Happy Holidays & Giveaway Reminder

I just realized on my last post I wrote "Christmas spending money". I might have offended some of you with that because let's be honest, not everyone celebrates Christmas but if someone wants to get their panties in bunch because I wished them a HAPPY or MERRY anything they can suck it. It's not meant to be an insult or a lack of respect for others cultures, its just my way of wishing you a happy holiday season no matter what you celebrate. I hate how Merry Christmas is seen as offensive and I seriously have the term "Happy Holidays".

With that being said I realize its been a while since I last blogged. I had so much going on with my little one getting sick and me getting sick and trying to make sure I take care of all my work projects before I leave for my vacation...I've been stressed to the max!!

Anyway, for the first time in 13 years I'm spending CHRISTMAS with my PARENTS! I moved when I was 18 and although my parents come to Montreal every winter they never make it on Christmas day. They always come up on Boxing Day. Their job requires them to work on Christmas Eve and they drive up so it takes a day and a half....so I decided to put a stop to it this year. I told my husband that we were packing up and flying to Texas FOR Christmas. So we are. :) My parents are so excited to have Christmas at their house after so many years, and more than that, excited that Demi will be there for Christmas. They have this huge meal planned and my dad bought Demi a Christmas tree that is probably taller than our house!! (FYI its been so long since we've had Christmas at my parents that they threw out all their lights and ornaments and had to start buying new ones from scratch!)

My moms best friend is coming to the house, my cousin Helen is coming over...its going to be fun. :) A few days later my sister is flying in and then we all leave together on Jan 5th but its going to be great to spend Christmas AND New Years with my parents.

This is the first year I've asked for NOTHING at all, I didn't want anything, I just wanted to be with my family. Afterall, isn't that the true spirit of Christmas? Spending the day with those you love the most? I'm going to celebrate my favorite holiday with my darling daughter, my wonderful husband, and my amazing parents...the only one left out of the equation is my sister (and therefore brother in law). This will be the first time in 13 years we DON'T celebrate Christmas together but we have so many more years ahead of us. I can't wait until her little boy is born and D is a little older so we can make Christmas so magical for them. The baking, the decorating, the stories, the good deeds....just ohhh boy Christmas is my favorite holiday!

Sadly though, George's father will not be going to Florida with my brother in law as originally planned. He doesn't want to pay the crazy fee for medical insurance on him IN CASE something happens. He has to pay $1,048.57 just to be covered. If he doesn't get sick then you don't get anything back. He says its not worth it so he's spending Christmas and New Years alone which I find really sad. Especially after my whole paragraph above about how the holidays should be about being together. The guy is 84 years old and is spending the holiday alone. I even thought about offering to fly him to Texas with us but the point still remains that he'd need to buy medical insurance. I'm honestly surprised that my husband hasn't yet backed out of going to Texas yet...which he can't. He knows how much this means to me, he also needs a break, AND part of our vacation will be doing some research for a venture we are starting in Montreal.

So why don't I end this blog post on that sad thought of an old lonely man spending Christmas all by himself? Nah. I wouldn't do that to you.

I just want to remind you that there is still time to enter in the giveaway that is in my last post! QUICK! Enter to win $110!!!!!!

Want to win some MONEY for Christmas Spending!?!

Let's be honest everyone. Times are tough and we have this "buy buy buy" mentality when it comes to Christmas. Don't stress yourself, instead why don't you join the BLOGGERS with BENEFITS CA$H CARNIVAL! It's easy, all you have to do is follow the simple steps in the rafflecopter form below and you are entered to win $110 from one group....and $120 from the second!


You can join the second giveaway by visiting Christa's blog!

You can do some last minute Christmas shopping, or maybe keep the money and pay off the credit card bills when they come rolling around. Either way, I'm sure you call can find a use for $320.

Good luck! :)

And the winner is....

Jessica!!!!!

This blog post is NOT about Joe Paterno OR The Kardashians!

How is that for a blog title? My blog post isn't about them but it is sort of inspired but ONE of these two. Who do you think it is? I'll let you be the judge and you can totally guess within the first few sentences I'm sure.

So its pretty rare that when we decide to take a trip down the aisle that we really don't mean "forever". How many of you have walked down the aisle and thought, "Yeah this should do for a few years?" Most of us go into it with good intentions right?

Well ladies, I have something to say to y'all about getting a divorce for whatever reason. GIVE THE GUY BACK HIS LAST NAME! Seriously, you are DIVORCING him, you are moving on with your life why do you want to hang on to his last name? Don't give me that bullshit about wanting the same last name as your children...Newsflash, here in Quebec when we get married we don't take our husbands last name, our children do...the kids aren't confused. They know who their mom is and as they grow up they realize why. It's the law here...I'm sure explaining to your kid that you and their daddy don't live together anymore and got a divorce...it won't confuse them. What about the women who aren't married and have children? The last name argument is bullshit.

I have a friend who is divorced. His ex-wife is a major major bitch. Let me sum up the ways that she is a bitch. She cheated on him, got pregnant by someone else while they were married...oh and he was off fighting in the war protecting her rights, oh and then she also started hanging out with all of his friends while they were separated and divorced. Yeah pretty much a major bitch.

They got a divorce and she still uses his last name. It's HER last name now. I get so annoyed with it. She has friend requested me on Facebook no less than 10 times a year and the minute I look at her last name I get all disgusted and want to punch her. Once when we were at the same place at the same time she asked me, "Jenny why don't you accept my friends request or hang out with the group when I'm around." My reply was simple, "I don't like you and think you are a bitch."

They had a fairly peaceful divorce, there was no fighting. It was simply "You are a whore let's get a divorce" and they did it. They signed their agreements regarding custody of the children that were his. But they went their separate ways. Why did she keep his name? There is no real reason other than.... Hell...I don't even know.

So that brings me to my next point. GIVE BACK THE FREAKING RING! What are you going to do it? Wear it like a trophy? Keep it in your jewelry box as a memory of something that ended? Pawn it for some extra cash? I dunno, maybe its the proud woman in me but I don't want it. I don't want the memory of you, I don't want the "trophy" of telling people I failed at marriage, and I certainly don't want something he gave me to get me some extra cash. Basically, I don't need you and I don't need anything FROM you to help me out. I'd rather give back the ring and cut it clean.

I know a few people that have been divorced that actually kept their rings from their ex, gave their new boyfriend the diamond to reset so they could propose. Too me that is cheap and tacky. Sorry. It's not about the size of the diamond but if your hubby to be can't spring for a new diamond for you then thats just wrong. If he can't afford a diamond why not propose with your favorite stone? your birth stone? just a gold band?! I dunno, but I certainly don't want to GIVE my boyfriend a diamond that my EX HUSBAND gave to me so he can propose to me. I feel as if that sort of cheapens me.

So here is my message to Kim Kardashian: GIVE HUMPHRIES BACK HIS RING!!

He did what!?!

So unless you've been living under a rock you've probably heard the accusation that Justin Bieber is gonna be a daddy and the momma ain't Selena Gomez. It doesn't really bother me if he is a daddy or not a daddy what makes me laugh is how the entire nation is talking about it....AND they are like "It's IMPOSSIBLE" "He's suing her" etc.

