The Dreaded Christmas Letter

So ever since Mike and I got married, the only Christmas tradition Mike has any interest in is the annual Christmas letter - he insists that we send one in our Christmas card every year. So every year I buy cute paper, write a letter, lay it out, print it (send Mike to Staples for more ink), sign, fold and stuff it in with our card, all the while swearing and complaining.  In theory, I like the idea of a Christmas letter, but really only for the far away relatives who we never see. The other people on my list see me all year round and they already know all this stuff!

This year however, there was no Christmas letter. I finally said no. I was behind in getting my cards done and it was Dec. 23rd and I was freaking out because I had too much to do. And I sealed up the envelopes and put them in the mail.  30 seconds after opening her card, my mother-in-law texted me - "No Christmas letter?"  (She used to live with Mike, so you can imagine how horrifying this must have been for her) - My reply: "No, there's always next year!"

So I'm apologizing here to my husband and to all of you who missed my annual letter this year. I plan to do a post of the "year in review" and hopefully that will make up for some of it (assuming you actually read my pathetic blog). If not, there's always next year.

School Days

I realze that it has been forever since I have blogged, and I have some catching up to do. So I sat down with a list of topics and tried to get going again.

The cold weather is setting in and school has been in session now for like 85 days. Emma is in third grade and seems to have a ton of homework compared to years past. She is still a perfectionist, and gets extremely upset if she doesn't get all "E"s on her papers and report card. She is learning cursive, science, health, and social studies now and gets to exchange with the other 3rd grade classes for one subject. I am starting to feel like that game show, "Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader", only it's more like "Are You Smart Enough To Help Your Third Grader With Her Homework"? I challenge you to name the 6 Nutrients, and examples of each, demonstrate a food chain and food web, define consumer, producer, community, population, ecosystem, etc. etc. That was just this week.

Now I'm a wiz at spelling, reading, anything to do with English or of course the Arts. Just please keep me away from math, science and history. Did you know that there are more than 3 different ways to solve a two or three digit addition problem? Well, there is.

This is where Mike and I need to divide and conquer. He is never allowed to do spelling homework (he can't spell, AT ALL), but if it's Social Studies, then I defer to him. The trouble is that Emma would prefer that I help her, as daddy doesn't have a lot of patience (hello, have you met Emma?) which means my reading and inferencing skills are put to use on a nightly basis. It's pretty sad when your 8 year old knows more than you do on a particular subject. I'm already dreading 4th grade!

Aiden goes to preschool two days a week.  He jumped right out of the van on the first day of school and never looked back. He's very social, but he could care less if he learns to write his name or hold his crayon between two fingers. He loves to be read to, but not necesarily where there are 9 other kids distracting him from the story. He can recognize his name and tell you some of the letters, but that's basically enough for him. He loves paint and playdough, and give him some blocks or Little People and he's happy just to sit and play. I keep reminding myself that he just turned 3 AND he's a boy, and it is impossible to compare him to Emma at this age. But what he may lack in academic skill, he certainly makes up for in personality. He is incredibly sweet, funny and extremely animated when he tells a story. And, he's completely potty trained! And hopefully, he's adopted more of Mike's laid back attitude than the OCD personality of his mother. (I'm sorry, Emma)

We are looking forward to Christmas break and putting the backpacks and homework away for awhile!

What I Did on My Summer Vacation

Since it's been quite a while since I have blogged, (and I know the 3 or 4 people that follow this have missed me so much!) I decided that like in school, I would fill you in on "What I did this Summer". Here's the recap:

I did spend a fair amount of time in the car, driving Emma to art class, tennis lessons, vacation Bible school and Girl Scout camp. She also went to a dance workshop in Des Moines and to dance Nationals at Kalahari in Wisconsin. Aiden got the short end of the stick for sure, stuck in his car seat while we drove his sister everywhere! We did have some fun down time, swimming, visiting the zoo and playing at the park. This summer seemed to be the hottest one I remember!

