jaimalaya: June 2014

Thursday, June 26, 2014

That fake butterfly tattoo was amazeballs

It's my last day at work for an entire month, a month that will be filled with children arguing over who gets to play on my (MY) Kindle and who gets to sit in a particular chair at the breakfast table and who gets to annoy Mama the most. (Don't tell them but I'm kind of looking forward to it.)

Also I'm coming off a three-day single parenting episode while my husband was out of town and there were horrible bedtime routines and screaming fits and last night I took the kids to Chick-Fi-La for dinner where Adele peed on the floor in the play area and Sebastian smashed his finger in the girls' bathroom door and Adele dropped her milkshake in the car and the cashiers threw away my unsweet iced tea while I was dealing with the wet pants and smashed finger.

Needless to say I am a bit tired. Of course that could have something to do with the juice fast I'm on. Okay, that's a lie. I'm only drinking green juice for breakfast and eating regular food the rest of the day. But really you're supposed to Break your Fast at that time, and the juice really isn't breaking anything other than my spirit.

(I'm totally exaggerating. It's actually pretty good and satisfying. Plus I feel better about myself.)

So let's throw it back again today, all the way to 1998. What were you doing in 1998? Probably not possibly getting your upper-ear pierced by a drunken boardwalk carnie while wearing a temporary butterfly tattoo.

8/11/98 10:25 p.m.

Not 1998. Maybe '96?

I'm trying to get everything caught up in this journal. Before prom I went to Myrtle Beach for the chorus trip. It was a lot of fun. We went to Broadway at the Beach, which was just a outside shopping center & we went to an amusement park. It was called the Pavilion. While we were there I got a fake butterfly tattoo. It was just an outline of it on my shoulder. It was cool. I also tried to get the top of my ear pierced. I went up to this guy was doing it. I think he was stoned or drunk or something. I didn't have enough money to get my ear pierced, so he wanted to show me how to make money, like a peddler, by doing tricks. I said no. I don't think he'd have been able to pierce the right spot anyway. We had a lot of fun. I don't remember what day school got out. I just remember that I was grateful for it. I was so stressed, I was seeing black spots. I remember that we were out of school on a Monday & Tuesday, then came back on Wednesday for a rewards day. Mom & Dad wouldn't let me skip & go to Kentucky Kingdom with friends. It doesn't make sense. We didn't do anything at school anyway & it's not like It would have counted against me. Oh well. I got over it. Over the summer I went to the movies in Corydon with some friends. We watched Hope Floats. We were about 1/3 of the way through it when it kept flickering on & off. It finaly went off all the way. The electricity went off. There was a bit storm & they said that a tornado was coming. Everybody went to the lobby. We sat on the floor & sang Koom Ba Ya. We got some strange looks.

I started work at IGA on June 23. I really like it there. At first I thought I really sucked at it, but now I'm better. There's this one guy, I think he's gay, but he always calls me "Smiley." I guess it's because I smile so much! Whatever. I was supposed to go to Italy this summer but I didn't have enough money & then I got the job & I didn't want to leave right after I got it. I'm going for Christmas though. I can't wait!

Wednesday, June 25, 2014

Motherhood and More: Better-ish a step in the right direction*

Nobody say it too loudly, but I think we might have turned a corner with my daughter.

Sort of.

I mean, she still can throw down with the best and toughest of them and will let us know when she’s not happy we don’t allow her to do something she’s convinced she’s perfectly capable of doing by herself. Like jump off the dining room table. Although, really, she has a perfect landing so I should probably encourage more jumping off furniture. And cars. And trees. And whatever else is high and guaranteed to cause heart palpitations.

Wait. What was I saying?

So she’s better. Ish. She’s slightly more reasonable and much more able to communicate effectively, which I believe is the reason she’s more reasonable.

She doesn’t spend all of her time trying to get her brother’s attention by spitting in his face or kicking him in the head, which, for some reason, he doesn’t seem to like. But as that behavior has lessened, so have the sibling disagreements. And, of course, by ‘disagreements’ I mean yelling and hitting and screaming and spitting and knock-down-drag-out fights that end with crying and tattling and bruises.

This past weekend we visited friends who have boys around the same age as our kids. Normally when we get together my husband and I spend the entire time keeping our daughter from knocking one of the boys on the head with a light saber or kicking them because they aren’t paying attention to her. But this time it was just so much easier. I mean, yes, there still was an incident or two, but nothing like it’s been in the past.

It’s like – we were finally able to relax a bit. I was able to visit at a get-together instead of keeping one ear tuned toward the kids listening for the inevitable tattling on how my girl threw a toy at one of the other kids and made him cry. Also I didn’t have to apologize to the other parents as much so that was a treat, too.

