; work, kids, errands, family, bills, stress, spouses, boyfriends, the list is endless. But when you finally connect, none of that seems to matter and everything is simple and clear. So the lesson is, don't wait so long to call or email, because nothing fixes the blues or boredom like connecting with your best friend!

The war close to home

Today as i read the morning paper, i read an article about a soldier from South Florida who died in a blast. As i read further, about his dedicated service to the U.S. Army and his family, I realized that he was the son of my accountant. Besides being shocked and feeling pain for her family, her son's wife and 2 young sons, I spoke to myself about believing that we don't belong in a war in Iraq. But then I paused. . . .

This was a man who attended a military institute and met his wife there. A man who had followed in the footsteps of his father who was also in the Military and a man who had chosen to prouldly serve in the U.S. Army since 1996. He could have chosen a different path, one with less risks, one that was more lucrative. Instead, the path he chose was to proudly serve the United States.

Personally, i oppose our prolonged presence in Iraq. Today, its not about my opinion but rather a day to honor a man who believed in our Military and dedicated his life to the military. May he rest in peace and may his life not be forgotten.

Baby G

Baby G

For those of you who know me, at this point you know I have a passion for cats! Unfortunately, while allergic to some extent, my family has had cats since I was 7. My current cat, Glamour Girl Molan was saved from a rescue center at Petsmart. She was a beautiful silver tabby sitting in her cage, head tilted, but when you want to talk to her or put your finger in the cage, she would swat at you like crazy. The volunteers tried to persuade me not to take her, at that point her name was Nirah. They told me she was strong willed, not socialized and mean. But what i saw was spunk and attitude, not unlike myself. As you can see, Glamour Girl, or Baby G as we call her, has taken over my home and my heart. She's a love bug when she wants, although she gets very fussy if you try to capture her and hold her.

Comfy

Nothing beats hanging out at home, on your sofa in comfy mode. My new favorite way to be in comfy mode is underneath a big faux animal fur blanket from Pottery Barn, you too can now have this amazing experience, cheaper than i got it i might add, just go to http://www.potterybarn.com/ and go to the throws section, Caramel is my favorite! The problem with this blankee, or more affectionately as i refer to it, the Magic Blankee, is that the minute i'm under it i fall asleep for hours at a time, which often then disturbs my nightime sleep!

And what better way to to be comfy than to indulge in new loungewear from http://www.bdazzledjewels.com/. We are full of loungewear from pj salvage and scanty and assure you, no matter which style you pick, you'll be so comfortable! Often, we run our errands in these great sets.