Get some clothes on!

Me and the kids are just watching figure skating together.

We were watching a girl from Canada skate and Nate said, "Mom, she's not wearing very many clothes. She should really get some on"! Maybe not the response he'll have when he's a teenager, but I'll take it for now!

So, I've missed most of the Olympics, but I LOVE the women's figure skating (I know, I am a super girl. No denying it). Whe I was a teenager, my dream was to be Michelle Kwan and to win the Olympics.



I was convinced if I worked hard enough it would happen! Too bad I can't skate AT ALL, but every time I watch figure skating, I always think, "yeah...I could do that! Just a little practice....!"

And the dream lives on!

If Facebook were real....

For those of you who asked....

The Man Show!

One of Nathan and Paul's (my husband) favorite activity to do together is to watch Man vs. Wild. For those of you who don't know what this is, it's kind of like a survival show where this guy, Bear Grylls "survives" in various wilderness destinations. He does cool stuff like making shelters out of tree sap or braiding a rope out of cricket legs.



Anyway, Nate and Paul call this "The Man Show", and it's a BIG DEAL in our house. When it's on, they cuddle on the couch (very manly) and burp and fart and do other man stuff. Okay, not really. But I LOVE that they are connecting so well over this particular show. It's kind of their "thing" and it's really cute in a way! I don't remember watching any type of media with my dad (who was going through his medical residency when I was a kid!). Well, that's not true. We did watch Moulin Rouge together when it came out in the theatre (I literally almost died of embarrassment!) So, I think it's WONDERFUL that Paul and Nate have this Man show together.

Okay, I know this is a really old picture (Nathan is 2 years old in this one)!, but it's so darn cute. They are watching TV together and even wearing matching Ireland football shirts!


Awwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww!!!


So, when I came downstairs tonight Nathan had built this very elaborate structure out of couch cushions, pillows, blankets, legos, and Hannah's rocking horse.

"Nathan, what IS that?" I asked

"It's my trap!", he said. "I'm making a trap for bugs. And for whales, squid, and bees" (Pretty impressive in my opinion)

Then he proceeded to pull out this giant plastic bug toy we happen to have.

"AWESOME!", he exclaimed "I caught one! I'll just eat the legs, wings, and antennae now. I'll save the body for later."

Okay, ew, ew, ew!!! I totally don't get boys, but I love that this show also sparked his imagination of surviving in the wilderness. So, thanks Bear Grylls!

Now I have to think of what "Girl show" me and Hannah can watch together. America's Next Top Model? hmmm, probably not!!!

Confessions of an abusive mother

I was talking to Nathan (age 5) last night.

(How cute is this kid??)


One of his friends had gone to another friend's house without asking. Nate said, "Mom, remember when I did that?"

Me: "Yeah, you got in big trouble! You should never leave the house without asking me first"

Nate: "Oh yeah. That was the time you smacked me in the face, right?"

WHAT?!?!?!?!?!?!??!?

I have NEVER hit my children, in fact, it's something I feel really strongly about, so I was completely flabbergasted.

Me: "What are you talking about?!? I've never hit you!"

Nate put his hand up to chin, making a thinking face, and then said, "Oh, that's right. It wasn't you. I saw it on "Cloudy with a chance of meatballs"! Sorry!"



Thank you frickin' meatball show!! I wonder what other "memories" my kids have after watching movies!!!

A song that helped me get my PhD!

I forgot to share this in class today.

I started out today's lecture by playing one of my favorite songs: "The Voice Within" by Christina Aguilera. I really find this song inspiring and uplifting and it always cheers me up.



When I was doing my PhD I literally used this song to help get through it all. In England, the last step to get a PhD is to have a 2-3 hour Viva. This entails pretty much writing a book length document, then having 3 experts in the field read it, and then quiz you on it for hours on end. One of my examiners happened to be a man called Kaj Bjorkvist, who pretty much was the first person to ever study relational aggression!!! Crazy! So, you can see how I would be more than a little nervous!

Picture of Kaj!!!


Well, I was sat in my office right before the viva started and I was FREAKING OUT! So, I turned this song on and listened to it probably 5 times in a row. It really calmed me down, and made me feel like I could anything. Totally cheesy, I know, but it really helped me cope in this extremely tense situation! Thank you music! (and Christina!)

Music video!

Mommy media madness!

I'm noticing how much more the media is influencing my emotions now that I am a parent: ESPECIALLY about parent/kid stuff. Last night I was watching Lost (an earlier season) and there is a really touching moment between Kate and a little boy. It was SO SAD, and I ran right in and snuggled Nathan cause I was feeling vulnerable I guess!



I was also at the library picking out books yesterday. Recently I like the author, Jodi Picoult (author of Nineteen minutes (see earlier post on this book) and My Sister's Keeper). I was skimming through the book jackets, and read something like, "newlyweds finally get pregnant, but baby is born with multiple problems"...okay..put that one back, feeling way too vulnerable for this book. Next one I picked up was "Parents deal with issues after their 5 year old son is sexually abused"...I almost threw this back on the shelf! I finally settled on a book about euthanisia: still a controversial topic but nothing to do with parent/child issues so felt I could tackle it.

And I think pregnancy makes me especially vulnerable. Case in point: Clover butter commercial I showed in class today. I also remember when I was pregnant with Nathan I was watching an episode of ER. In this episode, Dr. Carter (love him!) and his wife Kim are pregnant with their first child. Right before the due date, the baby dies while still in uetro. SO SAD! I honestly cried and cried after watching this, and even now it makes me horribly sad to think of it!!



So watch out: becoming a parent makes you more vulnerable to ALL sort of media messages that wouldn't really have affected you before!! (and cost me A LOT of money on expensive butter! :)