I got a new job (I know, like I needed one more thing to do!) as a local high school dance team coach. I spent 4 days in a college dorm with 13 high school students. Let's just say it's been a few years since I've slept in a dorm bed, but thanks to some very fun people it was actually a pretty good time!

I did a lot of dance choreography and I fractured my ankle in a small accident - which was really frustrating since I have not ever been really injured in more than 20 years of teaching dance. Fortunately it has healed and is causing me no trouble.

We also celebrated Aiden's 3rd birthday, first day of preschool (that is a whole different post!) and Emma's first day of third grade! The summer absolutely flew by!

As I write this, we are four days away from a much needed family vacation. We leave for Orlando on Saturday! I'll say Hi to Mickey for you!

Worst. Mother. Ever.

I am not a perfect parent. (I believe I’ve mentioned that here more than once). But today I am definitely up for worst mother ever.

Emma did not get any teeth until she was 14 months old, so she didn’t lose one until after she turned 8! And although the first one was a big deal, her permanent tooth grew in basically the next day so no one even knew she’d lost it. And her other bottom tooth was already growing, so they had to pull her 2^nd tooth. Same story again.

But FINALLY she had a loose tooth on top and it finally came out last night during dance class, and she has a huge, gaping hole in her mouth that’s she’s showing everyone (even people she doesn’t know!) And she brought it home last night from dance and her dad helped her to put it under her pillow.

And she woke up this morning and THE TOOTH FAIRY NEVER CAME.

Now, it’s one thing for your child to be mad or upset (especially if it’s directed at you). But it’s totally another thing to hear your child’s voice when her spirit has been crushed and she is completely disappointed. I practically cried. I thought about distracting her and throwing money on the floor quick and acting like it fell out – but she was holding the envelope with her tooth in it! So today, I am officially the Worst. Mother. Ever.

I did assure her that maybe a lot of people lost their teeth yesterday and the Tooth Fairy was just really busy. One of the carpool girls suggested she may have had a broken wing (apparently, the same thing happened to her – I did think that was brilliant, however!)

Emma says she’s writing a letter to the Tooth Fairy tonight to ask her what happened. I’m frantically Google-ing “responses to questions about the tooth fairy”. I guess I better get out my sparkly silver pen. Wish me luck.

What's For Dinner?

I actually love the mundane tasks of being a (mostly) stay-at-home mom. I love calendars and schedules and filling out forms and school shopping. I don’t mind driving kids to their activities or to the doctor, or having playdates or really even changing diapers (which I should be done with very soon)! I pick up the same toys a minimum of 5 times a day, I never forget that Library is on Wednesday, and I am the OCD mother who checks her daughter’s backpack immediately upon her arrival home. Although the state of my house is far from a picture in Family Circle, I try to keep things organized and thanks to my front loading washer/dryer I don’t even mind doing laundry all that much.

Just PLEASE don’t ask me to make dinner.

Every day I get out of bed with all good intentions to actually provide my family with a nice, home-cooked meal.  And every night one of two things happens: I scramble to throw some pasta together, or my husband makes dinner. After he works all day. Because although I may excel at mothering my children, I SUCK at cooking.

I really don’t know how this came to pass. My own mother made home cooked meals EVERY night. She made holiday dinners, candy and cookies galore at Christmastime, and always made our favorite meals on birthdays. I have many of her recipes in a book she made for me on my 24^th birthday. (Clearly, she saw this coming) Eating out at a restaurant when I was a child was always for a “special” occasion. Not weekly Thursday dinner like in my house.

The odd part is, I have Thanksgiving every year (and cook my own turkey), and I’ve even managed prime rib on Christmas Eve and crazy beautiful desserts for Easter, Mother’s Day and baby showers I’ve thrown. I just can’t do the day to day. I can’t seem to think of a single thing to have. In fact, if I didn’t have children to provide for, I probably would never cook! Isn’t that why they invented Chick-Fil-A??

