My daughter made me feel like a dirty hypocrite the other day, and rightly so.
I’ll condense the back story for you guys, but basically, we’re not fans of Wal-Mart. Haven’t been for awhile.
At the begining of 2009, we decided we were going to avoid Wal-Mart for the bulk of our purchases. We still purchased a few things, but for the most part, we did good. We visited them very little.
In September, we watched “Wal-Mart: The High Cost of Low Prices” and decided that we were not going to shop at Wal-Mart. Period.

Miss Question, used to us running into the store for diapers about once a month, wanted to know why we didn’t do that anymore. “But, Wal-Mart has toys! Can’t we please go to Wal-Mart?” And I kept telling her no, and eventually, she threw her hands up in the air and said, “WHY can’t we go to Wal-Mart??”
“Mommy and Daddy don’t like some of the things that Wal-Mart does.”
“What do they do?”
Not wanting to try and explain some of the things, like poor benefits, shady practices, their effect on communities, etc. I settled for telling her that we didn’t think they paid their workers enough.

Saturday, she was at my mom’s. Mom says that a Wal-Mart commercial came on, and Miss Question explained to her aunties, that we don’t shop there, because they don’t pay people enough that work there. I’m so proud of her for getting this, but it bit me in the ass the next day.

See, our tv broke, yet again, Saturday night. This was incredibly frustrating, because we’re broke constantly, and most of our entertainment (movies, games, documentaries, etc) centers around the TV. So we looked around at various stores(all of which were so expensive), and decided that, for the sake of sanity, we’d violate our principles, and go to Wal-Mart to purchase a smaller tv.
We were already feeling guilty about it, and wrestled with it most of the day. But in the end, sanity and boredom won out over our desire to make a stand.

The icing on the guilt cake came as we left the store, and Miss Question looked up at me with those beautiful eyes, and anxiously asked, “Do we still not like Wal-Mart? I thought we didn’t shop here.”

With that guilt arrow, my heart cracked a little bit.
I reached down to pick her up and gave her a great big hug. I told her that she was right, we shouldn’t be at Wal-Mart. I thanked her for reminding her, and I promised her that, no matter how much mommy and daddy want something, we wouldn’t go back to Wal-Mart.
I looked over her head and said, “Right, daddy?”
He nodded, with an equally shamed look on his face.

Being four, she was all, “Okay, great, can we go to Pizza Hut and use my BookIt slip now?”

I feel so guilty and dirty now, when I look at that stupid tv.

So this is my public acknowledgment of that promise I made to Miss Question.
From now on, no matter how great the sale, no matter how badly we want/need the item, we will not go to Wal-Mart to purchase it.
We will continue to stand by our principles, and we will, from hereon out, try harder to show our kids how important it is to do so.

Thank you, baby girl, for that heaping side of guilt. Momma needed it.

Slightly Similar Nonsense:

• A Letter to Santa
• Dear Kid Saturday: Constructive Criticism
• My Baby Girl is Growing Up
• Busy. Insanely Busy.
• Popularity is a bitch, right?

Popularity: 9% [?]

Tags: guilt, influence, kids, life, parenting, promise

For this I am grateful, for this I am grateful, for THIS I am grateful….

I find myself thinking this to myself a lot lately. I couldn’t really tell you why. It wasn’t a conscious decision to be more thankful for the small things in life. I find it just…happening.

Truck sits quietly snuggled up to his father, as his nebulizer pumps the medicine into his lungs, helping him to breathe. And for the quiet cooperation of the child who is anything but quiet, still or cooperative most days, for this I am thankful.

I share my discouragement with our situation. I whine about how sometimes it’s hard to see how we’ll get through this, and friends and family rush to support us. Some with offers of help, and some with gentle reminders that we have a certainty that this will pass, and we’ll be okay. And that is more than some have. For the out pouring of love and encouragement when I most needed it, for this, I am grateful.

It’s November, in Wisconsin, and it’s a balmy 65 degrees Fahrenheit outside. We horse around outside for hours, without the usual mind-numbing cold of November. I can enjoy the season without 5 layers of clothing. For this, I am grateful.

The money that some scheming loser stole from our bank account is returned, just in time to cover two small, but important, bills that needed to be paid. For the timing, for the amount that is within a few dollars of what was needed, I am grateful.

Miss Question bounces up and down excitedly, and asks, “Momma, can we make THAT?” as she watches her nightly cooking show. For her passion, her love of cooking and creating, however odd it may be at the tender age of four…for that I am grateful.

I curl up on the couch at the end of the day, next to TheMan. I think of how much has happened in the last 6 months. I think of how I wouldn’t have been able to write that first sentence most nights, less than a year ago. I think of how much has changed, and for this I am grateful.

Sometimes (okay, a lot of times) it is hard for me to see the good things in my life. So I welcome this change. I’m determined to enjoy my new perspective.
I’d love hear what you are grateful for in your life, however small it may seem.

Slightly Similar Nonsense:

• The extraordinarily ordinary
• I Lay Me Down To Sleep
• My Own "Influential Blogger" list
• Where I am From

Popularity: 12% [?]

Tags: grateful, influence, small things, thanksgiving

I have seen some lists lately that list “The Most Influential Bloggers EVAH!”
Most of the time, I only recognize a handful, at best. It seems like the “most influential” are deemed to be those who make the most, or have been around longest. Which, hey, it’s not my list, so it’s not my place to judge who these other people feel are influential.
So all that is to introduce this, *MY* list of influential bloggers. These are the people I admire. These are the people I am occasionally jealous of, because they have some MAD SKILLZ, yo.
This isn’t EVERYONE I read, or love. It’s just a handful. Think of it as, Favoritest Bloggers, Part One

Miss Britt I can’t remember when I started reading Miss Britt. But there is so much I love about reading her. Her writing just sucks you into the story. And it’s so real, and sometimes raw. She’s incredibly open, to the point of vulnerability. I think part of the reason I connect to her writing is because of this openness. She serves up the bad and ugly, right along with the good stuff.

PrincessJenn I know I came across Jenn less than 6 months ago, but I can’t remember exactly when, because it feels like I’ve been following her forever. And not in that bad way like, “God, this class is so dull, I feel like I’ve been sitting her FOREVER!” More like that, “OMG, I love this, and wish I had found it earlier, so I’m going to pretend I did!” More than once she’s written a post that makes me wonder if she’s got some sort of ESP going on, because it’s like my thoughts traveled through teh internetz and landed on her page.
And she’s Canadian, so how can you go wrong with that?

BareFoot Foodie This is a blogger who cracks me up every time she writes. Which is not often enough in my humble opinion! I would love to be able to write the way she does.

The RedNeck Mommy Again, very open, very funny and seems so very real. And Canadian. Because apparently, I like a lot of Canadians. Do you think this is a sign?

OHMommy Sometimes I get jealous of OHMommy, because she seems to have a handle on this parenting thing. Then she writes a post about a “screw-up” that sounds like something I would do. And then I love her again.

So there you have it, five bloggers I envy for their ability to write, to be open and honest, and effing hilarious. And Canadian, apparently.

PS It was really hard to pick just five, so no one is allowed to feel slighted, mmkay?

Slightly Similar Nonsense:

• I Feel Speshul
• I think I iz dead
• Times are Tough All Over
• Follow Friday: Manly Edition
• This Week in Psychoville

Popularity: 20% [?]

Tags: bloggers, influence, links, list