Saturday, February 28, 2009

Ask What You Can Do For Your Country

This past week I was in our nation's capitol for business. I've only been to DC three times now in my life, each time only for a short time, and barely there long enough to really enjoy the immense amount of historical sites available for us to enjoy. I love American History, and I love this country, and I long to go back to DC, on my own and thoroughly examine the sites. However, the few things I've had the opportunity to see, even if briefly, always leave me in utter awe. I was fortunate this past week to spend a peaceful and deeply moving afternoon at Arlington Cemetery.

Arriving in DC, I had joked entirely about running into our newest President, but truly there was no need to see him in person, because his face exists absolutely EVERYWHERE. The journey that this nation has been on these past 45 days has been an interesting one, and I admit my personal journey along the Obama Mania train has been a rough one. I genuinely do not wish for any President to fail because I truly respect the position in which they hold. However, I have struggled immensely in the light of how this country is drastically changing, and even more frightening to me is how worshiped our new President is. I have been disheartened from the inauguration and on. I am not affiliated with any one party, and I understand in the realm of all my friends, most of which are staunch Democrats, not being affiliated makes me an outsider. But I have always voted for the man who I believe represents my interests best, and with whom I can believe in. This past election was draining to me. And on a day that I wanted to find something to believe in, and stand with the millions of other Americans who were screaming they were "Proud to be an American", I was only saddened. I was saddened by how a man who stayed away from all race related campaign tactics had somehow become proclaimed by the minute "The 1st BLACK President". Everything became about him being BLACK, not the fact that he ran a great campaign or was going to bring change, or any of his platforms. It was only that he was BLACK, as if we hadn't noticed.

Let me say here that I don't take anything away from this historical event and the significance of what took place. I wanted so much to believe in him, rather than his color, after all, isn't that what being President of the free world is about? Regardless of any political party, or of how any one person felt about President Bush's presidency, he was still President of the United States, and it made me sad at how disrespected he was the last few days of his presidency. It made me sad to hear all the smears, and booing, and name calling at every place he was presented. And I wondered how he and Mrs. Bush must have felt as they took off in their helicopter that afternoon.

I didn't bring all of this up as a political statement, or to criticize one political side or the other, I speak of it all because in the past 45 days, as my faith in the country and our government has been tried and tested, it was my experience at Arlington Cemetery that provided me the renewed faith that I was looking for. Just days before I headed to DC, I had the great opportunity to watch the HBO Special, "Taking Chance". If you haven't seen this beautiful film, I highly suggest that you find a way to. The movie, starring Kevin Bacon, is based on a true story of a high ranked Marine Corp officer, stationed in the states, who volunteers to be an Escort. He volunteers to accompany the remains of a fallen soldier across the country to his hometown. This movie portrays and demonstrates to us the sacred and truly incredible process in which a fallen soldier is brought home. From the arrival into the United States, through the entire process in which their bodies are prepared for burial, to the final hand-off to the family of the soldier, I was never so touched as I was watching this process.

As I watched how every individual that this Officer encountered throughout his journey, I was so touched by the amount of respect shown to him, and to the soldier he escorted home. There was honor, and respect, and genuine love displayed to these two individuals, to these two strangers. It mattered not what political party they belonged too, nor did it matter if they agreed about the war or not, all that mattered was the sacrifice the soldier had made for his country, for each one of us. The tears I spilled watching this film, were magnified and brought even closer to home as I toured Arlington Cemetery.

Every day there are on an average, 27 burials conducted. There is an entire section dedicated just to the soldiers that have fallen in Iraq, and all the other wars fought for this nation. The day I was there was partially overcast, warm, and beautiful. The atmosphere was serene and peaceful and the loudest noise throughout were the tour buses that would drop you off at the various points of interest. Other than that, there was nothing but the sounds of birds chirping and the low whispers of those around us. I was inspired and awed at the site of President Kennedy's tomb, and the Eternal Flame. The beauty of the grounds was amazing and I felt at total peace as I walked around looking at all the headstones. And of course watching the changing of the Guards at the tomb of the Unknown Soldier was inspiring. So much meaning behind every movement. Every action done with the utmost respect and focus. It was breathtaking. And the people who worked there, whether they were at the welcome desk, the teller selling tickets, the sweet lady who personally guided us to the tour bus stop speaking of all her personal favorite spots, or the retired military men who told us the history of the cemetery as we drove around, all of them were so special, so friendly, and so very honored to be doing what they were doing. It was this experience that reminded me of why I love this country.



