Stupid is as Stupid does

Earlier this year, my husband was taking the boys on an errand when he became frustrated about something and muttered "Stupid _____!"  My then 2 1/2 year-old then repeated the word "stupid" repeatedly, much to my husband's horror.  Wanting to rectify the situation, my husband told our son that he was sorry for saying "stupid" because we don't say that word.

Since then, Damien has become the "Stupid Police" in our household.  As much as my husband and I have tried to eliminate the word from our respective vocabularies, we occasionally slip and our pint-sized cop rarely misses an occasion to tell us "We don't say stupid."  It's actually quite humorous when he corrects people on the radio ("Dr. Laura shouldn't say stupid.") or random strangers in public.

So today, a close relative was complaining about something to another close relative, when she described something as (you guessed it) "stupid."  Damien immediately said "We don't say stupid."  Beaming with pride from the next room, I was stunned to hear "Maybe you don't say stupid, but I do" instead of the typical "Oh, sorry, you're right.  We don't say stupid."  So how on earth am I supposed to respond to that?  From his (rare!) silence, it was obvious that he didn't know how to respond either.

It's so gosh darned frustrating to me when people seem to intentionally undermine us as parents.  When my older son was beginning to talk, we issued a warning to all our family members that since he was repeating everything he heard, it would be a good idea to tone down on the cursing and swearing.  We were pleasantly surprised at how some people made valiant efforts to curb their language, but others have never seemed to care.  My husband and I agreed before he was born that if any family member undermined our parenting, we would cut them off.  I hope it never gets to that, but when people intentionally push the limits, I'm afraid that we'll have to exercise that option and the thought terrifies me.  I pray that it never gets to that point.

I am feeling demoralized as a mother.

I can't help but feel demoralized as a mother right now.  My older son has a lot of struggles, primarily with his health, but lately with some behavioral and emotional issues as well.  I spoke with his pediatrician today and she agrees that some of his behaviors are unusual.  I've been trying to call the Psychologist that I was referred to, but can't get through.  She's supposed to have an open Parent Line from 11-12:50 on Wednesdays, but apparently, not today. 

I feel completely helpless.  It hurts my heart to watch him randomly burst into tears.  He'll be inconsolable for several minutes and his only explanation is "I'm so sad."  Is he depressed?  Does he have an anxiety disorder?  Is he bipolar?  I have no idea, but I want to help him so desperately.  And all I can do is leave a voicemail.

I am not a cat lady!!!!

I have always wondered why, simply because I own a cat, people think that I want things with cats on them.  Cat prints, cat shirts, cat figurines, cat jewelry holders, cat cards, cat candles, cat ornaments...I could go on forever.  Yes, I like having a cat around.  Yes, I did have a period of 2-3 years when I was totally into everything cat -- WHEN I WAS 10!  But I really don't understand this whole cat thing. 

Sesame Street's liberal agenda?

http://www.foxnews.com/entertainment/2009/11/06/sesame-street-ombudsman-says-producers-crossed-line-fox-news-stab/?test=faces

This article was so interesting to me.  I had seen this parody several times and thought it was pretty clever, but never did I notice the mention of "Pox News."  

But I'm glad that other people are noticing the liberal slant to Sesame Street.  I'm very careful when I let my kids watch now.  The vast majority of the content is innocuous, but one episode of Elmo's World really bothers me.  The episode has Dorothy thinking about families and during the musical montage after this announcement, they clearly show two men holding a baby.  The men are obviously not related (one looks Filipino, the other is black), so the excuse of grandpa/uncle doesn't work.  Plus, the baby doesn't really look like either of them.  Now, while I try to not judge the homosexual lifestyle, I do take issue with homosexuality being introduced to toddlers and preschoolers.  I don't like any sort of sexual material being introduced to my children -- not this young and not by someone other than their parents.

Please, Sesame Street, stick to teaching letters, numbers, rhyming, reading, and sharing.  Leave the less concrete and academic stuff to the parents.

This week, I'm really glad I don't have a daughter.

I will preface this by saying that I really do want a daughter. But after this week's news, I think that if I had a daughter, I'd be a wreck right now.

The murders of Somer Thompson and Elizabeth Olten, along with the disappearance of Morgan Harrington have touched my heart. I cannot imagine the pain their parents are going through and I have to wonder why people prey on the innocence of children. It just sickens me.

I looked up information on local sex offenders and there are TWO in my neighborhood and 30 within a 5-mile radius of my home. One lives on the same street as a friend of mine. I guess that having 30 within a 5-mile radius is better than the 161 within a 5-mile radius of Somer Thompson's home, but still...

I wonder if the massive numbers of sex offenders have to do with the fallen nature of our society. Pornography, promiscuity, and other immoral acts have become so much more rampant than when I was a kid. I understand the need for "acceptance" and "tolerance," but do we really need to accept and tolerate abominable behavior in the name of "civil liberties?" What about the civil liberty of being safe in your own neighborhood?

I suck at blogging.

For some reason, I thought that a blog would be a good idea since I seem to have a ton to say on Facebook. Apparently, I am having trouble with execution because I never have time to blog, except when I can't sleep at night (like right now).

Haven't people learned?

I will start off by admitting that I've gained about 10 pounds this summer. I can come up with all sorts of excuses (travel, hot weather, lack of sleep, etc.), but must take ultimate responsibility for eating too much and not exercising enough. Between my father's colon cancer diagnosis, surgery, and weeklong hospitalization and my older son's night terrors/seizures; we spent way too much time in the car shuttling back and forth to and from doctor's offices. This time was spent both riding and eating.

That being said, I was stunned when an older woman at church (whom we've known for years) asked me when my third child was due. I wish I could say that I responded with charity or a witty comeback, but I was so taken aback that my expression must have said it all because she immediately stopped herself from saying anything further.

Why, oh, why have people not yet learned that you NEVER ask a woman if she's pregnant unless you're absolutely certain she is?

It reminds me of a Brian Regan bit:

I’m always putting my foot in my mouth. I don’t stop to think. Oh, no!...words are coming out…oh, no…I’m not thinking…what is that? Like I met this woman recently; I could have sworn she was pregnant, lemme tell ya. [crowd moans] I know... NOW. I think the rule is: Don’t guess at that ever… ever… ever… ever… ever… ever… ever… ever… ever… ever… ever… ever… ever… ever. Something like that. I didn’t have enough evers memorized. So I said, “When’s that …b…aby due?” You ever feel a word coming out but it’s too late to stop it? Whoa! It’s coming out and loud… “Hey, when’s that BABY due? BABY!”

“What baby?”

“OOOooo…At the zoo…the pandas….I knew they were trying to have one. I just thought we’d talk about them…talk about the fluffy zoo animals. I hear they’ve got ‘em over there. You can go look at ‘em if you want, and touch ‘em.”