M is for Mama 10: Another Narcissist Another Day

[feministxtian]

@Babsi it took my kids until they were late tweens to figure out that cracking mom up would get them mostly out of trouble. Of course it depended on the offence. There were a few times when it just didn't work and they knew I was PISSED! The getting quiet routine worked with them rather well as they had the habit of plucking what was left of my last nerve fairly regularly. Funny how they learn to push your buttons, isn't it? Its ok, I can push theirs too. 

Now, those stories are their favorite ones to tell, how when mom got quiet, someone was gonna die, or if mom started counting, the thought of mom getting to 3 terrified them, or mom's lethal abilities with la chancla. Little one got on my last nerve and I growled at her. My son looked at her and said "you will NEVER drive your grandma to that again". I'm glad they back me up as I back them up. 

99% of the time I was a fairly easy going mom. However, there were some hard limits that they'd test regularly. Even now I'm really easy going. If you heard us talking you'd think the kids had no respect for me...BUT...that's not how our family works. We're kinda strange, we'll tell each other to f-off occasionally, crap like that, but underneath it, there is tremendous love and respect all the way around. We thrive on sarcasm and we're all rather "blunt"...

[Babsi]

@feministxtian It definitely shows through your words, and the most important thing in family and friendship is laughing together and not taking things too seriously.

and oh yeah do some little ones try to find every last button. My actual godson and his older sister are instead not aware that buttons exist. Those are the most easy-going, nicest most well-behaved kids ever and honestly it must be mainly genetics though their parents are equally as lovely....but it is a bit unreal. When their dad once said he found being a parent very exhausting I just stared at him (he tends to veer towards burn-outs easily in general, but STILL). By now I HAVE told him he has NO idea and that he won the lottery of parenting on easy mode He has since seen kids with perfectly imperfect normal behaviour on birthday parties and such and is definitely starting to believe me.... HE.HAS.NO.IDEA  

 

 

[feministxtian]

29 minutes ago, Babsi said:

and oh yeah do some little ones try to find every last button.

You've met my kids??? I'm lucky that my grandchildren are fairly easy going. Little One occasionally likes to try Grandma but she doesn't get very far. Baby A is really mellow and happy 99% of the time. Grandson E is a little more intense, but compared to his parents/aunt/uncle he's mellow. We all got lucky! Even Sadie (my puppy) is mellow! The closest she gets to hell raising is she whines in the morning when she has to go potty. The cats, well, one is laying next to me and the other one is crashed out in the little house in the cat tree. They're funny too. Luke is next to me all day and Leia is with me all night. 

Ok...back to the grindstone...Chapter 2 of Mastering AutoCAD 2021 and AutoCAD 2021 LT

[ophelia]

9 hours ago, theotherelise said:

I'm 31 and I still get acne. I have PCOS and the higher levels of testosterone just turn into cysts and pore blockages. I've spent thousands on different treatment options. My sister is 35 and has the same issues.

Together, we have tried all myriad of antibiotics, prescription creams, acutane, OTC and prescription retinoids, natural products, and diet changes. 

Acne is not caused by poor hygiene and for a boy going through puberty, it's almost a certain thing. Unfortunately, people with acne are often perceived as dirty or gross. IMO, it's just one more type of body-shaming. Ezra is a child, he doesn't need people commenting on his acne.

 

A hug to you @theotherelise. I also have PCOS and developed acne over the last year. I'm 32 and having acne and getting more and more gray hair at the same time has been really hard on me. I totally feel you.

[Babsi]

@ophelia and @theotherelise: Yes, needs to be talked about more often. Real acne has little to nothing to do with hygiene (sure bad hygiene helps no skin, but...) I have a friend who is over 35 and she struggles with it as well and can only use a very limited number of skin care products and has battled it since puberty.

I didn't even think to point his acne out, he is a teenager, he seems to have it more then some, so what. We don't know if and what they are doing for his skin, but many of the effective treatments of acne consist of medication with SERIOUS side-effects and not of a different face wash and I personally would not subject my teenager to meds that are HARD on the body if he was that young. The friend I mentioned before went on accutane for a while and there are a ton of warnings, things you can't do anymore, side-effects and whatnot. And I am all for criticizing Miss Fuss-Juice-Anger-Problems for her actual parenting, but this is in my opinion not something that should be or needs to be snarked on.

@feministxtian: Sounds like a peaceful household/family with just the right amount of fun and zest

[smittykins]

17 hours ago, theotherelise said:

I'm 31 and I still get acne. I have PCOS and the higher levels of testosterone just turn into cysts and pore blockages. I've spent thousands on different treatment options. My sister is 35 and has the same issues.

I’m 54 with PCOS and I still get zits the size of Mount Everest at a certain time of the month.  

[TuringMachine]

23 hours ago, ophelia said:

Looks like the houses I've build for my sims over the years.

My sims houses are way nicer than this.

