Tuesday, April 21, 2009

The Iron Will Not Be Ignored


I have grown up with a love/hate relationship with ironing. I love the results...hate the effort it takes to achieve the results.


Ironing is at the root of one of the biggest "mads" I have ever achieved (before I understood what our government was doing to all of us). I must have been home from college. I had ironed a white pleated pair of shorts, and after finishing, I laid them over a chair while I headed to the shower. While I was in the shower, my younger (very sneaky) sister took the shorts, put them on and left the house. DID SHE NOT KNOW THAT I HAD JUST EXPENDED THE ENERGY AND FRUSTRATION OF IRONING ALL OF THOSE PLEATS?!!! My grandma reminds us of the incident regularly, adding that she had never seen me so mad as I was that day.


And when I hear that people iron their bedsheets....WHAT? I can not comment further for fear I will become nauseous.


I survived my engineering career by ironing only what was going to show...the collar, cuffs and front of a blouse. I would never bother with the back, sleeves, shoulders. I was willing to suffer any heat-induced discomfort, that might otherwise cause someone to remove their jacket, just so I would not have to spend the time ironing parts that I could keep hidden.


And, oh modern times....when wrinkle free fabrics started hitting the market...what a happy girl am I! That is an absolute requirement of clothing that is purchased and worn with any regularity in our house. If something proves itself to not be wrinkle-free...it is swimming with the fishes (figuratively, of course!). Until I can move it along to an OCD owner, it is crumpled up and tucked away.


Recently, though, my husband remarked that I have ironed more in the last few weeks than I have done the previous 16 years of marriage. Why? Please see the picture above. My girls love making shapes with the brightly colored beads that I then melt together with the iron. They are a great rainy day activity and are doing wonders for the three-year-old's fine motor skills. So, until I can get these little buggers hidden away in the basement, I will iron...although, I have had to implement the "I'm only going to iron once a day" rule. Thankfully there are no pleats...


Thursday, April 9, 2009

They Will Keep You Humble

I had just finished showering, applying makeup and styling my hair. The three-year-old walks in.

"Do you like my hair, Marrin?"

"No. Try again."

I guess that I can relish the fact that she thought I deserved a second chance.

Wednesday, April 8, 2009

Who Was the First?

Last night while pulling into a parking lot, we see a young man crossing our path. He is ever-trendy with his jeans cinched at least half way down his bum. You know how you might sometimes pick up your pace to clear the way for an oncoming vehicle? This guy couldn't picked up the pace if he wanted for fear of losing his drawers.

It got me pondering...who is the first person to see their friend with ill fitting pants and compliment them on the look? "That is so cool, dude, how I can see your underwear!" Any time you see some questionable fashion moves, someone was with the shopper in the dressing room, encouraging them to buy it...with no concern for the rest of us who have to look at it. A funny side story to the whole issue is what the buyer ended up paying for such mistakes. And then do they overpay for underwear that is suitable to show at the top of their jeans?

And have you ever wondered what led to the necessity for a seemingly silly or overly obstructive rule or law? I bet you that most times it is a very funny story or a very sad one.

Saturday, April 4, 2009

The Food Groups of a Toddler

During a delectable, home-cooked meal the three-year-old asked if cheese was a fruit or a vegetable. I like the way that girl thinks!

Whew...Twice!

I was standing in the checkout line at the grocery store with all of my three girls. Ahhh...the checkout line...where you can actually be dumbed down by the media displayed and your kids can make that last ditch effort at getting you to buy something (candy) you had not planned to buy upon entering the store.

The girls were staring at the various magazines looking for pictures of High School Musical stars and Hannah Montana. Suddenly, one of them says "Hey mom! What's a 'mom from hell'?" Sure enough, it was written right on the front of one of the magazines about some tabloid victim. So, here's my first "whew"...as a homeschooling parent I was thrilled that they can read and can do so spontaneously because they want to, not because they have to. My second "whew"...that they had to even ask what a mom from hell is, instead of knowing exactly what it was based upon their own personal experience.