Storiquestion Time

Storiquestion Time: noun. A situation that begins as story time, but results in endless questions.

I've been having a hard time getting the Monkey Boys to just go to bed. They're up and down and running around and crying and laughing and begging for just one more snack.

For crying out loud.

So, I've heard that one thing you can do for this is really get into a routine, and that will help the kids settle down. I try to plan bedtime for around 7, so around 6:30 they get their teeth brushed and we head to their room for story time before lights out.

Tonight we were reading a condensed version of The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardobe (one of those ones with pictures from the movie). On the first page I pause to explain to him why the Pevensie children are leaving, but then we have to stop because Monkey Son #1 wants to know why London is being bombed.

"Are they bad guys? Why are they doing that? I saw a soldier at the Y and he had a son..."

And then the wardrobe.

"There's a wardrobe! It's a magic wardrobe. It has doors like that. Is it a magic wardrobe? Why is it a magic wardrobe?"

You get the idea. Eventually, the questions lessened, but did not stop. You'll be proud to know we did in fact make it through the whole book.

A note from Kristina

So today, Husband and I were watching Martha Stewart. Neither of us are huge fans, but occasionally I can gleam something useful. No doubt others get more use out of her tips, but some things I just don't have the time or funds for...

Anyway, a little sneak peak about the next show came on and announced that the topic will be blogs. I'm a bit interested for obvious reasons. Husband, however, was not so amused.

"I hate blogs," he said.

I looked at him.

"What?" he asked.

I continued to look at him.

"What?...Oh."

"I'll have you know I have eight followers," I announced proudly, like I just received the Nobel Prize in literature.

What's even better is as of this post, I don't have eight. Somewhere in the last few days, I gained two. Now I have TEN! I couldn't be happier. Unless, of course, I had twenty.

So, let me just say thank you, thank you, thank you to those who have clicked the follower button. It only encourages me to write more.

Resolute-tion

Resolute-tion: noun. A New Years resolution that a person is absolutely determined to achieve, regardless of whether or not they have attempted it before.

We know the resolution thing, don't we? We're going to lose 10 pounds or finally get that novel published. For this post, I wanted a word that was more than a mere resolution, but something more serious sounding. OK, I'm not all that good with serious, but still...

So, here are my resolute-tions:
1. Make better use of my journal. It's there. It's been there a while. But I really want to use it more. I pulled out my journal and saw that on 1/1/06, I had made that same resolution. Oops.

2. Lay off the junk food. I really want to get back down to where I was before my first pregnancy. I have a while to go.

3. Spend more real quality time with my kids. Not that I don't spend any with them now, but they could always use more.

4. Prioritize and organize. That one is too complicated for me to explain without boring you.

So, do you have an resolute-tions this year? Feel free to post in the comment section.

Confusasign

Confusasign (confuse-a-sign): noun. A sign that has an obvious meaning to an adult, but is confusing to a child.

PBS, you've done it again. Thanks to our buddy Curious George for teaching Monkey Son #1 about signs.

So, he now knows that if a sign has an image, and that image is circled with a line through it, it means no. For example, a picture of a dog that is circled with a line through it means no dogs allowed. Pretty simple.

So a few weeks ago, we are driving through an area we rarely visit when Monkey Son #1 sees a no parking sign. "No Parking" was not written out, but instead was a large letter "P" circled with a line through it.

"Look," said Monkey Son #1. "P's aren't allowed there."

Guest Entry: Wiz-Dumb

Wiz-dumb: noun. The type of parenting "wisdom" or advice an outside person gives a parent, though the parent thinks the advice itself is worthless.

Thanks to mommy Brenda for sending in this word and story.

Brenda's family never puts up a Christmas tree because they are not home for Christmas, but there is generally one where she and her family go for the holidays. This year they are bringing with them an 11 month old and she is concerned about the baby playing with the Christmas tree. When she brought this up to her relatives, she was told, "Don't worry. If he gets around the tree, we'll just tell him 'no'."

(For those of you who aren't parents, you can't tell an 11 month old "no" and expect it to have a lasting effect. You can't just tell him once and that be it. He will still need heightened supervision to keep him away from the tree. I can't even keep my 16 month old away from mine.)

Christmas Layout

I've loaded a layout for Christmas, but I'm not sure if I love it. I'll leave it up until Christmas unless you all don't like it, at which point I'll change to the old style.

Holinsanity

Holinsanity: noun. The particular type of insanity people, especially parents, get around the holidays.

The other day I was watching the Office (the American version with Steve Carell). In the beginning of the episode, Dwight researches what toy will be most popular that year and slowly buys out that toy from all of the area stores. Then, as Christmas creeps closer, he sells the toys to desperate parents and makes a huge profit. Despite paying $200 for a rather freaky looking doll, the parents go away completely thrilled and thanking Dwight for his help.

There's not much of a chance I'm going to spend $200 for a $15 toy even if it is the hottest toy of the season. OK, I admit Monkey Son #1 is getting an in-demand pirate ship, but I didn't kill myself trying to get it, either.

In a semi-related story, Younger Sister decided to go out to the early morning Black Friday sales. She explained that when you only have a certain amount to spend, you want to get the best deal you can. She was out the door at about 4am. Although she came back very happy with her purchases and the small amount she paid for them, she did tell me people were being crazy. She was told that before she arrived at a particular store, people were arguing and saying things like, "Just because you're fat doesn't mean you get to go first." Merry Christmas to you, too, I suppose.