"She's so HAPPY!"

Very often, when we are out in public, a perfect stranger will comment about my little one, "She's so HAPPY!" I'm always confounded as to how it was intended. A compliment? An observation?

I'm super-ultra-mega-sensitive about my kids and about people's perceptions of them, so I often feel slighted by this comment. To me, its something people say about a severely special needs child for whom they have no other compliment. "But she's so HAPPY!" Like telling an obese girl she has a pretty face, the implication is that there is something wrong with everything else.

I know I sound crazy, and I do cop to having too thin a skin about this issue, but think about it: we comment on the main positive we notice. When our big girl was a baby, everyone commented on her big eyes. It hurts me that no one sees my little girl and offers compliments on her beauty, because she IS beautiful.

That being said, I also recognize that my chief dreams for my kids are for health and happiness. Not for beauty and mediocrity. Truly, if they are healthy and happy, I am (mentally) healthy and happy. If the little one stays happy, I will be thrilled beyond belief. She is a joy to behold.

Even a stranger can see.

Pet Peeves

Too much perfume.
Weird spellings for names.
Discussion of bodily functions. Exception: discussing my kids. : )
Texting while driving.
Mosquitoes.
Any biting insects.
Loud phone conversations in public.
Poor customer service.
Friends checking iPhones/Blackberries while having a conversation with me.
Unsolicited parenting advice. Especially from non parents.

Quality vs. Quantity

M wrote in her blog about daily blog posting diluting the quality of the writing. I've been thinking a lot about that. I sort of agree. But I also think that the pressure to write every day can spur creativity in a way that just doesn't happen without the pressure.

It also got me thinking about quality vs. quantity. I read again and again in parenting books that what kids really want is quality time with their parents. I think that is B.S. There's no free lunch. Yes, they want quality time, but they also want quantity time. And I think we want the same thing of all of our relationships. In a pinch, we'll take quality over quantity. But both is really optimal.

As a blog reader, I value good writing. But I also tire of bloggers who post intermittently. I end up abandonning blogs when I check back again and again and again and find nothing new. I want quality AND quantity.

Spring is sprung, another tantrum begun...

The start of spring, the start of 30 days of blogging. The Little One woke up at 3am, and while she was up I plotted my first blog entry. It sounded so good! (At 3 am. In my head.) I envisioned the kids playing quietly while I typed and enjoyed a chai latte.

-REALITY CHECK- What was I thinking? Have I ever (in the last 4 years and 10 months) experienced so much as 5 minutes for an uninterrupted email?

This is how the morning is ACTUALLY playing out:

5:30am- The Little One is up. Putting her fingers in my nose to wake me up. Repeatedly. Then diaper time. I leave the room for one brief moment to dispose of said diaper. I return to her scribbling all over the couch in HOT PINK marker.

A handful all morning. I'm exhausted by 7am. But my meditation on letting go of perfectionism is working to... perfection!

Sooooooo, my goal here is to spend a little time each day writing about the awesome people who make my life so wonderful. The plan is that this will help balance out the inordinate amount of complaining and WHY ME-ing I do on a daily basis.

My awesome person today is my dear 2 year old. Although she has challenged me beyond all measure this morning, she also provides me with untold joy each and every day. A jollier smile has never been seen, and her giggle is to die for. It is astonishing to me that a kid that has spent such a solid fraction of her young life in the hospital has perhaps the sunniest attitude of anyone. I have a lot to learn from her and I'm awfully glad she's my girl.