Grandma get-away

October 29, 2012October 29, 2012Leave a comment

Which lady is over the age of 70? I know – the immediate answer is “none.” My sister-in-law and I are 40 and our kids haven’t quite aged us enough to look 70 (although we have our days). Whereas my mother-in-law, Patty, looks like she’s 40 with her infectious smile and petite frame and zest for life when she’s really 70+ years old! Every person who meets her is floored when they find out her age (do her genes transfer to me since I married into the family?!).

I’ve been thinking of her a lot lately because she’s been under the weather and has not been able to engage in all of the activities she is used to engaging in on a daily basis such as a mile swim, lifting weights and fast walking (yeah, all of those activities might occur in one day’s time.) She is a machine.

Nonetheless, she still managed to take Maria and Alana two weekends ago and treat them to a raucous good time in Marion. Before they headed up to Marion on Friday night, she took the girls to Tuttle Mall. They got treated to a shopping spree at Justice. She even let them shop by themselves while she and Joe waited outside the doors – pure heaven for the girls who felt independent and cool not having an adult in the store with them. Little does Patty know that she provided them with quite the memory; Maria still talks about that shopping experience today and insists that she will go by herself next time we go.

Patty also took them to the indoor playground where Maria took off her shoes and stunk up the place. My girl does not believe in wearing socks so her shoes smell horrendous. Patty had to buy her socks and clean her shoes. Poor grandma! She called me to tell me in her sweet Patty-fashion. She never comes at me accusatory or obnoxiously. She started out with a recap of what they did that evening and then proceeds into it like any other incident. But I knew at that point that we needed to get on that girl to wear socks. And don’t you know that Patty must have said something to her to get her to turn around because she is wearing socks this week. Only grandma….

Patty took them to a Halloween party in the neighborhood on Saturday night. She bought them witch costumes and all. Spoiled, they are. They both had a blast and talked about it throughout the next day. All of this and she wasn’t even feeling that great.

The day after the party, the hostess asked Patty if Ri had fun. Patty said “of course” and the hostess said “I just couldn’t tell with her.” Maria is her father when it comes to showing her emotions. She could be having a blast and you’d never be able to tell.

Patty also described to me how Alana kept talking about her school friend, Riley. Maria got sick of hearing about Riley every two seconds so when Alana began to mention her again, Maria chimed in with “we know, we know, Riley has that sweater!” And when Patty asked Maria if she wanted a shirt that she was buying for Alana because Riley had one, Ri promptly replied “no way.”

I don’t know how Patty stays sane at times with these two but I am so glad that the girls can spend time together (even if they act like the Bickerson twins, as Patty affectionately terms them). I always wished that my cousin and I spent more time together growing up. And it’s nice they have a separate place to stay outside of their homes – it creates more of a get-away to them. And Patty lets them do their thing – be it shopping by themselves or playing on the computer or hitting a Halloween party and running around with other kids.

Jon always teases me and Patty about our big mouths, our desire to always engage in conversation, and our inability to sit still. I tell him he married his mom. He shuts up after that.

I do see a lot of me in her. We have similar personalities and that’s why I just want to see her feeling back to her normal self. I know how hard it was when I got pneumonia and couldn’t do anything. I was stir-crazy. So, here’s to Patty feeling better – watch out YMCA – she will be back soon with a vengeance!

It’s a boy party!

October 26, 2012October 26, 2012Leave a comment

Mario got his first invitation to a boy friend’s birthday party this week. He got invitations when he was 2 and 3 years old but he is at an age now where he actually opens the invitation and mulls over whether to go or not. He’s gotten a few invitations from girls and declined but he jumped on this one from the neighborhood boy, Quinn.

He held the invitation behind his back and asked me “Mom, do you think I will ever get invited to a boy’s birthday party?” I knew what he was doing – he wanted me to say no so that he could surprise me and say that he finally got one. I obliged him with a “no” and he sprung the invite in my face and shouted “I got invited to Quinn’s and it’s at Galaxy Games and Golf! I can’t wait for a boy party!”

And boy he lapped that party up on Wednesday night. He was upset at first because he found out Maria was coming. “It’s a boy party, mom!” Then I explained how many parties of Maria’s that he came to and he surprisingly let it go without a fight. It didn’t matter that Maria was there anyway because he was off and running with the boys as soon as we stepped foot in the door. Luckily, Maria had a girlfriend at the party since her little brother was there, too (even though Ri could have showed those boys a few things!).

