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Category Archives: The Comedian

Tweener

So The Comedian has taken a new interest in all things “her”.  Her hair, her waist, her clothes, shoes, purse, accessories – every bit of it is analyzed and groomed to perfection.  The super great part about this process is that it isn’t analyzed or groomed to anybody’s standard… except her own.  This means we get to have a fashion debate about whether or not an orange and pink striped shirt matches navy blue with multi-colored polka dot leggings – “because they both have orange and pink, and they both have a design.”  It’s even better when I hear things like “this is how all the teenagers do it”.  GAH!?!?!  Child, you are 9 years old.  N.I.N.E.  Not 16.  Not even 12.  At this point I have a little argument in my head about whether or not I should take this moment to discuss a) that you’re only young once and blah blah blah, enjoy the time you have now… b) I have never once seen a teenager throw the hair on the left side of their head over the top, tuck it behind one ear, and hold it all in place with 1 bobby pin and a plaid headband, without brushing it first… or c) I think you are super great just like you are, and you should make sure that you do things because you like them, not because someone else likes them…  I sometimes wonder if I’m the only mom out there who has this crazy internal dialogue running every minute of the day thinking about how I should react, how I did react, or how I would react given any tiny little step in the road.  No wonder I can’t remember anything any more.  My mind is filled up with all of these crazy little conversations.

Wow.  That sorta makes me sound literally crazy.  That’s not what I meant…. Aghh, never mind.

Getting back to the subject at hand – The comedian puts herself through a 12 point inspection every time we go any where.  I had no idea the tweener phase could start this young.  I don’t know if I’m ready for this.  Seems like it was just yesterday she started kindergarten.  It’s sort of bittersweet.  I keep thinking about how I miss when she was little and she dragged her babies around everywhere, and played in the sandbox, and still saw everything as a new discovery — then I think about how cool it’s going to be to have real conversations with this little girl young woman, watch her grow into an adult, and watch her make decisions that will affect her whole life.  It’s kind of overwhelming.  But awesome.

Now that I think about it, maybe it doesn’t matter if she wears a red and blue dress with hot pink tights.  That’s just a sign that she’s still little… I’ll take that for now.

Wellness Check?

The Bomber had a wellness check today (and by ‘today’, I mean almost 3 months ago).  Talk about a lesson in surviving pure molten unrelenting frustration.  From the minute I remembered we had this appointment I was annoyed.  That’s right, the key phrase is “from the minute I remembered”,  because you know I can’t remember anything like I used to.

So here’s the brief synopsis.  Grandma was supposed to take The Bomber to her wellness check.  I was going to meet them there and then go straight to work, fingers crossed it wouldn’t take forever.  The appointment was at 9:45 on a Monday morning.  Really?!?!  What was I thinking?  That’s possibly the worst appointment time ever.  Monday morning = busiest day of the week.  9:45 = two hours into my work day, plus just late enough for the doctors to be running behind.  Awesome.

So, because I’ve been meaning to put this appointment on the calendar since her last wellness check (yes, I realize it’s been 3 months, get off my back), I didn’t remember until last night at approximately 7:00 pm that we had this appointment…. terrific.  Since about 5 minutes before this happened we re-arranged our regular Monday morning routine so that Grandma could go camping.  Normally, no big deal.  But, of course I had to agree to a new routine on the one day I forget an appointment that I never would have scheduled if my mom wasn’t available to help…. Gah!  Enter: annoyance.  So, now I have to re-arrange my entire day and pray to the work gods that I don’t have a busy schedule because I’m locked into spending the entire morning at the pediatrician’s office.

So, Gadget and I get up this morning and get the girls ready.  Gadget goes to work and things are looking decent.  I mean, I actually got to shower and get dressed before he left so I’m already ahead of the game, right?  If, only.  I leave for the appointment early thinking maybe we’ll get in early.  Wrong.  We wait in the lobby until our actual appointment time.  9:45 they call us into the room.  Well, at least we’re on time, right?  Wrong again.  40 minutes later the doctor comes in… oh wait, that’s not the doctor.  That’s just a medical student who asks all the same questions, does all the same tests, but who leaves us waiting for the real doctor when he’s done.  20 minutes later the real doctor comes in and immediately scolds me for letting my baby play with a cell phone (because, and I quote, “they have chemicals all over them” – what?!?), and then asks condescendingly if I brought any toys with me.  Why yes, I did.  You see, there’s one by your foot.  And another one under the chair.  And a homemade one on top of the table (oh, you mean you didn’t lay that white paper out for her to tear up and crunch?).  It’s just that you’ve locked us in this tiny room for over an hour with nothing to do, nothing to eat (yes, it’s now lunch time – animal crackers can only suffice for so long), and loads of cupboards and drawers with no child locks that are full of things my toddler shouldn’t touch – which means I’ve been playing goalie for the last hour and a half.  Oh, and have you noticed it’s about 85 degrees in this room?  No one, and I mean, no one, is in the mood for your tone.  So, please, move on with your exams before I throat punch you.

So, at this point, you would think I’d been punished enough.  But, no.  The doctor finally finishes and leaves, and we get to wait YET ANOTHER 20 minutes for the nurse to come in and give shots.  You can imagine how well that went over with The Bomber.  Have I mentioned that at this point The Comedian is not so comedic and has commenced with making it her personal mission to keep The Bomber in line.  As soon as The Bomber quits crying, The Comedian is all over her to keep the sticker out of her mouth, quit playing with the drawers, stop climbing on the chairs…. At this point I almost wish she would swallow a sticker or fall off a chair – at least then maybe we could get some friggin’ attention up in this piece.

