Metal Meredith

It Does’t Fall Far From the Tree

For anyone who is familiar with my family, you understand that there is a long line of running butt jokes. I am unsure where they started or how they have kept momentum all these years, but when it comes to humor, my family goes right to the toilet. So, it is no shock that Vivienne has come by this trait honestly. Like her mother before her, she is exhibiting all the signs of early problems, including clenching butt cheeks and refusal to poop saying “it is owie”.

This has happened twice since we returned from vacation. I decided that her reward for finally pooping last go round was the book “Everyone Poops” by Taro Gomi. (Strangely enough, I knew about this book because it sits prominently in my father’s guest bathroom, alongside “Walter the Farting Dog” and “The Gas We Pass”.)

Off to Barnes and Noble we went to find a few books on all things poop. Vivienne was delighted, telling everyone in the store who would listen that we were there to buy the poop book. We took it home much to her delight and read it at least 3 times before nap. Then Phil came home.

After putting Vivienne to bed that night, I asked if he read the poop book. He replied, “Yes, and it made me a little nauseous. I mean, it was so graphic and it was all about poop. Too much poop.”

Phil isn’t a big fan of the bodily function. He doesn’t have the same background as I do. But Vivienne, a week and a half later, still wants the book read every day. We talk about poop very often, give praise and hoot and holler when it all goes smoothly. There is still a lot of “Ewwwww’s” when it is brought up, but she is getting the point, albeit slowly.

I just keep thinking how proud Dad will be when he reads this.

Phil is Happy

As mentioned previously mentioned on this site, Phil has been looking for a new car for a while now. It seems that the yellow truck isn’t as convenient or luxurious enough now that he is a high-powered executive. We have been looking for a good couple of months for a decent car that falls under the $1500 mark. With his recent winnings, Phil found a 1990 Volvo 740 Turbo Wagon. Knowing that it wouldn’t hold any of the ‘awesomeness’ it possesses without the word turbo attached to the end, I was just happy that he gave up on the BMW.

Although I love his truck for him, I am relieved that the weekly car search consisting of hours of time spent on Craigslist and looking in the paper each week, is finally over. I am also pleased to be able to drive a second vehicle in the family. Last night, I even drove it home from Panera, proving its fine European engineering by holding a hot cup of coffee on the whole ride home and using only one hand to steer. I made it in one piece and the car was fine, too.

So, if you pass us on the road, we are the ones in the dark grey Volvo wagon. It isn’t as fancy as some people’s new Volvo, but we love it.

Photo below is not actual car but close:

SNDM Weblog

I am so very pleased to be able to bring this new blog to you. After all, I have been wanting to share this group of people with everyone for quite a while. For anyone who has heard me tell stories and reference them to my ‘Mom Message Board’ “My online friends”, then you will be pleased to learn that they are all real people. I wasn’t making them up, they are not invisible.

Please stop by and take a read. Sit and hang out a while. Leave comments on the posts. I know we will all be thrilled to have a new audience for our stories, ideas and advice.

http://sndm.net

In late 2002, I found out I was expecting my first child. I was terrified and overjoyed, but mostly terrified. So I did what any internet addict would do, I searched all over to find out information.

In doing so, I stumbled upon BabyCenter’s birth month section. Each month and year has its own message board. New mothers and mothers-to-be all join these boards looking for comfort, ideas, friendship, help and laughter. Mostly, they are looking for someone to share the pregnancy with that is going through exactly what they are.

I logged on to the June 2003 section in December of 2002. Mostly, I just read posts and laughed. I picked out the people I identified with and the ones I was scared of. I was addicted to it and read it all day long in between emails and phone calls at work. It wasn’t long before I started posting, made a few friends and was in on all the inside jokes.

After we all had our babies, we started getting closer. We had online chat times when up to 20 of us would do instant chat on the site and our personalities really started shining through. Then, all hell broke loose.

The problem with the internet is almost the same as the advantage; one can remain as nameless and distant as possible without feeling the real-life rudeness and discomfort of others. Along with this distance comes the real possibility of hurt feelings, people stirring up crap with others and being downright mean.

One of the members decided to branch out and create a place where the only initial rule was ‘respect each other’. Soon, we grew to 60 people and she gave us the name “So Not Drama Mammas”.

Since that time, I have spent 2 years getting to know many women that I would have never taken the time to speak to in person. In this situation, I was allowed to ‘listen’ to others opinions, voices and experiences without having to offer up feedback. I was able to share my experiences, as little or as much detail as I wanted, without worrying about someone being hurtful. We all felt safe.

I can honestly say that I have grown as a human in the past two years because of the friendships I have made with the SNDMs. I enjoy these women so much that I wanted to offer a space for all of them to share their voices with the world. So, I asked Phil (my wonderful web designer husband), to help me make this site.

Hopefully, as more people read and see this version of the SNDMs, they will also come to appreciate the universality of motherhood, love and family.

Between Vivienne and Phil

Vivienne: Where’s Daddy?
Me: I think he is in the bathroom.

--She heads toward the bathroom and I hear a door open--

Vivienne: Whatcha doin’ Daddy?
Phil: Peeing.
Vivienne: Good job, Daddy.
Phil: Thanks, Baby.
Vivienne (clapping): Great job flushing, Daddy.
Phil: Thanks, Vivienne.
Vivienne: You are a big girl!!!
Meredith (laughing hysterically): Yes Phil, you are a big girl.

I always knew Phil was a big girl, I have been telling him for years.