Confused

Today when I dropped The Boy off at preschool, Miss Melissa pulled a slip of paper out of an envelope and handed it to me. I saw that it had the names of all the children on it.

"This is if you want The Boy to participate in the Valentine's Day card exchange. We will be having a party that day, as well. Some of the parents don't want to participate, but I figured you were one that would."

I taught third grade for 7 years, and I never had a child not participate in Valentine's Day. I had children excused from Christmas activities, but that was a religious issue.

Is there something about Valentine's Day that I'm missing?

Anyone?

House Hunting

It goes from exciting to frustrating to "I'm done" in no time at all.

Actually, in about 5 hours.

We want to be on the outskirts of Big City, because we want a few acres. So, we started looking to the northeast where you can get a 4 bedroom house on 20 acres for anywhere from $250-300,000. That's exactly what we were looking for - except you have to haul water and they are heated with electric baseboard. That equates to pain in the butt and expensive. And, it meant being on the road for probably an hour each way to and from work. Both of us. In separate cars. Separate cars that both get 15 or so miles to the gallon. Yikes.

So, then we head the other direction. Southwest. Beautiful homes on acreage, again with hauled water and propane heat. Not quite as far from jobs, though. So, that's still an option I suppose.

Going west to a small suburb of Big City we have to compromise on acreage. A nice home on 4 acres with an additional large outbuilding (a must) is around $300,000 with city water and sewer, and much closer to jobs. Bingo.

We are just 5 years from paying off our house. Now we might be starting over. Well, not quite because we have a lot of equity in our house. We bought it at a very good time, before everyone wanted to live here. It's still hard for me. The good part is we would be much closer to our parents and we would never have the opportunity to upgrade in housing if we stay here. Well, I shouldn't say never because that's not true. It would just cost a lot more money.

Change is hard for me. If it's right, everything will fall into place.

I just hope I don't fall to pieces in the meantime.

Skincare: His POV

I have always taken good care of my skin, even back when all my girlfriends slept in their makeup. I still know women who do that. One, because she can't stand for her husband to see her without it. They've been married for probably 25 years now. Maybe that is the recipe for a successful marriage - never let him see you without makeup. Then again, maybe not, seeing as how he's propositioned me on more than one occasion.

Anyway.

I used to use Cl1nique faithfully, but recently switched to O1l of Ol@y. I like it, but am always on the lookout for new products, both skincare and makeup.

I've mentioned my fascination with those shopping channels. When I go to bed at around 10:00 I flip back and forth between the two shopping channels on our cable network. Often they are spotlighting skincare products.

I was talking to MFH about this the other night. One I was particularly interested in was called Ph1l0s0phy. I summarized the products for him along with the pricing and wondered aloud if it's really that good and would it be beneficial to try it. (Even though if you used ALL those products? I think the end result would be fantastic because you would have filled in all the wrinkles with one cream on top of another!)

His response?

"It seems to me that it would be cheaper to just have a facelift every 5 or 10 years."

Neeeaaarrr Faaaaarrrrrrr

Which muppet did that on Sesame Street. Was it Grover? Animal? Sesame Street was after my time. You'd think I would have paid attention since my nephews watched it constantly, but I was probably on the phone yakking with a boyfriend instead of watching them. I used to love talking on the phone. Now? Not so much.

I've been wearing reading glasses with my contact lenses with alarming frequency in the past few months. Thank God glasses are so "in" right now. Have you noticed? They are an accessory as much as purses and jewelry! I love it! But wearing contacts and glasses? Kind of redundant.

At my appointment in late December, I asked about bifocal contact lenses. My very nice doc gave me a pair to try. She did warn me that the near correction wouldn't be as good as with glasses. Lo and behold, I still had to wear reading glasses at work. Damn. So she gave me another pair with stronger near vision, but told me my distance vision would be compromised, and it is. Not bad, but noticeable. And they don't come in colors. Huge drawback.

My new bifocal glasses rock. They are so stylish. But let me tell you, you have to point your nose at what you want to look at because the peripheral vision is blurred. To the point of getting a headache blurred. And the lenses are small, so the transition from distance to near vision is a very fine line.

It all just makes me feel so old. Do they say eyesight is the first thing to go?

Near or far. What's more important? I suppose if you are out driving anywhere in my vicinity, you might choose far.

The Nerve!

I am quick to react. I always have been. I need to learn to think things through.

I deleted an anonymous comment on my last post because it pissed me off. I should have left it there in order to properly belittle the ass.

If you leave me a comment and refuse to identify yourself, I have to assume you are a spineless little dick. If you don't like what I have to say on my blog, don't read me. If you don't like how my - oh, let's say ankles - look, don't inspect my picture. If you want to challenge me to a battle of wits, don't come empty handed.

