Back from a trip with DH to see Celine Dion. I'm actually all caught up on the Chaoseveryday blog. I'm so happy to have those pics done. Now if I can just keep myself from taking any pictures for a few days.
More to come for this blog. I need to write about music camp and sitting next to Celine's #1 fan. (And I don't mean DH. It was some random guy next to me.) Hopefully the week will be good to me and I can get around to finishing all that up.
Sunday, June 26, 2011
Sunday, June 12, 2011
Confessions of a Not So Great Pageant Mom
So I believe I mentioned that M wanted to do the first ever little miss pageant in our town. I wasn't too keen on her doing it just because that isn't really our thing. We are practical every day people and not the pageant type. Some of our best friends, however, are delightful pageant people. My good friend is one of the premier pageant people in our state. She is amazing. Her kids are natural pageant kids. Not only are they gorgeous, they are also super confident and have been working on developing talents.
We have this pageant and on the last day of sign ups M decides she wants to do it. I go down and pay the fee and kind of forget about it. I take M to a couple of workshops and she has a bunch of fun. I found her a talent dress on super clearance at Dillards and we cut her violin piece down to the required time. That was the extent of our preparation. To me, the talent portion is the most important part because it requires years of work and I saw no need more M to practice more than she already does. Not many kids her age practice for an hour or more a day on an instrument.
The night before the pageant M decides she is wearing her old Easter dress (from TWO years ago). (See previous blog!) I still wanted her to wear her sparkly dress that actually fit when we left. I took her down for her interview and realized we forgot her violin of all things. What kind of mom forgets the instrument? That's right, a mom who just isn't good at the pageant thing. When we arrived I knew this wasn't going to be our thing. I wanted M to still be a kid. For heavens sakes, she hasn't even lost all of her teeth yet. I didn't want her fake eyelashes on her or heavy makeup. For dance, it is one thing. It's a costume. To me she was representing herself and I didn't want her playing the part of someone else. We put a little makeup on her and she did her thing. I had asked her on the way there if she would be bummed if she didn't win. She looked at me incredulously and told me she didn't want to win. "I don't want to ride on a float mom." That's my kid. We aren't attention seekers by nature and this pageant wasn't changing anything for my kiddo.
All the girls did their little intro dance and I could see her counting it out. She doesn't do that for classical ballet but when she is out of her element she is a counter. Still, I thought she looked so cute and so, well, her age. A lot of the girls had really high heels on and fancy shmancy this and that but no my girl. the poor kid probably did need new shoes as hers were hand me downs and too small. But she didn't complain. They had a little one inch heel. I could tell she liked the glamorous shoes but she didn't complain one bit.
The talent portion came and I only watched a few. I saw the rest the night before. She was great. I know I am her mom and all, but really if you ask any of my friends, they will tell you I am usually quite unbiased. But my M was really good. She had one of the strongest talents there. But once again, it wasn't flashy and there wasn't a real music type of judge.
She went back and changed into her 'partywear' and didn't change her mind. Just about every kid had on super fancy clothes. My M didn't let that change her mind. She just wanted to be herself. She had to be escorted out by a 16 year old boy and you could tell she didn't quite know what to do about that. Then she stood there for just a minute like a small girl before she gained her composure. It was perfect. DH was so glad she did this. He said he didn't want to see her come out and strut across the stage. She came out and was herself. She looked lovely and young. She was modest and classy without being overly glamorous. I decided she made the right choice in dresses.
When it came time to announce the winners I thought she might have a chance at being in the royalty or whatever it is called. Her talent was so strong. The winners were announced and it came down to the winner and she and her best friend were left. I knew her best friend would win because she was fabulous at the pageant thing. She was well prepared, had the look, the walk, and the confidence. I watched M to see how she would handle it. I was worried she might be sad.
Instead of being sad when they didn't read her name, she got the most ginormous smile. She was so incredibly thrilled for her best buddy. It's like it didn't cross her mind that she didn't win. I told DH that had M placed, I might not have gotten a chance to see such a genuine reaction. It was the best gift of the pageant for me.
I left feeling like I had the most awesome kid in the world. She might be a little stinker occasionally, but I know she is well grounded. I don't think I need to worry nearly as much that she will be a follower as she hits her teenage years. She's just a genuine and selfless kid. In the script there was a part thanking the parents telling them this is a pay day moment to see their kids on stage. The pay day moment for me came at the very end.
I think we are doing something right. It's such hard work raising these kids. M's not terribly difficult, but overall, just about every day is a struggle. We work so hard to instill good values and to teach them that when they do what is right, they can feel happy inside. My baby M, who is not so much of a baby anymore, showed me it's working. She did her best, made good choices, and felt great.
I asked her on the way home if she was done with the pageant thing. (I was sort of hoping not winning would do that to her.) No way! She said it was so fun and she wanted to do it again. UGH!
I love that kid.
We have this pageant and on the last day of sign ups M decides she wants to do it. I go down and pay the fee and kind of forget about it. I take M to a couple of workshops and she has a bunch of fun. I found her a talent dress on super clearance at Dillards and we cut her violin piece down to the required time. That was the extent of our preparation. To me, the talent portion is the most important part because it requires years of work and I saw no need more M to practice more than she already does. Not many kids her age practice for an hour or more a day on an instrument.
