- This week has reaffirmed for me that somehow, the coolest women on the planet have come together from the four corners of the world to read this blog [this is not on account of the quality of the blog. Rather, it is coincidental.]. Seriously. I am convinced that I could be friends with EVERY SINGLE ONE OF YOU.
- In fact, I want to meet. Maybe we should plan a retreat or some nonsense – right in the middle of America – where we could get together and party and pretend we don’t have children for like a week. Err, I mean, “scrap book about our kids.” I mean it though. The baby sprinkle comments blew my mind. Big love.
- Speaking of big love, the freaking bird went away for 2 days. Then it returned. Of COURSE I haven’t actually done any of your brilliant suggestions, because I never get anything actually DONE, you know, proactively. I’m more into surviving. You know, getting through the day.
- My home is once again at that state where every single room is destroyed, every closet filled to the brim, every cupboard overflowing, every drawer not shutting, every corner full of shit we don’t need.
- SOMEBODY, PLEASE. Please help me. I can’t take it anymore.
- Along those same lines (of not being able to take it anymore), in the past 3 days I’ve had two women – count ’em TWO – say to me…”Have you heard about that ‘attachment parenting’ thing? It’s INSANE. Horrible thing. I read all about it in Time Magazine.” These women asked me about this in two totally different contexts. Completely unrelated. The first time I heard it, I attempted to give a little perspective on the matter (basically explaining that Time misconstrued and demonized AP). But to the second lady I just mumbled incoherently, realizing suddenly that Time Magazine is not the problem.
- The problem is that people derive their opinions from a crap magazine about one millimeter more reliable than the tabloids, believing [because it’s shiny and looks real and official] every word they read, soaking up its perspective as if it were their own, figuring “it must be true,” letting long-dormant critical thinking skills sink deeper into the cracks of their hardly-used brains. Oh my God that wasn’t nice. But I’m sick of the SHEEP PEOPLE THE SHEEP.
- People want to be told what to believe. As Ava said the other day…”I’m coming to the conclusion that pretty much nobody thinks.” She was referring to her friends at school. I am referring to the general population.
- I’m beginning to think that the only thing schools should teach is critical thinking. That should be it. And maybe reading. Reading and thinking. Hey students, THINK FOR YOURSELVES. Don’t derive an opinion based on one source. Question everything. Analyze it all. Do your own research. Think, fucker, THINK.
- But I digress. Back to this week. Yesterday we went to a lavender farm where we cut our own lavender. I love lavender. We took pictures. Rocket and Ava loved it. Georgia, not so much. She was acting like demon spawn. Cute demon spawn, but still.
disgruntled for no apparent reason. I get that.
picking lavender
Check out the bow people. I adore her.
ARE YOU KIDDING ME? Look at that boy
Meagan Philpott
Monday, 11 June, 2012 at 17:22I love love love your blog, I check everyday to see if you have a new post. I feel like I know your kids. I love your wit and your outlook on life and parenting. Please keep it coming!
P.S. Are your Canadian fans invited to the “scrapbooking” retreat? 🙂
Lizaelha
Tuesday, 12 June, 2012 at 0:14WOOHOO! Another Canadian wanting to be invited! Invite us too!
Dawn
Monday, 11 June, 2012 at 17:27Thinking and reading. Two subjects. Excellent.
Brandon
Monday, 11 June, 2012 at 17:38Math is probably good too because it lays the groundwork for deductive reasoning. So Reading, Critical Thinking and Math. All the other subjects are just time fillers. This is why I took film class my senior year of high school. Well that and because I wanted to watch movies after lunch.
Megan
Monday, 11 June, 2012 at 17:45I feel like I just learned to think for myself after two kids and at the ripe age of 25.
Jenn KD
Monday, 11 June, 2012 at 18:44I find your blog commenters to be a hidden place of cool peeps! Magic things might happen if we all met.
Up next… you MUST do a post on the Gender Reveal Parties too. It’s so nice to know I’m not alone in my bewilderment at all things insane.
annie
Monday, 11 June, 2012 at 19:18Those Stupid women. And stupid time magazine. I don’t think people say ‘I’m going to be an attachment parent.’ I think it just sort of happens… it happened to me because I’m a.) Lazy and b.) I prefer quiet to screaming and crying and c.) I tend to not give a shit what doctors or the general public says and just go with my gut.
