Another Adoption Post -- Despicable Me

A while back, Lil Sweetie and I went to see "Despicable Me".  I was surprised that adoption was part of the storyline.  Surprised because I hadn't already heard the adoption blogosphere outraged over the portrayal of adoption.  (Then again, I haven't really been paying much attention to the adoption blogosphere these days.) 

In case you haven't seen the movie, there are three little girls who live in an orphanage under terrible conditions.  (I probably shouldn't admit that Lil Sweetie and I got a big laugh out of the "Box of Shame.")  The main character Gru, an evil dude, adopts the three girls to further a scheme against his arch nemisis, Vector.  When Gru begins to love the girls, his assistant Dr. Nefario has the three girls sent back to the orphanage.

Although that it is a terrible depiction of adoption, quite frankly, I loved the movie for its humor and sweetness (all things turn out right in the end).  But of course I was worried about what Lil Sweetie's thoughts were. 

In the car on the way home, we were discussing the movie, laughing over our favorite parts, and I told Lil Sweetie that one thing bothered me about the movie, which was that adoption doesn't really work like that--once you become a family through adoption, it's forever.  No take-backs.  Lil Sweetie said, "Yeah, but Gru didn't send the girls back, that other guy did."  I was struck by her willingness to put the blame off on Dr. Nefario.  (It's true that Gru was very glum about the whole affair, although he did nothing to stop it.)  After a little more discussion, I was even more struck by Lil Sweetie's recognition that the story we had just seen was not HER story; that the adoption depicted had nothing to do with the way our family was created.  It made me wonder if perhaps we adoptive parents aren't giving our kids enough credit when get up in arms over every fictional account of adoption?

My Not-So-Beautiful Life

I have a confession to make.  I have blog envy.  Or maybe it's more accurate to say I have life envy.  I read and follow all these incredibly beautiful blogs filled with gorgeous photos of crafts and meals and decorating and I turn green with envy.  You see, my crafts turn out all wonky, my house is cluttered and layered in dust, and my meals are usually edible but not often terribly photogenic.  It seems like I always have piles of bills to pay, mountains of laundry to fold and put away, and the papers...oh my Lord, the papers!  What is it about elementary school?  Lil Sweetie brings home 5-10 papers a day, half of which she can't bear to throw away.  Sometimes when she is asleep, I take all but my favorite one or two and bury them in the bottom of the trash can where she can't see them.  Aren't I terrible?!  But if I didn't, we would have to move because this house would be filled to the gills with paper.

I go through spells where I feel guilty about my not-so-beautiful life but mostly I am forgiving of myself.  It's not like I'm slacking off, lazing on the couch eating bon-bons.  I work 40 to 50 hours a week, spend time with my kid and my husband, and although my house will never be featured in some glossy home decorating magazine, it's far from being the subject of an episode of "Hoarders".  Do I sound like I have a chip on my shoulder?  Maybe I do.  I just can't for the life of me figure out how the beautiful people do it.  I bet they have a secret club where they give each other tips on how to squeeze an extra 3 hours into each day.  Or maybe they are secret polygamists and the sister-wives do some of the housework and cooking and decorating and crafting.  Won't someone please let me in on the secret?

Another Hot Weather "Recipe"

Mr. Sweetie was gone a few weeks ago and it was too hot to cook for Lil Sweetie and I, so we made muffin tin meals.  Have you heard of these?  You put a bunch of finger foods in a muffin tin and call it dinner.  There are whole websites devoted to this idea--can you believe it?  The attraction for me was that it was quick, easy, and we could make it relatively healthy.  Here's a glimpse:

We put cheese, salami, carrots, celery, cucumbers, ranch dressing, tiny baby grapes, blueberries, crackers, and ok, I'll admit, a couple of cookies in ours.  And if you choose the right glass, your drink will fit in one of the holes as well.  Lil Sweetie loved helping make it, and gobbled up everything except for a couple of the crackers.  It was quite satisfying and also portable...next time we are late to something and I have to feed Lil Sweetie in the car, I just might try this in lieu of a drive-thru window somewhere.

