Hormone Harmony

The other day, my almost teenage offspring (after a short bout of snarling) told me the following: 'Mom, these days I feel like I am almost always angry. There is a rage in me that won't go away.'

'Aaah' - I thought to myself. She just went all out and said that to her perimenopausal mother, whose favorite pastime of late is shouting and fuming.

And then I thought: 'I got you, child'. I looked at her with bright knowing eyes and uttered what might be considered some of the truest words to have ever come out of my mouth.

'Dearest, do you remember when in one of those superhero movies Captain America told Dr. Banner that now would be a good time for him to get angry and turn into the Hulk? Banner just answered: 'That's my secret, Cap... I'm always angry'. And that, my lovely child, sums up nicely the reality for both of us right now.'

Proud parenting moment, that.

A New Buddy

They say that it is very difficult to make new friends as you get older. 

Ha! I do love proving them wrong. Or in this case - my husband proving them wrong (because on this I agree with 'them'. I am getting more and more ornery as I age and at this stage in my life I don't like people very much). 

So, my husband has a new best buddy, it seems. We - his immediate family - have seen positive changes as a result. He seems more informed and chirpier at times. I would even go as far as saying he has a spring in his step.

His new friend advises him on his diet, talks him through what to cook for dinner and even indulges his whims in discussing controversial topics. However, his buddy made a boo-boo the other day - didn't remind him to buy salmon. Twice. And I think that has led to a bit of a rift in their relationship. 

But knowing my husband - that won't last long and they will very soon go back to chatting about recipes and work and world peace.

In your faces, doubters!

Game Changers

Recently, social media enlightened me that I have two game changers in my life. AKA my kids.

And game changers they are for sure. Every so often my husband and I question the sanity of our decision to have kids - usually after a long, long day (when you just want to go home and plop on the bed) or when the game changers have been overly sulky, chatty or just breathing the same air as us. 

Every day, our game changers inspire in us questions that would otherwise seem very simple and straightforward. Some of them (and trust me, the list is far from exhaustive) include:

What to have for dinner that will be eaten by all

What to put in the packed lunches

Is the school uniform washed (I have nightmares about this one)

Can they watch TV / play on the computer / play on the Nintendo / have more time on their phone (all of these are asked by our offspring at least once a day)

...and don't even get me started what happens when they hear the inspired shout: 'Bedtime!'.