gratitude, mommyhood

Quote of the Day

Happy Memorial Day Everyone! Our family spent the day at a local festival. It was very fun, it rained a little and because we are in Florida, it was HOT. Hope you all enjoyed your long weekend. And don’t forget to hug and thank those service members in your life. We owe them a huge debt of gratitude.

Since it is a holiday I’m taking a day off (sort of) and instead of writing a post, I wanted to share this quote from Oprah. It is a reminder that what we do as mothers and caretakers everyday is valuable. Even on the days when it doesn’t feel that way.

“We should no longer allow a mother to be defined as ‘just a mom’. It is on her back that great nations are built. We should no longer allow any woman’s voice to be drowned out or disregarded. As we affirm other women, and we teach our sons, husbands and friends to hold them in the highest regard, we honor both the mothers whose shoulders we’ve stood on and the daughters who will one day stand tall on ours.”

Now, go hug your kids.

gratitude, happiness, marital blissishness

‘Ever Thine

I am a huge fan of Sex and the City. I have waited patiently for almost a year for the release of the second film in the SATC franchise. Of course by no control of my own, the premiere date landed on the night before little T.Puzzle’s eye exam under anesthesia. To remedy this unfortunate coincidence, I arranged for our babysitter to come on the Sunday morning following the eye exam so Mad Dog could take me to see it.

This is why I love my husband. Not only does he accompany me to my crazy ‘chick flicks’, he does it with such an air of relaxed confidence that no one would dare question why he is there. He doesn’t care what anyone thinks. He doesn’t care that the reviews of SATC2 have been less than flattering, that the audience was made up of 90% women or that the movie (in his perspective) was a long, drawn-out spectacle lasting well over two hours.

All he cares about is me.

I’m no Carrie Bradshaw with a fancy Manhattan apartment filled with endless designer clothes and shoes, but I am perhaps one of the luckiest ladies on this planet to be married to someone like Mad Dog.

‘ever thine.
‘ever mine.
‘ever ours*

Love you, Mad Dog!

*(poem excerpt by Beethoven to his immortal beloved also quoted in the SATC movies by Carrie and Big)

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children, gratitude, mommyhood, Uncategorized

Hey, Gorgeous!

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone (okay, more like Happy Thanksgiving All Twelve of My Loyal Readers!).

T.Puzzle woke up with a little sniffle and a sneeze. In good German form I said, “Gesunheidt!” (That’s a shout out to my Mom’s heritage).

“Thank you, Mommy,” T.Puzzle replies.

Full Speed throws in his two cents. “T.Puzzle, when Mommy blesses you, you should say, ‘Thanks, gorgeous’!”

“What did you say, Full Speed?” I ask.

“Thanks, gorgeous!”

“Where did you hear that from?” I wonder. Inside I’m secretly smiling. I know that in a ponytail and sweats I am far from gorgeous. Tired maybe, gorgeous no. I love that in the eyes of my five year old a Mom looks gorgeous no matter what.

“I don’t know, I guess I just made it up,” is his practical reply.

Today I am thankful for a son who thinks I’m ‘gorgeous’ and am hoping my readers are spending time with people who think the same of them.

Happy Thanksgiving, Gorgeous!

children, gratitude, loss of parent, self-discovery, self-image/self-acceptance

Zits Happen

I have a bone to pick with my beloved ‘People’ magazine. This week’s issue has an article highlighting Demi Moore and her uncanny ability to seemingly be aging in reverse. Don’t misunderstand me. I think she is an example of as you uncover the truth of yourself, you shine internally and externally. I love that her husband is several years younger and I aspire to be a smidgeon of that gorgeous when I am forty-seven (hey, miracles happen, right?). The article claims she’s never had plastic surgery (okay I can buy that) and splashes her upcoming December ‘W’ magazine cover as part of their pictorial. She looks incredible and about twenty-two years old.

I’m sure in person she is quite beautiful but they clearly forgot to mention the air brushing and photo shopping that went into this magnificent photo. I suppose they aren’t totally responsible for feeding into a hard-pressed quest for perfection. I mean it is the nature of the celebrity, youth-obsessed, cultural beast. If I ever have the chance to get on the cover of a magazine (so likely, I know), I say photo-shop away. I’m only saying this because on my recent family portrait sitting, our photographer photo-corrected one picture of me so I could see if I liked it (yes, sir, may I have another!). I looked at least five (maybe ten) years younger (he calls it digital Botox) and it appeared as if my face hadn’t seen the likes of a zit in twenty years (which is not the case because I grew a new one yesterday, last week and the week before that). All I’m saying is I want to look the best I possibly can for whatever age I am and apparently, air brushing can make that all possible. I just wish magazines would attempt to bring some realism into their photos. Aging can be beautiful. It brings wisdom, inner strength and experience. Let’s try our best to embrace it, one tired Mommy at a time.

Okay, I just stepped down (you know, off my soapbox and all). Now, back to my family portrait. Mad Dog and I made it into the studio to pick out our favorites pa183403(with two adorable boys that pretty much encompasses every, single photo)pa183383. The photographer pulled the best of the best and set it to music. He had it projected on to a huge wall and it was everything I could do to not break down and start weeping uncontrollably. Why? Because I love my three boys more than anything else on earth and when you feel a love like that, you gasp as it takes your breath away.

I also was overwhelmed with the knowledge in my heart that my Mom wouldn’t be sharing in these photos at all. I didn’t have to order her a single one (normally, I ordered her just as much as I ordered myself). This made me infinitely sad.

I was an emotional wreck by the time our photo choosing was complete. I felt I had run through a rainbow of feelings and it was quite stressful. So much in fact, I think I feel another zit coming on.