tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-50034097640868559862023-11-16T10:47:48.812-08:00B is for BabyI cannot decide on a satisfactory header. I don't want to be cute, but I want to be clever...I want to be up front that I'm crazy and liberal and grumpy and lonely. But cleverer.Jenn/hippygothhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08289758843392529737noreply@blogger.comBlogger296125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5003409764086855986.post-1424077880267201502014-12-05T12:50:00.001-08:002014-12-05T12:50:46.398-08:00white mom talking to her white kid about race, probably poorlyI wrote this out so I could talk, really talk, to my kid about race today. I've been a crappy ally, because I've relied on my privilege to not talk EXPLICITLY to my kid about this stuff. I've been hinting around it for the last several years, but I haven't laid it all out there. And it's only right to do it.
******
Dear Charlotte,
I'm writing you a letter, because sometimes it is hard to Jenn/hippygothhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08289758843392529737noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5003409764086855986.post-12160058789397967842014-04-23T16:34:00.000-07:002014-04-23T16:34:25.329-07:00Sigh. No matter how hard you try.Charlotte, referring to her decorated Easter eggs: This one is a girl, because the shell is pink. And this orange one is a boy. Orange, green, blue, those are boy colors. Pink, purple, light blue are girl colors.
Mama: Hmm. I feel like you know how I feel about this. Colors are colors. Anyone can like any color. For example, Aunt H's favorite color is orange.
Charlotte: But what's your Jenn/hippygothhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08289758843392529737noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5003409764086855986.post-5464441895504217312014-02-07T21:07:00.001-08:002014-02-07T21:07:23.877-08:00Six years old is so cool. Tonight Charlotte went to a little Pajama Party with musical guest at school. I stayed home because I felt lousy, and was swamped with work. When they got home, I was chatting with her about the musician. "Did you like the music?" I asked.
"Yeah," she said.
"Was it his own songs or stuff that you already knew?"
"Mostly I knew them."
"Did he play any Pete Seeger?" I Jenn/hippygothhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08289758843392529737noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5003409764086855986.post-80424577135942830762014-01-27T19:18:00.001-08:002014-01-27T19:18:54.462-08:00Well, it finally happened. The argument when my kid said, "i hate you." It didn't even hurt, because the whole scenario was ridiculous.But the part that almost made me cry was when, crying in my arms as her tantrum continued, Charlotte sobbed, "I'm a horrible daughter....I'm a horrible daughter! I said 'hate' to my mother!"I almost laughed, I almost cried. I told her she was sorry & I Jenn/hippygothhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08289758843392529737noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5003409764086855986.post-66151488453035890912014-01-15T21:15:00.000-08:002014-01-15T21:15:01.102-08:00
They really do listen to everything you say. This picture is sort of hard to understand - on the left is a mama orca and a baby orca free and in the wild. On the right is an orca in a tank at Sea World. Note the red X through the poor orca in the tank. Charlotte drew this picture after overhearing a small discussion Matt and I had about the movie Blackfish.
Jenn/hippygothhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08289758843392529737noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5003409764086855986.post-80147413438623519032013-11-11T14:41:00.003-08:002013-11-11T14:41:12.628-08:00
Charlotte has been exploring "fashion" lately. For her, fashion = accessories. So, the more jewelry or hair clips or scarves she's wearing, the more "fashion" she has. This afternoon she came into the living room wearing an extra cardigan, one of my old headbands, and two necklaces.
"Oh, nice fashion," I said. "I like those necklaces."
"This isn't fashion," Charlotte answered seriously. "I'm Jenn/hippygothhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08289758843392529737noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5003409764086855986.post-7891955713838930392013-06-28T08:05:00.001-07:002013-06-28T08:05:12.922-07:00The Next Taylor Swift? Charlotte is currently writing a country song. I think. It involves a lot of "oh oh oh" and horses and cowboys. Though Matt is the one who started her and he spelled it as "oooow" which is annoying to me. Charlotte also made up her own lined paper, which is sort of hilarious. I also think I need to teach her about rough drafts and final copies, since she is getting stressed out about putting Jenn/hippygothhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08289758843392529737noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5003409764086855986.post-28272982917928090992013-06-18T14:52:00.001-07:002013-06-18T14:52:55.718-07:00Last Day of Pre-KToday was Charlotte's last day of pre-K. It also happened to be "costume day." The kids had earned a reward, and one they had decided on was a dress-up day. Their teacher, Mrs. R, was sort of reluctant to put that pressure on everyone the last day, but one of the kids reminded the rest of the students, so she was kinda stuck.