Making better meals was my New Year’s resolution. It’s April now, and I’ve made no progress. I’m sure there’s probably an iPhone app for that. But I’m trying to turn over a new leaf. It’s in print now so maybe I can do better. I’m open to any and all suggestions.

Patience, please.

I am absolutely the farthest thing from a perfect parent. Some days I even just make it up as I go along. I read an article the other day in a Parenting Magazine that asked you to describe your parenting style in three words.  My favorite: Whatever Works Today.

When you have a 5 ½ year age gap between children like I do, sometimes it’s hard to remember how things went with the first child. And if you’re me, then it’s even worse since you all know I have no memory!!

Potty training Emma was a bit of a chore because Emma is very stubborn. But once she decided she wanted to do it, the next day she was completely potty trained and never even wet the bed at night. Getting rid of her “binky” was another story, however. She had “bink” and “extra bink” (one for each hand) and if she should lose either of them during the night, I was getting out of bed to locate them.  When we finally went cold turkey and took them away, she screamed for a week straight! No lie, I seriously almost checked myself in to the Robert Young mental ward. She actually yelled over and over – “Take me to Target to get another bink!” That was by far my worst parenting experience to date.  So you would think I would have learned my lesson.

Fast forward to Aiden at now 2 ½ who is working on both potty training and getting rid of his binky. Unfortunately, to enter pre-school he has to be completely potty trained, but a) he’s a boy and b) he’s six months younger than Emma when she went to school. So we’re in serious crunch time right now to get it done. As for the potty training, it’s hit or miss.  Some days he actually tells me he has to go, others I take him 15 times but his pull-up is still wet. We’ve tried rewards and stickers, but under no circumstances will he go #2 in the potty. I feel like I’m working against a ticking clock.

As far as the binky, I am hoping that will be much easier. Starting this week we are being diligent about only using it at bedtime. He generally spits it out as soon as he falls asleep. He should be easier to take it from, right? RIGHT?

Oh, and did I mention that he doesn’t take an afternoon nap anymore?

So today I’m asking you to pray for patience for me. A lot of it. And if I don’t make it through the next few weeks, please feel free to visit me at Robert Young.

Bad "Chi".

Last week I had an ongoing, migraine like headache.  I could not find anything specifically that I thought brought it on, but I realized with the pain in my neck and head, I probably had something that was out of line or some kind of pinched nerve. I tried resting and took way more than the recommended dose of Excederin, but nothing seemed to help so I called the chiropractor.  With two weekends of back to back dance competitions looming, there is no way I could have functioned without some kind of intervention!

In the past I have used chiropractic and have always had good results.  In fact, getting both an adjustment and a massage was a lifesaver for me when I was pregnant with Aiden. I was hoping this was just a simple thing and could be taken care of in 1 or 2 visits. Apparently, I was really messed up, as indicated by my scan, and still in a lot of pain even after 2 adjustments, so my chiropractor suggested I try acupuncture.

My initial thought was absolutely not – the idea of having needles stuck in my skin does not really sound like a good time!! But since this was seriously the most pain I have ever been in, I agreed to give it a try. I should mention that I am never sick – I maybe get a once-a-year sinus infection and I don’t even have a regular doctor of any kind. I’ve had two C-sections and that is essentially my health history.

Before the acupuncture they do a scan on you, pressing various pressure points to assess your “chi”.  It’s basically the state your body is in, your “life force” or energy level. I know what you’re thinking, (the same thing my husband was), this is more than a little “out there”. But I learned something really surprising: I HAVE BAD “CHI”. In fact, I was kind of annoyed about it.  How come I have bad chi? I have a great (albeit sometimes stressful) life, great kids – I’m not depressed or sick. I have a good quality of life, I take vacations, I have a roof over my head and food in the refrigerator. I don’t want to have bad “chi”!

