Which is worse: a princess or a brat?

When it comes down to it, which makes a better role model--a princess whose only goal is to marry her prince charming, or a girl who wears way too much eye makeup and way too little clothes? I know this whole role model debate is not new, but it's new to my household. Kaitlyn loves the Bratz dolls. She plans on asking Santa for more Bratz dolls (she has one so far). She talks with that ear-piercing Valley Girl inflection that makes my skin crawl. She uses "like" in every sentence, like all the time... ;) Chloe, on the other hand, only wants to wear Pull Ups with Cinderella on them--she will search through a stack of them until she finds the one with just Cinderella, not Jasmine or Belle on the front. She wants me to make sure I cover her with her Disney Princess blanket but Cinderella has to be right next to her face. Seriously, she's 2 1/2.


I know girls go through stages where they only want to play with certain kinds of toys or wear certain kinds of clothes (or Pull Ups). It's cute--it's part of being a girl. I went through the same things, only I graduated from Strawberry Shortcake to Barbie. And, for the most part, I turned out okay. I know what real beauty and strength is and I know what is real and what is not. But, being on the other side of this, it's hard not to be concerned about all the images being thrown at them at this very young age. You can't watch any TV without being exposed to images that are often way too mature, violent, frank, or just plain wrong anymore. You can't walk down the toy aisle at Target without being bombarded by plastic perfection in thigh high boots and named Lola. How do you keep kids away from all of the crap out there without depriving them of the basic childhood fun of princesses and dolls? Do I tell Kaitlyn that the reason I don't like to buy the Bratz dolls is because I think they look trashy and set a bad example of what young girls should be? Or should I just shut up, fork over the money and buy her the darn doll-- after all, it's just a doll. I guess I don't have as big a problem with the princess stuff as I do with the Bratz dolls. What girl didn't want to be Cinderella and live in the beautiful castle?

All of this to say that I think it's my job as their mom to let them be kids, play with the toys they want to play with, but teach them how to be strong, recognize real beauty and understand that no one really looks like Barbie, or a Bratz, or Cinderella for that matter. It's all just make believe.

Girls Gone Wild--dinner table edition

So, in a few days, we will be celebrating Thanksgiving with my in-laws and sister and brother-in-law at our house. This is the first time we've ever hosted Thanksgiving in our home so it's all very new and exciting. New, because we have had to take inventory of what we needed to actually host a Thanksgiving dinner...like new flatware (ahem, because a certain robot either ate them or lost them). Exciting, because we've wanted to do this for a long time. So, in preparation for the big day, we've been making lists, shopping, and cleaning.

However...what worries me a little bit is the actual sitting down to dinner. I want everything to be perfect and fun and wonderful and delicious. Truth is, I am worried about how the girls will behave. Not because they are raving maniacs and do not have any table manners, but because they don't have a lot of experience with large family dinners. I am hoping that Kaitlyn will want to act like the big girl she is and be relaxed and patient and actually eat. her. dinner. Chloe, well, she's 2 1/2, so here's hoping she'll sit still and not spill everything in sight or throw a fit for the heck of it. I want them to be good little girls, sitting with their napkins folded in their pretty little laps asking to pass the green beans, please. hahahhahhahahaha, ya that's some funny stuff right there.

I know they are young, but it's never too early to teach them how to behave at the dinner table, even if our own dinner table is hardly ever used. We normally eat sitting around our kitchen island with at least one of us standing. That's bad form and not setting a very good example. That's gotta change for sure.

So, on Thursday, we'll all sit down at the dining room table, with our napkins folded in our laps, and enjoy our time together. Hopefully with two little girls sitting with us... in peace and quiet.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Kid Bowling...new Olympic Event!

10 Rolls of Paper Towels: $18
Amount of open floor space needed: 15 feet
# of "bowling balls": 2
# of bowlers: 1
Memories to last forever: priceless

Another fun filled Saturday evening up here in chilly Minnesota...

My sister is old...

Today is my little sister's 34th birthday. She ran two marathons this year... what did YOU do?

RUN, FORREST, RUN!

Happy Birthday, Janet.

love, me.

The robot and the misfit: a love story...

I lovingly refer to my husband as my robot. He's able to set a goal and focus in on it like a laser beam. When he decides to do something, he does it. J does really well with following a routine. Just about every weekday he goes to the gym at 430am and comes home to make his oatmeal, and he then proceeds to pack his lunch in an assembly line fashion. Every day he makes a variation of the same thing for lunch and he always makes the same breakfast. I wish I had that laser-beam focus. I have a hard time making my lunch every day and hardly ever eat breakfast at home. See, very non-robotic. I think I have trouble sticking to a goal mostly because I get overwhelmed so easily. Not so much at work, but for sure in my own life. I have a horrible time sticking to any fitness routine or diet, etc. I am obviously not alone, but for me, I feel like I am the misfit. So, on Friday morning, when J comes home at 515am I immediately know my robot has a malfunction. I rush down to see what happened and it turns out he pulled a muscle in his back so he had to leave. Since he is robot-like, these injuries are rare and foreign to him.

Don't get me wrong, I love him for all of his robotic tendencies, I really do. I hate hate hate to see him hurt because it's so rare that he ever is.

And because of that, having him call me on the way home Friday night and telling me he hit a deer sent me into an instant panic. Seeing the damage the deer did to his car was almost too much for me. I tried not to let it show, but holy cow, a split second earlier or later, and this could have been a disaster. J wasn't injured but a little shaken to be sure.

