Happy New Year!

I am sitting here with a glass of Pinot Grigio, hoping I can stay awake until midnight and slightly floored that we are saying goodbye to the 00s. It has been a great year so, I am sad to see it go. Here's to hoping that 2010 is even better.

Thank you to my loyal readers. I really appreciate you stopping by each week to read my little blog. Wishing you all a very happy and healthy New Year!

Modish Mamma out!

WTF... I Don't Feel Bad For You!

It was Boxing Day and I was curled up on the couch reading an E-Novel, rather enjoying myself. Hubby was complaining that there was nothing to watch on TV; he wanted to rent a movie for us to watch. I was having none of it as I was into my little story, I had no desire to stop reading to watch a movie.

So, I grabbed the remote to find something for him to watch so he would shut the hell up and leave me alone. I flipped around and decided I could appease him with Buy Me on HGTV. Luckily, he was mollified and finally shut-up settled down to watch it. I thought I was home free and would be able to keep reading. Only problem was, I found myself completely distracted by the show and ended up watching it with him.

The show was chronicling the woes of a couple that had purchased a little home in the country but had subsequently torn it down to build a new custom home and, in the process of building the new home, went way over budget. The end of the build brought home a hard reality for them, they could not afford the new home and would have to sell it.

The woman was giving a tour of her dream home and was breaking into sobs because there "was so much of herself in it" and she "could not bare to part with it". Clearly, it was having an emotional toll on her.

You might actually be able to feel bad for her; it is easy to understand people getting a little over their heads when building a home and realizing they could not actually afford their dream. I could drum up a little sympathy for such people.

But this woman, I could not feel bad for her. In fact, the tour of her home followed by her annoyingly contrite tears, really pissed me off!

Why you ask?

Take a guess at how over budget these people went? Now take you guess and add several zeros.

These schmucks went 1.4 million dollars over budget. What was supposed to be a $800,000 home, ended up being a 2.2 million dollar home.

WTF! Are you seriously trying to tell me you did not realize that you overspent by 1.4 million dollars!

Sorry lady... but I don't feel sorry for you. If you are that dumb, then I really think you have no hope and may as well crawl into a hole and not move for the rest of time.

Seriously, some people. WTF right?

Top 25 Things I Did This Decade

In case you have been living in a cave and did not notice, it is almost the end of the year and the end of the decade. To memorialize this momentous occasion and, because I am slightly egocentric and just shallow enough to assume that anyone gives a crap, I am going to do a list of the top 25 things I did this decade.

BTW, these are not in order of importance. Enjoy!

25. I went University and even though I never finished, (I spent 3.5 years there and I am still 8 classes short of my B.Sc.) I learned a great deal about myself. Mostly I learned that I don't want to be a psychologist which is kinda ironic as that was my major... oh well. I am so sure my Associate Degree in Psych will come in handy one day (not).

24. I gained 65 pounds. You are probably thinking: Why the hell are you proud of that? I'll tell you why... because before I gained that weight I was a skinny, shallow, waif who thought the best thing I had to offer in the world was my skinny ass. Getting fat was the best life choice I ever unconsciously made.

23. I truly got to know and became best friends with my older brother. It is funny how family tragedy can bring people together. Good things can come out of bad circumstances.

22. I channeled my inner Brooke Shields and I grew my eyes brows back in. For over a decade I was guilty of over plucking. At one point, back in the 90s, I had eyebrows that looked like Spock; it was ghastly. In the 00s I went for super arched and thin eyebrows that were equally as hideous. Finally, earlier this year, I put those tweezers down and I grew my brows back in. I still pluck... but only a little and all I can say is, what and improvement.

21. Started my blog and rediscovered my love of writing. Like Duh... why did I go to school for Psychology again? Perhaps I needed to spend $20,000 + on tuition so I could psychoanalyze myself to determine I loved to write. *Banging head on table*

20. Gave birth to my two handsome and amazing little boys. I'll spare you the they complete me crap. But they are damn cool little guys.

19. Met, fell in love with and married the love of my life, my Husband Kevin. You rock babe.

18. I lost 45 pounds. After the birth of my second little boy earlier this year I hit the gym like never before and I have never felt better in my life! My ass will never be skinny again but it don't look so bad if I do say so myself ;).

17. I switched from a PC to a Mac. Three years, one Mac desktop, one MacBook and zero viruses later and I am deeply satisfied with my choice.

