Tuesday, January 06, 2009

ahhh...much better

first of all, wanted to let you know that the Lord provided an awesome day for us today. so thank you for all of your prayers and well wishes.

today could have been touch and go. seeing as how it was the first day back to school. not for goo, but for big h. and i'll be honest. i was sad.

(and screech goes the record player.)

i know. i was really sad to have my little man head back to school. and no, it wasn't because i was going to be stuck at home with goo. i promise. but i really enjoyed being with big h over the holiday. we have really gotten to that point where we really enjoy each other. i rarely have to discipline him, and when i do, it's over heart issues, not clear right and wrong. i wouldn't dare say we're pals. because i am not here to be pals with him. but wow. the relationship we have now is so incredible. i love it. love him.

but don't think the thought that i was going to be home alone with home girl wasn't terrifying. because it was. but last night, as i was drifting off to sleep at a much later time than i had hoped, i just prayed for peace and smooth transitions. and if a smooth transition wasn't on tap for today, then let me be ok with it. and just move on.

but amazingly enough, it was an awesome day. big h woke up at a normal time, and we watched our customary imagination movers (dumbest show ever) in bed together. then, he did all of his morning chores (not really chores, but things to accomplish to start the day -- clothes on, jammies in the closet, make his bed, brush teeth, etc.). and goo still wasn't asleep. i decided it would be best to just get her out of bed, straight into the car to school. which is what we did. which is also why she got an eggo muffin top and some orange juice for breakfast in the car. but she was happy, with some suh-weet bed head. when we got to school, she wanted to be held, which was so ideal. and she didn't request to carry ALL EIGHTY-FIVE of her precious belongings inside. which was also ideal. she got to say hi to her teacher, and we dropped big h off. we got back in the car with no sadness.

headed to 7/11 for a cup of coffee. don't judge. i wanted a cup of coffee. but our coffee pot at home broke. WAY SAD. and it's kind of low on the priority list. and i would've stopped at starbucks. but i wanted to have extra money this month for, you know, groceries and electricity. i'm so frugal.

my 7/11 coffee? there's a reason it's $1.22. period.

anyway, we got home and played and played and played. mostly with playmobils and dollhouses. but when i needed to change her diaper, she just automatically laid down. which she has, um, NEVER done. and then i had a pink sweater and jeans ready for her to wear. fully prepared for a fit. and perhaps some clothing wrestling. always a good time.

and she pointed at the clothes and said, "uh pink wetter. i wear it."

come again? what in the free world? i can't tell you how much high-fiving was going on. lots and lots of it.

then, we had lunch and watched a max and ruby. i put her to bed, and she slept until i had to get her out of her bed to go pick up big h. i'm sure it was a little like groundhog day for her. getting woken up from sleep both times just to get in the car to head to school.

the afternoon was uneventful. which, by the way, is an awesome thing lately.

and then. get this?

she got in the bath. voluntarily.

didn't hurt that dad made a trail of bath toys leading up to the bathtub. he's always trying to show me up. darn him.

and then i put her bed. with NO cuh-yi-ing.

can i get an amen?

and so...

(here is my poor excuse for a segue.)

here is what has been on my mind for several weeks. feel free to feel sorry for me. it's sad that sometimes i can't get this kind of stuff off my mind.

and even worse? i talk to buz about it at night.

what, you ask?

kids' shows and their ridiculousness. that's not a word? well, it is today.

if you don't have children or if you have children but have never let them watch television, you can go about your normal business.

when big h was little, sometimes the only thing that would calm him down, like EVER, was baby einstein. that julie clark is a genius. pure genius.

those were the only shows he ever watched. until he was about eighteen months old. and someone told us about the wiggles. i'm not going to lie. i totally heart the wiggles. still. big h and i would sit in "big room" (i.e. living room) together and sing songs. actually, no, we wouldn't. because he wouldn't let me. "NO SING! NO SING!" but i imagined in my most beautiful of dreams that we would sing together. but we did love to be together. and watch all of their songs and talk of dorothy the dinosaur and wags the dog and everyone else.

they became a part of our family for a long time. big h learned his colors by their shirt colors.

during that time, he and i also got to watch thomas the train. he had a slight obsession. but it wasn't a great show. because, honestly, i would've like to have knocked thomas around a time or two with all of his poor choices. and somehow he came out on top in the end. every. time. and don't get me started on sir topham hatt. seriously? all he did was eat jelly donuts while all of his trains were bumping into each other and forgetting passengers and running through barber shops. and all he had to say was "you have caused confusion and delay?" really? that's all you can muster up?

so when big h started talking and having interest in more shows, we would always say no, followed by "we're not going to watch that show. it doesn't teach us good lessons."

