What's For Dinner?

Most of us know that little kids can be brutally honest.

“Your hair is puffy!” (yes, thank you, I know that)

“You have an earring in your nose!” (Duh, it hurt when I put it there)

“You wear big shoes” (uh, yeah, I have big feet)

But nothing could’ve prepared me for what I got today. Nor could anything have prepared me for my reaction.

“You are big and fat!”

I pretended to be ok with this innocent little girl’s comment. But when 3 or 4 other girls chimed in chanting “You are big and fat” I felt like that 12 year old girl in gym class getting pelted with basketballs (yes, that happened). Each time they said “fat” it was like a bullet. Luckily, I had sunglasses on since we were out at a forest preserve, and I chose that very moment to have to go to the bathroom port-a-potty and I sobbed. Little kids don’t lie unless it benefits them somehow… I must really be big and fat.

Just then, we boarded the busses to go to the pool. Just what I wanted: to put on a bathing suit and skin-tight swim shirt. I took the opportunity to practice sucking in, to carry around a few extra kids to get some muscle work, and walk a few extra laps around the pool complex. I still felt like fat, stinky, smelly garbage.

Next up? Lunch. Just what I needed. Food… to make me bigger and fatter. We order lunch from a local place on Thursdays, and I chose a very healthy chicken/feta/roasted red pepper/tomato wrap. Usually it comes with a bag of chips I can easily pass on. Today, as if a sign, I opened the container and next to my healthy wrap was an order of some of the best french fries I’ve ever had. I started eating them as if I was a starving prisoner, not even tasting them, just shoveling them in because, well, I’m already big and fat, so why not?

Then, the rational brain kicked in (thank goodness.) I handed off the rest of my fries to an older camper who forgot her lunch, and proceeded to slowly eat my wrap. I chose THAT moment to check my phone and see that Adam had sent me an uplifting text message in response to me telling him what happened. And a good friend came over and reminded me that I’ve come so far…

It still hurts, and I had a talk with my girls about “choosing their words” and to not use “hurtful words” like “ugly, mean, or fat”. They were much nicer the rest of the day…and heck, they’re 4 years old, so they’re cute. I was not prepared to have the words from a group of such tiny people to be so hurtful, nor was I prepared to be in a bad mood the entire day because of it. But I survived.

After work, I got to go shopping for supplies for tomorrow’s non-overnighter girls’ night at camp and bought 35 pairs of kids’ size shorts to puffy paint. Should be fun!

After that, I met up with my friend who’s going through a really rough time and needed some distraction. We went for dinner at Cheeseburger in Paradise, and I was quite pleasantly surprised! I had, quite possibly, the best chicken satays I’ve ever had, made better by the side of sweet potato chips.

That's a coconut curry dipping sauce

Then, we both ordered a drink. This served as a drink AND dessert since it was a key lime pie flavored piña colada. I couldn’t finish it, but it was quite delicious.

I don't know why it looks pink.

Tomorrow’s gotta be a better day. It just has to! I got my toes done, and they’re bright yellow. We have a M*A*S*H themed “cookout” with Subway and watermelon, and the girls’ night thing (there won’t be a post tomorrow!). Hopefully my girls will be more respectful, and I won’t take their words so seriously.

Don’t forget to enter my coconut flour giveaway! You know you want free stuff

Thanks for reading the ramblings.