Mommin' It Up!

November 14, 2011November 14, 2011

It’s a slippery slope. And I’ve got oil on my shoes.

Today I went shopping for supplies for Sophie’s birthday party. She wants a Hello Kitty party, and thanks to all the other “fun moms” (I’m looking at YOU, Koproski, Berry, Loyd, and Perlow – and don’t even get me started on YOU, Princess Party Emmons) whose children’s parties Sophie has attended, the child now expects a pinata and goody bags at said party. So, my years of being a super-cheap mom are OVER.

But I was okay with that, to a point, because you see, I had a Living Social voucher to a local party store, which I’d bought with credits I’d built up. It was valued at $30 so I thought, certainly I could get out of the party store only spending a few bucks. So, even though every fiber of my being was screaming “NOOOOOOOOOO”, I purchased a Hello Kitty pinata for $20. That’s right, I spent twenty bucks on PAPER that is going to get ripped to SHREDS before the party is over. I also bought two packs of Hello Kitty plates, a pack of regular pink plates (for the grown-ups), a Hello Kitty banner, two packages of pink forks, and some wrapping paper.

My total before the voucher came to $57. FIFTY-SEVEN DOLLARS. So I spent $27 out-of-pocket when I went in there expect to spend less than ten! What the crap? Clearly I should have gotten into the “Party Store” business. I didn’t even get party HATS, or a game!! Sheesh.

I bought goody bags and favors at the Dollar Tree. Much more my speed. But since there are eleventy-billion kids coming to the mega party of the year, I still had to get a ton. Guess, what, if you are a boy, and you are coming to Sophie’s party, you are getting candy in your goody bag and that’s it! Sorry, dudes. The girls are getting a couple extra trinkets. Because there’s only 9 girls and there’s like, 678 boys attending.

But anyhoo. THE POINT IS:

I got my daughter a $20 pinata. Because she really, really wanted it. I would have rather spent another $20 on a gift for her but I caved. I caved hard.

I might not be a “fun mom” yet…but I’m definitely more fun than I’ve ever been..by Joshua’s birthday in February I’ll probably have rented each of his party guests their own pony for a day.

HELP!!! I’m slip-sliding away…

October 31, 2011October 30, 2011

Monday Monday Monday!

Mondays are always busy around here, but today is especially busy. Here’s what’s on the rocket-docket (as the cool kids say):

8:30 leave to take Sophie to school

8:45 drop Sophie off

8:46 Jonah and I go Krogering

9:25 (hopefully!) arrive home

9:26 put Jonah to bed

9:35 unload groceries

9:45 breathe

11:00 (if not sooner) Jonah wakes up

11:00-11:15 feed and change Jonah

11:20 leave to get Sophie at school

11:30 pick Sophie up

11:45 arrive home, make lunch

12:15 Mommy & Sophie work time

12:45 get Sophie dressed for gymnastics

1:10 leave for gymnastics

1:45-2:45 gymnastics

3:15 arrive home, Joshua arrives home from school

5:00 leave for Emily’s house for our trick-or-treating tradition!!!!

5:30 arrive at Emily’s, stuff faces with pizza, stuff kids into costumes

6:00 TRICK OR TREAT!!

8:00 drive home

8:30 hustle kids to bed

9:00 fall down dead exhausted

*Shew*!! It’s going to be a crazy day! What are YOU doing? Can’t wait to post our trick-or-treat pictures!

October 18, 2011October 17, 2011

From one mom to another

A little less than two years ago, I found out that a friend of mine, Jeni, whom I’ve written about before because of her fab business Custom Carabella’s, was about to become (in addition to being a mom of three) a foster mom. I was totally surprised (because I’ve never known anyone who did that), and extremely impressed (because I think it would be a seriously hard thing to do). But Jeni has a real heart for kids who needed families, whether temporarily or permanently, and she has been foster mom to B, a darling little boy, since he was just a few weeks old. Since then, she has been encouraging and recruiting others to care for kids who need families. She’s become a crusader for kids who live in Greene County, Ohio, which is the county just next to where Emily and I live. One thing I’ve heard Jeni say as she has worked to spread awareness about the need for loving foster families is that many people say they’d like to help, but they don’t feel called to foster.

Well now, Jeni has come up with a way that those people can help. A way we ALL can help. And I am going to challenge you, my readers, especially if you live in the Dayton area, to help Jeni out on this one! She has single-handedly committed to providing NEW Christmas presents for every child in foster care in Greene County.

So she has committed to it, and I am asking YOU to help her make it possible! You can check out her blog post here on the exact details of how this all came about. As a foster mom, Jeni knows that a lot of foster children receive nothing from their birth families on holidays or birthdays (her own foster son got nothing for either from his birth family). It can be a terribly lonely time for kids trying to fit into their foster families own holiday traditions. And, many of these kids have little or no possessions of their very own to even take with them from family to family. Jeni has committed to providing each of these children with at least one wonderful possession of their very own.

So, how can you help? You can give. You can sponsor a child in Greene County foster care’s Christmas present. You can give $100, $50, $25, or any old amount you want! I am going to challenge you, like I did when my friend E was working to beat Ovarian Cancer, to give at least $5. Emily and I have chosen to sponsor a gift for $50, because once again, we are not going to ask you to do anything that we would not do ten times over!

So, I am asking you, especially if you are local, but even if you’re not, please help make this Christmas amazing for the kids in foster care in Greene County, OH. Let’s show them some love, and help them believe that they are lovable.

Here is the button to donate to PayPal – go give!

And before you do, or after you do, please go read Jeni’s blog about this effort – Fostering Christmas Care. Take a couple minutes to read how this amazing effort came about!

Jeni’s goal is to have all the funds raised by November 6th (which just happens to be Orphan Sunday) – so get clicking and get giving! LET’S DO THIS, Mamas!!