16. I learned to cook. I learned from the best: Giada, Martha, Ina, Ricardo, Jamie and Rachel. My husband would like to thank you all personally but since you are all uber famous cooks and chefs with your own Food Network shows, that is likely not going to happen. But hey, thanks anyways.

 15. I bought a house. Well actually, I bought half a house and inherited the other half. But hey, most 20-year-olds would have run from home ownership. I was naive enough to actually think owning a home was no big deal. But, for once my naivete was a good thing.

14. I did a little traveling. My favourite being my month long backpacking trip through Western Europe with my Husband. It was more than worth the money we spent; those memories will last a life time and that is when we decided we really wanted to start a family. Baby #1 came along the next year.

13. I became a little less bitchy. I said a little ok!?!

12. I managed to not totally squander my meager inheritance. Even though it was not a huge sum of money, when I received it I was only 20 and looking back, I think I could have made some really bad decisions. *Patting self on back*.

11. I put all pride aside and planned and attended my 10 Year High School reunion even though I was preggers and totally chubby. It was a big step for me. Acknowledging that occasions must be marked and one must put aside their shallow insecurities to honour special moments was something I never thought I would do. But I did it and had a great time!

10. I learned many lessons about forgiveness. I won't go into the details as they are private but, I learned time and again this decade that sometimes one will never get an apology from those they feel wronged by. Rather than carry anger in my heart, I learned to let the past be the past and move forward with people I thought I would never be able to forgive. I still think apologies are important though.

9. I became an avid user of Facebook and Twitter. I never jumped on the MySpace bandwagon but I embraced Facebook back in early 2007 and Twitter earlier this year and I have to say I love them both. They both give staying in touch a whole new meaning and I feel lucky to be apart of such an interesting time in social media and networking.

8. I unplugged a bit. No, I did not get rid of any gadgets... as if. I switched to wireless internet and got a laptop. I will never go back. I love being able to work in any room of the house. Plus, having the option to take my computer everywhere is a luxury I could not live without.

7. I was honest with myself and in doing so, I learned a great deal about my strengths and weaknesses thereby, making navigating this crazy world just a little bit easier. I am who I am and I can't change a whole lot of it now.

6. I began to shop for myself again. For a long time I never shopped for myself; when I hit the stores it was either for my husband or for my boys. I began to make myself a priority again and I feel so much better for it.

5. I stopped bra shopping at random shops and department stores and stared buying my bras at actual lingerie/bra shops (not La Senza people) with staff who know what the hell they are doing. Trust me... it is worth the extra money!

4. I started to wear sunscreen everyday. I'm shallow so, seeing a little age spot on my face caused by the sun was a big motivator. I really think it has made a difference. I will let you know in another ten years how I am aging.

3. I re-embraced my love of music. No, I can't play an instrument and have no musical talent of my own but, I love music. For a long time I denied myself CDs becasue I thought they were taking up too much room and were indulgent. Thank gawds I got over that!

2. I won a huge lottery windfall and managed to keep it secret from all my friends and family. It was tough, but I managed to convince everyone that we were actually living a normal, middle-class, lifestyle free of extravagance and excess. Good thing they never looked under the hood of our Hyundai, they might have realized it is really a Lamborghini.*Sipping Moet & Chandon while being fed grapes*

1. I lived. It's a simple thing but I have cherished each and everyday of the last decade and I hope to be able to cherish many more in the upcoming decades.

WTF: Do Not Throw Stuff At My Car!

I was driving down the street on Monday alone, rocking out to my music, it was a rare occasion when I did not have the boys and I was running a few pre-Christmas errands.

Out of the corner of my eye, on my side of the street, I saw a group of four young teenagers. One of them wound his arm back and chucked something right at my car. It splattered all over the left side with a deafening thwack that was very shocking.

What ran through my head: Oh no, they did not just do that!

I pulled the car over and stomped out of it towards them. The boy who threw the object, which I initially thought was an egg but turned out to be an orange or something, ran like a bat out of hell at the sight of me. I don't think I am necessarily scary but, I was taller than them, an adult, and I am sure he could see the anger I was exuding.

Though the guiltiest party took off, the other three, who turned out to be two boys and a very masculine looking girl, stood their ground at the bus stop.

When I walked up, I reprimanded them all for doing something so stupid and dangerous. Two of them were stunned and could do nothing more than look at the ground but, the tallest boy pulled some total attitude with me and said he did not know what my problem was; he tried to tell me the object must have come from somewhere else.

