Mommy Melee

Bucket Man

Maria Melee — Fri, 03 Sep 2010 16:00:55 +0000

My Moose is 22-month-old or so now. He’s the age Chipmunk was when I got pregnant. I find this absolutely mind-boggling.

People tell you your kids will be different, but it’s impossible to understand that until you’re living it. They look similar. They’re clearly siblings. But beyond that, it’s hard to imagine they came from the same set of parents. This is the coolest thing ever, as far as I’m concerned. I feel like I get to experience more as a parent. Two entirely different types of tantrums even! (No but seriously, they’re both so entertaining and wonderful to me in different ways.)

It’s hard not to describe Moose as a set of contrasting qualities. Reckless, not cautious. Plays imaginatively, instead of with structure. Outgoing, not shy.

And that isn’t fair. He’s simply his own person. A small, willful little person who grabs you by the hand and says “COME ON!” and makes you do his bidding. And you can’t help it because the curls, oh man the curls.

Yesterday my landlord asked (and I am not joking), “Are his curls natural?”

I answered, “Yeah!” Before it sunk in how batshit crazy that question was. Then my landlord’s wife shook her head and said, “He really should have been a girl.”

(I love my landlords but man they are funny.)

Some Moose facts:

He knows all his letters. Don’t ask me how. I’m guessing it’s from the Letter Factory LeapFrog DVD and from the LeapFrog toy we’ve had since 2006. It’s some kind of mix of a DJ table and, I have no idea. It’s covered with tiny letters. He calls letters the “EEE EFF GEES!”
He slaps his nuts when you change his diaper and says “Bah! Bah! Bah!” And no one can figure out why.
He loves Woody, Dora, “annnnnnnd BOOTS!”, and Backpack.
He says, “Ni Hao!”
He climbs on everything, jumps on everything, and in general gives me heart attacks constantly.
He loves milk and food. As soon as he smells dinner cooking he starts saying “EAT! EAT! EAT! PEEEEEEEESE. YUMMA YUMMA. EAT. EAT. EAT. EAT. EAT.” For as long as it takes to make dinner. So you can blame the frozen dinners on him.
He really likes yogurt.

I’m pretty sure he knows how funny he is too.

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A Periwinkle Breeze

Maria Melee — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 03:06:52 +0000

I stepped outside and started running. I followed the smooth guttered curb and turned the corner along the quiet street by the old people’s apartment complex. I felt free and fit and strong for about a minute and a half. Then I made the next right turn and hit the long stretch along the drainage canal. And a cramp in my side exploded like part of my lung was sticking to my ribs and I slowed down and then slowed down a little more and then just walked.

Walking wasn’t bad.

I listened to Silversun Pickups and then the Ting Tings and then Lady Gaga and then the Red Hot Chili Peppers. I wanted to dance a little. I hummed and murmured songs and walked off the cramp with a sway to my hobbled step.

After a right and another right, on the winding stretch back to my house, the breeze picked up. 7:45 pm. With the breeze, 85 degrees felt more like 75 degrees. Felt like fall, just a little, felt faraway. Felt like.

***

The smell of sweet, fresh cut grass takes me back to New Bedford. Always, always. It has to be dry grass, dry weather. The scent carried softly, more like a touch than a smell.

With the wind on my face, I’m standing on a huge rock at Fort Phoenix. I feel the heft and power of the slab of granite beneath my feet. Because in Florida, at home, where I go to school and it’s hot and always the same when the lightning isn’t cracking down, we don’t have big rocks. It’s flat.

I slide down a smooth-rough edge, go a little too fast, grab at handholds and finally push my palms down to slow my descent. I scrape them, just a little, and they burn. Then I land with a faint squish, my sneakers digging into the rocky sand at the shore.

My long hair whips at my face. I look at the sea. I listen to the gentle lapping sound of calm waters of Buzzards Bay. To me, it’s the ocean. It’s all the majesty of the greatest seas, all the fury. It’s dark.

