Tomorrow is Thanksgiving! The day we give thanks for everything that we have and show our gratitude for for our homes, families, toys, and other good stuff. Unless you're my kids. They can't wait until their grandparents come because "they are going to buy me stuff." *sigh* I really don't want my kids to emulate Madonna and the whole "living in a material world" attitude, but somehow that seems to be where they firmly stand.
What to do? Granted, my children are not exactly lacking in the toy department, but we certainly don't buy them toys every time we're out, half the time, or even a quarter of the time. We value books and family time. They play independently with the same toys for hours at a time. So why, when their grandparents visit, are they obsessed with "what they brought us" rather than enjoying the fact that we get to see them for one of the few times each year?
I'm considering declaring a moratorium on gift bringing and buying when my parents and my mother-in-law visit. Part of me wants to lay down the law and say no presents unless it's a birthday or Christmas, their presence (rather than presents) should be a gift in itself. But I also don't want to be THAT daughter-in-law who doesn't allow a grandma to give presents to her grandchildren. But I also don't want them to be spoiled brats with the gimmes-gimmees.
Of course, this weekend we celebrate Dominic's birthday, so there will be presents. With a December birthday, it's too overwhelming to celebrate at the same time we see the family for Christmas. Not only would it be too many gifts at once (so that he wouldn't appreciate most of them), but his birthday would be a bit lost in the craziness that is the Ruffo-family Christmas celebration. So we celebrate at Thanksgiving instead. And of course, heaven forbid one child get presents while the other is left out. (Isn't that the point of birthdays?) That means that Francesca gets gifts at Dominic's birthday and vice versa.
Maybe I can request that the grandparents don't buy them additional stuff while they are here this weekend. I have a feeling that would be akin to asking them to cut off a limb considering the amount of Black Friday and Thanksgiving weekend shopping we are apt to do. I guess we'll wait and see what happens. Hopefully I can nip any extra random gift purchasing in the bud....
In the meantime, where am I going to put all this stuff???
Wednesday, November 26, 2008
Tuesday, November 25, 2008
The Perfect Jeans Wipe Out
It's Tuesday night and I should be preparing for all of our Thanksgiving company who will begin arriving tomorrow. There are Usborne books everywhere, presents in various states of wrapping, mail, paper work, magazines, bushels of clean laundry, and who knows what else piled around the house. But no worries, I'll blog instead!
Let me take you back two posts ago, to the saga of my perfect jeans. There they hung in my closet with the receipt shouting out the amount paid, causing guilt every time I looked at them. By last week, the 30-day return time frame had long since expired so I had to accept the fact that the jeans were indeed mine.
Last Wednesday, I was feeling pretty good - physically and mentally, which is rare these days. I went to Curves for the first time in months and then actually washed my hair AND shaved my legs during my shower. (I know, crazy!_ I decided it was time. Time to wear the jeans. I have to admit, cutting off the tags did make me wince. No turning back! I put them on and ahh..... Yes, they were worth every cent. Throw on a cute top, blow out my hair, apply some make-up, and I was looking good! I took the kids to gymnastics class, feeling like one of the more put-together moms (and sold some Usborne books while I was there, too). As a bonus, I had a parents' association meeting that night, so there was another chance to show off my new duds.
I'm the VP for the parents' association at Francesca's school, and my neighbor Tony is the Secretary this year. He was picking me up at 7:15 to carpool to the meeting. At 7:10, all hell broke loose. Tony arrived early, the dog wanted in the house, I was scrambling to grab my insultated cup full of hot tea, and Francesca was screaming yet again about something mundane. In my rush to get out the door, I missed the doorknob and failed to pull the front door closed. I reached way in to grab it, pulled it shut as I turned to go down our front steps, caught my foot on the step, and fell.
For those of you who've been to our house, you know that we have four cement steps leading from our walkway to our front door. The walkway is made of pretty, yet very hard, paving stones. I fell from the 2nd step down to the walk, landing directly on both knees.
Think about that for a moment. A forward fall from two feet up with quite a bit of momentum where you land directly on your kneecaps on frozen pavers (it was 20 degrees) while holding a cup of hot tea - luckily with a lid. It's almost a week later and my knees still ache and have to be bandaged. Yet that night, as I knealt there in excrutiating pain, the only thought racing through my head was...
I ripped my jeans.
Let me take you back two posts ago, to the saga of my perfect jeans. There they hung in my closet with the receipt shouting out the amount paid, causing guilt every time I looked at them. By last week, the 30-day return time frame had long since expired so I had to accept the fact that the jeans were indeed mine.