That's okay, it gave Charlotte an excuse to dress up as a pirate againJenn/hippygothhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08289758843392529737noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5003409764086855986.post-15312394465382614362013-06-17T08:41:00.002-07:002013-06-17T08:41:09.831-07:00It's always weird to get back to blogging after an absence. I have read a lot of "how to blog" and "how to be a good blogger" posts/articles out there on the big internet, and a lot of them say to not apologize for an absence or acknowledge one. And I get that - unless you have a strict posting schedule it's a little silly. It gets annoying to read post after post of apology. Especially if it's Jenn/hippygothhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08289758843392529737noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5003409764086855986.post-6798685915076054182013-04-09T17:28:00.000-07:002013-04-09T18:02:51.766-07:00Rambling (defensive) thoughts on what it means when my daughter calls me fat.
I don't remember the exact context my daughter first called me "fat," but I remember how I felt. A little hurt, irritated with myself for feeling hurt, and then overwhelmed with a feeling of don't-fuck-this-up about having to talk about the word "fat" with my daughter. There's a lot of don't-fuck-this-up moments in childhood, I'm learning. Usually in response to big questions, or off-hand Jenn/hippygothhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08289758843392529737noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5003409764086855986.post-32448225265860217422013-03-19T12:24:00.001-07:002013-03-19T12:24:15.221-07:00Copied from FacebookMarch 14, 2013
"I love your hair. I like the way it looks when it shimmers in the sun. I like the color...you're quite a looker." Jenn/hippygothhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08289758843392529737noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5003409764086855986.post-52361607606097405812013-03-04T12:49:00.000-08:002013-03-04T12:49:27.228-08:00Notes From Today
Charlotte told me today that when she grows up, she wants to be a "rescue person." She wants to live near the ocean and have a swimming dog with a life belt to rescue people from shipwrecks. I think this was inspired by The Bravest Woman in America by Marissa Moss. It's the story of a girl named Ida Lewis, whose father was a lighthouse keeper. Ida loves the sea and the lighthouse, and Jenn/hippygothhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08289758843392529737noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5003409764086855986.post-70119479283474009522013-02-27T18:01:00.001-08:002013-02-27T18:05:41.225-08:00Five year old in winter, in pictures.It's not that stuff isn't happening. It's just that I'm sorta lazy? Busy? Hermit-ing?
*shrug*
a million more pictures under the cut.
Jenn/hippygothhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08289758843392529737noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5003409764086855986.post-10040653222719034032013-01-15T06:32:00.000-08:002013-01-15T06:32:16.804-08:00Very tired this morning.
We never had a full on family bed - our blankets and pillows and mattress and headboard weren't really safe for that, and Matt is a very sound sleeper. I never felt that it would be safe in our situation. So Charlotte, when she was an infant, slept in a co-sleeper sidecar'd alongside the bed. It worked out very well, until she got big and it wasn't safe anymore, and she Jenn/hippygothhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08289758843392529737noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5003409764086855986.post-63043731517556526742012-12-21T09:00:00.003-08:002012-12-21T09:00:22.879-08:00One Week Later.One week later.
On Monday, our school district had a 2 hour delay due to ice. I imagined all the parents were grateful, for once. 2 more hours before the parents had to be brave, and have faith, and send their kids back to school.
My pre-schooler goes to school at the elementary school building - and most days they buzz us in (outer doors are locked during school hours) and we just walk to herJenn/hippygothhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08289758843392529737noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5003409764086855986.post-53954121358200191362012-12-10T12:33:00.004-08:002012-12-10T12:33:49.546-08:00Conversation with teacher.Most days, at pick-up, I ask Charlotte's teacher, Mrs. R, how the day went. And how Charlotte did. She was telling me about a conversation she overheard between Charlotte and her friend A.
