Sonny Days

I think it's so funny that as parents, we spend so much time and energy in the early years teaching our children to talk... and then we get to the point where we just want them to be quiet!

Actually, that's not totally true for me. I never really spent anytime teaching Sonny Boy to talk. He's just naturally gifted in that area.

Seriously.

Not to be all bragging Mom on you guys, but my son was talking very well by 10 months of age. At his 2-year check up, his doctor asked me if he had at least 30 words in his vocabulary. I had to laugh, because in reality he had well over 300. When he was in preschool, a doctor guestimated that his vocabulary was at about the 6th grade level. The child knows how to talk. And he does it non-stop.

I should have had a clue when even in his ultrasound pictures he always had his mouth open, lol. And with a mother named Gabby, the poor kid never stood a chance!

Only now his gift has turned into a problem. Yes, he talks all the time at home. Yes, he has an opinion about everything. But when it starts to get in the way of his education... there my friends, I must draw the line.

You see, it's like this. He talks in class. He distracts other kids. He doesn't get his OWN work finished. He gets in trouble at school for it. He LIES to Hubster and I about getting in trouble at school. And then he gets in trouble at home as well.

He's currently grounded for aproximately the next 3 years. Or maybe it's 3 days. Who can keep track?

Now, some of you might be saying that it's only talking. It could be a lot worse, right? And I don't disagree with that. Is talking in school the worst thing he could be doing? No, absolutely not. Not by a long shot. He could be biting the teacher, and beating the crud out of the other kids. He could be setting the classroom on fire. He could be doing a lot of things that I am ever so grateful he's not doing.

But... the fact remains that the talking is creating a serious problem. Especially because he's lying to us about it. I mean, the kid is only 7 years old! Who know what kind of ground work his behavior right now is laying for his future. By the time he graduates from highschool, the kid could be a criminal. Or worse, a politician!

The thing about Sonny Boy is that he has never been easy. From the moment he came into the world (8 days late, and a boy instead of the girl we were expecting!), he has always had to do things in his own way. He has a very strong personality, and people tend to have pretty extreme reactions to it. They either love him or hate... and we've had both ends of the spectrum as far a teachers go. We're talking about the child that was very nearly kicked out of preschool.

Preschool.

But on the other hand, he has so many great qualities. He's bright, and funny, and can be very sweet. He's an amazing big brother, which makes up for A LOT in my book. Yes, he's strong minded, but I think that can be a good thing. He's not easily swayed by what other's think or do. He's incredibly charismatic, and I think he has a lot of great leadership qualities. Plus, as all the 7 year old girls in the neighborhood will tell you, he's super cute.

All in all, I think he has the makings of an amazing adult. If we make it that long.

I just have NO idea what to do with him in the meantime!

Any ideas, friends? I'm open to suggestions! (And also to fostering him out if any of you want him, lol.)

Toodles 'til next time,

Gabby

P.S. If you have a minute, I'd love for you to leave a comment. What do you like or dislike about this blog so far? Gimme feedback, peeps!

...And that's what it's all about... (or not)

So I can tell you what this blog is NOT going to be about: A never ending stream of weightloss updates.
Yes, I am doing Weight Watchers and losing weight, and feeling great. But I am not Jennifer Hudson, and I am not being paid to endorse this weight loss plan. And quite frankly, I don't want to bore you (or myself!) with all the details.

(Not Me)

That being said however, I have reached a milestone with my weightloss. I won't tell you what the milestone is, because anyone with even a basic understanding of math would be able to figure out my starting weight... and that is a number no one needs to know, lol.

But let's focus people. The important thing is that it's a milestone! And I have decided in honor of this particular milestone, that I am taking the amount of pounds I have lost and donating that amount of food to the Elk Grove Food Bank. I'll pause for a minute and let you bask in my glory.

Or not... because here's another thing this blog won't be about: How fantastically great I am. I mean, obviously I am. But I don't need to be proclaiming my own greatness all over the internets! After all, even my ego has its limits, lol. (Besides, truth be told, the idea isn't mine. I borrowed it from someone on the Weight Watchers message boards. I thought it was such a great idea that I decided I had to do it myself.)

And while we're on the subject of me not telling you how great I am, I will tell you that I recently went through my closet and got rid of all the clothes I have sized out of. I kept one pair of jeans, so that when I am super skinny I can hold up my old jeans and see the difference. I passed on a few things to my Aunt, who is also doing WW with me. And the rest I donated to a group home for women who are getting their lives back on track after going through a drug treatment program. Yeah, I'm awesome like that. But shhhhhh, you didn't hear that from me.

The process of cleaning out my closet was very cathartic. (<--- Excellent SAT word, no?) It was astonishing to me, and not in a good way, how much I was able to get rid of... and how much I still have! I seem to have been blindly going through my life making purchase after purchase, with no thought of what I already had or what I did or did not actually need. At no point did the notion of "Enough is enough!" enter my mind. Consumerism, baby! It's my drug of choice.

