I apologize for the long post, but it’s all about me, so…

So here’s the excitement.  Tea over at unsweetened tea, is a blogger I recently discovered when I joined a group of mom bloggers.  Now I have said in the past that I am more of a life blogger but Noah is included in my life because I birthed him, so…I also recently took down a jillion blogs about him so that a certain person won’t be able to know what he’s up to or what he looks like, but I do include him in blogs, and most of my life experiences are related to him.  Tea is awesome.  She makes me laugh because she’s real sarcastic so she fits right into my world.  Also, she’s super top-secret.  She has no name and lives nowhere and her loved ones don’t have names either.  Head over to her place and see what I mean.  She’s awesomesauce.

So why all the hullabaloo about Tea?  Well she gave me an award like a week ago or something and I have yet to acknowledge it to my fans or act on it because of this event called Spring Break that kept me running from appointment to appointment with no rest.  Break my ass.  Where was I?  Oh yes, my award.  First of all, it’s called a Liebster Award, and I have no idea what it means.  I only know that you must have less than 200 blog followers, which Tea totally assumed about me.  I may have 500.  Then again I may just have dozens altogether, including the bloggers.

So what am I supposed to do with this award (no, I can’t just keep it.  There are rules to accepting it)?  Let me list the rules, some of which I won’t follow because I’m not always a rule follower as a rule.

Rules of the Liebster Award

1. List 11 facts about yourself.
2. Answer the 11 questions given to you.
3. Ask 11 new questions for the bloggers you nominate for the award.
4. Chose 11 bloggers with 200 or less followers to nominate.  How would I know how many they have?
5. Go to each blogger’s page and let them know about the award.
6. Thank the person who nominated you and link back to their blog.
7. No track backs (which I don’t understand anyway).

So the thing is, anyone I nominate will get mad at me and not be my bloggy friend anymore because over the years we’ve all received one award or another.  I’m sorry for breaking the rules.  I hope Tea will still be my friend.

Let’s start with the most important thing:

THANK YOU TEA FOR THIS AWESOME AMAZING AWARD!  I’M VERY GRATEFUL AND I’M GONNA FIND YOU, TEA.  I’M GONNA TRACK YOU DOWN.

Facts About Me

1. When I was growing up, even in high school, I never aspired to be a doctor or lawyer or famous cabaret singer.  All I ever wanted to be was a housewife and mother.  I had no desire to get a degree first, either.
2. I take 9 pills at bedtime to keep away the crazy.
3. I’m not really fond of other people’s’ kids.  When they’re babies and toddlers I like them but once they can talk I’m kind of over it.  On the other hand I want my nephews to live me but I can’t think of how I could get away with murdering my sister and brother-in-law. Plus I really need my sister.
4. Even when I hate her, my sister is my favorite person in the whole world (besides Noah, duh).
5. Puppy breath is one of my favorite scents.
6. Hot Joe is another favorite.
7. I hate Diane.  She calls two or three times a week from a different number and yells, “Hi! It’s Diane” and then proceeds to tell me about a different company.  This is all on recording and I can’t’ officially hang up until she’s done.  I’m going to find that bitch and yell, “Hi! It’s Kim.  I sell Scentsy!” right in her face.
8. Noah’s braces are coming off probably in July.  We’ll be done paying for them in September.  That irks me.
9. I’m typing this instead of working because there is no work.  That irks me too.
10. I am an Instawhore, and about 10 of Noah’s friends follow me and like all of my pictures.  Which are mostly of the dogs.  Or wine.
11. I tweeted my ex’s wife, who apparently lives in Bel Aire, asking, “Are there trailer parks in Bel Aire?  If you live there can’t you afford the back support fatty owes me?

So now I have to answer Tea’s questions about me, which so totally doesn’t scare me at all:

1. What’s the most recent thing you purchased?  Feminine hygiene products.  Maybe you shouldn’t have asked.
2. What’s the most important electronic item you own?  Hmmm…I’m inclined to say my iPhone but I can’t blog on my iPhone…okay my work computer.  Has to be that because how else would I work, right?
3. What’s your favorite guilty pleasure TV show?  “Kim and Kourtney take Miami” and anything else Kardashian related.  I love those heavily made-up and spray tanned Kardashians.  They are so rich, and for no apparent reason that I can decipher.  Kourtney has 2 kids by her boyfriend who isn’t allowed to sleep in her bed.  Khloe is married to a professional basketball player (puh-lease) and Kim is pregnant with Kanye’s baby but still isn’t divorced from HER professional basketball player.  And Kim is SO DUMB.  She’s like Jessica Simpson dumb when she had her reality show.  Love it.  Oh how I love it.
4. Which book are you currently loving?  None.  I got three from the library.  One was odd, the other two are fluff.  My favorite books every are “Outlander Series” by Diana Gabaldon.
5. Best piece of advice you have been given?  Breathe.
6. Pop up toaster or toaster oven?  Pop up.  Hands down.
7. Have you ever wanted a non-traditional pet?  Hell to the no.
8. How do you take your coffee?  Decaffeinated (don’t ask) with sugar-free flavored creamer.
9. Which movie villain would you be for a day, and why?  Yeah, I wouldn’t want to be a villain, because I am WAY too nice of a person and I just couldn’t shift like that (seriously, I’m that nice).
10. Chinese or Mexican?  Are you kidding me?  Mexican for lunch and dinner every night please.  And Frosted Mini Wheats for breakfast (even though you didn’t ask).
11. Which post from your blog are you most proud of and why?  Easy Peasy.  The Newest Silent G.  This post describes what happened leading up to the happiest day in the Pugliano household

And with that, I complete my super-long post and thank all of those who read it to completion.