I have to admit this really pissed me off. Not only was he denying that his friend had thrown something at my car, he was actually giving me attitude.

WTF!!

I looked him right in the face and told him that I was not an idiot, that I knew where the object came from. I told him that he would have to learn that when he messed up (I will admit, I did not use the word messed up but, we are going with a toned down version here) rather than stand there and try to deny it, he should look the person in the face and say: I messed up and I am sorry Ma'am. It won't happen again.

I hate being called Ma'am. But, in that moment I wanted that little shit punk to call me Ma'am. He still had his arms crossed and his tone was laced with conceit but, he did look me in the eye and say the above line like I told him to.

As if he gives a crap but, I told him I had two young boys at home and if they did such stupid things, I would be ashamed. I stalked back to my car knowing that my efforts would likely amount to nothing; they were probably laughing about it for the rest of the day.

As I drove away I thought about my two boys. I know for a fact, they will do so many stupid things in the future that I will likely be ashamed of them for. I just hope that I teach them the importance of respect and humility; I hope they have the balls to look someone in the face and apologize when they mess up.

WTF, those kids are lucky they did not throw that orange at a man driving by. Somehow I doubt a man would have been happy with just a half-assed and coerced apology.

You Could Not Have Paid Me to Stay

We just got back from the big Jingle Rock concert at the Save on Foods Memorial Centre here in Victoria. I love Tegan and Sara and have recently become a fan of Jets Overhead so, it seemed natural that we would attend this show. AFI was headlining and though I am not a fan of theirs, I thought we would give them a chance and see what they had to offer live.

I was disappointed that Jets Overhead went on at 7:45pm rather than 8:00pm because we arrived at 8:00pm sharp and missed their first four songs. What kind of concert actually starts early? This never happens; I was really displeased that we only got to hear the end of their set. But, at least I heard my favourite song from them: Heading For Nowhere.

Tegan and Sara were great just like the last time I heard them. The only thing I was dissapointed with was they did not play many tracks from their new album: Sainthood. They did play Living Room which is one of my all time favourite songs so, I forgive them.

After Tegan and Sara, AFI came on.

What can I say about AFI??

I am a music lover, I try to reserve judgment on all forms of music as I respect the art. But seriously, this stuff was CRAP!!

You could not have paid me to stay in that arena and listen to more than the five songs we stayed for. My husband and I were actually looking at each other and laughing. The lead singer was beyond comical, bouncing around in his shiny, silver pants, jumping off his little box at the front of the stage.

He was not playing an instrument which I can usually forgive in a lead singer if they can actually sing but, this guy could barely even scream. Yikes... it was bad.

Anyway, I am still glad we went. However, it is nights like this that make me wish I lived in a bigger city that attracted more decent musical acts.

Oh well, I still love Victoria. But I don't like AFI... not at all.

 

Guest Posts on Kids in Victoria

You can read two new posts by clicking the links below.

Little Pink Sweaters

Imagination My Friend

WTF, You're 8 Months Old, You Can't Have Preferences!!

My first son, Oskar, was a dream when it came to eating. He had a great appetite and he ate anything and everything I placed in front of him. He was even a tidy eater; to him food was precious and not one little bit could be wasted or dropped on the floor.

My second little boy, Angus, is 8 months old now and is already well into the world of solid foods. Like his older brother, he has a veracious appetite; he wants to eat all the time. However, unlike his older brother, Angus is very picky when it comes to eating and this afternoon was an especially bad day in the eating department.

Earlier today, I hauled both boys around trying to get some Christmas shopping done. What a fucking gong show lovely family outing that was. Basically, I got nothing done; it is very hard to look for thoughtful and original Christmas gifts when you have two little maniacs angels in tow. I hope my family and friends reserve judgment this year, I may be giving out more than a few gift-cards.

After the lovely shopping trip, I came home to make lunch. I was already exhausted and on the brink of losing it. Wouldn't you know it, today of all days, Angus decides that he no longer likes the whole wheat pasta he has been devouring lately.

Furthermore, he also no longer likes any type of baby cereal: oatmeal, rice, quinoa flakes, raspberry and oatmeal, oatmeal and apple, you name it, he hates it. He also hates vegetables and anything with meat in it other than this one specific chicken noodle dinner thing.

He screams a bloodcurdling scream, shakes his head, spits it out and basically goes totally demonic on me. He hates it and he makes sure that the world knows he hates it! But then, he realizes he is still hungry, and he cries hysterically for more food. It is all terribly annoying.