So no, I didn't purchase an Obama sweatshirt, T-shirt, or hat; I didn't even purchase one of the 100+ refrigerator magnets available everywhere I went...nope, I haven't been sold on the mania quite yet. But I do love the feelings that I experienced being in DC, and I am thankful for having been there to be reminded of the freedom that all our servicemen protect and provide for us every day. These servicemen ask every day not what your country can do for them, but what they can do for our country. I have a hope that this is the daily affirmation we can all come to live and believe in. It's how I hope I can be always.

Saturday, February 21, 2009

Randomness of Jaxon


Today was deemed Jaxon is the Boss day! Chris declared this early in the morning and we've been having one giggle after another ever since. Here are a few of the best moments!


J: GET ME SOME MORE CHIPS! (Yelling in my face)

Me: Hey, there...Do I yell at you like that when I am the boss?

J: No. But if you say please then I will say yes!

J: (Angelically) Get me some more chips please! Now I'm the boss, so say Yes now!


J: Hey Mommy, I have a great idea!

Me: You do?

J: Yeah. I just have the best idea!

Me: What is it?

J: How bout me and you be the boss of Zoey and tell her not to poop downstairs?! (Great Idea Jaxon!)


J: Mommy, I am the boss right?

Me: Yep, you're the boss!

J: Can I play Wii?

M: Not right now Jaxon

J: You are not the boss mommy! So you have to say Yes!

M: Well not exactly, we are discussing your options.

J: (disgusted with me and plopping himself on the floor) You are not a good Boss!


J: Mommy, did you hear me do my letters?

Me: Yes, I sure did! You are doing so good!

J: No mommy, you are doing so good. I am so proud of your listeners!

Me: My what?

J: Your listeners. You have your listeners on and you are doing so good. Mrs Miller will love you too!


Friday, February 20, 2009

Is this what it feels like????

So I'm feeling a little funky! I feel like Bill Murray in Ground Hog's Day repeating my days exactly the same way, every day! I'm losing track of time and yet the week just won't end!!!!
Jaxon has been home all week sick, and today I started feeling not so well myself. So every day this week has been the same routine. He comes and gets in bed with me in the morning after poking me ever so gently with ONE finger and then gets in my face and asks me if I want to "have snuggles with him?" The kid knows how to pull on mom's sleepy heart-strings! My alarm will go off, I awake myself from my slumber that has just been achieved, considering that I am not asleep, EVER before 2 or 3 in the morning, and I "try" to be a mom to Cydnee and see her off to school. But this week I have pretty much sucked at that. In fact today, I felt so crappy that she was left to take care of herself completely! The rest of my days have looked exactly the same as well. Jaxon and I crawl out of bed, I roll myself and my two computers to the living room couch and it's off to work land I go. Jaxon sits next to me doing his "letters", a dry-erase alphabet book that he cannot get enough of, we watch Mickey Mouse Clubhouse episodes over and over and over, and eventually we get through the morning and lunch time is upon us. Once lunch time is over, the routine begins again and continues until 3:00 when my afternoon of picking-up and dropping off kids from school and to dance begins for the next five hours! And yeah, I will catch some episodes of my daily DVR fixes at the end of the evening, put the kids to bed, and somewhere around Midnight, I'm left all alone, sitting on the couch, thinking to myself, WTF? I fall asleep, I sleep for a few hours, and that little single-fingered poke gets me again, and it starts all over!


It doesn't stop. The constant worrying chatter in my head. Every day, every hour, every minute. I've got 1000 conversations going in my head, and I'm ready to explode. I know I'm not alone in this. I know I'm not the only person in the world with struggles. I know I'm not the only person with Financial struggles and facing severe issues. I know I'm not the first blended family, nor the first step-mom in the world. I know I'm not the only person out there dealing with polygamists...okay well maybe I am, at least in my circle of friends. I know I'm not the first mom with a son with ADHD and anxiety disorders. I'm not the first mom with a daughter who seems to be deaf and incapable of doing anything that I need her to during these pre-menstrual times! Seriously, is she ever going to start and relieve us all of this drama???? I know I'm not the only person out there with family drama that never seems to go away! I know I'm not the only woman out there constantly feeling badly about the way she looks, how fat she is, and all that self-loathing bit that we do. I know I'm not the only one who thinks, Wow, I should probably not feed my kid pop tarts and Caprisuns all day long! Oh wait, I probably am the only one who does that, because any of you reading this, I KNOW are better mom's than me! ;-) I get it! However right now, I'm just ready to throw my hands in the air, walk away, throw the towel in, put a fork in it, all that jazz. I'm done! I just need some sanity and peace. I need to feel for just a short time that my life is not going to Hell in a Handbasket!
It's alright to have a meltdown right? I'm not the only doing that either right?Maybe this is all because I really hate being 36? I have never hated my age until this year. I really and truly hate being 36. I feel like I've just crossed over into senior-citizenship! I hate it!

