The Folly of Youth

Aah vacation... I love summer, when the schedule is less demanding.  One thing that is on the schedule is the Thursday blog post.  Be sure and check out what everyone else has to say, you never know you might find something you like.

Today's topic is to talk about your worst vacation.  It was my idea.  I had just gotten home from vacation and the gods of travel were angry with us.  We were met with a lot of travel difficulties.  We were really due, as generally we never have problems.  I travel across the country with three little kids, there is a lot of room for issue with that.  We have never been stranded overnight any place.  (That is not entirely true, but being stuck in Santa Barbara doesn't really count in my book, it just means more time on vacation.)

This trip, not the worst by any stretch did have us spending 6 hours in the airport delayed due to weather.  We landed in Los Angeles and were ready to drive to San Diego in the middle of rush hour.  You know in the end, it really worked out just fine.  But, after spending 6 hours in the crowded airport, with three little kids, well, it made me appreciate that I only have one bad trip experience.

Sure we have had periods of badness, like when Sam screamed in the car for 12 hours on the way to Cleveland, and then 12 hours on the way back home.  But, Sam was in his screaming period and that was sort of normal.  Yes, there have been delays, fewer than one might think given how much we travel, but there have been delays.  Kids have gotten grumpy and complained. Kids have been loud on the plane.  Seat backs have been kicked.  Kids have puked on the plane.  I have changed diapers, breastfed, and generally dealt with most everything you can imagine in the confined space of a coach airline seat.

We have annoyed people on planes so much that they have made rude comments to me.  One man had ridden in the row ahead of us on the way out to the west coast and on our way back happened to also be in front of us again.  He demanded to have his seat switched.  A young businessman who had small kids himself volunteered to make the switch.  My kids were exhausted, and they both (this was pre-Hannah) passed out as soon as the plane took off and slept the entire way.  The man who switched seats because we were so horrible ended up sitting behind a kid that screamed the whole way.  Karma is a bitch, and the young businessman very loudly told me that my kids were great and then thanked the other passenger for switching.

My worst vacation was when I decided that since my kids were not in school, I did not have a job other than taking care of them, that it would be a good idea to spend three weeks in California in the middle of winter.  Our December trip to California is not usually as relaxing as the summer trip.  I thought if I stayed on past Christmas I would be able to capture that zen of summer.  Also the weather in Connecticut in December/January is not that great.  It seemed like a really good idea at the time.

The first week was great.  We had a lot of fun.  But, the kids were small and they were on EST not PST.  So, this meant that they were getting up between 3:00 and 4:00 AM.  This would have been fine if any of us had been going to sleep at a correspondingly early time, which we weren't.  Going into week two everyone was tired.

Here is the other problem with taking little kids out of the home field.  You loose the knowledge of what to do with small kids that need to get their gross motor yayas out.  I was there with a 1 year old and a 4 year old.  They both needed to move their bodies EVERY DAY.  Yes in the beginning we went to the park, the beach, the zoo, etc.  but in Connecticut I knew what to do with the kids when the weather didn't allow for such outside activities.

This is when the badness happened.  After the first week of passableness, it started to rain.  It rained EVERY day for the next two weeks.  (Something that has never happened before and hasn't happened since.  It was Armageddon.)  It was so dreary and depressing that I looked into switching my tickets and going home.  We were stuck in Santa Barbara because the roads were closed in all directions due to mud slides. 

We did chalk in the garage, we jumped up and down the stairs.  We went to the museum to run around.  (Yes we got busted for doing it, but after awhile that isn't a deterrent.)  There were no indoor playlands, no bounce house places.  The closest Chuckie Cheese was in Ventura, and we couldn't get there because the roads were closed.

It got to the point that the kids had watched so much television and gone to the one book store with a train table that they just went outside to play in the river in front of my mother's house. (This area is generally called the street.)  We finally decided to just go to the park in the rain and mud. 

There is a saying about guests and fish, they all start to stink after three days.  Well after three weeks we were pretty stinky.  My mom and I got into arguments because both of us were ready to do something without the other one.  I was tired of not having my routine, being in my house and seeing my friends.  The kids just wanted to go home.  It was horrible.  I would sit in my chair at the kitchen table and look at my mother and think, this is the worst thing I have ever done in my life.  Why did I think that this was a good idea?