I'm gonna laugh my ass when it turns out that he is that baby\s daddy. I get it, he's young, he's rich and famous. Stranger things have happened right!?

Bloggers with Benefits Cash Carnival!

So the holidays are quickly approaching and you know what would be great? A little extra money, know what is even better? A LOT of extra money!

We'll I've joined forces with a lot of women bloggers to do something that hasn't ever really been done before. A CA$H Carnival where you can enter your chance to win a $50 gift card, MULTIPLE times! There are 100 spots open so our CA$H Carnival will consist of TWENTY $50 gift cards! Who couldn't use that kind of money, especially at this time of year?

How does it work? 

The Cash Carnival will consist of up to 20- $50 dollar giveaways. It will run between December 8th-12th and people will be able to go from one giveaway to another giveaway simply by completing the mandatory entries and entering to win $50 each time. It’s going to be a great way for bloggers who are participating to grow their followers and a great way for readers who enter to win $$$$$$

How does it work?

Simply sign up by filling out this form (or click on the link in my side bar!) and one of the wonderful hostesses( Little BGCG, Me As A Mommy, Mama B, and Baby Dickey) of this CA$H Carnival will get back to you! It only costs $15 to get involved and the benefits are endless. You can get Google Friend Connect Followers, Facebook Fans, Twitter Followers or whatever you need. No one loses, especially if you are trying to grow your blog following or presence on the internet! 

So what are you waiting for? GO! ENTER! WIN! But most of all, HAVE FUN!!

Product Review & Giveaway: PartyLite

I can't even begin to tell you all how happy I am to finally be able to reveal what my giveaway and review are! Gina from PartyLite was kind enough to provide me with some fabulous PartyLite Products so that I could try out and review and she is even giving one of my amazing readers a $50 gift card to use on PartyLite Products! How great is that!?

Before I tell you how you can enter the giveaway let me tell you a little big about the the company and the products I got a chance to try out. I don't know if you guys know this but I am a HUGE PartyLite fan and have been for a very long time. Before I had Baby D her room was my "storage room" and I had a bookshelf full of boxes and boxes of candles! My favorite scent ever is Coconut Cove and I would burn it in votives, tea lights, jars, basically any form it came in. Obviously I would burn other scents too but that was my "comfort scent". I was never a huge fan of the pillars because I thought they would burn like all the other pillars you buy, you know, leaking down one side, burning unevenly, and the the biggest offense, somehow getting a hole in the side of the candle causing a huge mess on whatever you were burning the pillar in? Well, I finally bit the bullet about a year and a half ago. I decided to host a party and it was super successful. I had about $500 if not more worth of free product and at that point I said, "Let's do it! Let's try something outside of my comfort zone". So I used my free credits and purchased reed diffusers, pillar candles, aroma melters, aroma simmers, along with my normal jars, tealights, and votives.basically if it was from PartyLite and had a scent, I purchased it.

I was NOT let down. Ladies, how many of your husbands enjoy burning candles? I'm not gonna lie, there are mornings I wake up and my husband has lit the pillars on the kitchen table because "they smell nice" or "it looked nice", and he lights some tea lights at night in the cute holders I have around the house. Do you know why? Because they smell AMAZING and they are NOT overpowering. 

So when Gina and I spoke about the opportunity to do a blog giveaway and she told me she would give me some free product to review I was excited. I was excited to get some products that I was familiar with but she threw me for a loop! She gave me products that had come out just recently, you know, products I didn't even know existed because I had $500 worth of candles in my house (FYI, I still haven't depleted that stash...)

So what did I get?! 

How about an Iced Snowberries GloLite Pillar Candle.  This thing is truly amazing. The PartyLite technology left me floored. When you light this candle and it has burned down a little bit (I'm talking 1/4" people) the entire pillar glows. Let me say that again, the ENTIRE PILLAR GLOWS. It is lit up from the top to the bottom in a beautiful soft glow. The first time I lit the candle is wasn't dramatic or anything, it wasn't an instant glow....now the second time I lit the candle I made sure the entire room was dark and when I lit it...there was a nice soft glow from all around the candle. It was awesome. Now, I'm not going to lie to you, the scent wasn't that noticable. I think if you are burning a GloLite you are doing it more for the look than the scent. (I made sure the house smelled great by burning an iced snowberry votive near by). This candle is perfect for those of you planning a nice sit down dinner. A nice pillar garden with the candle in three sizes makes a great centerpiece.

What else did I get?  

This is Nature's Light by Party Lite in White Oak & Sandalwood. (I do believe that this is my new go to scent). What makes this candle so special? Well, first of all it doesn't have a traditional wick, it has a wooden wick that actually crackles as it burns. It's basically a scented fireplace in a jar. How cool is that? Not only that but the jar it comes in is unique and has a great texture. It looks and feels like wood grain to really give you the feeling of lighting up a log. I liked sitting on my couch, reading a book, and enjoying a glass of wine while this was on table nearby. The crackling sound is just too comforting to pass up...and a few times I caught myself just staring at the wick and ignoring my book (but not my wine!). I hosted another party a few weeks ago and I made sure that this was on my list of things to get with my free product (by the way, again, close to $500 worth of free product)!

What else what else what else?! 

I got to try out a scent from their new Forbidden Fruits collection. I got to burn "Fig Fatale" which was a HUGE hit at my show. These products don't even come in the standard blue PartyLite boxes, oh no, they come in black boxes with a beautiful and seductive font. If you want to seduce your hubby then I strongly recommend you pick up a catalog or log online and start looking into the Forbidden Fruits selection. Again, I won't lie, I found the Fig Fatale a little strong for my liking but I wanted to bite into the Perfectly Pear and Apple Allure. (Besides those two scents just fit me perfectly, I'm an elegant and classy girl next door..ha ha ha!) My sister in law, sister, best friend, and party guests ALL purchased the fig scent so maybe its just me who is extra picky? I already decided that I will be speaking to my brother in laws and helping them make a little seductive Valentine's basket for their wives using these candles which come in jars, votives, and large tea lights (and scents are also available in oil).

**Although I received these products free of charge it has not influenced my opinion in anyway. These thoughts, views, opinions, and random babbling are mine and mine alone. ***

So now to the fun stuff! How can you win!? It's super easy! You first have to follow me on Google Friend Connect, this is mandatory, if you don't follow none of the other entries will count. Leave each entry as a separate comment and I will use a random number generator to select a winner! 

1. Go to Gina's Site and come back here and tell me what you would purchase with your $50 gift card.

2. Like Giftedly-Outspoken on Facebook 

3. Follow me on Twitter

Giveaway ends on Tuesday, Nov, 15th! 

That is all folks!! :)

Good luck and be sure to spread the word! 

I hosted a party...and became a consultant!

So as some of you may have read on Twitter and my blog I hosted a PartyLite party last week and did pretty well (over $1500 in sales). This is the second party that I did for PartyLite and its the second very successful party that I've done. Both times the lady who did the show mentioned how I'd make an amazing consultant since I obviously know my PartyLite stuff. I just flat out said no both times.

