Tuesday, May 26, 2009

Here we go again!

Its that time of the year again. Call it a very late case of spring cleaning.. or the recurrence of restless feet! And when everyone thought that we were finally ready to settle down. Some of our all knowing friends have even been suggesting that we finally put down some roots and buy some real estate... "Where" I had to ask them.."in this city or the next?". Anyway the good news is we are not moving very far this time... just from one end of the town to the other! So technically I am not sure if this can be accounted for as a move move or just some minor displacement!!

So now I have a legitimate reason for the mess in the house (like I need it)... and am beginning to despair at the amount of crap I have accumulated.. and we have begun the debate yet again on whats best.. more square footage, or the drive to a dumpster.. but we know where that will lead.. the moment we de-clutter we just seem to be opening doors for more shopping, and more unwanted junk! Phew.. who will save us from ourselves?!!

We have nabbed a few of our unsuspecting friends to help us with the move.. now if only we can blindside them so they do not faint and fall on stepping foot in our house. My house is beginning to take the looks of a railway station boxes littered everywhere.. not that it was any better a few weeks back, but now that there are boxes I can claim that it is the move causing the mess.

Like I said many friends think this is the time to actually spawn some roots and buy a house! GASP!! What about my plans of moving to Europe in a couple of years.. and to China and then Australia four years hence!? Should we tell them and shock them? Is it not enough that M is often found shaking his head at being tied to this delusional woman? I am sure friends would only hurry to remind me ... of the fact that I am not single and footloose any more! Sigh!! Not to mention that little imp running in circles and getting into all the boxes! Boy am I really delusional.. I am not allowed to forget, after all sometimes being a mom seems to be my sole identity... The little imp is on summer break for good and throwing a spoke in the wheels by declaring that he just wont move and leave his friends behind!! Should I ask their parents if I can leave the imp behind?

It has finally dawned on the imp that there is that lady who keeps getting underfoot. That lady he can no longer forget all about when he steps into the fascinating realm called school. That lady he attempted to make amends with not too long ago in the recent past. After a whole year of ignoring her, he invited her to go on the "last field trip" with him. I do think this has something to do with the fact that he overheard the lady say the other day "If I can't manage to go with him, I just wont send him this time". This year has seen many field trips where different parents volunteer to accompany the class. The imp has been waltzing off with anyone that can take him. While his friends have been begging their respective parents to volunteer, the imp can't care any less! But now all of a sudden he cared "Mommy can you please go with me... this is the last field trip you know"! Even when mommy knew fully well what triggered this sudden affection, she tagged along. Only to be promptly ignored! While other kids needed their moms to get them snow cones and a turn on the swing, the imp just did it all by himself... Mommy did her share of duty at the tattoo booth which by the way the imp avoided! His friends got tattoos on their hands and face and every other part of the body they could pull off, the imp refused to acknowledge the tattoo booth! But now is the time for sweet revenge.. mommy can no longer be ignored and has to be depended on for any entertainment that is going to happen the next couple of months!!! Time for my sinister laugh "HAHAHA"!! Now its my turn mister!
[Edited to add: In response to Pavi's comment - No we did not buy a house... we need to put an end to our nomadic life style to do that.. and I can't see that happening ... can you?]

Wednesday, May 20, 2009

Being Mom....

Its been an eternity since I blogged.. I would love to say I have been busy.. however I still haven't gone and gotten a life, I still haven't lost any weight, I still haven't found any answers for Cheeky's endless questions and I still haven't dealt with the cobwebs in my head.

So what have I been doing? Lets paint a picture.. Its getting dark outside (its almost summer here... so its start getting dark at 8 pm).. the hubs returns home looking like he has actually done something all day (not played scramble and hangman all day on the comp.. ). I am lying on the couch watching some rerun or the other.. a bag of chips in hand.. He plonks on the recliner next to me... and says "Boy am I HUNGRY".. I offer the bag of chips.. and if he as much as moves to take it from my hand, I ask "Can I have it back?" and launch into how tired I am and how I have had a long day.. Th hubs looks around at the mess.. at the kid entertaining himself.. but knows better than to utter a word!

So there atleast I can be honest about it :) Moving on.. VJ tagged me ages ago to write about what I love about being a mom...Its taken me so long to come up with something... so here goes...

1. I love the fact that I am constantly reminded how old I am .. not just by my kid but other desi kids I happen to meet.. I am called "Aunty....." (I have tried teaching these kids that my name is not that.. it is Preethi.. but the moms give me glares or worse still constantly correct the kids!! uhuh!). Atleast Cheeky's friends from school call me Ms. Preethi and not "Aunty"!

