Marvelous Melanie is 40!

My "baby" sister Melanie is celebrating her 40th birthday today. In fact, she chose to spend her birthday 800 miles from her home--here with us. To honor Melanie's milestone, here are 40 fun facts and things I admire about her:
1. She is a very giving lady.
2. She loves my children to pieces and is an amazing aunt!
3. Creativity flows through her veins. She makes fabulous cards and scrapbooks.
4. She makes cards for me to share with my "card swap" pals.
5. She is a fashionista and even dresses up to go to the grocery store.
6. Purple is her favorite color.
7. She's engaged to a wonderful man, Greg.
8. She'll acquire the title "stepmom" soon and already loves Greg's boys.
9. Traveling is one of her loves.
10. Country/western is her music of choice.
11. I used to "do" her hair in pigtails, and she always looked cute.
12. She has one dimple.
13. I used to tease her about her "baby" toes.
14. She loves eating at restaurants.
15. Cooking is one of her talents.
16. She has a good sense of humor.
17. She is a great hostess and enjoys entertaining.
18. Family is very important to her and she keeps in touch with relatives.
19. Children love her.
20. She is helpful to our parents.
21. She gets along well with people of all ages.
22. She is sensitive to the needs of others.
23. We went on a fun trip to Sweden together a few years ago.
24. She witnessed the birth of my daughter Sara even though she was quite squeamish.
25. She loves talking and texting on her cellphone.
26. She was very loving and attentive to our grandparents.
27. At age 8, she was kissed by a chimpanzee.
28. She is terrified of birds.
29. She treated my foster daughter just as well as she treated my children.
30. The first time she attempted to put contacts in her eyes she fainted.
31. Attending plays, musicals and concerts is something she really enjoys.
32. She has more clothing in her closets than I've ever owned in my life, but she shares her wardrobe with me occasionally.
33. Her chocolate chip cookies are her specialty.
34. She is very kind and friendly to my friends, and they often end up becoming her friends.
35. She loves to watch "Dancing with the Stars."
36. Tom Selleck is her "secret" crush.
37. She was never a "mean girl."
38. She LOVES wearing jewelry and perfume.
39. She collects dolls--especially Madame Alexander dolls.
40. She is an amazingly wonderful sister, and I love her very much!!!

No Kisses!

Preparing Mark for his aunt's imminent arrival, I asked, "Will you let Aunt Melanie kiss you while she's here?"

His response: "No! I let her kiss me when we were at her house, but this is my domain--my own little sanctuary."

Aunt Melanie, be warned!

Product Endorsement

I just ordered something I use quite often and love, and I thought I'd share my "find" with all of my blog readers. Some of you use this product already, but this may serve as a reminder to buy more if your supply is low. The product I just ordered is a box of Phiten Titanium Discs. What do I use titanium discs for, you ask? In a nutshell, I use them to ease muscle pain. They're little patches that stick to skin and can be kept on the skin for 3 days at a time. They work amazingly well--at least for me and many others I've purchased them for. If you're in pain and don't want to take oral pain medication, then Phiten Titanium Discs might just be what you've been looking for. The cost is $10 for a box of 70 discs. Try them; you might like them!

Rational Eyes

One of Mark's favorite snacks (and he has few) is Shredded Beef Taquitos made by Delimex. Our grocery store of choice no longer carries these, but sells chicken taquitos (which Mark won't eat) and steak taquitos (which Mark tolerates). This morning Mark's breakfast consisted of steak taquitos. He heated five but only ate three. I entered the kitchen just as he was disposing of the remaining two; he claimed that they tasted funny and made him sick. He quickly interrupted my, "Please don't waste . . ." sentence by saying, "Mom, the rats need food. I need to respect the creatures at the dump. I'm just showing mercy!" How could I argue with that?

Terminated

Two weeks ago yesterday, I was in the middle of having a lovely birthday when, out of the blue, my precious 18-year-old daughter Sara was fired from her job. Mind you, this was the first job she'd had. She'd dreamed of becoming a contributing member of the labor force, and once she got this job, she was thrilled! She worked hard and received compliments from several shift managers. She even heard people complimenting her "behind her back." She was always a few minutes early to work eager to be at the store in plenty of time to start her shift. Sara's job forced her to interact with lots of people--something that has been a challenge for her all her life; but she learned to interact and reported that it wasn't as scary as she had previously thought. All that changed on Labor Day, ironically.

