A fellow half-Greek girl who hails from Chicago, Cheryl at
http://praterposte.blogspot.com/2007/09/dang-im-it.html tagged me to answer this lame, er, umm, meaningful question.
List six quirks about yourself.
Come to think of it, that's really not a question at all. It's a statement. It's rather a demand, I should say. Maybe the fact that I'm so obsessed with the fact that this is not really a question should be my first quirk.
Actually, can I just list my six kids and be done with it?
1. I hate (yes, I know it's a strong word, but seriously, I hate) the sound of styrofoam. Packing peanuts give me the chills. I cannot open boxes that contain fragile items nestled in styrofoam to prevent breakage. I break out in a cold sweat. On Christmas, when everyone is unwrapping gifts and pulling styrofoam packing out of boxes, I sit there with my fingers in my ears singing, "LA LA LA LA LA LA LA" at the top of my lungs to drown out the hideous sound. I'd rather hear nails on a blackboard than hear the grating sound of styrofoam. Or balloons. The sound of squeaking balloons is worse than styrofoam. :::shiver::: What? I once knew a guy who was afraid of cotton balls. Seriously. Cotton balls! My quirk isn't that quirky.
2. I can't stand to go to bed with mail in my inbox. Well, before this auction anyway. I've since joined a 12 step program to help me deal with it because I haven't had an empty mailbox in over 2 weeks. In my pre-Ebay-auction days however, I would insist on reading every piece of mail before turning in for the night. If I started to log off and I heard the telltale click of incoming mail, I'd seriously log back on to read it. I know, it's a sickness. On the other hand, getting snail mail is the highlight of my day. Much like the dogs on my street, I wait at the window, expectant look on my face, and rush out to grab the mail as soon as my mail carrier walks on to the next house (don't want to look too desperate, you know). Even though I only gets bills, credit card applications, and assorted junk, it's somehow the highlight of my day.
3. I never wear shoes. Well, I wear them to stores and to church and such because of the "No shirt, no shoes, no service" signs, but I never ever wear them at home, outside, or at friends' houses. In fact, when the newspaper people came out to my house to interview me, I wasn't wearing shoes. I especially dislike uncomfortable heels. I wore Converse hightops for my wedding. Barefoot and pregnant - yep, that's me. Except that I'm not pregnant now. Really.
I have no idea what I was thinking. Probably the same thing my kids think when they wear underwear on their heads, or the same T-shirt for a month straight, or a Cinderella dress to the doctor's office. And yes, believe it or not, that dress was quite stylish back in the early 90s.
4. I cannot clean up vomit. I literally, physically cannot do it. I've tried. I pulled into the parking lot of my friend's office where I was meeting her for lunch when my son, then 1 1/2 years old, started throwing up in my car. I was 20 months pregnant with my 4th baby at the time. I got out of the car, waddled around to the side and, standing about 5 feet away from the car and looking the other way, carefully reached into the car in the general vicinity of my son and waved a diaper wipe around hoping that somehow I'd magically be able to clean him up this way. It didn't work. So I took a deep breath and held it. Determined to clean up my sick son, I turned to face him, and promptly threw up myself. This was followed by more attempts to clean him and more retching of my own. The parking lot was covered in a technicolor mess.
My friend came out of the building and was greeted by this sight. "Oh for crying out loud. What are you doing? Move out of the way," she said to me as she proceeded to pull my son from his car seat, strip him down, and clean both him and my car.
Can you imagine such a thing? She got the Most Awesome Friend Ever award from me that day. I still can't fathom how anyone can clean up a mess like that. Especially when it isn't even your child. I really am blessed to have the greatest friends on earth.
I won't even get into the horrible mess my sister cleaned up 12 years ago...
Hmmm, I can't think of anything else. I'm pretty sure I only have 4 "quirky" things about me. Yes, only 4. If I could come up with 6, that would make me very strange indeed. And I'm not. Strange, that is. I'm perfectly normal. With only 4, perfectly normal quirks. Really.
http://praterposte.blogspot.com/2007/09/dang-im-it.html tagged me to answer this lame, er, umm, meaningful question.
List six quirks about yourself.
Come to think of it, that's really not a question at all. It's a statement. It's rather a demand, I should say. Maybe the fact that I'm so obsessed with the fact that this is not really a question should be my first quirk.
Actually, can I just list my six kids and be done with it?
1. I hate (yes, I know it's a strong word, but seriously, I hate) the sound of styrofoam. Packing peanuts give me the chills. I cannot open boxes that contain fragile items nestled in styrofoam to prevent breakage. I break out in a cold sweat. On Christmas, when everyone is unwrapping gifts and pulling styrofoam packing out of boxes, I sit there with my fingers in my ears singing, "LA LA LA LA LA LA LA" at the top of my lungs to drown out the hideous sound. I'd rather hear nails on a blackboard than hear the grating sound of styrofoam. Or balloons. The sound of squeaking balloons is worse than styrofoam. :::shiver::: What? I once knew a guy who was afraid of cotton balls. Seriously. Cotton balls! My quirk isn't that quirky.
2. I can't stand to go to bed with mail in my inbox. Well, before this auction anyway. I've since joined a 12 step program to help me deal with it because I haven't had an empty mailbox in over 2 weeks. In my pre-Ebay-auction days however, I would insist on reading every piece of mail before turning in for the night. If I started to log off and I heard the telltale click of incoming mail, I'd seriously log back on to read it. I know, it's a sickness. On the other hand, getting snail mail is the highlight of my day. Much like the dogs on my street, I wait at the window, expectant look on my face, and rush out to grab the mail as soon as my mail carrier walks on to the next house (don't want to look too desperate, you know). Even though I only gets bills, credit card applications, and assorted junk, it's somehow the highlight of my day.
3. I never wear shoes. Well, I wear them to stores and to church and such because of the "No shirt, no shoes, no service" signs, but I never ever wear them at home, outside, or at friends' houses. In fact, when the newspaper people came out to my house to interview me, I wasn't wearing shoes. I especially dislike uncomfortable heels. I wore Converse hightops for my wedding. Barefoot and pregnant - yep, that's me. Except that I'm not pregnant now. Really.
I have no idea what I was thinking. Probably the same thing my kids think when they wear underwear on their heads, or the same T-shirt for a month straight, or a Cinderella dress to the doctor's office. And yes, believe it or not, that dress was quite stylish back in the early 90s.
4. I cannot clean up vomit. I literally, physically cannot do it. I've tried. I pulled into the parking lot of my friend's office where I was meeting her for lunch when my son, then 1 1/2 years old, started throwing up in my car. I was 20 months pregnant with my 4th baby at the time. I got out of the car, waddled around to the side and, standing about 5 feet away from the car and looking the other way, carefully reached into the car in the general vicinity of my son and waved a diaper wipe around hoping that somehow I'd magically be able to clean him up this way. It didn't work. So I took a deep breath and held it. Determined to clean up my sick son, I turned to face him, and promptly threw up myself. This was followed by more attempts to clean him and more retching of my own. The parking lot was covered in a technicolor mess.
My friend came out of the building and was greeted by this sight. "Oh for crying out loud. What are you doing? Move out of the way," she said to me as she proceeded to pull my son from his car seat, strip him down, and clean both him and my car.
Can you imagine such a thing? She got the Most Awesome Friend Ever award from me that day. I still can't fathom how anyone can clean up a mess like that. Especially when it isn't even your child. I really am blessed to have the greatest friends on earth.
I won't even get into the horrible mess my sister cleaned up 12 years ago...
Hmmm, I can't think of anything else. I'm pretty sure I only have 4 "quirky" things about me. Yes, only 4. If I could come up with 6, that would make me very strange indeed. And I'm not. Strange, that is. I'm perfectly normal. With only 4, perfectly normal quirks. Really.
171 comments:
I'm with you on the vomit thing. I teach 5th grade and have been soooo lucky not to have a student throw up on me or near me! I have a standing policy that if you feel sick immediately go to the bathroom...do not pass go....When I realize your gone...I'll figure it out! My son, when he was 3 puked in the bathroom and tried cleaning it up with all my good bath towels....LOTS of bath towels....