This is in no way referring to you, dear Carla. I know with certainty that you are not a spineless little dick. And, you always sign your comments.

Moving on.

I keep getting invited to move to the new Blogger. Should I?

I'm just a bill

In my mind I can see the little rolled up piece of paper singing it's way to becoming a law on Capitol Hill. Was that Schoolhouse Rock? It's funny how things like that stick with you for so many years after the fact.

The Superintendent of Public Instruction for the state of Montana has introduced a bill to endorse full-day kindergarten, citing that these children achieve greater success later on in school. It's offered in some districts already at a cost to the taxpayers of that district. This bill, already passed throught the Senate, will provide state funding to those districts that choose to offer full-day kindergarten. It will not be mandatory. It is expected to reach opposition in the House, probably due to the rising taxes it will create.

Our district currently offers a half-day program. I am fine with that. Honestly, from my teaching days which were forever ago, I can recall that half-day is enough for most children. It's a good transition into the idea of school. Sure, The Boy attends preschool all day, but it's not learning all day. There is a lot of non-structured play included in his day.

I can see the upside to this idea for a lot of people. No more daycare expense.

Maybe I'm just having trouble letting go. Right now, The Boy still seems so little. All that changes when they start school. Before I know it, he'll be out the door to college.

Another mother I was visiting with at hockey last night affirmed these feelings for me. Her son turned six yesterday. I said I can't believe how quickly time goes. Her reply? "Just wait until he starts school."

I am pro-choice

Not as a form of birth control.

But because we all know that those in need -for whatever reason- will seek out the option of abortion, and it needs to be safe.

gas

I am not yet of the age -thank God- where, as a woman, you can burp or fart or say whatever you want (although I am often guilty of this one anyway) in public without anyone raising an eyebrow.

I know it isn't even ladylike to talk about it. And in some circles I might be considered a lady. Some very loose circles.

But, I live in a house full of testosterone. We talk about bodily functions. A lot.

MFH says life gives him gas.

The Boy can literally fart at will.

Joel has never farted in front of me, but I hear through the testosterone grapevine that he can really rip one off.

And the dog? Let's not go there. He is old.

Lately I've been really gassy, too. I've been working out daily for 30 minutes when I wake up in the morning. I'd like to think the toxins are working themselves out of my body in this manner. The men in my family are amused by this excuse. They are not, however, amused by my, um, condition.

Like my dear departed grandmother used to say. "You can't sweat 'em out between your ribs!"

Dear Parents:

I love getting newsletter updates from The Boy's preschool. He's pretty good at conveying the contents of his day to us in our dinnertime conversations, but it's always good to see things from a different point of view.

Naturally I visit with the teachers during drop off and pick up, but some things are just easier to say on paper, such as the following:

"We have tried to work individually with each family's situation regarding payment of tuition, but some of you continue to fall behind and some of you are not paying at all."

WTF?

I didn't know that paying tuition was optional. Or that you could maybe skip a month because something important came up, like Christmas. It's just something I do automatically on the first and fifteenth of the month.

I feel bad for these ladies because what do you do? Kick the kids out? Punish the children for the sins of the parents, so to speak?

Why would people have children if they cannot afford the costs associated with having children?

When I asked about it this morning, this was the reply - "When I started this business the first thing I was told by the state agency in charge of childcare was this - You will find that childcare is the last expense that will get paid and the first expense people will skip if money is tight."

These are the people in charge of caring for our children. No wonder there are so many bad caregivers out there.

Germ o phobe

Lately The Boy has become obsessed with germs.

It is partly my fault, as I have bottles of hand sanitizer everywhere.

On Saturday while waiting in the endless checkout line at W@lmart, I suggested that he and I share a soda.

He got tears in his eyes and said he didn't want to share a soda with me. He didn't want to get my germs.

In all fairness to him, I have been sick.

In all fairness to me, I got it from him.

Baby, it's cold outside!

I know, I know. It's winter in Montana. But even we feel the bite when it's 20 below zero upon waking in the morning.

This morning it was only 10 below. Woohoo! A heat wave!

Thank heavens for the sunshine. It's still dang cold, but at least you have the illusion of warmth. That's one of my favorite things about living in this valley.

One would hope that this extreme cold would freeze any and all bugs and germs that are inhabiting one's body.

Not so much.

Beans

Being the mother of a little boy is so much more than I ever imagined it would be. Take this, for instance:

"Mama, when I grow up I'm going to grow two babies."

"Really? Why two?"

"Because I have two beans down here."

Sometimes it's hard not to laugh.