Sara was getting ready for work when the HR manager called our home at 10:30 to ask Sara where she was. Sara replied that she was getting ready for work and would be there at noon--the time she thought her shift started. The manager said something to the effect of, "Well, your shift started at 10:00 because today's a holiday. Since you've worked here just a few weeks, we have to terminate your employment." End of conversation. Sara was devastated and I was shocked and mad. Yes, Sara made a mistake by misreading the work schedule. She should have written her hours down or photocopied the schedule, but she didn't. I just couldn't believe that she would be "fired" and not given even a warning. Of course, the HR manager was completely within her right to terminate Sara and she wasn't even obligated to offer an explanation. However, I still think Sara's termination was "cruel and unusual."

At the urging of several others, I paid a visit to the store and spoke with the HR manager, Ria. I was accompanied by my assertive 21-year-old daughter Rachelle. I introduced myself to Ria and asked her if Sara's account of their phone conversation was accurate--that she was fired for being late to her shift. Ria said, "Yes. I really like Sara, but I had to terminate her because she didn't show up on time for her shift." I countered, "I understand Sara made a mistake and misread the schedule. She's sorry about that. She should have been more attentive to the schedule, but you're firing her without even a warning?" Ria's thin smile never disappeared as she answered, "Yes." When I asked if Sara could be given a second chance, Ria replied, "No." Again, Ria's smile stayed the same. I became a little teary-eyed to my embarrassment, but my daughter's happiness was at stake and I am her mother. I continued, "Well, I have shopped at this store for 21 years and have spent a lot of money here. I don't think I want to shop here again, and some of my friends may choose not to shop here either." (In fact, one friend said she was going to chew out the manager "right after I buy my beads.") Smile intact, Ria just nodded and said, "Yes."

I haven't been back to Ben Franklin since.

Political Aims

On the way to school this morning Mark announced, "If I were president, I would fire all of Congress one by one which would give me more power, and I would let the citizens make all the laws." I wonder who his vice president would be.

Suspension Update

After school today Mark reported on the punishments of his partners in crime. He said, "One boy's parents didn't punish him at all. The other boy's punishment was worse than mine; he doesn't get any computer or video game privileges for two weeks and his parents gave him a really bad hair cut. I think it was for public humiliation."

Suspension

During lunch recess Wednesday Mark and 3 or 4 school buddies gathered around a small area on the school playground sand to experiment with a magnifying glass and leaves. They all took turns trying to burn the leaves with the glass, and many of them succeeded in getting their leaves to produce smoke. Apparently, a recess teacher saw smoke and marched the boys into the principal's office.

According to the school handbook, the boys committed a school violation classified as "arson" (lighting a fire on school property, causing anything to be burned on school property, etc.) and were each given a 1-day school suspension. The "rules" state that any degree of arson is to be punishable by an emergency expulsion, and a police report must be filed. When Principal Livingston called me, she informed me of Mark's offense, stated the rule and the consequence for breaking it, and told me that after talking to her boss, she was "only" giving each of them a 1-day suspension. She also noted that Mark claimed something to the effect that since he is a Boy Scout, he is authorized to light fires.

Mark knew he was in trouble with his parents, but tried to explain to us that he didn't know he was breaking a rule, and that the rules should have been given to him in written form. I told him that I didn't receive a list of rules when he was born stating that I shouldn't beat my children with a metal chain. I had a point. We then chatted about "common sense." His punishment was to work for me all day long yesterday while he was home. He, of course, had to do his homework and reading; additionally, he cleaned the patio, dusted, helped with laundry and did a few other things. He wasn't allowed any computer, TV or video game time. He isn't prone to warrant another suspension any time in the near future--I hope!

A Lousy Day

I penned the following poem for a friend who found herself nit-picking. Maybe some of you can relate to her lousy situation.