Have you tried cleaning vomit without being pregnant, too? I remember that for first half of my second pregnancy the smell of my elder son's poop made me sick. It was especially bad if I had to clean him in the morning before breakfast, then I cleaned him and vomited at the same time, always.
OY! Vomit is gross! Try working in a hospital, like I do.... When people start gagging the fingers go in my ears and I sing LALALALALA. If I have to hear it, see it, smell it, etc it- I will either dry heave my way into a migraine or start hacking up my self...
And I hate whistling- even when I do it- I hate, loathe, abominate whistling. I do it all the time and I can't stand it and when others, like my coworkers, do it, I want to scream! Whistle while you work is a Disney theme- not reality. Oddly enough my fave part of Mary Poppins is "Just a Spoonful of Sugar." (All that whistling.... OY!)
Okay- so I'm normal....
Can I just say that I SO feel you on the vomit thing?!? My oldest son threw up in the car when I was 5 months pregnant with my twins. I made a detour to my DH's work so he could clean it. Gotta love God's sense of humor!!
No, I meant 20 months. At least it felt like it. (Some people think I exaggerate a little.)
ROFLOL!!! OH MY!! I am so with you on the puke thing!! When my lovely daughter was 2.5 years old she developed this lovely little habit of sticking her finger down her throat just to see what happens. What happens is you puke and then MOMMY PUKES and then you laugh like there is no tomorrow (which there truly might not be if you keep up this habit!!) CAN YOU IMAGINE?!?!? Fortunately, she is now 11 and she did eventually grow out of it!!
My biggest quirk is that I can NEVER find my keys...NEVER...this has become such a detriment to normal peaceful living that my husband went out and bought me a beeper for my keys. So now, every morning, my kids take turns pressing the button and trying to find my keys. What a beautiful invention!!!
I hate those packing peanuts too. Also Why do they have to pack styrofoam in cardboard boxes with products? It grates my nerves taking that packaging out of the box.
Barefoot and pregnant that sounds like me so far as well. I tell people that Church and Walmart are my special outings to see the outside world. ha ha
I have my husband take care of most of the vomit in our house. He is much more sympathetic than me towards the little darlings. I try to train them early to puke in the bowl not on the bed.
Hey, I'm scared of cotton balls too, and I happen to be a perfectly normal functional human being. *twitch twitch*
You wore Converse to your wedding??? That is TOO COOL! I wanted to get a green dress to go with my green Converse for my senior prom, but Mom wouldn't let me. :(
I'm with you on the 20 months thing. the 8th and 9th month always feel like they're 6 months long.
I know exactly what you mean...I've been pregnant with my youngest for at least 20 months. Horrible, everlasting months. And now she is 6 months old, you know what? Sometimes I long to be pregnant again. Can you believe nature?!
Grtz from Holland
It definately feels that long when you are pregnant. Especially with your 4th... although to me it felt like hitting about 3 years as we hit the 1 week overdue mark.
I don't think the mail thing is a qurk though, cos i do the same thing - especially if i have been on ebay lately. It is exciting to recieve parcels. Even though you have paid for it, it feels like a present!
I have 4 kids though, so maybe that accounts for the getting excited by little things.
ok, so that hot dog was really GROSS!!! and might I add that I woulda confused it with something that was supposed to be on the son's anatomy!!! Think of the screaming you woulda done with that thought in your head!!!
I wasn't sure where I could leave my comments about my impressions of your blog, but I love it--and I'm not a parent! Heard about it on a plug by Kim Komando 090807. Your stories remind me of Erma Bombeck, whose sarcasm and humor touched with affection and love made me laugh and cry for years (I'm 47). You're well on your way to being her successor...
When I read the "20 months", I knew you meant it! Wow, I didn't know you were famous to boot! I just received an email with the link to the ebay posting and was just about to hit "reply" and tell the sender, "I think I found my identical twin sister!!!" when I saw that you have a blogspot that is very well-populated! I am currently expecting my 6th baby and am about 20 months pregnant! I too have serious issues with vomit (I honestly feel like someone punched me in the gut for about half a day after cleaning up vomit..my oldest dtr now has TWICE barfed from the top of a loft bed, all over the books, papers, yearbooks, stuffed animals she keeps in her bed, down the side of her matress, down the untreated wood of the bed frame and onto her sister AND the pull-out trundle below)! Boogers are almost as bad..I would WAY rather clean up a blow-out of a newborn (as long as there are no mucousy particles in it) than clean up puke or boogers! Then the grocery store, oh how I can relate! Just this evening, as a matter of fact, a trip to the grocery store began as an innocent opening of a small bag (not even king-sized) of pnut m&m's by my husband..in front of our 5 kids! He started doling them out one-by-one, making a grand total of about 2 per person. Hey asked, "Momma, do you want any?" I said, "No thanks, I think I will just run to the store myself and pick up some chocolate!" (to which, of course, was followed by a chorus of, "Get me some too!!!" and a few muted whispers of, "Mom, can I come with you?") The result was a family of seven going out to our 15-passenger van, realizing it was getting a little chilly, so a family of seven needing to run back in for sweatshirts, jewelry boxes, a favorite doll, and a variety of other treasured objects that could not be parted with for the short 1.5 mi drive to the grocery store. Then, my dear hubby decided that this was the opportune time to clean out the van, since we had the lure of upcoming chocolate to hang over our dear children's heads. So after about 3 bags of garbage and a box of "keepables" came out of the van, the shop vac was pulled out and the vacuuming began. Me, being the 20 mos pg that I am (actually about 7 weeks or less from having Baby), I went to grab a bottle of Windex and papertowel so I could do a task sitting down. After the serious muck session took place, off we went to the store, and to make a long story short and a short mission unbelievably long, we came out to the tune of $106.27 worth of pop-tarts, chocolate milk mix, hot chocolate mix and mini-marshmallows (remember the fall chill?), toaster waffles of 3 varieties, fruit rollups, and on and on...and yes, last but not least, several varieties of chocolate! My petrified hot dogs are almost ALWAYS petrified apple cores..and my husband is convinced (as well as a few friends and relatives) that I should begin a writing career..to which I have replied, "When would I write? AND, don't you know, books are SUPER hard to sell? Maybe I would actually publish one in time for retirement! (I'm 36 right now)..I even got a laptop computer for my bday a few years ago to encourage this writing career, which now is commonly used to view my husband's collections of nature dvd's such as "Predators on the Prowl" and the like! So I can relate!!! :)
Another cotton ball hater here! Actually my husband and I both hate cotton. I have to use tweezers to pull cotton out of a medicine bottle (or ask my 3 year old to do it)
Vomit IS gross, I fully understand, I throw up every time I have to change a pooy nappy!!! And with a 13 month old that's quite often :-( Any tips?
Christine xxx
thank you for your blog I have enjoyed reading some of it this morning and I so feel for you ;O) my DH is wondering why I am sitting here with tears streaming down my face and unable to answer him as my shoulders are shaking so much
Quick little funny vomit story it sounds like you'll be able appreciate...
My brother can't clean up vomit either...at all...under any circumstances. One day he came home to discover that one of his dogs had thrown up on his brand new living room carpet. After much pacing, he steeled himself and tried to clean it up. He promptly threw up on it himself. Then upon trying to clean THAT up (as well as trying to keep the dogs from eating what he'd just done) he vomitted a couple more times. (I always envision this part of the tale with lots of staggering involved...I'm not sute why.) Finally, after about the 3rd vomit splat on his brand new carpet, he simply rolled it up, drug it out to the curb and got new carpet. "Best $400 he ever spent" he says. (Gratefully it was a very small area!)
Now I can do vomit. I can clean up vomit with one hand and eat a sandwich at the same time with the other. I can handle poop and blood in perfect stride. Snot, on the other hand, completely undoes me. This is particularly problematic as I work in an early childhood, special education classroom. The producing of, smearing of, spewing of and sharing of it a sport with that particular population.
Lmao Dawn ! Feels like 20 mnths nearing the end ! Dont we all know it :) Well at least the ones here that are female and Had kids b4 Lol
So love ya quirky things ! Wonder if your snail mail comment might have your Mail man / woman Knocking on your door with a sack full of fan mail in the near future !!