So I went through with the acupuncture basically to cure my headache (I’ll spare you the details because I decided to keep my eyes closed the entire time!) and decided that although I will not be trying acupuncture again anytime soon (it’s not even covered by my insurance), I am going to try and improve the quality of my “chi”. After a little Google search, as of today I am vowing to:

1. Eat more healthy foods
2. Watch less TV and spend more time outside
3. Have more color in my life
4. Get a better nights sleep

At least that’s a start.  I’ll keep you posted.

Bookworm

I love to read and have an ongoing list of books I’d like to get to in 2011. I like to read a variety of things, although I do have some favorite authors as well. I feel like my choices so far this year have been random, but I figured I would share the ones I’ve read thus far and see if  they happen to be on your reading list too!

Since January I have read:

1. Freedom – Jonathan Franzen
2. The Help – Kathryn Stockett
3. Inconceivable – the true story of Shawn and Carolyn Savage
4. Unbearable Lightness – Portia De Rossi
5. Sing You Home – Jodi Picoult
6. Safe Haven – Nicholas Sparks
7. The Confession – John Grisham
8. Think Twice – Lisa Scottoline
9. Winter Garden – Kristin Hannah
10. The Girls from Ames – Jeffrey Zaslow

I’m currently reading A Soft Place To Land – Susan White, and in my Borders Inbox right now I have Cinderella Ate My Daughter by Peggy Orenstein,  Inside the Mouse: Work and Play at Walt Disney World by The Project on Disney, and Decision Points by George W. Bush.  Also on my wish list – Eat, Pray, Love, Heaven is For Real and the Girl With the Dragon Tattoo trilogy.

No one can believe that I have not read either the Harry Potter series or any of the Twilight books, but I just don’t think I’d be into either one of those right now. I’d love to hear what you are reading and any suggestions that you might have to add to my list!!

My Disney Obsession

I grew up going to Walt Disney World. We were there when it opened in 1971. I saw the opening of Epcot and the other parks. I have pictures of the old Epcot globe.  My brother and I marched in the Magic Kingdom bi-centennial parade (from start to finish). Where else on earth could your parents leave you at ages 7 and 8 to go with “strangers” and walk in front of thousands of people??

I’ve been to Disney with extended family, friends, my husband (before he was my husband) and now of course with my own family. My 8 year old has been there 10 times already. She even danced on the Disney stage. My 2 year old made his first visit at just 3 months old.  I could probably write my own blog just about Disney (or at least be a Disney travel agent). It’s one of my favorite things to talk about. But every time I say we’re going back to see the Mouse, someone inadvertently asks why! Why the obsession? And I’ve come to realize it’s because most of the time, said person has NEVER BEEN TO WALT DISNEY WORLD!!

So in my best attempt, I will give you the Top 10 reasons why I think you should at least give it a chance:

1. It really is the “Happiest Place on Earth”. 99% of the people that work at Disney are genuinely happy to be there. Try talking to a cast member just for fun. Nothing can cure a bad day like a walk down Main Street in the Magic Kingdom.
2. You can channel your inner child.  No one looks at you strangely if you skip down the street, wear a funny hat with ears on it, or want your picture taken with Cinderella.
3. There is something for everyone and every age group to participate in. Even if you’re not a “ride” person, Disney has amazing shows, restaurants, and shopping.
4. Disney makes everything about traveling with children easier.  Magical Express takes your luggage from your hometown airport and delivers it TO YOUR ROOM. The baby care centers throughout the parks offer a cool place to rest, feed your baby, get a bandaid or just watch cartoons for a few minutes. (And trust me on this, I have visited every single baby care center at every single park – breastfeeding a 3 month old is practically easy on this vacation!)
5. Distance to travel.  Just over 2 hours to get there on a direct flight right from our own Quad City Airport.
6. The weather. Although I have been there at all different times of year, my most favorite time to visit is in the fall. Still gorgeous 80 degree temps and a lot less crowded.
7. The entertainment. As I eluded to in #3, Disney has some of the best Broadway quality shows around. I love La Nouba (Circ de Soleil) in downtown Disney, but we never miss The Lion King, Finding Nemo or Beauty and the Beast inside the parks.
8. The food. Three words for you. Dole Pineapple Whip. In all seriousness, the food throughout Disney is great, but what makes it even more fun is the atmosphere. Some of my favorites: The Coral Reef, Chef Mickey, Ohana and The Crystal Palace.  If you like different kinds of food, Epcot has amazing authentic restaurants from all countries in the World Showcase.
9. Mickey Mouse. Do I really need to explain this one?
10. It is the place where dreams come true.  There is nothing more magical then watching the face of a child light up when they meet their favorite princess or wave to Goofy during a parade; or watching fireworks like you’ve never seen before light up Cinderella’s castle. Tinkerbell can really fly, Nemo can swim, and magic really exists.