The night before the pageant M decides she is wearing her old Easter dress (from TWO years ago). (See previous blog!) I still wanted her to wear her sparkly dress that actually fit when we left. I took her down for her interview and realized we forgot her violin of all things. What kind of mom forgets the instrument? That's right, a mom who just isn't good at the pageant thing. When we arrived I knew this wasn't going to be our thing. I wanted M to still be a kid. For heavens sakes, she hasn't even lost all of her teeth yet. I didn't want her fake eyelashes on her or heavy makeup. For dance, it is one thing. It's a costume. To me she was representing herself and I didn't want her playing the part of someone else. We put a little makeup on her and she did her thing. I had asked her on the way there if she would be bummed if she didn't win. She looked at me incredulously and told me she didn't want to win. "I don't want to ride on a float mom." That's my kid. We aren't attention seekers by nature and this pageant wasn't changing anything for my kiddo.
All the girls did their little intro dance and I could see her counting it out. She doesn't do that for classical ballet but when she is out of her element she is a counter. Still, I thought she looked so cute and so, well, her age. A lot of the girls had really high heels on and fancy shmancy this and that but no my girl. the poor kid probably did need new shoes as hers were hand me downs and too small. But she didn't complain. They had a little one inch heel. I could tell she liked the glamorous shoes but she didn't complain one bit.
The talent portion came and I only watched a few. I saw the rest the night before. She was great. I know I am her mom and all, but really if you ask any of my friends, they will tell you I am usually quite unbiased. But my M was really good. She had one of the strongest talents there. But once again, it wasn't flashy and there wasn't a real music type of judge.
She went back and changed into her 'partywear' and didn't change her mind. Just about every kid had on super fancy clothes. My M didn't let that change her mind. She just wanted to be herself. She had to be escorted out by a 16 year old boy and you could tell she didn't quite know what to do about that. Then she stood there for just a minute like a small girl before she gained her composure. It was perfect. DH was so glad she did this. He said he didn't want to see her come out and strut across the stage. She came out and was herself. She looked lovely and young. She was modest and classy without being overly glamorous. I decided she made the right choice in dresses.
When it came time to announce the winners I thought she might have a chance at being in the royalty or whatever it is called. Her talent was so strong. The winners were announced and it came down to the winner and she and her best friend were left. I knew her best friend would win because she was fabulous at the pageant thing. She was well prepared, had the look, the walk, and the confidence. I watched M to see how she would handle it. I was worried she might be sad.
Instead of being sad when they didn't read her name, she got the most ginormous smile. She was so incredibly thrilled for her best buddy. It's like it didn't cross her mind that she didn't win. I told DH that had M placed, I might not have gotten a chance to see such a genuine reaction. It was the best gift of the pageant for me.
I left feeling like I had the most awesome kid in the world. She might be a little stinker occasionally, but I know she is well grounded. I don't think I need to worry nearly as much that she will be a follower as she hits her teenage years. She's just a genuine and selfless kid. In the script there was a part thanking the parents telling them this is a pay day moment to see their kids on stage. The pay day moment for me came at the very end.
I think we are doing something right. It's such hard work raising these kids. M's not terribly difficult, but overall, just about every day is a struggle. We work so hard to instill good values and to teach them that when they do what is right, they can feel happy inside. My baby M, who is not so much of a baby anymore, showed me it's working. She did her best, made good choices, and felt great.
I asked her on the way home if she was done with the pageant thing. (I was sort of hoping not winning would do that to her.) No way! She said it was so fun and she wanted to do it again. UGH!
I love that kid.
Friday, June 10, 2011
Almost another month
Things have changed in the last month. The major change is that the kids are out of school. This makes a HUGE difference. I think they like it for the most part. They aren't thrilled with the extra chore everyday. They also would most likely find less than loving words about their mom schoolwork. But heck kids, this is my chance to help mold you more.
It finally stopped snowing here. I'm so glad. Seeing fresh snow at the end of May was CRAZY. One ski resort is saying it will be open for July 4th. My garden is most likely going to be less than stellar due to the cold weather. But we'll live :)
My dad is visiting right now. My cousin died in a small plane crash last week. My father came up for the funeral. Actually, he didn't go to the funeral. He went to the viewing and the grave services. It was a crazy thing as my father's family isn't super close. None of my father's siblings except his brother (my cousin's dad) were at the funeral. I guess some of them went to the viewing the night before. So my family goes and instead of sitting with the family like we usually do at funerals, we sit at the back, near the back row of a very huge service. I look to my left and I think, "I swear that lady is my cousin." I didn't have the guts to say, "Hey, are you my cousin?" So instead I wondered for the whole funeral. Then, I looked her up on facebook. I was right. I guess she must have felt a little uncomfortable too. It's unfortunate because I remember good times with my cousin as a kid. He was born less than two months after me and was my closest cousin on my dad's side. It was horribly sad watching his wife take his three small children to the casket to say goodbye at the grave.
