S.A.D. and a few of My Favorite Things

After reading a list of my sister-in-laws favorite things, I was inspired to make my own (please see adaptation below.) Unfortunately, I came to realize that I have SAD – seasonal affective disorder, a disease in which the seasons affect what exactly my favorites are. This is not to be confused with Seasonal Effective Disorder, in which the season determines how effective I am at completing my chores. Being Spring almost Summer – my favorite dessert, hands down, is strawberry shortcake. I could eat if for Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner (and all the snacks in between.) This is in direct conflict to a response I gave a few months ago – brownies and ice cream. It occurred to me this morning that fresh fruit is simply satisfying in the warmer temperatures, but chocolate never fails to warm the soul in the colder temps. I also suffer from SAD in regards to my favorite seasons, i.e., I love Spring in the Winter, I love Summer in the Spring and I look forward to those cool fall nights (that are perfect to camping) in the Summer. I will have to say that I NEVER love the winter. Like my sister-in-law, I too love the smell of freshly cut grass, but I’m not so sure I have that passion when it’s too cold for it to have grown, and in the summer when it is too hot and dry for it to not have grown. Then my favorite smell is grilling – hamburgers (sorry, but no hot dogs), vegetables. And also freshly picked tomatoes from the garden. I could go on and on, so:

My Favorite Things (an adaptation)

Pesto and Pasta and pink watermelon
Freshly cut grass and then spring’s flow’ring bushes
Amer-i-cone Dream from Ben & Jerry’s
These are a few of my favorite things

Kisses from Maxwell and warm choc’late brownies
Blake’s hugs and Jack’s hugs and snugglin’ with hubby
Tiff’nys blue boxes tied up with white ribb’ns
These are a few of my favorite things

‘Pride and Pre-ju-dice’ and weddings and Gucci
Piano Performance and classical music
Photos that capture the mem’ries loved best
These are a few of my favorite things

When I miss Mom
When my kids hurt
When I'm feeling sad
I simply remember my favorite things
And then I don't feel so bad.

Neti-Pot Humor.

Dear Charles,

Thank you for not getting me a neti-pot for Christmas. I have decided that they are devices of torture. In fact, I think they should rename them "Naughti-Pots." Did Mom ever threaten you with "rinsing your mouth out with soap?" Well, she threatened me with it and on at least one occasion (here's hoping I wasn't so stupid I let it happen more than the one time), she went through with it (don't worry, I definitely deserved it.) However harrowing that "soap" experience might have been, it was nothing to the "Neti-Pot" experiment I inflicted upon myself this afternoon. As I was cleaning myself up from the disaster, I couldn't help thinking that parents ought to start threatening their children with the "naughti-pot" rather than the soap, for two very good reasons. First and foremost, you can justify doing this to your children because it does have actual medicinal purpose, in that it cleanses the sinuses. Second, no child will ever forget the experience; upon reflection, it seems easier to spit something out of one's mouth (you can take certain measures to hide or get rid of the taste in your mouth, but I can't really recommend sticking anything else up your nose), rather than inhale saline solution through one's nose (which invariably also ends up in your mouth and you still have to spit it out, as well as avoid tasting the disgusting drip that is dripping - at an alarming rate - out of your nose.) Henceforth, I will now threaten my children with "Do you want me to rinse out your nose with the Naughti-Pot?" whenever their behavior becomes unmanageable. I think it might just work! So while it might have been a thoughtful gift, you should probably reserve it for baby shower gifts (please include a new set of instructions as a "naughti-pot.") Otherwise, I fear your giftee might think you actually have negative intentions toward them. At this point, I am ranking the "neti-pot" as number three on the worst-gift list, third only to rectal thermometers (you know who you are) and enema equipment. I hope for the sake of your lovely fiancee, that you will kindly take the advice from this letter and not give your future wife a "neti-pot" for her birthday, and certainly not for Valentine's Day, anniversaries or any other "romantic" occasion. Hope all is well with you in sunny Seattle.

With warmest regards, your loving sister,

Erin

p.s. Now that I have had a chance to recover from the trauma of pouring fluid down my own nose, I am thinking that it really wasn't all that bad. In fact, I am pondering doing it again. How soon is too soon?

p.p.s. Although watching this helpful video was like watching aliens in a horror film, this is not at all how it played out in my bathroom at home!

Trampoline vs. granite countertops

I wanted to buy the boys a trampoline for Christmas, instead we installed granite countertops. Now that the weather has become nice, we finally got the trampoline. This pretty much sums it up: