Musing - Blue Jean Blues

When Neil Diamond penned the 70s tune Forever in Blue Jeans, he obviously was not living in an economy like ours.  Holy bootcut, batman!  Ri.di.cu.lous!  (And I HATE it when people type like that, so you know that this irks me to no end!)

Friday night, Brian and I got to go out on a date thanks to the generosity of Brian's mom, Evelyn who was in town visiting.  Since the large majority of my jeans are older than my third youngest child, I thought it might be time to do a little jean shopping.  NOT the best idea for a date night, in case anyone is wondering.  Probably never a good idea to go shopping on date night for an item of clothing that is regularly mentioned at the end of the phrase "Do I look fat in these?"

I am a clearance rack kind of person.  I hate spending a lot of money on anything.  Especially something that will be routinely used as an art canvas and a snot rag on a regular basis.  ~ Sighs ~
Our first stop was Old Navy, where I completely struck out.  And it just feels wrong to have to pay $39.00 for a pair of new jeans at Old Navy, anyway.  Kinda like paying $10.00 for a $.25 gum ball.  Not happening.

Our next stop was at a well known regional department store.  I should have felt like a kid in a candy store.  There were jeans that tuck in your tummy and eco-jeans made of organic material.  There were jeans with embroidery and jeans with bling.  There were jeans that were not my daughter's (brand name) and jeans that I'd never let my daughter wear in a million years.

But honestly, in spite of all the choices, I found myself really kind of upset about the price that it costs to fit in these days.  Be trendy if you will.  Clearly it is the in thing to have more bling ON your pockets than you do IN them.  Brian and I (and the sales clerk, no less) had a great laugh in the children's department when we were looking at the Miss Me brand of jeans for girls.  I found it incredible that the hot pant jean shorts ($74) were only $5 cheaper than the full length jeans.  I guess that makes each jean leg worth about $2 apiece.  Really?  I repeat, really?

Honestly, we will never spend $70 on a pair of jeans.  I could probably buy all of my kids a pair of jeans for that, or close.  But I do worry about when the time comes that my children are made fun of because they, gasp, wear a pair of Levi's instead of the latest fashionable, trendy thing.  I only hope that I can teach my children that self-worth is not tied to a brand name and that, truly a penny saved IS a penny earned.  Investments in trendy blue jeans only last until the next trend arrives.  Investments in yourself (like education) last forever.

So I guess the point of my little blog here.....Miss Me Jeans?  No, I won't miss you.  Nor will I miss the gaping hole in my wallet where all of my money used to be.  Unless, of course, I find you for $4 a pair at the consignment shop.

Mayhem - Rockin' and Rollin' and What Not (A Very Belated Birthday Post)

Well, better late than never, I guess.  Our oldest child, Leslee-Kate, celebrated her 11th birthday earlier this year.

Since her little sister arrived on her birthday last year, we thought that we would let her celebrate this year by inviting over a few of her friends.  She loves to dance, so we thought it would be fun to do a dance party and let all of her friends come hang out and get their groove on.

We had an event staff (her brothers) who checked our guests in at the door to make sure they were on the VIP list.  They escorted each guest upstairs as she arrived.  As each guest arrived, the paparazzi (aka Daddy) snapped her pic as she made her way down the hall.  Later the boys also doubled as waiters and took appetizers around.

We decorated the upstairs bonus room to make it look like a dance club.  We had a disco ball and balloons and posters of Taylor Swift and Selena Gomez and Justin Beiber.  The girls played popcorn (a game that some of the girls made up), name that tune, limbo, and they had a wii dance contest.  Dinner fare included hip hop hot dogs, jammin' jello jigglers, cha cha chips, and punked out punch.   The finale was a disco ball cake and ice cream.

As someone who is fairly new to the tween party scene, I learned two very important things:  tween girls are super competitive and tween girls can pig out.  But I think they all had a good time.  I know LK did.

We really love having having LK as a part of our family.  We know it's tough being the oldest child, especially when you're the oldest of five boys and only one other little sister.  But we know that we can depend on her when we need to.  She is extremely smart and very talented, and she has a kind heart and is a wonderful friend.  We are very grateful to have such a wonderful young lady to call our very own.  Happy, happy belated birthday LK!  

Mayhem - Our "One" derful Daughter!

~For Grins and Giggles~

Leslee-Kate's 1st Birthday

Lucy's 1st Birthday

Looks like they have more in common than their one year old facial features.  Apparently they have the same eating style as well!

For those unfamiliar with our story, in January of 2001, we had a our first child - a lovely little daughter (reference top pic).  I remember vaguely wondering if we would ever have a boy.  I should not have worried;  5 of them followed their older sister into our family.

When we found out we were expecting yet again, the thought of a girl just did not even cross my mind.  In fact, I told everyone I knew that I was certain that our baby was "just another stinkin' boy." (With humor of course.) Imagine our surprise when, 10 years to the day later, our next little princess finally arrived in a grand fashion!  She decided to show up on her big sister's birthday and spoil all hopes that Leslee-Kate had of a party!

Although our little lady arrived in a big way (and I do mean big - she was 9lb 1oz, three weeks early), we are so happy to have her as part of our family.  She has been a great sleeper and she adores her older sibs.  Most days when she goes missing, all I have to do is look in the toy room upstairs (she is an awesome stair climber, to Mommy's dismay).  Usually she's right there playing with Payne and Park or watching TV or cruising around the room.

This year we opted for a family celebration to celebrate the little misses' birthday.  We thought that it only seemed fair that after last year, Leslee-Kate should be the real party girl this year, and Lucy should have it more low-key.  So I just made her a little ladybug smash cake and let her go at it.  I think she enjoyed it.

The last year has been one of milestones and memories, mayhem and maladies, mysteries and miracles.  But the overwhelming consensus will always remain the same:  Yes, world, we do love Lucy!