Queen of the City of Stubbornville

My mom was always the tough love kind of mom. Her mothering style focused on teaching independence. From an early age, I had chores that most mothers don't even consider handing out until the pre-teen years. For example, at the age of three, I had a long fight with her about the unfairness of having to re-hang my clothes after my one year old brother pulled them down. What's that you say??? - A three year old hanging clothes? Yep! That was about the same age that I was given the responsibility of making my own lunch. I did fine, but you should have seen some of the crazy condiment creations my brothers made for themselves.

While growing up, I thought that people had kids so they wouldn't have to do so much house work. As I have gotten older, I have come to realize that her method was probably a lot harder than just doing everything by herself at least when we were little. It takes a great amount of stubbornness on her part to raise her oldest three the way she did. That is probably why she was not the same with the youngest 2 kids; we wore her out.

I have a strong feeling that if I would have popped out kids in my early 20s, I would have been a lot like she was with us. Back then, I had the fiery stubbornness that is required. However, my personality has changed with age. My brothers always comment that they want to know what happened to the strong willed sister they knew. I guess life has taught me that there are many different ways to approach life and I have learned to let many things go.

I still think independence is important for kids, but it is not the main focus of my mothering. Actually, I am much more laid back and probably more affectionate (the goofy mushy kind) than I would have been. My mothering skills are closer to what my mom was with her youngest, Paige, although I am not quite that laid back.

Despite that, I have been lucky enough to get a daughter who is chalk full of fiery stubbornness. With a little guidance, she'll be just as independent as I was. I guess my point is that in my family the Queen of Stubbornness seems to relinquish the crown around the age of 30. It always gets passed to the oldest daughter and isn't something that has to be taught.

Tags: stubborn, independent

Real American?

Tuesday, I brought Lexi to the office dressed in jeans. Two of the girls (one from Puerto Rico and one from Nicaragua) mentioned that she looks like a real American. I laughed and said, "She is." I know they meant she is an all American/jean wearing type girl.

That brought me back to something I think about often. Why do people refer to Caucasian Americans as "Americans" and others by their ancestral origins? There are Cuban Americans, African Americans, Asian Americans, Mexican Americans, even Native Americans, and many others.

I don't really mind all the distinctions, because I think people naturally want to categorize things. If it isn't origins or race it is by sex, age group, fashion tendencies, hair color, etc. The problem for me is referring to Caucasians as Americans. The US should be all about integrating all the different types of people. When we say Americans, we should mean everyone who is a US citizen. If we are talking about Caucasians, we can call them European Americans or something. I guess I just feel weird about it.

Tags: nationality, American

Tropical Storm Dud

Ernesto turned out to be a dud, which isn't necessarily a bad thing. It was more like our regular afternoon thunderstorms. Weak Hurricanes and Tropical Storms still hurt the real estate market. I thought it had started to pick up after a very slow July. To be honest, our landscaping has not fully recovered from last year's storms. I certainly don't want anything to discourage potential buyers, so the dud wasn't all bad. (**Sidetrack/ Update Time: our agent said everyone who has come to see it, loves our house. The problems are the market and finding buyers that can qualify for that amount.)

Unfortunately, because Ernesto fizzled too much, the storm did not turn out the way I wanted. My whole joy of tropical storms and hurricanes centers on bonus time off. This dud meant only 2 half days off instead of one full day. It is better than no time off, but it is one of those cases, when two halves don't equal a whole. I still had to go in twice.

It wasn't bad for everyone, Lexi got to enjoy her first storm because daycare was closed. She spent the half day yesterday with me at the office and she is spending today at home with Steve (he has a WHOLE day off). I like my job, but I like having a day off even more.

Blah, blah, blah...the point is Ernesto could have been better (for me).

Tags: Tropical Storm Ernesto

Ernesto Everything

Life in South Florida has become all about Ernesto. Yesterday, we went to Target to look for a play mat for Lexi. The store was packed by crazed Hurricane shoppers and all the bottles of water were already gone. We needed to go grocery shopping, but did not want to wrestle people for basic items. Steve suggested that we go to the ghetto grocery store. Since it is the closest one to our house, we did. You wouldn't believe what a pleasant shopping experience we had (considering the storm). There was even plenty of water. I think we will be going there from now on whenever a cone is aimed at us.

Now, we are just going about our daily activities and watching the cone. Wednesday is looking like a good day to stay in bed and hang out at the house. I am hoping Ernesto goes up the coastline staying just east of Florida and west of the Bahamas. Of course, it has to continue looking like it is coming here to get a day off. So - that is my hurricane wish for the week.

Tags: Tropical Storm Ernesto, Hurricanes

Sacred Times & Friday Gripes

I have come to believe that people who schedule business meetings on Fridays or any kind of meetings after 4 pm during the week are purely evil. It is Friday and I should be able to wear jeans like everyone else, but NO I had to attend a meeting. It is a monthly meeting so there really is no need for it to be on Fridays.

I have to attend another similar type monthly meeting on the third Tuesday of the month and guess what time it is scheduled for. Yep, it is at 4pm in downtown Miami and it never starts on time. That means that I am stuck driving back in the worst traffic ever. I guess I should just be happy that I don't have a Friday meeting at 4pm in downtown Miami.

Enough complaints, the work week is almost over, so time to start feeling great. HAPPY FRIDAY!!!

