Awkard Places

 I find myself in sort of an unusual and awkward place at the moment.

 There's a friend I've known for some years now and I need to figure out exactly how to deal with them. We used to be really close, if not physically. We chatted pretty much constantly, and emailed back and forth. They knew me before I even knew my husband. They knew me before MiniMonster was born, and for a short time, they considered a relationship with another one of my friends, (Turtle).

 The relationship with Turtle didn't work out, distance and other things were a factor, but such things happen. That's not the problem. The problem I've been having is that since I had MiniMonster, they've grown more distant. At first incrementally, and then more and more so. There were very reasonable excuses of course. Work, College, A New House, all of these at the same time, plus attending conventions to sell things. We stopped having RP sessions together, and then there slowly stopped being any real communication at all.

 They haven't said specifically that they've got a problem with me, and they're typically not someone who's got a problem with letting people know if they have a problem... but I think I know what the problem IS.

 It's MiniMonster I think. Something about me having become a parent and me going to have a second child (Baby NomNom), has cause a complete withdrawal of communication. I even sent them an anouncement that we were going to have another child, and I personally didn't get a response. Turtle did though. He got a email reply of:
 "They're pregnant again? You know they've identified what causes that."

 On it's own this could be construed as an sort of tasteless joke, but combined with the total retreat, it just comes off as being pretty rude. I don't feel like I've changed that much. I've had to become more responsible, I have more things to do, and I can't drop everything and galavant across the countryside at the drop of a hat, but really with most peoples budgets and jobs... lets face it. Galavanting on a regular, unplanned basis is for people who don't have a real grasp of their responsibilities regarding others.

 I feel like at this point I've got one of two options: I can either just let things die, though this gives me the feeling that the story they'll tell others is that I'm somehow the one who decided that we couldn't be friends any more, or I can take a page out of their book. ((They boast often about their bull headed qualities.)) and be more direct, and send them an email pointing out that I heard, and was offended by their comment, and that I feel as though I'm being cut out of things because I have children, and would like to know if thats really what she wants.

 I'll grant her that she's had bad experiences with -A- woman who had children, a rather unbalanced on, but it's completely unfair I think to judge me by the standards of one, singular individual, who has nothing in common with me.

 It's an awkward place to be and I don't like it.


PS. Once I got past my initial rage-faces, Tangled had funny moments, and MiniMonster liked the lanterns.

Tangled Up

Just started Watching Tangled:
 I'll give a complete review when I'm done, but so far...

 I'm REALLY not seeing why people thought this was so fantastic. So far it's just another case of Disney doing a "Postman" and taking the title off a fairy tale and rewriting the whole thing. I expect I'll be puking on the excessively PC bullshit before the thing is over.

Happy Post Mothers Day

So another Mothers Day has come and gone, ours in relative quiet, although the entire household spent the weekend playing a great game of "pass the germ".

 Friday: MiniMonster was sick, running a temperature, and pretty much slept, or fussed, cuddled, drank, and slept again all day until evening when his temp finally broke and he enthusiastically mugged me for pieces of my cereal, except for the ones that had actually been partially soaked in milk. Those got a "What the HELL is this" expression while he waited for a drier one while holding the wet one pinched between two fingers like a dead animal. He reluctantly went to bed, but only after getting us to agree to let him share our bed, which since he wasn't ENTIRELY back to normal temperature was sort of like sleeping with a small, snuggly space heater. A small snuggly space heater who slowly rotated to use me as a pillow and kick his dad out of bed.

 ((Queen sized bed you can't get here fast enough!))

 Saturday: Tilmani woke up with an upset stomach and the running theory that it might have been monster's bug. This was great except that BabyNomNom ((who we're roughly estimating to be about eight weeks old.)) was feeling ESPECIALLY vengeful, and MiniMonster was feeling more energetic, but not quite energetic as he really wanted to be, resulting in frequent rounds of him fussing about his own energy levels and not wanting to take the rest he actually needed. ((It's frustrating to want to play but be tired.))

 SUNDAY Tilmani woke up with a headache, and I woke up feeling pretty good (for a change) Didn't even have a round of morning sickness.... until after dinner. Then I slid down a horrible horrible slope of misery and nausea and generally didn't even want to be touched. This creates a force field that makes -everything- want to touch you. Especially tiny concerned people who can't figure out why Mommy won't let them drag her off the couch to play, because she really doesn't want to spent the next ten minutes dry heaving at someone. I pretty much got a return to sender notice on my dinner, and was confused (but happier) when some Ben and Jerrys stayed down when my Soup and Sandwich wouldn't. ((Tomato Soup only really tastes good going one way.))
 Did get some reprieve to rest when Nana and Papa showed up to take the Monster for a walk (He enjoyed this and it let us hand Nana her Mothers Day Cards)
 I continued to feel really sick through the early part of the night, which was extra fun because Monster in his anxiety decided he needed to be in our room to make sure we weren't being devoured by monsters, and apparently decided to battle them around two or three in the morning by going into Kung Fu Action! A round of night terrors. Tilmani and I managed to escape without black eyes in spite of being punched, kicked, and thrashed at, and MiniMonster apparently remembers nothing, because he woke up in an absolutely stellar mood.

 Tried to get Grandma her cards, but couldn't quite make the schedule work, so we'll just have to try again later in the week. Perhaps we'll manage to line up a lunch date for the chicken fingers (and maybe some steak-teriaki) at the Chinese place that NomNom seems to be sending up a yen for. Plus it'll be nice to let Grandma have some Grandma time. <3

Just taking a brief post to have an intensely happy geeky moment.

