Candy Corn vs. Candy Pumpkins

Day 22 should be a quick one. Candy corns vs. Candy Pumpkins. It's almost Halloween, and I just picked up a few bags of candy corns, so you can probably already see which side I'm on.

Some candies/treats are polarizing. Candy corn is a decent example. MOST people either like them or dislike them, with not a lot of middle ground. I like them.  I know a lot of people hate them. Here's a short list of polarizing candies:

Black jelly beans
Candy Corn
Circus Peanuts
Peeps
Blood pudding

Back to candy corn vs. candy pumpkins...it's the same junk. I'm not really sure why they made candy pumpkins in the first place. They taste identical. It's just taking some perfectly good candy, changing the shape and calling it a new candy. Like if someone changed gummi bears into some other shape...like worms. Or someone took a pizza and made it into a square. That kind of shit just isn't done.  Or maybe it is, but it's stupid.

I bite the layers off starting with the little white tip.  There's no taste difference, I just like doing it.  I really don't have much to add about candy pumpkins except that they're just to candy corns what gummi worms are to bears or sicilian pizza is to normal pizza.  They're not as aesthetically pleasing. 

Advantage:  Candy corn

Cake

Day 21...the Day AFTER my birthday, we discuss cake.

I've heard that people are either "pie" people or "cake" people.  I think it's sort of like people are either dog people or cat people.  And maybe people like both, but there's one that really clicks with them and the other they tolerate or even enjoy...just to a lesser extent.

I'm a cake person.  Pie is fine.  I like pie.  But I prefer cake.  To continue with the cat person/dog person analogy.  If cake people are like cat people, I'd be relatively happy to be living in a house full of cakes when I'm old and infirm. 

That said, I only want one piece of cake.  I don't have much of a sweet tooth, so although I like cake...I'm done after one piece.  I don't want one tomorrow, or the next day or the next day...maybe the day after that. 

So last week when my mom asked if I wanted any special dessert for my birthday, I said cookies.  Because I'll eat a cookie a day every day for the rest of my life.

Anyway...back to cake:

There's only one way to describe well made cake..."moist".  I hate that word.  What is another word that we could use to describe the correct-bakedness of cake? 

The cake was ..."humid"
The cake was ..."muggy"
The cake was ..."clammy"
The cake was ..."dank"
The cake was ...""...I don't know.  There's just no good word for a moist cake that doesn't use the word moist.

Sooooooo....moving forward...moltulous.  The cake was spongy and moltulous.  Bang!  Done!

I took this picture of me "surprised" at seeing my birthday cookie complete with candle.  It's a shitty selfie, in no small part because you can't actually SEE the birthday cookie and also it's out of focus.  And there's some weird thing going on near my eye that doesn't happen in nature.  I should have given myself more arm and focused...but I was just so surprised!!  Also, I swear the flame on the candle was normal sized, not inferno-class.

oh my god!  for me??  You shouldn't have!

Special needs kids and confidence

Day 20.  We are two thirds of the way there, and on this, the holiest of days, I bring you another serious topic, that of developing confidence in special needs kids.

First, I really am not qualified to say "this will build confidence in kids" or more..."this will build confidence in special needs kids", but I can tell you how I treat my kids.  I can tell you how I hope that how I'm raising them helps them as confident individuals growing up.

I try never to downplay or belittle my children's fears.  When they come to me and tell me they're afraid of something.  I tell them that I understand.  I never tell them to suck it up or stop being wusses.  I acknowledge their feelings and I offer ways to help them cope. I talk to them about their fears.

I freely offer affection.  I give hugs and kisses and snuggle wherever and whenever my kids want.  I don't tell them to "get over it" or "stop being a baby", I want them to always know that they have someone to comfort them.  That I'm always a safe place.  I want them to always feel protected.  Before I ever even had kids I'd heard (and I can't even tell you where or who...) that withholding affection from kids...you know, to toughen them up...did the opposite.  It made kids feel less secure with parents and less sure of themselves.  And that kids who got affection and more attention tended to feel secure.  Not that I'd have it any other way, but that would be the excuse I'd offer if anyone were to accuse me of "coddling" them.  I'm not coddling them.  They have limits and they know them.  They are disciplined.  But the hug well is bottomless.

I compliment them on things that they do right/well...or things that they did poorly that they got better at.  I try to compliment them on everything, not just "pretty princess" stuff.  I tell them when I think they're saying smart things, or being funny, or when they look pretty, or make an athletic play.  I want them to know that when they do well, I notice. 

I tell them I'm proud of them, I ask them to tell me whether they feel proud of themselves.  If not, i ask why.  I try to explain why I think they should be proud of themselves despite their reasons. 

I try not to ask too much of them.  I try to set small goals and allow them to achieve them before advancing to harder goals.  I like them to feel they're doing well.  I like them to have successes upon which to build.

But...I know parents who feel like they did everything right and their kids still struggle with self esteem.  So I don't know.  School can be awesome, or socially crippling, and I can't do anything to make it better except to listen when they come to me.

I don't know, I guess the summary is...

Let your kids know you love them
Let your kids FEEL that you love them
Let your kids know you are proud of them
Encourage them to feel proud of themselves.