We finally go to check out and we’re hit with one more little gem.  Normally there are two secretaries… except one is at lunch (yes, that is how long we’ve been here).  And now the other one is on the phone… for over 5 minutes.  While we wait in the hallway.  With even more things The Bomber can destroy.  Which means even more things The Comedian has to prevent her from getting into.  I think I saw the room swirl in front of me as The Bomber starts screaming, The Comedian commences a broken record of commands, and I give up.  I didn’t even try to stop the nonsense.  I just looked at the receptionist as if everything was normal and handed her my card.  As we’re leaving I remember the last straw.  No AC in the El Deucey.  Here’s to a 30 minute car ride home in 100 degree heat.

Cow Licking?

The comedian asked us again the other day how a woman gets pregnant.  Every time she asks I give her a little more information…. I’m kindof letting her guide the conversation.  If she wants more details, I let her ask the questions.  If she doesn’t ask, I don’t glorify.  So I give a brief synopsis of eggs and sperm and mention that the dad puts the sperm in the mom.

I actually thought that was end of the conversation.  She waited at least a full two minutes before she asked how the dad puts those sperm in the mom.  Gadget asks her what she thinks and the rest of the conversation went like this….

The Comedian: I don’t know, from kissing.

Me: Just kissing?

The Comedian: Well, you have to do it for a long time.

Long Pause

The Comedian: Except, I don’t get it.  Because cows get pregnant all the time and you never see them licking each other.

The End.

Mom Goggles Handy Reference Guide

Have you found yourself a little confused by phrases, names or other seemingly odd comments on my blog?  There’s a good chance I’m confused too.  But, in the meantime, here’s a list to help keep you in the loop.  If you think there’s something missing, send me a message so I can make sure it gets added right away.

Gadget:  my super awesome hubby

The Bomber:  my youngest daughter, a daredevil in her own right, opinionated, stubborn, and too much like her mama

The Comedian:  my oldest daughter, my husband’s from a prior marriage, hilarious, challenging, adds her own special sauce to the mix

El Deucey:  also known as a Saturn L200, the first car I ever bought and still kickin’…

Murtaugh:  our other vehicle, so named because Gadget drives it and his old car was a Buick Regal (nicknamed Reegs) – so now  he has Murtaugh – Get It?

What Are Mom Goggles?

These fancy accessories come in two different styles.  The first style powers a mom through many long dinner time battles, repetitive bedtime stand-offs, early morning wake up routines, and redundant arguments including such awesome phrases as “I can’t”, “I need help”, “I didn’t know”, “It’s not my fault”, and “Waaahhhhh”.  These little suckers give me the power to know The Bomber has just scaled the baby gate and is currently pouring herself two fingers of Wild Turkey behind the bar while I’m in the bathroom attempting to take a four minute shower.  They conveniently clue me in to the fact that The Comedian is currently working on the latest saga in The Lifestyles Of The Rich And Famous – Malibu Barbie Edition… instead of working on re-writing the homework she “already finished” that no one (including her) can read.

The second kind works in a somewhat opposite fashion.  They’re the reason I’m able to change the most gruesome diaper known to man without flinching when everyone else tears up and runs from the room.  They’re the force that allows me to be thrown up on four times in two hours and not raise an eyebrow.  They’re the spirit that tells me my child (who’s hair isn’t combed, teeth aren’t brushed, hasn’t bathed since Thursday, and is currently on level 9 of Operation Booger Extraction 2011) is the cutest baby ever born.  Anywhere.  They tell me everything’s fine, when in fact I’m 2.3 seconds from ultimate meltdown.  They’re the pep talk I need to make it through “just one more (fill in completely obvious stall technique here)”.  They’re the voice in the back of my head insisting I’m not tired and that it’s normal to feel dizzy and see double after only sleeping 3 hours in 2.5 days.  In short, they lie to me.  And, I have to admit, it’s the sweetest lie I’ve ever been told.

The Players

A few years ago I got married.  Gadget likes to get his hands into anything electronic, take it apart, make new things out of it, see how it works, and generally cause mayhem to anything with a plug.  This is very useful (you know, like when I accidentally misplace my phone charger for the 14th time and he happens to have a spare just laying around) and very frustrating (when I can’t find my way to the other side of the bedroom without stepping on 26 tiny screws, getting tangled in 7 HDMI cables, and knocking over a gigantic box of batteries that may or may not still have a charge).  Gadget is an awesome husband, and an even better daddy.  He is a very patient person who avoids conflict whenever possible.  This works out well for me, because I’m much less tolerant and tend to face conflict head on.  His go with the flow mentality and his unquestioning ability to accept me for who I am is a large reason we have such a great marriage.

Gadget has a daughter from a previous relationship.  Enter, The Comedian.  She is funnier than most grown adults, is smarter than most kids her age, and she adds a special spice to our lives.  Struggling to figure out who she is while maintaining life in two separate, very different households, she is a very amazing little girl.

Gadget and I also have a daughter together.  There is a 7.5 year span between The Comedian and The Bomber.  The Bomber is her own special little ball of charm.  Just entering toddlerhood and she already thinks she runs the show.  I definitely have my hands full with this kid.  Unlike The Comedian (who always asks permission, doesn’t do anything risky, and rarely breaks a sweat on purpose or by accident), The Bomber attempts life threatening feats three times before breakfast, has no fear, and will probably have broken 12 bones before kindergarten.

This is my family in a nutshell.  Enjoy.

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