Solutions

Yesterday The Boy had a better day than Friday, meaning he did get to have recess. But, he still had "some troubles" as he says. We looked at the super cool stickers I got for the calendar after we got home, and I am hoping it will entice him to do better today. He immediately turned on his listening ears when we got into the car this morning, so he is aware of the problem and the solution.

One amazing thing about The Boy is that he'll tell me of his troubles. Nobody has to tell on him. He readily fesses up, and he doesn't lie. That's admirable, I think.

We made progress at home with regard to bedtime meltdowns. MFH had a great idea, and it appeared to work at least this one time. We got a clock and at 7:45 showed The Boy when it would be 8:00. Then it would be time for jammies but he could come back out and have a snack. That worked fine and he really watched the clock. As he was snacking we told him that at 8:30 it would be time to brush teeth and have a story before bed. Again he watched the clock, and off he went without protest. It was a very pleasant evening.

Ever since The Boy was a baby he's had some type of background noise to sleep by. We have a radio/cd player on his dresser and lately he's been falling asleep to his favorite song.

Cr@zy Tr@in.

By 0zzy.

That might account for his nightmares, the little metal head.

We're just so proud.

Naughty List

It's a good thing Christmas is over, or my son would definitely have gotten coal in his stocking this year.

Last Thursday his teacher indicated that he had to be told things several times before he would listen. I know of what she speaks. We have the same problem at home lately. On Friday he had to miss recess. He had to be told seven times to do something. When the teacher threatened to call me? He said, "My mom won't do anything to me."

Whoa.

We've been seeing this problem at home, too, though not to this degree. He and his dad have been butting heads a lot lately. His dad is a little less tolerant of misbehaviors and rides him a little harder than me.

I came up with this solution. The Boy gets $5 a week for allowance. Everyday when I pick him up from school I will ask for a progress report for that day. If he listens he will get a sticker on the calendar. If he doesn't listen, no sticker, and one dollar less for allowance that week. Allowance is very important to The Boy. We don't buy toys for him. This is his means to purchase what he wants so badly every week. Plus, he's learning a valuable lesson about money. He saves up until he can buy what he wants, and he is remorseful of frivolous purchases.

If he doesn't listen at home he loses a privilege - his choice of Xb0x, television, or hockey for the next day. The listening meltdown usually occurs at bedtime.

We are wondering, oh wise internets, if this is an age thing, a post-Christmas thing, or just plain being overtired from hockey? Or all of the above?

Dreams

The Boy woke up last night with "nightmares". It happens about once a week. He never says what happens in them, and he always settles down if I lay with him just a few minutes. I wonder, though, what would give a four year old boy nightmares. Maybe he watches too much P0wer R@ngers?

In other dreams, MFH woke up this morning to tell me that in his dreams we found the house of our dreams. We did have to compromise, though, for 2.5 acres instead of 5. Darn it anyway. I had my heart set on those extra acres. I can't wait to have a bigger house with bigger rooms.

Have I mentioned how much I love the holidays? This is not just your average love affair - no sir. I LOVE them. I am giddy from Halloween through New Year's Day. And then it hits me.

It's over.

Blah.

And now I am faced with un-decorating. I'm ready for it, but not looking forward to it. My small house is full - cluttered almost - with holiday cheer. Every room has something to remind me of how much I love the season. I'm already looking forward to next year. I've even purchased my first gift. Sick, I know.

I am hoping that this house MFH dreamed of can better accommodate my illness.

He's got game

The Boy had his first organized hockey play this weekend and was it ever cute to watch. At practice they do drills and more drills, so we can see improvement in his skills, but you wonder if they'll know what to do when thrown into a game. Not to worry. On Saturday he played with his own Termite group for 4 hours.

Ah! Got it!



He shoots...
and scores!

On Sunday he got to play with the big kids for two hours, because only three from his group showed up.


Warming up to take a shot.....



and skating away - no goal.

The players on Sunday were anywhere from 6 to 8 years old, and they were so good with the little guys. It was a big weekend for my 4 year old!

Happy New Year!

We rang in 2007 quietly at the Stiletto household. I was just happy to make it to midnight for a New Year's kiss and a Happy New Year from MFH. We used to host a kid friendly party, but decided to leave it to someone else this year, which didn't happen. Shocking, I know.

I don't usually make New Year's resolutions, because I try to live a healthy lifestyle to the fullest and be the best person I can be most of the time. I am excited for 2007, though, because I am hoping it is a year of change for us. I hope we can move to a new community. I hope we have the financial stability to enable me to work only part time, as I enjoyed this past week more than I ever would have imagined.

I also hope some things don't change - like the good health of my family and friends.

I hope 2007 is all you want it to be.