that line has helped me so much over the last three and a half years. he still tells me that so-and-so watches whatever show but he doesn't want to because it doesn't teach us good lessons.

this kid? i love him.

so as we've tuned in to more shows, i've noticed some things. and there are days i can't get them off my mind.

so allow me. and please know. these are my opinions. and i am in no way trying to hurt anyone's feelings. just getting some things out of my head.

wonder pets
seriously. this show. i L-O-V-E this show. i think it might be the best show out there. they are always helping each other. and singing. oh, how i love the singing. i think i might actually watch it even if big h and goo weren't here. for the record, ming ming is my favorite. and goo's.

dora the explorer
oh my heavens. my daughter loves dora. and i'll be honest, i cannot stand dora. first of all, let's talk about her fashion sense. orange and pink? and white shoes? and really? the backpack?

and every time i watch dora with goo, i think of the saturday night live skit. it's a bit "after hours," so please don't watch it with your children. and forgive my current sense of humor. it's been a rough one around here the last couple of days.


SNL - TV Funhouse - Maraka - NBC - Saturday Night Live

go diego go
i enjoy diego. and i like baby jaguar. i do find it funny that he appears to be a school-aged kid who works at a makeshift tree house where a computer can function.

and i would love it if my camera talked to me. on second thought, maybe not.

max and ruby
i have a love-hate relationship with max and ruby. i love it because i love the theme song. and i think max is a pretty cute bunny. but really? where are max and ruby's parents? and why are they allowed to walk to grandma's alone? and would you just die if ruby was your big sister? or even your babysitter? and how frustrated would you be with max? he only says one word per episode. and the trouble he causes all the time. oh my. but you can't help but love him. he's so cute.

charlie and lola
again...where are their parents? but again...one of my favorite shows. last summer, when big h and goo went to visit my brother and family, somehow all of the children were either napping or playing in another room. and my brother and i? still finished the show. it's freaking awesome.

mickey mouse clubhouse
not much to say about the age old classic. but his voice? well, i can't take it for very long.

wow wow wubbzy
i adore this show. i couldn't tell you what in the world these "creatures" are other than robots. but i love them. i love the song. i love that they always help each other. i love that they always apologize when they hurt each other's feelings. i love it.

yo gabba gabba
oh my. we've only seen one episode of this. but i think i was the one with nightmares that night. and the guy on there? how skinny is he?

backyardigans
we don't watch this anymore. but i used to love it. those friends could groove. i mean, really groove. and we bought a ton of the songs on iTunes. and i love listening to them. in case you were wondering, my favorite song was boinga.

imagination movers
i have adequately documented my opinion on this show. if you like it, more power to you. i am so annoyed with it every morning. but it buys me thirty minutes of GOLD cuddle time with my 5-year-old. and so it continues.

little einsteins
i cannot find fault with this show. i love it. neither of my kids really wants to watch it much. which makes me sad. i love it. i do have to say that my least favorite is annie. really? is her voice that great? leo is great. such a leader. june. well, i think buz has a crush on june. and quincy is the coolest cat and can play every instrument on the planet. again. julie clark and her brilliance.

johnny and the sprites
oh. my. really? the sprites? whose names are those of kitchen spices? we have watched one or two of these. and then i had to put my foot down. i couldn't handle it.

dan zanes house party
oh. my. is he on something?

captain carlos
love him. love that his sister is the one who tempts him with bad food choices. us girls. we are bad influences. but thank you, carlos for subtly teaching my kiddo which foods are junk foods.

the doodlebops
oh. my. i can't discuss this. we have never watched this. ever.

jojo's circus
jojo is the cutest little clown girl around. weird that her pet lion only makes squeaking noises. but i'll overlook it. and i LOVE when jojo does yoga.

and so, that concludes janet's summary of toddler shows. clearly, i have no life. it's ok. at least i've admitted it, right?

again, thanks for the prayers and advice re: goo. God so knew i needed a nice day with her. and a nice day, i got.

10 comments:

Anonymous said...

LOVE Charlie and Lola and Little Einsteins. Yo Gabba Gabba scares me. I just can't do it.

Colored With Memories said...

i'm just tickled that you posted two days in a row...

wish i could comment more, but we're the dorks w/out cable...so basically this whole post is jibberish to me.

julie clark....ah...why didn't one of us think up her idea...the millions...disney even bought it...wow.

i had to laugh about your dream of wanting to sing w/Big H and him saying no...lily does that to me all the time...are our voices that awful?!?

glad you had such a good day with goo!

