I WON ! I Won The Writer’s Center Valentine’s Day Short Story Contest
Filed under: Around DC, Mom Blogs, The Cool in Everyday Life
I Won! I Won!
I’m so pleased to share that I
WON
the First Ever
Writer’s Center
Valentine’s Day Short Story Contest !!!!!
Being Cool
It’s 2011. We aren’t children anymore. We are turning another year older in 2011. I will be in less than a week. Are we cool…? Does it matter…? What does it mean to be cool?…
My resolution is to be cool. I’m not giving anything up this year. I am being cool this year. Easier said than done? Maybe not…
I read an article awhile back that discussed coolness. George Clooney was mentioned. He definitely seems cool. But why? The sly grin… the clothes… the trappings of stardom? I don’t think so. George Clooney seems to be ‘cool’ because he’s comfortable.
He’s comfortable with himself, he’s comfortable with his life. Yes, one could say, ‘How could George Clooney not be comfortable?’ But money and especially fame, do not make you cool. What is cool, then?
Going back to that article – it was interesting… and long. Out of that whole article, 5 sentences stood out to me as a mother.
“Coolness is relaxation.” That may seem hard at first. But being relaxed doesn’t mean you aren’t busy. Being relaxed is merely taking things in stride. And moms are the best at this.
“Coolness is courage.” Coolness is taking a deep breathe and your son’s hand on the first day of school and telling him how much fun he’s going to have. Coolness is smiling at everyone on your way out, even though you already miss him a little.
“Coolness is knowing what’s going on.” Or coolness is at least knowing how to change a diaper, get little people dressed and fed, while trying to figure out what is going on.
“Coolness acknowledges the limits of life while affirming that life is worth living.” No one can be a parent and not be reminded everyday that life is worth living. And no one can be a parent and not be reminded everyday, especially during flu season and potty training that there are limits to life.
“Coolness is the freedom to be yourself.” How cool is it that we are older now… There is no cookie cutter for the perfect mom (trust me, I’ve looked). We are tall and short and blond and brunette. We laugh and cry and sometimes hit our heads against the wall (when no one is looking).
Coolness isn’t clothes. It doesn’t matter how much a pair of jeans cost, they’re really just jeans.
Coolness isn’t a purse or a particular diaper bag.
Coolness is being a mom, and trying your best and being your best for your kids and yourself.
Coolness is understanding that you aren’t perfect and your kids aren’t perfect…
and when you’re tired at the end of the day and thinking, ‘What else do I have to do, what am I forgetting?’ you pick up your child and give them a hug.
That’s cool.
Moms are cool.
The Biggest Back-Handed Compliment I’ve Ever Gotten
My New Year’s resolution this year was not about giving up anything. I always like to DO something as a resolution (giving things up also tends to involve a lot of will power).
So I decided January 1st that I would bury my sweat suits and dress a little nicer. And this turned out to be pretty darn easy because my sweat suits were my uniform: the gray one with a long sleeve t-shirt, the green one with a long sleeve t-shirt; you get the picture.
Since the first of the year I’ve been wearing khakis or jeans or a couple other pairs of nicer pants and you guessed it- long sleeve t-shirts. I’ve been feeling a lot more pulled together-
gee, go figure.
Then, I was talking to a friend of mine about make-up (the kind of friend who always looks like she just ‘threw something on’ from her fabulous wardrobe and is perfectly put together).
She joked that I had never seen her without make-up.
“Sure I have, you’re not wearing any now.”
“Yes, I am.”
Hmmm. I started thinking. Maybe I should start wearing a little powder or something. Maybe I could start off just trying to put on some make-up a few times a week…
So I did.
This doesn’t seem at first like it’s life-changing, but it is… just a little bit.
I always make sure my son looks nice and put together, and now I’m spending a few more minutes in the morning so I do too.
I was at the grocery store with jeans on, a relatively nice long sleeve shirt tucked in and make-up on. My hair was even down, not up in a clip.
All of a sudden I get that feeling that I’m being stared at and the hairs on the back of my neck stand up just a little. I look up from the Havarti I’m studying, to see the young woman behind the bakery counter staring at me. She’s staring at me intently… with squinted eyes.
I didn’t think much about it… maybe she needs glasses, thinks I’m someone else, etc.
Awhile later I had made my way over to the cereal aisle when I see the young woman from the bakery counter walking toward me with a smile on her face and she says, I kid you not,
“You look COMPLETELY different!”
The ‘completely’ really got me… Completely?
“You’re wearing make-up…”
“You look so pretty!”
Wow. That’s so nice… Then my mind goes into overdrive… Do I really look that different with make-up on?
That’s still nice… wait- how BAD was I looking without make-up?
How sweet of her… wow, I must have been looking like the Hunchback of Notre Dame every time I’ve come into this grocery store.
Still, what a nice compliment… I’ve been coming to this same store for 5 years, has everyone thought FOR 5 YEARS- ‘that woman should wear a little make-up’?
Wow.
A second later, I started grinning as I walked down that cereal aisle. There was a compliment in there somewhere.
Beauty is only skin-deep, but looking better can help you feel a little better too.
And my New Year’s resolution is validated!
* I actually wrote this a while back for DC Metro Moms… I wear a little make up EVERY Day now… 
Eat, Pray, Love, with 2 Little Boys
Okay, so it’s not exactly ‘Eat, Pray, Love’.
BUT, my friend Mary Jane,
is RIGHT NOW,
making her way through Europe with her 2 youngest sons.
She has 5!
Yeah… 5.
She’s a saint.