You are great by the way. Thanks for writing.
jackie
Monday, 11 June, 2012 at 19:28For some reason the term “attachment parenting” just brings up all sorts of ooooo-gleee emotions. I mean, the first time I heard of it I was all like “ooh, unicorns and rainbows, that sounds awesome!” but now, I don’t know. Maybe I feel like there were things I wanted to do that I didn’t do or couldn’t do? But more than anything, I guess I ran into too many pretentious, bitchy-ass moms who espouse AT, and not only did I despise their other parenting choices, but I found whatever AT things they did, I had to seriously consider the opposite. I know, intense emotions. Either way, the end result was reading something a while back (was it your blog?) that was actually poking fun at its critics, but nonetheless, here goes. That term, it implies that some parents are “attached” to their kids. This really hit home when I was recently in the doc’s office explaining for the umpteenth time to a different person how I was separated at birth from my baby and blahblah traumatic, blahblah. His response? “wow, no, that’s bad. I mean, even cracked out, street women, totally high on something, they know, that’s THEIR baby!” Yeah, like, seriously, besides someone seriously experiencing PPD, who DOESN’T feel attached to their munchkin and do whatever they can for them, within their own capabilities. The term is just one of total, utter obvious-ness isn’t it? For lack of my own better term? What does a parent, like me, cal myself as a non-AT mom? A detached mom? Like for real, pick a different name, or better yet, just call yourself “mom”. How’s that? Oh yeah, not pretentious. Phew, end of rant. thanks for listenin’ luv;)
kim
Monday, 11 June, 2012 at 20:23My next tattoo will read: THINK, FUCKER, THINK.
Char Klassen
Monday, 11 June, 2012 at 20:27“Ba, Ba….” echoing in my head. Yes, I remember thinking (in college) how did I miss this critical thinking stuff? Oh- yeah…it wasn’t taught. Your big girl Ava is rocking it with her questions…dig it.
The Gym B***h
Monday, 11 June, 2012 at 20:30OMG. I think I love Jackie. Can I be a non-attached parent too? WTF?
The comment policy by the way is hilarious.
I’m not sure it’s just critical thinking. Some people are innately leaders and some are followers. I have a very intelligent, well-educated sibling who is a complete follower. Believes what he hears on the radio. Hook, line and sinker. Totally capable of parsing out difficult concepts. BUT, he has always been a follower since being a little kid, thus being more inclined to believe what others say.
That being said, my mom, 73 years old, heard the priest say during mass when she was 7 freaking years old that babies who die due to miscarriage go to purgatory and don’t know God. 7 years old people, and she thought to herself, that’s a bunch of horse poop. 7 years old, brought up in a devout Catholic environment, Catholic schools and in 1946 and yet she thought it was bullshit. Innate. I question that it’s innate.
J — will you explain attachment parenting the next time we meet? I just thought I was supposed to try my damndest to do right by my kids every ______ day. My bad.
BTW, I’m up for the road trip. In fact, I’ll drive. Can we pick up my cousin in MN? She’s an amazing “scrapbooker.”
xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox
Penny
Monday, 11 June, 2012 at 21:57Drives me crazy that people can’t think for themselves (but you knew that)…..
I call it heard intelligence. The general population is just waiting to be told what to think and how to act instead of figuring it out for themselves. If it wasn’t for a few good thinkers, the stupid people would have died out a long time ago. Just kidding… (not really.)
Molly
Monday, 11 June, 2012 at 23:21You look so pretty Janelle 🙂 And Georgia looks like the cutest demon spawn I have ever seen!
Deanna
Tuesday, 12 June, 2012 at 2:11Well now, if Ava’s comment isn’t worthy of being put on a Subversive Cross-stitch I’ll eat my hippie attached-parenting shoe. (Not really. It’s covered in smug.) (Kidding.)
Deanna
Tuesday, 12 June, 2012 at 2:12My shoe is covered in smug, I mean. Not Ava. God. English fail.
Marisa
Tuesday, 12 June, 2012 at 6:31I’m totally down with a “scrap-booking” retreat. I think we should get a huge RV and drive to our destination picking up everyone we can along the way.
My little one does similar things like Georgia, you would think she would love frolicking in the lavender, but no, clinging to mom and being grouchy sounds much better! Maybe she would have really loved a strawberry farm?
Ava is awesome! Before becoming a mama, I was teaching 4th grade. I wanted my students to critically think. Come to their own conclusions about things. This really confused a lot of them. They wanted to know what the “real” answer.
Paige
Tuesday, 12 June, 2012 at 8:47your kids are so lucky (by the way, almost typed clucky, which probably works too) that you can do things like take them to pick lavender. I would die in an itchy, boogery mess on the ground if I tried to do that. maybe by the time I have kids, they (you know… the ominous they) will have developed some kind of once a year shot that makes all alergies go away. then I could eat pineapple and roll in fields of lavender all the live long damn day.
also, I’m continually blown away by the things Ava says. she’s so aware. it’s amazing.