Things That Are Hard - Keeping the Real World at Bay

Being a grown up sucks, but here's the thing: my sleeping four year old doesn't know that his insomniac mother, when she couldn't sleep at 2am, decided to check twitter and watched unfold, in real time, a series of horrific events in Boston. He doesn't know that an entire city is locked down, in the grip of terror.

My instinct today is to stay home, draw the curtains, and keep my family close. Yes, even if what kept me up last night happened on the other edge of the continent. The thing about social media, is there's no "over there" anymore. We're all connected now. I'm firmly in the "that's a good thing" camp, but it does make everything, both good and bad, and terrifying, feel closer to home.

But sound asleep Imp doesn't need to know. This is what we do, as parents. We strive to keep the world normal for our children. For as long as we can, we work hard to keep the world as it should be, where people share, and take their turns, and say please and thank you, instead of delivering it to them as it is, unfiltered.

Which is why, despite my yearning to go back to bed and shut the world out and just not deal, I'm up, and baking blueberry mini-muffins for Imp's class bake sale today.

Baking blueberry muffins at 5am might not be normal in your world, but it's what's working for me today.

Which I had to do twice because I completely forgot the blueberries the first time around. It's going to be a long day.

Things That Make Me Cry

I posted this picture to instagram and twitter the day of the Newtown tragedy, with the words, "Today I just need to document that this still exists."

It's true again. My heart and thoughts go out to all those affected by today's horrifying events in Boston.

Things That Are True - Flattery will get you everywhere.

A not atypical exchange:

The Imp: "Mommy, you're beautiful. You're like a princess!"

Me, welling up: "Thanks honey, that's very sweet."

The Imp: "Is that a nice thing to say, Mommy?"

Me: "Yes, it's a lovely thing to say. It made Mommy very happy to hear it."

The Imp: "Yay. Could I have some chocolate sprinkles on my cappuccino?"

Flattery works, you guys. You're damn straight I gave him chocolate sprinkles on his cappucino.*

Flattery about this fantastic new blog design that I LOVE should be directed toward the incredibly talented (and patient) Schmutzie, as it's entirely her work. I can't promise she'll give you chocolate sprinkles, but it's worth a try.

*An Imp cappucino is a tiny espresso cup filled with soy milk foam, in case you're worried I'm trying to stunt his growth or something.