Is this what a midlife crisis feels like?I mean, I'm not out buying a luxury car, or looking for a sexy young boyfriend. I am experimenting more with my hair color, much to the delight of my hairdresser! So how do you know? How do you know if you're there? If you're having that mid-life crisis, or just plain losing your mind? Do you think Barnes & Noble has some books on this?


Yeah, Nat's needing some help here! Maybe next week while I'm in Washington, I'll pop on by the Whitehouse and see if President Obama can come up with a stimulus plan for my crisis! (Sorry to all my democratic friends...I couldn't help myself!)

Monday, February 16, 2009

A Birthday, Valentines, and a Special Tribute...All in One!!!

Every year I make it a point to try to make a special deal out of Chris' birthday seeing that it is the day before Valentine's Day. That making it a very high potential of getting lost in the shuffle. Similar to my birthday getting lost in the shuffle of our Anniversary, but he never lets that happen! Last year was a real downer because I was in the hospital having my uterus removed due to my cancer scare, so both his birthday and Valentine's Day were lost. So I had some making up to do!

Seeing that we're in the same economic situation as so many others in the world today, this year was really about the things that matter most. In fact this year's theme was "Make Time in '09!" I truly want Chris to become healthier in many ways this year, and time is always a factor for him. So everything I did for him had that in mind.

I had to work on Friday, but as soon as I could I began preparations for his surprise dinner! The kids helped by cleaning up the house and setting the table for a nice dinner! I prepared his favorite meal, Chicken/Mushroom rolls with Rice and Chicken Gravy. I added individual baked Acorn Squash drizzled with Maple Syrup, Brown Sugar, and butter... a smashing hit! Then replacing the traditional birthday cake, I made Chris his favorite Chocolate Cream Pie and for the rest of us a Coconut Cream Pie, my first ever! I was actually impressed with myself!


After Dinner we did presents! I started out with a book that details 50 of life's most important things to remember! Also a little card to remind Chris that his "hopes are my dreams!" Then to help him with his goal of getting healthier this year, I re-enrolled him at his favorite gym! I also purchased him Bob Harper's Yoga DVD! He was soooo excited! It was the best gift he said anyone could give him! Well that and the foot rub that the girls gave him while we watched a movie! All-in-all, it was a great day for Chris!


For Valentine's it was relatively low key, but just as sweet and thoughtful. We spent the majority of the day with the kids! I always try to have a little gift and card for the kids and they always look forward to that as well. During the morning we traveled through the snow to Springville to watch Connor's last Basketball game of the season. He did awesome and his team went undefeated!

Before Chris and I went out for the evening we exchanged our little gifts with the kids and got them settled for the night. They were good to go with a night ahead of them and a tournament of Guitar Hero! As Chris walked me to our clean car I noticed my side of the car decorated with red and pink gel hearts on the window. Inside on my seat were chocolate covered hearts and my traditional TWO cards from him. It was very cute! I loved the decorated window! Chris always gets me two cards for every occasion. This time though he purchased a recordable card in which he actually sang "You are so beautiful!" Chris NEVER sings! It was awesome! I loved it! Chris had made reservations for us at a little local Italian Restaurant for dinner, and we then went to a double feature afterwards. I gave Chris his present at dinner. I had picked up another book in which there were messages of all the many different reasons I loved him. They were of course generic love messages, but I took the time to write on each page a personal message that made them pertain to just him and I. I think I decided that it is the non-bells-and-whistles Valentine's Day that suited us the best!

All that being said, I wanted to pay tribute still to my husband like I have been doing my kids on their birthdays and such ever since I started this Blog of mine. And so I thought I would capture 47-items that I know or love about him in honor of his big day! Oh, and also, the music is in honor of him as well! Because you all know I wouldn't willingly or knowingly put this stuff on my playlist! Love you baby! Happy Birthday!


1) Chris was born on February 13, 1962

2) There have been 85 Friday the 13th's in his lifetime thus far (Bet you would like to know how I figured that one out, huh!)

3) He is the youngest of 3 members of his family...all boys!

4) He is still his Momma's "Sugar-Darlin!"

