Flashbacks and Gag Reflexes

Was this a part of your childhood? Do you remember it?

Somehow, David and I were talking about this show today. Does it ring a bell for anyone? While I remember the show fondly, I think I really only actually watched a few episodes. A friend of mine had to make sure she was home on Thursdays by 4:30 (or whenever it was actually on!) so she could watch it. I liked it too...I guess I just wasn't that devoted of a fan.

That or it was apparent at an early age that I would be a flaky and inconsistent growup!

Thanks to the marvelous creation that is YouTube, it took only seconds to find this clip and dozens of others. You know that little blonde girl? That's Fergie! WOW...I so wanted to be her when I was a kid. Her hair was really blonde and fluffy (while mine was blonde and stringy) and she could do all those handspring-type things. Who wouldn't want to be cool like that, right?

When I was older, long after I'd seen any episodes of Kids Incorporated, I thought Marta was awesome. But, that's only because she then became Martika and did that song 'Toy Soldiers.' Hey...when you're a fourteen-year-old girl in the late 80's, that song is DEEP.

Shutup. I'm sure you were as lame as I was!

Other names like Mario Lopez and Jennifer Love Hewitt came out of that show as well. Who knew? David and I giggled as we watched some of the videos and reminisced. Then, it was time to get back to real life, like mowing the lawn and arguing about the holes that the dogs have dug in the backyard. Life goes on.

Hey...that was another great show!

I other news, I discovered a movie that triggers my gag reflex like no other. Let me start by explaining my tolerate/hate relationship with chewing gum. I chewed gum as a kid. On rare occasions, you might even see me chewing it now. But, I have a mild form of TMJ. It's not too serious and I usually find I can avoid pretty much any suffering by not chewing gum. I can even chew a bit of gum, but I have to remember to dispose of it the minute it no longer has flavor. If I chew it too long, the jaw gets tired and the headache starts coming on. I also need to avoid going to bed really stressed, because I clench my jaw when I'm sleeping and wake up with one of those awful headaches then too. I have a bite guard, but haven't worn it in years because I've found other things that work....for now.

Wow...I just went a bit off-track there, didn't I? Welcome to another episode about the derailed trains of thought in my head. Confused yet? I am.

Anyhow, I'm not really used to having gum around regularly. And, I have this thing where whenver the gum leaves my mouth, it cannot go back. BLEH! Seriously, it's just gross to me. So, sticking a piece of gum behind your ear (do people even still do that? ) or sticking it to your plate while you eat a meal is BEYOND DISGUSTING to me. Chewing ABC gum (Already Been Chewed, by someone else) is even more disgusting. I guess you could say that I'm not a big fan of saliva-related things in general. (We're not talking about babies though. Baby drool is completely non-toxic, as opposed to the stuff in the mouths of the gum-chewing generation. Those people need to keep their saliva in their mouth!)

So, you can probably imagine how much my stomach turned when I watched Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist. On the whole, I liked the movie. Really, I did. It was entertaining, even made me laugh. I can pretty much watch any movie, so long as I can begin to care about the characters. And I liked them, for the most part. The thing I had the problem with was the scene (for those of you who have seen it) where Norah's friend throws up in the bus station bathroom. Then, her phone rings and she accidently drops in the in toilet...before she flushes! Then, she manages to drop her gum in there too. She really needs to talk to her friend, so she fishes her phone out. (I had to look away!) She also reeeeeeally thought she needed that gum. And, even typing it is starting to make me dry-heave, so I'll leave the rest to your imagination. Needless to say, I wasn't enjoying the rest of the movie so much as I was keeping track of where the gum was. The gum got around....

Yup, now I just threw up in my mouth a little!

So, as much as saliva and gum gross me out, saliva and gum combined with vomit in public toilets really pushes me over the top. Imagine that!

And that, my friends, is pretty much what was left in my head today. Now that I have it out, there seems to be a clean slate now. Hmm...what to fill it with next...

Say 'CHEESE'....or 'JISHI!'

Well, thanks to the whole cable On Demand thing, I'm proud to report that 3YO is working on learning her Mandarin Chinese. Those who have kids know I'm talking about Ni Hao, Kai-Lan. It's a nice refreshing change from Dora the Explorer. The really amusing part of it all is the fact that my child could be voted 'Most Resistant to Change' and most of the episodes seem to be based on trying new things and basic problem-solving skills.

If nothing else, at least I'll be able to appreciate the irony of it all.

Earlier this week, we were able to enjoy the drama that is picture day. OY! Picture day...UGH! What a horrible invention! I mean, I always buy the pictures and I will keep them forever. Those are memories, dangit! Even the ones where their hair sticks out funny or their smile is crooked or nonexistent...that is who they were at that particular moment and that's how I should remember them. (That's the same reason I always buy the 'Santa pictures' where they're crying or refuse to smile! Those are some of my favorites anyway!) But picture day can be especially traumatic when you have girls. Fortunately for me, I only had one of my girls having her picture taken this week. But the one to be photographed...she is, perhaps, the moodiest of them all! I'll spare you the ugly details and just tell you that she left the house in tears that day. Yes, tears. And there was no yelling at my end, but changing your mind on your outfit when it's time to walk out the door...well, it just doesn't matter because it's TIME TO WALK OUT THE DOOR.

Interestingly enough, this is the same child who won a little award at school for being such a good student. At school, she is a completely different child. She takes pride in following the rules, listening to the teacher and waiting her turn. She's almost like a little robot at school, so much so that I've had parents doubt my stories about an argument I might have had with her that morning AND THEY WEREN'T EVEN BEING SARCASTIC. Seriously. I KNOW!

I often tell her that I'm so proud of her for being such a good listener at school. I never want that to change. HOWEVER, that being said, I do wish she's listen a little better at home. I guess that's how it's supposed to be. I'd rather have her listen to her teachers more than me. I guess I'm just being selfish and wishing that something as simple as picking out socks wouldn't need to entail so much drama. Silly me, I know!

I guess it's what I have coming. Apparently, I was quite the little pain in the arse when I was a kid. Trust me, my mom points it out every chance she gets! I wasn't really one to get into trouble at school, but I sure gave my mom a healthy dose of H-E-DOUBLE HOCKEY STICKS when I was at home.

I know. ME??? NOOOOOO!!!!

Yes. I still have that pain in the arse inside of me somewhere. Now, she only usually comes out for my husband. (Lucky guy, I know!) I do keep her within reach when dealing with my kids, too. To them, I invented the whining and arguments that they try on me on a regular basis. I've done my share of torturing my own parents, and picture day was no exception. We have the funny school pictures to prove it.

The fact is that I'm raising three completely different people and every single milestone can be a whole new experience for me. I had to give birth to my third to know that the only thing I really know is that I don't know anything. After lowering the bar a substantial amount, this job doesn't seem so hard after all...except on maybe picture day!