R said...

i'm with kerry! it was great to "read" you two days in a row!! :0)

so much i'd like to comment on!

first of all, i'm SO happy you had a better day. i'm all geared up with fresh hope that our day's going to be better too.

your comment about 7-11 coffee cracked me up. and i weep with you over the broken coffee pot. i have a vintage electric percolator that i adore, and i'm soooo scared that it's going to die soon and we don't have a back-up! i go to mcdonald's a lot because i can drive through and i've figured out my perfect cream-to-sugar ratio that they so happily put in for me. :0)

the wiggles? totally love them too. we dance to them a lot. i count it my cardio!

we don't have cable, so i'm not familiar with most of those shows. we have a few of them on tapes, like dora. the SNL sketch is one of my favorites! what i don't like about her is that she speaks--shouts--in the same tone for every word. (if that makes sense!)

if y'all watch any PBS shows, i need you to give me reviews on those too. because that's about all we watch!

i love what you taught h about the shows he's not supposed to watch. that's brilliance!!

Courtney said...

We also don't have cable. I wish I could relate to all your funny comments about these shows, but I will just have to trust you :-).

Although, we did rent a Backyardigans one time from the library. Never again. There were these chicks up on a volcano chanting around a fire about what they wanted and didn't want. Weird-o.

Seth has a complete and total crush on June from the Little Einsteins. We have several of the DVD's, and for Christmas, I got him the doll of each character (a Craigslist score) and when you press their hand, they say some of their signature phrases. He wants to sleep with June cradled in the crook of his elbow, and I caught him the other day saying "Hey June, you said you wanted a kiss from Seth? OK! *Smooch*".

Glad you had a great day with Goo! Aren't you glad God gives us some of those days to help ratchet up our sanity levels so we can better handle (or just make it through) the rough days?

Wish I could have seen the SNL video, but it isn't working for me. I might have to go dig it up on YouTube!

This was officially the longest comment I have ever left. Yowzer! Steve leaves tomorrow - let's get together soon!

Jenna said...

Yay, Goo!!! Homegirl must have read your post and realized Mama was about to LOSE it. :-)

Anonymous said...

i was absolutely delighted to read this. de-frickin-lighted. i have been so bummed about isaac going back to school. and since everyone in the world has been counting the days, i felt so weirdly out of place. until now. same reasons. love it.

and i am so happy for both you and goo about her great day. you both soooo needed that. bless both your little hearts.

Meaghan Elliott said...

Hi Friend. I always come here when I need a good laugh. :) and it worked... just one of those weeks where things aren't going at all as planned. I was hoping that God would teach me on Monday, but alas, tomorrow is Friday and I still have not got the lesson darn it! Today I dropped my hard drive.... and well... let's just say that all of the original files are backed up... but not my edits of weddings and a few shoots that people will be needing CD's of. I cried. I want to cry again, but I am not, because I know that my God is bigger than a broken hard drive, and that often times they are recovered, expensively, but still recovered... but I guess I just have to remember it is His money to begin with, and if this is making me a better person then he will gladly cover the charges of the dropped hard drive for better character. Wish I would have got it on Monday..... love ya! Thanks for a good laugh!

Janelle said...

This is Janet at her finest!

I am so glad your day/s have been better with Goo. One day at a time.

7/11 coffee...didn't have much of a chance. Yuck!

SNL skit...funny!

Show recap...very true to my thoughts. I feel like we are on a really hard path trying to placate a 7 year old who thinks these are now "baby" shows. Trying to find things for him to watch that are good for him is really hard because, "everyone else in the whole world" is watching Disney. I hate that there isn't a better answer for him. We watch a lot of Jon and Kate plus 8. That seems to keep him interested.

Alana said...

Bwahaha! Love this recap...have had many similar thoughts. Seriously, where are Max and Ruby's parents...it's really disturbing. Absolutely love Wonderpets, Backyardigans (totally dig that music) and Little Einsteins. And I love Charlie and Lola mostly because of their accents. And the Doodlebops? Wrong...just sick and wrong. Oh, but you forgot one of my favorite ones to gripe about...Caillou. Seriously, that kid is the whiniest, most annoying child ever and what do his parents do about it? Cater to his every need.

Sorry about that...didn't mean to hijack your comment space...apparently I, too, have a lot to say about children's shows ;-)

Anonymous said...

Ben loves Mickey MOuse CLubhouse, but I canNOT get past all the "Gosh" and "Gee" that pops out every 30 seconds. So we very RARELY watch it anymore. Overprotective? I dunno.

I've never been able to stand Dora, that SNL skit is spot on!!

We love us some curious george in spite of the fact that he's always getting rewarded for disobedience. But he's a MONKEY (Chimpanzee?) so we can overlook that right?

I would write more but that would make me even more of a comment hi-jacker and my youngest smells of poo.