Last Wednesday, I was feeling pretty good - physically and mentally, which is rare these days. I went to Curves for the first time in months and then actually washed my hair AND shaved my legs during my shower. (I know, crazy!_ I decided it was time. Time to wear the jeans. I have to admit, cutting off the tags did make me wince. No turning back! I put them on and ahh..... Yes, they were worth every cent. Throw on a cute top, blow out my hair, apply some make-up, and I was looking good! I took the kids to gymnastics class, feeling like one of the more put-together moms (and sold some Usborne books while I was there, too). As a bonus, I had a parents' association meeting that night, so there was another chance to show off my new duds.
I'm the VP for the parents' association at Francesca's school, and my neighbor Tony is the Secretary this year. He was picking me up at 7:15 to carpool to the meeting. At 7:10, all hell broke loose. Tony arrived early, the dog wanted in the house, I was scrambling to grab my insultated cup full of hot tea, and Francesca was screaming yet again about something mundane. In my rush to get out the door, I missed the doorknob and failed to pull the front door closed. I reached way in to grab it, pulled it shut as I turned to go down our front steps, caught my foot on the step, and fell.
For those of you who've been to our house, you know that we have four cement steps leading from our walkway to our front door. The walkway is made of pretty, yet very hard, paving stones. I fell from the 2nd step down to the walk, landing directly on both knees.
Think about that for a moment. A forward fall from two feet up with quite a bit of momentum where you land directly on your kneecaps on frozen pavers (it was 20 degrees) while holding a cup of hot tea - luckily with a lid. It's almost a week later and my knees still ache and have to be bandaged. Yet that night, as I knealt there in excrutiating pain, the only thought racing through my head was...
I ripped my jeans.
Thursday, November 20, 2008
Tooth Update
Just realized I forgot to post a tooth update...
Short version - The dentist said we'll give Dominic's two bottom front baby teeth another 2-3 months to fall out on their own. If they don't, they'll pull them. So cross your fingers!
Short version - The dentist said we'll give Dominic's two bottom front baby teeth another 2-3 months to fall out on their own. If they don't, they'll pull them. So cross your fingers!
The Perfect Jeans
Ah, the search for the perfect jeans. If you're like me, you find this search both stressful and infuriating. Not having the perfect body type (and who does in real life?), I have issues primarily with length and the dreaded "waist gap." When I'm on a mission for jeans, I generally end up at Marshall's, where they have a wide variety of random brands with many different shapes and sizes. Armed with 20-25 pairs, I trek to the dressing room to let the fittings begin.
About three months ago, I was once again on a quest for the perfect pair of jeans. Pair 1 - nope. Pair 2 - eh. Pair 3 - for God's sake NO! Pair 4.... As I put on pair 4, it was as though the heavens opened, shining a bright ray of light down onto me - and the jeans. Waist - no gap. Butt - looking good. Length - long enough. Fit - perfect. I stepped out of the dressing room and a random woman walking by stopped to say "Oh my goodness, those jeans fit you perfectly! It's like they were made for you!"
At last, the perfect pair of jeans. Perfect perfect perfect. Until I looked at the price tag. What?!?! How could jeans be at Marshall's and still cost $100??? My eyeballs just about popped out of my head. (I've since discovered that this particular brand - something about 7? For all mankind... something or other... are typically $200 if not more and are one of those IT brands. You know, the kind you see in People magazine but usually not on real people.)
So no way. No way was I paying $100 for a pair of jeans. I hate paying close to $40 for jeans, and the price definitely has to start with a 2 or 3. $27 - no problem. $32 - not too bad. $38 - getting close to the limit. But $100??? No way. Let's move on with the fitting.
Pair 5 - I don't think so.
Pair 6 - no freaking way.
Pair 7 - not bad, but certainly not close to pair 4.
And so on.
So I did it. I bought them. Then I took them home, hung them in the closet with the receipt, had instant buyer's remorse, and vowed to return them in the next few days. The next day, life resumed its usual craziness and I promptly forgot about them and Marshall's strict 30-day return policy. So there they hung for three months.
Until yesterday....
About three months ago, I was once again on a quest for the perfect pair of jeans. Pair 1 - nope. Pair 2 - eh. Pair 3 - for God's sake NO! Pair 4.... As I put on pair 4, it was as though the heavens opened, shining a bright ray of light down onto me - and the jeans. Waist - no gap. Butt - looking good. Length - long enough. Fit - perfect. I stepped out of the dressing room and a random woman walking by stopped to say "Oh my goodness, those jeans fit you perfectly! It's like they were made for you!"
At last, the perfect pair of jeans. Perfect perfect perfect. Until I looked at the price tag. What?!?! How could jeans be at Marshall's and still cost $100??? My eyeballs just about popped out of my head. (I've since discovered that this particular brand - something about 7? For all mankind... something or other... are typically $200 if not more and are one of those IT brands. You know, the kind you see in People magazine but usually not on real people.)