[ophelia]

2 hours ago, TuringMachine said:

My sims houses are way nicer than this.

To be honest - mine were too. At least on Sims 3. I treated myself with the Sims 4 over the holidays since it was on discount and we are probably in lockdown til spring and I just can't handle the construction mode anymore.

[G33kywife]

There is someone in my area currently doing a very large renovation on their home. Most homes in the area are between 1500-2000 square feet. Nothing much larger than that. The renovation is taking their home to over 4000 square feet. The original part of the house is in front, and the new part is on the back and is 2 storeys. The two designs are not cohesive in any way, shape, or form. When all of the initial framing was completed, I thought of Braggie first thing! The unmatching windows, design styles, multiple roof lines, etc. I can only hope that when it is actually finished, it looks a bit better, but I’m not very optimistic about that! 

[Joe Pukepail]

On 1/14/2021 at 11:10 AM, Red Hair, Black Dress said:

I think the whole crazy funhouse look is because Braggie and hub DIY-ed the house without building plans and bought materials from wholesalers/ salvage/ building suppliers who did not have enough of something so they made do.

Windows for example -- They bought whatever was available and made it fit without any regard to size-space ratio or matching styles/size. Without building plans roof lines are off, heights don't match, dormer sizes don't match. the pitch of the porch roof is different from one side to the other. There's so much more

That house is, in a word, jerry-built. Shoddy construction.  Not to mention a fire trap inside.

Bet you cash money they sell it to one of her fangirls within 5 years, Lock stock barrel mattresses and everything else  -- exactly like they sold the previous house.

 

We built a tiny cabin a few years ago and used all salvage/secondhand materials, including windows. It still looks more coherent than this.

[TuringMachine]

On 1/15/2021 at 10:58 AM, ophelia said:

To be honest - mine were too. At least on Sims 3. I treated myself with the Sims 4 over the holidays since it was on discount and we are probably in lockdown til spring and I just can't handle the construction mode anymore.

Give it another try. Build mode in sims 4 is definitely improved from 3. Being able to pick up a room or house or the whole lot and move it is a game changer.

[The butcher's wife]

Honor turned four and received a day out with Abbie and Shaun as his gift. They went to brunch and then the park. Abbie remarks upon how the kids are always thrilled by the one-on-one time with their parents on their birthdays. Good job realising that, Abbie! Now take that thought to the next level: wouldn't it be awesome if you only had as many children as you could manage to spend one-on-one time with on a daily basis?

I can't roll my eyes hard enough. Sure, give the birthday-kid extra attention. Let them pick the activities they want to do. But for the love of Rufus, make time for your children each and every damn day! It's not like you (or Shaun) work a full-time job out of the house. You are with your children all-day every day and still don't find time to do something with just them unless it's a super special occasion. Way to love your super-rad blessings.

[JermajestyDuggar]

11 hours ago, The butcher's wife said:

Honor turned four and received a day out with Abbie and Shaun as his gift. They went to brunch and then the park. Abbie remarks upon how the kids are always thrilled by the one-on-one time with their parents on their birthdays. Good job realising that, Abbie! Now take that thought to the next level: wouldn't it be awesome if you only had as many children as you could manage to spend one-on-one time with on a daily basis?

I can't roll my eyes hard enough. Sure, give the birthday-kid extra attention. Let them pick the activities they want to do. But for the love of Rufus, make time for your children each and every damn day! It's not like you (or Shaun) work a full-time job out of the house. You are with your children all-day every day and still don't find time to do something with just them unless it's a super special occasion. Way to love your super-rad blessings.

How unbelievably sad. Her kids only get one on one time on their birthday. My kids get one on one time every single day of their lives. Because I only had as many children as I could parent.

[feministxtian]

15 hours ago, The butcher's wife said:

Abbie remarks upon how the kids are always thrilled by the one-on-one time with their parents on their birthdays.

Kids are thrilled with one on one time w/their parents period. Hate to say it but even ADULT kids enjoy that. At least, I know mine do. It doesn't even have to be anything special. For example...me and daughter hanging out in her kitchen while the dogs play. #1 son and I using my SUV to go somewhere to pick stuff up that won't fit in his car. #2 son and I just hanging out watching a movie. 

Ok...maybe my kids are weird. Maybe I'm weird (that's not a maybe). 

But...only getting one on one time on their birthdays is not good. Ok, you have 10 kids...set aside one afternoon a month for each kid for serious, focused one on one time. Not ideal but better. I don't remember consciously setting time aside for my kids...I was more of a drop everything and listen mom. That might be why the house was never clean, the laundry was never finished...they came first. Then again, I hate housework and any excuse to not do it was a winner. Did I drop everything for my kids to avoid chores I hated? Probably. Was it worth it? You bet your ass it was. 

[0 kids n not countin]

Hmm, extra sad for the two sets of twins. Not sure how it works for them, perhaps they can only look forward to four on one time once a year on their shared birthday?? ? You suck Abbie...?