I learned a valuable lesson in travel, it is best to leave when you still want to stay.  It is better to not do everything, because then there is something to look forward to next time.  Even if there isn't a next time there is something about not doing it all that makes what you did do seem that much better.  We never go for more than 14 days now.  NEVER.

If you want to see what the other ladies have to say, you can check them out here:  Froggie, Merrylandgirl and Momarock.

Birthday Interview

Today is not really Sam's birthday, but because we were traveling on Sam's birthday I was unable to do this post.  I could not do it yesterday because it would interfer with making up my Thursday blog group post.  Ok, so with out further adieu, here is Sam's belated birthday interview.
So Mr. Lang, how was your 7th year?  Horrible.

It was, what was wrong with it?  I had to go to school.

You know know you have a lot of school ahead of you right?  No

So you are unaware of the fact that you have to go to school until you are like 25?  I am not ready to go to more school.

I am not talking about more school, just the minimum here.  You realize that right? I am not planning to do that, I am going to skip 5 years.

So what are your plans for the future?  To go to Spain.

How are you going to make that a reality if you aren't going to go to school and get a good job?  I am not even going to get a job.

You have not future plans for employment?  I do... I want to be a pilot.

Ok, but to do that you have to go to school.  No I don't.  Hmm. well, let's change the subject.  But, final word, you do have to to go to school.

So, what was the best thing that happened this year?  I had my birthday.  That is the best thing?  yes.

Did you do anything fun while you were 7?  We went to Legoland.

That sounds good, is there anything you really want to do when you are 8?  Go to Chinatown.  What do you know about Chinatown?  It is in China.


Why do you want to go to China?  So I can see pandas.  That sounds reasonable.


Anything else you want to tell our readers?  That is the rest of me.  What does that mean?  I am not talking anymore.  Especially to you.


I guess this interview is over.  I can't make this stuff up!  I am a little nervous about the whole school thing, but I think it will work out.

4th of July

I realize that it is not Thursday, but this is my post for the Thursday bloggers group.  I was on vacation, and could not get my post up on time.  I apologize if you were wondering where it was.

Ok, this week's topic is to talk about our favorite Fourth of July memory.  Not being good with decisions, and having two favorite Fourths, I thought I would talk about both.

Sam was born on July 1st, so I was still in the hospital on the 4th.  It was my last night in the hospital and Bob and I watched the fireworks from my window.  Sam probably just tried to get something to eat the whole time.  It is hard to compare the miracle of new life with some fireworks, but it was still a pretty awesome experience.  Words really can not properly discribe the experience.

My other favorite memory was last year when I took the kids to see the fireworks, live and in person.  They thought that it was the coolest thing ever.  To listen to them chatter on about the different designs and things that they saw was a lot of fun.  I remember thinking firework displays were great when I was a kid, and seeing it through their eyes brought back all the excitement of my youth.

They were excited and talking about it all the way home.  It didn't matter that we were stuck in traffic.  They were just so happy to have been able to experience the display.

Of course everyone had fun playing prior to the fireworks.  We had no electronics, only a few snacks and they survived.  We were definately under prepared for the wait.  But, it still was a good time.

I hope everyone has a safe and wonderful 4th.  If you would like to see what the other ladies have to say, check them out at Froggie, Merrylandgirl, and Momarock.

See you next week, on time! :)

Food

This is the next post in our on-going blog project.  I hope that you enjoy it and take time to check out what the other ladies have to say on the topic.  Today's topic requires us to be a restaurant critic.  As I am on vacation, I will not participating in today's post, but rather will be turning the reins over to a group of guest bloggers and food critics.

I would like to introduce H, S and M.  They have three of the most discriminating palettes in the world.  They can detect in a taco even the smallest stray shard of cabbage, as minuscule as the head of a pin.  They have under-taken the task of reviewing the chef at Mom's Place.  As all three meals are served at Mom's they will each review one meal.

Breakfast

Breakfast consists of an assortment of fresh fruits and homemade waffles, topped with Grade A light syrup fresh from Vermont (2010 vintage).  There is also the option of a melange of fresh strawberries and blueberries. Further, there is real butter, whipped to a smooth creaminess.  Whipped cream, available upon request, is not freshly whipped, but is actual cream with no artificial flavors or chemicals.

