My Little Meg(s)

I laughed to myself today at the sight of BabyGirl in her sister’s outgrown dress under a red ruffled top with her brown suede boots on the wrong feet.  The dress is really still too large for her, so even if the weather were, in fact, warm enough for spaghetti strap sundresses, the shirt would still be required to prevent flashing the world through the too low neckline and gaping armholes.  As we headed towards the glass doors of her school, she confidently slung her lunchbox on her shoulder like a purse and sauntered towards the defunct green button marked “EXIT” that she insists on pushing daily before crossing the threshold. 

She is quite a character.

Today, the spring in her step reminded me sharply of Meg Ryan’s quirky walk in You’ve Got Mail.  Then, the more I thought of it, I realized she is Meg Ryan.  Well, in a matter of speaking.

First off, let me point out: she’s a Gemini.  The twins. Soooooo true.

Twin #1: Meg Ryan in You’ve Got Mail

Feminine, yet not overly prissy.  She’s smart, quirky, spunky, and independent.  She isn’t afraid to speak her mind – no matter how giant the foe….and all of this tucked neatly away beneath the exterior of sugar and spice and all things nice.  She is just so “cute”.

BabyGirl has a side of her that is sweet as pure honey.  “Esscuse me, Mommy.  When djou are done can djou please get me som’mor golefish?”  She loves and dotes on the doggies with the gentlest of hands, pulling them to her and kissing their cheeks.  She holds me, kisses my face and rests her head on my shoulder and spontaneously says, “I love you.”  She’s been a little cuddle bunny from her own very beginning, wanted to be held even more so than BigGirl (always described as a cuddly baby herself) ever did.  Because of her sleep struggles, BabyGirl sweetly, pitifully asks us to “soffly” her (rub her face and arms softly) until she falls asleep. 

Yet, she has that joyful quirkiness and independence to her spirit that tells her to wear a short-strapped purse across her body like a messenger bag and sport shoes on the wrong feet, despite repeated corrections. (She likes them that way.)

Twin #2: Meg Ryan in Addicted to Love

She’s a bit hard core.  Do not cross her; she will come at you full throttle.  She holds grudges and is smart enough, sly enough, and determined enough to see those grudges to the bitter end.  Her emotions are raw and unfiltered.  She is a force to be reckoned with….

I told you about her first cat fight at school, didn’t I?  I’ve long thought it humorous that I am more often than not rescuing her older sister from her rather than the other way around. (In fact, I cannot think of a single time I’ve had to rescue her from her sister.)  She does everything with a passion – all the way back to nursing and taking bottles.  (That’s when FireDaddy and I started joking that we fully expect to walk into a party one day and find her upside-down beneath a funnel.) 

She is just starting to give BigGirl a run for her money with the smarts.  Just the other day I overheard her spouting off (with a tone of sass, might I add) in the backseat to her big sister about Pluto’s status as a dwarf planet.  

And you know the old trick of promising dessert for those who finish their dinner?  Forget it.  If she doesn’t want it – she isn’t going to eat it.  She’ll sooner pass on her favorite dessert than let you get your way.  The end.  No negotiating.  “Akch-ually, I don’t want chocolate ice cream,” and she’s finished.  For real.  You may as well save your breath.

As for cleaning up toys?  “BabyGirl, if you don’t help clean up I’m going to throw these toys away!”

“OK, Mommy.  You can frow dem away.” 

…and I do…..and she doesn’t care. The girl means what she says.

 

This BabyGirl of mine surprises me everyday.  It is so amazing to watch her start to stretch out her legs as she is figures out which way those legs will take her.  I have a feeling, no matter which way her road will lead, it’s going to be a wild ride.   We are going to have some kind of fun.

Monday Mentions 2

Whew! Back in the saddle again? It's amazing how quickly time flies when you're NOT in the middle of NaBloPoMo. No offense, but it has been a nice break.