[NotQuiteMotY]

On 1/17/2021 at 11:59 AM, feministxtian said:

Kids are thrilled with one on one time w/their parents period. Hate to say it but even ADULT kids enjoy that. At least, I know mine do. It doesn't even have to be anything special. For example...me and daughter hanging out in her kitchen while the dogs play. #1 son and I using my SUV to go somewhere to pick stuff up that won't fit in his car. #2 son and I just hanging out watching a movie. 

Ok...maybe my kids are weird. Maybe I'm weird (that's not a maybe). 

I think that's called you having a good relationship with your adult kids! I lived with my parents for a few years after college and it wasn't unusual for my mom and me to just sit in the living room and watch a movie together on Sunday afternoons.

[feministxtian]

11 minutes ago, NotQuiteMotY said:

I think that's called you having a good relationship with your adult kids! I lived with my parents for a few years after college and it wasn't unusual for my mom and me to just sit in the living room and watch a movie together on Sunday afternoons.

#1 son came screaming in with a paper in his hand the other day...he got his disability rating upped to 90%. He also got his grades for last semester. I think it's totally awesome that he just HAD to tell mom about it. Daughter and #2 son are much the same way...whatever happens, they just HAVE to tell mom. I think I was the first to know about daughter's promotion. 

Yes, I adore my children. They're assholes, but they're MY assholes. 

[danvillebelle]

They got two parakeets.  I am shocked Braggie would allow that, considering how loud and messy they can be.

I give them 2 months of life tops, before they are inadvertently/unintentionally extinguished by one of the kids or the dogs.

[JermajestyDuggar]

1 hour ago, danvillebelle said:

They got two parakeets.  I am shocked Braggie would allow that, considering how loud and messy they can be.

I give them 2 months of life tops, before they are inadvertently/unintentionally extinguished by one of the kids or the dogs.

The lizards are pretty easy to maintain and make little noise. The dog had puppies and she got rid of them way too soon. So yes, I agree she won’t want to keep the birds for long. It’s like Zoo. She will buy animals and within a few months, we don’t see them again.

[danvillebelle]

9 minutes ago, JermajestyDuggar said:

She will buy animals and within a few months, we don’t see them again.

These kinds of people make me so fucking mad I could scream.  I have owned hamsters, dogs, cats, rats, fish, birds, rabbits (indirectly, they belong/ed to my daughters).  We also raised chickens years ago and are hoping to get some again this year.  When you take on the commitment of an animal's life, whether it's a pet or for food, you don't fucking ditch it when you're tired of it.  I can't even browse my local craigslist "free" page because it's always full of dogs and cats and it makes me too sad.  

[Lurker]

The birds will have a chance of surviving if she can work them in to her decor.   I can see her getting a big fancy cage with coordinating bird themed wall paper.

Edited January 22, 2021 by Lurker

[SassyPants]

57 minutes ago, Lurker said:

The birds will have a chance of surviving if she can work them in to her decor.   I can see her getting a big fancy cage with coordinating bird themed wall paper.

Perfect. I’m sure she has a cute nook in that is such screaming for some campy wallpaper and tacky, indoor aviary. 

[danvillebelle]

In both pics of the birds they're out, sitting on kids.  I hope they crap on her precious living room rug. 

[feministxtian]

I'm not crazy about birds as pets. Its just me. However, people like Braggie, IMO, should not have pets. They're work, they require attention, teaching, etc. The dynamic duo takes quite a bit of attention and they're felines. Between feeding, grooming, and litter box cleaning, they take a good little bit of time. Then there's playing, snuggling, petting, skritching. Sadie takes some serious time. She's finally housebroken, but she's still young enough that I have to pay attention to when she goes to the door. Then there's the feeding, watering, playing, teaching her. She's almost like having another kid. She doesn't need much grooming since she has very short hair (Thank Rufus). 

Braggie can't be assed to take care of her kids, what makes her think that caring for a pet is a good idea? Even if you think you can get your kids to care for the critter, there are things beyond their ability...and then there's the vet bills!! 

[TuringMachine]

4 hours ago, danvillebelle said:

They got two parakeets.  I am shocked Braggie would allow that, considering how loud and messy they can be.

I give them 2 months of life tops, before they are inadvertently/unintentionally extinguished by one of the kids or the dogs.

I have a cockatiel. He loves screaming at seagulls and chewing up all my walls. So yeah, not the pet I'd imagine for Braggie.

The birds wings appear to be clipped. Normally I'm not a fan of clipping a birds wings, and in this case it'll impede their ability to fly away from Ruby, but on the other hand having flighted birds in that funhouse has a whole host of other issues. 

Curious, since I usually get a lot of surprised reactions when I tell people this, does Braggie know clipping wings isn't permanent? If she doesn't want flighted birds she'll have to get them clipped every couple of months.