This time my husband made me think about it, "Jenny, its something you believe in and you love. I think you'd be great at it..." again I thought about it. Then yesterday my co-worker called and we had a discussion on the phone and she says to me, "You know what, not only are you never wrong (hey I tried to convince here I've been wrong on a few occasions) but you make sure that people know why you aren't wrong. You always have the data to back it up. You would make a great sales person, let's see if we can get you out to California for a week to help me out!"

That was sort of the icing on the cake, or the nail that sealed the coffin or whatever lame ass expression you need to help you understand what I'm talking about. Last night I attended the Party Lite regional meeting and I met with a lot of women who were successful in what they were doing and who loved it. I decided at that point to just become a consultant. Because we'd already closed my show (most likely I'll have the orders from my show on Friday!) I couldn't get that "free kit". I had to buy my kit but the great thing is that I already bought so many things from the new collection I have a BETTER kit than the one you can purchase! (I got 6 items at half price from my sales PLUS 1 item at 50% off for hosting the show PLUS one item at 60% off for hosting the show...needless to say, I bought almost the entire catalog!)

So that just about sums it up. If you are in the Montreal area and are interested in hosting a show or doing a book show, please let me know. I have a few suggestions on how to have a super successful show and getting you TONS of free product without having to spend a penny of your own money! :)

By the way, the give away post will be coming probably on Monday!!

Remember when I told you I'd be doing a giveaway!?

Well the time is almost here! My first SPONSORED giveaway! :) I can now tell you WHO it is but I won't tell you about the prize yet....

Gina from PartyLite has agreed to give me some amazing products for me to review and is offering one lucky reader something! ;) So stay tuned!  (Click the link above and have a look around and tell me if there is anything there you are interested in!)

FYI: The post should be going up next week as I have already received my free products to review and am in the process of using/reviewing/writing!

Totally Random Thoughts

I have a bunch of random thoughts flying through my head so I figured that maybe my blog was the best place to get them out.

So let's start shall we? Oh, you'll have to forgive me if this list is messed up or makes no sense. I am watching the finale of The Real Housewives of New Jersey.

1. I'm really excited for BlogHer12. Dana and I are going to be rooming together and we were just texting trying to figure out what to do in the down time (if there is any) and who is on our list of "must meets". (Maybe one day we'll share that list but for now its just a surprise!) We need to figure out who to see, what sessions to be at, and hope we get invited to some parties. If we don't make the party list we won't be too sad. I mean, HELLO, we are in New York!

2. Last night I was playing Words With Friends and the person I was playing against told me that she actually follows me on Twitter and reads my blog. That in itself is not unusual, what is unusual is that they are NOT the type of person that I thought reads my blog. My blog doesn't usually appeal to the uber (do people still use that word?) conservative people, unless of course they read it to make fun of me or teach their children what NOT to become. I was really shocked. I told her that and she told me that while she was very conservative she liked the way I said what I felt. It actually made me happy to know that my blog can appeal to a variety of people...and I think that is kind of the point of blogs. Right?

3. Speaking of my blog I find it hilarious that the number one search term that lands people here from google is the phrase "letter to my exboyfriend". This is funny to me because that blog post (part of the letter challenge) doesn't actually have a lot of comments. It's one of the most read posts but least commented on. I wonder if people don't think its okay to talk about their exes on their blogs once they are in a new relationship or married. I don't believe that to be the case at all. My past relationships have shaped the person I am today, they helped me learn something about myself in relationships and I feel no need to hide that.

4. And since we are on the subject of ex boyfriends...My sister and I are doing two "parties". I am hosting a PartyLite party at my house and she will be doing a gold party. Basically you sell any old gold jewelry you have that you don't wear or you know, that earring that is missing its partner or that necklace your ex gave you? It's great. Sell your gold and use the cash to buy candles. Part 3 of that is "go to the casino". Anyway, I digress, so my ex boyfriend gave me a necklace and pendant. It had the island he was from as well as his initials on the back. His grandmother had given it to him. After we broke up I tried like 4 times to give it back to him and it never worked out for us. So now I am selling it. Well, I will give him until Sunday Oct 16th at 1:59pm to pick it up. If he doesn't get it by then I'll be selling it. Sorry buddy.

5. You know what has always confused me? When pro-breastfeeding parents keep on talking about the bonding benefit of breastfeeding. A blog post by Fearless Formula Feeder made me remember how much that expression irked me. I mean, what about the father? Does the father not get to bond with his kid? Does bonding not count unless a part of you is in a part of them? Or do father's only get to bond with their children after the age of 2 (or however long you decide to breastfeed?) Now, I'm not one to say anything bad about breastfeeding, I believe to each their own just feed your kid...but its really not fair to say that breastfeeding leaves you bonded better. My child was never breastfeed and I still understand her own special language and what each cry means (98% of the time). What makes people think that you understand your kid more if you breastfed? I dunno man, that just makes no sense to me!

So those are my random thoughts of the week...what are yours?

I'm Stressed!!!!

I am stressed and I hate it. I hate it with a passion. Being stressed leaves me cranky, forgetful and sometimes can wreck havoc on my face. Luckily for me the latter has not happened...yet. I'm still the cute fresh faced me.

Why so much stress? It's WORK! I am stressed at work, I forget things that are work related that are fairly (read VERY) important. It's not like me. One of the main reasons I was hired was because of my exceptional memory and attention to detail. Lately I find myself just forgetting to do things, things that should be on the forefront of my mind.

Just the other day I sent a shipment of something meant for California to New Jersey. Oops. It took me over 3 months to complete a file (a huge tedious mundane excel file with like 200 columns to fill in). I had a pile of papers waiting for my signature sitting on my desk for 2 weeks. I haven't submitted expense reports since APRIL....it's not that I don't care to do what I have to do its just that I have so much work to do that some things slip through the cracks. Of course the tiny tasks don't slip through the cracks, its the large tasks that do.

I'm beginning to feel jaded at work. I feel like I am doing the work of 3 full time employees when I am just one person. Our company seemed to just grow overnight and the work load became too heavy. Anyone who works closely with our office and saw what the girl before me did compared to what I do is completely blown away. I am (was) organized and efficient. What the frak happened? I don't want to use the excuse "baby brain" because D is now 18 months old. I should be back in the swing of things.

So my boss dragged me into his office today to inform me that he has been getting upset at my forgetfulness etc. Funny, I wanted to drag him into his office to tell him not only to I want or deserve a raise but I DEMAND one.....I somehow don't feel the timing is right now that I am being "scolded". I'm gonna be honest, I hate to hear that people are disappointed me in or that they feel I am not performing to my abilities. I hate it. I am a perfectionist...but this time I almost find myself not caring. I almost feel like saying "Hey, before you tell me that I'm forgetful etc why don't you sit at my desk for 3 hours and tell me how many things YOU can accomplish!"

So now to ask you some questions.

1. How do you keep yourself organized when you feel the world is about to swallow you whole?
2. How would you go about asking for a raise?

Travelling with Children

It's not easy to travel with children, especially if you are ALONE. You have to handle your child, your luggage, carry on bags, diaper bags etc. It's freaking stressful. When D was three months old we took our first flight from Montreal to Dallas. I was able to handle it pretty well, especially because my daddy flew to Montreal just to fly back to Dallas with me :) He toted D around in her bucket seat, I took care of checking us in and everyone at the airport was especially helpful when they saw D and passed us through customs quickly, let us board first etc. It was great.