The review, by H:

The waffles were yucky, burnt and disgusting.  This was evidenced by the black things on the waffles, that had to be removed.  Further, the syrup was too sticky and too sweet.  The strawberries were fine, but the addition of blueberries was vile.  The butter was gross and the whipped cream was also unappetizing.  Why can't they just stick to the stuff in the can?  I would say that this coupled with the chef's defensiveness when I pointed out the burnt parts of the waffle, left me cold.  I can not say that I would recommend this place to my worst enemy.

Lunch

There is a buffet of quesadillas, grilled cheese sandwiches, turkey sandwiches, and macaroni and cheese.  Fresh fruits and veggies are available, all offered individually.  Nothing to is touching.  The sandwiches can be grilled in the pan or on the panini.

Review by S:

The bread for the sandwiches was limp and not really my favorite.  I would prefer a more hearty bread, such as a sourdough or Italian boule, but was offered high fiber oat bread.  The quesadillas were too cheesy and were not sliced into four pieces per tortilla.  The fruits were unappetizing and the veggies were disgusting.  There was no dip available.   After one bit of my selected meal, I had to send it back to the chef and demand a pb&j.  They were out of apricot jelly and tried to pass strawberry jelly off as a proper substitute.  I have to say I concur with H's review of this joint, not really to standard.

Dinner

A selection of tacos.  Both fish and ground beef are offered, along with a topping selection of fresh salsa, guacamole, lettuce, cheeses, chopped tomato, onion, cilantro and jalapeno.  There are crunchy shells and both flour and corn tortillas for burrito or soft tacos. 

Review by M:

While I am generally a fan of tacos, I did find these to be under-salted and I did find a piece of purple cabbage in my lettuce.  This speaks to the general disorganization and lack of cleanliness of the kitchen.  When I pointed this out to the chef, there was absolutely no recognition of the fact that this mixture of cabbage and lettuce renders the entire dish, nay, the entire meal uneatable.  Further, the guacamole, well it looks like snot, enough said.  There are also so many gross additions offered that the smells of neighboring diners' food is stomach turning. 

Chef rebuttal:  I quit.

Now see what the other ladies have to say on the topic, froggie, merrylandgirl and momarock.

Super Control

This is the next post, in what I hope to be many as part of a blog project I am doing with three other ladies. At the end of my post I will give you the links so that you can check out what they have to say on our topic. Who knows, maybe you will find something else you like.

Today's topic is what super power do you have or would you like to have? 

I personally would like to fly.  I think it would be pretty cool to just jump up and fly over all the traffic and congestion that is regular life.  Imagine feeling the air streaming along your skin.  The freedom that flying would give you.  If the kids pissed me off, I could just fly away.  If Red Heart pissed me off I could fly away from him too. 

But, the reality is that I don't really want a super power for me.  I want a super power for Mac.  I want him to have the super power of being able to control his emotions.  These emotions he feels must be much more powerful than average people emotions, because they so overwhelm and control him that he needs a super power to deal with them.

He can be happy and amazing and wonderful one second and the next second I am pulling him off his sister.  As he gets older and stronger I have to work harder to maintain my physical strength advantage. 

This is an old song that I am singing here, the fact that managing a toddler in a tweens body is difficult and causes a variety of reactions from the public.  The good and helpful and the not so good and not so helpful reactions are all part of the tapestry of my world.  But, one super power could remove that aspect of my life.  He he could only calm down enough so that we can talk to him, so that he has enough time to make a better choice, all our lives would be improved.

Since I don't know if that is really possible, I guess I will fly.  I will feel the wind against my skin and be free as a bird.  I will soar in the clouds and when anything bothers me, well, just look up.... it's a bird, it's a plane, it's supermom.

If you want to see what everyone else has to say on the topic, check out Momarock, Merrylandgirl and Froggie.

Just One Afternoon

This is the next post, in what I hope to be many as part of a blog project I am doing with three other ladies. At the end of my post I will give you the links so that you can check out what they have to say on our topic. Who knows, maybe you will find something else you like.

Today's topic, brought to you by me, is:  If you could have lunch with anyone living or dead who would you choose and why.  I may have said dinner in the original question, but you get the idea.

Anyone living or dead.  I know who I would choose, but first I want to talk about who I did not choose.  I did not choose some of the knitting greats like Cookie A, Rebecca Danger, Anne Hanson, Elizabeth Zimmerman, to name a few.  I am sure the first two would like the idea that they were in company with the last two.  But, only my fellow knitters would appreciate that distinction.

