Randomly Tandemly: The Sickies

Sick kids suck. Doesn't matter how old they are, how many of them you have, whether or not you work or stay home...sick kids suck. It's a fact. I've never heard any mother ever say that she hoped her kids would get sick. It just doesn't happen. As mommies we try our damnedest to keep our kidlets healthy. And when they do succumb to whatever cooties that happen to be going around, we do what we can to make them feel better.

So how does this frazzled Master Momma to three deal when one (or more, but usually only one - Janna) of her brood gets sick? Well...it's hard. The hardest thing? There's only one of me...and three of them. There's only so much lap, so many hands, so much patience, and so much time in the day. Inevitably, someone is going to get ignored.

Janna is my "sickie" - my "Ear Infection Queen". Her ears hate her. When she hurts (which lately is just about every freaking day)? We all hurt. Not only does her screaming send us all running for ear plugs (seriously...that child's cries are like fingernails on chalk boards), but it also sends the bigger kids into a frenzy. They know I'm going to be busy trying to console Janna, so they do everything in their power to be...well, needy. And annoying. I understand why they do it - they don't want to be ignored. And they're totally jealous of the fact that Janna's get all kinds of extra attention. Again...I get it. It's just frustrating. And we all know how much patience I don't have - we also know how well I deal with frustration.

Struggling with sick kids is hard for anyone. But when you're basically alone? It's even worse. Jon works all day so he's of no help unless it's really bad, and I have no parents or in-laws close by to offer some assistance. Sure I have friends that are more than willing to watch a kid (or two), and I have had to lean on them pretty hard at times (thankyouthankyouthankyou to those buddies!!). But I hate doing that. I don't want to shove a potentially germ-ridden kid into their potentially germ-free home - and vice versa (I don't want to shove a potentially germ-free kid into their potentially germ-ridden home).

Last week there was no school (F-you Upstate NY) - and guess what? My kids were all sick! The Big Hosers had nasty viruses, and Janna had a double ear infection (which ended up rupturing her eardrum). The first time we went to the pediatrician's office I dragged all three kids with me - and it was nothing short of hell. The second time? I broke down and begged for help. I canceled the third appointment. F it.

The only good thing about sick kids? They sleep. A lot. Or at least they do up here. They're also really content to sprawl on the couch and watch movie after movie. Without begging for snacks. I'm off the hook for entertaining them when they're sick.

Welcome to Randomly Tandemly: A BFF Blogging Adventure

Picture it: a quaint (ish) rural town in North-Central PA in the early 80's. Two smallish girls - one with long, thick auburn hair; the other with shorter, strawberry blond Dorothy Hamill hair - standing in front of a small preschool. That's where our story begins...the story of Keelie and Courtney.

Flash forward over a quarter of a century: Keelie's a workin' momma to one gorgeous albeit very attitudinal 4 year-old girl. She's also in grad school. She and her hubster (currently working third-shift in a hospital) live close to both sets of their parents. Courtney is a stay-at-home-Momma to three gorgeous albeit very attitudinal kidlets (ages 6, 4, and 2). Her hubster is a 9-5 Engineer. They live nowhere near any of their family. Though they lead very different lives, one thing remains the same: their friendship. Through thick and thin, good times and bad, ups and downs...Keelie has been a constant in Courtney's life.

So...now that you have very abbreviated back-story, I'll get to the point (and stop writing in third-person). For our own semi-warped and nerdy entertainment, Keelie and I are going to somewhat randomly and tandemly post about our experiences as Mommies/Wives. Each week we will choose a topic that we're both dealing with (sick kids, sleep deprivation, weather issues, etc.), and we'll post on our respective blogs. Hey - I warned you that we were semi-nerds.

Seeing as we don't live in close proximity to each other, this is a way for us to: a) not run up the phone bill catching up, b) vent about the frustrations we both deal with, and c) bore the hell out of all of you. Read if you want. Don't read if you don't want to. It's your choice. And either way it's a win-win situation for us. Be forewarned though - if you choose to read, please don't attack. Neither of us will put up with that kind of childish nonsense. We have enough childish nonsense to deal with as parents.

So...Randomly Tandemly. Hope you enjoy it as much as we plan to!! The first edition will be posted tomorrow...or sometime soon. The topic? The Sickies.

P.S. Keelie's blog is listed on the right side of this page. Or you can click on her name.

MEme Monday: Infomercial Me

It's MONDAY!! HOORAY! Honestly, I never thought I would be freaking glad that it's Monday in my life. Nor did I ever think I would utter the words, "Monday, I love you." But hell sometimes does freeze over. So, since it's Monday, it's Meme time. And today is all about the crap that we all see on tv. Some of it's pretty awesome...but most of it sucks. So....

• Share with us your favorite AS SEEN ON TV products ... ones you've actually purchased ... make it like your very own testimonial.
• Make a Wish List of AS SEEN ON TV products that you'd buy for yourself ... or for that someone special in your life.
• Or tell us a funny story about an informercial product gone wrong.

My #1 favorite ASoT item? My beloved Snuggie. Aren't I cute??!!

So seriously, I use this bad boy every freakin' day. It's so awesome. The kids fight over it, it washes beautifully, and it;s just so cozy. Snuggie?? I ♥ you.

For the most part, I stay away from most of the stupid shit I see on tv. But I do have a few other sweet items that I just had to have. The PedEgg fairly rocks!! I use it a few times a month, and I have no complaints. The collection of the dead skin shavings is kind of gross, but at least they aren't sprinkled all over the floor.