Then D and I flew from Dallas to Fort Lauderdale. We did that trip on our own. The airport staff was great. Since I was travelling alone they helped me get thru security "Can I get that for you?" "Do you need help" were things I heard often. They were great. At one point I was struggling to carry D in her bucket seat and the diaper bag down the walk way from the boarding gate to the plane. A very nice business man asked me if he could carry something for me in order to help me out. He carried D in the bucket seat right to our assigned seats and even strapped her into the seat. He told me, "My wife used to travel with the kids alone and I know its hard. I hate to see a mother struggle." I thought that was sweet. He also helped me off the plane with baby D and made sure I had my stroller before he took off. I pushed the stroller a few feet before my husband magically appeared.

I have yet to make the jump to "international" travel (for some reason US/Canada isn't considered international). But if I were to travel outside of this continent I would make sure of a few things. One of those things would be the car seat laws. I know that that US isn't the most strict with their laws but its also not the most lenient. What are the laws where we are traveling? Are they completely absurb?

Example: I had a friend travel to Greece this summer. She informed me upon her return that the entire time she was in Greece her one year old (14.5 month) daughter was not in a car seat. That Greece's car seat laws are if the kid can walk they could be restrained by a normal seat belt. Uh? What?

So I did what any normal person would do. I googled the shit out of that. Google informed me that while Greece is great in welcoming kids they are horrible at protecting them and probably have some of the most lax car seat laws BUT they still exist. The law states that unless a child is 3 years old and 135cm that they can not ride in a car without proper restraints UNLESS in a bus or taxi. 3 years old?! Isn't that a little...ummm...not right? Man, here in Canada I have cousins that have kids that are 7 in still in booster seats due to their small size etc. 3. That is it in Greece. Three years old and you can be restrained by a seat belt that is made for adults. Sure, who cars if you get decapitated or squished by air bags....

I kinda of let it go. I pretended not to care but I can't do that. I do care. I care about my child enough to say "screw you Greece laws". Greece may say that by law a 3 year old can be strapped into a normal car seat but I'd rather follow the laws of where I'm from. You know, laws from somewhere more concerned with safety. Greece may be the birth place of democracy, philosophy, politics, math, science but they also get the crown for being the birth place of crazy driving, unmarked roads, horrible car accidents due to bad driving and unmarked roads.  Basically, its not a place I want my child to be sitting in a car completely unprotected.

I totally get that its hard to change the minds of older people from generations about certain things. My mom never had to be in a car seat when she was growing up in Greece and when she brought me home from the hospital in Montreal she was holding me in her arms, in the front seat of the car, smoking a cigarette. Uh, guess what. Times have totally changed. We don't get in cars with our children unrestrained, we don't smoke in our cars with our children, we dont sleep with our front doors unlocked either. Times have changed people.

I guess what I'm saying is that I'm just smarter than that. I mean, as parents we don't really need laws to tell us what is acceptable and not right? Like, is there a law that says "Don't let your child drink bleach" I don't think there is (I could be wrong) but even without a law I know its wrong/not good. I don't need a law that says "Hanging a child upside from a ceiling fan is strictly forbidden." I kinda know that its not something you do.

So have you traveled with your child recently? Had you come across some laws or situations that you found completely insane?

(btw for all you rear facing fanatics, in Sweden there is a car seat that allows you to rear face until 55lbs!)

Farrah did what?!

So I'm obviously a bit behind on watching Teen Mom. I don't think I've seen an episode since Amber and Gary started fighting...oh what, that happens every episode? Well in that case, I'm lost, but trust me when I say I haven't watched in a long time, probably after episode 3. CW and Bravo have  much better fall line up than MTV ever will.

Anyway, so its been brought to my attention that Farrah decided to leave her daughter behind with her parents (who she doesn't really like anyway right?) in order for her to go to school and get her degree in Florida. Now, forgive me if I'm wrong but Iowa does have schools right? I mean, there are educated people from Iowa. I KNOW this for a fact because I tweet with some, text message with others, and read their blogs too. Iowa is a real place with real schools.

So what would cause a mother to leave her child behind in another state so she can go off and get her degree? I'll tell you what it was. Farrah is looking to regain her social life. Poor Sophia is taking a back seat to her mother's delusional dreams that maybe one day someone will want her. Think I'm lying? Why did Farrah get a boob job? Oh. yes, to get more jobs as a model to make more money to support Sophia. Those tears she cried while at that modeling job were 100% crocodile tears meant to move the hearts of the MTV viewers. Guess what Farrah? My heart is cold as ice and you didn't warm it up. You got the boob job so that YOU could feel better about YOURSELF. You got the boob job so you can get more attention from guys.  It wasn't about booking jobs because let's be honest, most models out there aren't all that well endowed unless you want to work for Victoria's Not so Secret.

Now I'm about to say something that will probably get me flogged in the blogging community among single mothers or young mothers etc but since when do I care? If you don't want the responsibility of having a child then keep your freaking legs closed. Do not HAVE a child if you are not ready to put that kid first. Do NOT take a LOAN out to get boobs because you could be spending that money on making a better life for your child, you could have gotten a loan to move into a more stable home away from your whack job parents. Why have a kid if you just want to drop them off at the nearest babysitter?

When you become a parent you start putting yourself 2nd or 3rd or whatever. You are no longer first. I know that first hand. I'm a girlie girl. I love getting my hair done, I love getting all pretty. Well, when I got pregnant and had D for the first 10 months of her life I completely forgot what it was like to be human. I stopped going and getting my hair colored (and I had about 8 inches of roots to show for it), I stopped shopping in the designer clothes section for me and would rather get myself a pair of jeans from Wal-Mart so I can put that extra money into Burberry or Dior for Demi. I didn't mind either. I would give my life for my kid so who cares about what label is slapped across my ass? The point is that we all have to make sacrifices for our children when we have them. That is what separates the good parents from the shoddy ones.

I'm sorry but its NOT a sacrifice to leave your kid with your mom while you run away to sunny Florida under the guise of it being "for school". You WANT to leave your kid behind because you want to party, you want to be a normal 21 year old woman. I hate to tell you this Farrah but you aren't a woman and you aren't a mom. You were merely a uterus donor and your mom is about to take on the role of "mom" again.

I often hear jaded women use the expression, "Any man can be a father but it takes a real man to be a dad." well, it looks like the same can be said for Farrah, "Any woman can be a mother but it takes a real woman to be a mom," and I'm happy that Farrah's mom is willing to take on that title again because Farrah is just a mess.

Hospitals & Babies

There are a lot of great things about being a mom but the absolute worst thing has to be dealing with a sick kid. Today my heart broke in so many ways I was so sad. Baby D has had chronic infections in her private regions. She has gotten 3 in the past 3 months. It always starts the same way, it appears to be a diaper rash, a high fever, the rash gets a "pimple" like head which fills with puss and is just an infection.

Her doctor ordered a round of blood tests to check her immune system to see if maybe there is something that her body just can't fight off. I'm not really worried, I'm not the worrying type...my mother and husband on the other hand are huge worry warts! Today was the big day. The day I've been dreading. I hate hospitals and I also hate how my husband always makes me the bad guy. He will drive us to the doctors office or the hospital and he'll sit in the parking lot or drive around while I do the mean mommy routine of taking her in to see the doctor.