*Hugs *
Debbie xxx
Okay, I have to say you are the first person I've ever ran across who can understand my dread of styrofoam! Going on trips as a child with those old styrofoam coolers was sheer torture. I agree - I'd rather hear nails on a chalkboard. On the flip side, cotton balls give me chills, too...
Amen. You have made me laugh out loud several times on this cool and rainy morning. Thanks! :)
I've been 20 months pregnant before. Vomit I can deal with. Thank the powers that be because I've had to deal with it many times. What I can't deal with is the sound of my husband stirring his cafe -o-lait in the morning. All that hot milk and a ceramic cup and the tinging hollow sound.... ugh. and ice cubes clinking around in plastic cups (which of course are the favorite cups for the kids to drink out of)
Hi Dawn,
Ok, so you brought up vomit - I am going to bring up poop art. My son loves to take off his diaper and play in his poop. I don't mean just play in it, I mean put it all over the walls, floor, face, body, etc. OK I said it... and every morning when I log onto your blog to read, I am greeted with the "chocolate photo" - and to you - you think chocolate. For me, I think poop - been there - done that... too many times to count. I'd love it if you would change the photo... but just my opinion!
Hmmm my biggest quirk(s), I cant stand a bra that doesn't fit right (straps constantly coming off the shoulder), and toilet paper that is put on the roll backwards. It needs to come rolling over the top - and while we are on toilet paper, I have a real thing for toilet paper that doesn't roll at all in a public rest room. What are they thinking?? If I can't get the toilet paper off the roll, then what am I suppose to do? Are they just trying to save a buck and frustrate me??? LOL
Anyways, have a great day!
Pam (Seattle)
I'm with you on the 20 months pregnant! I think I'm pregnant in dog months, so 3 is like what, 21? I'm pregnant a total of 63 dog months? Why not use dog months? If you feel like a dog when you're pregnant, which I do, then it seems perfectly appropriate.
And I wore sneakers to my wedding, too. Platform sneakers. I didn't want to wear high heels, either but I wanted to be able to pass my dress on to my future (then) daughter, who I imagined would be taller than me one day...
Anyway, I never wear shoes either. That makes for some pretty rough feet. My dermatologist prescribed a urea cream to exfoliate my feet. Gross. Does that mean I could have saved the money and just peed on them?
Hello, I think you've stolen my identity, well in this blog at least. I too hate the sound of Styrofoam but chalk is pretty bad too so I wouldn't want one over the other. And I too never wear shoes, I secretly admit to ignoring the no shoe's no shirt no service signs at places like a gas station just for the rush lol. And lastly I too did not wear heals for my wedding. Kudos for the converse I wish I had thought of that, I chose ballet slippers and even those came off at the reception. So "high five" for your quirks because I'm right there with ya, just like you and I, the quirks are perfectly normal. Only other people have strange ones.LOL
I am exactly the same way about the mail. I can't wait until it comes. My husband thinks I'm nuts! But I have to ask--how could you have had two more kids if you have to be pregnant for 20 months?! hee hee. Have a great Sunday!
Aww that is the coolest picture of a bride I have ever seen! Love it!
Btw don't think your quirks are that quirky... well maybe except for the styrofoam one ;) or maybe I'm just very quirky myself!
Hello from Germany!
Simmm
I hear you on the 20 months pregnant! I don't have a problem with vomit, but I love to get mail that's not bills and junk. If you don't mine, do you have an address or PO box we can send real mail (for you :D) too?
I can remember being 20 months pregnant! lol!
For my wedding, I wore white flip-flops. :) I'm totally with ya on hating heels!
I love reading your blog. At the moment it's keeping me from putting my husband out of his (my) misery. He has a cold. Of course, it's the worst cold in the history of mankind. Fine. Since his nose is so plugged up, he can go clean the dog pee out of the garage. And I can keep reading while my son pulls out all the dog's fur :-)
styrofoam??? yep, my husband can't stand that sound either... but he's also the cotton ball guy!! most people can't stand spiders and snakes... nope, he doesn't like little white things!
thought i was the only one who was 20 months pregnant... with my second from conception until a week after she was born i threw up several times a day ... i would not trade her for anything in the world but she was a HUGE part of my decision to stop at 2 kids when i always wanted a ball team... now to have more i will just have to adopt or wait for grandkids.
I love your blog and humor
God Bless!
OMG - to funny. did you see theirs another ebay add up thats funny? its for a breast pump. did you right it? its number 320156273751. been following you for a few weeks now and keep up the good work.
I think I married the guy who was afraid of cotton balls! My husband goes into rigors if there is a cotton ball stuffed into the top of a medicine bottle. I have to pull it out for him. LOL
When my daughter was a baby I got quite good at catching vomit in my hand so it wouldn't soil anything else. Anyone else's vomit will have me dry heaving. Weird, huh?
I totally get you on the 20 months thing. All three of my kids were overdue. I gestate like an elephant.
I love your blog! I had to comment on your topic today. I work at a child care center (I'm a 2-year-old teacher) and it seems that everyone there has one bodily function they can't stand. Mine's boogers. Especially those crusty sticky ones that seem to stick to everything except the tissue. Give me poop, blood, or vomit anytime, but if I get a kid's boogers on me, blecch! I actually had a kid that I was holding throw up all over me recently, no big deal. This past week I wiped a kid's snotty nose and the tissue leaked, I started shuddering and immediately had to go scrub my hands. The same deal goes for my coworkers (with a variety of different bodily functions). So your quirk really isn't that quirky.
i'm with you on styrofoam and the wedding shoes thing. i wore my new balance running shoes under my dress. happy feet make a happy bride.
I'm a writer and I've got to say, I'm jealous. You've got such a natural flair for words and a style that's hysterically brilliant. Are you are writer (beyond the blog and perhaps BK...Before Kids?)? If you're not, girl, you just best seriously consider making it your vocation...in addition to kid wrangler. I swear you could be the next Erma Bombeck.
I found you via a message board where a friend posted your Pokemon Card Ebay description. One of the funniest things I've read in ages.
Excellent blog, as well.
Wishing you sanity, peace of mind, and many delightful kid hugs that make the toughest job in the world all worthwhile.
Hugs from CT,
Fran
I have a similiar prolems with balloons but it's not the sound. It's the anticipation that the balloon will pop. Same with guns. I can't have latex balloons at my son's birthday parties. My husband is great about this. If we get balloons, he tells my son to make a wish then lets them go (I know not great for the enviroment). I did pretty good last night though, we went to a festival and my son wanted to play the carnival game where you throw darts at balloons. I actually stood right next to him and watched. I did jump a little each time he or my husband broke a balloon.
I totally understand about the vomit thing. It doesn't usually bother me if it's my son but once my dad had me pull over because he was going to vomit (drank too much celebrating his retirement) and when he vomited, i thought I was going to also just from the smell (I wasn't drinking, I hate wine).
Shoe wise, I'm the total opposite. I can't go barefoot outside. Just stepping on a pebble hurts. It sucks at the beach.
I have another quirk. I can't sleep without my favorite pillow. I've had this pillow since birth (I do make new pillow cases for it). My son when he was an infant had trouble falling asleep so I put my pillow in the crib with him. You know, my scent would help calm him down. We I was ready to go to bed, I had to go get it back. Evenually, I made one for him and used my old pillowcase for the "scent" thing so he has one now.
You are so funny. Got your link from a friend. I'll have to check in when I need a good laugh. I only have two kids, but I teach first grade so most of the time I feel like I'm raising 22. :-)
Have a good week.
i knew you meant 20 months... how could anyone read this blog and not know it was exactly what you meant.
i went to a birthday party at a mcdonald"s with 2 of my kids once. only once. my line of reasoning is that the party is over when either the host child is crying or someone throws up. uh oh, my turn. fool that i was and suddenly standing in a circle of humongous proportion(imagine my incredulity...how could he be in the center of a 5"circle when he was 4 yrs. old?). the boy was stripped in the parking lot, me gagging the whole time... driven home with hope for help from the dh. his sis was fine of course...
i got home looking for husband style focused help and there was my dh on the floor of the bathroom all curled up looking like a bookend to his son... only he had that special sheen that a heroin addict going through withdrawal might have. ( it's not that i know this personally, but from watching part of the movie "Trainspotting").
i feel your pain with the whole vomit thing... no questions asked EVER.
by the way, one of my many many quirks, is that i detest capitalizing when i type.
thank you again for sharing...xow.
