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Activities Family & Friends Mothering Parenting Ryan

Ryan’s First Musical/Play

If you have been reading my blog for awhile, you know that Ryan loves “The Music Man.”  Here is a previous post explaining how he came to love this movie so much.

I have been trying to find a theater in our area that would be presenting “The Music Man,” for a while now.  We discovered a dinner theater about half an hour away which was finally showing this musical.

So today Ryan, his Nana (my mom), Uncle Jeff, and Aunt Mara escorted Mr. Ryan to his first play/musical performance. 

Ryan was SO excited all week for this.  Today when he woke up he said with a big smile on his face, “Today we get to go see Music Man Mommy!”

I wasn’t quite sure how he would do- if he would get bored, or fidget, or just not get the whole play concept.  But, I could not have been more pleased.  He was just perfect.  He ate his lunch, using the best manners I have ever seen, and his eyes never left the stage for the entire performance.  He was enthralled with it all. 

He was such a little gentleman- it was really fun to see him be a big, grown up boy.  During the intermission, I took him to the restroom, and on the way out, he held the door open for all the ladies entering and exiting. 

While the performers were serving dessert, he said a line in the play, “Ya wild kid-ya!”  I saw a few of the performers laugh when they heard him say that- he mimicked the line very well.

Here is a picture of Ryan “reading” the program before it started:

We had a great time, and it was really nice my mom, brother and sister could come with us.  I know Ryan will always remember the first time he got to see “The Music Man” in person.  As his mother, I will too, but more that that- I will remember this as the first really grown-up event Ryan went to as a big boy.  

Now he can go back to just being a little boy- as great as today was, I don’t think I’m ready for him to act so grown-up every day- not yet.

Categories
Household Me

Mama vs. the Yellow Jackets- Part I

(Note: I would have loved to added some pictures to this post, but after reading this I hope you will understand why I don’t want pictures of them on my blog.  🙂 )

The last few weeks I have noticed a lot of yellow jackets buzzing around our yard- especially by our gate- right where the boys like to play construction.

I knew I should have hung up the yellow jacket traps that we have this spring, to catch the queens, but it seemed to slip my mind. Now we are paying the price.  Yellow jackets are scavengers and fly close to the ground, looking for food.  They can also be aggressive, and unlike honey bees who only sting when they feel very threatened and die, yellow jackets can sting multiple times and they live.  That doesn’t work when you have two little boys, who aren’t scavengers, but do like to sit down on the ground when they are playing.

Last week while hanging up laundry on my clothesline, I noticed tons of yellow jackets flying into a small hole near the fence.  Yellow jackets build their nests underground.  Evidently we have a nest under there.  We bought some yellow jacket killer spray (usually I am not a big fan of insect sprays, but…) and according to the directions, we were to wait until it was dusk or dark, when the yellow jackets are less active, and then point the can nozzle into the hole, and spray away.  The directions said the spray was powerful enough to kill any other yellow jackets that were away from the nest, but who would return.  Then it said to wait 24 hours, and then you could safely remove the nest.

After spraying the nest, I didn’t see any yellow jackets for the next few days.  Yay- problem solved!  So yesterday in a moment of genius stupidity, I decided after lunch to go remove the nest…just like the directions on the can said.  Nevermind it was the heat of day, when yellow jackets are the most active, and I was in a tank top and shorts. 

I started digging with the shovel and didn’t see anything.  I wasn’t exactly sure what I was looking for- I suppose I thought I would see something that looked like a wasp’s nest.  All of a sudden I hit yellow jacket oil!  A swarm of them came up from the ground, and started flying right at me.  I did the only thing I could do- I screamed, batted them away with shovel, and ran my a** back to the house.  

Fortunately I did not get stung, but I was freaked out for hours.  I watched safety from the window, and cursed out the company that put those idiotic directions on their can of yellow jacket spray.  I saw the swarm eventually settle back into their nest, after they figured out the dumb lady with the shovel was gone.    Round 2- yellow jackets. 