So no way. No way was I paying $100 for a pair of jeans. I hate paying close to $40 for jeans, and the price definitely has to start with a 2 or 3. $27 - no problem. $32 - not too bad. $38 - getting close to the limit. But $100??? No way. Let's move on with the fitting.
Pair 5 - I don't think so.
Pair 6 - no freaking way.
Pair 7 - not bad, but certainly not close to pair 4.
And so on.
So I did it. I bought them. Then I took them home, hung them in the closet with the receipt, had instant buyer's remorse, and vowed to return them in the next few days. The next day, life resumed its usual craziness and I promptly forgot about them and Marshall's strict 30-day return policy. So there they hung for three months.
Until yesterday....
Sunday, November 9, 2008
Teeth Everywhere!
I wrote a few days ago about Dominic having one of his bottom front permanent teeth coming in behind his baby teeth. Well, this boy is tooth-alicious! He's got the second bottom front tooth coming in as well - also behind the babies. Plus there is a molar coming in way in the back on the bottom right. It's like his lower jaw is going on a crazy tooth-sprouting rampage! His front two baby teeth are a bit loose, but so far the tooth fairy has yet to visit out home.
His dentist appointment is Tuesday, so we'll find out soon if we're going to let it be or yank 'em.
His dentist appointment is Tuesday, so we'll find out soon if we're going to let it be or yank 'em.
Saturday, November 8, 2008
Weekend
S-A-T-U-R-D-A-Y Night! S-A-T-U-R-D-A-Y Night! Oh yeah, Saturday night is upon us. It is party night at the Beyer house. Man oh man, do we have an evening of excitement planned! It's going to be a night of revelry, enchantment, and fun, fun, fun until our daddy takes the T-Bird away!
Okay, not really. I have an Usborne show tonight and Chris will be home putting the kids to bed. In the meantime, there's chili bubbling on the stove while we watch Bobby Flay do a macaroni & cheese throwdown on the Food Network. Mmmmmac 'n cheese. I'd like to taste test that one. The last episode was Philly Cheesesteaks. Now that was a drool-inducing throwdown. Makes me want to roadtrip to Philly just to eat cheesesteak for every meal at every place possible.
Today started out busy but now we have a small lull until dinner. First thing this morning, we did a run to the Walmart Supercenter. It's big, new, bright, clean and CHEAP! We loaded up with canned goods, flour, soy milk, bananas, and cotton balls, then it was home to unload before heading back out to dance class. The kids were practicing their dance for The Nutcracker. This will be Francesca's first year in The Nutcracker since last year she was in the younger class until January when she moved into Dominic's class. This year, their age group are the mice, so they've been practicing their "mouse hands" and shaking presents - too cute! I'll definitely have the video camera there for the dress rehearsal to catch it all on film. Of course, who knows when or if we'd ever watch it. We still haven't checked the camera from the recital back in May that my Mom hopefully taped while we were in Alaska. I guess we weren't too broken up about missing their recital. :)
Okay, chili's ready! Check back frequently for more Beyer family ramblings!
Okay, not really. I have an Usborne show tonight and Chris will be home putting the kids to bed. In the meantime, there's chili bubbling on the stove while we watch Bobby Flay do a macaroni & cheese throwdown on the Food Network. Mmmmmac 'n cheese. I'd like to taste test that one. The last episode was Philly Cheesesteaks. Now that was a drool-inducing throwdown. Makes me want to roadtrip to Philly just to eat cheesesteak for every meal at every place possible.
Today started out busy but now we have a small lull until dinner. First thing this morning, we did a run to the Walmart Supercenter. It's big, new, bright, clean and CHEAP! We loaded up with canned goods, flour, soy milk, bananas, and cotton balls, then it was home to unload before heading back out to dance class. The kids were practicing their dance for The Nutcracker. This will be Francesca's first year in The Nutcracker since last year she was in the younger class until January when she moved into Dominic's class. This year, their age group are the mice, so they've been practicing their "mouse hands" and shaking presents - too cute! I'll definitely have the video camera there for the dress rehearsal to catch it all on film. Of course, who knows when or if we'd ever watch it. We still haven't checked the camera from the recital back in May that my Mom hopefully taped while we were in Alaska. I guess we weren't too broken up about missing their recital. :)
Okay, chili's ready! Check back frequently for more Beyer family ramblings!
Tuesday, November 4, 2008
Monday, November 3, 2008
Teeth
Oh, I forgot to mention Dominic's tooth. Last night, Chris noticed a new tooth - a grown-up tooth - starting to come in behind Dominic's lower front teeth. The problem is that he hasn't lost any baby teeth yet to make room, and this new tooth is coming in crooked and back too far. I'm going to call the dentist tomorrow and see what they say. I don't want his teeth all messed up, but I'm afraid they are going to want to pull one or two baby teeth to make room for his permanent ones. If that happens, the Tooth Fairy is going to have to do something extra special for all the "pain and suffering" caused by an unnatural tooth extraction.