Spring Break 2011

I love going on vacation. But I also like coming home. There is something about being away that makes me appreciate the comfort of my house, routine, bed. (And I don’t have to sleep with Aiden anymore!)

We had a great time in St. Louis on Spring Break – so many fun things to see and do, and a lot of it is free. We visited the Arch, Magic House (children’s museum), City Museum (if you’ve never seen/heard of this, you should definitely Google it – it’s amazing), and the St. Louis Zoo. We did a little shopping, some swimming and on St. Patrick’s Day took the kids to the Fox Theatre to see the Imagination Movers concert. I posted some of the highlights below:

Welcome to the 21st Century.

I am technologically challenged. It’s true. Everyone knows. My daughter has both an ipod and a DS – neither of which I really know how to use very well. I have a digital camera that I love, but I basically just take pictures with it – I don’t have a clue how to use all the cool functions it has.  We recently got a digital video camera, and although there is video on it, I have yet to figure out how to load the software on my computer so that I can download and edit it. Baby steps.

But I have to say that I am now in love. With my iPhone. The one I was sure I didn’t want and couldn’t figure out. I had a little help at first (thank God for teenage babysitters) but I am now obsessed. I can check my email and my facebook from my phone, manage my calendar (which is huge because you’ve seen the title of this blog!), check the weather, and listen to music. I’m certain once I really start getting into downloading apps, I will be playing games and entertaining my children in the grocery store line and doctor’s waiting room.

My favorite app so far – Walt Disney World information and ride waiting times.  Just to get a little piece of the magic, I can check the weather, crowd level and wait times at my favorite Disney parks.  It doesn’t matter that I won’t be visiting the mouse again until October – it’s just fun to daydream for a few minutes! "The

Happiest Place

on Earth" is at my fingertips whenever I want. Cinderella’s Castle is my screensaver. I’m sure if I wanted to I could make “It’s a Small World” my ringtone. I’m starting to think technology is not so bad after all. J

Happy Anniversary.

I have complained a lot lately that my husband and I have not been on a date in a long time.  I mean like since before we had Aiden. Who is 2 ½. We’ve gotten a babysitter a few times just to run errands, go to Target or the grocery store (lame, I know), but not a real honest to goodness date (like say, dinner and a movie). There is just too much going on.

Yesterday was our 9 year wedding anniversary. But it was also Ash Wednesday. I had planned on fish and macaroni and cheese for dinner, and was hoping I could convince Emma to go to church with me.

But my doorbell rang at 4:00. It was one of my students (also one of our babysitters) with a card. She was there to watch the kids, because according to the card, we were going on a date.  Emma told me to change my clothes and wear earrings (I think that’s funny because since I don’t often wear a lot of jewelry I think she must believe that dressing up for me means wearing earrings!)

Now normally, this would drive me nuts. I like being in control and don’t really like surprises. Of course I wanted to know where we were going, what the kids were going to eat, how long we were going to be gone, etc.  And what about church? But I decided that in the end I wasn’t going to worry about any of that. I was actually, for once, just going to go with the flow.

