Last night we were finishing up dinner when I sent the twins out to get the mail. They were taking longer than I thought they should, so I went to check on them.
TT: "Hey mom, you got a movie."
SS: "We peeked at it."
TT: "It's 'Sex of the City.' That's a funny name for a movie."
SS: "TT, I think you said a bad word."
TT: "Sex isn't a bad word, it means . . ."
Me: "Hey, wait a minute. First, sex isn't a bad word. Second, TT, what do you think sex means?"
TT: "It means when grown-ups love each other."
Me: "Well, not exactly. Remember how we talked about when grown-ups love each other they give each other a special hug, and that's how babies get made? Well, that is called sex."
SS: "Yeah--but how does a hug make a baby?" Clearly they weren't going to let me off easy on this one.
Me: "Well, remember how we talked about girls and boys have different parts?"
TT: "Yeah--girls have a hole and boys have a wiener."
Me: "Umm, yeah. The girls part is called a vagina and the boys part is called a penis. So during the special hug the man puts his penis into the woman's vagina, and that's how a baby gets made."
SS: "Yeah, but how does the baby get in there?" Ok, these kids are really wanting the dots connected.
Me: "Well, the man has this juicy stuff inside his penis that has these little fishy things called sperm, and so the juicy stuff comes out inside the woman's vagina and meets with an egg and then they become a cell that grows and grows until it becomes a baby."
TT & SS: "Ewwwww."
TT: "So the cells just keep making more and more and more--like the germ video that we watched at school? It started with just one and then it kept making more and more and more?"
Me: "Yeah--kinda. The cells just keep multiplying just like with germs." I have now equated a baby with the flu.
TT: "But which part of the baby is made first--the stomach?"
Me: "Sort of. The baby starts out as a blob--so I guess it's kind of like the stomach. But as it keeps growing it starts to grow arms and legs and then fingers and toes. So, do y'all have any more questions."
TT: "What are the girl parts called again?"
I wasn't exactly planning to have this talk with the girls yet. I had had it with PS a while back, but the twins still seem so young. But the opportunity presented itself and they were curious. I would rather they get accurate (ok, semi-accurate) information from me than misinformation from other kids. And they were very open about this and not embarrassed to be talking about it--something I hope will continue as they get older.
DH and PS meanwhile were still lingering at the dinner table. Apparently once they caught wind of our conversation, PS went into the pantry and closed the door because she didn't want to hear it. DH, wasn't about to walk in on the middle of this conversation. He is just relieved that we have all girls and I am the one who gets to deal with this kind of thing.
Oh, and about the movie: I watched it last night and did not really like it. Spoiler alert--stop now if you haven't seen this movie and intend to.
I can't believe Carrie went back to Big after what he did. I mean, even if you aren't sure, you go through with the damn wedding that the whole worked knows about. Get divorced 2 weeks later. Or just don't ever sign the marriage certificate. By the end of the movie, she was blaming herself. Hello--he's an adult and could have put a stop to the big brou-ha-ha well ahead of time if that's not what he wanted. If he didn't care enough about her to not publicly humiliate her, then they had no business getting married in the first place.
9/28/08
9/20/08
Yes, I am insane
I have 9 girls spending the night, in addition to my own three. I am trying to just stay out of the way and let them do their own thing--but provide enough structured activities to keep them from fighting or acting like crazy people.
It is mostly going ok. But after they made sundaes they decided that everyone should try to eat face first (yeah--these are 10 - 11 year olds, I thought they were past this kind of thing) and one managed to get chocolate all over her shirt and now swears that her mom is going to kill her. So I have stain treated it and am washing it, but after the first run-through, it's not looking good.
The pillowcase decorating went much better. There was a lot of talk about boys. Apparently they don't understand why their dads don't like it when they talk about boys ("They were boys once, they should know that we think boys are cute.") And at least two of them have preceded a confession with , "This is a secret and my mom told me not to tell anybody..." So, FYI ladies, your kids will rat you out.