There's always something...
There's always something...
Apple pie!
Another busy day here at the Beyer household. After putting Dominic on the bus this morning, Francesca and I headed to my GI doctor for another test. After drinking a not-too-gross cup of some sort of "testing fluid," I got to breathe into bags every 15 minutes for about 2 1/2 hours. In a couple of days I'll find out if I have bacteria issues in my digestive tract. The lactose test came back clear last week. So while I'm hoping they find something to fix, I am glad that I can still eat ice cream. And caramel lattes with whipped cream.
Francesca was so good the whole time - I was very proud of her. I took the portable DVD player so we watched Cinderella for the first hour and a half. Last time we took Annie, which is actually a long movie! That little redhead sings her way through well over 2 hours! It was time to go and she was still climbing up the railroad tracks on the raised drawbridge. Luckily, once Cinderella was over this morning, Francesca was happy working her way through her lunch and watching the bonus tracks. My amazing, sweet husband packed food for both of us, knowing that food keeps Francesca happy and also that I was going to be famished after fasting since dinner last night. And yes, he packed me a big piece of apple pie.
Since I didn't get a piece of pie yesterday, I feel I am well justified having eating two today. (I have yet to be able to come up with a justification for the third piece, but I'm still working on it. The day isn't over yet...)
Francesca was so good the whole time - I was very proud of her. I took the portable DVD player so we watched Cinderella for the first hour and a half. Last time we took Annie, which is actually a long movie! That little redhead sings her way through well over 2 hours! It was time to go and she was still climbing up the railroad tracks on the raised drawbridge. Luckily, once Cinderella was over this morning, Francesca was happy working her way through her lunch and watching the bonus tracks. My amazing, sweet husband packed food for both of us, knowing that food keeps Francesca happy and also that I was going to be famished after fasting since dinner last night. And yes, he packed me a big piece of apple pie.
Since I didn't get a piece of pie yesterday, I feel I am well justified having eating two today. (I have yet to be able to come up with a justification for the third piece, but I'm still working on it. The day isn't over yet...)
Sunday, November 2, 2008
Daylight Savings
Ah, the end of Daylight Savings time. As of 2 AM last night, we are all back on Eastern Standard time, which of course means that it's now dark just after 5 PM. I can already feel the seasonal it's-too-dark blues trying to creep their way in. Begone! Eh, I guess can deal with dark. Cold - that's another story. Brrrr....
I'm trying to warm up with a cup of tea. Tea with no sugar. I had no idea how gross it would be without sugar. I have a test tomorrow morning at my GI doctor, so all I was allowed to eat today was white rice, white bread, and plain chicken. I can drink water, black coffee, or tea. No sugar, dairy, whole grains, fruits or veggies.
Hello. I'm bland. Nice to meet you.
I had a home show this afternoon where the hostess is resisting the fact that it's frickin' cold and refuses to turn on the heat. I was freezing the whole time (even with a thick sweater), as were the other guests, and I still can't quite shake the chill. If only I could drink hot chocolate - that would do the trick! But instead I've got my yucky plain tea and a slice of white bread. It's torturous. Not only do we have literally a cauldron full of candy from Halloween, but there is also a homemade apple pie in the refrigerator calling to me. It knows that I want to eat it, and it's calling to me. Mocking me. It knows I can't have it, yet it keeps projecting thoughts of itself into my white-food-addled brain.
I'm packing pie to take with me tomorrow morning. As soon as the test is done, I'll make quick work of that pie. That delicous apple pie....
Fasting sucks.
I'm trying to warm up with a cup of tea. Tea with no sugar. I had no idea how gross it would be without sugar. I have a test tomorrow morning at my GI doctor, so all I was allowed to eat today was white rice, white bread, and plain chicken. I can drink water, black coffee, or tea. No sugar, dairy, whole grains, fruits or veggies.
Hello. I'm bland. Nice to meet you.
I had a home show this afternoon where the hostess is resisting the fact that it's frickin' cold and refuses to turn on the heat. I was freezing the whole time (even with a thick sweater), as were the other guests, and I still can't quite shake the chill. If only I could drink hot chocolate - that would do the trick! But instead I've got my yucky plain tea and a slice of white bread. It's torturous. Not only do we have literally a cauldron full of candy from Halloween, but there is also a homemade apple pie in the refrigerator calling to me. It knows that I want to eat it, and it's calling to me. Mocking me. It knows I can't have it, yet it keeps projecting thoughts of itself into my white-food-addled brain.
I'm packing pie to take with me tomorrow morning. As soon as the test is done, I'll make quick work of that pie. That delicous apple pie....
Fasting sucks.
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