The random misadventures of a (formerly)Single Super Mom

We all dream of "winning it big".  We all fantasize of what we would do with an insane amount of money.  However, could most of us handle the pressures of what comes along with that financial windfall?  Having a mother that is a financial planner, I have carefully planned out my strategy should I win it big.  I think, right now, the big jackpot in our area is close to 150 million dollars.  I'd take the lump sum payment which right there takes about half the money.  But before I did that, I'd go straight to an attorney's office.  I'd show him a photocopy (not the original mind you) of the winning ticket and instruct him to immediately set up a trust for me.  The trust, not me, would claim the money.  That way, when people use the power of the internet to search for the big winner, I won't have people climbing out of the woodwork to say that they were my best friend in 1978, or they're my uncle's cousin's sister's nephew.  I coul...

This week, the younger sister of a very good friend committed suicide.  She left behind a 4 year old child.  Suicide is the one thing that I think is the most selfish act that anyone can do.  The decision to take your own life, while having no regard for those you leave behind, is something that I cannot comprehend.  I say that because I've been that person.  I had to take Paxil to get up in the morning.  Xanax to get through the day.  Ambien to shut my thoughts down so that I could sleep at night.  I was a shell.  I put on the ultimate facade; the porcelain face that I presented to the world was one of constant happiness.  Inside, however, I was dying.  I was in a marriage to someone who didn't want me, who belittled me, and made me feel like I was worthless.  I was overweight, and every time I looked in the mirror I didn't see any of the "good", all I saw was the bad.  No positives, only negatives.  Every singl...

I was watching the Lifetime (dramatized)Autobiography of Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling and it struck me, that she has the most bittersweet revenge ever of a single mom.  Here is a woman who was on welfare, receiving 69 pounds (not sure what that is in American dollars, but it CAN'T be much) a week from the government.  Now, years later, she sits in the enviable position of being worth more than the Queen of England.  She's remarried, and has another child.  Here is a woman who's ex husband, a deadbeat dad, is kicking his own ass every day for walking out on her.  President Barack Obama is another.  Raised by a single mother, absent father, yet look at what he's become.  In homage to my post yesterday, another success story is Justin Bieber.  Teenage mother, no involvement from his father, and then look at him now.  What is it with these men who can walk away from their responsibilities without a backward glance?  How can you look at...

Ok.  I'll be the first to admit that I don't "get" Justin Bieber.  He's cute, yes.  Talented? Yes.  However, he's a marketing juggernaut.  I'm sure that there are a thousand other kids out there in America that are as equally talented.  They just didn't push it as hard.  And we all know that 95% of fame is marketing.  How else would half of the Billboard Top 100 have jobs?  As I'm sitting here with ruptured eardrums from the screams of 2 teenage girls, I'm shaking my head at the depth of their complete and utter fascination and obsession with J-Beebs.  I'm drinking copious amounts of a good Moscato, in order to just deal with the manic behavior that I'm seeing exhibited while they are watching "Never Say Never".  I remember being 14.  Honestly I do!  I was 14 in 1985.  Michael Jackson was at the PEAK of his popularity.  Prince was on the charts.  Madonna was hot.  I remember looking at news footage of...

Seriously.  Is there ANYTHING in the world like that new car smell?  I remember purchasing my first new car.  Honestly, I was 36 years old.  Yep.  That old.  I'd "had" new cars before...but never my own.  My ex husband had always had the income, so he was the owner, and I just was primary on the insurance becuase it was cheaper.  (Go figure).  In 2007, I bought my first new...heck...my first EVER car.  It was a Honda Pilot.  The Silver Bullet.  I loved that car.  It was  mom-mobile, but not a minivan.  It had that "cool factor" that the party van lacked.  However, in this great city of Charlotte, NC....silver must be an invisible color.  Not once, not twice, but 3 times I was rear ended in the Silver Bullet.  I was considering getting one of those stickers that they put on the back end of mail trucks...."This Vehicle Makes Frequent Stops"....Seriously.  Then I got a rental car.  I haven't...

