Real World Mom

Last night, I found out that Sam from Temporarily Me has been pregnant ‘forever’. Her friend Karen (Karen Sugarpants) wanted to try to cheer her up by throwing her a virtual baby shower, and having other moms share their overdue baby stories. Please visit Sam and leave her some words of encouragement!

My first child, D, was 15 [long] days late. He was due on June 17 but didn’t actually show up until July 2. Being June/July, it was hot, and I had gained about 50 pounds during my pregnancy; needless to say, I was a little cranky. Since this was my first child, I think I was more impatient than anything.

On the evening of July 1, I finally started having real contractions. I spoke to my doctor on the phone, then proceeded to take a shower and shave my legs. (Hubby thought I was crazy, but I wasn’t leaving the house without a shower!)

My baby D was born at 9:17 a.m. on July 2, 1987. All the crankiness and pregnancy discomfort was forgotten as I held my firstborn son.

Pregnancy number two also went past the due date. This time, by six [long] days. (Funny how the days seem much longer when you’re overdue!) I was much crankier that time. I hadn’t gained quite as much weight, but it was hot again and I wanted to be un-pregnant!

M was due on May 30 and finally arrived on June 5, 1989, at 2:18 a.m. (yeah, my boys liked the morning for some reason). Once again, the misery of the last couple of weeks was replaced with joy!

My average did improve with the next two children…

S (son #3) was born on October 22, 1991, at 6:55 a.m.–on his due date! (Thank you, S!)

And my daughter (baby #4), B, was born on March 23, 1995, at 5:07 p.m. Two days before her due date!

So, there is hope, Sam. And, one medical certainty: You will not be pregnant forever! Best of luck to you and your family! I want to see pics of the new arrival when you get the chance!

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For the first time since I started Real World Mom, I’ve gone a whole week without posting anything. That sucks!

I’ve been so tired from working, that when I’m home, it seems I’m always trying to play catch up: rest (hope that actually happens someday!), housework, laundry, emails, etc. I’m still having a hell of a time trying to get into a routine with all this.

Then there’s the writer’s block. (Not only have I neglected my sites (realworldmom.com and thesaltymooch.com), but I haven’t posted on New Jersey Moms Blog or The AntHill in a while either.) I don’t know if it’s because I’m just so tired all the time, or I’m just having trouble switching gears back into ‘blogger mode’ when I have the chance, but I feel like I’ve just got nothing to write about!

The job still sucks ass, a little more now because it’s killing my back. I think I’m just too freaking old for this shit!

Haven’t registered for school yet, and I’m hoping it’s not too late.

I always feel like I’m not getting a damn thing accomplished, and that I’m just doing what I can to get through the day. What a crappy way to live…

Some good news too:  I was selected to become a member of cre8Buzz!’s  Buzz Board!  This, my friends, is very cool to me!

Anyway, I’m still alive, and hopefully I’ll be back–for real–soon!

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What is Open Blogging? According to my friend, Antman, Open Blogging is:

“Open Blogging is the use of one blog by an unlimited number of authors or contributors. Open Bloggin’, like the name suggests, is an open blogging platform where anyone from the blogosphere can post whenever and whatever they want. Open Bloggin’ changes the way blogs work by increasing the social networking interaction of bloggin’, providing more information, creating more robust dialog and feedback and offering more exposure to the authors. An Open Blog is full of energy as they are always on.”

Sounds like a pretty exciting concept, doesn’t it?

Where can you find this cool, new Open Blog? On The AntHill, of course–the internet’s first Open Blog! If you haven’t already, go see the great posts and interesting conversations for yourself!

What can The AntHill do for me? By writing posts on The AntHill, it not only gives you a larger audience of readers, it exposes you to people who may not otherwise hear of your blog! There is always new stuff being posted, and the discussions that follow are often informative, fun and an easy way to make connections with folks you may not come across anywhere else!

How can I join? Go to the sign up page and get started!

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“When one door of happiness closes, another opens; but often we look so long at the closed door that we do not see the one which has been opened for us.”
-Helen Keller

 

 

A friend recently reminded me of this quote, and, today, it seems appropriate to share it with all of you. One door has closed for me, so another has opened. And I plan on walking through it.

One year and a day after filing, I received my final divorce decree!

My first feeling upon reading the words, “And now, 8th day of May, 2008, it is ordered and decreed that Stacey D., plaintiff, and Husband D., defendant, are divorced from the bonds of matrimony,” was relief. After such a long, and sometimes bitter battle, it felt so good to have closure!

Then, somewhat to my surprise, I felt a little sad. I guess with everything he’s put me through, I just didn’t expect to experience any sadness. However, I also believe that it’s a normal reaction. I’ve known this man for 30 years (most of my life), and we were married for over 21 years. And, an ending, no matter how much you look forward to it, is still an ending. A passing of something.

I’m glad to be able to say I have no regrets about my decision. In my situation, a divorce was the only solution. And I do not feel as though I’ve failed either. I know that I gave my marriage my best effort, often when I felt I was the only one who was trying.

I will probably call my ex in the next few days to see how he’s doing. (Seems odd saying “my ex”, without prefacing it with “soon-to-be”.) As I’ve mentioned before, I do hope that he and I will be able to maintain some kind of friendship, not only for the kids, but for him and I too. Maybe it will be easier now that we are beyond the bullshit!