Mario loves loves loves playing with the boys. He loved football because he got to hang with the boys and wrestle and tackle and run. He loved Galaxy Games and Golf for the same reason – all of the boys ran and jumped and tackled each other. Like small jungle creatures. They’d stop for a quick drink and go back at it full speed.

Mario can go all day with just water. When they all gathered in the party room, Mario barely ate pizza and kept asking when they could go back on the playground. I forced him to eat a piece if he wanted cake and he grudgingly agreed. I can still use the “your muscles only get bigger if you eat” line on him to get him to eat because he is still into those muscles of his.

After pizza, they got to take their tokens and play games. Ri and Mario love to play games. Mario loves skeeball. Ri tries everything. Mario holds his tickets close to his side and won’t let me touch them. Ri gladly hands them to me to hold. Every time Mario won tickets, he’d run to me to show me and then run away scolding me not to follow him (can we say independent stage?!).

After 45 minutes of running around to fifteen different games in a space the size of your kitchen, we cashed in our tickets. Mario had 98. You gotta be kidding, I thought. Luckily for Galaxy Games’s sake, they round up so Mario got credit for 100. Ri got 150 due to my superb coin placing skills which I used to place a token into a 100 ticket slot. Of course, my magnanimous girl looked for things she could buy Mario with her 150 tickets but he was only interested in a plastic hammer for 100 tickets.

He proceeded to use it to bonk all of his boy friends. And they did it back to him. Ahh, sweet boys.

Maria got gel. Not sure it’s purpose but I don’t think it was for cooling seven-year old eyes.

When I first got the invite, I complained to friends about the party being at 5:30 to 7:30 on a weeknight. But by the end of the party, I realized what a good idea it was to have it at that time: 1. You don’t ruin weekend plans; 2. You don’t have to cook dinner; and 3. You have exhausted kids by 8 pm! Of course my two are insane night owls but at least the party got them to a point where they wanted to read a book and not jump on the bed all night.

Brain freeze

October 25, 2012October 25, 2012Leave a comment

Ri and I ditched the boys the other night and stopped at UDF for ice cream. They had a buy-one-get-one-free sale so there was no doubt we had to head there. They were out of my favorite peanut butter and chip so I had to go with cookies-n-cream and cherry cordial. Maria, as usual, took forever to decide a flavor.

She finally chose peanut butter fudge cups with chocolate sauce and whipped cream (the ice cream scooper knows my “only a little bit of chocolate syrup” look by now, thank god, because before that she was getting enough sauce to feed her classroom). We both dug into our deliciousness and we both pooped our heads up a few seconds later. Our eyes squinted.

We had brain freezes.

We laughed at one another’s goofy expressions and then Ri asked why we get brain freezes. It’s certainly handy in 2012 to have an iPhone on hand to research such questions. If I would have asked my mom that question in 1978, we would have had to go to the library (remember the card catalogs at the library?!) and research by using actual books. Ahhh! Maria looked at me like I was 100 years old when I told her that.

We found out that a brain freeze happens when the cold strikes the palate of your mouth which strikes your nerves which swells the blood vessels in your head which gives you a headache. What can you do to prevent it?

Eat more slowly.

Forget it, we decided we will deal with the pain.

Mario blooms

October 24, 2012October 24, 20123 Comments

A car drove past Mario and me while we biked to school this morning. I thought the guy driving was a colleague so when we biked past him, I waved. As I waved, I noticed that the guy was not my colleague and no one I knew. I said “that’s embarrassing, Mario. I just waved at that stranger.”

Mario’s reply: “No it’s not, mom. You probably made his day. He may have been sad and now he’s not.”

These are the moments where I realize that my kids have listened and seen me, and they have instilled some of my values in their lives. Mario has seen me say “hi” to people passing by, be pleasant to workers bagging our groceries, strike up a conversation with a gentleman waiting for a bus while we waited on our bike for the traffic light to change. He has witnessed the smiles on these people’s faces after someone smiles at them, says hello to them, engages with them. And he has heard me talk about the importance of being nice to others and how you can never know when someone just needs a smile to feel better.

And so he reminded me that I shouldn’t be embarrassed about waving to that stranger but rather feel happy that I may have made someone’s day and allowed them to see the randomness that is this life – be it a stranger waving at you or a bright red Autumn leaf falling on your shoulder or a child blooming right before your eyes.