Time is one of those things you can't put a value on.  There never seems to be enough time in the day, especially when you have things to do.  However, when you're at loose ends, or bored, or waiting on someone else....that same amount of time seems to drag interminably.  When you have 2 jobs, 2 kids, and still have to take on extra to make ends meet; time definitely is a luxury.  When I find myself bemoaning the lack of time I seem to have, I just take a step back and think about the people who literally have no time.  I'm thankful that I do have the time to enjoy life.  To spend with friends and family.  To give other people time to spend with their loved ones, knowing that the children that they leave in my care are well loved and protected.  I try to make the time every day to read.  Time to listen to a new song.  Time to take a walk with the dog.  Time to connect with a friend. I think everyone needs to give themselves a li...

When I was in college I had grandiose dreams of writing the next great novel.  I had the entire plot mapped out in my head; and pictured myself on book signings; talk shows, and posing tastefully for my bookjacket picture.  When I read the first Harry Potter book, I'll admit that I'd had no idea what the fuss was all about.  I didn't read the first book until I was pregnant with my son; in the year 2000.  I was taking college classes at an adult studies program, and someone mentioned the "phenomenon" that was Harry Potter to me.  I, of course, being a bit of a literary snob, was prepared to be underwhelmed by the fictional tale of a boy wizard.  I was completely unprepared for how quickly I was to be sucked into the magical world of Hogwarts, the young survior Harry Potter, his annoyingly smart friend Hermoine, and the gangly and awkward Ron.  I devoured the first book in record time; and quickly had to procure the next two.  I couldn't believe ho...

Ok, meeting boys isn't like it was 25 years ago.  No walking around the mall with your friends, giggling behind hands as you follow a group of cute guys, hoping one of them will ask his friend to ask your friend to ask you out.  No note passing, getting set up on a blind date with friends, or having your parents try to hook you up with kids of their friends.  No, now it's all about the internets.  Dating sites such as Match.com, Eharmony, and others tempt you with the promise of finding the "perfect" mate.  Just plug in your criteria in a man, write a suitably witty profile, and just wait for the man of your dreams to walk in to your laptop and sweep you off of your virtual feet.  They just don't tell you that, if you want any chance at all at returning a wink, replying to an email, or getting to the "nitty gritty" about a potential match, you have to be willing to part with the low low price of 30.00 American dollars a month. (although using...

Do you ever think about that one food that would just basically ruin your life if you had to give it up?  Yeah.  That's it.  Diet coke...cake...cookies.....giving up those would hardly be a blip on my culinary radar.  Bacon however?  My life would pretty much be over.  I'm talking adrift on a desert island with no hope of rescue over.  I had gastric lap band surgery 4 years ago, and have lost close to 115 lbs.  My body doesn't look like anything I ever remember seeing in my life.  (I can see my collarbones.  I didn't even know I HAD collarbones) I've had to give up so many foods and things that most people take for granted.  I don't drink soda.  I haven't had one since December of 2006.  I rarely eat bread, or pasta, or red meat.  If I eat too fast, it hurts.  Sometimes, as long as I'm hydrated, I'll actually forget to eat.  However, I'll never desert bacon.  I seriously love bacon.  Thick cut, thi...

Most parents don't remember what life was like before we became so.  The hectic schedules, the noise, the chaos, and the wondering of when you'd get a moment's peace have permeated our every being.  None of us, however, would change it for the world.  Becoming a parent is TRULY the most selfish thing you can ever do. No child asks to be born, we decide that for them.  We decide how many to have, what environment to bring them into, what to name them, and we shape their futures.  As I sit here, in blessed silence, after a long week with my children that was filled with jokes, bickering, and the always present "Shut up Jordyn, no-one likes you" from my son; I think of what that silence would mean if they weren't around anymore.  With the recent events of the Casey Anthony trial, I know, that as a single mother, I value my "alone" time.  I value my "adult" time.  I love my time with friends where I don't have to censor my language, where I...

Finally back home from a much needed vacation at the beach!  I got to see some old friends, and realized that even though time and distance are factors, true friendships don't fade.  Some of these people I haven't seen in almost 10 years; and it seemed like it was yesterday that we were hanging out together, having fun, sharing our dreams, our problems, and our triumphs.  I swam in the surf, hung out on the sand, ate some amazing food, and spent some quality time with my children.  The memories that we make can't be measured in dollars and cents, but with the incomparable currency that will stand the test of time.  We came back home with tan lines, a bag of random shells, lots of pictures, and the reminder that no matter what, we have a place to go whenever we need to get away.