Mama made something for me?

I forgot to address SS's temper tantrums, aka royal meltdowns in this household. They are now infrequent, and it sort of sneaked up on us. We are also becoming more adept at recognizing the warning signs and avoiding a full eruption. Either that or SS did it all on her own and as usual we are taking credit. Although TV is still banned (we will slip up with the Olympics, I just know it), we do have the music channels on almost all day. SS has become a connoisseur of popular music. For some reason listening to music really makes it easier to deal with her moments. We also sure that as her language skills progress it is much easier to avoid tantrums.

Since SS listens to pop music more than she ever listens to children's songs, we know we will have a few embarrassing moments in our future. We could simply avoid those moments by being more selective about what she hears, but that would be way too easy and responsible on our parts. SS is repeating a lot more and it is a hoot. A few things she has said, a lot as she was falling asleep, "downtown train, downtown train," "whip it, whip it good," "don't worry, be happy," "(living) la vida loca" (LOVES that song) and "baby love shack." Hey, it could be Ge0rge Mich@el's "I W@nt Y0ur S*x" which has a really catchy beat. The Bee Gees also captivate her, something about their harmony that makes her sing along. If she could only carry a tune.

SS also recognizes Mich@el Jacks0n's voice, but his appearance puzzles her. Our cable channel feeds pictures of the artists (a great alternative to videos, which SS can't watch). In J@ckson's case, they display pictures from childhood to adulthood. SS is trying to wrap her brain around how a beautiful African American man with an Afro, grew up to be a White man with a bad looking weave. She seems to be OK until the pictures from his Bad CD, after that it is all WTF looks.

About a month ago SS and I were in a fabric store. I know, I belong in a fabric store as much as I belong in church. I saw about a dozen Sn00py fabric panels,, but not why we were there. Those are the times that I really hate not being creative. They had so much to choose from and all screamed SS at us. When I came home I G00gled fleece blankets and came up with this. I thought about giving it a shot, even though something this simple is beyond my abilities. For one, I can't cut in a straight line to save my life. I know that this is something children should master before kindergarten, so I'm really glad I scraped by with a college degree,

Since there are so many Sn00py things out there, why did I want to make something? Wish I knew, but the same happened with JJ when I felt compelled to make him something. It was so cheesy that I won't discuss it here. Suffice it to say that it is an activity I learned in school, one of those rainy day, let's keep them quiet things. Then SS came along and that compulsion resurfaced. We picked the two patterns and they remained in the closet because I was afraid of messing it up.

This afternoon I decided that I would have it done before the Olympic opening ceremonies. Like the Beijing games, the Vancouver games are important to us and to SS, so it made sense to have it done tonight. When P arrived home, he was surprised that I started without him, mainly because of SS. Sunshine then got down to what he does best, spread good will among men.

P: "Baby, I don't mean to be offensive, but..."
Me: You do realize that a statement that begins like that won't end well, yet you are going to keep going."
P: "... yes, I'm weird that way. This is the most creative thing I have ever seen you do."

Awwwww, Sunshine indeed, I think that is his new name. I still do not understand his fetish for getting knee deep in excrement, but it is who he is. And we do love teasing each other about our short comings.

SS loved her blanket, although I think I could have used less fabric. She now has one and a half yards of fleece to wrap around her little body. As you can see below, she appears to be enjoying herself. BTW, this is not a cheap project, but that was our own doing, because we chose a copyrighted theme. But we could not think of anything more fitting for SS. P wants two Angels blankets (for him and SS to watch the games) to be delivered in April. What he does not know is that I can get these things out of my system with just one try.