Why The Snowpocalypse Could Never Happen to Me.... and other rambling thoughts..

 

We don't get snow much here in middle Georgia, so when we do, we make a big deal out of it. I don't care how many Yankees laugh about it either. I don't laugh when folks die of heat strokes in New England, so I think it's indicative of bad raising when Northerners laugh at Southerners stuck on the ice covered freeway. That's all I'm going to say about that.  

On Monday before the snow came in, I was at a DOE meeting with a friend of mine in Macon. We didn't get out until 4 and after considering the ramifications of driving back to Louisville only to find the 2 grocery stores in town both out of toilet paper and milk, we decided to hit the Kroger in the big city of Macon. Once I got my hands on a 12 pack of Cottonelle and two gallons of whole milk, I was good to go. I knew I was a survivor!   :)

Which brings me to this... Survival.  Reading the horror stories on the SnowedOutAtlanta  facebook page, I thought to myself. Damn! I'm a prepper and didn't even know it. Honestly y'all!  Most of the comments on facebook went something like this:

1. I'm stuck in traffic, out of gas and I'm cold. I thought to myself.. well right now I have a sleeping bag from Ali's last overnight trip, at least 3  pairs of socks belonging to Addie.( She takes her socks off in the car whether it's 15 degrees or 95 degrees.), 2 hoodies belonging to Ali Grace, and 1 huge sweatshirt I've been meaning to drop off at the thrift store for 5 months now. 

2.  I'm stuck in traffic, out of gas and I'm hungry.  Hmmm... I'm thinking.. I have a box of granola bars in the floor board of my car (they fell out of the grocery bag a couple weeks ago and have yet to make it into the house.) I have several packs of fruit snacks with only the cherry fruit snacks left in them because Addie doesn't like the cherry ones. I have at least 3 or 4 diet coke bottles half full and I'm quite certain if I slammed on the brakes one time a 6 pack of chicken nuggets would come flying out from under the seat. 

3. I'm stranded and I don't know anyone with a 4 wheel drive to come get me. This one is a no brainer. Every male in my family can drive a 4 wheel drive. Heck so can the females for that matter. I know my daddy, my husband or my brother would be on a 4 wheeler, a tractor, a horse or SOMETHING on their way to come get me out of that mess. But no doubt, I could survive in my car for several days if I had to!

I don't mind a little cold weather. You know, enough to beat back the mosquitoes just waiting to suck us all dry in the summer. I don't even mind a little snow. But I told Pete this morning- I am good for 2 snowdays a year. After that, my Seasonal Affective Disorder kicks in. I am counting down the days until spring. We will be hitting the beach during spring break this year one way or the other. I'm going to be grumpy, ornery and generally irritated until then. Just a warning.

Although I'm a warm weather kinda gal, I couldn't help but enjoy the last couple days off with my family. The girls had an absolute blast and that makes my heart happy.

 

Don't you think these two favor each other? They're both rotten. I can tell you that!

 

 

School should be back on a regular schedule tomorrow and we're ready for it. We're approaching the critical point of "too much togetherness".  Ali Grace leaves tomorrow for 4-H DPA at Rock Eagle.  It sure doesn't feel like tomorrow's Friday but I'll take it! Have a great weekend everyone!

 

You aren't screwing it up..

This is sort of a rant.. which is kinda odd since this whole post was meant to be about how tired I am of reading rants.. It's a rant about judgmental rants if you will..  I'm guilty of  going on a tear too, or reposting crap advice to facebook, but doggone it I'm getting better and reposting less. Let me explain.  In the last month, I've "learned" the following on facebook:

1. I'm feeding my kids too much sugar.

2. My kids aren't  getting enough sleep.

3. My kids are getting too much sleep.

4. 7 Things I'm doing wrong trying to raise Christian children

5. My kids don't have an appropriate bed time.

6. My kids don't need a bedtime.

7. 5 reasons I should not let my children eat flour.

8. 5 things I should be doing to make my husband happier

9. 7 things I should never say to my children

10. 10 things I should say to my kids at least twice a day.

11. I shouldn't be helping with the girls' homework.

12. I should be helping with the girls' homework

And the list goes on and on and on and on and nauseatingly on....

Is "nauseatingly" a word?

In a recent staff development meeting, our media specialist put up a cartoon that showed a fire hydrant blasting water towards a kid who's thirsty. I thought to myself sweet Mother Mary isn't that the truth. Getting information off the internet is like taking a drink from a fire hydrant. I totally get how mothers think they are doing it all wrong- from what they feed their families to how they relate to their husbands, to what kind of clothes they wear. Truly someone posted on facebook the other day "What the color of your socks says about your marriage."  WTH?? Really? Hell I was afraid to read that one since I feel a great sense of accomplishment if we all walk out of the house in the morning with socks that actually match. 

Here's my suggestion:

It would help if we (me included) just stopped reposting that ridiculous mess. If people continue to post it, you don't have to click on it. I don't anymore. I don't mind 10 recipes, 5 funny pictures, etc.. But if I sense in any  way that the post may have a tone like "you SHOULD be doing it this way.." then I keep on scrolling and resist the urge to click.

I have enough stress in my life. I really don't need to add to it by reading 8 reasons why I've ruined my kids' lives because I let them stay up past 9 last night.

On a lighter note... here are some pictures of the kids from the last couple weeks.. and glaring examples of how I'm probably doing something wrong in raising them..  :)

I'm sure there's some post somewhere titled "Why you shouldn't let your 8 year old daughter chase a frog around the kitchen for an hour."

Or "3 reasons why you shouldn't let your 8 year old read books to her minion"

Here's one... "Five reasons her life will be ruined if you let your 8 year old pick our her own clothes"

"Five reasons why your family won't be as tight nit if you live in a big house and each sibling has their own room..."

"10 reasons why Dairy Queen food will make your children grow horns"

Oh and here's one of my plant nerd hubby...

"5 reasons your husband will love you more if you let him go on and on about cultivars, hybrids, and propagation techniques even though you really just want to get to the basketball game.."

I saw a quote last week that said "Behind every great kid is a Mama who is sure she's screwing it up"  I took that to heart. I'm not perfect, but I'm not doing it all wrong either. Neither are the folks that make up the "5 reasons why..." posts.   Have a great week everyone.  There's a lot you're doing right.