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Wishing all of my family, friends, readers and lurkers a very Happy Mother’s Day!

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If you’ve been reading my blog for any length of time, then you know my all-time favorite social networking site is cre8Buzz! One of the things that sets cre8Buzz! apart from the “other” sites is the true sense of community that you find there. I felt that the very first day I joined, and that feeling has only grown since. The Buzzers are genuinely nice, friendly and caring people. I’m proud to be a part of that!

cre8Buzz! launched a new feature recently, The Anthill. Once again, it is something that sets it apart from the rest! The Anthill is a community blog, where all members can post stories and comment. You will always find interesting, inspiring and fun discussions going on. Mashable even wrote about it HERE.

What are you waiting for? Stop by and meet the Antman! You won’t have to go looking for him, he’ll be one of the first to welcome you to cre8Buzz! Then I hope you’ll visit my page and let me know you’ve safely arrived at the Buzz!

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My daughter is a middle school student, and has just completed the third quarter of seventh grade. Once again, she earned honor roll! She has been on the honor roll every marking period since starting middle school. An accomplishment she is proud of, and, of course, so am I! Out of my four children, she is the only one who has done this, so I thought it might be interesting to interview her, and try to get a better understanding of just how she manages to do so well in school.

Q: How many times have you earned honor roll?
A: Seven so far.

Q: What is your secret to making honor roll so consistently?
A: Work hard at it; hand in work on time; pay attention in class; study; do my best.

Q: Is there any advice you can give other students who would like to be on the honor roll?
A: The kids in my class talk a lot, so I would say pay attention and hand in your work on time.

Q: How much time do you spend on homework each day?
A: For the most part, about 45 minutes.

Q: What do you like about being an honor roll student?
A: That teachers give me more respect than if I was a bad student, and I feel proud of myself.

Q: What are your goals for seventh grade?
A: I want to do well and get honor roll.

Q: What are your long-term goals?
A: To succeed, to get somewhere. I want to go to college and become an elementary school teacher. My older brother inspired me to be a teacher, along with the teachers I’ve liked and who were nice to me.

Q: What is your favorite subject in school?
A: English and math. I like math because I will need it for the rest of my life. I like English because I like to read and write.

Q: What is your least favorite subject?
A: Science. I don’t feel I get anything from it.

Q: How much do you think about school?
A: It depends what is going on–tests coming up, etc.

Q: How often to do you think about getting good grades?
A: A lot!

Q: What do you like best about school?
A: To learn.

Q: Least?
A: Waking up early.

Q: Any advice to teachers?
A: Don’t be mean. Make learning fun with hands-on type things, like drawing, etc.

Q: Do you have a lot of friends?
A: I wouldn’t say I’m popular, but I have as many as I need.

Q: What’s your favorite food?
A: Pancakes!

Q: Your favorite color?
A: Purple.

Q: Favorite holiday?
A: Christmas.

Congratulations, B, on being such an excellent student!  I’m very proud of you!  You are the best daughter a mom could ever hope to have–and you are such a caring, intelligent and loving young lady all rolled into one! I love you very much!!

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The fabulous Tammy from Mom Knows Everything tagged me for the “My Daily Routine” meme. So, here goes!

My Daily Routine

What time do you usually wake up?
Depends on the day and when/if I’m working. Usually somewhere between 7 and 9 a.m.

What is the first thing you do?
Say good morning to my Sweetie!

Breakfast?
Almost never.

Do you go to work/school?
Sometimes I work in the morning (sometimes in the afternoon). I will be going to school in September!

Do you like it?
The job? Not so much.

If you stay at home what do you do all day?
The days I am home, I spend most of my time on the computer–blogging, buzzing around cre8Buzz!, researching various things, etc. I do force in some cleaning and stuff too.

When’s lunch and what you eatin’?
If I’m at work, I usually don’t have lunch. If I’m home, I make sandwiches or heat-up leftovers for Tim and I (and Maddie).

What time do you get home from school/work?
Varies.

What do you do?
Currently, I’m a Customer Service Associate at a convenience store (which basically means I do a little bit of everything).

Dinner - when and what?
Tim and I are usually involved in a project(s), so we’re both pretty flexible about what time we eat dinner. When I’m on the ball, we eat about 6 p.m. What we eat depends on our mood, how hungry we are and what’s in the fridge/freezer.

What do you do to unwind?
Blog, take long bubble baths, read.

What is your favorite part of the day?
Morning: The first cup of coffee and firing up the computer. And bedtime: Snuggling in with Tim and being able to finally relax!

Who’s your favorite person to interact with?
Tim–damn good thing, too, huh? And my kids.

When’s bedtime?
Again, no hard and fast rules there. When I’m too tired to focus on the computer screen, it’s time to call it a night!

Who’s bedtime with?
My tech support guy, my best friend, my soulmate. Any guesses?

I’m not going to tag anyone, but feel free to play along if you’d like–and please let me know if you do!

*Reminder: Please go and vote for Madison (”The Salty Mooch”) HERE. You can vote once per day and the contest runs until the end of May! Thank you for your support!

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Madison’s photo, “The Salty Mooch”, is in a contest! If her photo wins, not only will she get a prize, $250 will be donated to a shelter or rescue organization of our choice!

Please take a moment to visit Animal Attraction and vote for Madison HERE! (You will need to complete a quick registration in order to vote.)

Madison (and me) thank you for your support!

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