Is Everybody Crazy, or Is it Just Me?

A wife and mother who finds that life is just strange so often!

Thursday, November 30, 2006

It's beginning to look a lot like spring?


Here we are in our second holiday season in Georgia and I just can't get used to it. There is something very strange about hanging your Christmas lights in a tee shirt and shorts when it is 70 degrees outside. The carols are on the radio, the tree is up, and all I can think is that I wish the pool was open! A big part of the problem may be the fact that we are going VERY light on gifts this year so I have not been holiday shopping. I will have to make the trip to the mall for the annual pictures with Santa, but I won't be doing much shopping.

As most of you know, I have 3 boys. You may be wondering how I am able to 'skip' Christmas this year. We sat the boys down and talked to them about the holidays. We gave the choice between the usual holiday gifts or a trip. They went crazy for the trip idea. I can't say that I was very surprised. The simple fact is that they have plenty of toys and video games already. In fact, many of the Christmas and Birthday gifts from last year are still in the boxes. Even with the bigger rooms that they have down here, there is only so much stuff a kid can have. So, we decided to go to Walt Disney World instead.

There will be a few gifts for Hanukkah and Christmas, after all it is the baby's first holiday and my 6 year old still believes in Santa, but we are keeping it very light. I thought that maybe the boys would start to get bummed out as we got closer to the holidays and they realized that they weren't getting a lot of gifts. I have been pleasantly surprised by the fact that they seem more excited about the trip than they ever were about Christmas morning. Christmas day may seem a little blah without all the gifts and no out of town guests, but we will have fun planning for our trip. Also, I think we will have a traditional Jewish Christmas with Chinese food and a movie.

So, it isn't quite Christmas down here in the land of peaches, but we are making the best of it.

Tuesday, November 28, 2006

Whew!

I managed to survive Thanksgiving. Actually, it wasn't nearly as bad as I thought it might be. My mom and dad arrived on Tuesday afternoon and settled themselves into my 12 year old son's room. I had spent most of Sunday and Monday scrubbing the house, and it was ready for guests. My son's room is perfect for overnight guests. It is huge and it has it's own full bath. My mom and dad brought a bunch of stuff with them, but it was mostly consumables, like turnips and wine. They were only here for an hour or so before I was able to escape for a hair appointment. My hubby took the whole week off and I had to take advantage of the chance to get my hair done without taking my 9 month old. By the time I got home it was too late to cook so we did the Chinese thing. After dinner my mom, my 6 year old, and I made the cranberry bread and the sweet potatoes. If anyone wants a great sweet potato recipe, mine came out great! We even managed to do it all without fighting, the wine was flowing already! Day one down, no casualties.

On Wednesday we had some errands to run. My mom and I trapsed all over town picking up last minute items. We were not alone. I think everyone within a 50 mile radius was out on Wednesday. We managed to go to the bank, Walmart, the liquor store (for more wine), Linens 'n Things, and to the butcher to get the 22+ pound turkey. BTW, I highly recommend a fresh turkey. They are much better than the frozen kind and you don't need a whole shelf in the fridge to defrost it for three days. I just throw it in the cooler with a bunch of ice and it is fine until the next day. Once we were done with our errands we came home to start baking the pies. Again, my 6 year old pulled out his apron and helped out. He looked so cute. We made 2 pumpkin pies, 1 apple, 1 apple/cranberry, and 1 coconut custard. Way too many pies. Then, my mom and dad agreed to sit for the boys and my hubby and I went out for dinner and a movie! It was so nice to have some alone time in the midst of so much family time. We saw the new Bond movie and it was great! We got home in time to say goodnight to my parents and watch just a bit of TV. It sounds like another good day. But, around 1 am the baby woke up, screaming. He proceeded to scream and cry most of the night. The only way he would settle down is if I held him. I got almost no sleep, but no biggie, I didn't have anything going on the next day.

