Just Venting.......

The dining room, before the makeover

After the makeover

What craftsmanship!

So you came to my blog to see adorable pictures of sweet little Megan? Not today, my friend. I'm sorry but I must complain for just a little bit. It is my blog, after all. Before I begin my tirade, I will acknowledge that this complaint is very minor compared to other "real problems" I could be experiencing. However, this blog is called my "stay-at-home mamma drama" and the events of today clearly fit.

Last month, I spent about 3 hours in JoAnn's trying to choose fabric for curtains for my dining room. By the time I had finally made my decision, Megan was crying and throwing Goldfish crackers all over the store. The saleswoman was so mean to me and wouldn't wait on me, making comments under her breath about MY BABY and the mess she made. (I picked up the whole crackers, but I couldn't get to the crushed ones. Has she ever had a baby?????) I actually had to get a manager to wait on me. I would have told them to stuff their fabric (my mom was with me and was insisting they were SOOOOOO RUDE we should leave) BUT I had spent all that time looking and I LOVED the fabric. Despite the poor customer service, I special-ordered the fabric, paid for it, and told the manager how obnoxious her saleswoman was. She didn't seem too concerned.

Then I spent several additional hours choosing a paint color. I agonized (like only I can) over the color green in the fabric. I must have looked at 50 different color greens before choosing one I felt matched the pattern in the fabric just perfectly. Then John and I got into a little tiff (it was actually a blowout) when I told him I wanted wainscot panels and paint. He said something to the effect of, "You want what????? Do I not look busy enough???? Could you have picked something less complicated???? What in the name of la-dee-da is wainscot???" (only there were a few other words mixed in there also....use your imagination) He got even more excited when I told him it had to be done in two weeks, before my Southern Living at Home party.

What a good sport that guy is................he did it (with my dad's help) and it looks great. (Mysteriously enough, however, my guide book to decorating with architectural trimwork has disappeared! And it had at least 2 more ideas in it for future projects!)

So the room was painted the perfect color green and I was waiting for my paid-in-full, special order fabric to arrive. I waited a MONTH and received a phone call this morning. It was that darling woman from JoAnn's. (Remember the one who just loved my baby......not!) She wanted to tell me that the manufacturer no longer has that particular pattern of fabric. AHHHHHHHH! I begged her to tell me it wasn't true. I painted my room to match that fabric (actually my husband painted it, and not very willingly let me tell you!) Wait.......there's more.......when I told her I would be in the store today, expecting my full refund, she told me of JoAnn's policy to not refund money paid for shipping. Hmmmm, so interesting........WHAT IN THE WORLD DID THEY SHIP?????? When I regained my composure, I went to the store and ended up getting a full refund. (I made sure to bring my darling little girl and plenty of goldfish crackers.)

I probably should have felt badly when Megan grabbed my full bottle of Kool-Aid and threw it on the ground, spewing red liquid all over the floor. I probably should have felt badly when that "nice" lady had to bend over and wipe it up. (I did offer.....I'm not that bad.) I probably should have felt badly when Megan left a trail of goldfish crackers all the way to the car.............

There are two possible lessons to be learned from all this.........

1. Don't buy fabric from the mean lady at JoAnn's, even if it is cute and 50% off.

2. Don't take RED Kool-Aid into to the fabric store. ha, ha

I prefer #1. A little red Kool-Aid never hurt anyone, right Megan? Gosh, I love that kid.

I'm Staking My Claim

My cousin Mary just announced she is pregnant with a little girl. I am so, so excited for her! They are planning to name her Ava. Adorable, right? The only problem is that Mary, along with my cousin Sara, share in my excellent taste for baby names. If I fail to stake my claim soon, there will not be any cute names left for my future offspring. I'm taking this as my wake up call. I am publishing my official "list." From this point forward, the names on this list are unavailable for any children born to: any member of my immediate family (yes, Kate, that includes you), my first, second, and third cousins, bowling buddies of my third cousins, my sister's neighbors and friends, my friends, my friends' friends, my current and future neighbors (including Dena) and any other woman of childbearing age......and even those that are not. Please don't be offended if I didn't include you. I meant to!

The following names are in no particular order:

Potential girl names: Avery, Olivia, Caroline, Camden, Jenna, Sophie, Sydney, Charlotte, Addison, Bailey, Camryn (my personal favorite)

Potential boy names: Joshua, Alexander, Cayden, Jackson, Luke, Nathan, Noah (my personal favorite)

No, I'm not pregnant. I'm just thinking ahead. I reserve the right to amend this list at any time, and for any reason.

If you know anyone pregnant or considering adding a child to their family, please refer them to my list and tell them it is M-I-N-E!!!!!!!!!!!!!

A Day at the Pool

It is so nice to have John "back" after over two long years of work, work, work on the project. We have been enjoying some good quality family time. This Saturday we went to the city's public pool. They just completed a million dollar renovation with a new area for babies and toddlers that goes from a zero entrance to about 2 feet deep. It has cool fountains and a slide that Megan couldn't get enough of. She was so fiercely independent in the water and did not want to hold hands with us. Since she wasn't used to walking in the water, her legs were moving slower than her top half and she would inevitably crash face first into the water. In some places, it was deep enough to engulf her entire head when she fell to her hands and knees. We would (first gasp! ahhh) and then pull her out of the water, certain she would need immediate CPR. Nope! She just squirmed and wiggled to get free, and off she went running away from us again. Do we hover too much? Probably. As new parents, we're obsessed with anticipating every possible danger with the hopes of planning an intervention that protects our little one from any harm. Then sometimes we just sit back and realize we have to let her have a little fun once and a while. It is ok for her to eat NON-ORGANIC (gulp) ice cream once in a while. (For special occasions only, and even then no more than 1 time per summer.) We don't have to spend 2 hours in the cereal aisle of the grocery store comparing the grams of sugar in whole grain cheerios vs. rice chex. She can eat a french fry once in a while. (No, actually NANA, she is still not allowed to eat french fries. No exceptions!) It is ok for her to take off her shoes in the car and suck on the dirty bottoms if she is really, really bored. (Ummm, on second thought, that is still not ok with me and I reserve the right to pull the car over and put a stop to that immediately.) It is ok for her to swallow a mouthful of public pool water (yuck) once and a while. Really. She is realizing she is an independent person who can actually control her destiny. I have to constantly remind myself of that, take a step back, and watch my little baby girl develop a mind of her own. Why didn't anyone tell me about this?? Why don't they cover this in the "make you feel guilty for not doing everything perfect" parenting magazine that comes once a month? (You know, the ones with the pictures of the perfectly groomed, skinny moms who make it look so effortless as you wonder to yourself if it is normal to have yesterday's carrots still smeared in your hair.) Our wise pediatrician tried to teach me a lesson when I brought Megan in, convinced there was something SERIOUSLY wrong with her because she wouldn't sleep at night unless I held her. "Look in her ears," I told him. "She must have an infection." I was shocked to find out there was nothing physically wrong with her. "Then why is she doing this at night???" He told me "Megan doesn't have a Mommy problem. Mommy has a Megan problem." The nerve of that doctor! Did he seriously mean I should let her cry and eventually she would go to sleep on her own. Wasn't he there to diagnose Megan, not me???Guess what? It worked. The lesson I'm learning in my journey as a mom is that sometimes the best thing we can do for our kids is to do nothing at all..........even if it does include a few gulps of public pool water once in a while.