A Good Mom...

So....here's my guilt list (for today.)

A good mom.....cooks real dinner every night.
I....have the "kids eat free" schedule of every restaurant in our vicinity down, and we are involved in their schemes way too much.

A good mom.....has all of the laundry neatly folded, organized, and put away.
I....have clean clothes. And they are either folded on my bedroom floor or shoved into the kids overflowing drawers. Let's not even talk about ironing. I don't know where mine is.

A good mom.....has super fun activities and crafts planned out for her kids to keep them happy, busy, and engaged in meaningful activities.
I....let my kids play their DS. and the Wii.

A good mom.....takes her kids to the park and catches them at the bottom of the slide, pushes them on the swings, and digs in the sand.
I....take a book. I give them a dumptruck and a shovel and tell them to play.

A good mom.....covers her kids in sunscreen, even on overcast days, because we all know how easily they can burn.
I...well....Maddie is a little pink.

A good mom....never raises her voice at her kids, and for heavens sakes would NOT spank a child.
I.....do.

A good mom....sets a good example for her kids, keeping her cool and remaining calm even when the lady at McDonalds is rude and messes the order up.
I....might have made an ugly face or even fussed a little bit.

A good mom....sits by the side of the pool while the oldest has his swim team practice.
I....needed to run to Wal-mart.

A good mom.....knows that arguing between parents is best done behind closed doors.
I.....was loud right in the middle of the kitchen.

A good mom.....loves her kids more than anything else in the world.
I.....do.

My Kaden-bug

Tonight I got in from Conway at 10:45. I came into a quiet, dark house, and was ready to sit down and feel all pitiful about the hours I am spending in this summer class and to decompress all of the pressure of a HUGE upcoming assignment.

I turned around and this is what I saw:

Isn't that the cutest thing that goes bump in the night? He is my little night owl, and I love when we get this special time-just me and him.

So Kaden is my guest author tonight....

Mommy: What is your favorite thing to do?

Kaden: Um. play. my playing is that I like to play with Spiderman and a ninja turtle.

Mommy:What do you like to eat?

Kaden: um. Pizza. I like to eat chicken. That's silly, ain't it, mom?

Mommy: Tell me about your family.

Kaden: Momma. She works so hard. Daddy-I like to play with him. Parker-he likes to play with me. And Maddie. She likes to play with me and eat pizza with me.

Kaden: Is there anything I can say to you?

Mommy:Sure!

Kaden: What kinda animal is a giraffe? And what's a squirrel?

Mommy: How old are you?

Kaden: three. There's gonna be a cake on my birthday.

Mommy: What kind of cake?

Kaden: Spiderman. Stop! I need the balloons. And it has Spiderman on it. Maddie would like Tinkerbell instead of Spiderman. Or I would like Spongebob cake. Okay?

Mommy: What kind of present do you want?

Kaden: A game. A Dora game. It's easy.

Kaden: Can I push the story?

Mommy: Sure. Here you go...push a few....

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Mommy: Kaden, why are you so sweet?

Kaden: Because I like you.

Mommy: I think you're special

Kaden: God made me that way. Duh!

And off he goes!

What a sweet boy. He has been special in so many ways, and he always brings a smile to my face. I have enjoyed every single minute of being his mommy, and I can't believe he will be turning four in a few days.

Where have I been all my life?

So I haven't posted in about 5o years. Not because I haven't wanted to or haven't had much to say. Mostly because we have been super busy, and because I have been procrastinating. And painting. So I have possible lost all my readers and this will go out to the blogosphere known as posterity. That's okay, because after a few (gulp) months, my first post is going to be about reality shows. Because I'm deep like that.

I promised myself that after last season of The Bachelor I would NEVER EVER EVER watch that show again. I hated how he broke her heart right on tv only to go on and get with the girl she shoulda chosen anyways. I don't even care who I was rootin' for (Melissa) I thought it was a shame that ABC exploited feelings that way. It was dirty and I was done.

Until The Bachelorette. And, y'all, I didn't even care for her on The Bachelor after her silly hot dog test. But due to lack of quality summer programming, here me and bff TiVo go for another round. And it has not disappointed.....

The guys with the foot fetish....CREEPY!!! Why in the world would you keep around a man who gets all googly-eyed over your feet?!? He can't even hold a conversation with her without drooling. And I have been concerned that they would make it to the fantasy suite date, and there they would be...her, creepy foot guy, and Dr. Scholl's all behind locked doors. Yuk.

And by the way...she lost one of the top guys last week due to his boss being unsympathetice to his search for love. On national T.V. While the business was crumbling around him. Times are tough, buddy. In this economy, can we afford to lose a quality employee because we can't do without him while he searches for his one true love on a game show? He must not understand the word "recession."

The next great guy she let go tonight because he is "too perfect." I hate it when a man is too great! I see her point...what if they got married and he didn't put his underwear in the floor? Or if he cooked and cleaned up dinner? "You sleep, darling, I'll get up with the baby in the middle of the night because I know are exhausted and I appreciate you." Not on my watch, buddy!

Now she is left with Wes, whom I loved from the first episode because of his down home southern boy charm. It gets us everytime, doesn't it? He whipped out that gee-tar and sang her a song. And I swooned with her. Too bad since then he is outright telling everyone but Jillian that he is in it to win it....and by it I mean a recording contract. Not her. So I guess my whole point here is why can't someone tell her. To me, if the idea is to show that the show could produce true love, then let her in on his dirty little secret. Is there not a cool Paulette-from-Legally-Blonde inspired hairdresser on the set that can give her a sideways glance and a dirty shake of the head? Oh, but to be that stylist!!!

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On a sadder note, I am heart-broken by what I saw on Jon and Kate tonight. I have watched them from the beginning when they were interesting because they were young and poor and struggling. I gritted my teeth when she started getting a little bossy and diva-ish, and was feeling more and more distant from them as they moved on to WAY greener grasses on the other side of a perfectly landscaped and manicured security fence.

What has happened in their marriage is awful. I watched tonight with more sympathy for Kate than someone outside of a situation like that could understand. I felt her pain as she talked about her kids not becoming a number. I understood how she feels like her life is taking a course that she didn't chose and she is being forced along for a ride. My heart broke for her hurt at the anger she is receiving and the inability to make it better or know her full role in it. And that she wants so badly for her children to be okay through it all.

Divorce is such an ugly word, one that I hate to use or have attached to me. No matter how long it has been or how happy and unbelievably blessed I am right now, I will always feel like the word implies I failed. Or I didn't try hard enough. It is something that I deal with every day, and something that I try so hard to protect my children from.

I am happy that she knows there will be better days. Because there will. There are.


In closing...

So...if you don't comment and tell me who your favorite bachelor is, then I will know that I have been abandoned. And it may be another forever before I post again.....

And if you don't have a favorite bachelor...I don't know where you've been!