Now, for a few

• This weekend, as I graded from atop my bed, I had the opportunity to watch two fantastic movies that I STILL had not seen. If you, too, have not yet watched these movies - YOU MUST! Nights in Rodanthe with Diane Lane and Richard Gere (two actors I really like) and 17 Again with Matthew Perry and Zac Efron (one actor and one hottie I really like). I laughed and I cried. They are both worth seeing or seeing again.
• A few weeks ago a parent at school and I were talking about a book she was studying in a book group. She loaned it to me last week and I dove in this weekend. It's called Have A New Kid by Friday by Dr. Kevin Leman. So far it is a super quick read (plus, it really isn't as long as it seems since much of the book is a reference section to use as needed) and I'm LOVING his attitude and balanced approach to parenting. If you are a parent (or a teacher) you must check it out.
• Have you checked out Remindeo yet? If you, like me, are a bit absent-minded at times, and need someone breathing down your neck saying, "Stop everything and do this NOW," you need this! Set up a free account, plug in your reminders, and decide if you'd like text messages or emails or both! Love it!
• Products I'm falling in love with...Mrs. Meyer's Clean Day. These Earth Friendly and Cruelty Free products come in a variety of scents (only a few available at Target, though). What I love, too, is that you can actually layer the scents in your home the way you would on your body! Clean your floors, dishes, countertops, and even your toilets all with Lemon Verbena, Basil, Lavender and more. (Yes, this, too, is a sickness of mine. My first job was at Bath & Body Works where I was trained to layer scents. This illness spread throughout my life. What can I say?)
• I couldn't resist purchasing one of these recently. I love this blog and when I saw this t-shirt, it spoke to me. Especially since my mother-in-law is currently fighting lung cancer, I couldn't resist. My only regret is that I cannot wear it to school...I don't think.

If you'd like to check out more Monday Mentions, be sure to stop by Jen's place (Daily Mish Mash) for more links!

THIS JUST IN!!! I just found out that Dr. Kevin Leman has a second book - it's called Have a New Husband by Friday! And, no, I'M NOT KIDDING! (Guess what just found it's way to my Amazon cart?)

Monday Mentions

The author of one of the blogs that I consider a guilty pleasure (especially on Fridays) has started a new blog feature. I thought it was a great way to share new finds, discoveries, and favorites in a concise way, so, I'm jumping on the bandwagon. (To be clear, it was open invitation. I'm not jumping in uninvited...this time.)

So, without further ado...

• If you've been keeping up with me lately, you already know a little about the book I'm currently reading. But, another great book I read recently (recently is a relative term...especially given the fact that we're on the tail end of the back-to-school season) is Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert. This book, I believe, fell into my life when it did for a reason. I found peace and guidance in reading about Gilbert's own quest for pleasure and balance in life. This book was a thought-provoking read. Her story was easy for me to relate to and comfortable to read. If you haven't yet read it, be sure to give it a try.
• This weekend I finally watched Blades of Glory. The day it arrived from Netflix, I smiled a giddy little girl smile to FireDaddy and waited for him to laugh in anticipation. Unfortunately, he did not. His reply? "Oh...yeah." Because of that reaction, I did not have high hopes for the movie. However, I love Will Ferrell and gave it a shot. While I would not say it was my FAVORITE of his movies, it was fun to watch and made me laugh. That's about all I was looking for, so sounds like a win for me! If you are into immature humor, like I am, be sure to toss it into your Netflix queue next time.
• Colbie Caillat's new album has been a fun new addition to my Zune recently. You can check out the video to her single, "Fallin' For You", here.
• If you're on twitter and haven't already checked him out, consider following @rainnwilson. (Yes, it's the actor who plays Dwight on The Office.) As mentioned above, I have an exaggerated appreciation for immature humor, and he's sure to dish it up on a daily basis. I've even been known to "retweet" his tweets via text messaging to FireDaddy (since FD isn't on twitter).
• I recently bit the bullet and bought Super Straight Relaxing Serum by Pureology as my stylist had been encouraging me to buy for months. And I'm SO glad I did! My hair is soft, straight, and dries in half the time! I cannot say enough about how much I'm loving this new to me product. (And I don't know if I'm happy or disgusted that I just found it available on Amazon.)
• This weekend, I did a little blog reading. (Emphasis on "a little".) One post I did get a chance to read was this one. Audrey talks about Facebook from a parent's perspective in a way that got my ball rolling a bit, too. Check it out.
• Another post I enjoyed reading and thinking about was by my good bloggy buddy, Cheryl. Right now, she is my writing hero. She's inspiring me to slowly get off my bootie and write - for real.

That about sums it up for this week's Monday Mentions. If you're interested in reading other folks' mentionables, check in at the Daily Mish Mash for some links.

Happy reading!

How Much Is Too Much? (Or, "The Post When I Finally Mention Twilight")

Recently, with all the current hype about that popular vampire movie and book series, I've been a part of more than a few conversations about parenting choices.  You know, the choices we all have to make that look differently for each, but boil down to the same thinking.  How much is too much?  When are they ready?  What can my kids handle -- or, rather, what SHOULD my kids handle?