I called Joe, and interrupted the class he was teaching and told him I needed him to bring home ammunition- Raid yellow jacket spray (the best I am told) and several more of the Rescue yellow jacket traps.  Spare no expense, I told him-this was war. 

Like any good general preparing to launch a battle,  I read up on yellow jackets on the Internet, and to my horror discovered they can have very complex and big nests underground.  Some can be several, several feet.  One picture I saw the nest was over six feet long.  It also said if the queens don’t die, and the nests aren’t destroyed, the pregnant ones stay dormant for the winter and can survive the cold winters, to emerge in the same nest year, after year, expanding the nest.

We have always had yellow jackets- a few years ago Joe got stung horribly by several yellowjackets in the front yard while mowing the lawn.  This was about six feet away from where I sprayed, so I just know, we probably have one of those huge six feet nests underground. 

Later in the day, my dad stopped by and I told him what was happening. We went back outside, and from a safe distance saw yellow jackets again, going in and out of their nest now, in two different spots, plus we saw countless ones flying by our big tree in the front yard, where Joe had gotten stung. 

We observed the enemy and formulated a plan- Clearly, I had underestimated the yellow jackets.  This was going to be much harder and more complicated than just spraying yellow jacket killer spray in one of the many entrances to their nest…

Stay tuned for Part II

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Giveaways/Contests

KIWI Magazine Winner

As always, thanks to everyone who entered this terrific giveaway.  Remember, you can always check out KIWI’s site, and subscribe to their newsletters too, and since there can only be one winner, you could get yourself a subscription while you are there-come on, you know you want to!

The winner of the year’s subscription as determined by random.org is:

INSTA-MOM!

Thanks again for all the entries, and be sure to stop by A Mama’s Blog next week for a fabulous, fabulous giveaway during Bloggy Carnival. 🙂

Categories
Mothering Parenting

She Has Let Herself Go

CrossPosted on BlogHer

I admit it- I like to scan People.com a few times a week.  It requires no thought, and I like looking at the pictures of the latest styles- styles I will not have the good fortune to wear, but I like to look at them anyway.

Last week I saw this article on Eva Longoria’s new look.  Evidently she has gained some weight and has cut her hair to play her character on Desperate Housewives.  I haven’t watched DH in a few years, and it sounds like her character, Gabby, has kids now.

Longoria’s rep made this comment to People on her client’s new look, “She’s making herself look like that as her character has let herself go. Gabrielle has gained weight and cut her hair,” Liza Anderson tells PEOPLE of Longoria Parker’s character. “She’s a worn out mother with two kids.”

Anderson continues on Longoria’s weight gain, “And even that was not enough. She’s also wearing butt pads and a stomach pad to play the part.”

Is this what TV and networks think of mothers now?  That we let ourselves go, and the only way to accurately portray this, is to have a petite actress who is now playing a mom, don butt pads and a stomach pad to look like a tired, worn out, mother who has let herself go?

I don’t argue that a lot of mothers are tired and worn out- show me a mother who isn’t and I will say she is probably in the minority.  But the assumption that a mother may have put on weight, because she has automatically has let herself go is insulting, and degrading.  Maybe the mother just doesn’t have time to work out like she used to.  Maybe it is taking longer for her to lose baby weight- there could be plenty of reasons why a mother has gained weight.

I also take exception to the whole “letting yourself go” concept.  Women are held to such a high standard, and are under such a microscope at times when they become mothers.  If they don’t look adorable, cute, and look like they have gained enough weight during pregnancy, then they are looked down on because certainly they are not eating for two and risking their baby’s health.  Yet, women that don’t immediately shed their baby weight in less than a month, are viewed as “letting themselves go.”  God forbid if a mother decides to simplify her life a bit and get her hair cut short too!

Most mothers I know, would love to go to the gym and work out.  Reality is they can’t- they are taking care of their children and are working.  Most mothers do have a period where they have to adjust to being a mother, and figure out how to balance it all again in time.  

But in the meantime why the double standard?  Why single out mothers like this?  No one says a fit-in shape, and stylish mother is a bad mother, because if she has time to work out, then she isn’t taking care of her kids.  Why do we have to assume that a mother who has less than a perfect body “let herself go?”

