The Unhip mom....yeah, that's me

I've been thinking a lot lately about growing older. I'm not bothered by the fact that I'm getting older. I think I have a pretty realistic outlook on the situation. It's inevitable, I can't stop it, so I might as well do it gracefully. Some things about growing older are really appealing to me. I'm actually looking forward to those senior discounts because, let's face it, who doesn't like to save money? I like the fact that my husband and I can go virtually anywhere we want to go without being accountable to anyone. We don't really do this, but we could if we wanted to (or had excess piles of cash laying around). I enjoy coming home from work and having no place to go. No little league, no softball, no orchestra concerts, no band competitions. The days of hectic running are all but over and I have to say, I'm ok with it. My time is my own unless I choose for it not to be. Now, don't get me wrong. I loved every minute ( well, almost every minute, I'd give back the teen years if I could) of being with my kids. I loved being involved with their lives and I never thought of it as a chore. But, I'm ready to move on to the next phase of my life which I think is all about me. And I'm ready for it.



There are some things that do bother me though. I touched on this a bit in my last post. I remember when I was young thinking that I would die before I would let myself turn into, horror of all horrors, my parents. Not that they weren't good parents. They were great. But they were fuddy duddies. Not with the times. Out of the loop. Well, the unthinkable has happened. I'm not sure when or how it happened, but suddenly, I am my parents. My fuddy duddy factor is at an all time high. Here are a few things that up my factor:

• I think I'm the only one in the world who doesn't have a Facebook page. I have no desire to find anyone I went to school with and frankly I just don't want the time commitment.
• Until recently I thought tweeting was something only birds did.
• I thought Skype was a new kind of flu.
• Sometimes when I listen to young people talk I think they are speaking a foreign language. I'm not down with all the lingo (my daughters will kill me for that last sentence).
• I think music should actually have a melody.
• Tattoos: see previous post
• I can't get used to the fact that thongs are now flip flops and what are now called thongs just seems like a torture mechanism to me. And by the way, I don't think it's appropriate to wear flip flops to a job interview, I don't care what color they are or how they are decorated. Put a regular pair of shoes on for goodness sake. And your thong should not be showing out of the backside of your pants...bending over or standing up...if you think it's sexy...you're wrong.
• While we're on the subject of pants....boys, buy the appropriate size and wear a belt, PLEASE! If you have to hold on to your pants while you are walking....well, enough said.
• Last but not least (I'm sure there are more but I'm getting long here), just the fact that I used the words "fuddy duddy", brings my score way up.

Well, there you have it. The sad story of my realization that I am not a hip mom. Oh well, guess my kids will just have to do without like I did.

Inked

So, this issue has been weighing on my mind for sometime. I think, because it's one of those things that I have no control over, I let it bother me even more. I think it also makes me feel like my mother and older than I want to be, which also bothers me a bit. I really try to be open minded when the issue doesn't involve life or death, but for some reason I just can't get past this one. So I will lay it all out there and you can tell me what you think. Here goes:



My youngest daughter loves tatoos. She has 4 of them. She's 21. This bothers me. When I was growing up the only people who had tatoos where gang members, prison inmates and Hells Angels. When I was her age, girls with tatoos where considered cheap, fast or both. I realize that tatoos have become much more mainstream but for the life of me I just can't get used to it. The fact that I have a hard time accepting it also makes me feel old. The whole thing is a conundrum.

I try to take solace in the fact that her tatoos all have some meaning to them. At least they were not spur of the moment and seem to be well tought out. The Holy Spirit with a bible verse, Faith, Family and the most recent a pink breast cancer ribbon in honor of my mother. She is already planning her next one which is a fairly big one. The Faith and Family tatoos bother me the most only because they are on the insides of her wrists which i think is really hard to cover up. I also wonder how she is going to feel about them when she's my age, which is really none of my business, so why do I care? She has promised me she will not tatoo her face....I'm glad for that. Another reason it bothers me is because I think she is such a beautiful girl and to me the tatoos take away from that. I really feel like the most judgemental and prejudice person writing that. But it's how I feel so I might as well own it.

So there you have it. I'm officially the fuddy duddy mother of a young adult. Something I never intended on being and never wanted to be. I always promised myself I would not become my mother. (Mind you, I love my mother very much and she was a special person, but just not always the most open minded.) How does this happen? Is it just inevitable? Are we destine to become our mothers? I wonder......

She's Baaack......