So it go me to thinking a bit. I'm so not ever going to trust statistics. How many people have their family member killed in a plane crash? (Okay... so maybe more than you think...) How many people have had someone try to kidnap them (that was me... but it's a story for another day)? How many people have lived a couple of streets away from and have known an 11 year old kid who was kidnapped and never returned? How many people have two babies that are stillborn from different things? How many people have a great friend who survived an amniotic fluid embolism (this may be the rarest of things)? And the list goes on.... It's why I never believe people when they say things can't happen or won't most likely happen. I'm wondering if I am more aware of this just because I am a bit of a control freak by nature.... No missy, you are really NOT in control.
Next week is super busy. DH originally took the week off work so I could be somewhere with Miss M. And then he found out that court time (not for him... more as a witness) trumped vacation. So I have been busy finding sitters for the times I need.
T had a swim meet today. It wasn't his finest. I don't care if it's June. It's still cold when it's 50 something degrees outside. He was about to shiver out of his jammers while up on the blocks.
M is in a pageant this weekend. It's killing me. I don't want to be a pageant mom. I didn't really buy a bunch of stuff for it. I just figured she would use what she had. I found out tonight, however, that we had a little misunderstanding. I assumed she would wear her Christmas dress. She wanted to wear her Easter dress form two years ago. It's her pageant and if she wants to wear a dress that is too small then so be it. I had to smile when she said she didn't need sparkles like all of the other girls. She just wants to be her. How can I blame her on that one. She is such an awesome kid. She doesn't care what anyone else thinks. We went to her tech rehearsal tonight and I snuck a peak of her in the wings. She was giggling away with her friends. It made my day to see her so happy.
Today was also busy because I helped sort things for a yard sale fundraiser. Boy oh boy, over 4 hours of sun is a lot on the arms. I am officially toasted!
Lastly, tomorrow is my anniversary. 18 years have passed and we are still together. We are passing on the gifts as we had to buy a new washer just last night. A new front loader is coming my way.
There's more to say but I am too tired to do it. I've got to get some sleep. Tomorrow will be really busy.
It finally stopped snowing here. I'm so glad. Seeing fresh snow at the end of May was CRAZY. One ski resort is saying it will be open for July 4th. My garden is most likely going to be less than stellar due to the cold weather. But we'll live :)
My dad is visiting right now. My cousin died in a small plane crash last week. My father came up for the funeral. Actually, he didn't go to the funeral. He went to the viewing and the grave services. It was a crazy thing as my father's family isn't super close. None of my father's siblings except his brother (my cousin's dad) were at the funeral. I guess some of them went to the viewing the night before. So my family goes and instead of sitting with the family like we usually do at funerals, we sit at the back, near the back row of a very huge service. I look to my left and I think, "I swear that lady is my cousin." I didn't have the guts to say, "Hey, are you my cousin?" So instead I wondered for the whole funeral. Then, I looked her up on facebook. I was right. I guess she must have felt a little uncomfortable too. It's unfortunate because I remember good times with my cousin as a kid. He was born less than two months after me and was my closest cousin on my dad's side. It was horribly sad watching his wife take his three small children to the casket to say goodbye at the grave.
So it go me to thinking a bit. I'm so not ever going to trust statistics. How many people have their family member killed in a plane crash? (Okay... so maybe more than you think...) How many people have had someone try to kidnap them (that was me... but it's a story for another day)? How many people have lived a couple of streets away from and have known an 11 year old kid who was kidnapped and never returned? How many people have two babies that are stillborn from different things? How many people have a great friend who survived an amniotic fluid embolism (this may be the rarest of things)? And the list goes on.... It's why I never believe people when they say things can't happen or won't most likely happen. I'm wondering if I am more aware of this just because I am a bit of a control freak by nature.... No missy, you are really NOT in control.
Next week is super busy. DH originally took the week off work so I could be somewhere with Miss M. And then he found out that court time (not for him... more as a witness) trumped vacation. So I have been busy finding sitters for the times I need.
T had a swim meet today. It wasn't his finest. I don't care if it's June. It's still cold when it's 50 something degrees outside. He was about to shiver out of his jammers while up on the blocks.
M is in a pageant this weekend. It's killing me. I don't want to be a pageant mom. I didn't really buy a bunch of stuff for it. I just figured she would use what she had. I found out tonight, however, that we had a little misunderstanding. I assumed she would wear her Christmas dress. She wanted to wear her Easter dress form two years ago. It's her pageant and if she wants to wear a dress that is too small then so be it. I had to smile when she said she didn't need sparkles like all of the other girls. She just wants to be her. How can I blame her on that one. She is such an awesome kid. She doesn't care what anyone else thinks. We went to her tech rehearsal tonight and I snuck a peak of her in the wings. She was giggling away with her friends. It made my day to see her so happy.
Today was also busy because I helped sort things for a yard sale fundraiser. Boy oh boy, over 4 hours of sun is a lot on the arms. I am officially toasted!
Lastly, tomorrow is my anniversary. 18 years have passed and we are still together. We are passing on the gifts as we had to buy a new washer just last night. A new front loader is coming my way.
There's more to say but I am too tired to do it. I've got to get some sleep. Tomorrow will be really busy.
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