I hate shoes, too! And just like you, I wore sneakers on my wedding day! :)
One of the reasons that I agreed to become a SAHM when I had my son was so that I would no longer have to clean up the vomit of strangers. Seriously - I was a restaurant manager and could never figure out how to be so mean as to be able to order some poor employee to clean up the puke. So I would do it myself, thinking that someone would bravely step up and say, "No, that's my job... I've got it." Never happened - they would just stand there and snigger at the spectacle of me on my hands and knees in heels under a table with a rag. You are right - it's easier when it's your own kids' vomit.
When my older son was around four, I guess, we were coming home from a short day road trip. As we were getting close to home, he kept saying, "Mommy, I need a vitamin." And I kept saying, "OK, sweetie, you can have one once we get home. We're almost there." And then just as we hit the exit for our house, he threw up all over the backseat. Turns out, he was thinking that if he ate a vitamin, it would squash that uneasiness that was beginning to rise in his stomach. Why? Because he knew that "Vitamins will keep you from getting sick." We think he ate some bad shrimp.
Fortunately, I can clean up such messes if I have to. It's certainly not pleasant, though.
Oh, if there were only such a vitamin, huh?
My sister has the same quirk about styrofoam. I can't say that I enjoy the sound, but it does not freak me out like it does her.
Styrofoam noise is right up there with cringling of plastic bags. Hair was standing up at the back of my neck just reading about Christmas morning.
20 months pregnant, yep, that about sums it up.
Enjoy the day, Miss Dawn! Take those children out for ice cream. Then tell us what happens!
maggieb!
Oh my gosh...I agree...there is something about the vomit gag factor that I can't understand. Even when I myself am sick..which thankfully is not that often...I have to flush in a hurry or the process just continues. Don't have any kids right now...(but working on it!) not really sure how I am going to manage! Thanks for making me laugh!!!
I'm with you on feeling 20 months pregnant. I'm pretty sure my 2nd pregnancy lasted 36 months..... And that precious daughter's 1st 2 years have felt like a lifetime!! I should have known :-)
And how could anyone ever complain about a husband arriving home with banana cream pie?!?!? I think I would kiss my husbands feet if he brought me a banana cream pie!! LOL!
I wore blue converse high tops to my wedding. I figured - we lived together for three years before we got married, why be traditional now? Also, my dress covered them and they were comfy. :)
I am with you and the other folks on the vomit as well. Can you say "GROSS????" How nasty is it to have to do that?
The chalkboard thing is bad to me.. but waking up in the morning to hear my DH listening to freaking racecars go round and round on the track is fast becoming a quirk of mine. Add to that his endless sports ANYTHING watching, and you have 99% of my quirks all wrapped up.
I also cannot eat french fries that have been fried in Crisco type shortening. Once they start to get cool, the shortening solidifies and coats the top of my mouth.. EWWWWWWWWWWWW!! If we happen to go out to dinner somewhere and one of the side dishes are fries, I have to ask them if they are fried in oil or what.. That is not such a big deal these days because most places use the vegetable oil. Many moons ago, it was a huge issue..
I also cannot stand loud, shreeking noises, people coming up behind me to scare me to death.. people who allow their cats to jump on the counters where their food is prepared.. which results in cat hair all over the place.. and lastly.. a totally clean house with no "lived in" feeling.. I have ADD, and trying to be organized enough to keep a pristine house is totally beyond my abilities to function. So.. I have developed a quirk about it. If I am holding some sort of function at home, I will clean like crazy for 2 ro 3 days.. but after everyone leaves.. I cannot find the energy to restore it to the cleanliness that it had just a few hours ago. It doesn't feel like home..
Linda
I think that all of us fans need to DEMAND that you use the wedding pic as the front or back cover to your book. That is HEEEELARIOUS!
I feel that same way about fish. Not dead fish on a plate, but live, wriggly fish. Whether they are swimming in a stream or dangling on hooks at the fishfarm, I can't handle them any bigger than your average 7 cent Walmart goldfish.
Just seeing them makes my whole body shiver and contort into all sorts of positions that on a normal occasion it couldn't. Bleeccckkk.
I completely agree with your quirks #2 and #3...
I must ALWAYS read my emails before I go to sleep. But I'll do you one better. My computer is in the main part of the house and I keep the volume up when I'm not near it so that... I can HEAR the email "ding" when I get new mail! At which point I make a mad dash from whatever room I'm in to go read it. Forget the dishes, the dinner on the stove, the kid with a bloody nose... I got mail!
Though in your case with the amount of mail you must be getting these days, I imagine that multiple email "dings" every 5 seconds would probably send you off your rocker. ;-)
As to #3, I also, never wear shoes. I hate them. Only wear them when I really have to show up someplace that requires them. I don't even wear them when I drive. My husband and 2 kids don't wear them either. In fact, if one of us comes home from somewhere and still has their shoes on for more than 5 mintues after they are in the house it's like, "why are you still wearing your shoes?"
When people come to my house I make them take THEIR shoes off too. I guess I could say part of the reason is that we always prop our feet on the coffee table, or the couch and I don't want shoes on there. We also just put in wood floors last year I didn't want them scuffed up. But I think that's just an excuse so I don't look weird. ;-)
Bare feet rule!
You're not alone on the styrofoam thing! The sound of strofoam is the worst--it makes my teeth hurt. If one of the kids finds a styrofoam cup and starts chewing on it (which is the first thing anyone would do with a random old cup, yes?) my eye starts twitching and my molars ache and I can't even get the thing out of their mouth because my hands have started shaking. And I thought you look lovely in your dress. I actually thought it was the daughter from Father of the Bride, until I remembered that she had white sneakers. Love the blog--you always bring a smile to my face.
Dawn, I just have to tell you that I love the photo of you in your wedding dress and sneakers. It's priceless! And how great to take a picture of it! I wore slippers on my wedding day. They were the ones that kinda look like ballet slippers. But I decided if I had to be on my feet all day, I might as well be comfortable. And no one really sees your feet anyhow!
And I am with you on all your quirks! Mail is the highlight of my day too! Once when I was pregnant with my second child, we did not receive mail for the day. I don't really know why, like you said there are always at LEAST credit card apps. Well, I sat down on the curb and cried. Like my cat had died or something, cried! Then I called my husband and I was crying hysterically and he got worried. He kept asking what was wrong and was it something with the baby. When I finally was able to get out that we didn't get any mail, he LAUGHED at me!!! I was so mad at him, it made me cry even more!! He never lets me live it down. So I try and keep my obession with my mail to myself!
I am SO with you on the styrofoam and balloons thing. That is EXACTLY how I feel, and everyone makes fun of me for hating styrofoam.
I never wear heels unless I have to, and shoes are for public appearances.
I am also your email/snail mail lost twin. :)
I can, however, clean up vomit, though I don't like to. My husband is like you, though, he is not good with vomit. However, I can't stand to clean up blood, so he does that instead.
I am one of those who can NOT pull the cotton out of vitamin/medicine bottles. I will open the bottle of vitamins at the pharmacy counter and have the tech pull the cotton out for me. The thought of touching it *shutter* gives me the absolute chills. I also can NOT do vomit!!!!
It's comforting to know that someone shares my Styrofoam animosity.
Is it just me or is it a million times worse when extracted from being tightly snuggled in cardboard...
Quirky things about myself have changed throughout my life. Before I had children, I would have never in a million years thought on minute about vomit. However, when my first child vomited in a really fancy restaurant I didn't want it to just stream onto the floor, so what else would a mother do, catch it. Stick your hands out and catch the projectiling vomit. EEEEWWWWW!
It makes me sick to think about about it after five years! So, I am in agreement about the vomit. I hate vomit, but my husband hates it worse than me, so instead of letting the kids walk around covered in vomit, I put a clothes pin on my nose, blindfold my eyes and put the hose on them.
