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296th Friday Blog Roundup

Yesterday was Mr. Whiskers’ birthday (he of earectomy fame) and we–of course–had to throw him a party.  Mr. Whiskers loves Wii, so we had to include some Wii.  Mr. Whiskers loves chocolate chip cookies, so–naturally, like all inanimate objects–he deserves freshly-made chocolate chip cookies.  And lastly, Mr. Whiskers requested crepes for dinner.

I forgot to mention that Mr. Whiskers actually went through a name change several months ago, and even though I still call him by his original moniker, his new name is actually Cuddle Bumps.  Which makes Josh and I whisper to each other, “oooh, I got to second base when I touched her cuddle bumps!” and “it was so cold in the room that I could see her cuddle bumps through her shirt.”

Cuddle Bumps has a twin sister whose name is Cuddlelove Bumps.  What sort of cat parents name their children Cuddle and Cuddlelove?

So it was Cuddle and Cuddlelove’s birthday yesterday and we had a party for them complete with presents and the aforementioned crepes and chocolate chip cookies.  AND we had to sing “happy birthday” to them separately because for the love, the Bump siblings are twins and there are sensitivity issues about sharing the spotlight.

So, in summary, the reason I got crap done yesterday was that I had to throw a party for two inanimate objects–one missing part of an ear and both with porn-y sounding names–that included crepes and games and cookies and presents.

I quake in fear of the upcoming August birthday of Rita, the My Little Pony, and what that horse is going to expect me to do in the name of imagination.

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The Weekly What If: if you could only save one item from childhood, which one would it be: a single class picture (name the grade and why), a favourite stuffed animal (name the stuffed animal and why), or an outfit (describe it and why)?

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I’m not sure why I felt the need to describe myself as a werewolf in the head shot post, or why women constantly dismiss their looks.  The reality is that I don’t look like the Melissa in those pictures 99.5% of the time.  About .5% of the time, I need to look super-presentable and I slap on some powder and eyeliner and mascara and nude lipstick (that’s what I was wearing in the shot).  I do my hair and put on an outfit that does not include a t-shirt.  But that other 99.5% of the time, I wear no makeup at all, my hair is up in a ponytail or twisted into some sort of knot, and…I’m wearing my normal uniform of a t-shirt.  So it’s not the best representation of ME, but it’s the best representation of who I can be if you want me to attend an event.

And I do love those pictures.  I think Mary did a fantastic job.  I think part of that job was relaxing me so that those types of pictures could be taken; it was about timing and attitude and keeping an eye on all the small details that affect a picture such as space and light.

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Weebles Wobblog has had trouble with her feed. If you follow her blog, please resubscribe via this link.  And if you don’t already subscribe to her blog, you should.  I mean, listen to this line from the top post on her blog at the moment: “It was a dark and stormy night.  Actually, it was a frigid January night, and all the homes in our old neighborhood were shut tight. As tight as the skin on Joan Rivers’ face.”  Lori is funny and she’s serious and she has taught me so much about open adoption and she is caring and she asks tough questions.  You know what she (and by extension, her blog) is like?  It’s like when you’re running around completely chaotic with tasks and suddenly, everything feels organized and you sit down and realize you can breathe again.  Lori is like that first breath that comes when you suddenly realize that you’re at peace.

So on that note, please resubscribe to her blog via this link.

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And now, the blogs…

I love this post from A Run For My Money that tells how life really is with a newborn.  I think too many times, as women, we candy-coat those first days and everyone goes through them thinking they’re some sort of monster for being so frustrated and tired and weepy (though also in love and joyous and high on lack of sleep).  I like that she tells it like it is for her, and hopefully, others will read it and realize that they’re really not alone.

Here We Go Again has a tiny post about honesty and presents a grey ethical situation.  Oooh, and I just love the discussion that is unfolding in her comment section.  I’ve been thinking about this situation on-and-off since I read this post and it gives you really good food for thought.  Go jump in and give your take on what you would have done.

I Spy a Family has a gorgeous post about wanting to bottle up childhood for her sons and place the essence of their childhood into mason jars as you would if you were catching fireflies.  She still lives where she grew up, and she explains how that changes the way you celebrate holidays as an adult vs. those who live far away from the places where they first celebrated those special days.  She writes, “They could open their jars and breathe in the smell of suntan lotion and citronella candles, remembering what it was like to be young, snuggled on beach blankets as fireworks lit up the sky, in the company of people who loved them.”  And I bawled.

Lastly, A Year of Hope has a post about the pain of invisibility that comes with infertility.  Without a clear visual signal, the people we interact with who don’t know our back-stories have no idea that the questions they’re asking are causing so much emotional pain.  She writes, “Some days, I wish I had Evie and Jack and Will’s names tattooed across my face along with their birth/death dates and some sort of tag line about how we lost them. Or something like ‘I may have all my limbs, but my heart has been amputated and here’s why…‘.”  It is a moving, important post.