Mike brought me flowers and he brought a pizza for the kids and he took me to dinner at Johnny’s Italian Steakhouse. On Ash Wednesday! (He’s not Catholic). But I had a wonderful shrimp dish and 2 glasses of Moscato and we got free dessert because we were celebrating our anniversary. I realize I pushed the limit a little with the whole Ash Wednesday thing, but I’m hoping God will understand. I didn’t once have to fish crayons off the floor or find snacks in my purse and I didn’t leave with food handprints on my sweater. I had a nice, grown-up dinner and a nice conversation with my husband. Thanks honey, for making my day!

Since its Top Ten Tuesday today and tomorrow is my 9^th wedding anniversary, I decided to do Top Ten things I love about my husband.  I really wanted to do Top Ten things that my husband does that drive me nuts (because that would be easier and honestly I think would make a good post), but in case he actually reads my blog I will skip that so maybe I can stay married another 9 years!

1. He’s funny – he does have a great sense of humor, and generally makes me laugh
2. He’s a great father
3. He drives the carpool – he’s a great “dance mom”
4. He works very hard at his job
5. He does laundry
6. He fills my van up with gas
7. He’s a good cook – much better than me!
8. He’s extremely committed to family
9. He gets along with pretty much anyone
10. He puts up with me!

Thanks, Facebook.

Today under “what are you planning”, Facebook reminded me that next week is my anniversary. Which is good because I TOTALLY FORGOT.

Let me just say that one of my biggest pet peeves ever is when my husband forgets a special occasion – namely my birthday, valentine’s day, mother’s day or especially our anniversary.  I always wait to make sure he figures it out first before I say anything.  It’s a mean little game that I play and I probably should give him a lot more credit.  But he told me when we got married that I would assume all responsibility for remembering family birthdays, anniversaries and special holidays, etc.  That’s why he married me!

I’m apologizing here for sometimes dropping the ball.

But I’ve never forgotten our anniversary or anything that important. Not until this year, apparently.

So today I would just like to say thanks to Facebook for saving my ass. Crisis averted.

Diva Nation

So this past weekend during competition there was a young girl who was really stressed out. And crabby. And mouthing off to her mother. Normally, my job as a teacher gives me some leverage when I tell our students to be nice to their mothers – backstage can sometimes be really crazy and stressful, and I try to remind them that their moms are there to help and have paid a lot of money and invested a lot of time for them to dance. And they usually apologize and try harder to get through the rest of the day.

But this particular 8 year old LIVES AT MY HOUSE.

And at one point during the day it happened. I had a meltdown. Because nothing is worse than being the one with “that kid”. I am a good parent. I stay home with my kids. I volunteer at school and drive the carpool. I read and play games and take my kids on vacation to Disneyworld.  How can this be happening?? My beautiful daughter turned into a diva! In front of everyone! I mean, I’ve seen this happen to other people, but as the tears welled up in my eyes I realized that today it was definitely happening to me. And all eyes were on me as to how I was going to handle it.

So I sent her off with her aunts who made her see the error of her ways. And I took a much needed time-out. And she apologized, and we got through the rest of the day.  But I vowed in that moment to be much less judgmental when I see a kid throwing a tantrum at Target or having a meltdown in the grocery store. Because at the end of the day, sometimes it’s hard being 8, and kids don’t always know how to express their emotions properly. She’s a work in progress and that’s ok. I need to remember that it’s my job to help shape her into who she will be someday. But I guess I would prefer doctor over diva!