But the thing is, I don’t want her to lose all of that toughness, all that wildness. It’s who she is and what makes her an amazing little person. I just want her to harness it and focus it on something a bit more worthwhile and a bit less physically harmful.

This girl is going to do amazing things. She’s a handful, but fearless. She is determined and tough and keeps right up with her brother.

I know her behavior is not an indication of how ‘good’ or ‘bad’ she is. She’s just a little kid frustrated with not being taken seriously. I get it. I’m still frustrated when I’m not taken seriously. But luckily I’ve learned that hitting someone in the nose with a plastic sword is not the best way to change things, no matter how satisfying it might be at the time. And I think she’s learning it, too. Finally. She’s realizing that maybe it’s a little easier and much more fun to play with other kids as opposed toagainst them. And maybe she doesn’t have to always be the center of attention.

Now if only we could stop her from jumping off tables. Or at least enroll her in gymnastics.

This column originally published in The News-Enterprise on June 25, 2014.

Friday, June 20, 2014

Homemade Friday: Etsy shop update!

I'd like to have something a bit more concrete to show you other than stuff I'd like to sell, but sleep wasn't happening last night so I'm moving a bit slow.

My daughter, for the past two nights has woken up in the middle of the night and last night she wouldn't go back to sleep and so my husband went up after I'd already tried laying next to her for an hour and a half with no success. But my daughter is a Mama's girl to a ridiculous extent and would not be consoled so Chris just brought her down to our bed where no one slept for an hour and then my husband got up because it was already 4:30 and he's insane but Adele and I went back to sleep and I woke up with her foot in my neck because I live in a house with people who are incapable of staying still when they sleep and who toss and turn and roll around and end up with their foot in my neck.

So anyway, all I have for you today is a shop update. I've been making things - jewelry and such - fairly regularly but updating the shop always takes a bit more work than I think it's going to.

But it's done. For now. Please to be enjoying and sharing!

(Also - please by stuff! Tell your friends!)

(Also again - I think it's naptime.)

Here's the link:

jaimalaya's shop of curiosities or maybe just jewelry and baby sweaters

Or you can get to it by clicking that box on the top right of the blog.

Thursday, June 19, 2014

I had plenty of all-day TV days as a kid and LOOK AT HOW FANTASTIC I AM

I'm off of work for the month of July because things kind of slow down a bit at colleges in the summer. And by 'a bit' I mean a ridiculously large amount.

I worked at WKU for a few years in the Career Services office. I loved it. I loved working with students and I loved being on campus and I loved what I did. That's one of the reasons I'm excited to be back at a college.

But summers are slow, so I understand why I have to take a break. However, I'll miss my coworkers and our discussions and I'll miss leaving the house and feeling like I contribute to something I strongly believe in. (I know - I strongly believe in contributing to the growth and development of my children as well. But it's different.)

I'll also miss the paycheck.

I'll be back to spending my days with my babies (who really aren't babies anymore but will forever be 'my babies.'). I think - I hope - that it will be easier this summer than in the past. I feel more relaxed myself, and less likely to have a panic attack at the thought of taking both children to the pool by myself. Or out in public by myself.

Plus Adele is older now and a bit more reasonable. I think we might actually be able to do things this year. Or at least not spend the days staring blankly at each other waiting for one of us to think of something fun to do. My suggestions are always "Go read! Go play outside! Go take a nap!" Adele's are "Eat Candy! Watch Frozen again! Play babies! Kick Sebastian!" and Sebastian's are "Watch TV! Play video games! Draw! Hide from Adele!"

Maybe if we can keep the fighting to a minimum we'll have some fun. So I'm looking forward to this time. I probably will not have a craft a day or scheduled hourly activities and we will most likely have a couple of all-day TV days because Mama is tired. But I think everyone will survive.

Tuesday, June 3, 2014

Me Made May 2014 - a wrap up

Sebastian is graduating from kindergarten today so don't ask me how I'm feeling. (Sad. I'm feeling sad. I said don't ask.)

So instead of reflecting on the fact that my baby is entirely too grown up, and how when he was brand new I used to picture kindergarten and how far off it all was and that wasn't that just yesterday? Like for real? No - instead I will let you stare at pictures of me standing in front of my poorly-lit bathroom mirror.

I think I did well for MMM14. I hit my goals and then some. My husband is happy that it's over with because now I can do things other than sew. Like yesterday, on my day off, I sorted through boxes and totes and more totes of clothing that the children had outgrown.

(In hindsight that probably wasn't the best thing to do when also blubbering because MY BABY IS ALL GROWN UP. Oh the feels I was/am feeling!)

So yes, the sewing will probably slow down some. But it will still be there. Of course it will. If you want to see the very beginning of the month, you can find that here.

(If I knew how to create a slideshow out of all of these photos I would. But I don't. So I didn't.)