I LOVE that wedding picture! So fun! I probably would have opted for the traditional white Converse high-tops, but pink is a nice touch. Re the vomit thing... how does one get to be the mother of six children and not become immune to all gross messes, especially vomit? I thought all us mommies just naturally learned to ignore the yucky stuff and carry on, while our hubbies gag and wretch at every new disgusting sight and smell that babies come with! :-)
Vomit???? what is vomit??? This is why I have a husband right?
I am just like you on the vomit thing... if I see or smell it I will vomit... actually just talking about it or thnking about it has made me do it (I'm not feeling very well just thinking about it).
You have an awesome friend.. and she for sure deserves The Best Friend Award.
See, I knew I liked you!! You are the oNLY OTHER PERSON EVER that I've known of that shares my loathe for styrofoam... I can't even talk about it, it's making my toes curl just thinking about it, but I understand where you are coming from COMPLETELY!! I just got a new sewing machine.. carefully packed in a block of THAT STUFF and I about died trying to get it out of the box.
Your pic of you in the wedding dress with the high tops is priceless! Thank god in Texas I can wear flip flops almost year round!!! lol
except of the "barefoot thing" i am as "quirky" as you are! that´s cool ;-)
Oh my goodness! Vomit is the worst! I'm a sympathy vomiter - if someone else does it, I'll do it. I can handle any other body fluid but that one.
My quirk isn't styrofoam. It's crinkly plastic bags that things like chips come in. I HATE that "crinkle crinkle crinkle." My husband knows he has to pour the chips into a bowl as quickly as possible rather than keep reaching into the bag, or else that bag of chips will end up being thrown out into the yard...
I can relate to you on the vomit thing and I get sick if I have to change a stinky poopie right after breakfast. I start gagging till my eyes water and forget to breath through my mouth.
I also can't stand ant. If i see any crawling on me, I'm itching for the rest of the day.
Have a great weekend!
Ok, the vomit thing is the worst, I try to always make DH clean that up. But I am SO WITH you on the balloon thing. I get the heebie jeebies from them, my poor deprived kids don't get them. Balloons, super balls, punch balls, paddle balls, eek! I get panic attacks just thinking of it!
Just as I started to type my comment, my dog started throwing up! Luckily, we're outside, so no cleaning. And, I'm not that squeamish about vomit anyway.
For me, the sound I cannot stand is wood scraping on paper. Like a pencil that really needs to be sharpened. *shiver*
And I'm barefoot all the time too. If I try to wear shoes in the house, I trip over all of the toys all over the floor. I even trip over nothing. I don't wear shoes outside with the kids either. You really don't want to see the calluses on my heels!
i am so with you on the sytrofoam thing!! i hate, hate, hate it!! and my kids seem to delight in ripping it apart so there is more of it to go around and then it sticks to everything because of the static and ughh.....i'm getting all shivery even thinking about it...
I am glad to know that I am not the only person in the world who hates styrofoam and balloons. I cringe just thinking about them. The sound of cardboard gets me as well and when you combine styrofoam and cardboard I can hardly stand it. They not only sound awful but they feel awful too!!
After 3 kids it sorta is 20 months at the 4th pregnancy.
My hubby does all the vomet arount here I am like you. Noses too that is just HIS job!.
Well you know your normalcy is what people love best about you!
I once drove 30 minutes to my moms house to have her clean my child and car up from vomit! I almost lost it the whole way to her house. GROSS!!! I can hold their hair back in the toilet and then quickly flush but ICK if I have to clean it at all. I love your wedding picture!! You go girl!!! I still think you need to hire me to be your assistant!!! How will you ever get time to write the book we are all waiting for? I can scrapbook your journey of writing! I am sure my scrapbook would be a best seller too!!! Crazy eBay moms adventures of writing a book. Just pics alone would be fun!!! :)
Have a super day!!!
Stacey
Hey welcome to SHU (Styrofoam Haters Unite) I too cannot stand that sound or a balloon and have one kid that can't either. As for vomit...that's my husband's affliction thank goodness its not mine or we'd be in a mess of hurt LOL LOVE LOVE LOVE the picture you look both beautiful and stylish! :-)
Aileen~
http://aileensmusings.blogspot.com/
I totally agree with the cleaning up of throw up! I just cant...cannot do it!
And my sister got the Best Sister Ever Award after cleaning up after ME once, 10 years ago. I was pregnant and very very very sick...I havent eat Apple Jacks since...I love my sister! LOL!
OK, Quirk Number 1. I just have to say that I am so glad I am not the only person that cannot deal with that styrofoam noise!!! You described my exact reaction to it. My husband thinks I am nuts.
My husband and his groomsmen all wore black converse all-stars (hightops) and I wore white ones at our wedding! We've got a picture somewhere of just all of our feet.
I always thought the vomit thing was just my husband's excuse to make me clean it up! It makes me nauseous, but I'm capable. He claims to be a sympathetic vomitter so I always have to do it.
I am glad to know I am not the only one about the styrofoam thing... I am so right there with you on that one. *chills on spine*
yes, 20 months..that's right...I've been 20 months pregnant...my 5th child was 10.5 pounds and I felt every minute of those 20 months!!
I won't touch the "vomit" issue. However, I'll confess my problem is with blood. I just can't see blood. When they take blood samples from my finger, I have to look the other way or I'll just faint.
Thanks Dawn and your readers. You all should form a "Laughing Club". There's no much humor in your posts and the complementary comments.
Bye now,
Omar.-
Dawn--you are too funny! I have 6 children as well, ages 2-17, and so many funny stories. People have told me I should write a book, but I'm sure I couldn't compete with you! I found my son riding the garage door up! "But I always jump off in time!" And my daughter desitin-ing her baby, and carpet, and self, etc. etc. LOL Always!!!!
Cotton balls totally freak me out! I get hives just thinking about them! When I have to open a brand new bottle or pills. Yuck, just thinkin about is making the hairs on the back of my neck up!! I try to always buy the liquid stuff!!!
I'm sure I have more than 6 quirks about me. I know what you mean about 20mths preggo. Sometimes it seems like FOREVER!!!
HAHAHAHA on your friend's cotton ball thing. I have a friend that is exactly the same and we thought it was absurd so we taped cotton balls to her steering wheel. She honestly refused to touch the steering wheel until someone went in and fully scrubbed it with soap and water to remove "residue". She missed 2 days of school and a party on the weekend because of that LMAO...... I still find it hilarious :)
I find it interesting that everyone seems so caught up on the vomiting. I would rather clean up throw-up all day then deal with a box of styrafoam peanuts or worse, the styrafoam mold that protects certain fragiles.(Not mold like moldy mold) And, even though I have only had three kids, I understand the 20 months pregnant totally! I just posted about my recent trip to the doctors off ice with my daughter in a tutu, you might get a giggle out of it,(bearbugandbeansmom@blogspot.com) I would love to read the Cinderella story, is it on your blog somewhere? Thanks for all the laughs!
I know what you mean...being 20 months pregnant and have a sick child vomit so you attempt to clean that child up only to add to the mess yourself!! I have been there and done that a few times!
Love the blog!!
Barf only bothers me when I am pregnant. Other times it's no big deal. Hubby get up with the barfing kids (they always get sick at night), cleans them up (bath if necessary) and gets them clean clothes. I strip the bed and remake it with clean sheets, find a few largs towels to cover the bottom sheet with and a big bowl to use if they can't make it to the bathroom.
Blood, on the other hand, I don't do well with. They had to lie me out on the floor when my daughter got stitches, as I turned an interesting shade of green. After that, any other kid who needed stitched had daddy or big sister stay with them. I hang out in the waiting room.
My roommate is HIGHLY afraid of cotton. She has some strange medical problems and they want to do a test to see if they can solve it. It's called a Cotton Test. You put cotton balls in your mouth 3 times a day for 2 minutes. She's terrified.
Me on the other hand, I have a frisbee phobia. They fly rapidly at your head. Shudder.
My husband can't clean up vomit either. He also had a hard time with baby poo until my 2nd came along and had the runs forever!
Love your blog!
I have to say your just so cute lol.
My sister can't stand cottonballs. When she was little, she saw colored cotton balls and thought they were cotton candy. She was chewing and the squeaking of the cotton on her teeth and almost choking. Since then she can't stand the feel of cotton balls or using them. I use to chase her around the house with them when she got on my nerves LOL...