So this morning we leave home right around 10:30 and head down to the Montreal Children's Hospital for her 11:40am appointment to have blood drawn. Everything is fine and dandy. She is in great spirits although she has a slight cold. We get to the hospital, hubby parks by the emergency room and I get out and unload the stroller while daddy takes D from the car seat. They say bye and in we go. We check into the blood center and I'm thinking "Hey, its only going to be like 20 minutes or so...." then as we sit in the waiting room (the chairs in the hall way!) I keep on hearing people talk about how long they've been waiting "It's already been two hours!" I suddenly knew that D was NOT going to be happy sitting in her stroller for that long.

I decide to take D out and just let her sit on mommy's lap. She was content for about .15 seconds. She got out of my lap and decided to walk up and down the hall way. I sat on the edge of my chair and just watched her. She went up to every single person and tried to fist bump them. Yes, my 17 month old adorable prim and proper little girl fists bumps. I taught her that while on vacation and she hasn't stopped. I'm not embarrassed by it, I actually find it hilarious that my little girl does this. She actually TEACHES other kids how to do it. She will walk up to someone with a closed fist and wait for them to give her their fist then she pulls her hand back and says "pshhhhhhhhh". So here she is going up and down the little hall way fist bumping everyone, blacks, whites, asians, muslims, she didn't care. She taught a few of the parents what a fist bump was as well. She was the star of the "waiting room".

As we are waiting we learn that we keep getting bumped back for emergency patients to come in and whatnot. I don't mind. I'm a patient person, my kid on the other hand isn't. I sat her in my lap and let her play Old Macdonald on my iPhone. As she was sitting there patiently hitting the pink little pig and watching it run away, I watched a mother push her 3 year old little girl in a wheel chair down the hall. The little gor; had tubes all over her and looked disabled. My heart broke. Sick kids is where I draw my "cold hearted" limit. I can be the biggest bitch about anything and everything but I turn into a little sap when I see a sick kid.

I quickly imagined what life would be like if that was D and I. My heart broke and I wanted to cry. It made me hug my little girl a bit more and give her a little kiss on the head. D hopped off of my lap and ran up to the wheelchair and tried to fist bump that little girl. She waited patiently but the girl wasn't having any of it so of course the talkative little monster that she is starts yelling at the girl. "HI....HELLO.....HI.....Pssssssh" as she put her hand into a fist. She WANTED a fist bump. The mother looked at D and smiled then I smiled at that mom. The little girl curled her hand into a fist and Demi was content. As the girl was strolled down the hall way D yelled "BYE!" until she was out of sight.

We still had some waiting to do so I put D back in the stroller and gently rock her back and forth. I jinxed myself because I told the 17 year old girl next to me, "Any money says that now that she fell asleep they'll call her." Guess what, they called her the second she closed her eyes.

You do the math. Cranky baby + woken up from her sleep + drawing blood = screaming bloody murder.  :( I was so sad for her and I hated how I had to hold her legs down while one nurse held down her arms and someone else drew her blood. I hated how loud she screamed, I hated how she had snot running down her face from screaming so loud and hard. I did love how she gave mommy a huge hug and wouldn't let go afterwards. Poor poor baby.

Hospitals are depressing in general but a children't hospital is even worse. I hope that the love that D has for everyone will last as she grows older. D doesn't know the difference between races,  religions, sexuality and sick or healthy. She treated everyone equally and it made me happy to see that she was still innocent. George and I refuse to allow racist, sexist, homophobic slurs spoken in our house and I hope that when she gets older she won't find herself friends with someone who does use those types of words.

Our children's innocence is the best  thing ever. I fell even more in love with my kid when I saw how she interacted with everyone.

Book Club!!!!

Nerd alert!! Nerd alert!!

I've always wanted to join a book club but for some reason never really put any effort forward. Guess what? No effort and it just fell into my lap. My sister has a sister in law and she called to let her know that they were starting a book club. My sister asked if she could invite me and the sister in law said sure (see not everyone has crappy inlaws!).

Last night was the first official meeting of the book club. It turns out that as of now there are 8 of us but it looks like we will probably grow to about 11 women. 11 Greek women in one place...all trying to talk about a book....at the same time...it really should be interesting. I would normally say that when you have a book club that slowly people start dropping out of it. In this case its a bit different because we all know each other going INTO the club. It's sisters, cousins, in laws, dating so and so's family member etc. When its a close group you are less likely to lose members.

I'm really excited. We already picked our first book which is Jodi Picoult's Change of Heart. It looks like its going to be a good read. I've read a few of Jodi's books and they have all been amazing. I'm very happy that one of her books was chosen for our book club. I am happy to expand my horizon in regards to types of books that I read because I really do find myself reading "chick lit" or heart breaking books like Picoult or Nicholas Sparks. I need to get back to reading thrillers and things of that sort. Maybe I shall get with the reading of the NY Best Sellers or maybe the Classics?

Our book club is meeting in like 5 weeks to discuss the book and I can read about a book a week so I have plenty of time right? Speaking of reading there is a great website called www.goodreads.com which helps you track what you've read, what you are reading, what you want to read and review books too. It's pretty good. I signed up on there so look for me and we can compare books.

I'll let you know what I think of the books as I read them. :)

Happy reading and hey...I told you it was major nerd alert! :)

Saturday 9: Ready or No

1. When severe weather happens, generally speaking, are you ready for it?
Yes and no. We have plenty of food, bottled waters, a fire place, and a back up generator. I think we'd be okay for a while.
2. If you could wake up tomorrow with a new talent, what would it be? 
I'd like to be able to write the way I used to write. It would flow effortlessly.

3. What do you strive for in life? 
Perfection. Just kidding. I just strive for being as happy as I can be! :)

4. If you were given a vacation home and you could have it anywhere, what location would you choose?
Italy! Beautiful beaches and amazing shopping. What else could I ask for?

5. Do you feel energized or drained by being in a group situation? If the answer is "it depends," on what does it depend? 
It depends on my mood going into it. Sometimes I'm very much a people person and love it. I get energized. Other days just the thought of one other person much less a group drains me.

6. When you're sick do you take "sick days" or do you force yourself to continue working? I never STOP working. Even when I am sick and don't go into the office I can be found making phone calls and answering emails. My sick days are to benefit others, so I don't give them my cooties. 

7. What is your absolute favorite piece of furniture you have and why? My bed. I love my bed. The head board is beautiful the mattress is so comfortable. It just looks like a nice statement piece.

8. When you go out, where do you like to go? What do you like to do? I gotta say, I enjoy going BOWLING. It's one of those things that we don't do too often so its fun. It's even more fun when its drunk disco bowling.

9. How's life? Is it treating you well right now? 

Life is pretty great. I can't complain.

Saturday Nine meme hosted by Samantha

Wine & Love

I found the cutest little meme hosted by Nora on Amber's blog and thought I'd join in.

What we are supposed to do is write down what is making us reach for wine, tequila or whatever your poison is followed by our loves. This should be things you've whined about and loved since LAST week.