There are also all sorts of amazing yarn artists, people who dye yarn and make these amazing colors.  I won't name any of them, but it would also be interesting to understand how they get their inspiration and creativity.  Goodness knows I spend enough money on their end product.

Of course there are celebrities.  An afternoon with Mark Harmon.  sigh.  I will bask in the joy of that idea for awhile.  There are other celebs it would be fun to talk to, like LL Cool J.  I love how believable he is as a cop and he is freakin' LL Cool J.  That is sort of a testiment to his acting ability.

What about all the historical figures.  Abraham Lincoln, Betsy Ross, George Washington, Benjiman Franklin... Imagine hanging out with them and just shooting the shit.  That would be so awesome.

But, none of these people even make the cut.  It isn't even a consideration.  I have absolutely no doubt that my choice would be the right one.  I know no Mark.  The person I would want to spend the afternoon with would be my Dad.  I miss him so much.  I would want to tell him what I have been up to, but mostly, I would want him to meet my kids.  He never got to know Mac and died before Sam and Hannah came along.  I think he would love to see them.  Just the chance to get one more piece of advice, to have him remind me that I never had it so good, would be worth passing over all the other amazing people that exist in this world.

The last time I talked to him we picked out a brief case for Bob.  That brief case is old and has been replaced with the exact same one.  My Dad knew what the right thing was, about most everything. 

I would love to feel his prickly face against mine when he gave me a kiss on my check.  I would love for him to give my kids peanuts and make popcorn for them.  To teach them about wood working and gardening.  They missed out on all the great things about my Dad. 

We probably really couldn't smash it all into an afternoon, but it would be worth trying.  Yes, I would give up an afternoon with Mark.

Curious about who everyone else wants to hang with?  Check them out at Froggie, Momarock, and Merrylandgirl.

Me on TV

This is the next post, in what I hope to be many as part of a blog project I am doing with three other ladies. At the end of my post I will give you the links so that you can check out what they have to say on our topic. Who knows, maybe you will find something else you like.


This week's question: What TV show, movie or book is most similar to your life? 

I have thought about this all week.  I have even had stress dreams about not being able to answer the question.  I tried a lot of of ideas on.  The only way for you to appreciate my answer is to enter the dressing room with me.  Don't worry you won't have to see me in my undies.  This is a G rated post.

I thought about Leave It To Beaver.  June was a stay at home mother, I am a stay at home mother.  Her kids do things that aren't always right, my kids do things that aren't always right.  June wears purls and never yells, just like me right?  RIGHT?  The situation is always resolved before Ward gets home and everyone always laughs around the dinner table.  Just like at our house right??  RIGHT??  I know, this show doesn't really fit.  I wish it did, but it just doesn't.  Let's put that on one the reject pile.

How about Modern Family.  It seems like the obvious choice.  It is like that really cute black wrap dress, that looks fabulous on but someone thought it would be a good idea to put a massive embellishment right in the middle of my stomach.  While is seems like a good idea on paper, the reality is not quite so great.  I just don't see myself in any of the people on that show.   I am not a gay male, I am not the young hot wife with the old husband and I am not Claire.  I get overwhelmed like she does, but other than that, I don't think I am crazy like she is.   If you disagree, just keep your mouth shut.

Parenthood, is another promising choice.  I struggle with a child that is different.  Our family doesn't always understand the issues we deal with as it relates to Mac.  I am overwhelmingly appreciative of the way they depict aspergers on that program.  But, that still doesn't ring true as a depiction of my life.  Perhaps I am taking the whole idea of describes my life too seriously, I don't know, but I do know that I have a pile of rejected ideas.

There are days when it seems like Animal House would be the perfect choice.  It is always a little out of control around here.  The inmates are often running the asylum.  Taxi or Cash Cab, not so much for the topic of the shows, but the shear fact that I drive people all over town, in a mini-van like in Cash Cab.  Perhaps Soccer Moms Gone Wild, or The Preschooler That Took Over Chicago? 

There isn't a television show or movie that is even close to my life.  People don't want to watch a show about an overwhelmed, under paid, stressed out Mommy with pointy sticks in her hands.  Or maybe they do, John and Kate Plus 8 was a pretty big success.  Hey, producers of the world, come and film me, I have some great potential here.

Want to see what the other ladies have to say on the topic?  Check out Froggie, Momarock and Merrylandgirl.