Here come the O-O-Overbecks

October 22, 2012October 22, 2012Leave a comment

Two out of the four Overbeck kids arrived at our house on Sunday morning at 2 am. Laura and Cy tip-toed up the stairs to Mario’s room and fell asleep. Mario and Gio wanted to wake them up so badly at 7:30 am but I kept them away by promising them donuts and sprints at the track (sounds just like a Big Mac and a diet coke).

When we returned full of yeast and sugar and lactic acid, Laura was awake and watching football with Jon. Cy was still snoozing (17 year old boy for ya). When Cy finally woke up, Mario and Gio descended on him like flies on fruit. They jumped on him and wrestled him and dragged him to the basement to play Lego’s. He obeyed their every command and helped erect some sweet Lego structures.

We had to feed the 6’7″ cuz eventually so we headed to Skyline for some Cincy chili. Maria told Laura scary stories she heard at her party in Marion and Laura diligently listened to all of them. Mario told Cy about his football games (“we always win except one time we tied and the whole team was sad”). We chowed down at Skyline eating coney dogs and three-ways and mounds of oyster crackers. And we all could have went home and slept for four hours – that is, the adults could have. M&M were pumped to have their cousins around and clung to them like koalas to eucalyptus.

Laura took Maria to Target and Loews to buy cork board and supplies for a necklace holder. Cy stayed back with us and played hours of basketball with Mario. Only a high school basketball player could endure shooting hundreds of times with a five-year old. Mario loved having Cy watch his every move, and Cy treated him like a little brother. It was very sweet.

Laura and Ri brought both supplies and another Overbeck, Robert back to the house (the last Overbeck kid, Emily, is in Colorado and couldn’t fly back for the fun!). Mario got Cy and Robert to pal around with? What a day for the little man!

Maria got her Laura time – spray painting her cork board pink and preparing to liven up her room. Thank god for Laura and her crafting skill because I have none of it (check out her blog!). An hour later, Ri led me, eyes closed, to her room to check out the new necklace holder. What a kick-butt, bright pink, functional wall decoration. Laura rocks it out again.

After all that madness, the Skyline finally set in. Everyone got in relaxed mode (even M&M!) and settled down while Jon and I cooked dinner (yes, miracles do happen). Jon and I cracked up when we glanced into the living room only to see these high school macho boys watching the “Bodyguard” movie with Whitney Houston. They were all into it.

And just when our stomachs finally felt at peace, we were ready to eat again! Jon made soup with meat, spinach, onions and beans (we still need a name for it) and I made corn bread and scalloped potatoes. Jon kept pushing me to try the soup and when I finally did, he asked “do you like the meat?” I knew this was a different kind of meat at that point and just hoped it wasn’t squirrel.

But no, it was elk and it tasted good. Listen, my man doesn’t go to the grocery to buy meat; he goes out and hunts it down! Jon shot this elk last year in Colorado and we are still trying to eat up all the meat.

Maria did not have the same reaction. She put down her spoon after Jon’s declaration and stuck with the potatoes and bread (and lots of it!). Mario tried the elk and ate two pieces (a lot for him). He also battled the boys while they teased him about eating his food (any thing to try to get that boy to eat).

After dinner, we engaged in some pick up basketball. The boys laughed hysterically at the PIG game that Jon and I played. It was a pathetic sight, especially to two b-ball players. Laura couldn’t help but feel sorry for us.

The fun had to eventually end with school and work in the horizon, and so it did at 6:30 when the Overbecks plopped in their car and drove off. “That was fun, mom,” Maria said as she jumped in my arms. Yes, it was. Those Overbecks know how to bring it!

Maria-isms

October 21, 2012October 21, 2012Leave a comment

Maria stayed with Alana all weekend at Grandma and Grandpa Ionno’s house and got spoiled royally.

Jon and I missed her “Maria-isms” through the weekend. We can always count on her crazy sense of humor to get us belly laughing.

But she didn’t disappoint even if it was at the tail end of the weekend. I let her ride her bike to the grocery with me. As soon as we walked through the door, she begged me for a donut. I told her she could get a small one for her treat for the night. I left her at the donut case while I picked up some fruit. I returned and she was still contemplating.
“Seriously, Ri?!”

“Sorry, mom. This is as hard as picking a coach on the Voice!”

Gotta love that girl. I laughed so hard that others around me couldn’t help but smile.