Wines

• Everyone being out of the office but me. You'd think this is great news but its not. I get to deal with everyone's complaints and problems. Woofuckinghoo.
• It got cold way way way too fast. It went from a hot summer day to a super chilly fall day. Isn't there supposed to be gradual shift?
• I have another ear infection. Yes. Really.

Loves

• My daughter started at the daycare we own and I feel so much more comfortable with her there. She seems to have adapted so well and everyone loves her! :)
• The office is at least peacful :) I SHOULD be able to find time to finish some tedious tasks!
• My husband bought me the nicest pair of skinny jeans by Calvin Klein an they fit like a glove. 
• I just reloaded my e-reader with a bunch of new books and I'm so excited to find some time to just read while enjoying a nice glass of wine! 
• Did I mention I'm going to Blogher12?

Wordless Wednesday

words are not needed to get this point across...

It's NOT putting your kids down...crazy lady!

So there is a blog post making its rounds on the blogosphere that is called "Stop Putting Down Your Kids".  I read the post a few times trying to figure out where Tara was coming from. Was it written with some sort of humor that was deeply hidden? Was it written from an angry place? I finally realized where it came from. It was written from high above us "normal" parents, on her pedestal.

She says that putting down your children is not helpful, funny, nor will it improve your relationship with your child. I totally get it. Putting down your children is down right crappy. However, all the examples she gave are NOT examples of putting down a child.  The examples she gave are of mother's expressing their feelings to their friends, peers, co-workers or whatever.

Putting down a child is saying something along the lines of "my child is such a fucking douchebag. He's 4 years old and still not potty trained. I think he is mentally handicapped". "My child hasn't stopped eating crap, she is going to become a heifer"

It seems to me that Tara has a hard time getting the difference between parents discussing their hardships, their troubles, their hard times, problems, or however you want to call them and putting down. Putting down is an insult. Putting down is hurting someone's feelings.  Tara went pretty far and even called "putting down your kids" as being selfish.

Is it really selfish? Is it selfish to speak to other moms about issues you are having with your child/children? Here I thought it was a way to interact and bond with other parents and maybe do this weird thing called getting advice. Where should we turn to for advice about children misbehaving, not sleeping well, not eating well or whatever? Should we just google and hope we come up with something good? I know that when D was having issues sleeping I spoke to my friend and she told me about her family's bed time routine and how the end result was her daughter sleeping straight through the night.

When D decided that eating wasn't something she was fond of I spoke to a few friends and complained "Oh my god, D is going to be as picky as an eater as me. She hasn't eaten a solid meal in about 3 days!" and my mommy friends told me about their issues when their children were younger and gave me some suggestions.

You see, some might see it as complaining about our children but NEVER putting them down. Even the complaining is warranted. A parent's job is never over. It's a 24/7 deal. If our child keeps us up all night and we can't function its not good. We have the right to complain, to talk, to get advice. We have the right to NOT be judged for talking to other parents about our issues or hardships.  We have the right to turn to a friend and ask advice and compare horror stories and share survival tips.

Look, let's be honest, no one is going to give you an award for being a great parent but you shouldn't be made to feel like a shitty one for turning to someone to ask for help. If anything it makes us feel like a more normal parent for knowing that the majority of parents are dealing with or have dealt with the same thing.

So how do you feel about Tara's post?

MTV & The Law

I'm watching Jersey Shore right now. It's a repeat so I'm not really paying attention. They showed a commercial for Teen Mom and it was about Amber getting arrested for domestic violence. I don't know why but I got really pissed off. No, seriously. I got mad.

Why!?

A few seasons ago Snooki got punched in the face by some "gorilla" at the bar. MTV first aired the preview for the episode and the entire world got in an uproar over MTV airing this. How in the heck can they air a clip of a woman (?) getting punched in the face by a guy with a clear conscious. How could they? What were they thinking!?  MTV of course edited the footage and showed the fight minus the actual punch in the face.

Then about a year or year and a half MTV aired a scene on Teen Mom in which Amber started punching Gary in front of their young daughter Leah. Once again, everyone was in an uproar. People called the police, the courts demanded that MTV hand over the raw footage of that. Charges were pressed, she was arrested, and custody was taken from Amber (I'm 100% in agreement and its NOT just about the hitting, I think she is a very very shitty mom).

Well, where exactly is the uproar when people watch Jersey Shore and see the ticking time bomb that is known as Ron? In the past 4 sesaons of Jersey Shore Ron repeatedly flips out. When I say flips out I mean physically punching people, destroying personal property that isn't his, and emotionally abusive of his girlfriend (not to say that Sam doesn't act the same way!). Where is are the cries of domestic abuse? Where is the uproar? Where is the "that isn't right, what is MTV thinking!?"

According to Wikipedia Domestic violence is defined as:  Domestic violence, so defined, has many forms, including physical aggression (hitting, kicking, biting, shoving, restraining, slapping, throwing objects), or threats thereof; sexual abuse; emotional abuse; controlling or domineering; intimidation; stalking; passive/covert abuse (e.g.,neglect); and economic deprivation. Alcohol consumption and mental illness^[ can be co-morbid with abuse, and present additional challenges when present alongside patterns of abuse.


I dunno but it seems to me like that entire paragraph above just basically says "Ron & Sam". I've watched Ron:

• get into a fight on the board walk and get arrested
• shove Sam out of the way (repeatedly)
• completely trash Sam's room and break things (including her glasses)
• put her bed on the porch and say that since she "acts like a dog she can sleep like a dog"
• trash Mike's room and stuff
• get into a physical altercation with Mike.
  
  His behavior is always amplified by drinking. 

I get that the MTV veiwers became concerned because its not normal for a guy to punch a girl (Snooki), be abusive in front of your child (Amber) but are we sitting down and accepting that its okay for a man to treat a woman like this as long as no physical punches are thrown to her? What about emotional abuse? What about mental health?

I never got into an uproar about any of the situations presented above so I'm not going to get my panties in a bunch about this either but for all of those who did get involved by calling the police, sending emails, boycotting the show/network...where are you now? Don't you care?!

What is your opinion on this?

S.H.I.T. - So Happy Its Thursday

My lovely bloggy friend Rusti hosts a wonderful blog meme/link up every week. Every week I read it and I giggle. Who doesn't giggle at the title SHIT? I know I do (then again I'm mentally 12).

Reasons I'm So Happy Its Thursday

1. Its almost Friday which means a LONG weekend! 
2. It has to be better than Tuesday right!? Right?
3. Tassimo is set to deliver my new order of coffee to the office (I ordered the iced coffee)
4. I'm in discussions with a company for a review/giveaway on my blog!
5. Its also Marcie's Thirsty Thursday blog hop which I really enjoy! (I find all kinds of awesome bloggers to follow)
6. It's a long weekend to spend with my little adorable baby girl! I think I'm gonna mess around with my camera to take some new pictures of her for her portfolio! 

So now its your turn to tell me why you are so happy its Thursday!?

Wordless Wednesday

Almost didn't get this in on time.....

A bit too young to try the sexy look eh?