Speaking of... one of the dad's called at 3:30 this afternoon to ask if he could drop his daughter off at 4:00--2 hours before the party. He said he got called in to work and she wouldn't be able to come otherwise. It was no biggie, so I said that was fine. While his daughter was helping decorate I off-handedly said, "so your dad got called in to work, huh?" And she said, "no, not really. Some of his soccer friends just called and wanted him to go to the lake." Oops!
Overall, this group of girls is getting along very well. There are a few that I have not met before, so I was a little concerned. And one of the ones who is supposed to be here didn't show--which may be a good thing because I heard from a couple of sources that she and another girl don't get along. Oh, the drama of being a 10 year old girl.
It is mostly going ok. But after they made sundaes they decided that everyone should try to eat face first (yeah--these are 10 - 11 year olds, I thought they were past this kind of thing) and one managed to get chocolate all over her shirt and now swears that her mom is going to kill her. So I have stain treated it and am washing it, but after the first run-through, it's not looking good.
The pillowcase decorating went much better. There was a lot of talk about boys. Apparently they don't understand why their dads don't like it when they talk about boys ("They were boys once, they should know that we think boys are cute.") And at least two of them have preceded a confession with , "This is a secret and my mom told me not to tell anybody..." So, FYI ladies, your kids will rat you out.
Speaking of... one of the dad's called at 3:30 this afternoon to ask if he could drop his daughter off at 4:00--2 hours before the party. He said he got called in to work and she wouldn't be able to come otherwise. It was no biggie, so I said that was fine. While his daughter was helping decorate I off-handedly said, "so your dad got called in to work, huh?" And she said, "no, not really. Some of his soccer friends just called and wanted him to go to the lake." Oops!
Overall, this group of girls is getting along very well. There are a few that I have not met before, so I was a little concerned. And one of the ones who is supposed to be here didn't show--which may be a good thing because I heard from a couple of sources that she and another girl don't get along. Oh, the drama of being a 10 year old girl.
9/17/08
My car is jinxed
First, it was broken into in my driveway (it is almost always in the garage--a total fluke that it was in the driveway) and DH's fancy HD radio was stolen. Then I got a crack in the windshield coming home from a work trip. Then the driver's side window spontaneously shattered while sitting in my garage overnight. And today, the passenger-side window was busted out and my GPS was stolen.
The Suburban was sitting in the parking garage at work. The one with gates that is supposedly patrolled by security personnel. It looks like someone just took a baseball bat and shoved took a swing at the window. For a freakin' $150 GPS. They didn't touch the fancy radio or the 20 or so CD's in the console. PS's Nintendo DS and our portable GPS that we use for geocaching were in the back, and they are still there, too. Really--how much does a basic GPS get on the black market?
And you would think with the previous break-in that I would have learned my lesson about leaving stuff in the car. I never leave the Suburban on the driveway anymore, and if I am out shopping, I hide the GPS and the radio faceplate in the console. But I guess I felt safe in my security-patrolled parking garage. Ugh!
The Suburban was sitting in the parking garage at work. The one with gates that is supposedly patrolled by security personnel. It looks like someone just took a baseball bat and shoved took a swing at the window. For a freakin' $150 GPS. They didn't touch the fancy radio or the 20 or so CD's in the console. PS's Nintendo DS and our portable GPS that we use for geocaching were in the back, and they are still there, too. Really--how much does a basic GPS get on the black market?
And you would think with the previous break-in that I would have learned my lesson about leaving stuff in the car. I never leave the Suburban on the driveway anymore, and if I am out shopping, I hide the GPS and the radio faceplate in the console. But I guess I felt safe in my security-patrolled parking garage. Ugh!
Every Freakin' Year...
My kids' school, like many schools around the country, have subscribed to the AR reading system. Basically, they test at the beginning of the year to determine their AR reading level. Then they are required to read books on their assigned AR level and take 10 question quizzes which allegedly test their comprehension (I have my doubts). Books are assigned point levels based on their level of difficulty, and kids are encouraged to rack up as many points as possible.
My problem with the AR system is that it limits what the kids are allowed to read. The teachers repeatedly tell my kids that they can only read books on their assigned AR level--and the assigned AR level is always way below what they are actually reading.
