Today's Randomness

This post will contain random thoughts that I keep thinking of writing an entire blog post about, but instead they are all going into this one post.

I just read Love Anthony by Lisa Genova. It's a gooder. Entertaining - finished it in a couple days. Great inside knowledge into autism. Plus the human factor of two marriages that are falling apart. Nothing like a book about failing marriages to make me appreciate my wonderful, supportive and helpful husband. I've now read all three of Lisa Genova's fiction books. They've all been really good, but her first was her best!

This week I got almost all of my Christmas baking done. There are lots of Christmas treats that are delicious but I make the ones that are my favourites. Some may call it selfish, but I disagree. This year I made butter tarts, peppermint cookies, tiger butter and peanut butter marshmallow squares. I am still going to make another peanut butter and cereal crunchy square but I ran out of my 10-year-old corn syrup. (The fact that it doesn't go bad should imply something, shouldn't it?) My hubby wants me to make some lemon square thing that he remembers from his childhood, but so far I haven't found the recipe for it so it's on the Christmas Baking Phase Two list. Also on that list is Turtles, but I'm not sure how that is going to work with my lack of a deep freeze.

One way to wreck a dessert is by adding lemon. I know that I am almost alone in the world with this statement but I do not like lemon desserts. I will write this small disclaimer - if it is in the heat of summer, a lemon ice cream pie or lemon gelato or something sour and frozen will be accepted. Otherwise, lemon desserts can find a different place to live - not in my tummy. I just don't enjoy them. But if there is a dessert and you think to yourself, I bet if I add Peanut Butter it will be even more delicious, you are very likely correct. All desserts should have peanut butter added to them... well, except for lemon desserts. That would quite possibly wreck it for both camps - the lemon loving group and the peanut butter group.

And a note about children - like any job, I love only about 75% of what I am currently doing. The parts I love: watching these small people learn, cuddling them, tickling them, tucking them into bed with prayers, reading them books, watching them play with each other, listening to the things they say to each other, listening to them pretending and creating scenarios, taking them to the library, watching excavators and concrete mixer trucks at the job site nearby, watching their joy when they get complimentary cookies at the grocery store, and singing songs with them. These things are amazing to be part of... and to know that these small people are created from us. Amazing!

But then there is the other 25% which makes me want to lock myself in my bedroom and turn on the imaginary silent-making machine so that I can hear nothing (oh silence - it's so lovely). Those things are these: disciplining, listening to whining, fixing things that have been purposely broken (Mom, can you fix this digger. I broke it.), making snacks, feeling guilty about the unhealthy snacks I've chosen to stock my pantry with, listening to crying, changing poopy bums, never getting to use the restroom along, shopping with kids, herding them to get into the car which always takes approximately 10 minutes longer than I expect it to or that it should. I'm sure you get it.

So although being a stay-at-home-mom (for the moment) is an amazing blessing, there is still 25% of this job that is terrible and I could do away with. But I have yet to find or hear of a job where 100% of the job is perfect. I know some people may say, oh but I love everything I do, that's not true. Sorry. Next Topic.

Last topic: unreal things for kids. I'm struggling with my approach to such things and for the last four years it hasn't been an issue, but now Sloan has been talking about things (I'm guessing it comes from preschool or being around other children, plus getting older) and I need to know what our plan is. Today she said that when she gets older her teeth will fall out and then her adult teeth will grow. True.

Then she added, "And the tooth fairy will come and take my tooth away and give me money."
So I asked, "Is the tooth fairy real?" (We've been discussing real and not real because of monsters, ghosts and stuff from Halloween. We've also discussed that fairies aren't real because people can't fly.)
"Yep. She's real." Sloan replied.
"Oh. I didn't know that." I said.
"Yep, fairies are real, Mom. They're just really small so you can't see them."
"Oh, I have never seen one so that's why I didn't know."

So, now what? We've done the visit Santa at the mall thing and watch the Christmas specials, but she is putting this together now. I'll be honest, I don't want Santa to visit my house. All the gifts the kids get are from us. And in our house, the reason for this whole season is none other that Christ (despite Sloan announcing that it's all about family - thanks Christmas specials but Charlie Brown has this one right). So, I'm now facing this dilemma and need to think about how we are going to approach this.

I was the child who told all my schoolmates that Santa wasn't real. I don't want my kid(s) to be the same Debbie Downers, but I also don't want to get wrapped up in the things that aren't real. I'm not sure what the plan is here... any advice from those with School Aged kids and how that all panned out?

That's all for this dreary November day. Tomorrow is December and we are finally officially allowed to decorate for Christmas in this home. Excited.