Giving Up A Part of Yourself

So there seems to be a common theme on my blog posts. A lot of comments or emails will be like, "Wow, I can't believe you wrote that. Tell us how you really feel." "Oh my god, I'd never be able to say that!" and I've always wondered why. It's can't possibly be that my ass constantly overrides my mouth can it? It can't be that I'm always such a bitch.

Then I take the time to check out the blogs of the people who leave me those comments, emails, or tweets. There is a huge difference between their blog and my blog. I'm not sponsored or doing reviews/giveaways. I've been debating for a while of if I've wanted to seek out sponsorships. I think that they are great and they benefit everyone. The company sponsoring you gets more recognition and when doing reviews/giveaways your blog readership base pretty much grows. It's a win/win situation. 

BUT then I think about "who would sponsor me". My blog isn't all sunshine and roses. Its real. Its raw. Its me. I curse, I say mean things, I don't hold my tongue. There aren't very many companies who want to sponsor someone like that but I don't forsee me changing the way I write to please someone else.

Can I clean up my mouth a bit on my blog? Can I stop dropping the F-Bomb? Sure I can. Can I try to sugar coat the meanness? Sure I could...but it wouldn't be mean. Yes, I'm the one who said "I'm unfollowing someone ugly" on Twitter and then later got called a bully and had a whole blog post dedicated to me and how I obviously must feel horrible about myself since I'm being "mean". I'd hate to NOT be able to blog about how a company did something to irk me, or how my sister in law is an annoying twit. I'd hate to have to basically censor everything I'd want to say because of a sponsor.

So do any of you feel that you are giving up a part of yourself when blogging and being sponsored? How do you NOT lose yourself?

Soooo Trippy!

Since I'm not the greatest at blogging on a regular basis I've been thinking of either doing a 30 day blog challenge (last time I failed miserably but they were "letter a day" type of things and y'all see how I write. I don't do "short") or try a writer's workshop.

For now I've decided on a workshop. :)

The writing prompt I choose to write about something embarrassing that happened at school. I'm hoping that college counts as school because otherwise I can't really recall embarrassing.

I should preface this by letting you know that I moved to Montreal when I was 17 years old. Straight out of high school and didn't know anyone who wasn't related to me. I withdrew from college my first semester due a big surgery and long recovery.  I spent a lot of time on ICQ (way back when!).


So one day I'm chillin on ICQ and I guess someone did a search for people in Montreal that went to a specific college because I got a message from some random dude. I was bored so we started talking. Found out that his name was Tim her went to the same college as me but he was enrolled in a different program. He sent me a few pictures of him, I sent him a few pictures of me. We really hit it off. After about a week of talking he asked if I wanted to meet him.

We agreed to meet during "universal" which is an hour and a half on Wednesdays when no one has class. I had suggested the "Greek" cafeteria and he declined. He suggested "Italian" cafeteria and I declined (the reason why is a whole other story.....I might add it to this blog post). We basically decided that since we hadn't ever met in person before that going to the cafeteria when the entire campus didn't have class could be tricky trying to recognize one another.  We agreed to meet on the 4th floor of the library, obviously a place that college students don't go to.

So its Wednesday, I just got out of English and am walking with a friend. As we approach the library I let her know that this is where I get off for today and that she should call my cell if she doesn't hear from me within an hour and a half. I walk into the library and it strikes me that we didn't really agree to WHERE we'd meet. By the check out desk? By the doors? By the computers? At a table that there are only like 50 of? I don't have to wonder for very long. Tim comes up to me within a minute of me being in the library. We do the European air kiss thing, we give hugs, and of course say hi and whatever. We agree to go to an ethnic neutral place to grab a bite to eat. Jake's cafeteria. (Yes my college had like 19 freaking cafeterias). As soon as we take like 3 steps towards the door I trip. On what? I have no freaking idea. It was like my legs just gave out of me. I was like "Uh, yeah....sorry...I think I tripped on my pant leg". He helped me up and we laughed it off.

During our meal some of our friends would drop by where we were eating and just say hi and whatever. One of my friends took that opportunity to invite us to her Halloween party. I was obviously going to go but Tim...well, we had just met. He didn't have to go. He said he'd think about it and we went on with our lives. Over the course of the week Tim and I would talk on the phone (the things we did before text messaging!) and on ICQ. He told me that he would be coming to the party and asked what time he should show up. I told him I was going early to help my friend set up and to come when he was free.

Halloween is upon us and my friends and are I decorating the apartment. We are getting our drink on as we decorate as well. The party starts and we are all having a good time. I'm in the kitchen making some drinks when someone calls out to me, "Jenny, Tim is here!". I'm not going to lie, I got a bit excited. I skipped/walked to the door and as soon as I saw him.....I fell.

Seriously. At least this time I knew WHY.
Let me explain: Montreal + Halloween = Winter (Ice/Snow/Rain)
Winter + Hard wood floors = slippery.
Slippery + A natural born klutz = Hi Jenny meet the floor...again

As Tim helped me up I laughed and promised him that I did, in fact, know how to walk. One of my friends popped a comment about Tim making me weak to my knees. It wasn't true. Sure he was attractive but he was no Paul Walker.  I didn`t speak to Tim again after that Halloween party. I kind of wonder if its because he thought that I couldn`t walk?

Yeah that is the most embarrassing thing that has ever happened to me....so I guess I'm not too bad right?! If that is the worst thing that has happened then I'm getting off easy!

P.S. The reason I didn't want to go into the Italian Cafeteria is because when I was dating a guy named Marco he asked me to meet him in the caf. As soon as I walked in like 200 people started clapping as he approached me to walk me to the table. I got introduced to half the Italian population of the school that day and that freaked me the heck out. I could never walk in there again! 


What is the most embarrassing thing that has happened to you at school?

Sending Mixed Signals as Moms

This blog post might hit a few nerves so I apologize in advance if you get offended by this. It is not my intention to offend, its just my intention to say what I feel.

I get annoyed when I come across twitter handles and blog names and emails that are soandsos'smom. It drives me insanely crazy. I don't really know why this is bothers me but it does. I guess I've always thought of it like, Yes, my daughter IS my biggest accomplishment but she is NOT the only thing in my life that I've accomplished. I'm a mother but I have an identity outside of a mom. I wear more than one hat, don't you?

Growing up I hated being called "Alex's little sister". Along with correcting them that I'm the "younger" sister NOT the little sister I'd be sure to throw my name in there. I'm "Jenny, Alex's younger sister," or if you prefer  "Alex's younger sister, Jenny."  Now that I'm older I still get ticked off by those types of labels. I dropped Demi off at daycare the other day and a parent goes to me, "Are you Demi's mom" "Yes, I'm Jenny, Demi's mom." 

Now my post isn't about the lack of using my name and only referring to me as a mom but its about the message we send to our children, mainly our daughters. From the moment we give birth nowadays we are freaked out by trying to remain gender neutral and not push a sex on a kid. We try not to give dolls to girls and trucks to boys. We try not to use terms like "sweet girl" and  "strong boy". We don't stress boy toys or girl toys and boy colors and girl colors. We teach both our sons and daughters that they can be anything they want to be. We love and support them in anything they do. We teach them about doing what they want and finding themselves. We allow our children to form their own identities and we support them in that. When we notice that our children are out of line we discipline them, when we notice they are too shy we try to coax them out of their shell. But we always support their identity. The kid is girlie, a tomboy, tough, a bit weak, in touch with this/her feelings, emotional...we work with our kids and figure out how to approach them. How to talk to them, how to discipline them depending on their personalities. 

