I LOVE seasonal clearance. Xmas clearance is some of my favorite.
Now, before you feel the need to point out that I'm Jewish (*gasp* OMG! I'm JEWISH? I completely forgot. Those sparkly red balls and freakish-looking inflatable santas must have induced some sort of religious convictions amnesia), I will point out that I use the clearance for non-Xmas related things. There's even a Jewish blog which held a contest last year for the best use of Xmas clearance (if any of my readers remember which site that was, please let me know and I'll add a link).
The (kosher) cake mix I bought, completely with Xmas tree confetti, was used to make Tu B'Shevat cookies. Nothing says, "Happy Birthday, trees" quite like cookies actually filled with tiny trees.
One of my favorite finds has been tree skirts. When they go to 90% off, you can get them for less than a dollar. They work fabulously for dress-up. My kids use them as hoods, capes, shawls, skirts, pretty much anything and everything.
One came in particularly handy this week.
My daughters' Girl Scout troop took part in a World Thinking Day celebration. Each troop was assigned a country. My girls' troop was given Mongolia. The traditional clothing there is fascinating, so that was their focus. They researched and made a board with a brief explanation of the clothing and some pictures. They also wanted to dress one of their dolls in their version of a del/deel/dell (I can't find any one set spelling) which are worn by both men and women.
However, nearly all of my fabric and craft supplies are packed up and in storage. After brain-storming, they brought me a felt tree skirt from their dress-up drawer. We just hot glued the doll in the thing, trimmed it to remotely resemble a dell/del/deel and then added a sash from their existing doll clothes. There was also a pair of fuzzy boots in their doll clothes. We found that in the winter, covers made of fur were added to the pointed toe boots. Woo-freaking-hoo. We noticed some of the traditional hats looked somewhat similar to berets, so they grabbed their doll's beret and we pinned a tassle on it to copy the look as best we could.
My oldest decided to wear the red wizard robes she made at camp last summer backwards and we pinned a pillow case around her waist so that it resembled a dell/del/deel. She even matched with Claudia, her doll (named after her favorite character from the Baby-Sitter's Club books. My daughter specifically asked for that doll for Chanukah because of the resemblance to Claudia).
Claudia and the fashion board.
Claudia in all her Xmas tree skirt glory
RANDOM FACT O'THE DAY: Did you know that Queen Amidala's costume in The Phantom Menace was inspired by the fancy traditional Mongolian women's dress? When searching for pictures of the traditional fancy dress, we were all shocked by how true they stayed with Padame's costume. Take a look at those two pictures from my daughters' display board.
Whoever is in charge of keeping track of geek points
had better make sure I get some for working this in.
There is very little in the world funnier than what comes out of the mouths of babes (assuming it's not Harry Potter's lego head or a purple marker). Here are a few gems from my youngest.
Today, she ate the purple marker and was covered in purple ink all over her face and hands. As I cleaned her off, I said, "Oy vey!" She then exclaimed, "Oy vey, boy!" That's my usual exclamation since it's typically her brother who elicits an, "Oy vey!" I told her, "No. This time, it's oy vey to you." So she exclaimed, "Oy vey me!"
Yesterday, while playing outside with her brother and sisters, she got distracted and had an accident. When I peeled her wet clothing off of her, I told her, "Even your socks are wet." She then said in surprise, "I peed in my dox." Maybe it was the tone of voice, but it cracked me up.
Today, we ran late when picking the big kids up from Hebrew school. I scooped her up and exclaimed, "Oh holy hell!" She then repeated me. So I told her, "You don't have to repeat that." She morphed into a mini Beavis and said, "Huh huh huh Hell."
A very dear and wise friend gave me the above advice (the zebra bit, not the blunt card) when I was still in training for some health care work I did. The gist of it is to always look for the simplest explanation first because there's a good chance that really was the answer. We saw a variety of problems including some pretty severe and complicated ones, but we needed to remember that those were rare. For the vast majority of people we worked with, the solutions were simple and basic. We needed to be aware that the troubling situations existed and required extra care, but we also needed to remember that most people would not have those complex difficulties. If it seems simple, it probably is. Treat it as such without jumping to uncalled for conclusions.
I was reminded of that advice this week.
Why would a 5-year-old child cut his things with scissors?
Some suggestions included that he was one step away from self mutilation, that he was very angry and unable to express it, he was deeply troubled, he was feeling abandoned and (as would obviously be the case with any of these) that he needed professional help.
However, all of those suggestions were way off base. The child's true motivation is actually a horse, not a zebra.
Here's a simple little story to explain.
This is the comforter that S. slit.
Here is the bed all cozy and warm covered by the comforter that S. slit.
Here is the window alongside the bed all cozy and warm covered by the comforter that S. slit.
There hang the curtains in the window alongside the bed all cozy and warm covered by the comforter that S. slit.
Here is a curtain rod threaded through HOLES THE BOY'S MOTHER CUT to hang the curtains in the window alongside the bed all cozy and warm covered by the comforter that S. slit.
Yes, ladies and gentlemen, when I sat my son down to have a heart-to-heart talk as to what his possible motivations could be, the conversation went very much like this:
Me: What were you feeling when you cut your comforter?