So yeah, not sure who out there will still be looking out for me, but I figured I'd try this one more time. Christmas was hectic, and the New Year has been filled with me being sick 3 times in 6 weeks. Work has been very hectic and the last thing I feel like doing when I go home is getting on the computer to do anything. I have, however, been able to keep track of you all....so I still feel connected in some ways. Anyway, I thought I'd steal a little time on my lunch hour to do an update.

Some random happenings from the past 2 1/2 months:

Christmas was wonderful with all the family around. We had almost 30 people for Christmas dinner. It was great! Of course, Sarah's stay was much too short, but I really enjoyed the time I had with her.

I promptly got sick in January and stayed sick off and on so much that my Christmas stuff did not get packed away until the week before last. I rarely get sick, so I'm not sure what is going on, I just know I don't like it one bit. I also started Weight Watchers in January and then got derailed by the illnesses. I really need to get back on board with that. I have several crochet projects in the works and it irritates me that I just can't stay home and crochet all day long. I really need to win that big lottery so I can retire ;-)

My oldest daughter, who lives in DC, survived Snowmageddon 2010...just barely. She also survived carbon monoxide poisoning in her house (old broken boiler). The fact that she's still alive makes me believe that God has bigger plans for her. It's so scary to think about, I just don't.

My youngest daughter, who lives with me, turned 21 and now I feel really old. She planned a big trip to Vegas nearly 6 months in advance and almost missed the whole thing due to weather the likes of which we never see in the Valley of the Sun. Sky Harbor was actually on a ground stop for hours which NEVER happens. Waiting in an airport for delayed and cancelled flights makes for one cranky 21 year old. She also got another tatoo(not in Vegas).....future post to follow on this subject. Oy.....

I have enjoyed watching the Olympics the last couple of weeks. I love the winter games. I was disappointed the USA lost the hockey game but it was an awesome game none the less. I'm a sap for all the pomp and ceremony and those "up close and personal" pieces they do. I love it all. As you can see by my backround....baseball fever has hit. Spring training is in full swing and I can't wait for Opening Day. I'm waiting for the day I can climb into my car and listen to the game on the way home. I'm crossing my fingers that my beloved D-Backs will fare better than last year.

Well, that's all I have time for now. Better get back to work. Hope you all will come back and visit me. I'll try not to be gone so long next time. Have a great day!

Some things are meant to be....

This was a busy week and I got most everything done that needed to be done. My daughter is here. She made it out of DC just before they closed the airport because of the big storm. It's good to have her home and it makes everything feel right with the world. My plan for this week was to have all the decorating done before she got home. I got everything done except for the big tree in the living room. I was disapointed but it was what it was. Little did I know, it was meant be that way for a reason, more about that later.



Here are some pictures of my trees. These trees are the result of my Hallmark obscession which I have talked about before. I think about 90% of the ornaments on the three trees are Hallmark ornaments I have collected over the past 30 years. I don't think the pictures really do them justice, especially the big tree. You can't see the lights which always makes the tree more magical , but they're the best I could get.




The Teddy Bear Tree

The Snowmen and Santa Tree

The two together
This is a Barbie tree I decorated for Sarah. She's been collecting these ornaments since she was about 10. I thought it would be a nice surprise to do a tree in her room. She loved it.

Now for my little revelation. I was disapointed that I didn't get the big tree in the living room done before Sarah got home. We got it set up and put the lights on last night after she came home. This morning she and I decorated it. This picture is the result. We had such a good time decorating while listening to Christmas music. While we were decorating I realized that so often I worry about having things perfect rather than just letting things happen as they will. This decorating experience really brought home to me that sometimes things are just meant to be and I need to accept it. If I had gotten the tree decorated I would have missed a wonderful time with my daughter which is so important since I don't get to be with her very often. So this was a lesson learned for me and one I hope I can apply in my everyday life. As the Beatles so aptly said....."Let It Be"

If I don't get back here before Christmas, which is good possibility, I wish you all a Merry Christmas. I hope you have a blessed and joyous holiday with family and friends.

'Tis the Season.....

for chaos....and my life is full of it. Thank goodness I have this week off work to get things done. The letter and cards have been sent. Now I just need to decorate and shop. No biggie.....

This Christmas will be a smaller one where presents are concerned. I'm sure everyone is facing the same thing and I've found that I kind of like it. We are focusing more on family and being together rather than what we are giving. Not that we didn't do this before but it feels different this year. I'm so excited for Sarah to get home next week. It seems like forever since we saw her in August. I'm having close to 30 people at my house for Christmas dinner and I'm so excited for this. We haven't all been together at a holiday gathering in quite a while. It will be nice.