The roundup to the Roundup: Happy birthday dear…Cuddle Bumps.  Answer the Weekly What If.  Musings on the head shots.  Resubscribe (or subscribe) to Lori’s blog.  And lots of great posts to read.

9 comments

1 SooSee { 07.09.10 at 10:50 am }

Thanks for Lori’s link! Going over to read the blogs, and I’d love to be able and go back and keep my Cabbage Patch Kid, Roxanne. She was brunette like me, had pigtails, 2 front teeth, and the last time I saw her, had a dress I wore as a baby. I left her behind when I left home thinking I could just pick her up “later on”, and somewhere along the way, she never made it to my new home. And my Popple! Loved that one! Did I just add years to myself by mentioning Popples?!

2 HereWeGoAJen { 07.09.10 at 1:34 pm }

I actually have all the toys I remember from my childhood that I really wanted to keep. I’ve been pulling out the age appropriate ones for Elizabeth lately. This is why I kept them.

The one I would most want is my doll, Christina. She was my first “grown-up doll” and simply perfect. I had lots of clothes for her (mostly baby clothes that my grandmother got me from garage sales that don’t actually fit properly). I learned how to french braid on her hair. And I have her up in my guest room closet, waiting.

3 Kristen { 07.09.10 at 3:42 pm }

The Cuddle twins party made me laugh…especially since my oldest (almost 4) informed me e days ago that although his birthday “isn’t until Halloween time” his bear’s birthday is Tuesday and that it would be “so naughty” not to have a party for him. I thought it was one of those random thoughts 3 year old’s have, but he’s talked about it multiple times the last few days, so looks like I’ll be having a Big Bear birthday.

If I had to save one thing from childhood, it would totally be my red lips telephone (just like the one DJ had on Full House!). I got it in 3rd grade and thought that thing made me impossibly cool. That phone carried me from the days where I used it to invite the girl next door over to play barbies to the day I left for college. oh the memories 🙂

4 Lori Lavender Luz { 07.09.10 at 4:53 pm }

I am crying.

That is all.

5 Baby Smiling In Back Seat { 07.09.10 at 7:06 pm }

Well, given that I didn’t bring any class pictures here to my grown-up house, and only one childhood outfit (a shirt from 6th grade that still fits — obviously it was far too big then), but many dolls and stuffed animals, the answer is clear. If I could only keep one it would be my first Cabbage Patch Kid.

6 T Lee { 07.09.10 at 9:10 pm }

Hmm… I think I’d have to go with an outfit.
One particularly, impressively horrendous outfit.

It consisted of at t-shirt with three dolfins on it outlined in neon green, yellow, and pink, hot pink tights, a jean skirt, a black pleather vest and slouch boots, a neon green slide clip for the shirt (lord, remember those), and a super awesome hot pink scrunchie around my side ponytail.

I was about 10 (can we guess what decade I’m a child of?)…and I thought I was THE s#!t… eesh.
Clearly, I don’t wish I’d kept it to prove I had awesome fashion sense.
I wish I had it to remind myself how proud I was to be me. It really embodied how much I loved myself, and how very, very much I didn’t care what anybody else thought of me.

Two feelings I have to work very hard at some days…

7 Bea { 07.09.10 at 11:14 pm }

Cuddle… bumps… these stories have to come out at some sort of age-related milestone or other key life event in the future. Which stories for which event? That’s the hard part.

Thanks for another great roundup.

Bea

8 a { 07.10.10 at 8:46 am }

Over and over this weekend, I am learning what a mean parent I am! We went to the zoo with a friend and got into a discussion about how many times to ride the carousel. I said we only ride it once, and was slightly confused that someone would need to plan how many times to ride. Then there was the train…my girl knows that until she no longer rides in the stroller, we don’t take the train ride. As I read about the birthday party for Cuddle Bumps (great name!), I thought…if the party is for an imaginary friend, we have imaginary food. End of story. I am, apparently, terribly mean.

I would keep my one stuffed animal – and I did (plus a whole box of others). It’s a small bear, named Fuzzy. I imagine my dad named him, since he was the source of all silly rhymes in our household, but my aunt gave him to me when I was born (so maybe she did the naming). {For reference: Fuzzy Wuzzy was a bear/Fuzzy Wuzzy had no hair/If Fuzzy Wuzzy had no hair/Then Fuzzy Wuzzy wasn’t fuzzy, was he?}

9 Mrs. D { 07.10.10 at 11:27 am }

You do such a great job on the blog rollups… thank you for sharing your thoughts and encouraging others to get involved!

I would save Fluffy, the white-turned-brownish-gray-over-the-years stuffed animal. Fluffy came with me everywhere for a few years, and saw my fair share of fun moments, tantrums, and fights with my sister. I made my mom promise never to throw Fluffy away, so I think he now lives in my parents’ basement. Maybe it’s time to bring him to my house… he was always a great source of comfort.

I also think your pictures look wonderful… you are stunning!

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