(Not my actual closet)

Look, I'm not gonna lie... I like to shop. I like to spend money, and have nice things. I have a reputation for being fashionable and pulled together, and whether it's good or bad, that's something I take a lot of pride in. But now that I'm losing weight, it's not as though I'm going to be able to go out and purchase a whole new wardrobe for every size I drop. I mean, I could give it a try... but I'm pretty sure hubster would kick me to the curb, and then you'd have one sad Diva of your hands!

And the truth is, I don't want to be in that same consumerist mindset. I don't want to buy something just to have something in my closet. I remember back when I was in college, and didn't have any money, I found a pair of tall black boots for a great price and I bought them and LOVED them. Something about having those boots made me feel so stylish and sexy. Even when I wasn't wearing them, I felt good just knowing they were in my closet. One time when I unexpectedly had a little more money than usual, I splurged on a long black coat with a velvet collar. I LOVED that coat. It made me feel so sophisticated, and special.

That is the feeling I want to get back to... because I realized when I was cleaning out my closet that I didn't care about any of those clothes. None of them made me feel stylish or sexy, or sophisticated or special. And you know what? All the stuff in the world just isn't worth it if it doesn't thrill you in some way. So that will be my new shopping philosphy. It's not about money. It's about what I'm worth.

So tell me friends, are you the kind of person that has clothes simply because you'd rather not be naked, or are you more of a little black dress and fabulous heels kind of person? Do you have a philosphy of your own?

Toodles 'til next time,

Gabby

It's Good To Be The Queen?

Welcome one and all to the Adventures In Gabbyland!

I'm not really sure what this blog will be, and I don't want to define it just yet. I kind of just want it to evolve in an organic way, and see what happens. Will anything interesting come out of it? Will anyone actually read it? Stay tuned for the answers to these and many more questions!

So, who am I? I'm Gabby. I'm an at home Mom with two crazy kids, a husband, and one very old dog. I also paint, write, act, and occasionally direct plays. Basically, if it's a creative endeavor... I will give it a shot.

People seem to enjoy my Facebook status updates, and my somewhat unique spin on life, and I very much enjoy writing so I decided to give this blog thing a whirl. For the most part, blogging seems kind of like journaling to me... and if my prior journaling experience is any indication, I can fully expect to find this blog gathering dust underneath my bed after about a week.

But... maybe not! Today, I am all about the follow through. Hubster will be the first to tell you that I am really great at starting projects. Finishing them? When I'm not even getting paid? Not so much. But that was the old me. Today, I am the whole new me!

(I love that I have the ability to reinvent myself, don't you? It's SO convenient!)

Evidence of the whole new me can be found in my on-going comittment to a healthier lifestyle. You see... I'm what you might refer to as pleasingly plump. If you're being kind. And I'm having a skinny day. Oh, alright... I'm a fat ass. There. I said it. But a few months ago, I made the decision to get off my behind and DO something, and I did! I've been working out and doing Weight Watchers for 12 weeks, and I have lost nearly 25 pounds! Woo-Hoo for me!

See... I can follow through when I put my mind to it. Take that Hubster!

Do you see now why I don't want to define this blog just yet? I am SO easily sidetracked! Because none of the above is what I actually planned to post about today. I'm like a squirrel with shiny objects. Or is it a bird? Dog with a squirrel? Oh whatever, you all know what I mean!

So, I was having this conversation yesterday with Hubster about the term "Drama Queen". It's a term that is applied to me quite a bit. I don't love that it's applied to me, but I've kind of embraced the whole thing at this point... my e-mail signature even says, "I'm not a Drama Queen. I'm not! I'm not!! I'M NOT!!!". It's all in good fun. Mostly. Because the truth is, I really don't think I am a Drama Queen. Hubster says people apply the label to me because I do plays, and have a somewhat flamboyant personality. He doesn't think there is anything derogatory in the term... but I disagree. When I think of Drama Queens, I think of a person who is creating drama, or heightening drama in situations where there really shouldn't be any. I also think most true DQ's do it for their own personal gain.

I would like to go on record right now as saying that I do not set out to create drama. It just kind of seems to happen around me. Like, you know how there are people who seem to be really lucky? Or really unlucky? And there are other people that are kind of chaos magnets? Well, I'm like that but with drama. I can't help it. It seeks me out!

I tell ya, internets... it is exhausting to be me! Of course, I take very little seriously... most of all myself. I encourage you to do the same. In the meantime friends, I'd like to know: Do you have labels applied to you that you don't think fit? How do you feel about that? Do you think there's anything that you can do to change how others view you?

Toodles 'til next time,

Gabby