Did I say that you were so cute? LOL Hugs...
Okay, I'm awful, because I love the puking stories. I'm 4 months pregnant, and changing my 2-year old's poopy diapers has been HELL.
That wedding picture is adorable!!!
I clean up the kids vomit since they came out of my body, but hubby is on his own when he gets sick all over. Chocolate milk throw up is the worst.
You're the best blogger I have seen in a long time. Keep up the humor, that is your life. AKB
Those don't sound like quirks to me. They sound perfectly normal to me.
I have to agree with you on the shoe thing, although I did not wear Converse to my wedding. I LOVE the picture!
Have a great day!
I am cracking up at your first quirk. I hate balloons too. My son insists on putting his mouth on balloons and nearly popping them with his teeth.
My husband HATES cotton! He always asks me to remove it from new vitamin bottles for him. Too funny!
ROFL...Dawn. You're hilarious. I almost feel guilty to be getting this many laughs for FREE! (Not that I'm complaining, I'm just sayin'...) You could be a stand-up comedian, a sitcom writer, a humorist columnist...you're good!
I think after my own 20 month pregnancies, I was miraculously equipped with a bionic sense of hearing and smell...because many sounds nobody else seems to hear make me cringe (the squeak of nylon fabric) and many, many smells make me feel like I STILL have morning sickness, and my youngest is almost two! Raw poultry and Eu-de-garbage-can-in-the-hot-sun are the WORST! Well, that and the big black skunk-bug my toddler recently picked up and squeezed until it's scent got all over him. My husband had to handle that one...Ewww! I couldn't even go near them!
How can you have SIX kids but not be able to clean up vomit? Who the heck does it for you!?!?!? WOW!
And love the wedding photo! That should be the cover of your book, and you can title it... Bride, Barefoot and Pregnant!
(I won't request a cut if you use it, promise! : )
My daughter wore deck shoes to her formal this year. She had a beautiful sea green ball gown with pink and lavender flowers embroidered on it... so she went to Wal-Mart and bought a pair of plaid deck shoes with the same colors. I say it takes a WHOLE LOT of confidence to do something like that. Everybody loved her shoes!!
So, I'm LOLing out loud at your post (specially the vomit comment) and my DS is just asking me...whhhaattt? Is it a joke? Oh, no honey...it is no joke!
Thanks for the laugh!
Oh, I just had to laugh at your #1 quirk. That is me to a tee. I tell you I cam NOT stand to hear styrofoam or touch the stuff! It just drives me insane- -I get goose bumps all over me when I even think about the stuff, on the other hand my kids (all 5 of them) LOVE to get styrofoam and rub it together just to get a reaction out of me. It is their way of being funny! They will actually chase me around rubbing it together while I run around with my goose-bump covered self with my hands over my ears begging them to stop. At which they will UNTIL I uncover my ears.
I'm going to have to tell my DH that there is someone else in this world that can't stand styrofoam too. He thinks I am just strange, now I know for sure that I am not.
Love that picture...love it! The shoes and the attitude. Thanks for sharing...
I scare the mailman. I wait very patiently until I hear footsteps on my porch and then pounce. I love getting mail. I don't even mind bills as long as it is something for me to open. I actually frown when I don't get anything or it's just an oriental trading catalog. That happened yesterday.
I can do vomit, only if it comes from my own kids. The thing I can't handle. Is when food starts to walk and talk on their own. I can't clean out old left over food. Otherwise, I make my own mess.
OMG...I have never seen anyone with so many comments before? Seriously WOW!!! I think we bought our wedding dresses at the same shop.
I also CAN NOT clean up vomit. I wretch EVERY time. Bleck! Yeck! Ick! Also, in paragraph #4 you mentioned you were "20 months pregnant with your 4th child." Really? :-)
Love your blog. Have a great day.
Shari
Florence, Oregon
Dawn,
Definately agree with you on so many things! Except the vomit. I can do vomit. I don't want to, but I do it. Although I freak out when they do it. I'm not a fan.
hahaha! I also wore a pair of tennis shoes at my wedding! I was so comfortable. I can't wear shoes inside or outside the house either...it's like i'm reading about my twin! We all love you to pieces.
Tami
I was barefoot at my wedding. In one picture you can see my toes. It was May in AL- way too hot for shoes! I don't like wearing them either unless someone makes me. LOL
For your quirks .......
Take 2 Prozac, drinking plenty of fluid and call me in the morning.
Korkie
AMEN, to the styrofoam and balloon sounds. They litterally make my teeth hurt when I hear them. My family has always thought I'm so weird, so I'm going to put a link to your post on my blog. Also, I don't wear shoes unless I absolutely HAVE TO and then it's usually my comfy Birkenstocks.
It's quirky that you wore Converse to your wedding. ;-)
I did too. White high-tops that I had hand-sewed pearls on. The grippy rubber of the shoes kept grabbing the underskirt of the dress as I walked up the aisle and I almost tripped several times, but the shoes were a hit. Great to dance in, too.
Love your blog - congrats on the well-deserved success!
Everyone has commented on the vomit. I'm going to comment on your wedding dress.
Yes, it was VERY much in style in the early 90's. It looks just like mine. :D
I know it'll be a 'great' thing if you get offered a book writing deal.
The financial assistance would definitely pay for a few more rum and cokes.
The thing is ........ you would probably spend all your time writing for that lucrative book deal and would not have time to update your blog.
I would not have the daily laugh I need to sometimes get through the day.
....... this IS all about me, right?
Korkie
Awesome wedding dress! You look like the chick from "Father of the Bride". Nice.
I can't stand the sound of styrofoam rubbed together either. It somehow stretches my ears to the point that the ear tubes feel thin as a pin, and about to break. It sets every nerve I have on end. It drives me crazy.
love your chuck taylors! and pink too cute:)
thanks for the laughs dahling
We have a deal in our house...I change all stinky and wet diapers and DH takes care of all blood and vomit. Since we adopted our only daughter at age 5, I got the best end of the deal!!! LOL!
Okay, that was hilarious! I guess if you weren't a little quirky I wouldn't be reading your blog anyways. hehe
Meanwhile, I'll never forget the time my husband (we were newlyweds and no kids yet) and I were "babysitting" for friends of ours for their then ages 3, 6, and 7 yr.-old sons. The youngest was still in diapers and had a MAJOR blowout (as in, came out of the diaper and such)! My husband's solution to this? The hosepipe. Mind you, it was probably October in Philly, i.e., NOT warm. The poor kid is probably still undergoing psychotherapy to overcome this babysitter abuse. Maybe we should start a foundation ...
Thanks for the laughs, Dawn. You are the BEST! (Who else would be dum-- I mean brave enough to post their quirks on the web??! :^p)
We have a friend who cannot even look at cotton balls!! Seriously the stuffing that comes out of a very welled loved stuffed animal almost sent him into the other room--Squealing like a little girl!! I have never laughed so hard!! He said that Q-tips gave him the hebegeebies. (Is that how you spell that--probably not.) My husband can't do the vomit thing either! I had to send him back to bed even though he was trying to be helpful. I just wasn't in the mood for two messes. I know, so selfish.
Very funny!!! I love your style of writing Dawn!! And I agree about the vomit thing. My dad could never stand vomit, and neither could I. Lol!
~6 weird quirks about me
1. I hate rap songs, and most of the songs that have to do with love, and ALL the songs that have to do with s**. I am a teen, in this 2000 generation, yes, but I still HATE those songs!!! They get on my NERVES!!!
2. I love the color blue. Obsessed with the color blue. especially shiny blue. *shiny!!!* If I am in a room with a lot of red, I will search the room for a tiny spot of blue. I'm serious.
3. I have four personalities. That's weird in itself.
4.I hate boys. Will never go out with a boy, and will NEVER marry. I'm probably the only kid ever who never wants to marry. Especially at my age.
5. I have worn tee-shirts and jeans/khakis or any long pants my whole life. I have never bothered about fashion, or changing my wardrobe. Is that weird, or I'm just casual, and everyone else is weird?? Who knows...