So I balance on the rocks at the water’s edge. I brush my fingers against a slimy patch of seaweed and I listen to the peculiar pop and crackle of the water rushing along patches of periwinkles.

Summer isn’t hot here. It bursts with salty breezes and potential and winding roads that snake away from smokestacks and tenements toward hills that roll like soft green swells.

***

My mile takes sixteen and a half minutes. When I return to my front door, the breeze (remember it?) presses at my back, taps at my shoulder.

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The First Day of School, Take Three

Maria Melee — Fri, 27 Aug 2010 14:38:45 +0000

On Monday, Chipmunk went to school for about an hour before his adenoid/tonsil surgery. I fretted accordingly and dropped him (“I am NOT going to circle time, you NAUGHTY MAMA! WAIT, give me ten kisses!”) off and then hovered in the hallway, watching through the window on the door.

For the first half an hour or so, I fought back tears. I took deep breaths. My son went through bins of toys, squeezing and arranging. Squeezing and arranging. It looked weird. It looked jarring. The other kids went to circle time, they danced. My son squeezed. I panicked some more, picturing all the sorts of worst case scenarios you picture when you’re already frazzled knowing you’re about to drive to the hospital for a surgical procedure on your four-year-old.

More deep breaths occurred, kind of.

I walked away for a while and then came back to check on him. He was in the circle, but squeezing and clenching his fingers in front of his face. His spot is right next to the teacher. (She listened to my suggestion to move him there, because she is awesome.)

Then I checked again twenty minutes later to find him doing show and tell. In front of the whole class. He beamed shyly, holding a baby monkey toy “buddy,” a matchbox car and then a dinosaur. He squeezed them in front of the kids and did his growling/roaring noise.

I did a little dance of joy in the hallway.

Later, when I opened the door to pick him up, his teacher asked the kids. ”Do you remember what his toys said?” And the kids growled and roared. Because my son? Is the best at roaring. They thought he was cool. He is cool.

That will be my happy thought for a long time.

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Girl Talk Thursday: Shameless Consumerism, Go!

Maria Melee — Thu, 26 Aug 2010 16:21:58 +0000

I haven’t participated in GTT for a couple of months. Thankfully, my soul-sisters over there have kept the dream alive. We now have topics scheduled again and most of us are going to try to participate each week. I started this silly meme over a year and a half ago and I love that it gives me (and others) the chance to drop the Serious Blogging mentality and just chatter with other ladies. (And sometimes dudes.)

Sometimes I get stuck feeling like everything I put in this place needs to be Meaningful or Thoughtful or Funny or I dunno, full of Quality and really? No. This is just my place where I put stuff. And on Thursdays it’s generally fun and goofy stuff.

Such as today’s topic! Discount and sales sites. I know everyone has favorites. The whole recent flood of sales sites is basically my only favorite thing about the recession. I don’t actually SHOP on them often, but oh do I window shop on them. Pretending to buy stuff on the Internet is one of my favorite brain-soothing procrastination methods.

Here are my favorites:

SlickDeals.net Mostly tech stuff, but sometimes ridiculous amazing Amazon deals. Like Haribo Bears.
RedTagCrazy.com* I don’t shop here often, but once in a while something I can’t resist pops up. Denim, mmm.
KidSteals.com Amazing deals sometimes. Quick shipping.
GreenBabyBargains.com I haven’t bought anything here before but I love that they focus on green stuff.
RetailMeNot.com This is a must-check site before you check out on almost any online retailer.
Overstock.com Excellent prices on small furniture and party dresses. Good shipping prices.
Kayak.com. Despite the five gazillion pop ups, it’s a good way to compare airline prices.
Hotels.com. I love the interface for quickly and easily comparing prices on a map.

What are your favorite discount/sales sites?

*That’s an affiliate-ish link, it gives you $5 to spend and gives me $5 to spend if you buy something.

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