I tend to panic at every little twitch or fever he gets because I am simply afraid of anything happening to him. He's my life and my best friend and the thought of something happening to him is more than I can bear. So, when he complains of a fever or ache, my panic buttons jump into hyper drive. See, robots aren't supposed to get dents or fevers or aches and when he does fall ill, I don't know what to do. I am a great caretaker of the girls. And, once I settle down and realize he just has a cold or a pulled muscle, or a dented car, I do a good job taking care of him, but at the onset of an issue with my robot, I am not very helpful and generally try not to freak out. I am trying harder not to panic or overreact over things, but it's still a struggle.

Hopefully, this week will be less eventful and my robot gets better and stays clear of deer.

Raising daughters...

My daughters are 2 1/2 and 5. They are my world. I always knew I would be a mom and always wanted to be a mom to daughters. Don't get me wrong, I would have loved to have a son. But, I have a sister and I know what it's like to grow up with a sister so I figured that experience would help with raising my own children. Luckily, we were blessed with two great little girls. I was meant to have girls because I am all about the pink. Pink, as Shelby said in Steel Magnolias, is my "signature color". I loved playing Barbies and school and house and all of that when I was little. I love going shopping for their clothes and shoes and accessories. I love it all. It's just fun.

I also know that raising girls is complicated. I want my girls to be independent, confident, and adventuresome. I don't want them to miss out on anything. I want them to participate in sports, dance, music, all of it. I want them to have only good experiences in life. Yes, totally impossible I know, but can't that still be a goal? I want them to have long, fun-filled summers, feel the excitement of getting ready for the first day of school and coming home to freshly baked chocolate chip cookies and milk, reading great books, taking fun vacations, spending time with our family and friends, and most of all, feeling loved. Completely loved and protected.

I am struggling with how my daughters see me right now. I want them to think I am strong, healthy, and confident. Yet, I really don't feel like any of that most of the time. I hate how I look and feel and most of all, my slow if unmoving progress in the weight loss area (although I did lose 3lbs this week! Sweet!). I am trying to teach the girls that everyone is beautiful and that they are beautiful and perfect just the way they are. I am trying to keep my own anxiety and frustration in check but sometimes its hard when you know they are wondering why mommy's butt is big. ;)

So, yes, raising girls is in my view is the best. But, it's also very tricky when you want to raise confident healthy girls and you don't feel confident or healthy yourself. That's a struggle I will deal with forever, I think.

Mood: HAPPY, HOPEFUL, RELIEVED

I have been floating on air since Tuesday night. I was so hopeful that Obama would win but just couldn't bear to get my hopes up and cringed every time I heard news reports about people planning celebrations before the elections were held or acting like he won already--just in case they jinxed it.

Since Tuesday night, I am just so excited. I know he's just ONE guy and he doesn't have super powers or anything like that. But, it's the idea that this guy won and this guy has the ability to drive this bus back on the road.

I am hopeful that by electing Obama, we can show the world that we, as a country, want things to be different, better. It's not all Bush's fault, obviously. But, geesh, his attitude and snarkiness sure didn't help. I wish he could have been a bit more empathetic and less obnoxious while representing our country. He really did some damage I think. But, it's done, he's almost out of the office, and we will move on. I don't wish the guy any ill will, but I am glad he can go back to his Texas ranch.

So, it'll be exciting to see who he appoints to his cabinet and more importantly... where his girls will go to school and what kind of dog they'll get and what Michelle will wear to the inauguration. ;) So fun. I know our country has a lot of work to do to get back on track and I know it's going to be painful and perhaps a long journey, but I think we are ready for this and willing to help make things better. I am excited that my daughters will grow up in a world that can take a different path and move on together.

It's an exciting time.

VOTE!

VOTE! VOTE! VOTE! VOTE! VOTE! VOTE! VOTE! VOTE! VOTE! VOTE! VOTE! VOTE!

Finally, the day has arrived... tomorrow we will have a new president. I hope it's MY GUY, but at this point anything is better than who we have now.

Candy hangover...

So, how much candy did your kids get on Halloween? Ugh, my kids got a ton of candy. Big, full size candy bars, lots of them, along with all of the other usual suspects. By the time we headed for home, I had to carry her pumpkin and let me tell you, it was heavy.

Kaitlyn went through her candy after we got home to see what she got and do you want to know the first thing that she ate? GOLDFISH!!!!!! She ate the Goldfish crackers! Is she really my kid? She bypassed the chocolate and sugar and went for...crackers? Holy cow. That's great, but not really cuz now I am left staring at this monstrous bucket of cavities and future pounds added to my butt. I'd love to say that I am strong enough to not dip into it and to just pass right by. Ya, no. I dipped in and had a few pieces. Yep, I sure did. I am not happy about it. But, whatever, I kind of expected it.

So, is it fair to have K pick out her favorite kinds of candy and we'll get rid of the rest? I think it's really kind of mean, but she certainly doesn't need to eat all of that crap and I WILL EAT ALL OF THAT CRAP if it's staring me in the face. So, something's gotta give here. Ugh. I guess I have to figure out what to do. Jason hates that candy so he's all for getting rid of it all. He has willpower in superhero doses. Nothing chinks his armor.

Oh well. Candy will always be my drug of choice, no getting around it I guess.

Couple other things...

I saw High School Musical 3 this afternoon. Is it weird that I LOVED THAT MOVIE? So much fun.

Don't forget to vote on Tuesday. Thank God this will all be over with Wednesday. Hopefully...