She’s 1. Eating… Check.
She has visited churches 2. Pray… Check.
And she loves her boys… and husband. 3.Love… Check.
And she’s also teaching them history while they go!
Isn’t she fabulous???
Check out their travels on her blog-
Yesterday they were in Pompeii… Where will they be today??!!
Where Did ‘Sick As A Dog’ Come From?
In Keeping With
the subject of learning,
(a.k.a.- since I just learned why some guys are called ‘Trip’…
See Post Below)
today I am venturing into a common saying.
We’ve all said, “I’m sick as a dog.”
Where did that come from?
And why do dogs, who are ‘man’s best friend’ get such a bad rap?
You may be ‘dog tired’. Such n’ Such is ‘going to the dogs’. There are ‘Dogs of war,’ and there is the phrase- ‘hair of the dog that bit you.’
There are the ‘Dog days of summer’… This one is not however, especially negative, as it referred originally to the ascendancy of Sirius, the ‘Dog Star,’ during the hottest days of summer… interesting.
So again, Why do people say,
I’m Sick as a Dog?
Anyone, Anyone?
‘Sick as a dog,’ which means “extremely sick” dates back to at least the 17th century.
It is not so much negative, as it is simply descriptive.
Anyone who knows dogs knows that while they can and often will eat absolutely anything, on those occasions when their diet disagrees with them the results can be quite dramatic.
And while Americans may consider themselves ‘sick’ when they have a bad cold, in Britain that would be called ‘feeling ill.’ ‘Being sick’ in Britain usually means ‘to vomit.’
So there you go!
Bueller… Bueller?
How Can I Be 40… and Not Know This… Again!
Well, it’s another day here and I’m happy to report that I continue to learn things every day; the only thing that is a little disconcerting about this is my thought
AFTER learning said new thing, which is-
‘Why didn’t I ask that question before?’
‘How Can I be 40… and Not Know This?’
So here goes the new bit of information that I just learned, get ready:
Guys who are called ‘Trip’ are really the 3rd generation of a name,
for example- Robert Francis Jones III
Trip is short for ‘Triple’
as in 3,
3rd generation.
Doesn’t that make sense?
Wow. I can’t believe I didn’t know that before.
If you didn’t know that either, I’m happy sharing this new information with you,
if you are thinking, ‘Wow, I can’t believe you didn’t know that either’,
please, just keep it to yourself,
Thank you.
How Can I Be 40 and Not Know This?!… Again!
Berlin Marathon, from Wikipedia
Do you know that a Marathon is 26.2 miles long?
Yes, I know that too.
BUT– Do you know
WHY a Marathon is
26.2 miles long??
Anyone? Anyone?
… We’re driving to dinner the other night and I see one of those oval stickers on the back of an SUV that says- ‘26.2’. And it got me thinking about marathons, so I ask my husband,
“Why are marathons 26.2 miles long? Why aren’t they 25 miles long, or just 26 miles long?” He thought about it for a minute and said,
“I think 26.2 miles is the distance from Marathon to Athens. I think a runner ran from the battle of Marathon all the way to Athens to tell people they won.”
I looked at my husband, he looked at me, our 6-year-old looked at us, we all looked at each other… with approval… and I replied,
“Well, if that’s NOT why marathons are 26.2 miles, that sounds like a REALLY GOOD ANSWER… I’d totally believe that.”
By this time, we’re all laughing and are set to Google it when we get home-
AND SURE ENOUGH- My Guy is right!
SO– marathons are 26.2 miles because that is the distance a soldier ran from the battle of Marathon to Athens, to tell of their victory…
Just another day here educating myself… and the world,
Talk amongst yourselves…
That’s Me and My Little Guy on the TBD TV Commercial
Hello Everybody and Man, O Man- is it a perfect day in the DC Area or what ?!
Skies are blue, it’s breezy and 70 degrees…
If you close your eyes, we could be in San Diego!
Anyway, check out this TV Commercial that starts airing TODAY on TBD TV (formerly NewsChannel 8)! Yes, that’s us- we start out the TV Promo!
(Note to Self: Even though your son has ‘Paul Newman’ hair, it does get unruly sometimes, so next time- put a comb through it)
Halle Berry’s Take on Nudity
I recently bought THE September issue of Vogue.
I say ‘THE’ because the September issue of Vogue is the biggest of the year,
and is greatly anticipated. There is even a documentary about the making
of the September issue, called…
you guessed it, ‘The September Issue’.
On this year’s September Issue is a gorgeous picture of Halle Berry,
of course, that sounds a little redundant, because every picture I’ve seen
of Halle Berry is gorgeous.
In the interview with her, conversation led to nudity and the interviewer noticed that-
‘Berry seems very comfortable with her sexuality.
“That comes with age,” she says.
“If the world wouldn’t persecute me,
I’d take nude pictures every day
of the week.”
* Just a note, a thought… If I had the body of Halle Berry, I’d feel the same way
How Can I Be 40, And Not Know This ?!
Okay, I turned 40 a few months ago…
How Did I NOT know this would happen when you put a little dishwashing liquid in your dishwasher,
INSTEAD of DISHWASHER detergent ??!!
It boggles the mind…
I just looked down,
yep, I got dressed by myself this morning.
I even took my son to school, got him off safe and happy,
yet when I got home-
This was the scene in my kitchen…
Hope you have a great day-
O yeah- Never, Never put dishwashing liquid in your DISHWASHER,
But you probably already knew that…
At Least the Floor is Clean !
-
I Was In The 2012 Show !
Check Out …
-
Nicole’s Book
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