Mommy Dearest.

Would it be considered "over parenting"? Lately I have been guilty of taking on the problems of my grown, somewhat adult children? This is a new sensation to me because in the years leading up to now, it was my JOB to take on the problems of my kids. Now that Frick and Frack are 20 and 19 respectively and out of the house, I find myself obsessing over the silly little day to day stuff that they complain about which really has nothing to do with me.

For God's sake wouldn't you think I have better things to worry about??

Yet here I am worrying and thinking about their small stuff. Things like social issues, romance issues, the influence of peer pressure, academic pressure and I worry that they are unequipped to deal with these things. Despite my worry, they seem to be handling the world without me just fine, and its not like I am constantly calling them or texting with my advice. I silently think about their stuff and find myself wondering how they may have handled a situation, ever careful not to let on that I have been worrying about it. Sometimes I think I worry about their crap more than they do.

I finally realized that despite what I think, my children are equipped to handle these minor navigations through their lives. Dare I say it, it's probably good for them to handle these things alone, even though I don't want to admit it. I have taught them well. Then it dawned on me-maybe they are happy? Maybe something that I may not agree with was actually born out of a choice. A choice that they made for themselves to keep their lives in harmony. After all, it is their life to lead.

It's never easy, this parenting thing, is it? But I realize that no matter what I'm not going to change who I am. I just have to learn to let them be who they are. If they want my advice, they'll ask for it and I will be ready and waiting to give it. Yes, hard as it is I'm going to have to learn to keep my mouth shut when it comes to my kids and their small stuff.

Whether I like it or not.

The Great Underwear Debate

Ok, so I vowed I wasn't going to get in to this on The Daily Dandy, but I gave up swearing for lent, not lying. HA! So here goes. This is one that had us all talking.

Yesterday I'm watching GMA and this story comes on about a mom and her 9 yr old daughter, who she took to Victoria Secret to buy underwear.  Now, there are a few details I need to report before you can form your opinion and respond.

• She took her to Pink, which is a subsidiary of Victoria Secret that is marketed to college age girls and is still in the same store as Victoria Secret, but has it's own space. Pink's designs are bright, bold, lacy racy and eye catching. As you can see some, not all designs have sayings that could be considered inappropriate for a nine year old. 
• The mother claims there is "nothing wrong with it". She says "No child wants to be the one in the locker room with the ugly underwear."
• The child claims it's time to leave the "Gymboree" behind and "move on to the next level. 
• The mom says she draws the line at lace. "There's a hard line between pretty and sexy and it's hard when we're talking about underwear to know where that difference is."

Here's the story:

And the GMA link:

http://gma.yahoo.com/blogs/abc-blogs/mom-says-victorias-secret-okay-tween-132303210--abc-news-parenting.html

Tell me what you think! I'm dying to hear.
Oh, and there's one more thing.

Did I mention that the mom is a blogger?

The Joys Of Parenting

Hey Bloggers, happy Friday!

It's the start of a fabulous weekend because Frick is coming home and I can't wait!!!
I miss her terribly and I'm so excited to spend some quality time with her. We are all looking forward to seeing her smiling face.

One thing I'm NOT excited about? The arguments that will ensue over the family car. I can just see it now.

FRICK: "FRACK! It's MY car and I'm taking it."
FRACK: "Shut up Frick! It's my car and you don't live here anymore." (pushing and shoving each other)

FRICK AND FRACK SCREAMING: "MOM!!!!!!!!"

It's such a joy. But I wouldn't change it for the world.

Take some time to enjoy your family this weekend bloggers.

Teen Mantras

 So a friend sent this to me over the weekend, and I loved the whole message. Even if you don't have teens, these are worth reading and sharing.

1. Yes, your freshman year counts towards your GPA for college entrance. Screw it up and you’ll work for crap wages your whole life. 

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2. No means NO. In every possible circumstance.

 

3. Join every sport, every club, every after school activity no matter what the cost. It’s cheaper than bail.

4. Repeat after me: I am never in that much of a hurry…I am never in that much of a hurry. Now say that every time you get behind the wheel. It will save your life and that of your best friend in the seat next to you.

5. Don’t smoke pot. It ruins your

 short term memory. (Did I already say that?)

6. Don’t ever get a credit card. Ever. You earn it or you live without it.

7. If I yell at you, it’s because I love you. And also, because you pissed me off. To avoid the latter, stop being an idiot.

8. Make a vivid picture inside your head of every great moment of your childhood. You’ll need those to get through adulthood.

9. Make snow angels as often as possible.

10. Stand up for those who can’t stand up for themselves.

11. Be always benevolent. Yes, that’s a word. Look it up.

12. Call me for a ride even if you are so drunk you barely know my number. I’ll probably be mad for a while but I’ll respect you for calling and I won’t kill you. Riding with someone who is drinking will.

13. Be a leader, not a follower. Unless you are doing stupid things, then follow the kid with the highest GPA.

14. Love your siblings, even when you don’t like them. Some day you will be trying to get them to take care of me in my old age. If they are mad at you, you are stuck with me.

15. I’ve been there, done that on more things than you can imagine. I’m not stupid and I know what you are doing. I was once you (times ten).

16. Work hard at everything you do. Anything worth doing is worth doing your best at.

17. Cover it. (Enough said.)

18. When I tell you to clean your room, do not point at my messy room and raise your eyebrows. I’m trying to raise you to be better than me.

19. Learn to type; to budget; and to pray. All are equally important.

20. Never be sedentary. Some day soon you will no longer be able to move like that. Enjoy it.

The Mother Of All Fathers

So this was Friday's intended post, but I had to leave my house at 5:30 AM which ruined all my best laid plans. So, the day after Father's Day, here is The Daily Dandy Father's Day Tribute to what I consider to be the Mother of all Dad's.

Dale Price from California, took saying good bye to his son on the school bus every morning quite seriously. When his 16 year old son, Rain's bus route changed for the school year, sending his bus right by his house, Dale came outside to wave good bye. On the second day, Rain's dad decided to don a San Diego Chargers helmet to wave good bye and on the third day he wore an Anakin Skywalker helmet.

It was then that Dale made the decision to dress up in costume every day, rain or shine, to wave goodbye to his son. In all, Dale wore 170 costumes, for every day of the school year, and employed the rule of never wearing the same costume twice. Rain's peers certainly never let him live it down and word of the costumed man spread fast. Relatives and neighbors started a blog to chronicle every day.

Dale describes the comittment as a "way of letting Rain know that we really care about him", but Rain's not interested in thanking his dad for his efforts. "I'm not going to reward him for this. His reward is seeing my embarrassment."

And You Need A Liscense To Fish?

So my bestest girlfriend G sent me this and I hadda laugh....out loud. Some people just don't get it. I encourage you to judge for yourself.

There are not enough words....