6. The quirkier a person is, the better chance I have of liking them. There's no such thing as a normal person, and if you go out of your way to act normal, that sux. WEIRDNESS RULES!! *ahem* That aside, I think everyone is weird, and weirdness makes the world go 'round. Is that weird???
~Ellidora
I was so excited to see your comment re: styrofoam. I also have this affliction.!! I have 4 brothers ( which is a whole blog itself) and once they found out I couldn't tolerate styrofoam it was all over. I spent months with my fingers in my ears yelling LALALALALALALA.......It's horrible. I am alot older now but I still can't open new TV's DVD's etc cause they all have the stuff. I am so happy I am not alone!
You are my hero - sneakers at your own wedding! I so wanted bare feet at mine but my husband was so by-the-rules then. He would have had a heart attack at the altar!
Mine is cotton wool. Yeeechhh! My dentist used to put cotton wool cylinders in my mouth when I was a kid to soak up the spit (that was a long time ago) and ever since, I just can't touch the stuff. Hubby has to take the stoppers out of pain reliever and vitamin containers.
I just found your blog via the ebay listing, which is still getting passed around. I nearly wet myself from laughing so hard. I only have two kids and I'm ready to trade them in most days! Great writing, I'll be checking back regularly.
Hi there Dawn,
I LOVE your blog...visit everyday.
For the barf topic and various gross smelling cleaning projects, you guys could try putting a little Vicks under your nose/above your top lip. Helps to kill the smell of gross stuff.
I love your wedding photo! My wedding dress had POOFY sleeves too...must have been an early 90's thing! LOL! ;-)
On the quirks topic..not sure if this is a quirk or not...gummy worms totally gross me out. I know they are not real worms, they are just candy, but they really ick me out. My teen nephew knows this too and buys them whenever we go to the store...then he dangles them in front of me..."Aunt Nina...want a gummy worm??" LOL!
I too hate wearing shoes. I have to wear them outside because I live in Arizona.
Just like you, I LOVE getting things in the mail. In fact, I do 99% of my shopping from catalogs just so parcels arrive which I can then re-wrap (another favorite activity of mine, seriously) and send out to everyone. Not having to go to the mall during holiday season? Priceless! Plus it guarantees I keep getting catalogs which are better than credit card applications any day!
Not like you don't have enough on your plate, but thought you'd like to know that I don't wear shoes either. You know "FlyLady"? And you know how she tells you to make sure you put shoes on...you HAVE to put shoes on?! I tried, but every time i did - I heard "where are you going?" "I wanna go" I'm not going anywhere! "I wanna go!". I gave up!!
I've been reading for a few weeks now, ever since all the ebay hype. Your humor and style of writing are right up my alley. So far I haven't felt the need to write and add to your exploding inbox, but when I saw today's post I just had to say hi because I'm half Greek too. You might know a lot of people of Greek heritage, but I don't. I didn't have the typical "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" family, so I have only one cousin on that side of the family, plus when I was little we moved away from my grandparents and therefore all of the Greek people we knew, and although I am certain there are, in fact, other Greek people out here in California, I never met any. I just thought it was interesting that I've been reading your blog and it turns out you are half Greek as well. Just had to say hi and congrats on your new-found popularity and all of the opportunities that have come with it, from yet another fellow half-Greek girl... Leah
Seems like everyone has the same vomit complex! I do too of course, my husband and I have a deal. He does the vomit and I do the poop. Of course he is NEVER around when the vomiting happens because my kids have a special talent for holding it in until I pick them up to see if they are okay. I swear, everytime (okay, maybe 99% of the time) they vomit on me.
I too don't wear shoes...ever. Unless it is raining or too hot outside to walk on the pavement. Also wore my comfy flip flops under the wedding dress. My husband is also half greek with many relatives from the NY area. Love you!! I look forward to your blog everyday!
I know that you get millions of comments a day. But i had to laugh when you said the highlight of your day was getting mail. I really thought I was the only werid one. I am also the same way about my email.
I swear my family buys me christmas presents because they are packed in styrofoam! They think it's hysterical how I have to leave the room and let other people take the presents out of the styrofoam. Would it kill them to take it out of the styrofoam before they wrap it??
Lol, I came across your blog via your ebay auction of the Pokemon cards. I loved your writing there, and new instantly that you had to be a blogger.
So, I made my way over here and started reading.
I just noticed, and I'm sure its been pointed out prior to this comment, but felt I had to say something, a comment you made in this blog.
"I was 20 months pregnant with my 4th baby at the time.."
I'm sure that was a typo, and you meant 2 months; or was it? lol
Anyway, I have thus far enjoyed reading your blogs, keep up the good & hard work!
Ooooh I totally squirmed and shuddered when I read the styrofoam thing! I do the same thing! At Christmas, my family finds it amusing to purposely rub the boxes onto the styrofoam just to grate on my nerves! AAAAHHH!
I also don't do vomit. Blech! I run and hide.
20 months pregnant with my 4th baby at the time.
--hahaha....
What can I say, I just love reading your blog!! I would have to say it is the "highlight" of my day!! Keep making the world smile, and if they aren't shame on them!!
If I ever find a man fit to marry and actually get married, I have every intention of wearing Crocs with sparkly Jibbitz to my wedding.
My mother however may have something to say about that. But I just don't do heals. They hurt.
Oh...and on the vomit thing....right there with you. Yuck!
Six kids and you have yet to master the gag reflex? How can that be? (I have that issue with pet puke, but people I can do.) Once again, I laughed out loud. Have a great day.
My husband has a problem with cotton balls! That is just the weirdest thing. I can't believe there's another guy out there with the same problem.
Yeah, so I can touch cotton balls, but don't ask me to pull them apart. I was helping out at my son's preschool one day and they were doing a cotton cloud craft thing. I strategically named myself the glue lady so I wasn't even asked to help with the cotton balls!
My sister lived with us for a couple years when my boys were little. I used to make fun of her because the sound of one of the kids retching was usually quickly followed by the sound of her retching! She didn't even have to be in the same room, she just had to hear it! And she wasn't exactly a quiet puker either! I always refused to clean after her, the kids were enough!. I mean, if she was really sick, I'd clean up after her. But this was very different!
My number one quirk (out of many) is that I can NOT stand to see a grown man drink milk. I think I may need therapy to figure that one out.
I'm glad to see some other people who find styrofoam far worse than fingernails on a chalkboard. Can't even stand the styrofoam packages that contain eggs. I'm with you on the shoe thing too. As soon as I get home, my shoes come off! Love your blog!
I don't do vomit either...how are you with blood? I can't handle blood. Everyone tells me I'll get better with it. I doubt it. It hasn't worked so far with the vomit thing.
HA! I can't clean up vomit, either! Worst situation that happened (ok, not THE worst, but a situation I've been holding against my DH for the past 6 years...) was when we decided to travel from SC to NY to IN to visit our families for Christmas...with our 6 mo beagle pup. Oh, and I was 3 months pregnant and suffering from hyperemesis at the time.
Didja know dogs get carsick? I really had no clue, basically b/c we had a big German shepherd when I was growing up & we always left him in the care of family when we traveled.
Didja know a carsick pooch will puke up twice its own weight, regardless of the fact that it's not been fed for the past 6 hours? It's true!
Didja know a man will refuse to clean dog vomit off the leather interior of his car, simply b/c "I'll throw up, and you're already throwing up, anyway...so you should do it."
So there we were, stuck at a gas station, both of us refusing to clean the mess. Finally, the thought of driving hundreds and hundreds of miles with the smell of dog puke emanating from the back seat convinced me to take action. The "clean-up" went kinda like this: Remove vomit-covered dog from crate. Throw up. Hand vomit-covered leash to DH. Throw up again. Use an only slightly soiled towel to swipe at mess in back seat. Throw up more. Get frustrated and attemt to scream at DH between heaves. Grab towel and frantically wipe up mess as quickly as possible before turning to throw up as close to DH's shoes as possible. Throw towel away in Dumpster; gag from smell. Return to car, find a clean towel, throw it in dog's crate, regardless of whatever is still left in there. Put dog back in crate. Enter restroom and wash hands, cursing DH under breath. Return to vehicle (which by this point is sitting right outside the convenience store with engine running and DH impatiently drumming fingers on steering wheel), get in, and have DH make an utterly humorless comment about someone missing a spot in the backseat. Open car door (while in motion) to throw up one final time.