I also love my Perfect Brownie pan. Ok, so it's not technically mine...it's Jon's. I would show you a picture of the awesome brownies I baked last night (dark chocolate with a mini peanut butter cup shoved down in the middle of each one), but alas - they were so perfect that Jon and I ate them all.

Every year for Christmas my MIL gets me some random ASoT thing...and this year's present was the Slap Chop. It's ok. Sometimes it's just easier to cut an onion by hand, though. Slapping this thing kind of makes my palm hurt.

There are a few things that I like the idea of...but I just won't purchase. One? Bumpits. They look kinda cool and fairly easy to use, but I have big hair already. I'm not in any need of more volume. But if my hair was nice and straight? I would buy those bad boys in a heartbeat. Jonny thinks he would like some of those ShamWow things and an Ove Glove. He's got a birthday coming up...maybe I'll get those.

I'm chilly now. So I'm going to cuddle with my Snuggie. Enjoy your Monday!!

Rant...

A friend of mine posted the above on her Facebook page this week, and I wanted to share (thanks, Liz!). At first, I had an "Amen, Sistah" moment. Then after very careful consideration I had a "holy-shit-that-just-pisses-me-off" moment. The "amen" goes out to Caroline Hax for responding the way she did. The "holy shit" goes out to the working whoevers who just don't get it. [I say "whoevers" because it's not just working non-moms who give us SAHMs attitude and unfair judgement - working moms hand it out, too.]

The main reason this article pissed me off is because I immediately felt the need to defend myself. I needed to verbalize out loud (to no one in particular) that HA! I'm not just sitting on my ass eating candy all day, that I'm not just playing on Facebook or reading instead of doing something constructive, that I'm not just some stupid cow of a housewife sponging off of my husband. Feeling the need to defend myself for the way I live my life? Pisses me off. Sure that's my problem - no one actually attacked me personally. But I've been a SAHM for almost 6 years. And before that? I was a house-wife. When some idiot attacks those lifestyle choices, I take it personally.

I don't judge other people's life choices. Much. Instead, I judge people because they're stupid. That's not my fault - it's theirs. For being dumb-asses. Whoops...I digress. What I mean is that I don't belittle other moms (or non-moms) for choosing to not stay home with their kiddos. I have nothing but respect for moms who work outside of the home because they still have to deal with the day-to-day crap that having kids entails- they just have less time to do it in. What I don't respect, however, are the working moms who degrade the non-working moms. Sure they may work for 8+ hours a day and then have to come home to the chaos of parenting. But you know what? I work all day, too. And I work really hard. I don't get paid for it, either. I don't get a pat on the back. I don't get a vacation. I don't get a personal day. I don't get anything. There's no way for me to "get ahead". I do the same stuff...day in, day out. And when I complain? I get crap from clueless people who think I've got it sooooo good. That I'm just sooooo lucky. I get accused of taking everything I have for granted and of being lazy. In a vain attempt to keep it from bothering me, I typically just grin and bear it when people run off at the mouth. It's really not worth having an argument with them. It still hurts and pisses me off, but I know that I'm better than that.

Basically what it boils down to is that I shouldn't have to defend what I do every single day. Accounting for every moment of my day? Is a friggin' joke. I don't have the time...no...the energy to make a note of how I spend each minute - and I would probably break out in hives if I did. Knowing that someone had to read it? Would cause the hives to grow hives. It's just not important.

But what is important is that as moms, we all deserve respect. Every one of us brings something different to the table. And we all deserve to be recognized.

Good Books & Good Friends

Yesterday's post allowed me to share one of my favorite quotes: "Good books, like good friends, are few and chosen; the more select, the more enjoyable." - Louisa May Alcott. I like this quote for many reasons. Not only do I love Ms. Alcott, but books and friends are two of the most important parts of my life. Ok, so that's three reasons - not exactly many, but you get the idea.

So anyway. The point is that books and friends are what keep this slightly insane Mommy sane. I wouldn't be able to function without either of them. I've posted about my adoration of books before, so we all know that reading is one of my very favorite things to do. In an ultimate show of nerdiness, I've decided to create a list of all of the books that I read this year (check it out - it's on the left-hand side of this page). I know. It's only February. And I've already read 14 books. I just can't help myself.

I don't do a whole lot of posting about my friends. Every once in a while I'll drop in a few lines about the awesomeness of them, but I tend to guard that part of my life a little more carefully. Maybe it's because I don't want to hurt anyone's feelings. Maybe it's because I don't want to make you all jealous (my friends are waaaaay cooler than yours!). Maybe my gushing about their awesomeness would embarrass them (or me). Regardless of the reason, my friends are crazy important to me. Near, far. Old, new. In good or bad standing. I ♥ them. Each one brings something different to my life, and I am lucky to have them.

MEme Monday - In Quotes

The always faboo Supah (and MommyBrain, too) wanna know what my favorite quote is. They want to know what yours is, too, of course. But they asked me first. And my answer? I have many. From books, movies, friends, whatever. Some of my faves?

"Good books, like good friends, are few and chosen; the more select, the more enjoyable." - Louisa May Alcott

“All you need is love. But a little chocolate now and then doesn't hurt.” - Charles M. Schulz

“The most interesting information comes from children, for they tell all they know and then stop.” - Mark Twain

"You ask me one more question and I'm beating the shit out of you." - Andrew Clark (Emilio Estevez in The Breakfast Club)

Post It Note Tuesday