Then a funny thing happens, our daughter's grow up and become moms and even we stop calling them by their names. We'll ask our grandchildren "Where is your mommy? What did your mommy say? Did mommy make you breakfast today?" We stop talking to our children about how their day was an instead ask how THEIR child's day was. We spent all this time teaching our children to become their own person and then we let them lose it and just focus on their being a mom. We tell our daughters to never fall into a man's shadow. To stand on their own and be their own person. Don't rely on a man for money, emotional support, or anything. Be equals. Be partners. Then somehow we end up allowing our children to go from "Jenny" to "Demismom.blogspot.com" We say nothing of this we think this is completely normal. It's NOT.

It gets under my skin. Maybe my mom raised me different, maybe I'm too hard headed? I don't want to just be known as a mom. There is so much more to me than what I popped out of my vagina. Now I don't mind being a mom, in fact I love it but its not everything that encompasses me. If that makes me a bad mom then I guess I'm a horrible mom. I guess I'm just urging more moms to step out of their children's shadows and be your own person. Don't be just a mom.

Does this get under your skin or are you one of the offenders!?

Show Me Your Rings

Show Me Your Rings

There is a cute Meme happening on the blogosphere these past few days and I decided to jump in on it. 

Did you look at rings together?

Nope. I had mentioned from the get go that I can not stand solitaire settings. I am a very social person and I believe that my diamond should be as well. George asked me email him some pictures of engagement rings I just loved and he had one of them made for me!

Do you like your ring? Did you from the beginning?…and be honest!

I LOVED my ring. I adored it. It was perfect and exactly what I always wanted.

How often do you wear your rings?

Every single day. I think I only took it off when we went on our honeymoon and I went in the ocean with it for the first time. I thought I was going to lose it so I ran back to the hotel and put it in the safe.

Do you clean your rings?

You'd be very surprised at how well a salt water pool can clean your ring. 

What went through your mind the very first time you saw your ring?

It's about freaking time!!! I was in shock at how George proposed to me and I couldn't take my eyes off of my stunning ring. It completely floored me that it was exactly what I wanted.

I had seen our wedding bands because we picked them out together.

Thank you to Cheryl for an amazing photograph of the rings that she took at my daughter's baptism.

More bad food - Seriously

It seems I have a knack for choosing crappy places to eat. A few months ago I wrote about a dining experience gone way way wrong.. A little update to that: My sister and I went back with our husbands and parents a few months ago. AMAZING food and amazing service. We were more than pleased.

But....There is a restaurant in my city called Tripoli, its a Greek place with amazing food. The food has NEVER been bad but the service, OMG, the service is horrible. Every single time we go we complain about the service. If you are drinking beer you need to order 3 at a time just to ensure you'll have enough to get you through the meal.

Last time I was there was October 2010. We went for a friend's birthday. We started our dinner at 7pm and ended at 11pm. It wasn't because we were drinking and enjoying ourselves, it was because the service was soooooooo slow. I said I wouldn't go back because I just don't enjoy myself. I don't enjoy waiting 45 minutes for our EMPTY plates to be taken away in order to bring us our next course. I don't enjoy waiting 45 minutes for you to bring me a glass of water. It just isn't enjoyable and no matter how good the food is, its not worth it to me. I swore I wouldn't go back. I did pretty good, nearly a year.

Today I get home from work and this is the conversation we had:

DH: Hey did George call or text you?
Me: No, why? What's up?
DH: Where is your phone?
Me: In my back pocket. Why George, what is up? Is something wrong.
DH: Can you look at your phone?
(I pull my phone out of my pocket and see that I do NOT have a missed call or text)
DH: Well he's going to call or text you soon to see if you want to go out for dinner tonight...............to Tripoli.
Me: Man really? Okay fine since its George.

A few minutes later the house phone rings and we confirm that we are going to meet there at 7pm. I change D's clothes and get dressed pack the diaper bag and walk to the car.

We get to Tripoli where we are greeted by the owners wife. She asks if we are only 2 plus the baby. I said no, 6 plus the baby. We get seated and we are now waiting for the rest of our party to arrive.

3 minutes later the owners wife comes up to just George, myself, and the baby and says, "Would you like to place your order now or are you waiting on the rest of your party?" Uhhhh what the freak do you think? If we wanted to order ourselves, without the rest of our table we might as well stayed home.

So now our entire table is seated, we are waiting....and waiting....and waiting.....for someone to come see us to ask if we'd like to order our food or maybe even a drink. We place the entire order TOGETHER. We ordered drinks, apps, and main meal at the same time to save the waitress the trouble of coming back to our table to keep taking orders. George orders 2 beers in one shot. Do you know how long we sat at a table with no food, no drinks, and no explanation as to why we had none? FORTY-FIVE minutes. Yes 45 minutes with an empty table.

Our appetizers get to the table before our drinks do. As the waitress is handing out the appetizers she says, "Your drinks are on their way." FROM WHERE? Freaking Mexico? Shouldn't they have arrived FIRST? A few more minutes pass and she comes by our table again and says," Your drinks will be right out." FINALLY our drinks come, George orders another beer just for good measure and my husband points out to the waitress that she forgot to bring one of plates from the kitchen. She rushes back and brings it to us.

Now we finish our apps, we are waiting and waiting and waiting and waiting for the meal courses to be brought out. Heck, we are waiting for them to even come and pick up our app dishes. Nope, no luck. Another 45 minutes passes and the waitress tells us at this point, "Everything will be smooth sailing from this point on." The table behinds us gets up before their food arrives, complains to someone and walks out. I felt like doing the same thing but somehow George knows the guy and it would be rude. Really? It's rude making people wait that long for food and water...and did you notice notice the 17 month old with us who was getting very tired and VERY impatient?

Nothing was smooth sailing, we waited another 10 minutes for our food. While we are waiting for our food the restaurant begins to fill with smoke. Something was burning and of course they couldn't admit that by opening a door or window right? Oh and at this point we are debating just asking them to cancel our main meals. As we flag the waitress over she is bringing our salad/main course. The fries that our plates came with were so over cooked that they were actually chips...expect they weren't thin enough to be chips. Look, if I wanted chips I would have opened a bag of Lays and called it a night. This is insane. Everyone just shuts their mouths and eats the edible portions of their food.

We ask for the bill which does NOT get brought to us. My husband had to get up and go find the waitress in order to pay the bill. One of the waiters actually commented "I've worked in worse places" and "Yeah its really bad eh" and started laughing when I asked him if he wanted me to crush my fries and make confetti out of it.

When your staff starts to laugh at where he works its time for a change. It's time to either hire more wait staff or more kitchen staff. It's not like it was an off night. This has happened every single time we go there regardless of the day of the week.

Tomorrow I will call Tripoli and let the owner know what I think of their establishment and their service as well as leaving negative reviews on any and all food forums I can find. This is ridiculous. 

Mark my words, Tripoli will never get a dollar off of me. If you see me in there I give you the right to spit on me.