A LOUSY DAY
By Natalie D. (with apologies to Dr. Seuss)

I am a mom; a mom am I.
Today I thought that I might die.
I found some lice in my kids’ hair.
They almost heard me curse and swear.
I do not want that nasty louse;
I do not want him in my house.
I do not want his kids or wife,
I do not need them in my life.
I do not want them in our heads,
I do not want them in our beds.
I do not want our heads to itch,
Or I might turn into a witch.
I don’t want to shampoo with Nix
Or comb through hair with metal picks.
I don’t want to turn away friends.
Oh, how I hope that this soon ends!
My kids don’t want their toys in bags.
The thought of lice just makes me gag.
Washing more laundry isn’t fun.
I don’t wish this on anyone!
Get out of here, you nasty lice!
If you return, you’ll pay the price!

Rise and Shout!

Yesterday Lance and I had the rare privilege of attending a BYU football game. It's been a few years since I last attended one, but during my 5 years at BYU, the ONLY home game I missed was the one that conflicted with my grandparents' 50th wedding anniversary celebration. (I listened to that game, though, with my Uncle Jim. He took a radio to the party.) I love BYU football and have been a big-time fan since I was a high-school student.

Yesterday's match-up was between the BYU Cougars and the University of Washington Huskies in Seattle. Our neighbors, who are season-ticket holders to the Huskies games, gave us their tickets for yesterday's game. (We love our neighbors, and not just because they were generous with their football tickets.) It was a beautiful day for football! The temperature was perfect (after the initial mugginess and cloud-cover wore off), and we were shaded by the stadium over-hang throughout the game.

We attended the BYU Alumni Association-sponsored tailgate party and pre-game barbecue and "hung out" with fellow Cougar fans. Then we headed into the stadium to find our seats. We knew we would be seated in "enemy territory." Most of the "enemies" were quite friendly except for one or two guys seated a few rows back from us that occasionally yelled insults like, "Your religion sucks!" Lance and I were as "low key" as possible, so these insults were hurled at the Cougar fans and team in general. When our seat mates arrived, we apologized that we would be rooting for the opposing team. They were nice and even chatted with us throughout the game.

Well, suffice it to say that the game was a nail-biter. The Cougars scored first followed by two Husky touchdowns. The game was tied at 21 until BYU scored in the last 3 or so minutes of the game bringing the score to 28-21. Our Husky seat mates thought they had lost the game, but I assured them that they could still score. I should have kept my mouth shut, because with less than 10 seconds in the game, the Huskies scored a touchdown. A 15-yard "unsportsmanlike conduct" penalty was then given to the Husky quarterback (who scored the touchdown) for tossing the ball "high" into the air in celebration. The crowd erupted in voicing their displeasure, but to no avail. The Huskies had to settle for kicking a PAT instead of attempting a 2-point conversion. (Notice how well-versed I am in football lingo!) The Cougar defensive line blocked the kick, and won the game by 1 point. It was a wild ending to a game that had many injuries (most of them Husky players), penalties (most called against BYU) and dropped/missed passes (by a certain Cougar wide-receiver who I will not name in the off chance he reads this blog).

We left the stadium happy our team had won, but sad for the Huskies that the game for them came down to a final "controversial" call. We didn't gloat in our victory because it just didn't seem like the right thing to do and, besides, what if the obnoxious Husky fan seated a few rows behind us (or one with his same sentiments) was walking right behind us on our way out of the stands?

GO, COUGARS!!!

Wouldn't It Be Awesome If . . .

I found a transcription of an interview I conducted with Mark 4 years ago when he was 7. I asked him to complete this sentence: "Wouldn't it be awesome if . . ." Here are his responses:

*we really did have eyes in the back of our heads?
*we had laser vision--invisible laser vision?
*we could turn invisible?
*there was God's armor and you couldn't take it off and you would be superior and could make whatever magic you wanted?
*we could form into animals?
*we had super powers?
*we could be super muscular with super strength?
*we had two heads?
*you could lift something up without using your hands?
*you could read people's minds and control what they do?
*we could just make armor appear?
*we could bring a dinosaur from before people were made?
*we could make dinosaurs on our own?