Little Dude, Big Pimpin'

Let me start by saying that when we say "pimping" we don't use it in its literal meaning, ours is more of the slang definition which means to look cool, act cool, or anything that makes you stand out above the rest in a particular arena.....now that the housekeeping is done, I'll get to the story.

Anybody that knows D knows that he's a cool guy who is always in pursuit of situations and/or things --material or otherwise -- that will contribute to make him or his surroundings "fresh, smooth, or pimping." From his clothes to his golf swing and especially his sneakers. Ever since J was small D would go out and buy him things to put him in one of the aforementioned categories.

He likes to joke that I treat M like a doll that I like to play dress up with, but he's the exact same way, not only with J but with M now too. The other day when he had her by himself he dressed her up in an adorable Nike getup that he bought for her. He put boots on her feet and a ribbon in her hair off he went into the streets of Olympia in search of props about his daughter. He was pretty much "pimping" out his little girl in return for compliments.

So, it should come as no surprise that with all of this fresh-smooth-pimping attitude, J was going to inherit a little bit of it himself.

Fast forward to yesterday....when we got home from Baby Gym, for some reason J's Mickey Mouse shirt came off w/ his jacket leaving him with only black sweats and a black T-shirt. As the time neared to go to school I told him to put on his MM shirt over the black one, which begs the question: Why, so I can look like a pimp?

And there you have it....fashion tips from the Pimp Style Guru himself. When in doubt, just add a Mickey Mouse shirt and instantly your day will get a lot more interesting.

Carry On.

Hair Don't Comes Full Circle

I should have listened to the hairdresser that told me that kids don't cooperate with their parents when scissors and hair are involved, but at the urging of my loving husband I decided to try it anyway.

She was so good at first. Sat in her high chair and let me part it and clip back the portion that is soon to be her cute bob.

And then, just like that, as soon as I went in for the first cut, she moved her head and it all went downhill from there.

So now we're back to the dreaded Hair Don't she had the first few months of her life. We used to call it a Mulhawk because it was part mullet part Mohawk. She lived with that do for several months and then her hair started coming in and growing. A few months later she was actually getting compliments on her hair.....it was adorable without even trying.

Enter Daddy and his "concern" that her hair was in her eyes. I understand the frustration firsthand for I too have grown out bangs numerous times. I bought clips to no avail. As soon as she got wind of one she would pull it out. So I gave in and took her to Jack and Jill's for her very first haircut which turned out to be just a little cut of the bangs that set me back $16.

I can do that, I thought. And last night I tried....poor little M. I was so angry at first. At D for his insistence and at myself for one, falling prey to it and second because I'm the one that had the scissors in the hand that caused it. And then just like that I realized that it's only hair. In a few weeks it will grow back a little, a couple of months from now we'll never know what happened, and those little dreaded clips, she's been keeping them in today. It's like she knows they are now her best friends. It doesn't hurt that M is adorable and she could be bald and still be beautiful.

So, the Hair Don't has come full circle and so have my cosmetology days. I'm hanging up the scissors and going to the ATM instead.

And What Else?

Last night after I put M to bed J told me that he wanted to chill with me, so we sat on the couch under the covers and began to watch the World Series. I started to tell him that he was a wonderful son; a good boy; and that I was really proud of him the other day at school when I volunteered. The compliments kept coming but as soon as he noticed a lapse in the flow, he inquired, "And what else?"

Well, let's see: He's adorable, funny, smart, a little loud and crazy sometimes, cuddly, thoughtful -- one of his favorite things to say is, "I made this for you because I thought you would like it."

And what else? At the start of the school year he really took a liking to a girl named Olive who was happy to bask in the attention at first but quickly had enough. She then began dictating when he could sit next to her on the bus and when he could play with her during recess. At his conference with his teacher she informed us that he's happy to comply whenever she decides. It made my blood boil and yet he didn't cry or whine about it. He takes rejection in the most gracious way I've ever seen. Like the little man he is he kept his head high and continued on. We should all be so blessed with the ability to turn a blind eye to the pride that so often gets in the way of the real destination we seek. I know he's only five, but the lesson wasn't lost.

As of now, I think the obsession is behind him and that's what prompted the compliment of how he acted at school the other day. I'm so proud of the way he handled the situation.

And what else?

JK: M, do you like me?
MK: (Inaudible response.)
JK: M, do you like me?
MK: (Shaking her head) huh-uh.
JK: Okay. Then go find another brother to play with.

This was a one-sided conversation that I witnessed this morning. It was so funny and just shows his witty sense of humor. (Note: M responds with the shake of the head and huh-uh to just about everything even if she really means uh-huh.)

And what else? On our walk home from the bus stop yesterday he fell behind me a few steps, when I turned around he had a dandelion in his hand and a huge toothless smile on his face. I asked him if he picked a flower, assuming it was for me, and then I realized that the older neighbor girls were close by and decided to ask if it was for one of them. He said, "It's for you. Because I thought you would like it."

And you know what else? I did.