What I Did on My Summer Vacation

For starters, I didn't have a summer vacation.  Wah!  I did go to Denver on a business trip, where I saw this bewildering sign:

Since I couldn't figure out how to obey this sign, I rebelled and did a double pirourette in the street. 

One of the Leaders of the Free World, my dear friend Tina Babe, drove down (up? over?) from Colorado Springs just to see little ol' me.  Wasn't that nice?  We had a nice visit, even if I did dribble mocha frappucino down my kiwi green sweater set.  (I am just SO classy!)

Speaking of classy, this is the only way to travel:

My work is taking cost-cutting measures to the extreme:

I started art journaling (poorly, I might add):

An hour, a paper punch, and a Company Store catalog can be mildly therapeutic:

We explored new breakfast ideas:

The hubs sent me flowers:

I had another surgery on my monster eyeball:

And I avoided being eaten by a vampire:

How was your summer?

Slack Ass Pie

It is hotter than lava-coated hell out there, y'all.  I am not a warm weather kind of gal.  Give me the dreary gray chill of November any day.  So I have not been a happy little camper lately.

It is against my religion to turn the oven on when the outside temperature is over 90 degrees, so Mama doesn't do much any baking in the summer.  Aw, who am I kidding?  I barely do any cooking at all.  The only way I find summer the least bit bearable is to become completely sloth-like and move as little as possible until late September.

So I thought I would share my recipe for Slack Ass Pie.  This recipe is one of those things where the whole is greater than the sum of its parts.  Really.  I wouldn't lie about ice cream sandwiches--I'm not a heathen!

Here's the recipe...

Take a pan (9x13, 8x8, loaf pan, whatever, it really doesn't matter) and cover the bottom with ice cream sandwiches.  You may have to cut some up to completely cover the bottom.  Then cover them with a layer of Cool Whip.  Squirt some chocolate syrup and caramel ice cream topping on top...just squiggle it on.  If you wanted to, it would probably be yummy to sprinkle some nuts or crumbled up Oreos or chopped up candy bars in there, but I'm a purist so I can't personally recommend it.  Then do the whole thing again--another layer of ice cream sandwiches, Cool Whip, and chocolate and caramel sauce.  Cover it and stick it in the freezer until you are ready to eat. 

Honestly, some kind of magic happens in the freezer and it all kinda melds together into a yummy mess of goodness.  I'm told this will last quite a while in the freezer if you cover it good, but we've always gobbled it up too soon to find out.

This recipe will take you less than 20 minutes, start to finish, and you will barely even break a sweat, even if it is 105 outside.  You're welcome.

Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes

The times, they are a'changin', that's for sure.  The past three months have been just chock full of changes, and it has taught me a valuable lesson.  I used to think of myself as someone who could roll with the punches, who welcomed change, but now I know that is complete and utter BS.  Change stinks.  It's difficult and messy.  I do not like it, Sam-I-Am, I do not like to change, by damn!

I guess it all started when my much-admired Boss Lady announced her resignation.  I loved my job as the number two lawyer, and I loved working for Boss Lady.  I was quite happy with things the way they were.  Boss Lady's leaving put me into a tail spin--I wasn't sure I wanted her job but I didn't want to work for a doofus.  I finally decided to apply and after much trials and tribulation, was promoted into the job.  Now I'm the supervisor of three employees and the head lawyer for my employer.  Holy crap!

Still, other than losing my beloved sainted sister-in-law to cancer, most of the changes in my life have been positive ones.  I shouldn't complain about getting a promotion at work or having to buy a new car to replace my hail-damaged one.  These are first-world problems for sure.  But I liked my old job and my old car, and I feel like I shed a perfectly good, comfortable coat for one that I'm not sure fits or is my style.  I hope that one day I will look back on this period of my life as a time of great growth and opportunity, and see that all this stress was merely growing pains.

I Had a Beautiful Memory

Memory Ann Bledsoe

1959-2010

 My much beloved sister-in-law and friend, auntie extraordinaire, you took care of the world but it could no longer take care of you.  Rest well, dear friend, and save us a good seat on the whale boat.  We'll always have Alaska and our memory of you.