Tags: Casual Friday, Meetings

Using Body Language

In every company I have worked for, there was always one female employee that seemed to flirt with the boss. By flirting, I mean that these chicks stand too close, act overly interested, strike seductive posses, giggle instead of laugh even at dumb jokes, and generally go overboard when asked to perform a task. I highly doubt the ones I have been around were having an affair with the boss. Their behavior is simply used to get what they want (attention, more money, better office supplies, etc.). The funny thing is that it does work on some level and they get a little farther than they would based on their intelligence or work ability, but they don't have many friends. Whenever I observe one of these interactions, I often wonder why the guys fall for it and what in the chick's past/childhood makes her think that this is the method for getting what she wants.

Tags: body language, work

In Honor of Beef Gravy and Family

Prior to meeting the in-laws, Steve and I tried to give each other a preview of what to expect. I showed him a home video from my mom's wedding (2001). He thought my brothers were high (especially the middle one) on something, but that is just typical Mormon hyper activity that happens at gatherings. I think it comes trying to get attention in a big family, but I'm not an expert on the topic.

Steve warned me by telling me the nicknames his friends had for his family members. His brother was called Goob or Boog backwards, which is short for booger. His dad's nickname was Happy. The strangest one was his mom's. They called her Beef Gravy. He doesn't remember how that one got started other than she made it a lot. The funny thing is that all of those nicknames fit.

When you get sick, like we are, you tend to miss your mom and think about how she used to take care of you. Unfortunately, we can't turn to our mothers to help us get better. My mom lives in California and his mom recently passed away. Since I can still call mine (until she flies out on Thursday), I get advice and sympathy over the phone. I feel sorry for Steve because he isn't able to do that any more.

To help him feel a little of that motherly kindness, we are having beef stew for dinner. This little attempt will not be quite the same. It is the Banquet Crock Pot in a Bag version not the homemade way she used to do it. Besides the fact, that I don't really care for beef stew, I look and feel like I have been hit by a truck. Thank you Banquet for helping with the warm fuzzy hubby family feelings. We will all be better in no time.

Tags: beef gravy, nicknames

Down for the Count

Over the weekend, we spiraled into a black hole of darkness (bronchitis) and I am trying to imagine the light again. When it comes to being sick, Steve is a bit of a hypochondriac who runs right to the doctor at the first sign of illness. I, on the other hand, tend to hold off until I am too weak to drag myself there.

Unfortunately, Lexi and I are suffering from bronchitis, while Steve started antibiotics right away. I know that isn't fair to Lexi. This is something I definitely need to change that about myself. This time though, I blame a lot of it on the weekend. She seemed to be getting better on Thursday and Friday. Saturday was a whole different story. Why does it always happen on the weekend? I don't think Lexi stopped coughing Saturday night, which means that I was up the whole night. Sunday, she was fussier than ever and had chest congestion so we took her to Urgent Care. On Monday, I made a doctor appointment and found out I had it too.

Now, we have a kitchen full of antibiotics. I get the fun task of fighting Lexi every 6 hours to force the elixirs down (three different kinds).

Tags: illness, Urgent Care, bronchitis, elixirs

Disney Mystery Revealed

From time to time, there is often a debate about a Disney Character. That character is Goofy. Some people say he is a dog, but others disagree because Pluto is a dog. It is strange to have one dog that acts like a goofy person and one that acts like a dog together. However, Disney is all about strange things. Lets face it, their number one character of all time is Mickey Mouse (talking mouse) and second in popularity is his best friend Donald the Duck (ok, so he just gibbers). Moving on to the point...

Last weekend, I had the Disney channel on while I was cleaning and Lexi was playing in the family room. During the new Mickey Mouse Club House show, the mystery was revealed. They were looking for Donald's pet chicken (strange idea). He had traded it to a giant for magic beans, which became a bean stock. Of course, Mickey, Goofy and Donald climbed it. When they were sneaking around the giant's house & farm, he woke up. He said, "Fee Fie Fo Fum, I smell the blood of a mouse, duck and dog." See, there you have it. Goofy is just an evolved dog.

I wonder if Walt Disney would have wanted this revealed in such a non-dramatic way. Too late now.

Tags: Disney, Pluto, Dog, Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck

Battle Hymn of the Cockroach

Long before I was born and long after I am dead, there will be one species ruling middle earth. I hereby declare that it will be the cockroach. How do I know? In high school, I pondered about their existence while one tried to hold me captive in my bedroom in Katy, Texas.

This is not the first time I had encountered their malicious ways, oh no. Around the age of 10, I had a bedroom in Melbourne, Florida where one introduced me to their wicked sense of humors. It happened one night when the lights went out. I could hear the wings of a single cockroach brushing against various things in the room. This was no ordinary one as it had developed flying skills.

...But it was in Katy, Texas that I realized that they are a highly intelligent species, but have only one priority/goal in life and that is to strike fear in the hearts of human beings everywhere. Imagine what you could accomplish having an incredibly high IQ and only one purpose in life.

However, there is only one way to end their reign and that is to stop letting them get the one thing they want - humans to fear them. As my part to the world, I vow to battle any cockroach I see including the one I just killed. By the way, I think the ones in Miami have either lower IQs or are wimps. It is just too easy to scare them off.

Tags: Battle Hymn, cockroach, IQ, fear