Truly, I don't have a weak stomach! I can clean up poop (all consistencies), blood, snot, urine, and whatever other gross thing a child can concoct or excrete (I have 2 with another on the way, so trust me, I have experience!), but something about vomit does me in.
My friend can hardly stand to wipe her own children's snotty noses, but once on a road trip with just us two moms and our 4 kids, she turned around and caught my 15-month-old's throw-up in her hands! What a friend!
I too wear shoes only when it is absolutely required! I only have about two pairs... one of them a clown shoes (!) because I am a family entertainer. Love your blog!
I am so glad I'm not the only one in the world who is psycho about packing peanuts. My CoWorkers love to watch as I dump every packing peanut into the trash, because I'll gag and cringe if the peanuts touch my fingernails. Course, we both might need psychotherapy...one never knows.
I would just like to thank you for being the ONLY other person on the face of this earth who hates styrofoam. I feel the exact same way about it, and I, too, put my fingers in my ears on Christmas and hum loudly so I can't hear it. Thanks for the laugh today! I really needed it! :)
Amy
Like you need more things to do on the internet, but did you know there's a mailing list for habitual barefooters? It's moderated, and no creepy stuff is allowed.
I know what it's like to be unexpectedly famous, because it happened to me, too.
I'm with you on the puke thing to. Gross!
I never wear shoes either . . . they are quite bothersome. i have extra quadruple wide feet, and nothing feels good on my feet except air and foot freedom.
I love your blog. Your wedding pic reminds me of myself. I had a similar dress and wore white Keds. People thought I was crazy, but hey, I was a comfortable bride in a great mood.
DAWN!!!!I so relate to your number 4 quirk.. vomit. I hate it. Trust me it never goes away.. i just put on my blog about my dog throwing up and my husband can't stomach it at all so I have no choice than to do it or move!! I've thought about the latter but who will buy our home with puke piles everywhere... and you should see how much comes out of a 170lb great dane. I just laughed and laughed when I read this post since I just did a post about the exact same thing.
Hang in there and I love your stuff, brings back memories when I had four small kids running around.. i'd like to say it gets easier or less chaotic but they're from 26-17 and it's still a mess!
Yup, with you on the vomit. I once went for a job interview in a school where a child threw up on my shoes during our walk around. I got the job - but still wonder to this day if it was some kind of initiation process !!
My quirk is a handkerchief in a mouth or a piece of cloth. erg the thought even now of dry tongue and teeth rasping against a piece of cloth. Feck only knows how the hell I found THAT as a phobia - I don't have many friends that tend to do it on a regular basis! I think I fit the weird club!
being in youth ministry, I have had a fair share of cleaning up after kids when they get sick. I ca handle the actual vomit, butif I have to watch them get sick, I will puke. never fails! HOWEVER.... I once woked at a childrens daycare facility... with 3-4 year olds..., was already not feeling good because of an absessed tooth, but one of the little boys had a runny nose. The main teacher MADe me blow his nose even though i begged her not to make me do it. I bent down, kleenex in hand, grabbed the kids nose. As he blew, so did i. all over his feet. although that was 10 years ago, I am sure that poor kid had to have therapy for it!
I love quirkiness in people.
In fact, that is how a rate the books that I read, the more quirks, the more dysfuntional characters the better!
I'm so with you on the balloon thing! I hate the squeaky noise... but worse when my 4 yr old has a deflated balloon and she sucks on it then squeezes it.. Yechhhhh.
What i love about your list is the end of number 1.. I am so bothered by cotton balls. It made me happy to know somewhere out there, there is someone like me!
You're wearing MY dress! Seriously, that was the coolest dress ever! I love your blog, just started reading, can't stop now. My blog shames me in comparison! -- Katye
The styrofoam gets me too. And the balloons. I am glad it bothers you because no one else I've ever met, or even "met" has this problem. My whole family thinks I'm a big freak about this.
But you seem pretty cool. So I'm good now. We're both good! Whew!
I am right there with you on the vomit thing!
PMSL...THATS SUCH A FUNNY POST..
Another shoe hater! I never wear shoes unless I have to. I went barefoot at my wedding ceremony and wore floral print Doc Martens at the reception, because I had to wear shoes inside. They were a good investment too. I still wear them 9 years later.
I can handle vomit. It's snot I have the problem with. That will send me running for the nearest trash can or toilet immediately.
I wore Keds on my wedding day!
Bless you for Quirk Number 4. I once heard my 11 year old daughter instruct her 2 year old brother "Now, if you are throwing up you don't EVER want to call Mommy. For THAT you call Daddy. On the other hand, if there is BLOOD, you call MOMMY."
I am still laughing about your "quirk".
I have the same quirk as you do about styrofoam & balloons irk me to no end!
Balloons, they just scare me.
Styrofoam peanuts, squeeky, squeekins, squeeker. NO WAY!
:P
Kelly Kravitz http://doulamomkk.blogspot.com/
I'm with you on styrofoam... only I have the same problem with cotton balls. Kids have to open meds for me. shudder Just THINKING about it makes me cringe. My 5 yr old is autistic and whats his favorite thing to do? Sit with styrofoam and a kitchen knife and saw it... I send him to the deck. LOL
Glenda
(www.pwsmommy.homeschooljournal.net)
I soooo love your blog. It is almost the highlight of my day, I too look forward to the mailman.
I can't believe there is another person afraid of cotton balls! One of my old clients was afraid of them too. Too bad we sold spa products, she had to use them all the time! She would use a washcloth to pick them up. Poor girls.
LOVE the photo of your wedding dress and shoes :-) To please my mother I wore regular shoes for my wedding (not floor-length dress), but the minute we got out of church the dressy shoes came off and my tennies went on :-)
Dawn,
What a treat it has been to read your blog! I looked it up after a co-worker forwarded your eBay posting for the Pokemon cards, and have been laughing ever since. I was especially tickled to learn of your heritage as I am of Greek descent (on both sides...yikes). Keep it up and I hope to someday be purchasing your book!
"Yasou"!
I never wear shoes either! And I wore flipflops under my wedding dress :)
"Sympathetic puker" is the term for people who can't see someone else throwing up or clean up after someone else without puking. I know this from experience. Unfortunately. I had a friend who was holding his baby daughter in the air - guess what she did - yep, right into his mouth. His response? Threw up on the floor and on the baby. His wife had to clean them both up. She said she just stuck him in the shower, clothes and all, until the worst of it was off. It's making me gag just thinking about it - think I'll go read another part of your blog for a while...
I have to agree with you on the shoe thing...well, kind of anyway. You see I have rows and rows of shoes in my closet. Beautiful pumps, gorgeous tall leather boots, adorable sandals, but the thing is I HATE WEARING SHOES. At any given time, on any given day I am barefoot. I have actually resorted to keeping a pair of flip flops or two in the trunk of my car because I am so used to being barefoot that I will leave the house to run errands and not realize that I am without shoes until I am face-to-face with the dreaded "No Shirt, No Shoes, No Service" sign. Love your blog by the way. I am a proud mamma of two and they run me ragged...I can't imagine how tired you are come the day's end.
Hi Dawn,
I am still laughing and wiping the tears from my eyes on the pokemon card incident and all the funny things you wrote.... I have 6 kids also and I can relate!! I would rather tow you and your six kids through the English Channel covered in bait than go to the store with mine 6 wonderful kids. I would love to commiserate one day with you. Feel free to contact me, if you have time!! JVD8@optonline.net
My daughter had to show me how to get to this on the computer!! Virginia Doherty, New Jersey
I had to leave a comment on this blog entry because your number 1 quirk is exactly the same as mine! (ballons and styrofoam!)
It FREAKS me out and I don't even know why...I am the same with the fingers in the ears and singing too.
Also...I'm scared of cotton balls too. I'm weird lol.
Anyway, just thought I'd let you know that! You've cheered me up - I am on strict voice rest after an operation on my vocal chords and I've been so bored and depressed but reading your blog has cheered me up a lot :) Thank you!
Take care xxx
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