Him: I wasn't feeling anything.
Me: What were you thinking when you did it?
Him: I wasn't thinking anything.
Me: Were you angry or frustrated when you cut it?
Him: No.
Me: Were you feeling sad?
Him: No. (pause) Well, I guess a little sad.
Me: What made you sad?
Him: Because it looked bad and it wouldn't even hang up.
At this point, I was completely and utterly baffled.
Him: (pointing to his curtains) You cut holes in those and got them to hang up, but it didn't work for me.
(pause here for mom's "Eureka" moment)
Me: So why did you hide it from me?
Him: I didn't hide it from YOU. I hid it from ME because it doesn't look cool. It just looks broken. I don't wanna see that.
I hated Valentine's Day. As a teenager, I boycotted it. I donned all black and bitched about stupid made-up Halmark holidays.
To this day, my husband and I don't celebrate it. When it comes to companies encouraging people to spend insane amounts of money to honor a painful pagan fertility festival, I still feel as snarky as I did when I was 16.
Once I had kids, though, I found myself longing for the Valentine's Days of my youth, the ones full of glitter-covered hand-made cards and pink cupcakes with red sprinkles.
This year, our homeschool group had a Valentine's Day party with a card exchange. The kids had a blast. I had a blast. It was so much fun and helped put me in another frame of mind.
While we don't celebrate it, I still found myself missing my husband today even more than usual. That longing made me feel the first itch of pitty for myself. But how can you feel sorry for yourself when the little people in your life insist on addressing Valentine's Day cards to everyone they've ever met? Watching a little friend tote your youngest around so sweetly through nearly the entire party tugs the corners of your mouth in an upward direction. When your son demands to give his Hebrew teacher his very favorite brand new Toy Story Valentine pencil, you simply can't feel down.
I think I've found a way to reframe the day so that I can truly enjoy it. Instead of the sappy jewel-incrusted anti-single-fest Valentine's Day has been forced into, I found myself enjoying time with friends and watching my children doing the same (only their interactions contained far more screeching and hanging upside down than mine). It made me thankful for it all--my friends, my kids, my situation in life, my husband (even if he's not here), my marriage (which can survive these absences time and time again) and yes, pink cupcakes with edible heart decorations.
This showed up in my feed thanks to a friend and I had to share. We had a round of ThunderSnowSleet last week (which prompted a number of "Thunder cat" references from my friends on FB).
I strongly disagree with this woman's conclusion. Why I'm Passionate About Education. I disagree with her on both points. I do NOT believe a Classical or Christian education is the best for all or even most children.
All breastfeeding mothers should save the link to the Infant Risk Center. Despite what many doctors and pharmacists may tell you, the vast majority of medications are safe for the breastfeeding mother. Visit that link to check on the safety of a specific medication. Dr. Thomas Hale is the foremost authority on medications and breastmilk. Yes, he DOES know more than your doctor or your pharmacist.
The Lil' Vader VW ad is stirring a great discussion on gender. FTR, I believe, based on what we're shown in the commercial, that Lil' Vader is supposed to be a girl.
Now that my youngest is potty training, I can ditch the diaper bag once and for all. Now I'm on the hunt for a new handbag. While these two ad Mod Cloth are beyond my budget, I love them anyway; Traveling Translator Tote and the Traveling Translator Satchel.
I've never seen this show, but I appreciated the discussion on "The Talk" about breastfeeding laws. FTR, when my twins were in the NICU and I pumped, my pump said, "Hoover Dam."
We've had a bit of snow, so I loved these alternatives to snowmen. Thanks Ohhdeedoh. The snow melted before I could finish my snow Totoro.
I've been playing this song quite a bit lately. It reminds me so much of my husband.
"We can always look back on what we did,
always memory of you and me, baby.
Right now it's you and me forever girl.
You know we could do better than
anything that we did.
You know that you and me
we could do anything"
Why It Matters
That entry explains why it's so important to make sure kids are safe in appropriate car seats.
The guy on YouTube signing with his daughter. I love the song and their YouTube video and I love their story even more. Everyone in my house has been singing, "Home," constantly lately thanks to their viral video.
I'm not a big fan of the Keep Calm meme floating around, but this Harry Potter/library themed one is perfect. I seriously want that in poster-size so I can hang it on the wall.
We may have a meshugenah chihuhua rather than a truly dangerous dog, but I still want this sign.
I love giraffes and herd the goat rodeo, so of course I want this shirt and I want one for each of my children.
This is certainly a different approach to Facebook privacy.
On Happy Meals and marketing.
"So, if advertising to young children is inherently deceptive, and deceptive advertising is illegal under federal law and in most states, how is it even happening? And doesn't this mean that not just food, but all marketing to young children is currently illegal? I get this question a lot. The answer is yes. "
This blog entry on cruelty really got my attention. I'm often astounded by the amount of cruelty I see in comment threads. This has lead me to insist that comment threads are where common sense and humanity go to die.
