Alabaster Mom

It's my baby's 8th Halloween. Ack! Sometimes she seems so grown-up and other times, she seems downright helpless. This morning she asked me to help her get her tights on. "When you're off at college, will you still need me to do this?" I asked, gathering up each leg of the tights and sliding them over each foot in turn. "I'll have to show up at your dorm. 'Oh, hi! I'm here to help my daughter with her tights.'"  She shrugged.  I actually don't think it would bother her at all. I asked her if she wants to walk for trick-or-treating this year. "No, you can pull me in my wagon," she responded. "I might walk when I'm 13." I don't mind, though. I have some coffee herbal tea mulled wine which I will heat up and pour into a thermos.  It will keep me warm as I pull my child through the streets of our 'hood. Or at least I may not notice the chilly temperatures quite as much.  On the way home from work y...

(click image to open larger version) I think someone is planning to ask for a pony for Christmas.

Last week I watched a new episode of Pit Bulls & Parolees . As a rescue volunteer myself, I fully appreciate what Villalobos Rescue does for animals. The rescue is run by a woman named Tia, her adult children, and a slew of other dog lovers - including several parolees, of course. What struck me as I was watching last week was something akin to a feeling of jealousy. Tia and her daughters sport tattoos, piercings, and rainbow hair. The daughters seem to have piercings in places that one wouldn't normally think of as far as piercing options go (I'm reasonably certain that the youngest daughter has her hips pierced in the back - right at the top of the sacrum). Now, I do not have a desire to tattoo my neck or anything like that. However, I do imagine that it must be very liberating to be able to roll out of bed and go to work looking however you want to look.  Since no one will pay me to pet doggies all day long, I have to work a legit, office-y kind of job. On days when I ...

On the news program "Sunday Morning," they had an interview this week with a divorce attorney who's been married to his wife for several decades. When asked what factors seem to point to the eventuality of a divorce, he mentioned that spending too much time together is a prime culprit. Each spouse should have their own interests and activities. I've been saying that for years. You don't have to spend every waking minute with your spouse to enhance the validity of your marriage. So, after hearing that, I felt a wee bit better for abandoning my husband for much of the weekend. On Friday night I met a friend for happy hour. We then went out to dinner at an Indian restaurant. It was really good but I did not feel well at all by the time I got home later that evening. I didn't even finish the glass of wine I'd ordered with dinner - which is not like me at all. I don't know if it was just too many spices my stomach had never met before or what. I went stra...

It is true, I purposely and willingly checked the "green background" checkbox on the order form for school pictures. However, I must have missed the word "neon" in the fine print somewhere. I guess I was envisioning some placid shade of evergreen. This scan doesn't really do it justice. Let me just say that it is BRIGHT. Fortunately, my child is excessively cute and can overcome even the most obnoxious background.  Word. (Remind me to choose a different color next year.)

As you may recall, selling stuff on eBay is not going that well for me. First I had to learn the hard way about shipping calculations. Then yesterday I got an email from a buyer. She had checked the "item not as described" option on the email. She told me that there are three stains on the dress I sold her.  Now, I did check all of the clothing carefully before listing any of the items for sale. I noted in the description for each one that "wash wear" was evident. I did not see any stains, however. Otherwise, I would've mentioned it (or, more likely, not attempted to sell the dress at all). I responded immediately and offered a partial refund. I ended up having to give her $3.00. Since I am a new seller (despite a 13-year (!) history with eBay and a 100% rating), eBay is holding the money I've made so far (pending satisfactory completion of all sales). So, I didn't have $3.00 in my PayPal account to give this buyer. I had to transfer it from my bank acco...

I had such high hopes for Saturday. But, I awoke to ceaseless rain and a long to-do list. And sure enough, the day pretty much went to hell in a handbasket.  I went to yoga, which went pretty well despite my continued struggles with pain in my lower back. After class, I headed to Weight Watchers. Despite careful tracking and lots of exercise during the week, I lost only one pound. I guess it's better than gaining a pound, but still.  I then headed home to pick up my daughter, because her dad was anxious to get to a local Nerdfest (comic book convention). She and I stopped at Best Buy to pick up some DVDs - birthday gifts for one of my many nephews. Then we went to the post office. This is when things started to suck. I've been selling some of my daughter's memories old clothes on eBay. The goal is to set aside some money for a trip to Chicago in the spring and a beach trip with my sisters next summer. I guess I also need money for my, um, speeding ticket, too. Anywho, I ...