A: You could come to my house and we could have a playdate and watch "The Little Mermaid!"
Charlotte: My mom and dad do not prefer "The Little Mermaid." But you can come to my house and we can Jenn/hippygothhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08289758843392529737noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5003409764086855986.post-39743263188719697422012-12-03T12:58:00.002-08:002012-12-03T12:58:43.800-08:00QOTD: Overwrought"I'm not crying anymore, but my mouth is still upside-down."Jenn/hippygothhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08289758843392529737noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5003409764086855986.post-36832590412208349012012-11-19T08:57:00.001-08:002012-11-19T08:57:10.591-08:00Santa has all the best tech, I bet.One of those long and winding Charlotte lines of reason. One of Charlotte's favorite shows is Wild Kratts on PBS. It's an animated show where they talk about animals and all their features and how they are kind of like super-powers. One episode, called "The Gecko Effect" talks about how geckos feet aren't like suction cups at all, they are covered with tiny cili (cilia? cilie? just doing Jenn/hippygothhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08289758843392529737noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5003409764086855986.post-530732513786760452012-10-30T14:03:00.001-07:002012-10-30T14:03:51.622-07:00Letting it go.Slowly, since Charlotte has been born, I've become the kind of person who cleans things. Actually, it's been since I was pregnant with Charlotte and suddenly realized, like some pregnant people do, that the world is filthy and OMG-I-can't-believe-we-live-like-this. I went from being someone who never cleaned my floor to being someone who was obsessed with cleaning my floor. I Jenn/hippygothhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08289758843392529737noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5003409764086855986.post-84674555346006931182012-10-24T18:44:00.001-07:002012-10-24T18:44:20.651-07:00Favorite Things, Right NowIt's been a long time since I blogged, for a lot of reasons. But certainly not for lack of material. Charlotte is such a funny little person, and I definitely owe the blog a post of Charlotte quotes. But to ease into things, here are some things that Charlotte is really into right now:
* Pirates. Charlotte is into the tv show Jake and the Neverland Pirates, but also the Jenn/hippygothhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08289758843392529737noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5003409764086855986.post-78816462750625456002012-10-01T18:06:00.000-07:002012-10-01T18:11:48.155-07:00Retroactive Post: 5th Birthday!Family party, the day before:
More later.
Jenn/hippygothhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08289758843392529737noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5003409764086855986.post-497421782640720632012-10-01T18:04:00.003-07:002012-10-01T18:04:30.135-07:00Retroactive post: First Day of School!2nd Year of Pre-K:
(Placeholder in place of longer post for later)
Jenn/hippygothhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08289758843392529737noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5003409764086855986.post-29558592314709973622012-07-25T08:03:00.002-07:002012-07-25T08:03:53.035-07:00It is representative of me as a person that almost every time Charlotte goes to her grandparents' house for an overnight, I have the should-I or should-I-wait debate with myself about trimming her bangs. Her bangs are hanging in her face, she's getting a tic from shaking them out of her eyes all the time, and she just looks scraggly. But cutting them NEVER works out well (at least notJenn/hippygothhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08289758843392529737noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5003409764086855986.post-83768996971416738882012-07-23T18:55:00.000-07:002012-10-01T18:08:56.343-07:00Astronaut TrainingBizarrely, tonight was the night I was going to write about Charlotte's new physical therapy program, which is called "Astronaut Training." It seems kind of weird to write a blog post about astronaut training that has nothing to do with astronauts or Sally Ride, who passed away today. But, here I go anyway.
It's been weird posting about Charlotte's PT & OT needs. I'm not Jenn/hippygothhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08289758843392529737noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5003409764086855986.post-56959051631669072202012-07-23T09:07:00.000-07:002012-07-23T09:07:10.331-07:00QOTD: Ambitious
C: I think I could be a brilliant artist when I grow up.
Mama: I think that's a great idea.
C: Because you always like my art.
Mama: I really do.
C: And my art could be in a picture museum and I could be the richest girl in the world.
Mama: What does that mean, richest girl in the world?
C: It means everyone knows I am brilliant.Jenn/hippygothhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08289758843392529737noreply@blogger.com0