I'm hoping to get some blogging time in this week while I'm off. I want to post some pics of my Christmas trees once they are decorated. Guess I better get back to working on the house. Just wanted to check in to let everyone know I haven't fallen off the face of the earth. Hope you are all surviving the Christmas chaos in your own lives. Till next time......

Small Thankfuls

With Thanksgiving fast approaching, and my life in chaos right now, I'm not sure if I will be able to post again before the big day, so I'm posting this now and you have a week to think about it ;-) Long ago in a blog far, far away I posted small thankfuls. We all know that at Thanksgiving, we are thankful for all the good things in life. But what about the little day to day things that you rarely think about. For instance, toothpaste. We couldn't get through a day without toothpaste, or maybe it's the smell of rain hitting dirt (my personal favorite) that really makes your day and brings back good memories for you. So just think of three small things that you are thankful for! And if you'd like to share yours with me, I would be ever so thankful.....

Here are my Three Small Thankful's....some of them are not so small I guess, but they are out of the ordinary. Here goes:

1. Mousse and a blow dryer. No, those are not two items. In my world they are one. I can't use one without the other. I have the world's finest, thinnest, limpest hair. I would never leave my house if it weren't for mousse and a blow dryer.

2. The Industrial Revolution. Ok, I know this one is a stretch, but hear me out. I am a person of convenience, and while I love the Revolutionary War period, and sometimes wish I were part of that exciting time.... I know, deep in my heart, I'd never make it without my car, air conditioning, electric appliances, frozen food, and on and on....all made possible by the wonder that was The Industrial Revolution.

3. Any food I don't have to cook. I hate to cook (I guess I should say I hate to cook everyday....I really like making the big holiday meals...is that crazy?). So, any food that is not cooked by me, is heaven.

So, there you have my three small thankfuls. I would like to take this opportunity to mention some of the "big" things I am thankful for. There are so many but here are the ones that really stand out.
1. My Faith
2. A wonderful husband to share my life with
3. Three great kids I would die for
4. Being raised by parents who really cared what kind of person I would turn out to be
5. A Large, extended and loving family
6. A life that has not been filled by monetary riches or possessions but has overflowed with wealth of a different kind. A life that is filled to the brim with all the things that are most important in life: Faith, Family and Friends.

Those are the things I am most thankful for.... and all of you, of course... I am thankful for all my new blogging friends.

Have a Wonderful Thanksgiving and many blessings to you all......

My love

Gerri

Weird Weather and Other Stuff

In the fall my heart yearns to be here.........
When in reality....I am here........

But in an effort not to be totally negative about my surroundings, I get to see this on a pretty regular basis.......
I guess the trade off is not that bad. Except for the tempurature. The weather lately has been so weird. Down into the 70's which I wait 8 months for, only to go back up into the 90's. It's done that two or three times in the last couple of weeks. It teases us into thinking the hot weather is over only to blow us the proverbial rasberry full of hot air. Here in the desert we live for the winter months. It's the only thing that keeps us going when it's 115 and you can literally cook an egg on the sidewalk. Right now we are back into the 90's again. I'm done with anything over 85, I want it to be over. I'll let you know when I get my wish.

In other thoughts.....the fact that it is now November has me in full panic mode. I am so far behind where I usually am at this time of year. I am a list maker. I have lists for my lists. It's the only way I know how to accomplish what I want to get done. Of course this is the time of year where I really go crazy on the lists, except that I haven't even started any yet. The panic level is rising. I am hosting Thanksgiving dinner at my house for about 25 people. My dining room is still in shambles. The King of Procrastination is promising it will be done. I choose to believe him because the alternative is just too scary to me. I have bought exactly three presents for Christmas. Oy! I have not started my Christmas Letter (yes I write one of those). I usually start it in October and do various rewrites and additions as they come along. I know it will get done but just knowing I'm behind is giving me a panic attack. I still have not found the trees I want for my Santa and Snowman Christmas trees. I'm sad that I may have to put that off until next year unless Santa delivers an early gift in the form of a pile of money. And I have yet to decide what I am making for my family gift exchange. Guess it better be simple as time is running out.

I tried one year to be all zen about everything around the holidays and nothing got accomplished. So I figure I'm one of those people that needs the panic to fuel the fire. When all is said and done, everything always turns out ok but I sure drive myself crazy getting there.

Hope you all have a wonderful day.......I'm off to make lists.......