 

Living with a middle-school teenager has its ups and downs.  And ups.  And downs.  And then downs and then ups again followed soon by another up and then a little extra up and then a down.

Do you get it?

My mom used to tell me, “I love you Kimberly, but I don’t like you very  much right now.”  I get it.  Oh wow do I ever get it.

It’s really hard because we love Noah very much but sometimes he makes it difficult to even be in the same room with him.  I mean I will seriously pack up my stuff and go to the bedroom just because he’s being such a brat or he won’t sit still or I’ve had words with him and he laughs at me.

All that being said, I often worry that he doesn’t feel loved enough.  Yes, after every butthead moment he has, he approaches me and apologizes and tells me he doesn’t really want to live with Gramma or wish he was Auntie’s son and then he kisses and hugs me and I feel even more annoyed but very relieved because a part of me does worry that he wishes he belonged to someone better.

We have come up with two ways in this household to say, “I love you” that come at random times completely unexpected, and mean more than the kiss hello or “I love you” goodbye.

One

The first started with Noah at the beginning of December.  He went on this weekend mission leaving post-it notes all over the house, some directed to and hidden from me directly, others for Hot Joe, and the remaining were totally random.  They kept popping up totally unexpected and it was the most fun ever.  Some professed his love for us.  Some said, “So you finally found me, huh?” or “What are you doing here?”  Hot Joe’s favorite was, “Call me,” which he did.  He dated them all.  There was one note I could not find for the life of me, and it was driving me nuts.  Noah told me it wasn’t in either bedroom, but I still couldn’t find it.  Finally, in mid-January, he put an end to the madness and showed me where it was hidden.

“Noah did not make this. (Or did he?)” 12/5/12

I use that container every single day but I never ever turn over the lid.  I pick it up, pull out a cotton ball and replace the lid.  Brilliant!!!

Two

This one I came up with, inspired by Jamie with Chosen Chaos.  I have only just started it and I only direct it towards Noah, because Hot Joe doesn’t need inspirational quotes that say, “Hammer hard!” or “Keep up the good sawing!”.  Jamie used to keep a blog, but with her two boys, smaller twin girls and her busy life she has scaled back now and simply blesses us with her Weekend Wisdom when she can.  These are awesome quotes that she finds which almost always align perfectly with my life situation.  I love them.  I emailed her asking her for help to find quotes that I could send to Noah to lift his spirits or remind him he can do anything and he is awesome and she said she has some great resources for me.  In the meantime, I found a website filled with positive quotes.  I downloaded an app on my phone that has cool backgrounds and fonts for me to write the quote/inspiration and every morning after dropping him at school I send him the text.  He got the first but didn’t say anything and didn’t get the second, which I showed him.  After that second text, I could see how happy it made him.  I’ll keep sending him one a day, rain or shine, good mood or bad.  I hope he sees the love in them.  Come to think of it, I will have to add that to each message.

     “I love you.”

Today’s message

I can’t sleep.  Yes, it’s only 9:59, but ordinarily I’m jerking awake, putting my book aside, closing my glasses in the case, turning off the light, and rolling onto my side so Luke can adjust himself to the back of my legs and Snickers between my feet.  Then I reach down to give Allie one final pet before falling back to sleep.

Tonight I lie on the couch, TV still on, full glass of wine three-fourths gone, Allie at my feet and Luke probably with Noah.  Noah still has a horrific cough productive of possible signs of infection, and he’s been getting nose bleeds once per hour.  I may have to call the doctor after all tomorrow, but that would result in more missed school.  Maybe I’ll just go the urgent care route.  Hot Joe has developed the beginnings of what Noah has and was in bed by 7:00 tonight with a still-dry cough that takes his breath away.  So far he has managed to avoid a fever, although he has experienced the freezing sensation that usually precedes a fever, so maybe he had one during the day when I couldn’t check on him and somehow avoided the usually inevitable night fever.

When Hot Joe went to bed he told me he had taken the last Advil Congestion.  When I put Noah to bed I gave him the last of the Mucinex.  Walgreens and CVS are closed.  Ralph’s is open until 1:00 a.m. but I’ve almost finished a glass of wine.  So now what?  Neither of my two loves have medicine for tomorrow.  Granted, my husband has ibuprofen and acetaminophen but that will only help if he has a fever.  A headache may not be touched by those if it’s caused by congestion.

What do I do?  Do I chance the half-mile drive?  Do I sleep on the couch and let my husband rest in peace while I get up every hour to pee and let myself rest in case he has a case of the coughs that start at his toes and leaves him short of breath?  Do I climb into bed so he doesn’t feel bad, worried that he’s keeping me up when in reality I don’t want to disturb him?

GOOD NEWS!

I have just done a quick check and the CVS opens at 7:00 a.m.  Ralph’s is much, much closer and open at 6:00 but I think my chances of finding what I need are higher at an actual pharmacy.  So tomorrow (or today for the majority of you reading this) I shall heroically get up when I hear my husband stirring and run to CVS to pick up all of the pharmaceuticals my family could possibly need, including cough drops (thinking ahead).

I have no headache, I’m not cold, none of my muscles ache, my throat doesn’t hurt and I haven’t coughed, so I feel confident that I will be avoiding the illness that has struck down my family, although if I were to get it, right now would be good since I don’t work Friday or Saturday.  Funny, I’m the one kissing and squishing and touching and sharing the space of Noah while he’s sick.  Hot Joe’s at work.  Yet HE is the one who got sick.  The carpenter, who does really intense strong manly things all day with a belt of heavy tools around his waist and comes home with a white face in the shape of goggles and the rest of his face dark with dust.

And he got sick.

But I shall heal him.