5) He was born and raised in Richmond, VA

6) He went to school in an all Catholic-Boys School

7) He played tennis competitively in High School and College

8) He started out as a Culinary Chef before becoming a Pastry Chef

9) In Richmond he owned his own Bakery named "Sweet Confections"

10) His dream is to own his own Wedding Cake business again some day!

11) Favorite color is Orange

12) Zoey is his dog from his childhood reincarnated!

13) He has never been to Disneyland or Disneyworld

14) He hates change, especially sudden Change!

15) Loves sour cream!

16) Eats Ketchup on everything!

17) Thinks Fry Sauce is disgusting!

18) Has drank Diet Pepsi since he was a young child!

19) Has a hidden desire to do stand-up comedy!

20) Ran a marathon once, will never do it again!

21) Loves designing, building, and collecting any sort of Gingerbread houses (the largest one he built stood over six feet tall and five feet wide)

22) Has a weird fascination for "Weirdest Moments" or "Most Outrageous" TV type shows!

23) He is a closet "Twilight" fan!

24) His favorite Holiday is Halloween

25) His favorite season is Fall

26) He has a passion for working-out at the gym

27) His favorite part of Christmas is stuffing stockings

28) He loves chocolate almost as much as he loves me!

29) Loves watching our TV shows together!

30) Loves going to the movies

31) Loves to have his back scratched

32) Loves foot rubs

33) Loves to snuggle

34) Does NOT love to be woken up at night

35) Loves music and his iPod (Thinks it is the coolest invention ever created!)

36) Loves his children

37) Can't wait for his children to go away so that he and I can start dating again!

38) Does not like doing yard work

39) Has beautiful green eyes

40) Has a constant body temperature of 99 or higher!

41) Makes the world's best chocolate chip cookies in less than 10 minutes!

42) Always kisses me goodnight.

43) Hates drinking water!

44) Does not tolerate pain well!

45) Does not often get sick!

46) Is there for me when I am!

47) Is my best friend!

Thursday, February 12, 2009

OME!

So, I am overjoyed with the number of events that are coming up this year having to do with "Twilight"..and then "New Moon"...and TwiCon...and then "my" big "New Moon" premiere Event in conjunction with TwilightMoms!!!!! Oh the joy!

But first off...can't wait for Friday's Mail! Y-U-M-M-Y!!!!! Bring my Edward to me!



Tuesday, February 10, 2009

A Great Day for Miss Cydnee Magoo!

Yesterday, very early in the morning I woke up, and wrapped Cydnee's present that I was going to give her before breakfast. When she woke up...which was right on time mind you, I let her open it right away. It was two new school uniform/outfits, and she was really excited to have something new to wear today. While she was getting dressed I made her a special breakfast which she was so excited about! I love the way she thinks. It's very much the way I think, and no, that's not why I love her thinking, it's just that, it shows that some of the good things I do, have rubbed off on her. For example, as I was making her eggs and fruit, I asked her to get out a plate. Well today was her special day, so she pulled out a nice dinner plate, with matching salad plate and bowl, to make lovely breakfast setting! So silly! I had to giggle to myself!
After school we had her all but convinced that we weren't going to be doing anything for her birthday. At one point I even had buying that she was babysitting Jaxon while the rest of us went out! She didn't like that at all! We wanted the restaurant location to be a surprise, along with her birthday cake, etc. I think we did a good job at pulling it off. Even Jaxon was in on it, and I was amazed at his ability to keep a secret all afternoon, and even through dinner!As soon I had picked Jaxon up from school we headed out to finish up the last minute touches to the day. I wanted Jaxon to pick out his own present for Cyd. And it was so cute what he found for her. Cydnee LOVES LOVES LOVES monkeys, and Jaxon keyed right in on this cute plush set of monkeys that hug one another, kiss, and say, "I LOVE YOU!" Then even cuter was that he saw this Toblerone box that looked like a red rose and he wanted to "get his sister this beautiful red flower!" Couldn't deprive him of that! We then went and picked up Cyd's birthday cake. When Jaxon saw that it was a HSM3 cake he screamed, "Oh she's gonna LOVE that!" When we arrived home, Jaxon helped me put together all her gift bags. And may I say how impressed I was. I would hand him the tissue paper and tell him exactly where it should go in the bag and he would place it in the bag very gently. Then in then end fluff it up the way I always do! HA HA HA! Again, the good that I'm teaching my kids! He kept asking me, "Mommy, did I do such a good job on the presents?" Yep you sure did kiddo!

