Motorcycle Mama!

After much cajoling by my husband, I decided to try to learn to ride a motorcycle.  It does not come naturally to me.  At all.

Seriously.  At all.

However, I am still trying.  Hopefully I will get my license someday. 

And then I can be a true motorcycle mama.

My son has ADHD

"My son has ADHD."

I never know what kind of reaction I will get with those words.  Accusatory looks from people who assume I'm a bad parent.  Looks of sympathy from other ADHD moms.  Misplaced advice that starts with "Have you tried.....?"  Yes, we have and no, it didn't work.

I am actually giving them the shortened version because most people don't want to hear it.  But my son has ADHD, OCD, SPD, gross motor delays, and is possibly gifted.

My life is exhausting some days.

What's up with camping?

Supernatural: Paper Moon

Supernatural is in it’s 10^th season.  This show has been on since my daughter was a baby.  Apparently they’re doing something right….and in this episode it seems like they’re going back to their roots:  saving people, hunting things…the family business.  And I like it.

As much as I’ve enjoyed watching Supernatural over the years, there are certain story lines that I’ve enjoyed less than others.  While I adore Misha Collins, and the angels have given us a lot of good episodes…I really miss the beginnings of the show.  The roots.  Driving around in the Impala, hunting monsters, and eating pie.  Because who doesn’t fantasize about that lifestyle?  And about eating that much pie and not weighing a ton?

(Side note:  Mark Shepherd is awesome too.  How can you be a sci-fi fan and not love that man?)

But Paper Moon brought us back to those roots.  It also gave us a glimpse of the brothers’ old relationship.  Underneath all of the bullshit, they’re still just two brothers looking out for each other.  I miss that too.  Over the past few years their relationship has gotten too complicated.

The question on everyone’s minds, however, is what does this mean for the show?  Is it simply a nod to the show’s roots?  Or are the writer’s purposefully focusing back on the show’s roots?  And if so….is this the beginning of the end?  Because taking the show back to it’s roots would be a nice way to wrap it all up in a little bow, wouldn’t it?

American Girl underwear

I’m sitting here, looking online at underwear for a doll that costs more than the underwear I buy for myself.

Why?  Because it’s an American Girl doll.  And my daughter needed one, because all of her friends have them and she got left out when they play with them.  And I’m a sucker.

But really….why are these dolls so expensive?  And why are their accessories so expensive?  It’s a doll.  You wouldn’t have caught me playing with a doll at 11 years old. 

And….why do these dolls have an almost cult-like following?  Especially among adults?  That’s right, adults.  I was browsing a forum this morning where people were selling dolls and accessories and one person had listed a doll for sale because she had not “bonded” with the doll.  What?!?  This is not a child or a dog.  It’s a doll.

And then….Katrina and I were at Target this weekend and I offered to buy her an outfit for her AG doll.  Of course, the outfits were in the aisle with the knock-off dolls….and she tells me that she would have been happy with one of those.  And then I seriously wanted to kick myself.

I just don’t get it.  At that age I was watching Star Trek and making a to-scale model of the solar system on the ceiling in my bedroom. 

Although I did see someone selling a ST:TOS uniform for these dolls the other day…..

What is it about Doctor Who?

What is it about Doctor Who?  I’ve been a Star Trek fan since I was a kid and watched the animated series on Nickelodeon as a kid.  I used to tape ST:TOS on my parents’ VCR and painstakingly edit out the commercials.  I was 10 when ST:TNG premiered and had the biggest crush on Wesley Crusher (and I still think that Wil Wheaton is extremely handsome).  I was young enough when I first watched Star Wars that I don’t remember watching it for the first time, and I’ve always been a fan.  But last year I was introduced to an old, but new to me, science fiction series.  One episode of Doctor Who and I was hooked.

The popularity of Doctor Who has been steadily rising in the United States.  This is obvious from the amount of items for sale on sites like ThinkGeek and Amazon.  Heck, you can even find Doctor Who items at the mall.  And it’s not just popular with adults.  I know a lot of kids who are big Doctor Who fans – my own ten year old among them.

But really, what is it about this show?  The actors?  The directors?  The storyline?  I really don’t know.  All I know is that it seems to draw people in with an almost cult-like following.  Are you a Doctor Who fan?  If so, what are your thoughts about what makes it so irresistible?

For years, my daughter told me that she didn’t like to read.  I tried threatening her.  I tried rewarding her.  I bought her tons of different books only to be told they were “boring.”

And then one day last year she came home with a book she liked.   It was Captain Underpants.

A lot of parents would have been horrified.  They say that Captain Underpants is “gross” and “toilet humor.”

I was beyond thrilled.  My reluctant reader was reading.

I am a voracious reader.  I have over 200 Star Trek paperbacks alone, and I have read them all.  The fact that my daughter had proclaimed for years that she didn’t like to read was a constant thorn in my side.  I simply do not understand people who don’t like to read.

Since that day, I’ve become well-versed in books written in comic book style.  And to try to help my daughter explore her interests in that area, I took her to Free Comic Book Day.  And lo and behold, we found other women who like comics!  Yay!

Seriously though, finding women who like comics, science fiction, or anything else "geeky" can be a serious endeavor in our very rural, conservative area.  But they are out there.

And...I was conned into buying my daughter two Doctor Who comics and a poster.  

But if she reads them.....I will be thrilled.  And I will buy more.  And one of these days, my daughter may read a "real" book and enjoy it.  But I will be forever grateful to Captain Underpants for showing her that not all books are boring.