All he wants to eat are kamut puffs and fruit. I have tried to tell him kmaut puffs and fruit are not a complete diet but, do you think he listens?

No.

WTF kid, you are only eight months old, you don't need to have preferences!! Just eat what I freakin give you ok!?!?!

Today I was done. I could not handle the screaming and I picked him up and I put him to bed and ate my lunch in peace... for once.

But seriously... WTF???

I am so in for it with this kid.

Tuesday is the Big Day!!

You may or may not already know this but on Tuesday, Kids in Victoria will be launching the new Mommy Bloggers section of the site. This is very exciting for me because I am one of the Mommies who will be guest blogging for them.

Being able to reach a wider audience is an opportunity that every blogger wishes for. After all, our work means nothing if we are unable to share it with others. One of the things I like most about blogging is knowing that others are reading my work and that some how, in some small way, they are getting enjoyment from it.

Blogging for Kids in Victoria is a whole new world for me, I am a little nervous about it. I can't help but worry, I mean what if people don't like what I have to say? My ego is going to be precariously perched on the proverbial ledge for the next little while (how do you like that alliteration).

I don't normally care what others think of me or my writing but in this instance, I have to admit, I am going to be like a high-school girl tentatively debuting a new and crazy outfit; I will be anxiously awaiting any and all feedback. Hopefully my writing will be well received but, we shall see.

This new assignment means a little change for the Modish Mama. I will be blogging once per week for KIV which means that I will have to drop one post per week here on my personal blog. I will likely be linking to my KIV posts from here so, it will essentially be the same, you will just have to visit Kids in Victoria to read every second post.

I won't be doing WTF posts on KIV, I am not sure the irony of those posts would translate well to an entirely new audience. They may think I was the world's worst Mommy with an atrocious potty mouth. Since WTF Wednesday tends to garner my highest readership, I will continue to write them here on the Modish Mama as long as something pisses me off enough that week to inspire a post; this never seems to be a problem.

I hope you check me out over on KIV. Thank you to all my readers who have been my motivation to continue writing; you have made this new gig possible and I am so very thankful.

WTF Kind of Question is That?

My evenings are basically always the same. Hubby comes home from work, I race to the gym and work out, I race back home, make dinner, eat dinner, hubby baths the boys while I clean the kitchen, I nurse the baby, the boys go to bed, we take a deep breath and enjoy a few hours of kid free time.

Exhilarating right?

It's life with kids, there is little time to breath, think or reflect. It is always go, go, go!

Last night I broke the little routine a bit and stopped at the grocery store quickly before hitting the gym. It was a goal oriented shopping trip to pick up some very random loose ends; the idea was to be in and out in 5 minutes. I grabbed ground nutmeg,  baby food, parsley and tortilla shells (I told you it was random) and headed for the shortest line.

I was kinda thrown off because the cashier, a young man who could not have been more than twenty years old, was extra friendly. He looked at my groceries, spotted the baby food and asked if I had a newborn baby at home (remember, I said he was young, young enough not to know that newborns don't eat baby food).

I told him I had a baby who was almost 8 months old so, not really a newborn anymore. He asked if this was my first baby. I said no, my second. He asked if they were boys or girls. I said they are both boys. He asked what their names are. I told him Oskar and Angus. He said they were cool names. I said I hoped they still liked them when they were teenagers.

Up to this point we were having a polite little banter, a welcome change from my normal shopping experience; it was a fluffy and light, adult conversation at the grocery store.

Just as I was about to pay, he looked up at me and asked me if I liked being a mother. I was kinda stunned. I hesitated, I didn't know how to answer. I stammered out: "ummm, well, sometimes".

I immediately knew this was not the light, fluffy, answer that was expected. Both he and the next man in line looked at me strangely and I knew I needed to qualify my answer quickly before I came off as a total psycho.

So I said: "I'm just kidding. I love it. Although there are times when I am like, get me out of here!"

I followed that up with a smile to both of them and got the hell out of there. I hurried back to the car and sat there thinking.

WTF kind of question was that?

Do I like being a mother? Is there really any one, true answer to that?

No there isn't.

My feelings on being a mother change all the time. It depends on the moment, the day, how exhausted or exasperated I am. But, that's not what people want to hear. If they ask me, they want to hear: "I love it, it's the best job in the world!"

Do I love being a mother?

For god sakes, of course I do! Do I love it every minute? Hell no!

Clearly, I can't handle such philosophical questions in the grocery store line-up