2. I love the fact that I can never get a word edge ways.. The hubs and I have to stay up till past midnight to have a decent conversation. If we tell Cheeky that he has to wait for his turn, he jumps up in front of our faces waving his hand.. if we stop to ask him what he wants, heaven help us... it always starts with "Its my turn now..."

3. Every person we have ever met knows my age and worse still my weight.. these are the most publicised things in the whole world!!

4. I get to watch only G rated movies and even then I have to strain to hear a single word!!

5. I have a little head in my reader's digest reading words like hapless or valedictory and asking me "Mommy whats hapless?", "mommy whats ...."... and it never ends!

6. Not to mention I am expected to be a walking talking encyclopedia/ dictionary.. and when I am on that couch spending some time with my remote and a bag of chips I am asked to "Google it up"!

7. Even after 4.5 yrs I still have sleepless nights and am awakened by a kick in the middle of the back almost every night !!

8. I used to have an obsessive compulsive disorder of having a clean house.. I have since been cured.. now I have a pile of clothes in my bedroom, toys in the living room, books on my dining table, and crayons strewn just wear I can slip on them... and I dont bother picking them up anymore.. I have learnt my lesson!! They will just appear back there in a few seconds.. so why bother?

9. 4.5 yrs later I am not one pound lighter.. no amount of dieting or excercising will let me into the pre maternity clothes... which I still havent thrown away and look at wistfully every once in a while! phew!!

10. My idea of a fun outing is a trip to the playground or an inflatable play center!

Enough of the sarcasm eh? Now I am going to talk about something I really enjoy about being a mom.. the entertainment!!!!

Last week we were at a spring fling at a nearby park courtesy of Cheeky's school. There were kids from 3 different classes. Each class has a specific shirt they wear on field trips.. Cheeky's class wears a red shirt. We have been talking lately about how we always have a choice.. to be good or bad and we should always choose to be good. As I was watching the kids play, a fight erupted between the red and yellow shirt "groups"! These are 4 yr olds and already they do this!! Anyway, one of the boys in the yellow shirt pushed down 2 kids in the red shirt from a ledge.. both Cheeky's friends.. so this little firebrand of mine walks up to the boy in the yellow shirt both hands on his hips with an ominous look, shouting "What did you just do?" I destroyed his moment by calling out to him "Cheeky".. he walked up to me wit the same furious expression "But mommy that boy is making all the bad choices.. " I tried reasoning "You know what you do then .. you ignore him".. I got a reply in full volume "But someone needs to tell him or GOD is going to be very mad"!! Unfortunately it is very difficult to keep a straight face when you see a 4 yr old so furious and itching to do some moral policing.. thankfully a teacher stepped in and took the yellow shirted boy away for some pep talk.. The rest of us had a good laugh!!

We are vegetarians.. but I am not sure for how long Cheeky will keep that way.. He came home the other day looking very thoughtful.
"Mommy does corn dog have a hot dog in it?"
"Yes dear"
"But whats on the outside is not meat is it?"
"No dear"
"So mommy can you buy me one?"
I just stuck to my puzzled expression which seems a fixture on my face these days!
"I will just eat the outside and leave the hot dog!"
"Why not eat that too?" I ask
"But that is a cow isnt it?"
Cheeky got rewarded with a veggie corn dog this weekend :P

A week before mother's day the school was planning a surprise for the mother's. But they couldn't keep it a surprise from me unfortunately.. they were stumped by the logic of one 4 yr old!
The gift was supposed to be a tile with the hand print of the kid.. when Cheeky was asked to do that he refused.
"My hand would get messy" he declared...
"But this is a gift for your mom" the teacher told him
"I am sure my mom would not like messy hands for a gift" was the answer!
hahaha
A very tired looking teacher approached me that afternoon.. "Can you please tell Cheeky you would like that for a gift?"
So I had my talk with Cheeky and send him off to school. He came back looking stoic. With playdoh in his hair and paint all over his clothes. This is a first.. I asked him what had happened.
"You told me you liked me to get messy.. so this is my gift for you"!
Ever since I have been washing off the mess in his hair and clothes every day!! I really could have lived without the mother's day gift!

I bet many of you mom's out there have done this tag already.. if you haven't you are welcome to take it up.. so are all the dads, aunts, uncles and grand parents.. meanwhile let me go summer proof my house... the vacations are here!!

My introspections on Women's day

  It is International Women's  Day and a day for us to celebrate women. Every year for me this is a day of introspection, it is a day to...