The Indulging Continues
Thank you for sharing all your nervous habits with me! I do feel a bit better that Maya’s coughing isn’t entirely my fault, but Operation SMFC has still been in full swing this weekend. Translation – I’ve been feeding her loads of junk while my patience goes into overdrive.
Friday night involved a trip to CPK for pizza and ice cream:
Saturday morning involved lots of bonding time. We baked some Oatmeal Granola Balls, made necklaces out of bubble makers (don’t ask), practiced our letters, and just when I thought I’d go nuts from the coughing Ali dropped Maya at my friend Nadia’s place.
Meanwhile I met up with Kim and Lynn for lunch at Fresh Corn Grill. Have I mentioned how great it is to meet other bloggers with whom I have so much in common? Thank you Kim and Lynn for a great lunch and excellent conversation.
After lunch Nadia, her husband Shaz, Ali, and I headed to Hokusai Restaurant for a fundraising event for Developments in Literacy. Ali and I weren’t sure we’d be able to make it because we had no babysitting, but then Nadia’s brother-in-law so graciously offered to watch all three kids while we enjoyed an afternoon of learning how to make sushi:
Followed by some of the most delicious sushi I’ve ever eaten.
I’m not a sushi expert by any means but this restaurant definitely knows how to make some amazing crispy rice with tuna. I highly recommend it.
After the event we headed back to Nadia’s place to pick up Maya. As a creature of habit I find it really hard to eat between meals and since the event was from 3-5:30 my whole schedule was thrown off. I started to feel kind of nauseous for some reason so after hanging out for a bit we decided to go home. As the evening progressed I started getting hungry but still felt nauseous at the same time. Talk about a gross combination. So while Ali munched on Baja Fresh at 9pm (yuck) I had some corn flakes. I felt even worse after that, so I threw in the towel and went to bed.
I feel better this morning and am off to buy some decent luggage for my trip this Friday. After years of borrowing luggage I think it is time to finally take the plunge. And then later this afternoon we are taking Maya to a birthday party where I plan to let her indulge in tons of cake, ice cream, candy, and chips.
Operation SMFC continues. I don’t see any improvement yet but I have my fingers crossed.
Operation SMFC
When I was a kid I used to do this weird thing with my eyes where I’d open and shut them really hard when I was nervous. My parents deemed it my “blinking.” They’d say, “Oh, there goes Ameena blinking again!” And they’d mimic me. I’m fairly certain Dr. Phil would say that making fun of me wasn’t the most effective way to get me to stop, but I don’t blink anymore so I guess maybe Dr. Phil doesn’t have all the answers.
Anyway, history is repeating itself because Maya has been doing this weird coughing thing lately. When I ask her why she keeps coughing she shrugs her shoulders and says, “I can’t help it Mama.” How sad is that? I notice that when I’m reading her a book or we’re practicing her writing she’ll be hacking away, but when we get to the park and she’s playing with her friends there isn’t a cough in sight. Her teachers say they don’t notice it either. So I took Maya to the doctor for a professional opinion and the doctor said that since there were no signs of infection or illness Maya’s coughing is probably just a habit that we should ignore. Easier said than done. It drives me nuts! Even Ali, one of the most patient people on the planet finally exploded the other day and told Maya she had to knock it off. Her response?
She coughed.
It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to conclude that Ali and I are stressing her out, hence her nervous habit. Thus begins operation “Stop Maya From Coughing.”
Operation SMFC started off well yesterday. We counted to 100 together on the way to school and I managed not to freak out because she forgot a few numbers here and there. At sign-in time I praised her progress with her penmanship instead of criticizing her “Ns.” And at the park after school I didn’t remind Maya that her chin injury was a result of running in the sandy area – something I’ve told her NOT to do only about 5,000 times.
Since a burger and fries can cure pretty much anything, we took Maya to In-n-Out hoping for a miraculous recovery. From the coughing and the chin injury.
We were doing well until Ali got on the phone and Maya and I got into an argument about her picking the tomatoes out of her burger. The coughing started up again so I shut up. I also didn’t remark that her arteries were in overdrive when she ate 1.5 burgers and half of her fries. Or when she asked if she could have dessert. Or television time. And as a result the coughing was at a minimum the rest of the evening and this morning as well. I’m hoping that the weekend continues in the same way.
So I might get her to stop coughing but in the process I might end up with a kid addicted to fast food, television, sugar, and the word “no.” I’m not sure what the lesser of two evils is here!
Did/do you have a nervous habit?
Predictability
Lately I’ve been in sort of a rut, mainly because I feel like I do the exact same thing day after day. It’s my own fault I guess because I thrive on routine and schedules. But as much as I love my routine and schedules, my days have been so predictable as of late that I’m even boring myself. And if I’m boring myself I can only imagine how much I am boring all of you.
Allow me to share a typical day in the life of boring Ameena:
- Mornings are a rush of going to the gym, getting Maya to school, settling down, and getting to work.
- Afternoons are a blur of answering emails and blog reading doing work.
- Late afternoons include a foray to the park, scrubbing paint and dirt off Maya, and getting dinner ready.
- Early evenings involve hearing things like “I don’t like what’s for dinner,” and saying things like “Well I guess you aren’t hungry enough.”
- Late evenings mean Maya finally goes to bed and I plant myself in front of the television.
- Late, late evenings (I’m talking 9:30 here) I drift off to sleep in front of American Idol or some equally vapid show.
For obvious reasons I decided yesterday that I needed to mix things up a bit. So what did I do? I packed Maya in the car and drove to the library so I could find something to read that didn’t involve my computer.
What? You don’t head to the library to change things up?
Call me crazy but I was pretty excited when I found the new Jackie Collins book. Yes it’s true. I read Jackie Collins. Trashy Hollywood novels aren’t usually my genre of choice but sometimes I just need a little vacation from reality. I’m already halfway through and I’m feeling better. So is my carpal tunnel.
I may just suggest we get take-out tonight. I’m feeling pretty daring.
Make me feel better. Tell me you read Jackie Collins. Or something equally despicable.
While I'm not going to win Mother/Wife of the Year Award anytime soon, I haven't killed anyone yet or shot myself in the head. And that, my friends, is how I calculate success these days. 
FANCY THAT FANCY THIS 