So for dinner we decided to take Cyd to this new Brazilian Steakhouse. She had never been to something like that before. She was completely surprised, and very excited to see that Sammy, Lamar, and Hayley had all come to join us as well! Dinner was fantastic! We all ate and ate and ate. Even Jaxon got into the whole meat concept! Jaxon knew that he had to eat really good in order to cake and ice cream later, and I've never seen a kid love birthday cake the way he does. Cyd had left the table to go to the salad bar and Jaxon started squealing about how excited he was to eat the birthday cake. I quickly looked at him and said, "We don't have any cake!" He gave me the most incredulous look and said, "UH yeah you do mom, I saw you buy it and hide it in the refrigerator!" Nothing getting past him. So we quickly told him we wanted it to be a surprise, and the cute kid didn't say another word until we got home!









After dinner we all came back to the house and surprised Cyd with her HSM3 cake and her presents. I think this was my favorite part of the whole evening. Jaxon was killing me with how cute he was being for Cyd. He was SOOOOOO excited for her to see her presents and her cake. He was giddy and jumping all over the place! We let him give her his present first. What an adorable interaction. He watched her with such anticipation and when she opened up he started jumping up and down with excitement telling her how to make the monkeys kiss. The best part was the big hug at the end!









Cyd loved all her presents! Mel and the girls gave her a complete set of real sketch-art-books, charcoal pencils, and all this other stuff she needs to work on her artwork. It's something that Cyd loves to do, and it's something that the four of them all have in common and work on together. So that makes me really happy! Chris gave her this Dance game she's been wanting for her DS so she was thrilled by that. And I surprised her with a Mommy/Daughter night-out-on-the-town complete with dinner and tickets to see "Phantom" at the Hale Centre Theatre! She freaked out! We get to go in a month! I really enjoy getting to take her to plays there. And I love that she loves it as much as I do!

So now, it's onto Chris' birthday this Friday the 13th (I wonder how many of those he's had in his life time???) and of course Valentines Day! Can't wait!

Monday, February 9, 2009

Happy Birthday Cydnee!!!!

Wow! Wow! Wow! I cannot believe that I have an 11-year old! I thought turning 36 this year was difficult for me, this is worse. I am feeling really old. Yah, not liking this year so far! :-)

So my little Monkee (spelled that way on purpose) was born 11 years ago, just over six weeks early! Man was that an awful pregnancy! I was hit with kidney stones at about 30-weeks, and had to have a stint placed in my kidney as a result of the stones. We were lucky to get her to wait another month before she came. And even then, things didn't go as planned and we ended up having her c-section. I remember that my mom and Steve's mom were both there in the operating room, and there were two things that happened that kept me from slipping into unconscienceness. The first was my mother exclaiming as my doctor was cutting open my stomach that "My goodness Natalee, they are gutting you like a pig!" Nice mom! And the second would be that when the doctor broke through my water, it squirt out like a fountain and he joked that maybe it was a boy. Once again, the grandmas started screaming that they hoped not as they just decorated the entire nursery Pink! But truly, all kidding aside, what I remember most was the doctor holding Cydnee over the screen for me to see her little face for the first time. She was so tiny. Only 5 lbs 4 oz! She was our little angel...still is!


From the minute Cyd came home, on Valentine's Day, I have played dress-up with her. It's no surprise to anyone that she is the girly-girl that she is today. But if I was only to be blessed with one little girl, then I was going to have my girly-girl! It's great that we share a love for shoes, jewelry, purses, the color pink, and bling!

Cydnee has the biggest smile, and loves helping people around her. Well let me clarify, she loves helping people around her...outside of the home! HE HE HE! She loves her family, most days! And she loves her friends! Cydnee has a great talent for artwork! She enjoys creating new projects and I love it when she makes me new cards and gifts! Cydnee has just started taking dance again, and is loving that immensely. She is even going to be doing her first solo performance and competition! Go Cyd!

I love that Cydnee has learned to love all holidays and birthdays and these things are a big deal to her. I know that she will make them a big deal for her children some day! At midnight I snuck into Cyd's room and woke her up, just to wish her a "Happy Birthday!" She was so cute! She grabbed my neck and gave me big kiss, half asleep of course and thanked me for not forgetting! - I had been teasing her all evening that I didn't know what we were doing tomorrow other than normal Monday stuff!!!!

Mommy didn't forget Cyd! We have a whole day planned for you! We love you so much...and are so happy you are a part of our family!
Happy 11th Birthday Monkee-Girl!




Friday, February 6, 2009

You Found Me....

I am in love with The Fray's new album! Had to share!