 One of my online friends and people I rp with drew one of my RPG characters (Jaimie Leontyne) and I just discovered this. So in the usual round about attempt to make photobucket ((stupid photobucket)) take the picture, I'm pulling it up here for you all to stare at.

Obligatory Roar:  THIS PICTURE BELONGS TO ME/ITS CREATOR. IT IS NOT A FREE USE PICTURE. GO PAY SOMEONE ON DEVART TO DRAW YOUR OWN ART, ART THIEVES. >8c

I'm (not) Dreaming of a White Wedding

((No offense to people who did watch the wedding, it's just not my thing, and best wishes to the Royal Couple, who god knows will never read this pansy little blog.))

 Here's where I admit I didn't watch any part of the Royal wedding, and the only time I saw pictures of The Tan Hat was being passed around as an internet meme. ((Holy Cow that was some hat.))

 I didn't watch Diana's wedding either, and honestly I still think the Princess Di thing is WAY overhyped. ((Sorry Di fans)). I'm sure it was really lovely and romantic, but I really guess I'm just not that interested in the weddings and fashions of the famous. I'm the anti-celebophile. I'm very happy for the royal couple but who designed the dress she wore or what color his suit was really don't appeal to me. I'm the sort of person who could give a flying TURD about Branjolina or their kids, and I could give less of a winged turd about what their horde of children are wearing. I mean really, I think it's actually kind of invasive and not very healthy for little kids to being stalked by some dim witted  single minded paparazzi so that fashionofphiles can ooh and ah and either approve of the kids outfit or go: "GOD, they sent them out in THAT?" I mean first folks lets look at what we're dressing our own kids in. Kids under 13 don't need super-mini-skirts and leopard print midriff tops, or t-shirts that imply how 'pimpin' they are, but we spend more time worrying as a culture about weather or not Tom Shmooze's shirt goes with his pants than how we dress and view ourselves.

 Anyway, What the princess wore to her wedding isn't likely to revolutionize the world or end hunger and war, now is it?

 I almost did the princessy white wedding once. I had an gorgeous white dress... sleeveless, buttons down the back, pastel delicate embroidery. A little girl at the fitting, a total stranger, wandered over with wide eyes to tell me that I looked "Just like a Princess".

 But for the man I loved, and still love, who I'm going to be having my second child with, I wore Blue jeans, sneakers, and a nice brown linen shirt we bought at the mall on the way to the ceremony. I held a pair of peacock feathers from one of her huge menagerie of exotic birds instead of a bouquet. He wore jeans too, and we said our vows privately in a white gazebo surrounded by photos of Ms Lambs own ancestors and family in their wedding photos.

 I felt like a princess.

What is this? I don't even....

Struts: Sexed up Kids Toys

I wish I was kidding about these, but they're real... and apparently created by an equally appropriately named toy company "Playmates Toys" ((Somehow I don't think Hugh Heffner would find these quite as appealing though.))

 These are at least as bad as those AWFUL Bratz dolls, which might as well say: "Teach your Daughter to dream of being a Five Dollar Hooker and dress like one too." And they're playing on the Girls and Horses thing too. And the fact that they're Horses in ultra tall stiletto heels is just... I mean... what the HELL.

 This is the sort of thing that makes me cringe over the idea of ever having a daughter, since so many girls toys these days are like this. I can't even picture how difficult it would be to raise a girl with a healthy sense of self esteem when this is the sort of shit she has for toys and rolemodels.

 All around us we've got the message that girls are 'empowered' when they slut themselves up, have sex left and right, ((because empowerment is ALL about courting STD's and pregnancy, and having a black book like a lounge lizard.)) Oh and we can't forget that we're increasingly seeing the mindset that being a Mom is the lowest you can sink. Being an Actress or a Hooker is clearly a better profession. ((Is there much difference between Actress and Hooker these days? There wasn't way back in the day, and Hollywood seems to tell us NOT MUCH HAS CHANGED.))

 What the hell is wrong with this picture?

 Seriously, someone BURN this crap. Can we get back to the point where part of empowerment is respecting your body and yourself?

Birch Leaves

So at long last I am definitely and officially doing a practice lace knit!

 I'm doing a pattern called "Falling Birch Leaves" from a designer on Ravelry, who was nice enough to do some really beginner level patterns for people like me who really aren't ready to launch into giant gauzy round shawls with beads and twenty-yarn-overs in a row. ((See above))

 It's also my first time reading a lace chart, which so far is going better than I would have expected. I am however doing the knit in a practice run in Caron Simply Soft ((A springy leaf green)) which is a considerably larger, heavier yarn than the pattern calls for, which is making the leaves far more '3D' which is kind of interesting. I'll be trying it in a much lighter yarn afterward, but working with a Worsted-weight yarn is good practice, because it's less delicate and just a bit easier to handle.

 I also bought MiniMonster some new shoes, he's now got a pair of bright blue Baby-sized Converse. Well... toddler really. They have slots for lacing up, but really those are mostly for show because there's a hidden strip of velcro, which means I don't, in fact, have to spend as much time trying to struggle with a disinterested toddler to get his shoes on as it probably looks like I did.

 I was going to get him another pair of "Robeez" moccasins, but when I checked the only store in town that carries them, the only options were pink, lacy, and flowery. ... As much as I don't have a problem with any choices Mini might make later in life, I think I'm going to avoid going down that path personally. It would just seem weird to have him dressed in his favorite hot-wheels shirt and a pair of pink, flower covered moccasins.

 So we ended up going over to Khols and I found him a pair of shoes within 20 minutes. Take that expensive specialty children's store. :p