It occurred to me this week that October marks two years of yoga classes for moi.  I dug out my original post about my first yoga class.  I have continued to go regularly since then. Typically I go to classes on Tuesdays and Saturdays, and hit the gym on Thursdays for some cardio action. Sometimes I do a little yoga at home, too. Lately my lower back has been hurting me so I've been doing some stretches at night. My daughter found me on the floor in Happy Baby Pose the other night. "Mom, I have two questions." Me: "Okay." "One: um, what are you doing?" I think she forgot to ask me the second question after I explained what I was doing. I've been giving some thought to my yoga-versary in an attempt to gain some perspective on what, if anything, has changed in the last two years.  I do think I've been able to reduce my stress, although I generally credit any stress reduction to the two-pronged approach of yoga and wine. I think I ...

I saw this postcard on Postsecret.com last week. I am guessing that it may have been submitted by someone who placed a child for adoption. It's impossible to know why this particular adoption was closed but it's clear that someone was deeply hurt by this action. I keep in touch with my daughter's birthmom via email.  She lives out of state, but we do have an open adoption. We signed a communication agreement when A was born, but it is not legally binding (I believe such agreements are legally binding in some states; just not in ours). We have always been willing to honor it. I must confess that when my daughter was born, at times I felt conflicted as far as how much interaction we would have with her birth family in the years ahead of us. In the beginning, we had quite a few visits and spoke on the phone regularly. At the time, I was learning how to care for (and bond with) an infant. I loved and respected J and wanted to do right by her and the baby, but I also had a...

Last week I got the best possible news.  No, Glenn Beck didn't lapse into a coma - although, yeah, that would've been awesome. My news is even better - our babysitter can now drive. And she has her own car! P and I had a date night on Saturday. Not having to play rock-paper-scissors to determine who must drive the sitter home was a definite plus. We (and by "we" of course I mean "I") had planned the date night before I knew I would be going to a concert the night before the date. To say that I was tired on Saturday night would be a spectacular understatement. When I got home from the concert, it was after 3 a.m. By the time I got into bed, I had been awake for nearly 24 hours. I don't have the stamina for that kind of foolishness. At all.  As exhausted as I was, my brain would NOT shut down and call it a night. I fretted over when I should tell P about the speeding ticket. My ears were still ringing from the concert, so I'm sure that didn't hel...

The report from my weekend: 1. I have a cold. 2. I saw a concert. 3. I was awake for nearly 24 consecutive hours. 4. I got a speeding ticket (my first, I should add). 5. I went out on a date. I am exhausted, so I just don't think I can bore you with all of these topics in a single blog post. I mentioned on Facebook that I got the speeding ticket and several of my friends "liked" my status. I wasn't sure how to interpret that.  Possibilities: 1. Awwww, that sucks! Here, I will like your status in case that helps you feel a little better. Mwah! 2. I got a ticket today, too. Here, I will like your status in an act of solidarity. Lead-footed drivers unite! 3. You so deserved it, Miss Prissy Pants.  Bitch got served! I will just assume that the truth lies somewhere between options 1 and 2. I went to a concert Friday night with a friend of mine. It was 2+ hours away (no band worth seeing bothers to come to our town, believe me). More on the concert some othe...

Looking extra cute on picture day I attended the first parent/teacher conference of the year yesterday.  I have had some interaction with A's teacher already, because I had to clear up a pretty big misunderstanding that came into play last month. As you may recall, we recently let our daughter know that she has three bio half-siblings in Texas. Needless to say, she is pretty enamored with the idea of having brothers. I mean, she will hug a perfect stranger so you can only imagine how excited she is to know there are people out there to whom she has a legitimate connection. She has seen photos of the three boys.  A couple weeks ago, she was asking me questions about them and at the moment, I could not remember the name of the youngest child (I knew it started with a B but for the life of me I just could not recall the name). He was just born within the last year. I told A I would dig out an email from her birthmom and give her all three names. Meanwhile, she decided to us...

My daughter's Halloween costume has arrived. It was made for her by her personal designer and seamstress, Meemaw.  A was so excited that she wanted to wear it all night. She selected the pattern herself - a witch but not a witchy witch, if you know what I mean.  More like a glamorous one. I didn't do it justice with this photo, but the costume is amazing. The skirt is overlaid with tulle, there's something fancy going on with the lacy fabric around the hips (I have no idea of the correct terminology), and it fits her like a dream. If she came to your door for trick-or-treating, you'd give her a full-size Snickers, right?