Thursday Thirteen #19 - Lavender

Thirteen things about Lavender.

1. I have to put this #1. It's the best de-stinker around. Trust me. With 5 little butts I have to diaper since 1997, nothing does it better than lavender. Nothing!

2. I have a very good nose, and little oddities like poopy smell gets to me. You can really see why #1 is important.

3. Lavender is from a same family as mints.

4. On the first of my 3 weddings*, we got a lavender lotion. I didn't like lavender until we got as a gift.

5. I almost stopped using this scent while reading OUTLANDER by Diana Gabaldon. My friend end up with a rabid dislike to this book, which I think is really good. So what if he spanked his wife? It's historical. One cannot change history, but we certainly can make corrections to our behavior today.

6. Lavender can be used as an herb. I've never tried this. I think lavender, I picture diapers and immediately conclude "deskunking" agent.

7. Essential oil of lavender has antiseptic and anti-inflammatory properties.

8. An infusion of lavender is claimed to soothe and heal insect bites.

9. There is scientific evidence to support the effectiveness of some of these remedies, especially the anti-inflammatory effects, but they should be used with caution since lavender oil can also be a powerful allergen.

10. If applied to the temples, lavender oil is said to soothe headaches.

11. Lavender is soporific, and added to bath water or sprinkled on pillows aids relaxation and sleep.

12. "A preliminary finding presented at the Endocrine Society's conference last month ... suggests that shampoos, soaps and body lotions containing ... lavender may cause hormonal imbalances and breast growth in young boys".

13. Gasp! I did not know about #12. Does that mean I now have to find something else to use? I have 4 boys, I am not sure I want them to have hormonal imbalances.

*My DH is so wonderful, I had to marry him 3 times!
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Wordless Wednesday #12

Show Me The Finger!

I believe I am a pretty good driver. I am extra careful when I drive with all of us in the car. Not neurotic-jumpy-careful, but I don't take chances on busy intersection. I sing inside my head a song I learned in first grade about crossing a street, or in my case, making a right or left turn.

Peep, peep, a small Jeep is coming down the street.
Stop, look and listen
Stop, look and listen
Peep, peep, a small Jeep is coming down the street.

Lunch time last Friday was certainly very busy and there were tons of cars. It gets annoying when you're in front of the line and the car behind you starts honking their horn as if they have suddenly gone blind and cannot see the same traffic I am seeing.

Last Friday, I was in that unfortunate situation. It was just awful that the car behind me was filled with teenagers in a red sports convertible, and they were impatient to go. Not even on my best day of impersonating a race-car driver would I have been able to find and opening big enough for me to jump in and go. I was stuck.

This car behind me just kept on honking their horn, waking up DS4's nap, and scaring the hell out of my DS3. I was getting very upset, so was DH. My foot was twitching on my pedals...I was so close to backing up my car to their cute car.

I thought about getting out of my car and breaking their window, then their necks, however, the thought of going to jail for assault, and the fact that they probably wouldn't let me breastfeed in there stopped me. I would have shot them the finger, but it doesn't seem satisfying enough. I wanted to knock their heads.

My windows weren't that dark that you couldn't see two little babies sleeping in my car. These scums were just too much. I was just thinking that it is really alright that some parents raise their kids to a sense of entitlement, that everything they want and wish can be theirs if they are loud enough. I am fine with that.

However, when I start meeting them on the street and they start bugging me, I wanted to punish their parents too. I mean, if they had only raised their children correctly, then maybe they'll save their honking to situations which warrants it. Not forcing some van filled with kids to go into impossible traffic and take their chances.

I was proud that I didn't do what I wanted to do in the moment of passion. It would have been ugly. I stayed out of it. SERENITY NOW!