Finally, at around 6 am I gave my hubby the baby so I could try to get a little sleep. Around 7:45 I hear a knock at the door. I looked at my husband and mumbled, "There is no way your parents could be here this early." Then I heard the knock again and stumbled down the stairs cursing the whole way. I open the door and what do I see, my sister! She flew in from Colorado and rented a car. It was a complete surprise. I kept saying oh my god until my mom came to see what the problem was. She was convinced there was some sort of tragedy. Once everyone got done squealing with delight over sis's surprise, we were up. I started to get to work on all the food while my mom made coffee and breakfast. The in-laws showed up at the much more reasonable noon hour. From that moment on, it was so crazy. Gifts, hugs, food, drinks (and more drinks) until late that night. On the bright side, not one real fight.

Everyone was finally gone by Sunday afternoon and life began to return to normal. The kids and I started to put up all the holiday decorations. On Monday I cleaned the house. And now I can breathe again. Well, until Christmas anyway!

Wednesday, November 15, 2006

'Twas the Week Before Thanksgiving








'Twas the week before Thanksgiving,
and all I was thinking,
Is how will I get through this
without heavy drinking.

My parents are packing
and loading the car.
Ready to drive down
from Jersey afar.

My in-laws are flying
along with Cousin Harry,
And all of the presents
that they can carry.

Then they will arrive
with stuff in their hands
and they'll throw it all down
wherever it lands.

While I am cooking and cleaning
and hitting the booze,
They'll traipse all over my house
and won't take off their shoes.

My brother-in-law and sister
are the smartest of all.
They don't come to celebrate,
they just have to call.

We'll sit down to dinner,
and offer our thanks.
Then my mother will point out
all of my mistakes.

The turkey is salty,
the stuffing too mushy,
the beans overcooked,
and pie is too runny.

Then after the meal,
we will clear off the table.
Mom always helps but mother-in-law,
never seems able.

My husband will watch football
and talk with his dad,
while pretending my mother-in-law
is not really so bad.

My parents will argue.
They always do.
My dad's always wrong (or so says mom)
but that is nothing new.

Then we'll gather around
and all play a game.
The children will be so happy
that everyone came.

In the blink of an eye,
they'll be on their way,
not to be seen
until the next holiday.


Tuesday, November 14, 2006

Week One


I promise that this is not going to become a blog about my diet, but I do need to talk a bit about my first week. I lost 6 1/2 pounds in one week! Not only did I lose the weight, but I feel great too. I am not hungry, I am not cranky, and I do not feel like I am missing anything. I really thought that I was going to go crazy without bread and pasta, but it isn't that hard. I have even made pasta and biscuits for my kids without eating any at all. We finally got the rest of the Halloween candy out of the house, so that is one less temptation. But even when it was here, I only cheated once or twice. How cool is a diet where you can even cheat a little bit and still lose over 5 pounds in one week?

I haven't even cleaned out my house of any and all 'bad' foods because I have kids who like to have snacks. The cool thing is that I didn't need to clear the cabinets. I get to eat enough meals and snacks that I am not craving the kid's junk. I even get to have desserts. There are these recipes for ricotta cheese desserts that are very tasty. Also, I can have sugar-free ice pops, jello, and pudding. When I am dying for something crunchy, I reach for a handful of nuts. It is amazing how much more filling the nuts are than a whole bowl of chips or pretzels. I am eating lovely omelets for breakfast each morning, salad or leftovers for lunch, and meat or fish and veggies for dinner. When you throw in a few snacks each day and dessert, there is just no way to be hungry on this plan.

Rosie, you really are an inspiration. You took charge of your body and your health and made it work. You didn't go for quick fix surgery or pills, you did it the old fashioned way and I think it is great. I will definitely hit you up for recipes. If anyone else out there has great low-fat, good carb recipes, just send them along! BTW, I made a South Beach Eggplant Rollitini the other night that was great!

This will be my last diet blog for awhile. I promise to move on to more interesting topics, like how am I going to survive Thanksgiving with my parents, my in-laws, my husband's 'special' cousin, and my own 3 kids without killing someone. It may be a South Beach no-no, but I think I will need a bit of help from the vino next week!

Friday, November 10, 2006

South Beach Love!