When we got home, Maria found the stationary bike we carried to the basement this afternoon. She called up to me. I peeked downstairs and her head was on the seat, her body stretched along the length of the bike and her legs barely touching the pedals. She was laughing and having a good ol’ time.

I went back to the dishes and ten minutes later she whispered “mom” to me. I looked behind me and there she stood with a water bottle and towel. “That was a hard workout!”

Glad to have you home, pumpkin girl.

Picture of Ri

October 20, 2012October 20, 20123 Comments

I am in love with this picture of my daughter. I think it captures her spirit and all of its contradictions – darling and fearless; innocent and devilish; gregarious and contemplative; party animal and individualist.

Her pose and expression also reminds me of a famous actress but I can’t place her name. Someone from the 40’s? In any case, this picture is certainly getting framed as a black and white on my dresser. Sweet thing.

Mario my clown

October 20, 2012October 20, 2012Leave a comment

What other face can a boy exhibit when facing down a massive python?

This picture brought a huge smile to my face and reinforced in me the need to be silly in this life. Just let down your guard and let yourself laugh.

I can tend to be too contemplative at times thinking about the what we are going to do on the weekend, where I’m going to volunteer next, how we’re going to finish projects. It’s peaceful to let all of that go for even a minute and just fall over in laughter. Mario creates these moments for me with his antics. I’d be made of stone if I didn’t crack up at him.

I can’t wait to see what he comes up with at the gorilla exhibit.

Boys

October 19, 2012Leave a comment

“When I grow up I want to be a little boy.” – Joseph Heller

Gio descended on our house tonight and Mario and him have been moving and shaking ever since. They played guns in Mario’s room, fought dragons, and played Wii. All within 15 minutes. I calmed them down for a small amount of time with a science project in the kitchen. We made a volcano with baking soda and vinegar and food coloring. The boys thought it was cool for five seconds and then they dug their fingers into the hole of the volcano and scraped out the baking soda and food coloring in order to smear it on themselves. Really?!

Next, I had them color paper plates in order to make macarenas. They colored for about three minutes and were ready for the next project, which ended up being a concert for me. They crooned and played their instruments while I cheered them on in the basement. They actually performed for me for a good chunk of time. Impressive. Then they moved on to wrestling and pillow fighting, which was still going on an hour later. I guess they can handle long spurts of violent activity.

Dealing with boys is a 180 degree difference from dealing with girls. Maria and Alana would have been up in Ri’s room for hours before I saw them and then they’d have spent time coloring or playing a card game or watching a movie (they are loving life together at grandma’s and grandpa’s house this weekend).

At 9 pm, I put on Spider-Man for the boys and they still jumped all over each other.
I want that energy.
Now.
Can I usurp it from them?
They just keep going and going and going. I realized that the only thing that settles them down is feeding them a bunch of junk so they get lazy from full stomachs. We brought out the Pringles and sugar after a bit. They looked like little old men eating in their beanbags.

The Pringles did the trick.

I have a bit of fear in my blood about a full day with these young men tomorrow. My desire to get out and stay active will undoubtedly be met but will it come at the cost of a headache from popping around all over the place? I’m tempted to rent a bouncey house and let them jump in it all day while I rake the leaves and listen to NPR. But then I’d miss out on the concerts and the science fairs and I just can’t bear that thought even with as exhausted as they make me.

Parenting Advice – Show the Love

October 18, 2012October 18, 20122 Comments

A friend forwarded this Article to me this morning. It reinforces one of my strongest beliefs as a parent: always show kids constant love and support, and don’t freak out over superficial crap. I love Toni Morrison’s story in the article. Greet your child with a smile, a hug, an “I love you” before anything else. Foster joy and wonder and commitment.

I remember scouring over parenting books when I was pregnant with Maria and reviewing the same books when pregnant with Mario. Deep down, I think I knew their limitations. They acted more like a security blanket for me as I approached being a new mom. But I remember also rolling my eyes while reading the books and thinking “they really believe they can pinpoint every move a mom should make with a child?”

One of my biggest pet peeves is self-righteousness, and a lot of articles espouse advice as if it’s the golden rule. You don’t follow it, and boy, you are a horrid parent. But this article reinforces the importance of the intangibles in childrens’ lives – the kiss on the forehead when they are heading off to school, the dance party you start up while listening to Bieber, the pat on the back when they find their shoes on their own (and in this family, that merits at least one Oreo with the pat!).

"MOM!"

Adventures in the Life of a Working Mama