I take my kids to the library or bookstore just about every weekend. I know what books they are reading--heck, I can barely keep them in books because they are all speedy readers performing well-above their grade level. (Which means they zip through the books with age-appropriate subject matter in record time.)
And, honestly, I have come to the conclusion that the AR leveling test is completely inaccurate. Because it always puts my kids below the level they are actually on--when all of their standardized testing puts they years above their grade level (although how many years I'll never know because my school won't test more than 2 years out and all of my kids always max out the tests--but that's another battle.)
So again this year, just like every other year since PS started school, I have to go to the teachers and request that my children be allowed to read anything they want. If the subject matter is questionable, I will read the book with them. But I refuse to have my children limited. Some of the teachers have been great on this issue--but with a couple of them, this has been a major battle, which I completely don't understand. I guess we'll see what happens this go 'round.
My problem with the AR system is that it limits what the kids are allowed to read. The teachers repeatedly tell my kids that they can only read books on their assigned AR level--and the assigned AR level is always way below what they are actually reading.
I take my kids to the library or bookstore just about every weekend. I know what books they are reading--heck, I can barely keep them in books because they are all speedy readers performing well-above their grade level. (Which means they zip through the books with age-appropriate subject matter in record time.)
And, honestly, I have come to the conclusion that the AR leveling test is completely inaccurate. Because it always puts my kids below the level they are actually on--when all of their standardized testing puts they years above their grade level (although how many years I'll never know because my school won't test more than 2 years out and all of my kids always max out the tests--but that's another battle.)
So again this year, just like every other year since PS started school, I have to go to the teachers and request that my children be allowed to read anything they want. If the subject matter is questionable, I will read the book with them. But I refuse to have my children limited. Some of the teachers have been great on this issue--but with a couple of them, this has been a major battle, which I completely don't understand. I guess we'll see what happens this go 'round.
9/14/08
Parties and Projects
My Sunday is being spent helping the twins with a school project and prepping for PS's upcoming birthday party.
PS really wanted to go to a super-touristy spot that was going to cost a fortune to take even a couple of friends. I told her that if we did that she could only take 2 friends, and it would take all of the money that I budgeted to spend on her birthday, meaning no big presents. On the other hand, she could have a party at home we could come up with some fun stuff, she could invite as many friends as she wants, and there would still be money left over for me to buy her a present.
So we are doing the home party. The girls will be making pizzas and ice cream sundaes and I bought pillowcases and fabric markers to decorate them with. In the end, I'm not sure I've really saved that much over what the touristy place would have cost--but she'll get to have a lot more of her friends over.
I spent two hours creating invitations--vellum over shiny purple card stock, tied together with sparkly purple ribbon and dotted with star-shaped gemstones. For some reason, I am always compelled to make fantastic homemade invitations. I simply can't bring myself to buy them or print them on the computer. These were actually really simple put together--I've put in much more effort in years past--but they look really nice.
The twins' school project is driving me insane. I HATE school projects--because it always means work for me, although I have really tried to let go of my control-freakishness, and let the kids do the bulk of the work. Unfortunately, my kids are not especially driven and will not put forth their best effort if I am not hovering nearby. TT finally did a pretty good job on hers, after I helped just a bit, but SS's project is really half-assed.
Sigh--I just want her to get her stuff done so that I don't have to deal with it anymore.
PS really wanted to go to a super-touristy spot that was going to cost a fortune to take even a couple of friends. I told her that if we did that she could only take 2 friends, and it would take all of the money that I budgeted to spend on her birthday, meaning no big presents. On the other hand, she could have a party at home we could come up with some fun stuff, she could invite as many friends as she wants, and there would still be money left over for me to buy her a present.
So we are doing the home party. The girls will be making pizzas and ice cream sundaes and I bought pillowcases and fabric markers to decorate them with. In the end, I'm not sure I've really saved that much over what the touristy place would have cost--but she'll get to have a lot more of her friends over.
I spent two hours creating invitations--vellum over shiny purple card stock, tied together with sparkly purple ribbon and dotted with star-shaped gemstones. For some reason, I am always compelled to make fantastic homemade invitations. I simply can't bring myself to buy them or print them on the computer. These were actually really simple put together--I've put in much more effort in years past--but they look really nice.