What do you think- is this fair to put women into this category, or is this just a situation a lot of women are in that Desperate Houswives is trying to portray?

Categories
Activities Fun Stuff Me

My Second Life-Knife Throwing-Party Weekend

Cross Posted at BlogHer

I really wanted to attend the annual BlogHer conference in San Francisco this weekend, but I thought we would be moving, so I didn’t sign up to go.  I did however, register to attend in Second Life.  You may have even noticed the banner ad that I have in the right sidebar on my blog.

I have never been in Second Life (SL), and prior to this, had only read an article about it.  I only joined, so I could hear the speakers that were speaking at BlogHer live, like Lisa Stone.  I joined Thursday night, and after figuring out how to work my avatar, I was able to log in to the conference on Friday. It was wonderful to be able to hear the speakers, and even attend some of the SL sessions they had exclusively for SL attendees. 

I received the invitations and notifications BlogHer in SL events, and on Friday night there was a virtual party.  So I signed in and went.  It was a little funky getting my avatar to dance, but thanks to the BlogHer helper in Second Life, Gidge,  I eventually got grooving.  Here is a picture of my Second Life avatar dancing on Friday night (I’m in the black top, purple skirt, and black boots-& you can click on the pictures to see them larger):

   (Bonus: behind me in the purple shirt and jeans is Amy, or better known as the Crunchy Domestic Goddess)

After the BlogHer party, Gidge invited us to her Second Life house to continue the fun.  She has a beautiful house with a dance floor, pool, and BBQ.  After we danced for awhile, she invited us into her house, to the mud wresting pit, and get this- a knife throwing game.  Just like you see at the circus or magic shows. 

Amy and I were pretty fascinated by all of this, and watched the mud wrestling and a few rounds of the knife throwing.  Eventually, I decided to give the knife throwing a shot, and I have to say, I didn’t do too bad- I missed a few times, but I think I hit the balloons more than the person.  Here is a picture of me throwing knives (thanks to Amy for the picture:)

 (To the right of me in the blue dress is Gidge, and behind us is Amy)

The best part of the party this night was Amy was trying to change her clothes, and ended up in a 3-D box.  She couldn’t figure out how to get it off, so she came to the party with a box on.  It was hilarious and we all had a blast cracking jokes.  She was ‘hip to be square!’  You can read Amy’s version of the party, as well as see pictures of her in her box here. 

There was another party on Saturday night, and after having so much fun the night before, I just had to check it out again.  Besides, how often does a chance like this come up?  So I created a pretty snazzy party dress with red sequenced shoes.  Gidge was the volunteer again, and she offered us a champagne flute that had stars floating out of it.  Pretty cool. 

Again, after the party we went back to Gidge’s house, and danced, and tonight I mud wrestled.  While I don’t have pictures of it, since I was wrestling, it was fun. I won the best out of three in my first match, and then I wrestled the Queen herself-Gidge.  I almost had her in one of the rounds, but she quickly overpowered me.  The best part was, I didn’t even need to take my party dress to the cleaners.  As soon as I got out of the pit, it was clean.  I wish that happened in real life.  Here is a picture of me on the dance floor at the BlogHer party, and at Gadge’s house:

           

Gidge was so nice and so hospitable.  She invited me back to her house anytime, and even allowed me to set my homebase at her house.  I met a lot of friendly people- the whole thing is kind of surreal- who would have thought you could attend parties and have a blast, over your computer?

I am greatful BlogHer made the conference available to those of us who couldn’t attend, and I know even if I was at the conference in San Francisco, I would not have been throwing knives and mud wrestling.  I wouldn’t have been able to create my own clothes either-for free.  Can’t beat that. 🙂

While I had a great time with my first Second Life BlogHer experience, I have already vowed that I am going to the conference in person next year.  I know several other friends who are planning on it too.  If it is any indication how much fun and informative BlogHer is in Second Life, I can’t wait to be there for it in real life-even if I don’t get to mud wrestle and throw knives.