Are you serious?!?

So, if being called a Plain Ol' Woman wasn't bad enough, I was just diagnosed with....drum roll please... Nursemaid's Knee.



Yep, fitting, huh? My knee has been swollen (actually, it got to the point of looking like an egg under my skin - ick!) for a few weeks now, so I decided to get a follow-up check on it. How depressed do you think I was when the doctor just looked at it and said, "Oh, you've got nursemaid's knee. Let me go get my utensils to drain it." Bleck!!! I was sure he was mistaken and it was "Too fit to be 40 knee", but he seemed pretty sure of himself with his diagnosis.

So, a few minutes, a long syringe and a couple of Ace bandages later, I was sent on my merry way. I'm seriously needing an ego boost right about now!!!

Propping up my leg~
Laurie

P.O.W. - no salute necessary

You remember these two cute ones, right?!?

Well, as I always say, you just never know what is gonna come out of their mouths! And depending on what they say, sometimes they get a little cuter and sometimes...well, not so much. This is one of those times.

The other night at dinner, we were having some great conversation . We seem to have really good discussions at the dinner table. So the topic for this dinner was what Lily wanted to be when she grows up. Here's how it goes:

Sam: Lily what are you gonna be when you grow up?

Lily looks off into the distance and thinks about all of the dreamy choices available.

Sam: Lily, I said what are you gonna be when you grow up? Are you gonna be something like a singer, or a doctor or a plain ol' woman (P.O.W.)?

Lily: No, I'm gonna be a rock star!

I must interject, because this is the girl that has yet to really perform in one of her school programs or in her end of session recital in ballet class. So, rock star? I don't know...but, whatever.

So, I have to ask...

Laurie: Sam, what is a plain ol' woman(P.O.W.)?

Sam: You know,Mom, like you!

Lily: Yeah, like you, Mommy!

Ouch...what? I'm a plain ol' woman?!?!!?? This totally takes me by surprise. First of all, I wouldn't say that I am "plain". I mean, I don't have any funky hairstyle or dress majorly hip, but I wouldn't say that I am plain. And "OLD"?!? No way! I'll take this little moment to brag and say that I have surprised many a person when I tell them that I'm 40. And, well, yep I am a "woman" - I'll take that as a compliment!

I just had to do a little search of Mr. Internet for "plain ol' woman" and look what I came up with...

No way, I am no Susan Boyle! I mean, look how trendy I looked at the museum with Sam:

Have you seen Ms. Boyle sport any camo? I don't think so!

I don't think everyone views me as a P.O.W., but just in case, my battle is on. I must change this misconception! How? I don't know, but it will be done.

Diggin' in the closet~
Laurie

Freedom...

Sam's homework for the week included the task of writing a paragraph about what the American flag means to him. Then on Friday, they would turn in their paragraph and wear red, white and blue in remembrance of the Sept. 11th tragedy. As I sat with him to work on the project, I listened to what he said about the flag:

-the 13 stripes stand for the original 13 colonies --- Correct
-the 50 stars stand for the 50 states --- Correct
-it's the symbol for our country --- Correct

All of this was correct, but it's not what I wanted to hear him say. Those were all facts, and I'm impressed that he remembered them, but to me; there is so much more to the meaning of the flag. So, I told him what the flag means to me... freedom to worship our God, freedom to express our feelings, freedom to have an education, freedom to travel, to love, to get active in our communities or, if you choose, to just do nothing. But the common thread is FREEDOM!

How do you teach this to a 7 year old? As I went off on my rant, he just kinda looked at me like I was crazy. I told him about how other countries don't have these freedoms. How, in some countries, children can't play outside because of bombs going off and tanks driving down their street. I told him some children can't go to school and can't say their prayers at night. I still got the crazy stare.

So, I will continue to talk with him about this and hopefully help him in understanding how lucky we are to live in the USA! And today we made sure we took advantage of our freedoms....

*I thanked God for the rain that we have received.
*I prayed for peace for the families of those who lost loved ones in the 9/11 attacks.
*Sam went to school and learned how to spell works such as : meadow, spoiled, copied.
*Lily Clare played outside without the fear of anything!
*I spoke out about my dislike for Obama.
*I drove to Wal-Mart and had the option to buy absolutely anything I wanted ... but I stuck to my list!

Feeling privileged~
Laurie

Oh no he di-int?!?!

Stinky is back and he brought his friend Smelly....

(Here they are pretending like they don't see us shining the flashlight at them, poking them with a broom handle and taking their picture.)


Oh yeah, the war has begun~
Laurie