The twins' school project is driving me insane. I HATE school projects--because it always means work for me, although I have really tried to let go of my control-freakishness, and let the kids do the bulk of the work. Unfortunately, my kids are not especially driven and will not put forth their best effort if I am not hovering nearby. TT finally did a pretty good job on hers, after I helped just a bit, but SS's project is really half-assed.
Sigh--I just want her to get her stuff done so that I don't have to deal with it anymore.
9/8/08
The time has come to sink or swim.
We have depositions coming up in one of our not-so-big cases. There are 5 plaintiffs and we are doing them all in one day. Partner told me a couple of weeks ago that I would sit in on all of the depositions, watch him do the first few and then do the last couple myself. Woo-hoo! I have never done a deposition before, and it was a milestone I was hoping to pass before my first-year-as-a-lawyer has ended. (Yeah, I know that for all you experienced lawyers depositions suck, take forever and are boring.) This seemed like a really good way to get me started.
Today, Partner informed me that I would be doing all of the depositions on Wednesday and that he won't be there.
As I mentioned before, I have never done a deposition. I have never even sat in on a deposition (except for when I was deposed when I was 16 and got sued for a car wreck). My only experience comes from reading (way too many) deposition transcripts.
Now, it won't totally be all on me--we have a co-defendant with whom we are pretty much aligned and they will take the lead. Except the co-defendant has only been on this case for about 2 months, and definitely don't have the familiarity with it that I have. (I know this because they call me all the time to ask me stuff about it.)
I know I can handle it. I just hope I don't make myself look like an idiot. Or that opposing counsel doesn't pick up on my baby lawyerness and try to take advantage of it.
Today, Partner informed me that I would be doing all of the depositions on Wednesday and that he won't be there.
As I mentioned before, I have never done a deposition. I have never even sat in on a deposition (except for when I was deposed when I was 16 and got sued for a car wreck). My only experience comes from reading (way too many) deposition transcripts.
Now, it won't totally be all on me--we have a co-defendant with whom we are pretty much aligned and they will take the lead. Except the co-defendant has only been on this case for about 2 months, and definitely don't have the familiarity with it that I have. (I know this because they call me all the time to ask me stuff about it.)
I know I can handle it. I just hope I don't make myself look like an idiot. Or that opposing counsel doesn't pick up on my baby lawyerness and try to take advantage of it.
9/5/08
Feeling Crappy
I had my endometrial ablation today. Accounts on the internet had led me to believe that this would be an easy breezy procedure and that I would be feeling great by dinner-time.
Not so much.
I am much crampier than I anticipated. I had a D&C following a miscarriage a few years ago, and asked the doctor if recovery would be similar. He responded that cramping was generally worse following a miscarriage and D&C than after this procedure. But I don't really remember having any cramping after the D&C, and I do remember feeling really well morning after (it surprised me because I am always really, really sick when I am pregnant and I was shocked at how quickly the nausea went away once I was no longer pregnant.) This is early-labor type cramping--except that it is constant rather than appearing every 5 minutes or so.
I'm also quite nauseated--probably from taking morphine on an empty stomach. But that's kind of a catch-22.
Here's hoping this all sorts itself overnight, because TT has her first football game in the morning, and I really want to be there for Mommy support.
Not so much.
I am much crampier than I anticipated. I had a D&C following a miscarriage a few years ago, and asked the doctor if recovery would be similar. He responded that cramping was generally worse following a miscarriage and D&C than after this procedure. But I don't really remember having any cramping after the D&C, and I do remember feeling really well morning after (it surprised me because I am always really, really sick when I am pregnant and I was shocked at how quickly the nausea went away once I was no longer pregnant.) This is early-labor type cramping--except that it is constant rather than appearing every 5 minutes or so.
I'm also quite nauseated--probably from taking morphine on an empty stomach. But that's kind of a catch-22.
Here's hoping this all sorts itself overnight, because TT has her first football game in the morning, and I really want to be there for Mommy support.
9/2/08
What the heck?