The original article had the most gorgeous nursing photo (featured here as well) and this article makes fantastic points about NIP and the uproar in the original comment section (again, see my point about comment sections and humanity): Supermodel Miranda Kerr Breastfeeding Photo Haters, Read This
I must share this, if for no other reason, than the fact that it includes the phrase, "Playing nude musical chairs with Skynet." Dear Public Toilets Of the World
I love these Morfs Brand shirts, but I can make something similar for much less.
You can build your own cute miniature village. This is another link that might be useful for those snowed-in.
I'm still undecided about how to decorate once we move, but I LOVE this nursery. I'm saving it for possible inspiration for the toddler.
This blog article about the members of the Macabeats and their "Candlelight" video is funny as can be. FTR, Teddy Bear gets my vote, but I also have a soft spot for both Ginger Jews (she only mentions one, but there are actually two) and the opening Jew.
This recycled book page bird is SO cute. I want to make a bunch and hang them all over my youngest's room (and mine too).
Ever since I saw this idea, I've been looking for broken wooden puzzles to use to make room decorations.
Thanks to awesome friends, I discovered Reasoning With Vampires. If you love the English language and detest the Twilight series, you MUST read that website.
And on the topic of English, there's this. I miss Sifyl and Ollie.
My youngest loves her dolls and loves playing with doll accessories. I'm hoping we can have this doll crib made for her when we move.
I love this paper sparrow mobile and I think I can do something similar with paint samples.
And finally, there we have it. This concludes the insanely long collection of links I've collected, but forgot to share. Now they are shared and life, as I know it, can return to normal.
or just bitch and moan. Whatever works. The bitching moaning and crying never seems to, so I'm opting for just ignoring it this year (right after I finish dedicating a whole blog entry to it).
The husband was supposed to be only a few hours away for training starting just days before my birthday. He would be there for a full month, so that also would have freed him up to come to our youngest's second birthday party as well.
Well, apparently, there's a change in plans. And so I sigh and moan and hope maybe there's more to this than meets the eye (no, my husband is not a transformer), but go on the assumption that there's not and my birthday is just going to suck.
I'm the type who always gets bent out of shape about birthdays. This year, though, I don't have any plans and the more I think about it, the more I think I just don't want any. Despite that photo of Mr. Grumpypants the pissed off feline up there, I'm really not depressed. I just think it might be best to skip any celebrations.
So, I think I'm just going to pretend it doesn't exist. I won't mark it on the calendar. I took it off my Facebook profile. I'll avoid my usual birthday count downs. While I didn't plan on telling the kids, the oldest saw me type my birthdate to sign up for something the other day and she remembers it. She keeps telling ME how many days until my birthday. Gee, thanks a lot, kid.
I'm really not even feeling particularly upset. I'm just exhausted and I really can't see how we could anything to celebrate, so I'll try a new approach. I don't want to get myself worked up with hopes for anything, so I'll just try this and see how it works.
It's one of those nights. I hate these nights. I miss my husband.
We've done this distance thing before. We're used to it. Honestly, now that the kids are older, it's not that bad anymore. We have our routines. I have help from the bigger kids. I have fantastic friends who help out when they can. I can handle this stuff on my own.
I don't need my husband to function. I can handle the day-to-day stuff by myself without him around. The fact is, I LIKE my husband. I actually want him around. I know this, combined with the fact that he's not an asshat is a shock to many folks. It seems to be the standard belief (and often practice) that husbands must be awful and wives should want to spend as little time as possible with them.
When he returned from his last deployment, he had a month off--a whole glorious month home with us. We loved every minute. A friend of mine, though, countered with, "You only feel that way because he just came home. By the end of the month, you'll be dying to ship him back."
Um...no. By the end of the month, we were sorry to see him go back to work.
I've known people who anxiously count down the days until a snippy spouse gets a vacation only to then immediately start counting down the days until their over-bearing spouse goes back to work. We've never been one of those couples.
I like having my husband around. He's smart. He's funny. He's hot as hell. He has good taste in movies. He's a genuinely nice human being. He's a great father. He really is a partner--we're in this together. We really do work together in most things (okay, so I wind up as the only one who cleans the bath tub 97.5% of the time no matter how many times I ask him to do it).
Yeah, obviously I love the guy. We've been together 14 years (OMG. I just realized that this year marks 14 years. Yeah, I gasped at that realization) and this year will mark our 12th wedding anniversary (Why yes, that was another gasp you just heard escape from my mouth. I knew last year marked 11 years so I have no clue how 12 managed to surprise me, but it did). But the simple fact is, I like him. After all these years, I still like him--really truly like him.
I don't know why tonight turned into one of "Those" nights. I'm not even sure how it did. I just know I suddenly and achingly miss my husband.
I'm trying not to let myself get too down. "Always look on the bright side of life," and all that jazz (and yes, if you heard the Monty Python version, you're doing it right). I really do know how lucky I am to be married to someone I still respect, still love and still like. Still, when I remember how fantastic he is, I get a wee bit frantic and I get the urge to yell at the sky, "Then why the hell can't I be with him?"
*sigh*
This house will sell. This house will sell. This house will sell quickly so that we can move and our family will be together again.
Could we just have that happen sooner rather than later, though...please.