Addiction

It all started innocently enough. First it was just a ½ hour of Sesame Street – I mean come on, who doesn’t love Elmo? Then we moved on to Playhouse Disney – Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, Handy Manny, Special Agent OSO – anything that was about a half hour meant I could finally take a shower in peace! Then he discovered Dora and Diego (and he LOVES animals, so he was hooked). And Playhouse Disney turned to Disney Junior, with new shows like Jake and the Neverland Pirates. We read a lot of books at our house, so Curious George is also a big favorite. And suddenly he’s yelling out the names of shows I’ve never even heard as I scroll through the tv guide – Fresh Beat Band, Bubble Guppies and oh God no, not Yo Gabba Gabba.  So its official – my son is addicted to television.

I know this because he started saying things like “I watch 5 more minutes” and “Imagination Movers coming up next”. If I didn’t know better, I swear he knows what is on at different times throughout the day. If he’s being crabby during the hour before dinner he says “I watch Curious George on the couch”. And it’s not just cartoons; he loves watching Wipeout, Minute To Win It and American Idol.

The novelty of the Christmas toys has worn off.  We still have snow on the ground (and it’s 25 degrees!) We have to get outside and play. I thought that damn groundhog said spring was coming?

So today we are taking a much needed break from television. Please pray that I make it to naptime!

The Cookies Are Coming!

The timing of starting this blog is ironic, because the biggest “forgetting” disaster to date actually happened on this very day last year. I am a volunteer for Emma’s brownie troop, and was a “cookie mom” last year, having to pick up and distribute more than 3000 boxes of Girl Scout cookies.  Because I have spent almost every Thursday night for the last 20+ years at the dance studio, having a Thursday night off is a little strange and sometimes hard to come by.  But since the cookie pick-up was earlier in the night, I agreed to come back to the studio later in the night to help with my choreography because it was a competition week.  And one of the other teachers was sick.

As I stood around with some of the other moms after all the cookies had been picked up, we agreed that after all of our hard work (and manual labor) that we indeed deserved a strong drink. And 15 minutes later we were having margueritas at Old Chicago! And I was having so much fun having “mom” time that I FORGOT to go back to the studio!! Really, truly, totally forgot and completely blew it off!

And when they called to see why I was running so late, I practically burst into tears! What kind of person FORGETS to go to work? And then the panic in my head started – Do I need medical attention? Am I really suffering from memory loss or is this just a fluke thing? That is also the day that I vowed to always write things down, and to never assume I would remember anything again!

I am a “cookie mom” again this year, and I am happy to report that I am off from the studio tonight.  And I will pick up the 3400 boxes of cookies that we sold and I will most likely have a marguerita when the night is over. Just without the panic attack!

Me and My Memory

Although in my younger years I used to have an excellent memory most of the time, please don’t ask me when my children started crawling/walking, got teeth, or moved to a big bed.  I have no idea.  I usually try to joke about my “Alzheimer’s”, but in my 40’s it seems that my memory is getting worse every day.  Part of the reason I decided to start a blog was so that I could have some record going forward of important (or even just cute) things my children do in their lives.

When Emma was born I did the typical new mom thing and wrote everything down in her baby book; her doctor’s appointments, how much she weighed, etc. I wrote about her birthday parties, who was President and what she liked to play with best. And then the whirlwind of life took over. But I wasn’t worried because who doesn’t remember important things about their kids’ lives? Apparently, me. And don’t even get me started on Aiden – according to his baby book, he doesn’t even exist!

If it is not written in my planner or on my to-do list, it simply is not going to happen.

Anything from the old list that’s not crossed out goes on the new list. I have a grocery list, a list of home improvements, a list of books I’d like to read, etc. I admit to being completely Type A, so imagine the horror I feel when I know I’ve actually forgotten something really important.

So let me take a minute to publicly apologize here to my hairdresser for forgetting my appointment, to the student I stood up at the studio when I forgot our private lesson, and to my daughter for forgetting I promised to take her to see the Justin Bieber movie on President’s day. I really don’t do it on purpose. And when I tell you to text or email me to remind me, I really mean it. Because if I didn’t write it down in the 10 minutes after our conversation, I’ll be apologizing later on this blog for forgetting it!