OK, I know that everyone has done the whole diet thing to death, but I have to talk about this. I started the South Beach diet on Monday. I know that it is not a new diet, in fact I did once before. I started on Monday and I am already down 5 pounds. Not too shabby. It is the easiest diet to follow. You can eat until you are full, you get meals and snacks, you can even have dessert! The first two weeks are pretty restrictive on carbs. The only carbs you can have are in veggies. No bread, no pasta, no candy, no sugar, and no booze. I thought it would be much harder than it is, but after a couple of days, I was fine. The other restrictions are on high fat foods. It is kind of a combo between Atkins philosophy and low fat philosophy. It seems to make sense.

I am not a fad dieter. The only fad-like diet I have ever done was the master cleanse (the lemonade diet that Robin Quivers did) which was awesome, but you can't do it while you are nursing. I don't think of South Beach as a fad diet. It was developed by a doctor who was trying to help his patients with heart issues. The diet is more about improving your blood chemistry than about loosing weight. It all revolves around avoiding highly processed foods and eating items that are as close to their natural state as possible. When you think about it, it makes sense. What is healthier, a slice of white bread or a slice of multi-grain bread, an apple or a glass of apple juice? I hope to be able to ride this diet to a new lifestyle, not just for me, but for my family as well. Then maybe I can say goodbye to the fat three kids have put on my ass!
BTW, Rosie is a big influence behind me deciding to do something. If you don't know her, check out her blog, From the Neck Up!

Tuesday, November 07, 2006

Time to Participate!


That's right folks, it is the first Tuesday of November, time to go vote! I can't believe how many people don't plan to vote today. Think of the number of people who have died trying to get the right to vote. Think of all the people around the world who would love the chance to have a say in their government. It is your duty, it is your responsibility, it is your privilege to go vote!
This is such an important year. Polls show that the majority of Americans are unhappy with the direction our country is heading. If you want to see change you have to make it happen. I am not going to pretend to be a friend of the GOP, but I don't care how you vote as long as you do it! It is pouring rain here in the ATL, but I will still go out to do my part. Remember, you can't complain about the government if you don't vote! So vote or shut up!!!
For all you young men out there (I know that there are soooooo many of you reading this blog), just keep in mind that the draft is a real possibility. The economy, the environment, terrorism, education, etc. There are way more reasons to vote than not to vote!
Happy Election Day!

Friday, November 03, 2006

My Ungrateful Children

I am a mom. I love my kids. Really, I do. But, they have a tendency to drive me round the bend. I spend my days taking care of my house and kids. I clean their rooms, sort their laundry, scrub their toilets (I have boys who have no aim at all!), pack their lunches, cook their dinners, drive to their sporting events and practices, help with homework, cuddle them when they fall down, read them stories, wax their eyebrows (my oldest has a serious unibrow issue), break up their fights, e-mail their teachers, play endless board games, wipe their asses (and noses and hands, and faces), rock them, sing to them, and any number of typical mom things. For the most part, I do not complain about doing these things (I do whine about the pee-crusted toilets). I have great kids, and they do say please and thank you. They probably say thank you more than most kids.

Out of my three beautiful boys, do you think one of them could say mama as their first word? No way! For the oldest it was cookie, totally understandable since my grandmother started giving him Vienna Fingers when he was 3 months old. For my middle son, it was dada. Also understandable since he has always been his daddy's boy. The two of them used to sleep together in the recliner, my hubby would hold him like a football, it was sooooo cute! But just a couple of days ago, my baby, my sweetie, my (probably) last child, said......dada! I am with my baby all the time, he and I are like frick and frack. Everywhere I go, he goes. I spend my days watching Noggin and playing on the floor. I am totally in love with the little cutiepants. Most mornings his dad is gone before he wakes up. Most nights his dad gets home only an hour or so before bed. He does spend time with daddy on the weekends, but not nearly the amount of hours that we spend together.

Would it have killed him to give me a mama? I know that the d sound is easier than the m sound. I know that most babies say dada before they say mama. I know that it is not personal. I know that he loves me. But I really would have loved to hear that mama.