It started when I found out a buddy

 of mine was letting her 4th grade

 son read the Twilight series.  He had already seen the movie and was well into the second book.  I also discovered one of my 3rd graders read the book with his parents, which really surprised me.  Then, I found out my niece (also in third grade) received a copy of the movie from the Easter Bunny. (Apparently, the Easter Bunny that hippity-hopped down their lane must have been the wild "black sheep" younger bunny brother of the one who brought gummies and nail polish to my girlies.)  

I admit openly that I have neither read the books, nor seen the movie.  It's not because of any deep, moral or religious opposition to the content - I'm just not into vampires.  I've never been into reading or watching things like werewolves, vampires, zombies, and other "undead".  Nothing personal, folks.  I just prefer a different topic.  I'm a bit more of an "Oprah Book Club" type reader.

That said, I also know that the major themes of this book center around romance, love, sensuality...a.k.a. SEX.  That has to be true or all the women in America wouldn't be swooning over Edward and talking about vampire crushes, right?  

 

In my desperate attempt to either validate my own thinking or determine if I'm just a prude, I found a great resource for parents on the ever reliable IMDB.  I know you all know this already, but I had no idea that Bella is almost raped by four men!? And she's nearly crushed by two cars!?  Plus, after reading the list of offenses in the "violence and gore" category, it seems that people and/or vampires are being beaten, burned, broken and bloodied throughout the movie.  But, I'm taking all this with a grain of salt.  I haven't seen the movie.  

I still wouldn't let my child see it, though.

Apparently, not everyone agrees with me.  (I know!!!  I am amazed, too!!!)  

Then, I remembered:  this movie is rated PG-13.  As a parent who was, aparently, raised in a very "by the book" household, that verifies my thinking.  You can't see it until you're 13 and even then, I'm seeing it with you.  Right?

Wait a minute.  Freeze.  I think I'm beginning to understand that not all parents pay attention to those ratings.  But, some must, right?  I mean, just the other day I was chatting with a few girls in my class about movies and 17 Again came up.  I assumed they would rush right out to see it.  It looks like a cute romantic comedy.  And, hello!, Zac Efron is the star!  But, nope.  No go.  It's PG-13.  

Again, WOW.  I haven't seen that movie at all, either, so I have no idea why it's PG-13.  But these parents aren't letting their kids go see it, and I totally respect that.  **Note: I looked it up.  "This film has been rated PG-13 for language, some sexual material and teen partying."  I never found that same type of summary for Twilight.  I thought it would be interesting to see how they compared in a sentence.**

All this thinking made me wonder.  When my girlies get older and the lines between childhood and adulthood begin to blur, how will I decide?  Will I base my decisions purely by the rating?  Will I make exceptions?  How will I know?  

And then I wondered, have I already begun to make these decisions without even realizing it?

As a teacher, we are permitted to show only G rated movies in class for special events.  Because of this rule, I've become painfully aware of how few G-rated moves are made today.  Any of those old classics from our childhood that have been remade, such as Shaggy Dog, apparently lost some wholesomeness in the remaking process....because they went from a G to a PG movie.  Even some very popular and seemingly harmless animated moves, such as Happy Feet, are rated PG.  

I remember the first movie I had to censor from Big Girl.  Brother Bear.  We totally trusted Disney - and still do.  But, one day she dropped a "shut up" from her precious two year-old mouth.  We had no idea where it came from, until we heard the Moose the next time we watched that movie.  At the time, we decided to pull the movie after, of course, trying to explain that "shut up" was "not nice".  CENSORED!

However, throughout the years I've learned after the fact of her various television viewing with Fire Daddy.  He was so proud the night he told me as my jaw dropped to the floor how calmly and maturely she watched to my horror some survivor dude use the carcas of a camel for shelter.  Yeah, you're right.  That show was NOT on Discovery Kids.  

Ultimately, I'm realizing, we all make our own rules.  We all use our own judgment...or, however reluctantly, that of our spouses.  When I sent out a flare to the twitterverse for feedback, I got very little response I heard that parents are not basing their decisions on the judgment of the Ratings People, but rather, their own judgment.  

A thought that makes me wonder why they're even rating movies anymore if people aren't paying attention to the ratings.  Should we, as a society, consider modifying this system?  But, then again, without those ratings parents would need to watch the movies first and determine if their child can/should see them...

Well, ain't that great.  That brings me right back to my original question...How much is too much?  Where do you draw the line in the sand?

Yeah.  

Gotta love introspection.  Always so productive.

Anyone want to copy of Brother Bear?  I have the DVD, but my girls aren't allowed to watch it...

 

PS: You're more than welcome to disagree with me.  I respect that completely.  I won't even hold it against you!  Just be sure to talk to me before you take my child to a movie, OK?