If you read my blog with any regularity you'll note that its pretty apolitical. I am generally apathetic about politics--mostly because I never like the choices. I am fiscally conservative and socially liberal, which means I don't fit neatly within either party. This year has been no different. Obama just doesn't sit quite right but McCain is becoming increasingly distasteful.
But I was so excited about the Palin pick. It is great to see a woman on the ticket--a working mom no less. I wasn't even bothered about her lack of experience. I'm pretty freakin' sick of old, rich, white men running our country (and law firms). They sure as hell haven't been dong a fabulous job. So maybe someone who hasn't been entrenched in our political system would be better than someone with 20 years' experience screwing it up. (But make no mistake, I would vote for no one based on their gender. There is no chance Hillary would have gotten my vote.)
But I'll admit that the pregnant teenager has given me pause. I mean--I get that stuff happens with teens. I have 3 daughters, my biggest fear is that one of my daughters will be a parent before she is ready. And I don't think that Palin's daughter's circumstances are a reflection on her mother. Teen pregnancy strikes across socio-economic borders and happens no matter how great the teen's parents are.
But I question Palin's judgment in agreeing to all this, knowing full well that it would throw her child's very personal life into the limelight. Yes, she has been presented with the opportunity of a lifetime--but is it worth handing her child to the wolves? (BTW, I think Obama has handled this very well.) And I question McCain's judgment in thinking this would be no big deal (especially if the news is released when a hurricane is going on, so hopefully no one will notice.) This feels like another Harriet Miers-style debacle.
And it just seems a little too right-wing conservative that the happy teenage couple are now planning to marry. Because if one of my daughters were to become a teenage mom, the last thing I would want her to do is compound her problems by marrying "because it's the right thing to do."
But I was so excited about the Palin pick. It is great to see a woman on the ticket--a working mom no less. I wasn't even bothered about her lack of experience. I'm pretty freakin' sick of old, rich, white men running our country (and law firms). They sure as hell haven't been dong a fabulous job. So maybe someone who hasn't been entrenched in our political system would be better than someone with 20 years' experience screwing it up. (But make no mistake, I would vote for no one based on their gender. There is no chance Hillary would have gotten my vote.)
But I'll admit that the pregnant teenager has given me pause. I mean--I get that stuff happens with teens. I have 3 daughters, my biggest fear is that one of my daughters will be a parent before she is ready. And I don't think that Palin's daughter's circumstances are a reflection on her mother. Teen pregnancy strikes across socio-economic borders and happens no matter how great the teen's parents are.
But I question Palin's judgment in agreeing to all this, knowing full well that it would throw her child's very personal life into the limelight. Yes, she has been presented with the opportunity of a lifetime--but is it worth handing her child to the wolves? (BTW, I think Obama has handled this very well.) And I question McCain's judgment in thinking this would be no big deal (especially if the news is released when a hurricane is going on, so hopefully no one will notice.) This feels like another Harriet Miers-style debacle.
And it just seems a little too right-wing conservative that the happy teenage couple are now planning to marry. Because if one of my daughters were to become a teenage mom, the last thing I would want her to do is compound her problems by marrying "because it's the right thing to do."
9/1/08
PSA - Watch out for your kiddos on your outdoor playsets
Much has been made on the news this summer about the heat that can gather in playground equipment. I had kept the girls indoors during the extreme heat, but yesterday morning, I wasn't even thinking about anything happening.PS's BFF got about a 2" square burn on her lower back/butt when she was over here yesterday --from going down the slide in my backyard!! She was wearing thin pajama shorts and it went all the way her shorts. And it was still fairly early in the day--temps here usually peak around 3-5 p.m.
I asked if she was sure it wasn't a scrape, but she really thought it was a burn, and her mom, who is a nurse, also thinks it is a burn.
This is the slide that we have (not my kid, taken from the manufacturer's site.) It is a dark green plastic-type slide--this was not a metal slide that burned her!
Anyway, just wanted to post this because I know I have at least 2 readers who live semi-near me where temperatures are similar. (I think you know who you are!) Be sure to watch out for your kiddos. This happened to an almost 11-year-old girl. I would really hate to see it happen to a much younger child who might not be able to react as quickly.
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